Sound Thinking with Cadence Hira

Hooktheory co-founder Ryan sits down with composer, sound designer, and YouTube creator ‪@CadenceHira‬ to talk about how we hear music theory. They dive into Cadence’s beginnings arranging Zelda tunes by ear, her journey from Berklee to YouTube, and how the pandemic reshaped her creative path. Together they unpack her “ears-first” philosophy, video game scoring, and her idea of Relative Axis Interchange—a modern way to understand harmony beyond traditional rules.They also explore why theory is “kind of all right, I suppose,” the beauty of constraints in composition, and how to keep learning music theory fun, accessible, and endlessly inspiring.