Tony...you gotta check out 西游记 1986 主题曲 Journey to the west 1986 theme song, this was the first piece of music in China that contained electronic music. The original song had just one word, just "ah" (same as this modern rendition) but it captured the "feeling of adventure" and "flying in the clouds" perfectly
The original composer is still alive and he’s so so happy and surprised by how popular Celestial Symphony has become outside of East Asia (including SEA). He said he never in a million years would’ve dreamt this would happen. He also said he decided to use electronic music because it hasn’t been done yet in China at the time just like how the show was the first of its kind in China with how ambitious it was.
Yea, that time was 1986.....now its almost 30 years and yet this is so much enhanced and dramatic. Hearing this played back on the game again with improvements is nostalgic and refreshing at the same time.
Every Asian aged 30s - 40s is bathing in the nostalgia and hype. Yea I mean Asian and not just Chinese because Journey to the West was a huge part of our culture for many different Asian countries.
Mid 20s here, yeah Journey to the west was very popular back when I was young! Im happy that through this game the younger generations and also people outside of Asia will be able to know about the journey to the west through this game
Mr. Jingqing Xu (许镜清) is the composor who wrote music for the 1986 TV series of The Journey to the West (西游记). He was commissioned to write music for its first 25 episodes at the price of around 250 RMB (around 35 USD) per episode. He received a total of 6000 RMB (around 845 USD) for this work. But due to the copyright infringement problem in China, his work although got so much cited and played and used everwhere, he did not receive payment. It is a shame. He later started using legal tools to sue those who infringe his copyright, but the protection is still limited. He always dreamt to organize a concert in China performing the whole set of music, but no one was seriously supporting him until a group of users online started a fundraising campain and realized his dream in 2016. He is 81 years old now. I can only imagine his feeling of having his music travelling all over the world now because of Black Myth: Wu Kong.
the story of Sun Wukong is adapted from a novel 400 years ago, and this music is adapted from the TV theme song over 40 years ago. How nostalgia hits hard, you have no idea ... this music is my childhood😭
@@denan1 Son Goku is the Japanese pronunciation of the three Chinese characters for "孙悟空", and the orthodox pronunciation of these three Chinese characters in Chinese is sun wukong
Dragon Ball is an obvious and well-known adaptation. The not-so-obvious are King Kong (Monkey King Wu Kong), Planet of the Apes, Into the Badland, the Forbidden Kingdom, and many Marvel characters with superhuman abilities.
My South Asian parents were beyond excited to catch me playing Wukong when it dropped. They were in awe at the character styles, the bosses, and the sceneries because they never expected something from their childhood to slip into mine on such a massive scale. After finishing the game and discovering the story, I hope The Journey to the West is forever passed on as it has 😄of course the music was absolutely phenomenal. Game Science deserve all the fame coming their way!
although my family doesn’t know about this game but hell even my non gamers friends and relatives asking me did I get this game I was kinda surprised too when they knew this game lol
This song is really cool! Especially because it plays during a cutscene that summarizes the events of the original book that this game is based on, Journey to the West. It is a reinterpretation of the opening theme song of the 1986 eastern TV show by the same name. I am not personally familiar with the show but based on comments its extremely nostalgic and was unexpected to be a piece in the game!
Nostalgic? This is like the Chinese equivalent to Star Trek. You grew up watching it on the TV, the different generations of movies and other tv series versions that come and go then it circles back all the way to Captain Kirk. I remember being 8 years old being given a video tape by my Dad with episodes of the 1986 version and seeing Wukong burst out of a giant rock in the middle of the ocean in the opening with that weird whooing 80’s sound design. Then they just bring it all back with those iconic five notes. Only those who grew up with this will understand how much this means to us.
The duu duu duu, duu duu duu is super iconic. It appears at the start of the 80s journey to the west tv show. The last part of the ost has some Chinese musical instruments like the Chinese cymbals
It’s a love letter to the original song of the live action Journey to the West from the 80s so it’s iconic in China. This is the theme of Wukong’s journey to get the Buddhist Scriptures with his monk master. Black Myth Wukong takes place after those events, it’s the sequel and follows the Destined One, a monkey reincarnation, as he recollects pieces of Wukongs spirit after wukong got deaded by the Celestial Court, all the gods of China. So a lot of the game is about remembering the Journey to the West while this Destined One is on his own journey, he meets a lot of the same characters in new events, and seeing them after wukong met them long ago. Lots of details and references to the original story. This song is really a cherry on top with where it plays in the game, during an awesome animated series of wukongs original adventures. You should check it out if you don’t play. All of the animated chapter endings (6 of them) are SUBLIME. They each have a unique song and story it’s crazy detailed.
I just finished the game yesterday, and I was greeted by the music, I loved every moment of it especially when he said, "Brothers let's have one last drink before we invade the celestial court"
I cant believe im feeling nostalgic for something ive never even watched or heard of before. I cant imagine what people who have been fans of the shows must have felt when they first heard this
Cried, sobbing, bawled our eyes out from the nostalgia and realizing that Game Science's marketing strategy for the game was just straight love and passion for Wukong and Journey to the West. What an ingenius move to put the old monkey at the end of the first trailer just humming the theme song that triggers nostalgia for majority of Asians. The first time i watched the trailer I was hyped and excited but I was completely stunned from disbelief that they put the theme song in their game. After a few seconds I started crying.
Wow this is amazing. And I am saying it as some one who grew up watching the 1986 tv series. I basically had tears rolling and felt breathless when I first saw and listened to the game animations
I've heard people say this is essentially the "star wars" theme for the Chinese culture, it's so ingrained into their pop culture from the 80's. The developers took the original and made it a very big and bombastic piece for the game, and it's very well received, especially in China right now. Fun fact, the character Wukong was a direct inspiration for Goku from dragon ball/Z, but not only that, Wukong and the story of journey to the west is basically the original stepping stone for Shonen anime in general. All the anime tracks you enjoy and react to, basically came to be because of journey to the west, it's the OG blueprint for so much modern anime.
My grandmother brought the VCD of 1986 Journey to the West from China, way way waaay back in the day. I still have it now even though she had passed away 8 years ago. I grew up watching it so many times. To hear this theme again is a blast of nostalgia and makes me miss her so much 🥺🥺
I almost cried when I heard this song in the game. Seriously nostalgic. Pretty much every kid in China from the 80s-2000s grew up watching the 1986 journey to the west with this song as the intro music.
Just to add a few pieces of information. The bass drum is a Chinese big drum instead of Timpani. The high pitch drum that sounds similar to Bongo or African drum is a set of 4 modern Chinese small drums called Paigu (排鼓). The strumming instrument at the start of the crescendo is an Chinese instrument called Pipa(琵琶）. I also like the way Double Bass, French Horn and Trumpet were used.
You can search "31-Person Ensemble Full Version of the Theme Song from "Black Myth: Wukong" to see all the different musical instruments used, there are quite a few that I haven't seen before.
thank you so much for typing out the paigu drum's name. I rarely see people refer to it by name even if they are trying to explain what it is in English
I have listened to the original composition of this piece hundreds, if not thousands, of times since I was a child. It is almost engraved in my deepest memories. This game has reinterpreted it, and I have listened to it many more times since then. Now, I increasingly see this piece as a portrayal of the grand emotion and complete process of resisting injustice. As I listen, I can't help but think of the heroes throughout ancient China's numerous dynastic changes. They overthrew the old order and established a better one, but this order would gradually become corrupt and collapse, only to be overthrown again. This cycle repeated dozens of times. Each time, millions to tens of millions of soldiers fought across vast territories, ultimately determining the strongest contender supported by the people. The entire story of Black Myth: WuKong follows a similar pattern, but it takes place in the realm of gods. Sun Wukong is the leader who seeks to overthrow injustice and establish a better order. Lastly, I want to mention that the original composer of this piece is still alive.
The boop-boop-boop sound is from the OG 1986 soundtrack. It was one of the earliest, if not THE earliest electronic music produced in China, largely because the show it made for was low-budget but one of China's first attempts at long-form, special-effects heavy TV shows. They wanted to emphasize the experimental/special effects nature of the show.
I bursted into tears the moment hearing this, not just about the story journey to the west, the music work and the culture, also the old times when I was little, the great time spent with my grandparents, family. Omg I got so emotional 😅
This music piece is a recreation of the opening music of 1986's show "Journey to the West". As many have mentioned in the comments, this is the show that many Asians grew up with. I would probably compare it to the hearing Star Wars theme for westerners. Here is the link to the 1986 original piece (the first 3 min) if you are interested: ua-cam.com/video/lnNxfdwtQNQ/v-deo.html&ab_channel=UncleQi It used a lot of electronic music to create a "celestial" feel. For context, China was quite new to electronic music at that time and this type of music was not heard very often. They used it to make the audience feel that they are in the heaven, distinct from the daily life. The women's high-pitched vocal in the middle is also to create the same feel. On the percussions side, it used Yunluo (literally translated to "cloud gongs"), which is the light metal sound you hear in the background. Instruments that are completely made of metals are expensive in the old days and often associated with high-classed lords and emperors. Again, this is to give the "celestial" feel that is distinct from the mundane life. It also used Paigu (literally translated to "row drums"), which is the drum that you hear kicking in once in a while, especially towards the end. It provides a naughty and playful vibe, which is directly related to Wukong's character in the book and the show. This was significantly tuned down in the black myth wukong version, as the story took place after JTTW and wukong became a lot more matured in the game. The last instrument worth mentioning is Muyu (literally translated to "wooden fish"), which is the fast rhythmic and repetitive sound you hear in the background. It actually has two purposes. One is Muyu is often used by Buddhism monks when they are reading the mantra. The use of Muyu provides a sense of Buddhism, which is what the show is about. More importantly, Muyu sounds similar to the sound of horse steps (and in fact is often used to mimic the sound of horse steps in shows and movies). In the book/show, Tang Sanzang has a horse that he rides on while completing his journey to the west. There are a lot of back stories about this horse that I am skipping. But the idea is using Muyu to mimic horse steps gives the vibe of the "journey". This was also tuned down in the black myth wukong version, as the story took place after the journey and the horse was not in black myth wukong's story. The above is largely based on Dr. JP Feng's analysis to the 1986' original piece (ua-cam.com/video/2ggcw6UEJvM/v-deo.html&ab_channel=%E5%8F%A8%E5%8F%A8%E5%86%AF%E8%81%8A%E9%9F%B3%E4%B9%90). This video was not translated to English unfortunately, but in the video, Dr. Feng demonstrated all the instruments that I mentioned above. If you are interested in hearing what they sound like and which part of music they were used, you can find that information in his video.
the concert in shenzhen sold out in 2mins, i wanted to cry...maybe i am able to catch the concert in Shanghai or other cities...i really love the music and songs of this game❤
I'm among the millions who grew up with the TV show whose opening theme is this music, _Celestial Symphony_ . I was so used to it but never realised it had so many hidden details. With your in-depth analysis, not only can I better enjoy this music now, but I also find it interesting to see how musicians have been appreciating and learning from each other across cultural boundaries all the time. Thank you! Just subscribed. 😊
This is the childhood of everyone in China. They are replaying Journey to the West in summer holidays and it’s the kids’ favourite. It gives me goosebumps and love the remake of the theme song in this epic way❤ By the way, the main part of this theme song is actually the intro of the ED of the TV series.
This is ancient Chinese mythology but also based on Chinese Zen/Tao/Philosophy. To appreciate the deeper meanings hidden behind all those details in the game, one could check out the Chinese novel “A journey to the west” or the Chinese Zen Book “How to be Happy: the Wisdom to Attain Happiness and Success by Constructing an Invincible Mind”
I recently encountered a channel called "Avenue X," which explains everything in the Journey to the West extremely well. She also introduces many Chinese cultural classics.
1:47 the electronic beat were added by the original composer in the 80s because he felt he needed to make it feel "out of this world" and soundboard is as far from physical intrument as you can get. it's amusing they kept this in because most modern renditions actually remove this to create a more grand, classical feel.
I’ve played so many games and this is the first one that feels like a labor of love and an illustration of how a video game can reach the level of fine arts, because this might be the first one to do so
This song is a pure piece of music without lyrics, but it can still make people feel the hardships and bumps of the four Tang monks and disciples in the process of taking scriptures in the west. The song used trumpets, brass, electric guitar and drums to give people a sense of justice moving forward. These instruments make the music majestic and powerful. The harmony of the female voice in the middle of the song makes the melody more beautiful and can't help but makes people think of the scene in the sky.
Glad to know the game makes this music to world wide known and we can hear the analyze of this music, it definitely a music of childhood memories for most of Chinese. It makes me cry when the main theme begins!
It was in 80’s. I was a 7 or 8 years old boy from a poor family. My family could not afford to buy a black-and-white TV. I brought my chair to my neighbor’s yard to watch Journey to the West. Now I am 50 years old. I remember the music, Wukong, Bajie, Shaheshang and Tang Seng. Tears in my eyes.
The electric guitar is there because it was in the original JTTW ost. They made the right move to include all of the instruments involved in the original even though some of them are not trendy anymore (electric guitar and keyboard). IMO, they add the funkiness to the fantasy world filled with mystical creatures.
This piece is a rearrangement of the 1986 JTTW TV series opening theme. Back in those days China was still relatively poor, the composer didn't have cool toys like a Fairlight CMI or an E-mu, instead he used a Yamaha DX7, most notable are those phew phew phews. The current Black Myth version plays at the very end of the game, accompanying the final cutscene animation, which recalls many tales from the original JTTW timeline. Aside from actual gaming, there's just so damn much artistically astonishing presentation of reimagined literature, visual, and sound. It is clearly a work of love and that alone deserves respect. So, F IGN, Game Rant and all those in between. There.
When I was young the ending song for TV was more popular, but after almost 40 years it turns this opening theme is truly classic (the change by BMW makes it even greater)
I thinks it’s simply because when we were kids, when the opening music was playing, we had our eyes all fixed on the moves and actions on the screen, visual excitement is obviously more attractive to kids😂. And now after at least 20-40 years, hearing all the things modern music could offer, this opening is apparently still killing everybody, none is even close. The ending is merely a song… so i think that’s why
I got a PS5 for this game, considering I never played any video games be4😂😂😂 but ima Asian, I knew this story and I love Wukong, so it’s a no brainer for me.
Here is the original. Whenever the music started on TV, we knew our summer break officially started! It's the collective childhood memory of all middle-age Chinese . ua-cam.com/video/biTzhToldz4/v-deo.html The composer said in an interview that he was asked to write a song within a very short period of time (1983). He had this writer's block until one day he heard clanks of a construction worker tapping his aluminum lunchbox with a spoon. That's right, the melody came from the clanks.
I need you to know this. This arrangement for the game OST just apply minimum touch on the original song of the 1986 TV series. Imagine how modern it still sounds. My whole body became alive just listening to these nostagical sounds.
Overcome all difficulties and move towards victory CPC Party History: "Journey to the West" is an immortal artistic monument in the history of Chinese literature. Mao Zedong was a loyal reader of "Journey to the West". During his long revolutionary career, he made many incisive comments on this book. He greatly admired Tang Monk's spirit of seeking scriptures to inspire the fighting spirit of the whole party; he hoped that comrades would learn from Sun Wukong's spirit of daring to fight, but they should also put an end to personal heroism. Mao Zedong used these entertaining methods to help people understand more truths.
Just an fyi - the drum solo at around 16:56 is meant to imitate the horse galloping sound (Wukong's master travelled on a horse during their journey to the west).
I believe I read somewhere that at the time, Electronic music was not a thing in China and this is one the first times they use electronic music in movies. All producers against the idea but the Director insisted to use it
height of this game has achieved has us Chinese care least about GOTY😂. Maybe we did care before it was officially launched, but after we played it through, it’s definitely much more than a game, so GOTY can be awarded to FF7reload or something else, they need that more than BMW 🎉😂
Persona 3 reload recently got a new dlc expansion and got another battle theme called “Don’t” and I thinks it’s pretty good and that you should check it out. Thanks for always making informative content for the games I love
as a lot of people has mentioned, this song is from the 1986 tv show. you can listen to it from this link. ua-cam.com/video/lnNxfdwtQNQ/v-deo.html here's a chinese percussionist analysing the song: ua-cam.com/video/2ggcw6UEJvM/v-deo.html it's basically the same song, using a bit more orchestraic presentation to enlarge the scale a bit. the song tells the story of journey to the west. the starting parts echoes wukong's start when he challenged the celestial court, (the sudden EDM is to depict wukong's agility and ability) then he was prisoned by buddha under the mountain, and then went on a long journey with tang monk on a journey. by the ending part of this song, the music is softer because by the end of the journey, they were basically cruising already. in the ending of the game, the animation scenes were reversed of this story. they used the same music. it's kinda odd because of the order, but still works in a strange way. some chinese netizens are jokingly saying that journey to the west is supposed to be read in reverse. it's nice of you to notice the oddness of the outro, because if you listened to the original above, the outro is not there. i believe it's added on by game science because black myth wukong is telling is the story after journey to the west, hence, the outro is like an extension of the music. the juxtaposition. the oddness of the piano also somewhat sounded like them saying "we're not canon to journey to the west, but our story is still faithful to the original"
That's an interesting observation! The theme music of the 1980s TV series "Journey to the West" is indeed iconic, blending traditional Chinese musical elements with modern electronic nodes, creating a unique and timeless sound. The electronic nodes are a salute to the masterpiece in the history of mainland China's TV series. You can find the same nodes in the theme music in it.
I miss the time when the whole family watched the Journey to the West together in the Spring Festival when I was young, which is very far away and seems to be yesterday, which can not help but make me burst into tears
Hey Tony, is Blue Lock something you’d be interested in? S2 is around the corner and I remember you liked both openings a lot and there are a lot more good OSTs during the show
The beginning of the music you can hear the Chinese drums 堂鼓/大鼓 or less likely 花盆鼓, with what i assume a digeridoo in the background? The drums sounded a pitch higher later so i assume its either 排鼓 or 小鼓. The high pitch metal sound is probably the 碰铃. Then after the nothingness, chinese bells come in with cymbal sounds made from dragging a bow across the rim? Then the sound of suspended cymbal began and ends with a bass drum. At the background you can hear 排鼓 sounds, then you can hear 琵琶. The drums are not bass drums but 大鼓, where you can hit the rims, the drums produce a unique sound different from bass drums in an orchestra. Then you can hear the iconic 唢呐 instrument. The 锣 and 钹 can be heard when the 排鼓 or 小堂鼓 Solo begins. If not mistaken, there are also 响扳, 单皮鼓, 板. I may be wrong at some parts like the gong sounds, might be 青铜锣
Thanks for your video, just wanna share my views that the percussion @16:10 may sound random but as someone of Chinese descent we can quickly identify it and makes our hair stand haha, because that is one of the coolest part that many Chinese can relate to - Chinese opera music.
You have done an excellent job picking this music apart Even a musically blind person like me is able to appreciate the brilliance of this composition. A BIG thank you!
The last time I felt something similar to hearing the balckmyth version celestial symphony was being a mravel fan and finally seeing captain America calling avengers assemble in end game after watching all the marvel movies from iron man. However, this time had way more power to it since I was way more involved(playing the game and it was challenging + extra sense of nostalgia since I watched it all the way since I was 3) I was literally crying when I finally see the final chapter animation it was the reverse showing of the journey they went through, and Ofc the journey I have been through in the game and the journey I have been through I. My life. Definitely the best game I have ever played in my life yet.
![FILMMAKER REACTS: BLACK MYTH WUKONG (2024) | [ALL CUTSCENES!!]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/n_HkpS_P2io/mqdefault.jpg)
![FILMMAKER REACTS: BLACK MYTH WUKONG (2024) | [ALL CUTSCENES!!]](/img/tr.png)
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Tony...you gotta check out 西游记 1986 主题曲 Journey to the west 1986 theme song, this was the first piece of music in China that contained electronic music.
The original song had just one word, just "ah" (same as this modern rendition) but it captured the "feeling of adventure" and "flying in the clouds" perfectly
This music made me cry
My childhood in Mongolia 🎉🎉 in 1980s
@@kokuutou92
@DrumRollTonyReacts
ua-cam.com/video/2MchGftHnHs/v-deo.html
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ua-cam.com/video/vXb1DtnE8Ro/v-deo.html
The original composer is still alive and he’s so so happy and surprised by how popular Celestial Symphony has become outside of East Asia (including SEA). He said he never in a million years would’ve dreamt this would happen. He also said he decided to use electronic music because it hasn’t been done yet in China at the time just like how the show was the first of its kind in China with how ambitious it was.
Yea, that time was 1986.....now its almost 30 years and yet this is so much enhanced and dramatic.
Hearing this played back on the game again with improvements is nostalgic and refreshing at the same time.
@@lightchaser2k6 more like almost 40 years bro, 2 years later and it would be the 40th anniversary
He is still alive
@@lostmemory1981 he is old n frail now.
@@lightchaser2k6 虽然是在80年代作曲，但他用到了当时很多时髦的创作元素，比如摇滚、爵士......，还有当时刚出现的MDI。
Every Asian aged 30s - 40s is bathing in the nostalgia and hype. Yea I mean Asian and not just Chinese because Journey to the West was a huge part of our culture for many different Asian countries.
Mid 20s here, yeah Journey to the west was very popular back when I was young! Im happy that through this game the younger generations and also people outside of Asia will be able to know about the journey to the west through this game
Agreed, even young people in our country, even if they haven't seen Journey to the West (1986), they will know it.
20 here man i grew up watching journey to the west so epic
😂Every summer, the show will be on TV at least once. Till today😂
As a Chinese I agree. Chinese Culture has been around and growing for 5000+years, it should be the shared asset of the entire humanity.
Mr. Jingqing Xu (许镜清) is the composor who wrote music for the 1986 TV series of The Journey to the West (西游记). He was commissioned to write music for its first 25 episodes at the price of around 250 RMB (around 35 USD) per episode. He received a total of 6000 RMB (around 845 USD) for this work. But due to the copyright infringement problem in China, his work although got so much cited and played and used everwhere, he did not receive payment. It is a shame. He later started using legal tools to sue those who infringe his copyright, but the protection is still limited. He always dreamt to organize a concert in China performing the whole set of music, but no one was seriously supporting him until a group of users online started a fundraising campain and realized his dream in 2016. He is 81 years old now. I can only imagine his feeling of having his music travelling all over the world now because of Black Myth: Wu Kong.
he born at the wrong time when China wasnt rich. If he wrote this music today, he would be a millioniare.
@@nanyanguo1 at that time, a chinese worker might get 30 RMB per month, so 6000 RMB is a worker's 16 year's salary.
Treasure will always be discovered, it’s only a matter of time. Salute 🫡 to our dearest composer Mr Xu, you’re our national hero ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
许老很了不起，而且他当时并没有给这首主题曲命名，云宫讯音这个名字也是别人人云亦云地流传开来的，当他得知大伙给这首主题曲命名之后还很开心地谢谢大家
@@nanyanguo1 It's not that I was born in the wrong era, it's that I was born in the wrong place, and it hasn't changed now😂
Never would I image my childhood could be so epic. They did a fantastic job here
Epic yet free and playful, perfect for my boy Wukong🙊
Kids from 3 years old start watch Wukong TV and listen to this music in China.
Your childhood was always epic my friend. The only difference now is that more people know about it.
The 1986 piece was mostly synthesized. Don’t get me wrong it’s was my good vibe as well but I love they mastered it with this whole orchestra
The remaster sounds…..strong and defiant
Which pretty much represents the entire theme behind BMW
the story of Sun Wukong is adapted from a novel 400 years ago, and this music is adapted from the TV theme song over 40 years ago. How nostalgia hits hard, you have no idea ... this music is my childhood😭
complete novel was 400 years ago, but the legendary myth & tale was way back 1000 years ago
So Black Myth WUKONG is based of a famous 16th Century Chinese Novel that inspired so many things. It’s a fantastic game
To be exact it was 1592
Son Goku.
@@denan1Sun Wukong
@@denan1 Son Goku is the Japanese pronunciation of the three Chinese characters for "孙悟空", and the orthodox pronunciation of these three Chinese characters in Chinese is sun wukong
Dragon Ball is an obvious and well-known adaptation. The not-so-obvious are King Kong (Monkey King Wu Kong), Planet of the Apes, Into the Badland, the Forbidden Kingdom, and many Marvel characters with superhuman abilities.
My South Asian parents were beyond excited to catch me playing Wukong when it dropped. They were in awe at the character styles, the bosses, and the sceneries because they never expected something from their childhood to slip into mine on such a massive scale. After finishing the game and discovering the story, I hope The Journey to the West is forever passed on as it has 😄of course the music was absolutely phenomenal. Game Science deserve all the fame coming their way!
That's so cool that your parents were also excited
Culture is inherited. Happy parents, happy kids.
south asia ==> india, bangladesh, pakistan.
although my family doesn’t know about this game but hell even my non gamers friends and relatives asking me did I get this game I was kinda surprised too when they knew this game lol
This song is really cool! Especially because it plays during a cutscene that summarizes the events of the original book that this game is based on, Journey to the West.
It is a reinterpretation of the opening theme song of the 1986 eastern TV show by the same name.
I am not personally familiar with the show but based on comments its extremely nostalgic and was unexpected to be a piece in the game!
The nostalgia hits like a god damn truck
Nostalgic? This is like the Chinese equivalent to Star Trek. You grew up watching it on the TV, the different generations of movies and other tv series versions that come and go then it circles back all the way to Captain Kirk. I remember being 8 years old being given a video tape by my Dad with episodes of the 1986 version and seeing Wukong burst out of a giant rock in the middle of the ocean in the opening with that weird whooing 80’s sound design. Then they just bring it all back with those iconic five notes. Only those who grew up with this will understand how much this means to us.
音樂與遊戲的互動作用成幾何級數上升👍👍👍
The duu duu duu, duu duu duu is super iconic. It appears at the start of the 80s journey to the west tv show. The last part of the ost has some Chinese musical instruments like the Chinese cymbals
electronics sound of 80s.
就在等这条评论！！！！
@@wenchester3741 那个音效特别独特。只有看过那连续剧的才会明白。而且非常怀念那些日子。
How come I (and probably others in the comments) know exactly which part of the music you are referring to even if all I see is “duu duu duu” 😂
That duu duu duu is reflective of Wukong using cloud tumbling trick
It’s a love letter to the original song of the live action Journey to the West from the 80s so it’s iconic in China. This is the theme of Wukong’s journey to get the Buddhist Scriptures with his monk master. Black Myth Wukong takes place after those events, it’s the sequel and follows the Destined One, a monkey reincarnation, as he recollects pieces of Wukongs spirit after wukong got deaded by the Celestial Court, all the gods of China. So a lot of the game is about remembering the Journey to the West while this Destined One is on his own journey, he meets a lot of the same characters in new events, and seeing them after wukong met them long ago. Lots of details and references to the original story. This song is really a cherry on top with where it plays in the game, during an awesome animated series of wukongs original adventures. You should check it out if you don’t play. All of the animated chapter endings (6 of them) are SUBLIME. They each have a unique song and story it’s crazy detailed.
I just finished the game yesterday, and I was greeted by the music, I loved every moment of it especially when he said, "Brothers let's have one last drink before we invade the celestial court"
Westerners: Cool music!
Me: Tears coming down from my eyes nonstop. My whole childhood 😭😭😭
yes yes yes, it hits me! i cried when i heard it
Mine too! What a honor
Me too, it makes me cry when the main theme comes up.😢
Westerners: cool synth!
JTTW Childhood: OMGOSHOMGOSHOMGOSH AHHHHHH *melts*
My whole summer holiday memories during primary school.
MUSIC OF THIS GAME IS SO AMAZING.
also animation. amazing.
Indubitably
I cant believe im feeling nostalgic for something ive never even watched or heard of before. I cant imagine what people who have been fans of the shows must have felt when they first heard this
cried 🤌🏼
Cried, sobbing, bawled our eyes out from the nostalgia and realizing that Game Science's marketing strategy for the game was just straight love and passion for Wukong and Journey to the West. What an ingenius move to put the old monkey at the end of the first trailer just humming the theme song that triggers nostalgia for majority of Asians. The first time i watched the trailer I was hyped and excited but I was completely stunned from disbelief that they put the theme song in their game. After a few seconds I started crying.
It is cinematic in itself
Wow this is amazing. And I am saying it as some one who grew up watching the 1986 tv series. I basically had tears rolling and felt breathless when I first saw and listened to the game animations
Just crying and crying
This is an adaption of the opening music of the 1986 Chinese TV version of the Journey to the West.
U right
Literally the best song ever for journey to the West. Stuck in my head since the 90
I've heard people say this is essentially the "star wars" theme for the Chinese culture, it's so ingrained into their pop culture from the 80's. The developers took the original and made it a very big and bombastic piece for the game, and it's very well received, especially in China right now.
Fun fact, the character Wukong was a direct inspiration for Goku from dragon ball/Z, but not only that, Wukong and the story of journey to the west is basically the original stepping stone for Shonen anime in general. All the anime tracks you enjoy and react to, basically came to be because of journey to the west, it's the OG blueprint for so much modern anime.
这个乐曲的最精彩的部分不仅仅是使用了电子乐， 而是中国传统乐器和交响曲的共同使用。 中国乐器的叙事节奏和管弦乐的节奏采完全不同，再加上人声的使用，使整个乐曲有了更多的层次。 体现了《西游记》故事中神、 仙、人、 妖怪轮流登场的荒诞剧情和冲突。 这首乐器不能说是伟大， 但《西游记》这个主题下， 确实难以超越了❤
說得好❤
42 years old here. Was 3 years old when the show came out in 1986. This music is seared into a whole generation’s memories.
It makes me crying. I can't imagine that this was music created in 1986. It was simply too ahead of its time.
My grandmother brought the VCD of 1986 Journey to the West from China, way way waaay back in the day. I still have it now even though she had passed away 8 years ago. I grew up watching it so many times. To hear this theme again is a blast of nostalgia and makes me miss her so much 🥺🥺
I almost cried when I heard this song in the game. Seriously nostalgic. Pretty much every kid in China from the 80s-2000s grew up watching the 1986 journey to the west with this song as the intro music.
Agree. Even outside of China
More info: 作曲家许镜清说：开头那段重复的旋律 5:51 ，灵感来自于路过他窗口的农民工用筷子敲打饭盒🍱的节奏，而唯一一段女声吟唱，是他做梦的时候梦到天上的声音，他当时就醒来并且赶紧记录下了这段旋律
So it is the voice from heaven
@@anniemeridian270 Yes, 云宫迅音
女声出来时候脑子里已经自动脑补西游纪开头里面嫦娥在那转的画面了😂😂😂😂
We're not professional, but we just love listening
Me too 😄
Just to add a few pieces of information. The bass drum is a Chinese big drum instead of Timpani. The high pitch drum that sounds similar to Bongo or African drum is a set of 4 modern Chinese small drums called Paigu (排鼓). The strumming instrument at the start of the crescendo is an Chinese instrument called Pipa(琵琶）.
I also like the way Double Bass, French Horn and Trumpet were used.
Thx for the info! 🎶
You can search "31-Person Ensemble Full Version of the Theme Song from "Black Myth: Wukong" to see all the different musical instruments used, there are quite a few that I haven't seen before.
thank you so much for typing out the paigu drum's name. I rarely see people refer to it by name even if they are trying to explain what it is in English
80,90 and so on, many Asian kids have been hearing this song every summer break.
I have listened to the original composition of this piece hundreds, if not thousands, of times since I was a child. It is almost engraved in my deepest memories.
This game has reinterpreted it, and I have listened to it many more times since then. Now, I increasingly see this piece as a portrayal of the grand emotion and complete process of resisting injustice. As I listen, I can't help but think of the heroes throughout ancient China's numerous dynastic changes. They overthrew the old order and established a better one, but this order would gradually become corrupt and collapse, only to be overthrown again. This cycle repeated dozens of times. Each time, millions to tens of millions of soldiers fought across vast territories, ultimately determining the strongest contender supported by the people. The entire story of Black Myth: WuKong follows a similar pattern, but it takes place in the realm of gods. Sun Wukong is the leader who seeks to overthrow injustice and establish a better order.
Lastly, I want to mention that the original composer of this piece is still alive.
The boop-boop-boop sound is from the OG 1986 soundtrack. It was one of the earliest, if not THE earliest electronic music produced in China, largely because the show it made for was low-budget but one of China's first attempts at long-form, special-effects heavy TV shows. They wanted to emphasize the experimental/special effects nature of the show.
I bursted into tears the moment hearing this, not just about the story journey to the west, the music work and the culture, also the old times when I was little, the great time spent with my grandparents, family. Omg I got so emotional 😅
You should also react to the main Black Myth Wukong theme, its great.
Agreed
Up
Hell yeah !
There is one I know of. FYI
ua-cam.com/video/HKnNmSxRvjI/v-deo.html
Definitely
This game is madness in every ways, glad I brought this.
This music piece is a recreation of the opening music of 1986's show "Journey to the West". As many have mentioned in the comments, this is the show that many Asians grew up with. I would probably compare it to the hearing Star Wars theme for westerners. Here is the link to the 1986 original piece (the first 3 min) if you are interested: ua-cam.com/video/lnNxfdwtQNQ/v-deo.html&ab_channel=UncleQi
It used a lot of electronic music to create a "celestial" feel. For context, China was quite new to electronic music at that time and this type of music was not heard very often. They used it to make the audience feel that they are in the heaven, distinct from the daily life. The women's high-pitched vocal in the middle is also to create the same feel.
On the percussions side, it used Yunluo (literally translated to "cloud gongs"), which is the light metal sound you hear in the background. Instruments that are completely made of metals are expensive in the old days and often associated with high-classed lords and emperors. Again, this is to give the "celestial" feel that is distinct from the mundane life.
It also used Paigu (literally translated to "row drums"), which is the drum that you hear kicking in once in a while, especially towards the end. It provides a naughty and playful vibe, which is directly related to Wukong's character in the book and the show. This was significantly tuned down in the black myth wukong version, as the story took place after JTTW and wukong became a lot more matured in the game.
The last instrument worth mentioning is Muyu (literally translated to "wooden fish"), which is the fast rhythmic and repetitive sound you hear in the background. It actually has two purposes. One is Muyu is often used by Buddhism monks when they are reading the mantra. The use of Muyu provides a sense of Buddhism, which is what the show is about. More importantly, Muyu sounds similar to the sound of horse steps (and in fact is often used to mimic the sound of horse steps in shows and movies). In the book/show, Tang Sanzang has a horse that he rides on while completing his journey to the west. There are a lot of back stories about this horse that I am skipping. But the idea is using Muyu to mimic horse steps gives the vibe of the "journey". This was also tuned down in the black myth wukong version, as the story took place after the journey and the horse was not in black myth wukong's story.
The above is largely based on Dr. JP Feng's analysis to the 1986' original piece (ua-cam.com/video/2ggcw6UEJvM/v-deo.html&ab_channel=%E5%8F%A8%E5%8F%A8%E5%86%AF%E8%81%8A%E9%9F%B3%E4%B9%90). This video was not translated to English unfortunately, but in the video, Dr. Feng demonstrated all the instruments that I mentioned above. If you are interested in hearing what they sound like and which part of music they were used, you can find that information in his video.
like everytime i hear this music it bring me back to my childhood and it making me having goosebumps
Thx for teaching me how to appreciate music in the game which many gamers or outsiders,like myself, neglect.
the concert in shenzhen sold out in 2mins, i wanted to cry...maybe i am able to catch the concert in Shanghai or other cities...i really love the music and songs of this game❤
The nostalgia is strong in this one.
I cried. This is my childhood.
Wow, I didn’t expect that you will do it on UA-cam 🙏 looking forward to it
I'm among the millions who grew up with the TV show whose opening theme is this music, _Celestial Symphony_ . I was so used to it but never realised it had so many hidden details. With your in-depth analysis, not only can I better enjoy this music now, but I also find it interesting to see how musicians have been appreciating and learning from each other across cultural boundaries all the time. Thank you! Just subscribed. 😊
It is like the music of his whole adventure, music of the heavens, the gods, the monkey king.
and the Yaoguai
This is the childhood of everyone in China. They are replaying Journey to the West in summer holidays and it’s the kids’ favourite. It gives me goosebumps and love the remake of the theme song in this epic way❤
By the way, the main part of this theme song is actually the intro of the ED of the TV series.
This is ancient Chinese mythology but also based on Chinese Zen/Tao/Philosophy. To appreciate the deeper meanings hidden behind all those details in the game, one could check out the Chinese novel “A journey to the west” or the Chinese Zen Book “How to be Happy: the Wisdom to Attain Happiness and Success by Constructing an Invincible Mind”
The attention to detail in Black Myth: Wukong is phenomenal.
Its such a emotional music to me, my heart is just too happy
The "It will fit me just as well" OST from Black Myth is one of my favourites, its just so epic
I burst into tear upon this piece. It's such a iconic part of my childhood
I recently encountered a channel called "Avenue X," which explains everything in the Journey to the West extremely well. She also introduces many Chinese cultural classics.
1:47 the electronic beat were added by the original composer in the 80s because he felt he needed to make it feel "out of this world" and soundboard is as far from physical intrument as you can get. it's amusing they kept this in because most modern renditions actually remove this to create a more grand, classical feel.
The fact that he doesn't know original theme and he explained so well in this version is so inspirational
Wow, thank you very much for this video. Now, I can "see" vividly how this piece of music communicate with me. I love it. Thanks again and well done.
if you ever watch the series dated 1986 you feel emotional and very nostalgic.
Every Chinese love this music since was little. 😂
Nah all Asians
At this point, it doesn’t really matter if the game will be GOTY anymore. It’s simply epic.
Yeah it’s epic of the era not any GOTY miniature
I’ve played so many games and this is the first one that feels like a labor of love and an illustration of how a video game can reach the level of fine arts, because this might be the first one to do so
This song is a pure piece of music without lyrics, but it can still make people feel the hardships and bumps of the four Tang monks and disciples in the process of taking scriptures in the west. The song used trumpets, brass, electric guitar and drums to give people a sense of justice moving forward. These instruments make the music majestic and powerful. The harmony of the female voice in the middle of the song makes the melody more beautiful and can't help but makes people think of the scene in the sky.
《云宫迅音》经典永传
取这个名字的网友一样经典
Holy crap. They used the theme from the 1980 tv show!
I really need to play this game!
Glad to know the game makes this music to world wide known and we can hear the analyze of this music, it definitely a music of childhood memories for most of Chinese. It makes me cry when the main theme begins!
It was in 80’s. I was a 7 or 8 years old boy from a poor family. My family could not afford to buy a black-and-white TV. I brought my chair to my neighbor’s yard to watch Journey to the West. Now I am 50 years old. I remember the music, Wukong, Bajie, Shaheshang and Tang Seng. Tears in my eyes.
GOTY
Space Marine sẽ win thôi bro, lí do thì chắc ai cũng biết
The electric guitar is there because it was in the original JTTW ost. They made the right move to include all of the instruments involved in the original even though some of them are not trendy anymore (electric guitar and keyboard). IMO, they add the funkiness to the fantasy world filled with mystical creatures.
That’s my childhood…..now I’m tearing
This piece is a rearrangement of the 1986 JTTW TV series opening theme. Back in those days China was still relatively poor, the composer didn't have cool toys like a Fairlight CMI or an E-mu, instead he used a Yamaha DX7, most notable are those phew phew phews.
The current Black Myth version plays at the very end of the game, accompanying the final cutscene animation, which recalls many tales from the original JTTW timeline.
Aside from actual gaming, there's just so damn much artistically astonishing presentation of reimagined literature, visual, and sound. It is clearly a work of love and that alone deserves respect. So, F IGN, Game Rant and all those in between. There.
i got goosebumps listening to this masterpiece , yes ,,, to every Chinese kid this is the iconic memory trigger for our beloved monkey king !
Man… that doo doo doo sound in the back was magical when I heard it in kindergarten.
7:04 that’s Pipa, a traditional Chinese instrument
更像是扬琴
@@YuzeJiang-l6o没听过音乐？
An astonishing fact: This piece of music was composed in 1986.
After hearing/playing this entire work of art im just fill with grateful, thank you game science for your amazing gift
It's really interesting to see a game also reviving mass interest to the beauty of orchestrated music.
女高音中间有一个和弦被改成主调和弦了。。唉。。真是不应该改。原曲这个地方是要表现取经的困难，原版的小调和弦更好啊。。唉。。
这个老外需要了解背景再分析编曲就更迎刃而解了，1：duu duu duu 是模拟孙悟空一个跟头十万八千里， 2：女高音是代表天庭的声音，尤其是嫦娥给玉皇大帝跳舞，3：最后那个重复好几次的民族乐器排鼓可是每一难的困难重重。86西游记的片头剪的太好，非常贴切音乐。
许老说是他是就着片头影像配的曲，掐着秒钟来配乐的。所以音乐才会和片头如此的合拍。就是说，这首曲是就着片头动画而配的。
When I was young the ending song for TV was more popular, but after almost 40 years it turns this opening theme is truly classic (the change by BMW makes it even greater)
I thinks it’s simply because when we were kids, when the opening music was playing, we had our eyes all fixed on the moves and actions on the screen, visual excitement is obviously more attractive to kids😂. And now after at least 20-40 years, hearing all the things modern music could offer, this opening is apparently still killing everybody, none is even close. The ending is merely a song… so i think that’s why
I got a PS5 for this game, considering I never played any video games be4😂😂😂 but ima Asian, I knew this story and I love Wukong, so it’s a no brainer for me.
I got a new computer for this😂
Here is the original. Whenever the music started on TV, we knew our summer break officially started! It's the collective childhood memory of all middle-age Chinese . ua-cam.com/video/biTzhToldz4/v-deo.html The composer said in an interview that he was asked to write a song within a very short period of time (1983). He had this writer's block until one day he heard clanks of a construction worker tapping his aluminum lunchbox with a spoon. That's right, the melody came from the clanks.
I need you to know this. This arrangement for the game OST just apply minimum touch on the original song of the 1986 TV series. Imagine how modern it still sounds. My whole body became alive just listening to these nostagical sounds.
I hope you can react to other music in the game like "Nonsense!" and "It will fit me just as well"
Overcome all difficulties and move towards victory
CPC Party History: "Journey to the West" is an immortal artistic monument in the history of Chinese literature. Mao Zedong was a loyal reader of "Journey to the West". During his long revolutionary career, he made many incisive comments on this book. He greatly admired Tang Monk's spirit of seeking scriptures to inspire the fighting spirit of the whole party; he hoped that comrades would learn from Sun Wukong's spirit of daring to fight, but they should also put an end to personal heroism. Mao Zedong used these entertaining methods to help people understand more truths.
Just an fyi - the drum solo at around 16:56 is meant to imitate the horse galloping sound (Wukong's master travelled on a horse during their journey to the west).
This is my childhood memory, classic is classic
I believe I read somewhere that at the time, Electronic music was not a thing in China and this is one the first times they use electronic music in movies. All producers against the idea but the Director insisted to use it
My childhood, my every summer break.
This game is amazing, Easily a GOTY contender
height of this game has achieved has us Chinese care least about GOTY😂. Maybe we did care before it was officially launched, but after we played it through, it’s definitely much more than a game, so GOTY can be awarded to FF7reload or something else, they need that more than BMW 🎉😂
Journey to the West is the story of this game.
It’s 1 of the 4 best Chinese story passed down generations.
Art of War is one of it.
No Art of War is not a literary work. The 4 best literary works are JTTW , Water Margins, Three Kingdoms and Romance of Red Chamber
Art of War isn't one of them, it's considered as one of the greatest classic military/strategy text books.
Persona 3 reload recently got a new dlc expansion and got another battle theme called “Don’t” and I thinks it’s pretty good and that you should check it out. Thanks for always making informative content for the games I love
👀 I'll have to look
as a lot of people has mentioned, this song is from the 1986 tv show. you can listen to it from this link.
ua-cam.com/video/lnNxfdwtQNQ/v-deo.html
here's a chinese percussionist analysing the song:
ua-cam.com/video/2ggcw6UEJvM/v-deo.html
it's basically the same song, using a bit more orchestraic presentation to enlarge the scale a bit.
the song tells the story of journey to the west. the starting parts echoes wukong's start when he challenged the celestial court, (the sudden EDM is to depict wukong's agility and ability) then he was prisoned by buddha under the mountain, and then went on a long journey with tang monk on a journey. by the ending part of this song, the music is softer because by the end of the journey, they were basically cruising already. in the ending of the game, the animation scenes were reversed of this story. they used the same music. it's kinda odd because of the order, but still works in a strange way. some chinese netizens are jokingly saying that journey to the west is supposed to be read in reverse.
it's nice of you to notice the oddness of the outro, because if you listened to the original above, the outro is not there. i believe it's added on by game science because black myth wukong is telling is the story after journey to the west, hence, the outro is like an extension of the music. the juxtaposition. the oddness of the piano also somewhat sounded like them saying "we're not canon to journey to the west, but our story is still faithful to the original"
bro,that's my child man !! crying!!!
This is the music I listened to while watching Journey to the West when I was ten years old. Deeply ingrained in my childhood memories...yeah !
Great breakdown! You’ve earned a sub sir!
Black Myth WuKong is truly a master piece. Thank you for sharing this man!
That's an interesting observation! The theme music of the 1980s TV series "Journey to the West" is indeed iconic, blending traditional Chinese musical elements with modern electronic nodes, creating a unique and timeless sound. The electronic nodes are a salute to the masterpiece in the history of mainland China's TV series. You can find the same nodes in the theme music in it.
Perfect for a video game start screen, choosing the settings / options, loading the game save files
I miss the time when the whole family watched the Journey to the West together in the Spring Festival when I was young, which is very far away and seems to be yesterday, which can not help but make me burst into tears
Ost is amazing, hope you and others decide to cover “flames have paved my way”
Hey Tony, is Blue Lock something you’d be interested in? S2 is around the corner and I remember you liked both openings a lot and there are a lot more good OSTs during the show
The beginning of the music you can hear the Chinese drums 堂鼓/大鼓 or less likely 花盆鼓, with what i assume a digeridoo in the background? The drums sounded a pitch higher later so i assume its either 排鼓 or 小鼓. The high pitch metal sound is probably the 碰铃. Then after the nothingness, chinese bells come in with cymbal sounds made from dragging a bow across the rim? Then the sound of suspended cymbal began and ends with a bass drum.
At the background you can hear 排鼓 sounds, then you can hear 琵琶. The drums are not bass drums but 大鼓, where you can hit the rims, the drums produce a unique sound different from bass drums in an orchestra. Then you can hear the iconic 唢呐 instrument. The 锣 and 钹 can be heard when the 排鼓 or 小堂鼓 Solo begins. If not mistaken, there are also 响扳, 单皮鼓, 板.
I may be wrong at some parts like the gong sounds, might be 青铜锣
Thanks for your video, just wanna share my views that the percussion @16:10 may sound random but as someone of Chinese descent we can quickly identify it and makes our hair stand haha, because that is one of the coolest part that many Chinese can relate to - Chinese opera music.
The original tv series’ cut scenes jived with the music perfectly as well
You have done an excellent job picking this music apart
Even a musically blind person like me is able to appreciate the brilliance of this composition.
A BIG thank you!
I'm happy to hear that
What I like the best of it is the contrast between the epic journey of the group and the heavenly choir of the celestial court, very good satire
the sound you’re hearing is the childhood’s sound of many Asia kids back then
The last time I felt something similar to hearing the balckmyth version celestial symphony was being a mravel fan and finally seeing captain America calling avengers assemble in end game after watching all the marvel movies from iron man. However, this time had way more power to it since I was way more involved(playing the game and it was challenging + extra sense of nostalgia since I watched it all the way since I was 3) I was literally crying when I finally see the final chapter animation it was the reverse showing of the journey they went through, and Ofc the journey I have been through in the game and the journey I have been through I. My life. Definitely the best game I have ever played in my life yet.
The latest remix of the intro is refreshing. Brings back memories
My whole summer vacation watched the 1987 version show