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Sheet music to the song. Note that the last two bars vary from game to game in phrasing.
Totaka's Song is a simple, 19-note and 8-bar melody, that Nintendo sound designer Kazumi Totaka is known for inserting in most of the titles that he has worked on. The song is very simple and is often hidden several minutes into a rarely-heard song in the game, requiring a player to find a place where the song plays and wait. This same technique was used to hide a remix of the Super Mario Bros. overworld theme in the Super Mario World Special World music.
Games containing Totaka's Song
X (Game Boy, 1990)
Go to a fake scientist screen in Mission Four and wait 40 seconds.
Mario Paint (Super NES, 1992)
Mario Paint on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System was long thought to be the earliest Nintendo game that Totaka's Song can be found in, until the song was also found in X. Totaka's Song. In Mario Paint, clicking the letters on the title screen will cause different effects to happen, one of which being Totaka's Song playing. To hear it, one must simply click on the "O": it will turn into a bomb and explode, after which the song will play.
For the Frog the Bell Tolls (Game Boy, 1992)
After the third quest in the castle, a boat to Nantendo Island will appear in Port Town with a new building next to it. Enter this building and wait a couple minutes.
Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins (Game Boy, 1992)
On the Game Over screen, wait 2 minutes and 30 seconds to hear the song.
The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (Game Boy, 1993)
This game contains three(!) different versions of Totaka's song:
- Go to Richard`s frog-filled villa and wait for 2 minutes and 30 seconds. This works in all versions, including The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX. It's worth noting that Richard is actually a cameo appearance of a character in Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru, which is probably the reason Totaka hid his song here.
- In the Japanese version, start a new game and enter your name as "とたけけ" (Totakeke). The music in the file select screen will be replaced with a remix of Totaka's Song. This can also be heard in the German version of Link's Awakening DX by entering the name "MOYSE".
- The third version was discovered in the game's music data, but a method of playing it in-game has not been discovered. This version is a solo, using an instrument that sounds like the Full Moon Cello.
Virtual Boy Wario Land (Virtual Boy, 1995)
After the end of the credits, wait on the End Screen for 1 minute 15 seconds.
Yoshi's Story (Nintendo 64, 1998)
Enter "Trial Mode" from the game's main menu and wait on the next screen for 2 minutes and 10 seconds.
Mario Artist: Talent Studio (Nintendo 64DD, 2000)
One of the included demo videos plays Totaka's Song while an old person crosses the road. (It is not known whether this song is available for user-created videos.)
Luigi's Mansion (GameCube, 2001)
This game contains 2(!) different versions of this song:
- Go to the training room controller configuration screen and wait for 3 and a half minutes.
- The game contains a music file named "PianistQuiz03" which is an upbeat piano version of Totaka's Song. The name indicates that it is meant to be played during Melody Pianissima's music quiz, but no method of accessing it in-game has been found yet.
Animal Crossing (GameCube, 2001)
K.K. Slider, or "Totakeke," owes his name to Kazumi Totaka. To hear Totaka's Song in Animal Crossing on the Nintendo GameCube, one must approach K.K. Slider when he plays music on Saturday night. The player must then request the song "K.K. Song". This is one of the three hidden songs in Animal Crossing, and without requesting it, K.K. Slider will never play it. Requesting "K.K. Song" will cause K.K. Slider to play a version of Totaka's Song, and afterwards, the player will receive a recording of the song that sounds a lot more like the version of Totaka's Song that players are used to hearing.
Animal Crossing-e (e-Reader, 2003)
Cards P-13 and P-15 in Series 4 contain the "Who's Dunnit?" mini-game, which has Totaka's Song as its normal background music. This is a rare instance of a game where the song is not hidden at all, although one could argue the game itself is hidden in collectable card packs.
Pikmin 2 (GameCube, 2004)
After completing a cave, wait on the Treasures Salvaged screen for approximately 3 minutes 50 seconds. This only works in the GameCube version; the song was removed from the New Play Control release.
Yoshi Touch & Go (Nintendo DS, 2005)
The song playing in the level where the wind blows away the clouds you draw contains Totaka's Song after 3 minutes and 45 seconds. However, the stage will usually end before this part is reached. To hear it, just leave the game paused, as the music continues to play on the pause menu.
Animal Crossing: Wild World (Nintendo DS, 2005)
In Animal Crossing: Wild World, the song can be found in the same way as the first game. However, since the Train Station is no longer present, one must speak to K.K. Slider at The Roost cafe beneath the town museum. It can also be heard in Wolfgang's house.
Animal Crossing: City Folk (Wii, 2008)
Along with the same method as in Wild World, one can find the song in another way. While being driven to or from the city in Kapp'n's bus, leave the Wii running without going through the text while Kapp'n is facing away from the player. This triggers a cycle of him whistling some of K.K. Slider's tunes, including K.K. Song (Totaka's Song).
Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii, 2008)
In Super Smash Bros Brawl, playing the Animal Crossing battlefield "SmashVille" on a Saturday will make K.K Slider to play some of his musics. Rarely, Totaka's song is played during the battle but there's a chance that K.K will play the song inbetween the battle that it can barely be heard due to the fighting effects.
X-Scape (DSiWare, 2010)
In X-Scape, the DSiWare sequel to Totaka's first work and the first instance of the song, one can find the song in a way much like the original, by waiting on a fake scientist screen for a few minutes while the music remains distorted.
Animal Crossing: New Leaf (Nintendo 3DS, 2012)
In Animal Crossing: New Leaf, you can listen to the song in the same way as all the other games in the series. Also while being on the loading screen connecting to the internet after speaking to Kapp'n for 2 minutes and 25 seconds. After the original song has looped you will be able Totaka's Song as if it is part of the original song itself. You must have a slow internet connection in order to be on the page for a long amount of time. You can find video evidence of Totaka's Song in Animal Crossing: New Leaf, here
Totaka's Song can also be heard in Club lOl, If you stay for long enough the music will briefly play the notes.
You can also buy the K.K. Song from T.I.Y. and up once you have upgraded to it.
Yoshi's New Island (Nintendo 3DS, 2014)
In Yoshi's New Island, wait in the world map in level 6-8 for 5 minutes, & then, the song will begin, using the instruments of the map theme song.
Mario Kart 8 (Wii U, 2014)
If the player goes to a course with Yoshis on it, certain Yoshis will hum the tune. It is faint as the tune is largely covered up by the course's music, but once the music is removed, the song is clearly identifiable. Here is video evidence of it.
Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer (Nintendo 3DS, 2015)
The song will play if the player starts design DJ KK's home using the card amiibo. If the player uses the turntable, it will play said song.
Unconfirmed Games
These games may contain Totaka's Song, but its location has not been discovered or confirmed.
Wii Sports (Nintendo Wii, 2006)
In Wii Sports if you play a game of tennis and get a rally going, you may notice the sound effect for the ball hitting the tennis racket is a slightly different pitch each time the ball hits. If you record the ball sounds and play them back at the same tempo as Totaka's song, it seems to match perfectly. However, this may be due to one's mind making the racket hits sound like the song when played in the correct tempo. Video evidence of its existence found here. More info here.
Other
The music for the "NO BLANK FRAMES" error screen on the Game Boy Camera is a very short tune using the first 6 notes of Totaka's Song, then the first 5 notes repeated in a higher key. However, the note lengths are somewhat different, and Kazumi Totaka is not listed in the credits, so this may just be a coincidence. On the official European Website for Animal Crossing: New Leaf, Totaka's Song can be heard by clicking on K.K. Slider.
