Who doesn’t love a good festival? Savory and sweet foods, slightly rigged carnival games, displays of dancing, and the accompanying sounds of sweet music are enough to get anyone’s heart racing. Perhaps the best instance of this kind of celebration in the Zelda series is found in the Picori Festival in The Minish Cap. During the game’s opening, the player accompanies Princess Zelda through the festivities. They can check out the fruit and vegetable stands, try their hand at a mini-game, and also hear oral recountings of the legend of the Minish.
All of this is good fun, but it’s the music that really sells the tickets. A silent exploration of the fair would be no fun. Luckily, the “Picori Festival” music is a jovial bop that sounds like the ambient music you might hear at Disney’s Fantasyland or at the Renaissance Faire. Blessed with luck only a Kinstone fusion could bring, Robert Baptiste has created a beautiful remastering of the “Picori Festival” theme to treat ourselves to.
The initial notes of this remaster are a series of notes that swing back and forth, reminding me of a march. The simplicity of these notes conjures images of a Picori parade. You can imagine the miniature beings carrying their found treasures back to their homes hidden in the bookshelves and walls of Hyrule Town. It’s like watching a trail of ants if ants were one million percent cuter.
As difficult as the carnival games may be, the greater challenge might be being put in a dour mood when this song is playing. It’s just so relentlessly cheery that even the sternest frown would have to turn upside down.
Because of the joyfulness of the gleeful march, the occasional addition of a deeper bass immediately stands out. It accompanies the melody perfectly and never feels out of place. It doesn’t overshadow the melody, demanding that you pay attention to it rather than the festivities; instead, it joins in quietly but meaningfully, hinting at some hidden importance. The deepness of this accompaniment might symbolize the hidden danger at the Picori Festival.
As everyone is celebrating the coming of the Minish, a Minish is scheming in the background. Vaati has entered the sword tournament, and he has put on a show. The crowd marveled at his skill with the blade. They’ve “ooed” and “awed”, unaware of the shadow that Vaati’s victory will cast. As the sorcerer claims his prize and touches the Picori Blade, he shatters it, letting loose the evil it contains.
Just as Vaati quietly played along with the festival’s theatrics, the deeper base in the song perfectly joins the melody. It celebrates the Hylians and Picori. It encourages you to get that second funnel cake because you’ve been working really hard. You deserve it. All along the bass hides in plain sight (or would that be in plain hearing?) warning us that not all Minish are kind and not all swordsmen are heroes. Through his remaster, Robert Baptiste invites us to the celebration while also providing a warning to not drop our guard, because that’s when danger may rise.
