The Musical Analysis of Undertale From Undertale

 No that is not a typo in the title, the song is indeed called Undertale.  It was released, along with the game, in 2015 by the developer and composer Toby Fox. Undertale and its music took the gaming world by storm and people till, to this day make covers and create masterpieces with the music. 

The Games and Symphonies orchestra even performed some of the music!

This is the song that I used to teach myself piano and it has gotten me through many hard times in my life

Even if you do not play the game I highly recommend listening to the soundtrack! It has some of the most iconic and noteworthy songs in gaming culture.

    The song starts out homophonic with a lovely guitar melody but changes to polyphonic when the piano melody joins in. Though these two melodies do not fight, they are each clear, crisp and stand out in the complexity of the song. The dynamic of the song start out at a soft mezzo piano and, when the piano plays a descending scale, increases to a solid forte for the end of the piece. Along with the volume increase at the descending scale there is an increase in complexity as more instruments are added to accompany or play the melody. The original melody becomes and accompaniment to the piano melody and then both die away to make room for a flute solo. The tempo is a steady 4/4 through out the song and it serves to highlight the beauty and complexity of the piece as a whole.

  WARNING-If you do not want spoilers for the game Undertale do not continue reading!

  Undertale the song, to me, represents what Undertale the game is all about. The song accompanies a story about the love and sacrifice of a friend and brother. The story is of Asriel Dreemurr who found a human that had fallen into his home, the Underground, and his life after he brought them home. Asriel is the young prince of the Underground. He is kind, loving and often called a crybaby because of how often he sheds tears. However, this kind and loving nature would eventually be his downfall. He rescues a human who fell into the Underground and takes them home. The two eventually become close friends and Asriel's parents King Asgore and Queen Toriel (Yes, Asriel is a combination of the two. Asgore is bad at naming anything!) treat the human as their own child. The monsters of the Underground accept the human as one of their own but one day the human falls ill. The human child does not make it and their last wish is to see the golden flowers from their village. Asriel, wanting to fulfill that wish, absorbs the human's soul and passes through the barrier that keeps all of the monsters trapped underground. He takes the human to their village but because Asriel's body changed when he absorbed the soul the humans are terrified and mortally wound him. The prince manages to make it back home before he turns to dust and covers the throne room in the pollen of his best friend's favorite flower. Eventually these flowers grow to cover the entire throne room and King Asgore dutifully cares for them. This story and what Asriel does for his sibling in all but blood is what makes this song so meaningful. The way the song changes with the story is beautiful and it is the perfect one for this part of the game. The guitar melody is actually Asriel's theme and plays at many places, including at a statue with a music box in it!