30 Days of Video Game Music: Day 12 -- Music That Makes Me Sad

Check out the Day 1 post for the full challenge list.

Rosalina in the Observatory - Koji Kondo

Game: Super Mario Galaxy (2007, Wii)
Original: YouTube
Super Smash Bros. for Wii U Remix: YouTube
Cover: Lynn Andersen and Brandon Victor handbell arrangement by Mark Andersen (YouTube)
Cover: Super Guitar Bros. (YouTube)

My favorite piece of music from my favorite game of all time is my pick for music that makes me sad. Judging by the comments on some of its YouTube uploads, I am not alone! This is one of a select few pieces of media that can reliably bring me to tears. It’s not a true sadness, I suppose, but there are elements of it. Super Mario Galaxy came out at a time of rather significant turblence in my life, and up to that point, it was the most anticipated game of my life. Needless to say, I was not disappointed, and I could not put the game down. It was and is an excellent game in its own right, but it was also a significant means of escape at that time. “Rosalina in the Observatory” is the hub music and consequently plays at every intermission in Mario’s adventure. As he progresses through the game, gathers more stars, and thwarts Bowser on his way to the final encounter, the music swells and grows more confident in 3 stages. 2007, as it happens, was the year my late father and loving stepmother managed to wrest custody of me and my sister from our unfit mother. When I hear this music and its cautious optimism, I’m brought back to my own cautious optimism in 2007, when they began in earnest to rehabilitate my confidence, self-image, and happiness. A lachrymose recipe.