In many ways, the story of Ocarina of Time is a story of growing up. Both Link and Zelda begin the story as kids. After their fateful meeting in the palace gardens and their hatched plan to save Hyrule from the cunning Ganondorf, they are forced to grow up. Link’s journey to get the Spiritual Stones requires him to find the courage within himself, and Zelda finds herself trying to outwit the evil strategies of the Gerudo thief. Things only get more complicated once Ganondorf enters the Sacred Realm and conquers Hyrule. Link loses seven years and has to adjust to the changes once he’s freed, while Zelda has to struggle with the consequences of Ganondorf’s conquest while also helping to lead a rebellion against it. Through the use of tempo and added instrumentation, Taylor Davis takes us on a musical journey mimicking that of these iconic heroes with her violin cover of “Zelda’s Lullaby”.
The cover starts off pretty simply and faithfully to the source material. Taylor Davis plays the iconic melody of “Zelda’s Lullaby” with a minimal amount of added instrumentation. The tempo is also pretty slow and relaxed. It mirrors the lazy days of childhood, the time before the responsibilities of going to work or saving Hyrule weighed on us.
Around the one minute mark, the next step in the journey begins. As Taylor Davis continues to play the melody beautifully, an added sound of repeating plucked notes plays. It reminds me of Kokiri Forest and the beginning of Link’s adventure as he must discover the Kokiri Sword and plunge into the depths of the Great Deku Tree in order to combat Ganondorf’s poisonous influence.
Just like Link’s first step out into Hyrule Field expands and opens a whole new world of adventure for both him and the player, this cover blossoms around the one minute and eleven mark. With an introduction spurred on by some drums, the sound of another stringed instrument is added. This creates a reeling sound that reminds me of Epona and the times spent galloping the fields of Hyrule.
Around one minute twenty-five, the instrumentation arrives at its most complicated part. Louder drums signal adventure and adversaries. Taylor Davis’s tempo on the violin increases, adding a sense of movement and urgency to the piece. Horns join the fray, creating a feeling of danger but also of good overcoming.
Just as in the game, this cover comes full circle by returning to the calm, simple melody we started with at the beginning. The quiet sounds of a harp accompany the ethereal sounds of the violin as the violin’s notes go higher and are held longer. Peaceful piano notes accompany the violin as the journey comes to a close. This calls to mind the return to childhood promised at the end of Ocarina of Time.
After having worked together across time to save the land, Princess Zelda chooses to give Link a gift: she returns his lost childhood. Using the Ocarina of Time, she sends him back to before his life was stained with the blood of his enemies and the treachery of the Demon King. By having her violin cover return to a more simple instrumentation, Taylor Davis returns the audience to a peaceful place before leaving them with the calming notes of the piano and the fading beauty of her held violin notes that fade into time.
