When you boot up a new Samsung phone and go to the music library, you'll find that there's already a song: it's called Over The Horizon, and it's the official anthem or jingle for phones. Galaxy S. If you've ever owned a Galaxy phone, you'll probably recognize the central theme of the song. Over The Horizon debuted on the Samsung Galaxy S2 back in 2011, and the January 14 release date of the Samsung Galaxy S21 will bring with it the tenth iteration, or ninth reinvention, of that song.
Above the horizon 2011 (Samsung Galaxy S2)
The original Over The Horizon for the Samsung Galaxy S2 defines early versions of it: it's upbeat, poppy, uses loaded instrumentation (with real and digital instruments), and looks like it would fit right in with a soundtrack. of the sims. The theme of that original release was "Beyond the Intelligent Experience" and it's as strangely optimistic as we all were back then. The pattern repeats itself over and over again, even played in a small guitar solo in the middle. Upbeat in tone and up-tempo, this version of the track was the perfect alarm clock song, getting your day off to a good start, even though it might have sounded much better thanks to your computer or phone speakers. now compared to the Galaxy S2.Above the horizon 2012 (Samsung Galaxy S3)
The first reimagining of Over The Horizon starts off rather softly, with more acoustic instruments like strings and tonic percussion for the first minute, until a larger string section and piano kick in more. late. Compared to the other early years of Over The Horizon, it's a bit of an aberration in terms of instrumentation and tone, but that's the point of the whole "reinterpretation" exercise, after all. The theme of the song was ``Designed by humans,'' that doesn't mean robots or aliens wrote the other versions, but Samsung's whole design philosophy for the Galaxy S3 was to make it look more artificial. and craft. The lack of clearly digital instruments attests to this.Over The Horizon 2013 and 2014 (Samsung Galaxy S4 and S5)
The third version of Over The Horizon, released in 2013 with the Samsung Galaxy S4 and used again with the Galaxy S5 the following year, bears more than a passing resemblance to the original version. The song, written around the vague 'Life Companion' theme, starts off slowly with synths and pianos, before slowly building to a crescendo with heavy instrumentation. There is what sounds like guitar, strings, drums, piano and more. It is also the most structured piece, evolving between themes and variations on the original motif. It's not hard to imagine this version of the song accompanying a climactic moment in a movie, but the ``Sims soundtrack'' vibe is here, too. This piece would definitely work in the trailer.Above the horizon 2015 (Samsung Galaxy S6)
According to numerous YouTube comments on all Over The Horizon videos (admittedly not necessarily a reliable source, but the best we can do), the Samsung Galaxy S6 version of the song is the most popular. The piece begins slowly, with a gentle harp rendition of the motif, and takes much longer to build than previous versions, only bringing in percussion and a full orchestra after two minutes. It's certainly not as upbeat as the 2013 version, which is more reminiscent of the 2012 song. This is the final piece of what we call the ``Age of Sims,'' represented by upbeat parts that could fit the band perfectly. sound from simulation video games (and other things, obviously. ). Things get weird from here.Over the horizon 2016 (Samsung Galaxy S7)
2016 Over The Horizon starts off pretty normal, with the motif played right away, but then we have a quick drum break, jazzy brass harmony, and the first human voices on the songs, all within the first 10 seconds. This rendition of the song was written and performed by Dirty Loops, a jazz-funk band from Sweden, and marks a dramatic change from previous songs. It's great to see the original pattern presented in an eye-catching way, and if Samsung was looking to go in a new direction with the Samsung Galaxy S7 version of the coin, this is one of the better iterations we could have hoped for. .Above the horizon 2017 (Samsung Galaxy S8)
Over The Horizon in 2017 was written by artist Jacob Collier, and it seems to be going in a similar direction to Dirty Loops: it's another jazz-funk take on the piece, though it certainly leans more on the last of those two words, with a Little slap bass thrown in for good measure. Like the original version of the song, Collier's leans heavily on the motif, singing it repeatedly throughout the piece. There's also an ever-evolving range of instruments with keyboards, guitars, layered vocals, a mouth keyboard, and more coming in and out of the room at different intervals. Samsung's ``jazz-funk'' phase only lasted two years, and it was a shame to see it disappear, as eclectic pieces like these made great alarm clocks or ringtones.Above the horizon 2018 (Samsung Galaxy S9)
Now we are entering the "natural" phase of Samsung, pieces inspired by nature. This first takes the listener on an "atmospheric journey of discovery," according to the video's description. The song opens with a piano playing the motif and variations on it, before an orchestra joins in mid-song. It's best to listen with the video embedded above, as the music is suitable for pictures. The Samsung Galaxy S9 version of Over The Horizon marked another drastic change in direction for the song, and it could be argued that the new rooms were less useful as alarms and more suitable for ringtones, due to their soft opening. Still, if you like being woken up a bit rather than a full digital orchestra, this version might be better for you.Above the horizon 2019 (Samsung Galaxy S10)
The Samsung Galaxy S10 ringtone was inspired by water and oceans, as the accompanying video makes it remarkably clear. Great for people who like natural sounding music, harmful for people with thalassophobia (fear of the sea). The piece uses strings, piano, and woodwinds to create something of a soundscape, though the motif occasionally appears in various guises. Towards the end, the piece is reminiscent of early versions of Over The Horizon, with a percussion section and piano picking up the tempo.Above the horizon 2020 (Samsung Galaxy S20)
Last year's reimagining of Over The Horizon has a nature theme again, but takes us back to dry land (okay, land, though there's still plenty of water). The first minute or two of the piece are all natural sounds, like running water and birdsong, so it's perfect for people who like a soft wake-up call. Overall, the piece is more like background music than ringtone, with the tempo and full instrumentation only spanning the last minute of the piece. There are some strings and a piano, but it seems that the first nature-inspired sounds are the real star of the piece. We don't hear much of the original motif in this version of Over The Horizon, as he only shows his head from time to time. It would be quite difficult to train birds to sing or to make water flow at that particular speed, so we're not surprised.Above 2021 (Samsung Galaxy S21)
The latest version of Over The Horizon has not technically been revealed as of this writing; we're waiting for the Samsung Galaxy S21 to launch for that, but it's been leaked. We're not sure if that's the whole song or just part of it, but it does give us an idea of where Samsung is headed. Well not Samsungva en una dirección '' tanto como stay in the same direction,'' as this is another sweet and bland version of the coin. The reason we don't know if this is the full version of Over The Horizon, or just a part of it, is that there is only one instrument: a piano. It's a bit like the 2018 version in that way, but without the orchestra showing up halfway through. The original motif is barely present in the song, appearing more in the harmonies and variations on the theme than as the theme itself. It would make more sense if the piano was accompanied by other instruments taking over the melody, although perhaps Samsung just wanted to relax with the iconic six-note sound clip for a year.