Music of Final Fantasy IV

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The music of the video game Final Fantasy IV was composed by regular series composer Nobuo Uematsu. The Final Fantasy IV Original Sound Version, a compilation of almost all of the music in the game, was released by Square Co./NTT Publishing, and subsequently re-released by NTT Publishing. It was released in North America by Tokyopop as Final Fantasy IV Official Soundtrack: Music from Final Fantasy Chronicles, with one additional track. It has since been re-released multiple times with slight changes as part of the Final Fantasy Finest Box and as Final Fantasy IV DS OST. An arranged album entitled Final Fantasy IV Celtic Moon, containing a selection of musical tracks from the game performed in the style of Celtic music by Máire Breatnach, was released by Square and later re-released by NTT Publishing. Additionally, a collection of piano arrangements composed by Nobuo Uematsu and played by Toshiyuki Mori titled Piano Collections Final Fantasy IV was released by NTT Publishing.

Contents

The music was overall well received; reviewers have praised the quality of the original composition despite the limitations of the medium, and reacted favorably to the arranged soundtracks. Several tracks, especially "Theme of Love", remain popular today, and have been performed numerous times in orchestral concert series, as well as being published in arranged and compilation albums by Square as well as outside groups.

Concept and creation

Uematsu has noted that the process of composing was excruciating, involving trial and error and requiring the sound staff to spend several nights in sleeping bags at Square Co. headquarters. He blamed much of the problem on the fact that this was his first soundtrack to use the new Super Famicom hardware, as opposed to his previous soundtracks composed for the Famicom. The liner notes for the Final Fantasy IV OSV album were humorously signed as being written at 1:30 AM "in the office, naturally". [1] Uematsu has stated that, beginning with the soundtrack to Final Fantasy IV, he started to move away from the idea that the soundtrack had to be solely an orchestral score. [2] In June 2007, Square Enix held a casting for a vocalist to sing a version of Final Fantasy IV's "Theme of Love" rearranged by Nobuo Uematsu. Megumi Ida was selected from approximately 800 applicants to perform the song, which was featured on the Japanese Nintendo DS remake of the game, as well as the accompanying soundtrack album. [3]

Albums

Final Fantasy IV Original Sound Version

Final Fantasy IV Original Sound Version
FFIV OSV Cover.png
Soundtrack album by
Nobuo Uematsu
Junya Nakano (DS version), Kenichiro Fukui (DS version)
ReleasedJune 14, 1991
November 26, 1994 (re-release)
October 1, 2004 (re-release)
January 30, 2008 (DS version)
Length58:23
102:52 (DS version)
Label Square Co./NTT Publishing
NTT Publishing (re-release)
Square Enix (DS version)

Final Fantasy IV Original Sound Version is a soundtrack album containing the musical tracks from the game, composed, arranged, produced and performed by Nobuo Uematsu. It spans 44 tracks and covers a duration of 58:25. It was first released on June 14, 1991, by Square Co./NTT Publishing, and subsequently re-released on November 26, 1994, and October 1, 2004, by NTT Publishing. The original release bears the catalog number N23D-001, and the re-release bears the catalog number NTCP-5014. [4] After the release of Final Fantasy IV for the Sony PlayStation as part of Final Fantasy Chronicles, the album was released in North America by Tokyopop on August 21, 2001 as Final Fantasy IV Official Soundtrack: Music from Final Fantasy Chronicles. This is nearly the same release as Final Fantasy IV: Original Sound Version, some track titles were slightly changed, and a 45th track was added, "Theme of Love (Arranged)", which had previously only been released as a piano version on the second track of Piano Collections Final Fantasy IV. This release has the catalog numbers TPCD 0210-2. [5]

The GBA version was again released as part of the Final Fantasy Finest Box by Square Enix on March 28, 2007 under the catalog number FFFB-0001 along with the OSTs of V and VI after the game was ported to the Game Boy Advance. This version included several tracks which were not included in the original album, such as the "Chocobo Forest" theme, the music for the dancing girl, the short intro to "Cry in Sorrow/Sorrow and Loss", and various fanfares. [6] [7]

After the release of Final Fantasy IV for the Nintendo DS, a new version of the Soundtrack arranged by Junya Nakano and Kenichiro Fukui, respectively, was released in Japan in January 2008 as Final Fantasy IV Original Soundtrack. Most of the pieces are the same as on the original album, although they were reproduced for the sound hardware of the DS, with new synthesizer effects. A new version of "Theme of Love" was included, with lyrics sung by Megumi Ida. [8] It was released as a two-disk set with a bonus DVD containing the full motion video included in the re-releases of Final Fantasy IV, and has the catalog numbers SQEX-10105-7. [9] This version of "Theme of Love" was also released as a single, entitled Moonlight -Final Fantasy IV Theme of Love-. The single also includes the DS version of the song, the original track, and a karaoke version of the Megumi Ida rendition. It was released along with a bonus DVD containing a music video for the song on December 5, 2007 with the catalog numbers of BVCR-19727-8 and a duration of 16:21. [10]

Final Fantasy IV OSV sold over 164,000 copies. [11] It was well received; reviewers have praised the quality of the composition despite the limited medium. [12] Soundtrack Central compared it favorably with Uematsu's later works, especially the soundtrack for Final Fantasy VI, and termed it a "great CD". [13] However, the length of several tracks as well as of the album as a whole was criticized, with reviewers finding it "too short" and disapproving of the early fade-out of some tracks. Reviewers found the expanded and remastered version found in the Finest Box to be comparable to the quality of the original album, with some tracks improving in their remake, becoming "deeper" or "sharper" as was appropriate. [6]

A new edition of the soundtrack, Final Fantasy IV Original Soundtrack Remaster Version, was released by Square Enix on July 3, 2013. This version is expanded to two discs, allowing the tracks to play through two loops rather than just one, as well as the addition of a few short pieces that were left off of the original recording. Despite the name, the album features the original Super NES version of the music, rather than a more modern synthesizer sound. The album has the catalog number SQEX-10373~4, and its 57 tracks have a duration of 1:32:40. Joshua Bateman of RPGFan stated that while the remaster edition wasn't strictly necessary, given that Square Enix still sold the original version online, the new edition was still a superior version and an important step in preserving classic video game music. [14]

Final Fantasy IV Celtic Moon

Final Fantasy IV Celtic Moon
Soundtrack album by
Máire Breatnach
ReleasedOctober 28, 1991
Length52:36
Label NTT Publishing

Final Fantasy IV Celtic Moon is a selection of musical tracks from the game, arranged and performed in the style of Celtic music by Máire Breatnach. It spans 15 tracks and covers a duration of 52:36. It was first released on October 28, 1991, in Japan, and subsequently re-released on November 26, 1994, and on October 1, 2004, by NTT Publishing. The original release bears the catalog number N30D-006, the first re-release bears the catalog number PSCN-5017, and the most recent re-release has the catalog number NTCP-5017. [17]

The album sold over 26,000 copies. [11] Overall reception of Final Fantasy IV Celtic Moon was also positive, though some reviewers felt that several of the tracks were of lesser quality than the rest of the album. Patrick Gann of RPGFan described it as spectacular, and Matt Brady of Final Fantasy Symphony concurred, saying that the "music quality for this soundtrack was spectacular". [17] [18] Daniel Space of RPGFan, however, found the quality mixed, and said that "some of the pieces do not live up to the new orchestration", although others "were a delight to hear". He also found some of the instruments to be slightly out of tune, which he disliked, though Matt Brady felt it gave the pieces an "ethnic feel". [17] [18]

Piano Collections Final Fantasy IV

Piano Collections Final Fantasy IV
Soundtrack album by
Nobuo Uematsu
ReleasedApril 21, 1992
Length57:24
Label NTT Publishing

Piano Collections Final Fantasy IV is a collection of Final Fantasy IV music composed by Nobuo Uematsu, arranged by Shiro Satou and played on piano by Toshiyuki Mori. It spans 14 tracks and covers a duration of 57:24. It was first published by NTT Publishing on April 21, 1992, and subsequently re-published on May 23, 2001. The original release bears the catalog number N38D-010, and the reprint bears the catalog number NTCP-1001. [19]

Critical reception for Piano Collections Final Fantasy IV was positive, with reviewers terming the album "fantastic". [19] Damian Thomas of RPGFan said that the album was "a true gem" and said that despite his dislike of piano arrangements, he "truly appreciated" the album. Some reviewers felt that the pieces in the album were "simplistic", especially in comparison to the piano collections for Final Fantasy V and VI, but said that "its simplicity calls for a different feeling, and it is still great" and that despite the lack of complexity, "all of the songs...are extremely nicely done". [19] [20]

Final Fantasy IV Minimum Album

Final Fantasy IV Minimum Album is a 6 track Mini CD EP released on September 5, 1991 by NTT Publishing Co. It contains unreleased and arranged tracks from the original soundtrack. The catalog number is N09D-004 and it has a total playing time of 20:25. [21]

Legacy

The music of Final Fantasy IV has remained popular since its release, especially in Japan. The track "Theme of Love" has even been taught to Japanese school children as part of the music curriculum. [22] [23] Additionally, The Black Mages have arranged two pieces from Final Fantasy IV. These are "Battle with the Four Fiends", an arrangement of "The Dreadful Fight", and "Zeromus", an arrangement of "The Final Battle", both of which can be found on the album The Skies Above , published in 2004. [24] A lyrical version of "Theme of Love", sung by Risa Ohki, appeared on Final Fantasy: Pray , a compilation album produced by Square. [25] Additionally, lyrical versions of "Main Theme of FINAL FANTASY IV" and "Edward's Harp", sung by Risa Ohki and Ikuko Noguchi, appeared on Final Fantasy: Love Will Grow . [26]

Uematsu continues to perform certain pieces in his Dear Friends: Music from Final Fantasy concert series. [27] The music of Final Fantasy IV has also appeared in various official concerts and live albums, such as 20020220 music from FINAL FANTASY , a live recording of an orchestra performing music from the series including several pieces from the game. [28] "Red Wings", "Theme of Love", and "Ending Theme", were played by the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra in their first Orchestral Game Concert in 1991 as part of a five concert tour, which was later released as a series of albums. [29] Additionally, "Theme of Love" was performed by the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra for the Distant Worlds - Music from Final Fantasy concert tour, [30] as well as by the New Japan Philharmonic Orchestra in the Tour de Japon: Music from Final Fantasy concert series. [31] Independent but officially licensed releases of Final Fantasy IV music have been composed by such groups as Project Majestic Mix, which focuses on arranging video game music. [32] Another popular album release was Echoes of Betrayal, Light of Redemption, an unofficial download-only album release by the remix website OverClocked ReMix on July 19, 2009 containing 54 remixes over 4 "discs". [33] Selections also appear on Japanese remix albums, called dojin music, and on English remixing websites. [34]

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The music of the video game Final Fantasy IX was composed by regular series composer Nobuo Uematsu. It was his last exclusive Final Fantasy score. The Final Fantasy IX Original Soundtrack, a compilation of all music in the game, was originally released on four Compact Discs by DigiCube in 2000, and was re-released by Square Enix in 2004. A Best Of and arranged soundtrack album of musical tracks from the game entitled Final Fantasy IX: Uematsu's Best Selection was released in 2000 by Tokyopop Soundtrax. Final Fantasy IX Original Soundtrack PLUS, an album of music from the game's full motion videos and extra tracks, was released by DigiCube in 2000 and re-released in 2004, and a collection of piano arrangements of pieces from the original soundtrack arranged by Shirō Hamaguchi and performed by Louis Leerink was released as Piano Collections Final Fantasy IX in 2001.

The music of the MMORPG Final Fantasy XI was composed by Naoshi Mizuta along with regular series composer Nobuo Uematsu and Kumi Tanioka. The Final Fantasy XI Original Soundtrack, a compilation of almost all of the music in the game, was released by DigiCube in 2002, and subsequently re-released by Square Enix in 2004. Final Fantasy XI Rise of the Zilart Original Soundtrack was released by DigiCube in 2003 after the release of the Rise of the Zilart expansion for Final Fantasy XI, and re-released by Square Enix in 2004. Final Fantasy XI Chains of Promathia Original Soundtrack was produced by Square Enix in 2004 after the release of the Chains of Promathia expansion, and in 2005 Square Enix published Music from the Other Side of Vana'diel, a collection of arranged tracks from the game performed by The Star Onions, a group composed of Square Enix composers including Naoshi Mizuta, Kumi Tanioka and Hidenori Iwasaki. Final Fantasy XI Treasures of Aht Urhgan Original Soundtrack was released by Square Enix in 2006 for the Treasures of Aht Urhgan expansion.

SaGa is a series of science fiction role-playing video games produced by Square, now Square Enix. The series originated on the Game Boy in 1989 as the creation of Akitoshi Kawazu. It has since continued across multiple platforms, from the Super Nintendo Entertainment System to the PlayStation 2, and like the Final Fantasy series, the story in each SaGa game is independent of its counterparts. The music of the SaGa series consists of musical scores and arranged albums from various composers. Some of these composers have created soundtracks and pieces for other Square Enix franchises including the Final Fantasy series and Mana series. The SaGa series is divided up between the original series, released as the Final Fantasy Legend series in North America, the Romancing SaGa series, the SaGa Frontier series, and Unlimited SaGa.

The Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles video game series consists of Crystal Chronicles, a spin-off of the main Final Fantasy series, its sequels My Life as a King and My Life as a Darklord, and their spin-offs, Ring of Fates, Echoes of Time and The Crystal Bearers. Crystal Chronicles, Ring of Fates, and Echoes of Time have had released soundtrack albums to date, and Crystal Chronicles and Ring of Fates each have an associated single. Kumi Tanioka is the main composer for the series, having composed the three released soundtracks as well as the music for My Life as a King and My Life as a Darklord. Hidenori Iwasaki is filling that role for The Crystal Bearers. Nobuo Uematsu, the main composer for the regular Final Fantasy series, contributed one track to the Ring of Fates soundtrack. Yae and Donna Burke sang the Japanese and English versions of the theme song for Crystal Chronicles, respectively, while Aiko sang the theme song for Ring of Fates.

The music of the video game Final Fantasy XIII was composed by Masashi Hamauzu. Former regular series composer Nobuo Uematsu did not contribute any pieces to the soundtrack. Music from the game has been released in several albums. The main soundtrack album, Final Fantasy XIII Original Soundtrack, was released on four Compact Discs in 2010 by Square Enix, the developers and producers of the game. Selections from the soundtrack have been released on two gramophone record albums, W/F: Music from Final Fantasy XIII and W/F: Music from Final Fantasy XIII Gentle Reveries, both in 2010 by Square Enix. An album of arranged pieces from the soundtrack, Final Fantasy XIII Original Soundtrack -PLUS-, was also released by Square Enix in 2010, as was an album of piano arrangements, Piano Collection Final Fantasy XIII. The theme song for the Japanese version of the game, "Kimi ga Iru Kara", was released as a single by For Life Music in 2009.

Final Fantasy XIII-2 is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square Enix in 2011 as the sequel to Final Fantasy XIII. The music of the game was composed by Masashi Hamauzu, Naoshi Mizuta, and Mitsuto Suzuki. It was intended to sound different from the music of previous Final Fantasy titles, featuring more musical styles and vocal pieces. Since the release of the game, Square Enix has published the 2011 four-disc soundtrack album, Final Fantasy XIII-2 Original Soundtrack, as well as an album of arrangements and alternate versions of tracks from the game, Final Fantasy XIII Original Soundtrack PLUS, in 2012. The theme song for the game, "Yakusoku no Basho", was released by singer Mai Fukui as a single in 2011, and the English version of the song, sung by Charice Pempengco and included in the non-Japanese versions of the game, was included on her 2012 album Infinity.

The music for the MMORPG Final Fantasy XIV was composed by Nobuo Uematsu, a regular contributor to the music of the Final Fantasy series. Several other composers including Masayoshi Soken and Naoshi Mizuta contributed music for updates to the game. The music for the game's reboot, Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn, and subsequent expansions, is compiled of a collection of original and remixed songs by numerous composers, namely Uematsu, Soken, as well as others including guest composers such as Okabe of the NIER series. Soken was the sound director for both releases of the game. Music from both releases of the game has been released in several albums. A pair of mini-albums containing a handful of selected tracks from XIV, Final Fantasy XIV: Battle Tracks and Final Fantasy XIV: Field Tracks, were released by Square Enix in 2010 when XIV first launched. A soundtrack album titled Final Fantasy XIV - Eorzean Frontiers, containing most of the music that had been released by that point for XIV, was digitally released in 2012. A final soundtrack album for the original release of the game, Before Meteor: Final Fantasy XIV Original Soundtrack, was released in 2013 just before the launch of A Realm Reborn, and contains all of the music that was composed for XIV throughout its lifetime. The latest soundtrack album, Shadowbringers: Final Fantasy XIV Original Soundtrack, was released in 2019. This album contains the music for the third expansion, Shadowbringers, and music from the previous expansion, Stormblood, that was added to the game via patches after the release of that expansion's soundtrack.

References

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  2. ↑ D., Spence (14 July 2004). "Nobuo Part 2". IGN. Archived from the original on 2013-02-07. Retrieved 2008-07-26.
  3. ↑ 「愛のテーマ」ヴォーカリスト募集要項 (in Japanese). Square Enix Japan. May 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-07-03. Retrieved 2007-05-12.
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  6. 1 2 Tjan, Mark (2007-06-15). "FF Finest Box". RPGFan. Archived from the original on 2013-01-16. Retrieved 2008-02-22.
  7. ↑ "Final Fantasy Finest Box - Album Information". Square Enix Music Online. Archived from the original on 2012-07-19. Retrieved 2008-02-23.
  8. ↑ "FINAL FANTASY IV 開発室: 愛のテーマ～一般公募で伊田恵美さん！(Megumi Ida performs Theme of Love)" (in Japanese). Matrix Software. 2007-11-16. Archived from the original on 2009-02-05. Retrieved 2008-02-23.
  9. ↑ Gann, Patrick (2008-03-14). "Final Fantasy IV OST". RPGFan. Archived from the original on 2013-01-16. Retrieved 2008-03-25.
  10. ↑ Gann, Patrick (2008-03-14). "Moonlight -Final Fantasy IV Theme of Love-". RPGFan. Archived from the original on 2013-01-16. Retrieved 2008-05-11.
  11. 1 2 オリコンランキング情報サービス「you大樹」 [Oricon Ranking Information Service 'You Big Tree']. Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved 2018-06-20.
  12. ↑ Schweitzer, Ben (1999). "Final Fantasy IV OSV". RPGFan. Archived from the original on 2013-01-16. Retrieved 2006-04-18.
  13. ↑ Hoyak, Paul. "Final Fantasy IV Original Sound Version". Soundtrack Central. Archived from the original on 2012-08-20. Retrieved 2008-02-22.
  14. ↑ Bateman, Joshua (2013-10-27). "Final Fantasy IV OST Remaster Version". RPGFan. Archived from the original on 2013-10-29. Retrieved 2013-10-28.
  15. ↑ "Final Fantasy IV Original Sound Version". ffmusic.info/. Archived from the original on 2012-08-19. Retrieved 2008-02-23.
  16. ↑ Taken from the album's iTunes release. Retrieved on 2008-02-23.
  17. 1 2 3 Gann, Patrick; Space, Daniel (2003). "Final Fantasy IV Celtic Moon". RPGFan. Archived from the original on 2013-01-16. Retrieved 2008-02-22.
  18. 1 2 Brady, Matt. "Final Fantasy IV: Celtic Moon". FF Symphony. Archived from the original on March 8, 2007. Retrieved 2007-02-22.
  19. 1 2 3 Gann, Patrick; Thomas, Damian. "Final Fantasy IV Piano Collections". RPGFan. Archived from the original on 2013-01-16. Retrieved 2007-02-22.
  20. ↑ Adam, Gordon. "Final Fantasy IV Piano Collections". Soundtrack Central. Archived from the original on 2013-04-04. Retrieved 2007-02-22.
  21. ↑ "Final Fantasy IV Minimum Album - Album Information". Square Enix Music Online. Archived from the original on 2012-04-16. Retrieved 2008-02-23.
  22. ↑ Suppai, Hitmitsu (2004-03-31). "Final Fantasy Becomes Curriculum". IGN. Archived from the original on 2012-11-05. Retrieved 2006-03-01.
  23. ↑ Final Fantasy Retrospective Part III (GameTrailers.com feature). GameTrailers. 2007-07-30. Archived from the original on May 10, 2009. Retrieved 2008-02-22.
  24. ↑ (December 22, 2004). The Black Mages II: The Skies Above. Universal Music. UPCH-1377
  25. ↑ (June 25, 1994). Final Fantasy: Pray. NTT Publishing. PSCN-5006
  26. ↑ (November 25, 1995). Final Fantasy: Love Will Grow. NTT Publishing. PSCN-5041
  27. ↑ Schnieder, Peer (2005-05-11). "Dear Friends: Music from Final Fantasy". IGN. Archived from the original on 2013-01-20. Retrieved 2006-03-01.
  28. ↑ "20020220 - Music from FINAL FANTASY". RPGFan. Archived from the original on 2013-01-20. Retrieved 2007-04-01.
  29. ↑ (November 18, 1991). Orchestral Game Concert 1. Warner Music Japan. WPCL-560
  30. ↑ "Distant Worlds - Music from Final Fantasy - Album Information". Square Enix Music Online. Archived from the original on 2012-04-09. Retrieved 2008-02-22.
  31. ↑ "Album Information - Tour de Japon: Music from Final Fantasy DVD". Square Enix Music Online. Archived from the original on 2013-01-20. Retrieved 2008-02-22.
  32. ↑ Rzeminski, Lucy (2002-07-02). "Project Majestic Mix: A Tribute to Nobuo Uematsu - Gold Edition". RPGFan. Archived from the original on 2012-06-19. Retrieved 2008-08-13.
  33. ↑ "Album: Final Fantasy IV: Echoes of Betrayal, Light of Redemption". OverClocked ReMix. Archived from the original on 2013-01-17. Retrieved 2009-09-24.
  34. ↑ "Game: Final Fantasy IV (SNES)". OverClocked ReMix. Archived from the original on 2013-01-17. Retrieved 2007-08-23.

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