Jorge Rivera-Herrans

February Choice Video (2 of 2) - Cut Song 40 - Olive Tree

Added 2024-02-27 17:02:16 +0000 UTC

Hello my friends! This is the second February Choice Video! This is the cut song "Olive Tree" which was later replaced by "Would You Fall in Love With Me Again?"

I really, REALLY like the melody of this song, and I especially love it as an instrumental on a piano or guitar. Part of why this song didn't work for me was because it doesn't really allow any closure for us around the theme of ruthlessness. Yes, Odysseus becomes ruthless to get back to Penelope, but in WYFiLWMA, we get to see Penelope's reaction to Odysseus's changes.

Another reason why this song doesn't work for me is that the actual story elements in this song came out a little more unclear than I intended. In this song, Penelope acts, as if one of the suitors won her challenge, and then entered her room. In reality, Penelope is scared to turn around because she doesn't know if it's Odysseus or not and doesn't want to be disappointed if it's not.

I ultimately think WYFiLWMA has a better usage of the Olive Tree trick, tying it to how Odysseus hasn't changed in Penelope's eyes. Just as the Olive Tree can only be moved by severing it from its roots, Odysseus can never fully change in Penelope's eyes from the man she married.

Anywho, the reason I have a chipmunk voice as Penelope is because I record myself singing her sections in a lower key, and then I pitch it up. This is so that I have an audio I can send to the Penelope vocalist for learning.

This song prioritizes the nylon string guitar and the viola, since those are Odysseus's and Penelope's instruments. :)