Heart of Courage

Last updated
"Heart of Courage"
Song by Two Steps from Hell
from the album Invincible
ReleasedMay 3, 2010
Recorded2008
Genre
Length1:57
Songwriter(s)

"Heart of Courage" is a song by the American production music company, Two Steps from Hell; it was composed by co-founder Thomas Bergersen. [1] It originates from the "drama"/second disc of their 2008 trailer music demo album, Legend , circulated exclusively within the movie advertising industry for the purpose of licensing. The track was subsequently made available for public purchase on the group's first commercial album, Invincible , released on 3 May 2010.

Contents

It is considered the group's most famous song, having gone on to be extremely used worldwide as the background track for film trailers, video game trailers, TV commercials, stadium events and festivals. [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] Particularly notable was its use as the entrance theme of the teams onto the pitch at all 31 matches of UEFA Euro 2012 which thrust it into the public limelight, becoming known as a de facto theme of the tournament. [1]

Description

"Heart of Courage" is orchestral and choral-based, with an emphasis on strings including significant use of the violin and cello. [1] [7] [8] Instrumental elements were performed by the Czech-based Capellen Orchestra, whilst the choral elements were performed by The Salt Lake Tabernacle Choir. [9]

It begins gently and slowly in B-flat minor. The song starts to build after ~0:30 with the introduction of a repetitive rhythm, and further still at ~0:45 when a catchy melody is introduced, featuring a choir singing short lines, mostly consisting of just a word or two. The song ceases to build after roughly half of its length when it then crescendos in E-flat minor, climaxing in intensity at ~1:40. Strings then continue on until the end of the track, once again returning to B-flat minor and finishing by fading out. [5] [10] [11]

The song is famed for its "epic" and emotive qualities. [1] Soundstripe summaries the song from this perspective saying, "No matter which visual you prefer, this piece of adventure music somehow captures the excitement and danger that we'd expect to find in another place or time. And in two minutes that song creates an experience that might take 30 minutes to pull off in a visual medium." [3] Its capacity to induce emotion has led it to be frequently cited by professional sports people as a popular pre-game motivational anthem. [12] [13]

Charts

Weekly chart performance for "Heart of Courage"
Chart (2012–15)Peak
position
UK Independent Singles (OCC) [14] 46
UK Independent Singles Breakers (OCC) [14] 11
French Top 200 Singles (SNEP) [15] 95

Appearances

"Heart of Courage" has appeared on multiple Two Steps from Hell albums:

Use in media

The song accompanied the introduction of players onto the pitch at all UEFA Euro 2012 matches. Czech Republic - Poland teams entry - Euro 2012.jpg
The song accompanied the introduction of players onto the pitch at all UEFA Euro 2012 matches.

The following are select examples of notable uses of "Heart of Courage" in the media, and the varying types it is frequently featured in:

Samples

The main segment of the melody has been re-used in the song "Darkside" by Alan Walker during the chorus at the lyric "I see it, let's feel it, while we're still young and fearless".

Related Research Articles

Invincible may refer to:

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Thomas Jacob Bergersen is a Norwegian composer, multi-instrumentalist, and the co-founder of the production music company Two Steps From Hell. He is among the worlds most streamed artists in the classical crossover genre, and has over 2 million streams per month on Spotify. Bergersen's compositions have featured in many motion picture campaigns, such as Avatar, Pirates of the Caribbean, The Twilight Saga, The Chronicles of Narnia, Harry Potter, Da Vinci Code, The Mummy, The Dark Knight, Tron: Legacy and hundreds more. Bergersen has scored over one thousand soundtracks and film trailers.

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<i>Legend</i> (Two Steps from Hell album) 2008 demo album by Two Steps From Hell

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References

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  6. 1 2 Junn, Jihee (29 June 2019). "The cult of failure reaches a new peak at Unfiltered Live". The Spinoff . Retrieved 15 June 2022. 'Heart of Courage' by Two Steps From Hell blasted across the room (aka that music that gets played in almost every dramatic movie/TV/sporting trailer known to man). It's also the opening theme song to Nathan for You
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  9. ↑ Invincible (PDF) (Official booklet). Two Steps from Hell. 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 July 2011. Retrieved 30 March 2022.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
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