Enter the Void

"Enter the Void" is a piece that was composed by Takeharu Ishimoto for Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep. It plays when battling the Vanitas Remnant.

Composition

"Enter the Void" is approximately two minutes and twenty-seven seconds in length and plays at a strict 160 beats per measure throughout. It has a time signature of 4/4. The instrumentation consists of a full string orchestra, flute, low brass, trumpets, piano, drumset, concert toms, and suspended and crash cymbals. It is written in the key of e minor.

This piece has three distinct parts: an introduction from the beginning to 1:27 which introduces the main theme, a short transition from 1:27 to 1:52, and a reprise of the main theme from 1:52 to the end. It loops immediately into measure twenty upon conclusion.

As with many Kingdom Hearts instrumental tracks, a solo piano is clearly heard as a supporting line, as heard at 0:15 and 1:39. The main melody is handed off between upper and lower voices, such as at 0:15, when a solo violin has the melody and then hands it off to trombones at 0:27. Overall, the melody is rather simplistic and is embellished by the percussion drumkit and cymbals. The transition features four flowing piano octave tremolos juxtaposed next to a short trumpet soli in strict eighth notes. The reprise follows the same chord structure as the introduction, with simpler lines handed off more frequently between voices.

One of this piece's main features is the usage of several syncopated rhythms. The most prevalent of these rhythms consists of strong beats on counts one and two-and-a-half. This line is not always carried in the lower voices, as occasionally it transfers to violins and trumpets from low brass and strings, but it provides a driving rhythm for the entire piece.

Audio

Enter the Void