But the one channel I constantly return to for my “How did they do that?” The solution is @HowardHoMusic, the channel where composer/playwright/journalist Howard Ho analyzes songs from stage and film musicals in micro detail, but in terms that music fans like me can actually understand.
I first came across Ho's channel after the Disney animated movie. Charm I put the frustratingly catchy number “We Don't Talk About Bruno” on non-stop rotation on my brain's constantly running jukebox. I couldn't understand why I couldn't get it out of my head, so when YouTube suggested a video explaining the phenomenon, I bit.
Ho's video not only made me listen to the song differently, but it also allowed me to see some of the film differently. It doesn't just explain the initial keys and relative majors, and how the keys and chords of the song fit together: it separates elements of Charm's visual and narrative symbolism to explain why certain colors and visual elements are relevant to the characters involved. The idea of the notes used in Bruno's name and the concept of “blocking the way home” in this song blew me away, but the breakdown of the embroidery on Mirabel's skirt was even more exciting. It's like a “You Missed Easter Eggs” video without the condescension.
Still, that video has no meaning (magical, symbolic, direct fromCharm) watch until the breakdown of “Surface Pressure” from the same musical, which almost made my brain explode. This look at how a song about emotional stress uses syllabic stress to create and break rhythms and convey different emotions is fascinating: one part structural analysis and two parts songwriting education.
Ho has a degree in musicology and has a clear fandom for the work of Lin-Manuel Miranda: his series break down theory, process, rhymes and symbols in hamilton has a longer runtime than hamilton itself. He clearly follows his own fascinations while programming the channel; Not only does he opportunistically dip his toe into what's popular at the time, but he also explores things he himself finds interesting, whether by selecting a particularly complicated and clever lyrical work on in the forest or spend almost an hour explaining what the 2022 Broadway show will look like. and juliet solves the fundamental problems with jukebox musicals.
Ho's videos are energetic but not frenetic; They don't have that over-cut “rushing to keep the attention of an impatient crowd” feeling that bothers me in other analysis channels, but they also don't prolong or insist on any given point. For me, its shifting focus between lyrical, musical, symbolic, narrative and rhythmic analysis also means a constant shift between analytical languages that I already understand and can easily assimilate, and ideas that push the limits of my understanding in exciting ways. If you're like me, his videos exploring media that most fans will feel like they know a lot about are informative and insightful enough to prompt you to watch videos on lesser-known projects and maybe, if you're lucky, watch them. projects in turn. (Schmigadoon! It's fantastic, y'all.)
But what I like most about Howard Ho's channel is that he answers questions I wouldn't even think of asking about the media I've already seen. Why does a B-flat note kick Sinister Strange's ass? Doctor Strange in the multiverse of madness? How does it connect to Danny Elfman and Beethoven? Because Only plays the Star Wars Empire theme in a major key, and how does that theme relate to “the happiest kind of melody you can write”? The next time you search for fun on YouTube, you'll know where to answer those questions.