Chapter 27: Anger, Trembling, and Cold
The following week.
The box office numbers for the movie “Dance of Fish and Dragon” continued to rise, showing promising momentum. Meanwhile, “Big Fish,” the theme song of the movie, was gaining increasing popularity and was loved by more and more people.
As a related institution, Qin Yi naturally took notice of this song immediately. Discussions about the song were prevalent on the campus forum and in various large and small groups across different departments.
Especially among the students of the Vocal Department, there was a particular excitement: “Did you see that? The importance of excellent singing to a song is self-evident!”
Qin Yi is an art school. The environment here tends to be more professional, so the importance of composition has always been considered higher than singing. Previously, when “Life Like Summer Flowers” became a hit, more than half of the school’s students were shouting—
“Master Composer leads the way!”
“Master Composer carries!”
“Even a dog tied in the recording studio can become famous!”
Doesn’t our senior Sun Yaohuo deserve some respect?
Anyway, the students of the Vocal Department were trembling with anger as they read these posts, breaking out in cold sweat despite the hot weather, their hands and feet icy cold.
The students from the Composition Department were just too damn superior.
When would the Vocal Department finally stand up?
Unexpectedly, the opportunity for a counterattack came so quickly!
It was another work by Xian Yu, but this time, “Big Fish” was not a song that just anyone could sing. Jiang Kui’s voice undeniably added to the song, and because of this, the students of the Vocal Department at Qin Yi were fired up!
The Composition Department was used to being superior.
How could they possibly let the Vocal Department be arrogant?
Soon, a bunch of posts emerged to refute the Vocal Department.
“Do you know what official customization means?”
“Do you know how ingenious the hook of this song is?”
“Do you know how rare it is for the melody of this song to fit the movie’s plot so well?”
“Do you know that for Master Composer, an impression song belongs to the category of customized songs, where the style is directly restricted, equivalent to dancing with shackles, yet Master Composer managed to write such a song within a small framework, which is simply a perfect performance!”
Moreover, some students from the Composition Department almost staked their dignity, pouring all their university knowledge into a deep technical analysis of how amazing the composition of “Big Fish” was:
“The main verse of ‘Big Fish’ primarily uses stepwise motion, interspersed with leaps. The first phrase uses continuous stepwise motion, creating a strong sense of propulsion. The span of the continuous stepwise motion reaches an octave. The main verse is a typical pentatonic scale, simple yet not simplistic, amazing!”
The Vocal Department gradually waned.
The Composition Department, however, became more and more enthusiastic in their discussions.
“What impresses me the most is the rich melodic development techniques used in this song, including strict repetition, varied repetition, extension, and anadiplosis, among others.”
“Indeed.”
“The climax of the song features many large leaps, such as -sol-do-si-, -re-do–do, re–, and most of the large leaps in this song have reverse preparation.”
“The singing is based on existing sheet music, but how many brain cells of Master Composer did it take to burn through these things?”
“The 4th, 10th, and 16th measures of this song are the same melodic fragment. The chorus also uses strict repetition, which is why it sounds so beautiful. And when it comes to the harmony part, this song has already reached a godly level, no explanation needed.”
The Vocal Department was completely defeated.
Fortunately, the Composition Department was only trying to uphold the dignity of Master Composer.
After a round of analysis.
They did not deny the contribution of the singing part: “Of course, Jiang Kui sang very well. To use a gaming analogy, if last time senior Sun Yaohuo won by lying down, then this time Jiang Kui is the one who initiated the team fight. She initiated a good fight, but the victory of the team battle still relied on Master Composer’s explosive output.”
“In my opinion, the success of this song also owes a lot to the lyrics!”
Qin Yi doesn’t just have Vocal and Composition majors; it also has a Lyric Writing major, which is a feature of Qinzhou, the land of music.
Now that the Composition and Vocal Departments were at each other’s throats, how could the students of the Lyric Writing major remain indifferent?
A student from the Lyric Writing major posted: “Aren’t you afraid it will fly far away, afraid it will leave me, yet also afraid it will stay here forever? Don’t you think this line is powerful? In just a few words, it captures the subtle emotions between the white dragon and the little girl, fitting the mood of the animated film, and also expresses the hopes of countless parents for their children. Think about how many parents hope their children can soar high, yet are reluctant to see them leave.”
“Poetic words!”
Another student from the Lyric Writing major added: “The imagery required for an impression song is fully displayed in these lyrics, rich yet not lacking in touching details, transitioning from grand scenes to delicate emotions, filled with the traditional cultural beauty of our Blue Star.”
The music-related majors were so lively.
Even the Arrangement Department couldn’t help but chime in: “The lyrics, composition, and singing are all excellent, but don’t overlook the importance of the arrangement for this song. The instrumental and drum arrangements complement the ethereal parts of the vocals without overshadowing them, and even the singer’s breath is paired with instruments, making it a seamless whole.”
There’s a saying in the Arrangement Department:
Arrangement is like a makeup artist, responsible for making the song look beautiful. A great arrangement can be like a top-notch makeup artist, making someone who isn’t originally beautiful look stunning.
However,
Whether on Earth or Blue Star, the status of arrangement is weaker than composition and singing. Someone once asked the master arranger Zhong Xingming when arrangement would stand up, and Zhong Xingming’s answer was: “It depends on our own efforts.”
The underlying bitterness was self-evident.
But after a round of discussion, a non-music student watching the excitement couldn’t help but say: “But after all your discussions, aside from the singing part, the lyrics, composition, and arrangement of this song were all done by Xian Yu alone.”
The entire music department: “”
Thus, all arguments instantly vanished, and everyone’s focus shifted to Xian Yu: “This newly emerged Master Composer really has something. It’s one thing to handle both lyrics and composition, but he’s released only two songs, and he didn’t even spare the arrangement.”
“Isn’t this the pace of an Ace?”
“In a few years, Xian Yu will definitely be an Ace!”
“Do you really need to predict that?”
A student from the Composition Department sighed: “After the exam for ‘Life Like Summer Flowers,’ I started to resist Xian Yu, but when his new song came out, I still couldn’t help but praise him.”
“Count me in.”
“I’m different from you guys. Last time, when you were all praising Xian Yu, I was worried he was just a flash in the pan. After all, everyone has moments of overflowing inspiration, but this new song ‘Big Fish’ proves that his level is indeed impressive.”
“Who can blame Qinzhou for being the land of music?”
“The music circle in Qinzhou is full of talents!”
Thus, this sense of superiority from the Composition Department extended to the entire Qinzhou. Regardless of the major, everyone felt they were capable again.