At 14 years old, his music and films were featured at international film festivals.

He’s composed for world-renowned video game and entertainment publishers such as Capcom, DreamWorks Pictures, and Konami.

In fact, the intro and outro music that you will hear on this episode was written by Aaron Tsang, specifically for all graduation ceremonies at the University of Toronto.

This is the Legend Of… Aaron Tsang, award-winning composer and music professor at the University of Toronto!

Join Amos Vang and Aaron Tsang in their discussion on Aaron’s career, musical style, musical influences, and musical analysis.

This is the first part of a multi-part conversation, so stay tuned for future parts. On this part, Amos and Aaron discuss:

- Aaron’s early classical musical influences and beginnings

- Aaron’s experiences as a young teenager making music and films at international film festivals

- The question of whether music can truly be objective

- Musical analysis on iconic themes such as the Super Smash Bros. Melee Menu 1 Theme, and why they hit so differently

- The influence of the famous Chinese story, “Journey to the West”, and other wuxia stories on Aaron’s musical style

You can follow Aaron on Instagram: @aarontsang.music

You can visit Aaron’s website: www.aarontsang.com

-- CHAPTERS –

0:00 – Introduction

2:36 – What inspired Aaron Tsang to pursue music?

4:50 – What instruments did Aaron play?

6:53 – How do pianists apply bel canto singing to piano performance?

7:44 – How did these instruments influence Aaron’s musical thinking?

8:57 – How do pianists perform within the gaps of the notes?

11:34 – The same pianist can perform the same piece of music differently across different concerts. How?

13:00 – Tempo rubato in classical music

17:33 – Public advocacy as a lawyer is very similar to musical performance as a pianist. How?

19:34 – Public advocacy, musical performance, and sports announcing have A LOT in common. How?

20:03 – Aaron’s early non-musical influences on his musical style

23:07 – Video games REALLY influenced Aaron’s musical style. Why?

25:20 – Wuxia REALLY influenced Aaron’s musical style. Why?

28:09 – Journey to the West is one of the most influential stories in the world (probably even more than Shakespearean stories)

28:54 – Black Myth Wukong reused a part of the main theme from the 1986 TV adaptation of Journey to the West!

29:47 – Westerners, especially Canadians and Americans, are rediscovering the beauty of wuxia films such as “Hero” (2001)!

31:04 – Super Smash Bros. Melee’s menu theme is ICONIC!!!!!

31:57 – In his professorship, Aaron argues that music is not subjective. How?

33:04 – Why is Super Smash Bros. Melee’s menu theme so iconic? Here’s Aaron and Amos’s musical analysis and discussion on that.

40:40 – Melee’s Opening Theme is ALSO ICONIC. Here’s why.

42:57 – Nintendo is the master of nostalgia, especially when it comes to musical composition and counterpoint.

45:08 – At 14 years old, Aaron’s work was featured at international film festivals. This is how he storyboards his music and films.

52:03 – Effective communication between the composer and the producer is important.

57:21 – Similar to music, effective communication between a lawyer and a client is important.

1:02:19 – Outro. Stay tuned for the next part!!!!!

Intro and Outro Music by: Aaron Tsang

All other referenced music featured in this episode are attributed to their respective composers.