Frontrunning beats are a simple, looping drum set beat in Mario Kart 7 and Mario Kart 8. It is layered on top of the current course's music when the player is not in 50cc, in first place, driving at top speed, and far enough away from second place.
Composition
The beat consists of a kick, snare and some hi-hats. Some courses also add their own additional instruments.
History
Mario Kart 7
In Mario Kart 7, frontrunning beats are sequenced, and stored in a sequence and soundfont file. All courses have their own BPM value that they set the beat to to match their music. Non-returning battle courses also have their own BPM value for their frontrunning beats, despite the Battle mode not using them.
In Mario Kart 8 and its Nintendo Switchport, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, frontrunning beats are now streamed and use higher quality samples. Courses also have more dedicated frontrunning beats; they have their own slightly different mixing, and some even have unique intros and time signatures.
Frontrunning beats with alternate or additional instruments
Bowser's Castle (Frontrunning beats) - The frontrunning beats heard in Bowser's Castle.
GBA Cheese Land's frontrunning beats are out of sync from the music's percussion.
Wild Woods and Tour New York Minute are the only courses in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe that do not have their frontrunning beats match the time signature of the theme.
New "hub" pages for these motifs that link to all of its arrangements we have an article about (see below). A conjectural name may be needed.
Arrangements of these motifs do not need any amount of additional appearances to be eligible for their own article (they'll still need an official title, however).
Additional discussion the article's talk page will be required to determine the following:
Whether or not a motif should be considered separate from any themes that use it.
Which themes are based on a specific arrangement of the motif and which ones arrange it in a more general way. ("Hightail Falls Galaxy" from Super Mario Galaxy 2 v.s. the desert theme in the Super Mario World style from Super Mario Maker 2)
Proposal: clarify the rules for musical theme article identifiers (WIP)
Recently, I removed the "(New Super Mario Bros. Wii)" identifier from Forest Theme under the reasoning that "this is the only subject with this title". However, I'm now having second thoughts, as this is not true; Super Mario Bros. Wonder also features its own theme titled "Forest Theme". But another reason I changed my mind is that while "Forest Theme" from New Super Mario Bros. Wii is the only one out of the two that currently has an article, one might be looking for the theme from Super Mario Bros. Wonder, and think "Forest Theme" is about such. Except it's not. Boss BGM has the same problem; Super Mario Bros. 2, Super Mario Land, and Super Mario Land 2 - 6 Golden Coins all feature a theme with the title "Boss BGM", but you wouldn't know which theme the article is about until you click on the link.
Thing is, this kind of article naming is a bit inconsistent in this regard. Selection Screens (Mario Kart 64) uses an identifier, despite the only other theme with the name "Selection Screens" not having article. Same goes for Finish! (5th – 8th Place) (Super Mario Kart) (although in this case one could argue that it's unnecessary, as the corresponding theme from Mario Kart 64 uses a Minus Sign (−) intead of an En Dash (–)).
There's also the articles that use an indentifier even though the only other instance(s) of their title are/is a redirect(s) and not currently in use by any actual article, which are also inconsistent, though to a lesser extent. Fortress Boss (Super Mario Bros. 3) uses a game identifier because Fortress Boss is a disambiguation page for it and "Koopalings BGM", yet Koopa Troopa Beach (theme), does not, even though "Koopa Beach" from Super Mario Kart is also known as "Koopa Troopa Beach" (the {{about}} template is used instead). I think these should all follow the former case for the reasons stated above. Regardless, I've included an option to account for this if that's your thing, I guess.
So, since the rules aren't exactly clear on this, I'm proposing to make one of the following additions to the last paragraph of the "Musical theme titles" section:
The title of this article is conjectural; an official name for the article's subject has not been found, so it has been given a fitting title by the editors. If an acceptable name is found, then the article should be moved to the new title.
Super Mario World motif
A basic arrangement of the Super Mario World motif in C major
“Reflecting back on how I had put so many different songs into Super Mario Bros. 3, I decided to use the same themes - like “above ground” or “underground” - in different arrangements for the various levels. If I did that, I thought the music would change scene by scene, but the melodies would be the same, so they would stick with the game’s listeners.”
Super Mario World incorporates an overarching motif into several different themes throughout the game, particularly all of its level themes. It bears a heavy resemblance to 1963 folk song "Green, Green". This motif was composed by Koji Kondo.
History
Super Mario series
Super Mario World
The motif is used in nine themes in Super Mario World, often changing the mode of the theme.
"Underwater BGM" is a slow waltz arrangement in the key of F major. It is played on a violin, and the rhythm is altered to fit the triple metre time of the piece.
"Ghost House BGM" is a foreboding arrangement played on low brass notes. The motif is played slowly in several natural minor scales in the arrangement. Additionally, the key center regularly changes throughout the arrangement to produce an unnerving, disorienting effect.
"Bonus Game BGM" is a playful arrangement in the key of F major. It has its own corresponding ending jingle, titled "Bonus Game Clear".
"Course Clear" is a brief brass arrangement that ends on a high F note.
"Game Over" is a brief arrangement of the second half of the motif played on a harp.
Super Mario Maker 2
Super Mario Maker 2 features three additional arrangements of the motif in the for the Super Mario World-style course themes that were not originally present in the original game.
The forest theme plays the motif on marimba and soprano saxophone, with acoustic bass, hi-hat, and congas as accompaniment. Its arrangement resembles that of "Underground BGM", but in a major key.
A music box version of these arrangements play during nighttime levels. They are also associated with more ambient arrangements with a dynamic mix when editing the course in the Course Maker.
A unique arrangement was also featured in the game's announcement trailer, where it plays after the title reveal, continuing where "Ground BGM" previously left off. This arrangement incorporates a variety of different musical styles, excerpts of "Ground BGM", and "Super Bell Hill" from Super Mario 3D World. It also ends with a high F note, similarly to "Course Clear".
Only 38 course themes from previous Mario Kart games are absent, excluding themes that are direct arrangements of themes that are present such as Yoshi's Island or Dragon Palace:
Additionally, Mario Kart 64, Mario Kart: Super Circuit, and Mario Kart 8 are not represented among the credits theme arrangements, while the "Staff Roll B" theme from Mario Kart Wii was also omitted.
Most title themes and menu themes are also absent. The only menu theme that is present is the one from Mario Kart 64, and the only title themes present are from Super Mario Kart, Mario Kart 64, and Mario Kart 8.