Which Final Fantasy has the best soundtrack?? Fight about it below. And then be nice because it's all GREAT. Also, check out the new free mini-course! cornell.academy/instant-piano-guide-ff

@nuclearbirds

Жыл бұрын

Best individual track has to be Dancing Mad from 6, but the overall soundtrack to 8 is probably best overall.

@chasebalcziunas4289

Жыл бұрын

Each game has one banger that makes it unique. It’s hard to pick just one game.

@csvscs

Жыл бұрын

Ff12

@shinigamimiroku3723

Жыл бұрын

Best track is hard to choose, but best OST overall is definitely 8.

@Tooznoze

Жыл бұрын

FFXIV, Shadowbringers.

Please make this a series... Each final fantasy game has a world of amazing tracks to analyze.... 1 video for each final fantasy game would be awesome!!

@davidzeez

Жыл бұрын

Yes! Absolutely!!! FFVII, FFX, FFXIII, and many others have so many bangers on their own

@Estoeslvl

Жыл бұрын

second that.

@JakeRGuitar

Жыл бұрын

I'd pay to see such a series!

@z31Joshyman

Жыл бұрын

This 💯

@frankie7935

Жыл бұрын

neeeed more

Eleven minutes is not long enough to delve into the absolute mastery of musical work on Final Fantasy, Uematsu and beyond.

@billyalarie929

Жыл бұрын

Good thing it’s 12 minutes 🙂

@maurisauceda8388

Жыл бұрын

​@@billyalarie929 11:55

@broshmosh

Жыл бұрын

@@billyalarie929 That still isn't long enough ;)

@LoreleiMocote

Жыл бұрын

Uematsu and Soken both!

@morricane5087

Жыл бұрын

I want to know what he'd have to say about Sakimoto who is way more removed from tonal harmony than Uematsu ever was :D

Nobuo Uematsu is the reason I really started learning piano almost 30 years ago with FF6 (or 3) on SNES. He is every bit as much a god of modern music as John Williams.

@Goujiki

10 ай бұрын

He surpasses John WIlliams IMO

@brinstarmedia1411

10 ай бұрын

Same! I bought a piano just to learn how to play ff6 songs in 1994 lol

@themadmallard

10 ай бұрын

Nobuo has been composing game music for about 30 years. Thats a good start. Williams has been composing for movies, tv, original stand alones, and a body of educational/instructional music for almost 65 years.

@brinstarmedia1411

10 ай бұрын

@@themadmallard I wish Williams would live forever because he’s a wonderful composer

@keynoism

10 ай бұрын

Saaame

My bridal march was the Main Theme from Final Fantasy. It was one of the only details I insisted on for our wedding, and I'm so glad I did. One of my favorite pieces of all time.

@michaela2706

6 ай бұрын

You're a legend of life!!!

@brizzybrown9419

4 ай бұрын

You have excellent taste!

@artstrutzenberg7197

3 ай бұрын

My wife surprised me by playing the Star Wars when we got married :D

@fusemaster

12 күн бұрын

Wow, that's.... actually a really great choice! I love it!

You absolutely got to take a look at the Final Fantasy 6 (Final Fantasy 3 in America) song "dancing mad". An 18 minute, four part, Epic Baroque boss theme.

@EricHansenHaiTech

Жыл бұрын

^^ This 💯 percent

@raegune

Жыл бұрын

Smash Bach's Toccata and Fugue in Dm together with Tarkus from Emerson Lake and Palmer, but do it on an SNES somehow! Absolute masterwork.

@secretpandalord

Жыл бұрын

You know those times when something funky happens and Charles' eyes go wide and he says "WHOA"? (for instance at about 8:14 in this video) Dancing Mad is just that for an entire symphony. I think its the single greatest piece Uematsu has ever done, out of a career filled with masterpieces.

@jsblack02

Жыл бұрын

Bum ba bum bum ba ba da ba bun ba bun ba da da bun ba but ba da dum

@CantFaketheFunk

Жыл бұрын

@@raegune like if Michaelangelo did the Sistene Chapel with crayola crayons

It’s wild that out of all the music from Final Fantasy, no one is talking about the Prelude. Such a mastercrafted song, simple yet evocative in a way that few other songs can claim.

@CantFaketheFunk

Жыл бұрын

My favorite bit is that given how slapdash the development of FF1 was (and Uematsu was thinking this would be a one-off/part time gig), Square was like "hey can you quickly do a title screen theme, we need one ASAP" and he slapped it together in under an hour and it wound up being one of the most iconic themes in all of gaming

@willyb0ngka

Жыл бұрын

literally my favorite is the prelude

@user-bs4qu7tb2g

Жыл бұрын

It's just very simple harmonically. Not bad, just very straightforward. What makes it so nice is the slow tempo and the broken chords. But there's really nothing more to the harmony other than diatonic chords and a recurring motif after several bars that counters the broken chords.

@Zestrayswede

Жыл бұрын

You know this video exists right kzread.info/dash/bejne/c2p6y66hYJCWmqQ.html

@Jordyback

Жыл бұрын

Prelude is my favourite FF song, for real

Eternal Wind (FF3), Battle on the Big Bridge (FF5), Slam Shuffle (FF6), JENOVA (FF7), Man with the Machine Gun (FF8)…. There’s so many absolute bops and bangers in this series alone.

@crossgear3042

7 ай бұрын

Oh man my wife plays ff games into the ground and battle on the big bridge is her PTSD nightmare in theatrythm on extreme

@logansorenssen

3 ай бұрын

For me - Prelude (FF1) Kurayaminokumo (FF3) Battle with the Four Fiends (FF4) Battle on the Big Bridge (FF5, of course) Aria de Mezzo Carattere (FF6) One-Winged Angel (FF7) Force Your Way (FF8) Hunter's Chance (FF9) To Zanarkand (FF10) Answers (FF14)

@jamesrivettcarnac

19 сағат бұрын

JENOVA still rocks my world.

My wife and I chose this ff1 theme as the processional piece for our wedding (for the wedding party). Thanks for the wonderful breakdown! The music is so beautiful!

@adamdesanti6713

9 ай бұрын

It's incredible Uematsu wrote that for an 8-bit system.

@FluffieXStarshine

9 ай бұрын

that actually made me tear up a little, congrats to the both of you!

VIII definitely has a wonderful soundtrack for sure, and Uematsu's talent is a gift we don't deserve. He once said about making Final Fantasy music: "The difference between the music made for Final Fantasy and the music I made for other games, for me, isn’t that big. But up until that point, I hadn’t made anything for an RPG, and with RPGs you can add just about any type of music. For example, you can add grandiose, movie-style music with a sense of openness, you can add cute music for cute characters, and you can add something like progressive rock to battle scenes. In that sense my music is really... Well, I’m an omnivore, so I like variety in music, so in that sense, I think RPGs are a genre that’s really suited to me." "People often say that the NES or SNES must’ve been so hard to create music on with so few sounds available, but I didn’t really feel that myself. I think that the more limited people are, the more ingenious they begin to get, so maybe I actually enjoyed thinking about how I could make rock music with three sounds, or how I could make classical-sounding music. It was like a game to me."

@genden4618

Жыл бұрын

Those are the words of a genius

@Shiftarus

Жыл бұрын

Truly a gift, his music elevates games to another level, and make for insanely memorable moments and characters

@Paddycake_Games

Жыл бұрын

One of the reasons the FF7 soundtrack is so iconic is because of the limitations he was facing. He had to use the on-board midi sequencer on the Playstation which created an slmost sci-fi synthesizer sound to some of the songs, which lent perfectly into the world and theme of the game. Not to say the orchestrated versions in the Remake weren't as good, they were mind-blowingly good... but that original sound is so special. VIII's soundtrack is pretty great too, but it was not my favorite one in the series.

@dawsonehlke1290

Жыл бұрын

The FF7 Remake soundtrack contains an absolutely masterful example of every single genre of music. Looking at you Hip Hop de Chocobo.

Nobuo Uematsu is a an absolute legend

@arisuaozora

Жыл бұрын

Many people only know Soken instead.

@CarlosCesar-bu3fy

Жыл бұрын

Composed the best OSTs ever. Wish I had 10% of his talent.

@hoytzephyr3387

Жыл бұрын

@@arisuaozora also do not forget that Soken was picked by Uematsu, at this point Soken is on the same level as Uematsu, as well as Soken's additional composers on 14 are getting up there as well. Square seriously has a bunch of good composers that they hold on to and improve off each other

@arisuaozora

Жыл бұрын

@@hoytzephyr3387 ive spoken the facts. Everywhere i go i see people compliment somen, instead of uematsu the real legend. You see the logic of uematsu picks soken and not soken picks uematsu shows whos the real boss. Soken does have a few songs that are amazing but should not be compared to the epic composer uematsu because he is greater.

@thend4427

Жыл бұрын

​@arisuaozora3340 and that's a different section of FF..before 10 was the golden era

Nobuo and Mitsuda are absolutely amazing two of my favorite artists

One of the joys of being a life long Final Fantasy fan was hearing the evolution of the Final Fantasy theme from a simple bit tune in FF1 to a fully orchestrated and realized song years later.

Final Fantasy VII's soundtrack is so special i think it's worthy of its own video

@felipecortegana3209

Жыл бұрын

💯

@samuelleie

Жыл бұрын

I would say that each Final Fantasy soundtrack is so special that it's worthy of its own videos

@JF_Improv

Жыл бұрын

YES! I still tear up any time I hear Tifa’s Theme on the piano

@Malapropify

Жыл бұрын

This!

@groofay

Жыл бұрын

FF6-9 are some of my favorite video game soundtracks ever composed.

The Final Fantasy series “Main Theme” is such an amazing music for both graduations or even weddings.

@rm2kmidi

11 ай бұрын

I was pleasantly surprised to hear it during the Tokyo Olympic opening ceremony. It fit perfectly

@escabasket153

5 күн бұрын

@@rm2kmidiI loved the whole opening of the Olympics in Tokyo! So much nostalgia! 😂

FF6 has amazing music, especially with Mad Dance and the Maria and Draco Opera. And To Zarnakand always gets me weeping.

Final Fantasy VIII was an awakening for me. It's my first FF and the reason why I fell in love with FF and games OST in general. Another game soundtrack that still gives me chill even up to this day is the Chrono Cross soundtrack by the great Yasunori Mitsuda. "Time's Scar" and "Dream of the Shore From Another World" still move me and makes me cry. I hope Charles can feature it one day. 🙂

You have to make a separate video about FFVI. It blew my mind back in the day, so many memorable pieces with distinct leit-motivs, a whole opera section, and a final boss theme that incorporates elements from Bach to Emerson Lake & Palmer. Epic stuff.

@AustinLeeds

Жыл бұрын

Seconding this. VI was really pushing the limits of what a game on the SNES could be, and the music is no exception. So many memorable themes plus the masterpiece that is Dancing Mad.

@keit99

Жыл бұрын

I third this. Ff6 is one of my favourite ff soundtracks

@jeffreycollins237

11 ай бұрын

This is my favorite soundtrack of all the games. Especially, any of the pieces where Kefka's theme shows up. Also. The Ending Credits music that blends the character's themes together is THE Best!

Balamb Garden, Succession of Witches, Blue Fields, and Shuffle or Boogie are all incredibly fun to play and listen to. Uematsu is just as legendary as Williams if you ask me!

I get goosebumbs everytime the FF main theme plays. Thr nostalgia combined with the perfect sound just gets me every time

FFXIV has musical references to many, many other FF games and has both the brilliance of Uematsu but also Soken - the kings of leitmotif! How the music is used to enhance storytelling while also being incredibly great pieces of art and sometimes experimentation purely on their own is something wonderful to behold. There's an embarrassment of riches between ARR and Endwalker and I'm sure the community could tell you which tracks are their favorite and the most impactful - there's just SO MANY.

Final Fantasy 6 still has my favorite soundtrack. Dancing Mad is one of the most epic final boss tracks ever created and Terra's Theme is both inspiring and haunting at the same time.

@jairhiodalthor4137

Жыл бұрын

Been looking for anyone to bring up 6. All the games have great music but 6 is different to me anyway.

@Jason.Olson.Flosses

Жыл бұрын

100%. Taught myself piano and 80% of what I play is ff6. Been trying to learn dancing mad (reborn) on piano for years

@danilooliveira6580

11 ай бұрын

Dancing Mad is Uematsu's magnum opus. its on par with some of the greatest orchestrated pieces of all time.

@atinaczednanreh7688

10 ай бұрын

agree my friend. Dancing Mad really rocks

@darktatsujin

6 ай бұрын

dancing mad is epic, one winged angel is phenomenal, grand cross is badass

It's hard to pick one Final Fantasy soundtrack, they're all so good. My favorite song is probably "To Zanarkand" from FF-X, but it's hard to go wrong with any Final Fantasy sound track. They're all so distinctive and beautiful.

@josealbertoum5149

Жыл бұрын

I need a video with that one and also tifas theme

@Clarity-808

Жыл бұрын

X is underrated! Love Zanarkand.

@alexcdroda

Жыл бұрын

"To Zanarkand" is great and also Suteki Da Ne. Man you could make a entire episode on Final fantasy X.

@KyleS.1987

Жыл бұрын

FFX isn't my favorite Final Fantasy, but its soundtrack is undeniably amazing. "To Zanarkand" is iconic.

@jamesrivettcarnac

19 сағат бұрын

Imo, ff X was a great soundtrack on a mediocre game.

FFXII soundtrack is really amazing and I've never heard anything like that in terms of pure song beauty by itself, it's maybe the reason I like it so much

@PapitoVergil

Жыл бұрын

What's so cool about that soundtrack is that it was composed by Hitoshi Sakimoto, who also composed the soundtrack to Final Fantasy Tactics as well. If you haven't played that, I highly recommend. It also has a phenomenal soundtrack.

@tobynnaylor5061

11 ай бұрын

FFXII soundtrack underrated for sure.

@realinvalidname

11 ай бұрын

@@PapitoVergil God yes, FFT… but also Sakimoto in other franchises like Valkyria Chronicles. And for a complete 180, he goes techno in 13 Sentinels Aegis Rim.

@moisescorral8297

2 ай бұрын

​@@realinvalidnameAlso the masterpiece Vagrant Story

i dont know if its nostalgia from childhood or familiarity, but anything i hear from Nobuo Uematsu pushes through every barrier i have and hits right into my heart

14 has all my new favorite songs from Final Fantasy as a whole. Tearful tracks like Flow and 'Neath Dark Waters, to big epic pieces like Rise and eScape. Masayoshi Soken is so damn talented, and even his remixes of Uematsu's work are incredible.

@Clarity-808

Жыл бұрын

14 is great! Interestingly, almost all the cues are in Amin… probably helps interactivity and weaving songs together, especially since he didn’t have time to think about that stuff for the base version they remade.

@tomcoleman8702

Жыл бұрын

The Hand that Gives the Rose is just one I listen to all the time. I love that piece so much!

@LiefTheBeef

Жыл бұрын

FF14 itself is a love letter to the other FF’s, so it would be a good candidate for a video

@debleb166

Жыл бұрын

To the Edge has got to be one of the best boss themes in FF history, and Uematsu's Answers is a contender for my favourite song in general

@Enjoysaeli

Жыл бұрын

@@debleb166 so true. Based opinion from a based Diego Brando enjoyer

Another great OST by Nobuo Uematsu is the Lost Odyssey OST. Extremely underrated in my opinion, and doesn't get talked about nearly enough when discussing him.

@TDMStyle

Жыл бұрын

YES! What an underrated gem. The soundtrack for that game is incredible.

@selmosian

Жыл бұрын

Wait till you hear about nobuos solo project, phantasmagoria!

@MetalheadRyan07

Жыл бұрын

Dark Saint lives rent free in my head, and the world map theme is always a vibe

@CarlosCesar-bu3fy

Жыл бұрын

Never heard of. Is that a game?

@itisgarrison

Жыл бұрын

@@CarlosCesar-bu3fy Yep! JRPG from 2008. Was an Xbox 360 exclusive, so it didn't get as much attention as it could've.

The FF9 soundtrack makes my heart happy. Not sure if it’s the best, but it’s definitely the most nostalgic for me personally.

@Naeddyr

Жыл бұрын

FFIX is definitely the best overall soundtrack of any Final Fantasy bar none. The quality is just so high through the whole thing.

@actaemazantor9558

Жыл бұрын

IKR?!? It's concentrated nostalgia injected into your ears.

@PapitoVergil

Жыл бұрын

Nobuo Uematsu himself says that's his favorite, so you should definitely take pride in your choice lol

@Fuchsia_tude

11 ай бұрын

No, it definitely is

@HorusDeathtouch

11 ай бұрын

9 is good like every game is, however the awards go to 7, 8, Tactics, 14, and 16, with the best overall OST being 8 imo Edit: I posted this comment long before he actually got to mentioning 8, so nice

Trojan Beauty from Final Fantasy IV had always been my favorite FF song in the whole series. It just hit right for some reason and now has that added nostalgia.

FFVIII is closest to my heart because that's the one I played most in high school. I use to leave the game on in the background whenever "my mind" would play. Nowhere near any of the iconic FF songs, but I just loved its melancholic/romantic feel.

@CenPapi

Жыл бұрын

That Balamb Garden music takes me back.

@kurtdewittphoto

Жыл бұрын

@@CenPapi Same!

@z31Joshyman

Жыл бұрын

Nahhh, Force Your Way is one of Nobuos best battle themes by far. 8 has a great ost imo

@bassbonen8122

Жыл бұрын

Same here

@CarlosCesar-bu3fy

Жыл бұрын

Played it for so many years. Absolutely has a special place in my heart.

Nobuo was in the zone for over 10 years just pumping out banger after banger for us to fall in love with. FF8 is my favorite OST even if it doesn't belong to the best game in the series. FF8 could probably do with not just a remake but also a revision. Hopeful one day it happens.

@mattandrews2594

Жыл бұрын

It would have to be a full-on remake. The original FF8's progression system made no sense, similarly to Oblivion's.

@FAQIvan91

Жыл бұрын

I love FF8 and I completely agree on the remake, on the revision, not so much. Many loved and still love that system

@FAQIvan91

Жыл бұрын

@@mattandrews2594 the progression system was perfect for the way the story was written. It may need a little bit more difficulty, I can agree on that.

@mattandrews2594

Жыл бұрын

@@FAQIvan91 Wut? Snapping the difficulty in two by never levelling up has nothing to do with the story. The FFVIII devs just completely botched how to marry the levelling and the Junctions systems together. FFVII managed just fine before with the Materia system, so there really was no excuse. Enemies with level scaling has a place in gaming, but a mainline FF title isn't it, and that would need to be the first thing to go in a potential remake.

@FAQIvan91

Жыл бұрын

@@mattandrews2594 Yeah sure, whatever makes you sleep at night. I don't have the energy to discuss with you, and I definitely totally disagree with you and will never change my mind. Have a good

As a FFXIV addict, I NEED a breakdown of the FFXIV soundtracks. Masayoshi Soken (and earlier on, Nobuo Uematsu) have done an amazing job at creating an auditory landscape that feels unique, and the way that Soken uses motifs from Heavensward onward is just *chef's kiss*. Plus there's a soundtrack album for every expansion, so lots of potential content for you lol

@ayanhart

11 ай бұрын

There's also basically every genre under the sun in there somewhere - not just your standard classical music, but lots of rock, even some heavy metal and EDM and some very pop-sounding themes as well as music inspired by other cultures (Radz at Han is south-asian inspired, all the Yanxia and Kugane music is east-asian)

@MorningGloryDancer

10 ай бұрын

Yes yes yes, I want this also. FFXIV had the most thematically amazing, geographically unique, and emotionally appropriate music of them all.

I'm on a Charles Cornell watching-binge of his analysis of outstanding chords and chord progressions. And I'm loving it. The man is a literal music-theory master. He honours great composers that came before him by dissecting their music and showing us what's going on behind the curtain. He also has great, great taste and recognizes genius when he sees it.

FFXIV was the first Final Fantasy game to finally catch me and drag me in and it was in large part the music that did it. Once you get to the Shadowbringers and Endwalker soundtrack especially. The moment near the end of Shadowbringers where Ardbert lends you his axe so that you might stand up and fight one last time to the absolute bitter end, and the main theme starts playing is just the ultimate chef's kiss. And then they do it again during the final boss of Endwalker and you literally cannot help but feel this enormous sense of accomplishment.

@Lrbearclaw

Жыл бұрын

It helps that FF14 has the best tracks from the entire franchise.

I'm surprised it took you this long to reach final fantasy. Nobuo Uematsu is a legend and Soken is no different. You should do a longer video about them. Soken works in final fantasy 14 and absolutely kills with the motifs.

@katarh

Жыл бұрын

Souken is also doing the sountrack for XVI that'll come out in two weeks!

@ItsSVO

10 ай бұрын

Soken is good but nowhere near Nobuo’s level in my opinion. I thought the score for XVI was incredibly lacklustre.

@qtscorpkid

10 күн бұрын

The black mages vs the primals

This would be an amazing series, and I would love to see and hear your take on the Final Fantasy 6 soundtrack. I know that nostalgia carries a lot of the weight in my brain, but I also feel like 6 was a major turning point for video game soundtracks and deserves SO much more love than it gets. Keep up the awesome work, Chuck!

@lynnmatsui

Жыл бұрын

He could make an hour long video just about how FF6's ending theme incorporates the leitmotifs of all the playable characters and then some. Brilliant soundtrack.

@mosesbrown4126

Жыл бұрын

Considering the entire game is structured around opera structure, and presented on a sort of operatic stage view, yes. Me too.

@judahshort08

Жыл бұрын

@@lynnmatsui one of my all time favorite ending tracks of all time. The incorporated components of all of the characters themes genuinely makes it feel like an ending theme should. Ties up the story impeccably.

FFVII is deserving of its own video, for sure. One Winged Angel is a masterpiece, but honestly, some of my favorite tracks are the more minimalistic ones--Those Chosen by the Planet (Sephiroth's Theme), Listen to the Cries of the Planet, Who Are You, etc. There are SO many tracks, and they're all so damn evocative and tell a story.

@shadowcloud1994

11 ай бұрын

FF7 is probably my favorite game but I'm not afraid to admit that it was also carried by it's amazing soundtrack. Definitely the best in the series.6, 8, 9 and 10 are also great but 7 is a masterclass.

@MegaDicksneeze

9 ай бұрын

7 is the least deserving of this. 4,6,9,12 yes. 7 is the worst soundtrack of the entire series.

@rizahawkeyepierce1380

9 ай бұрын

​@@MegaDicksneezeyou only say that because it's in that PS1 midi sound. Sideways does a great video analyzing 7's victory fanfare and how it took a really interesting direction vs the previous iterations. Also, there's a great video of a quintet (harp, violin, oboe, and I forget what else) doing Words Drowned by Fireworks that legit made me cry (and I don't even have that much of an emotional attachment to 7 - I didn't play it until I was an adult)

I highly recommend listening to “Not Alone” from Final Fantasy IX. Alongside the rest of the soundtrack, it’s simply amazing and it genuinely made me cry the first time I heard it.

@Lylantares

Жыл бұрын

what adds even more punch to "not alone" is the fact that its motif is played only once in the entire game and it isn't a final boss theme.

@isawp5199

Жыл бұрын

Although I love the song, I think it loses a lot of the punch if you don't have the context of the scene it's written for. FFIX's OST is amazing though, most of it is so soothing for me. Dali's theme is a favourite of mine, and that's for a place with minor importance to the plot.

1:05 WOW that chord brought me back to the title screen of Ocarina of Time so fast I think I got whiplash. Koji Kondo and Nobuo Uematsu are both such incredible composers

@jaygatsby3039

Жыл бұрын

I kinda got "Spirited Away" from that, it sounds so familiar, it's gorgeous!

@hpsmash77

Жыл бұрын

it "breath of the wild"ed me

I can't believe no one in the comments is really mentioning how amazing the FFX soundtrack is. The piano version of the ending theme is one of the most beautiful songs in video game music.

@wh33lers

9 ай бұрын

So true

Absolutely need to turn this in to a series, mate. Final Fantasy is a deep well of musical magic.

I'd love to see videos where Charles does deep dives into how this series uses lietmotifs. I picked up XIV last year, and that is something that has stuck with me -- the ways Soken and Uematsu will reuse a melody, or modify it just a little, to tie things to each other. Or even comprise an entire piece from multiple other thematically related, but musically very different tracks (The Twinning, for example, is a blend of the Crystal Tower theme, the Omega boss theme, and Alexander's boss theme)

@Bobbias

Жыл бұрын

Seriously, that's one of the things that really makes Final Fantasy music feel so cohesive.

@FellshardYT

Жыл бұрын

Soken isn't even that nuanced with his motif usage - he's pretty blunt in his variants, oftentimes. But when combined with the story beats and moments, it's still absolutely killer - which goes to show that even trivial leitmotif use can have a ton of leverage!

I've only ever played Final Fantasy XIV but it has some amazing orchestral soundtracks in it, not to mention the crazy rock style stuff that Soken does too. Also I've noticed that there are some songs from previous games that make cameos in FFXIV, and some of those are my favourites (Eternal Wind for example)

@thend4427

Жыл бұрын

If that's ur only game u played you're missing on the core of FF and that's 1-10

@Ziegeri

Жыл бұрын

@@thend4427 1 and 2 are quite trash to be honest, I wouldn't waste my time on them unless you are really an FF fan and have played everything else. Also Uematsu music, which is present in that core, is very different from what Soken composes - to the point at when Heavensward launched the Alexander raid music was huge turn off to me, since it just didn't sound anything like what Uematsu composes. Soken has couple good tracks sure, but I wouldn't say you automatically will like older FF music, since it is just so different.

@thend4427

Жыл бұрын

@Ziegeri right 1 and 2 weren't my fav..4-9 were my favorite minus 8 lol..and yeah nobuo over soken for me lol

@wcjerky

Жыл бұрын

The viola present throughout the World of Darkness gives me chills and goosebumps.

@BryanCarthell

11 ай бұрын

FFXIV is great and it's so stuffed with references to all the older games, including many of the best songs rearranged. The remix of the boss battle song from FFIV used when fighting the fiends in the 6.x patch content it amazing!

I know I'm late to the video, but I would pay to see an hours long breakdown of Dancing Mad from you. It's Uematsu's greatest work, in my opinion. The depth and attention to detail, reusing themes and combining other pieces into a whole story in 4 movements... it's utterly brilliant.

Japanese game composers are on another level, so many greats with different styles. Uematsu and Mitsuda both could be studied at great length.

I can't believe "One Winged Angel" wasn't touched! Then there's the opera scene in FF6. But then again, pretty much anything Nobuo Uematsu writes is amazing.

@Dyundu

Жыл бұрын

The Opera, Celes’ Theme, Terra’s Theme, Locke’s theme, Dancing Mad. FFVII’s main theme, Tifa’s theme, Aerith’s theme, Those Who Fight Further, One Winged Angel. Balamb Garden, Blue Fields, Eyes on Me, Love Grows, The Landing. Vamo alla Flamenco, A Place to Call Home, Melodies of Life, Roses of May. To Zanarkand, Suteki Da Ne, Fight with Seymour, Hymn of the Fayth.

@UnravelsSlowly

Жыл бұрын

Uematsu also stated that he believed the music for FF9 was his Opus. (Best work)

@raoulduke344

Жыл бұрын

I love the music for ff7 and 8, but I had no idea one man was behind most of the music. I'll have to google him, thanks

@ShidouK

Жыл бұрын

@@raoulduke344 Uematsu was the main composer for almost all the FFs up to.. I forget which. Maybe 10 or 12? He is literally the progenitor of the sound of Final Fantasy. Welcome to the rabbit hole. :)

@keit99

Жыл бұрын

Up to ff9 he was the Sole composer working on final fantasy After that he worked on fewer tracks

Troija Beauty from FFIV is such an incredible track. I’d highly recommend Secret or Mana soundtrack from SNES! It is timeless!

0:55 This and sounds along these lines are some of my absolute favorites, SO beautiful. These scales can really show that less can be more, add in more intervals from our usual 7 note scales and it gets rid of a certain quality. They also show that HOW you play a scale can totally change the effect, great to play around with.

Met Nobuo Uematsu a little over ten years ago and the man is just fantastic. Also, 6 has best final boss music while 7 has the best overall.

@jamesrivettcarnac

19 сағат бұрын

Truth

FFX songs like To Zanarkand and Spira Unplugged are my 2 favorites. One for sad one for happy.

Charles, I rarely comment, but I have to say something here. Final Fantasy music inspired me to want to be a musician. You could easily make this a mini series of exploring every main line FF game because there's something great in each one. You also get to see Uematsu's growth as a game composer along the years. I can go on and on about it because I grew up with it all too. FF4 is when he started to play more with leitmotifs and then went crazy with them in FF6 (my favorite FF game). There's so much to explore with his work! He's my favorite composer next to Yasunori Mitsuda! Please let us know if you'll explore more of Final Fantasy's music in general. Thank you so much for this video!

@z31Joshyman

Жыл бұрын

Agree

@Eruesso

Жыл бұрын

I'm also breaking my silence to agree wholeheartedly with you. There are so many great pieces of music throughout the series that need focusing on.

It's absolutely criminal that you haven't done any other videos on Final Fantasy music yet. The series is such a treasure trove of incredibly powerful and beautiful melodies!

Nobuo Uematsu was a genius when it came to composing music for final fantasy. One of my all time favorite franchises

The Aeris theme from FF7 still makes me well up decades later 😢

@kurtdewittphoto

Жыл бұрын

Playing FF7 remake my eyes would get wet every time it would play.

@weepingscorpion8739

Жыл бұрын

Yeah... that Am chord...

@Chris-vw2tl

Жыл бұрын

A video on why music tugs on us emotionally would be a good watch. Is Aeris theme emotional as written or is it because of the story?

@freewilly4556

Жыл бұрын

play aerith theme then the timber owls theme from FF8.. Enjoyy :D

FF6 is my fav soundtrack. Leitmotif all over the place.

Some of my fondest piano-related memories include learning various tracks from Final Fantasy X. The game had a masterful use of repeating musical phrases. They were re-contextualized to suit the mood at each part of the story. Even on a first play-through it felt nostalgic by the end. It’s worth hearing both the original and the remastered soundtracks! You’ll appreciate the grand orchestral qualities of it.

@rizahawkeyepierce1380

9 ай бұрын

It's my favorite - the use of the Suteki da ne melody throughout the game in different scenarios so by the time the song proper plays, it's already nostalgic to us. Ugh it's so good. Spira Unplugged is also one of my favorite tracks of all time.

Video/tutorial of the year. Thank you for creating FF music breakdowns, they are stunning.

You could do an entire video on Dancing Mad from FFVI. Absolutely incredible piece with like 4 or 5 movements.

Final Fantasy 12 has a very special place in my heart. The soundtrack just transports me to being the character in the game.

I seriously can't listen to Final Fantasy music without getting goosebumps. Very enjoyable video. 😁

My favorite Final Fantasy game is Final Fantasy VII because of Sephiroth and his theme One-Winged Angel. It's THE video game boss theme among boss themes, it's so intimidating. Especially because of the fact that, like Liberi Fatali from VIII, the lyrics are in LATIN! The Latin lyrics in One-Winged Angel were taken from sections of the Carmina Burana, a manuscript of over 250 poems mostly from the 11th and 12th centuries. And the piece is even MORE intimidating in the movie based off the game, Advent Children and the game's remake...straight up chills. Nobuo Uematsu is truly an incredible composer. When people ask to name the ultimate boss music...let's just say there's a reason we tend to say One-Winged Angel alongside the JAWS theme, or Cynthia's piano theme from Pokémon Diamond/Pearl/Platinum. And Liberi Fatali from Final Fantasy VIII is so good, that it was part of the performance of American synchronized swimming duo Alison Bartosik and Anna Kozlova at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece! They performed it alongside Fithos Lusec Wecos Vinosec and they ended up winning bronze medals!

@cursedcancersurvivor

Жыл бұрын

Did you know Sephiroths theme is actually "One Who is Chosen by the Planet" and not "One Winged Angel"?

Masashi Hamauzu's work in Final Fantasy XIII is genuinely the most beautiful music I've ever heard in my life. Definitely worth an in-depth listen if you haven't before.

@WillPA-X

Жыл бұрын

Biggest inspiration for me to this day, it’s so good.

@Mtaalas

Жыл бұрын

Are you old enough to have played FF I on 8-bit nes? I'm seriously asking... i mean, it's fine to liek music... but there's so SO SOOOOO much music in the world that's been composed through the ages that it's always a good idea to at least liten for the composers of old and songs of old.

@SoulDeSol

Жыл бұрын

Hamauzu's work on X was incredible as well. For as good as the XIII OST is, I honestly think some of Hamauzu's best pieces are on the X OST. Tracks like Besaid, The Splendid Performance, Servants of the Mountain, and Beyond the Darkness.

@MrockDragon99

Жыл бұрын

@M00tzart Agreed. I love his work in FFX as well. Splendid Performance is especially gorgeous. I also really enjoy Hamauzu's collaborations with vocalist, Mina, in his IMERUAT projects.

@sforza96

Жыл бұрын

W take, while I think Uematsu's pieces are more memorable and emotional (in large part thanks to his unique sense of melody), Hamauzu work is very underrated and way more complex and interesting

If he loves this he will LOVE kingdom hearts music. I think KH music is most likely one of the best soundtracks ever made. “Simple and clean, dearly beloved, rage awakened the other promise” are all amazing songs and don’t even get me started on ost’s in the worlds. Kingdom hearts is a game everyone has to listen to.

@davidzeez

Жыл бұрын

Namine, Xion's Theme, Hollow Bastion, Lazy Afternoons, and more (specifically the piano arrangements) as well! I was going to say the same thing!

@cooldebt

Жыл бұрын

The Consouls have covered many KH tunes brilliantly as jazz - would be great if Charles looks at KH music

@tylersprouse6861

Жыл бұрын

I was thinking the same thing tbh, especially since it has a lot of piano in it

@houseofjesseworship

Жыл бұрын

Kingdom Hearts & FFXV have the same composer. If you like KH music go and listen to FFXV's OST. =)

Old Wounds from FFXIV is perhaps my favorite piece of video game music of all time. It's a piano ballad that reinterprets the military theme/march music from the rest of its expansion into something completely haunting and beautiful.

8:55 F# to C# is a shift that allows for a nice sliding sound on a cello hence why it sounds so smooth! 😊

I'm so glad you looked at VIII's soundtrack, because I still think it's one of the greatest video game soundtracks ever composed. I also want to echo some of the other comments saying to make this into a series. Seriously, every FF game's OST is worth inspection, and every OST after IX has more than one composer, so there's just a ton of amazing content to experience.

For me Somnus, Relax and Reflect, Sorrow without Solace and Valse di Fantastica from FF XV are just masterful. I'm a big fan of the Piano Collections arrangements!

I love the piccolo at the top before the resolution it reminds me of stars and stripes forever.

Final Fantasy 9 (FFIX) was by far my favorite. So many masterpieces like Kuja's Theme, Vamo Alla Flamenco, Melodies of Life, etc. I actually learned Jesters of the Moon for one of my first piano recitals (and later Loss of Me/Rose of May). Would absolutely love to hear you cover some songs from this Final Fantasy!

I'll really love to see a video of you covering ffVI soundtrack, the opera, dancing mad, or even the character's themes

FF2's soundtrack is my favourite, containing perhaps the most emotionally profound pieces in the series. The town theme's bittersweetness makes you contemplate the preciousness of the oppressed townspeople and the fleetingness of happiness. Every single note in the Rebel Army Theme is just transcendent, fully capturing the wavering between heroism and self-doubt in its heartbreaking totality. The spooky glissandos of Pandemonium paint a picture of a castle housing ancient evil towering before you. Also, sorry Dancing Mad, as epic as you are, Battle Scene 2 evokes a more genuine sense of dread in me.

@kirahishi

Жыл бұрын

2 doesnt get enough love, def has my fav melodies esp in the remakes and revising through new worlds orchestra and the symphonic suites

@Baby_boodle

Жыл бұрын

Goodness I hardly ever hear people talk this passionately about FF2, it brings my heart joy. 💜

@LaukkuPaukku

Жыл бұрын

@@Baby_boodle To be fair I think the game itself is one of the worst I've ever played (I played the Famicom version and the various remasters could be more tolerable), but the soundtrack I hold as the best I've ever heard in a videogame.

My friends and I went to Nashville when the Distant Worlds Concert was playing there. They played music from every Final Fantasy game (that had been released up to that point) with a full orchestra and choir. Now, I'd never played a FF (Final Fantasy) game before but my friends all had. It was a fantastic concert with cutscenes from the game that each musical piece was from playing on a big screen.

Oh please do more of this. There's a treasure trove of incredibly music for analysis in this game library!

Final Fantasy has so much great music. I started with FF7 and then FF8 and love the soundtracks, but FF6 has some amazing pieces too. Mystic forest give me goosebumps to this day. 🙂

Hoping for a larger/more breakdowns. Only mostly the “Graduation” theme and the FFVIII opening is doing the breadth of the series a disservice. So many of the battle and other themes are literally Jazz piano (organ) jams.

@insomniaccity

Жыл бұрын

Second this

@iantaakalla8180

Жыл бұрын

I hope he breaks down at least the classic battle themes, the ones from Final Fantasy I-X. All are amazing and would be interesting to analyze

Both Uematsu and Soken are legends of music. Any game with a soundtrack composed by them.

One of my first pieces for orchestra (almost 15 years ago) was a Final Fantasy Medley. Had to transcribe all the songs by ear. Ended with Liberi Fatali from VIII.

FFX has the best OST in my opinion. FFXII has some amazing orchestral music as well. I'd love to see a video about those two in particular!

@kennichdendenn

Жыл бұрын

FFX: you could make a video just about the hymn of the fayth versions. The harmony in the "Spira" version is absolutely WILD!

@KitsyX

Жыл бұрын

Personally, while I do think FF10 is one of the essential ones to check out, I don’t think it’s quite as strong as 6,7,8 or 9… Maybe I should listen to 12 again… I’m pretty sure none of it wasn’t decent sounding, but I can’t remember a single melody from it either… Oh well… Even a bad soundtrack for the series is pretty great though lol.

@crosion5

Жыл бұрын

10 is amazing.

@MrAquilina420

Жыл бұрын

X feels like coming home to me

The music of Final Fantasy is an absolute goldmine, particularly 6 to 10, Uematsu's golden years. The soudntrack of 7 is basically flawless, would love to see you cover more of them!

@bradyhayes7911

Жыл бұрын

Agree, but I think 5 has an underrated OST that's often overlooked because the game itself has one of the more forgettable plots

MORE FINAL FANTASY PLEASE, ALWAYS AND FOREVER. The piano covers of Guadosalam, blue fields, and find your way are absolutely gorgeous.

I've been getting your videos suggested (and occasionally watched) up until this one hit my feed. This is both incredibly relevant to my interests and interesting as heck. Each game in the series though, you could spend days picking apart the soundtracks. Your analysis of Force Your Way seems pretty spot on, as it's the regular Boss theme for the game. I think the tonal whiplash is meant to both inspire a sense of danger and chaos while engaging against difficult enemies. Final Fantasy VI, X, and XI all hit nostalgic parts of my brain that nothing else does. Particularly Gustaberg's theme from FFXI.

My biggest gripe was when they remade the ff4 battle theme and changed an E7 chord to G, eliminating a "harmonic minor headfake" that I always admired.

Is crazy how much underrated FF 9 is. Not many have played it

@thend4427

Жыл бұрын

I have and it's one of my favorites top 3

@rm2kmidi

11 ай бұрын

The game sold really well. Maybe people aren't playing it much these days, but lots of people played it when it came out.

@markthomas3684

Күн бұрын

The fighting system was a nostalgic call back to FF4 FF5 and FF6. Truly wonderful game.

My favorite game franchise and having this video posted on my birthday last year makes it feel extra special to me

The sus7 is also an inversion of a massive quartal stack on C, beautiful impressionistic, cloudy, but highly anticipatory sound

They really went above and beyond with the remixes in Final Fantasy VII Remake - definitely worth checking out. VII already had some of the most memorable themes, and you can tell the composers loved updating them for a full orchestra

Dancing Mad and the Maria and Draco Opera from FF6 deserve their own video ! Overall i'd say 6 and 7 OST are the best but the others are absolute bangers too.

The algorithm brought me here. You're brilliant mind and my childhood flooding back made me stay. Well played.

That major third down harmony is actually pretty common in Japanese style anime/game. The latest i found was from the background music on "the reason why raeliana ended up in the duke's mansion" it went from C, Ab, F, and then to B, G, and E.

I love the music of FFX and X-2 a bunch. Both soundtracks are wildly apart from each other but still hit a lot of the same tone. Its fascinating. I'm really curious if you could pick up more relation between the tow of them!

@ideatician4280

Жыл бұрын

To Zanarkand!

The soundtrack of the Final Fantasy XIII trilogy is too underrated. Masashi Hamauzu is underrated as a composer. His music is cotton candy to the ears.

@Coufu

Жыл бұрын

Interesting you chose cotton candy since those are empty calories. Nobuo Uematsu consistently offers a delicate and well crafted 100+ course feast in all his soundtracks.

@xXGenesis95Xx

Жыл бұрын

@@Coufu Sometimes less is more. And no one is bitter about a sweet. 👌

@riddif

Жыл бұрын

Hamauzu is literally the underdog of SE

@Cursalock

Жыл бұрын

It's "underrated" because FF XIII sucks. Bad story, bad combat, bad design. No one wants to think about the music because they'd have to think about the rest of the game.

@xXGenesis95Xx

Жыл бұрын

@@Cursalock Sorry for the fools who are not able to enjoy masterful musical compositions for the work to which they belong. It is a real shame.

The FFIV Prologue piece that you started with is my favorite FF piece of all time. It took me forever to figure out those chords on top of the stepping down bass line.

Sanctuary of Zi'tah and the Selbina town music from XI, but definitely Liberi Fatali got me in love with the series and wanting to become a musician. That opening scene back in...'98? ooph that hit

4, 6, 7-11, 13 and 14 are all really good. You could do an analysis on some of the tracks with odd time signatures, my three favorites being Cinco de Chocobo (FF7), The main battle theme of FF8, and Sazh's Theme (FF13). That last one is in 11/8 and is amazing.

@herpyderpy4366

Жыл бұрын

I'm presuming you're talking about the games overall with that selection that are really good. Soundtrack wise, there's not a single weak entry until you get to non-Nobuo entries (and even then they're mostly excellent). It's a blessed series in that regard.

@Mahomie_15

Жыл бұрын

I do indeed mean the soundtracks from those games. They're all a part of my music collection now, because they're great, whether Uematsu composed them or not.

Final fantasy IX is seriously underrated. Its sound track is amazing! VII also have a great soundtrack.

@dcwtf09

Жыл бұрын

Melodies of Life is one of the greatest song ever written in FF9, follow by Eyes on Me of FF8.

@abdurrahmanzulfikry9202

Жыл бұрын

Agreed, everything from A Place to Call Home, Vamo Alla Flamenco, Not Alone, Crystal World theme, and even Melodies of Life

@thend4427

Жыл бұрын

Definitely

Uematsu is a legend. He did the best with what he had, and kept that symphonic feel as best as he could with 8 and 16-bit sounds. When we got to Playstation and more, he could really flex his abilities and his compositional genius still showed.

Nobuo Uematsu is such a wonderful composer. The games in large part due to his music defined my childhood and I think I keep hearing his influence all over the place in prog rock etc. Without much complexity he's style is so recognizable.

Really hoping you could some day break down “Draco and Maria” from Final Fantasy 6. It’s so wild that Uematsu created an entire operatic piece just because there’s a scene set in an opera house. And it’s really good too! ❤

@Amigo21189

Жыл бұрын

Behold the incredible power of "I can, so I'm gonna."

Man, I did not want this video to end, lol! I was a music major in college and I freaking LOOOOOOVE Final Fantasy, so this crossover if you will was a little slice of heaven for me!! And Uematsu was a MASTER of composing music that nailed the emotion felt in the scenes of the game. As for my favorite FF, 10 has my favorite storyline, but I think it's a 3-way tie in the music for 6, 8, and 10. I think 6 deserves more attention than it gets.

More! I literally can NOT get enough analysis of Nobuo Uematsu! It will never get old.