Aeris was just for the west because they thought they wouldn't like the name Aerith 🤣 they kept it because the anagram of Aerith actually makes sense to the story and character
@@StevenMelin It has nothing to do with the west not liking "Aerith", but more to do with ambiguity. Japanese doesn't have a "th" sound so they substitute "s" for it in their writing. So, Aerith was spelled as "E-A-RI-SU" (エアリス) in katakana, which could either be Aerith or Aeris. "Aerith" was derived from "Earth", which was what the developers intended. EDIT: I fixed a typo in the katakana writing lol
I just find it so inspiring that these 80's and early 90's videogame composers and artists were able to do so much with such limiting and primitive equipment- so it's really useful and helpful to study them as an aspiring creative
Fun fact for those interested. According to retrospective videos and the like, "The Prelude" from FF 1, which became the signature theme for Final Fantasy, was the last song composed for the game, and it was composed in 10 minutes. It was a rushed job. 😸
I don't know anything about music, i just wanted to see how Nobuo Uematsu would've started making music and you've given me a great idea of that, thank you, you did amazing
As a game dev myself, I oughta learn how to emulate Uematsu and work on arpeggios, ostinatos and the like. Your video seriously helps me with my RPG project. I'll be watching this more than once.
it’s crazy cuz just watching this you can understand a lot of choices in the FFXIV collective soundtracks. seems they all got similar ideas/notes from nobuo’s work haha. that song he writes at the end sounds straight out of XIV
dude, I did'nt skip your 31mins video. I was really inspired, you really gave me ideas. I'm a game developer and I also plan to compose music that is as good as the music in ff, I will use it in my future games.
I hope you have good results! As a tip, learning to play an instrument and covering mny different FF tracks really helps interiorize certain musical patterns. It's really about the time haha But anyway, keep it up!
Thanks a lot, man ! I was just trying to search "nobuo uematsu composing" on RUclips and found your video. I repeated what you're talking about on my piano, and try to keep these chords progressions in my brain. I also almost shed a tear when you had shown the scene of Aerith being murdered. What a piece of art is this game...
I couldn't help but hear bits of Rydia, along with pieces of Cyan, and flourishes of Aria/Aerith. Awesome composition, like taking a sip of good wine. Not sure how direct those influences are, but definitely captured the Uematsu sound!
I haven't even played Final Fantasy 7, not the original, nor the remake. But hearing Arieth's theme on piano still sturs up the emotions within me. I don't understand.
Scott Whiting Good music needs no context. But ohhhhh man, if it means something to you now, do yourself a favor and play the game. When this theme comes in, it’s the most emotional moment in video game history.
It is not only the theme that will bring the feels. Game, theme and characters are delcious in FFVII. I found this the other day, might be for you. A video about why we love Aeriths theme. ruclips.net/video/jVhcwfQa15k/видео.html
Another thing he seems to like melodically is using the Lydian mode, where essentially the 4th note of the major scale is sharpened. He used it a lot in FF8, including in the Balamb Garden theme which was mentioned here.
Your video was totally on point. I am amazed by how structured, instructive, and precise is your info. When I was 5 years into guitar I started composing music, and a lot of peope told me my music sound "movie or game like". And it was because all I learnt were J-RPG pieces! hahaha and I had interiorized a lot of patterns instinctively. I knew what worked, how and when, but by instinct. Your video brings an amazing perspective. Thank you so much.
The final result definitely sounds like something from FF ! Though I think Uematsu goes a bit further than that : I think he really focuses on what feelings the song must convey and making it suit the tone of the story. It has a subtlety to it, it doesn't just shove sad piano in your face. To think he knows nothing about music theory...
Great video! I personally love this format! I immediately took my keyboard and laptop and created a tune inspired by the Town Themes you mentioned! Thaaaanks!!
@@StevenMelin Well I'd be really honored! Just a couple of things: 1) Don't expect anyting too fancy since I am amateur in terms of music production. It is just a short piano loop and a tenor sax melody. 2) How can I share it with you? I don't usually post my music anywhere Thanks for being interested in it!!
@@davidal2175 Awesome work! Loving the character of your melody. 0:22 - 0:25 sends nostalgia chills down my spine! I'm not a composer, but I'd definitely consider 0:00 - 0:25 to be on par with what I'd expect out of a game I pay money for, not amateur at all. The last bit seems to drop off a bit, but that may just be me.
Wow! I've been looking for content like this for so long. Your explanations are really comprehensive and concise, with great examples. Seriously so helpful. Keep doing what you're doing!
Thanks so much! Much more on the channel here and in my Udemy courses: www.udemy.com/course/video-game-music-the-complete-composers-guide/?referralCode=4F9F6710AC8A61755504
One of the biggest things with me for me to enjoy a video game and the biggest reason I was drawn in to FFVII as a toddler is the music. I've always wanted to compose my own music and that was always inspired by Uematsu and now I have the keys to the kingdom to where I can do so thanks to this video.
found this video and your channel through searching for different tips and tricks to help my writing go further, and this video caught my eye because i love ff soundtracks! i was NOT disappointed and this video gave me so much inspiration and was so helpful to further my own compositions! thank you so much for the work and time you put into this! can’t tell you how much i’ve been needing something like this video to help me out of a creative rut!!
This is one of the best made videos I have ever seen. The editing/pacing was wonderful and easy to follow. Loved how you played the in-game clips to show everything you were explaining. All game-music composers should definitely watch this video. Thank you!
This is an awesome video! You do a great job editing this and it's clear you spent s lot of time with this one! I smashed that like button for you. This video should have 100k views or more. One thing to consider maybe titling it the theory behind Final Fantasy Music, or What makes Final Fantasy Music so special? Or The Secret Revealed to what makes Final Fantasy music so Special! Another thing is you could potentially split the video into 2 separate 15 minute videos and reference the other video in each one Not sure if it would help but a lot of people have short attention spans and 10-15 minutes seems to be the length of most youtube videos it seems. Anyway I am not trying to diminish anything, awesome content! I just want more people to see your video especially with how much work you put into it!
Thanks! 🤘🏼 I’ve settled this year all new vids will be a minimum of 10 min in length and I’ll allow them to be as long as needed, so long as every additional minute is valuable. I’ve also started doing keyword / SEO research for each video title to help give it as much searchability as possible! So far this vid is performing great, so I’m very happy with the reach & response :)
This is one of my favorite videos. I've watched it again and again to help with composing music for my own games. Thank you for all the work you put into it. Is there any chance you could do a similar video about Yasunori Mitsuda's style (particularly the Chrono soundtracks)? I suppose many of the techniques are similar - if my non-musician brain had to try and differentiate the two, I'd say maybe Mitsuda's instrumentation is a big key to unlocking his style, particularly in Chrono Cross.
now over a year old video, I'm watching this for the third time making soundtracks for a DND session using this video for reference because FF has the most beautiful soundtracks
Just gained a sub from me. Incredible video. The whole major 1 cord to a minor 5th chord is something i've never thought of doing before. So simple yet so effective. Definitely going to be applying that to my own compositions. Thanks for the video. Keep up the great work.
10:20 c#m in the key of E is a minor chord, but the interval to the root is not a minor sixth, it's a major sixth. Just want to point that out cause it got me confused for a moment.
The World Building and music of Final Fantasy and the Progressive Rock genre just screams my two favorite works of art and became somehow over the years very influential to how I will create my Game Compositions in the near future! A lot of music in the Prog Rock genre also has that adventurous vibes to it! From Genesis, ELP, King Crimson, etc up to modern Prog like Moon Safari, Transatlantic, Dream Theater and many more!
Oh man. I miss that QL harp patch. I worked at EastWest building the PLAY software for several years but I lost access to all of the instruments when I got a different job. I loved that harp.
Hahaha the Ifrit battle in FFVIII... it really hook me up to the series. And in that game I realized too, that Nobuo Uematsu is really good at his job. Many of the songs really connected to the main theme. And using clever / good variations.
@@StevenMelin Amazingly great video anyway, the demo at the end sounds familiar even if it is created on the spot and it was the first time I listen to it. Thank you for what you do! :)
So if I played the Final Fantasy VII - Overworld Theme in the same key as you, I would play. E,C#m,E,C,D and then E,C#m,E,F#m,A,B and then land on E again. And then I could transpose that so that next time I start on G instead of E. One small tip for next time you decide to teach how to write in the style of someone else, Give us a sample of something you have written in that style before you go on to break it all down. That will give your viewers confidence that the techniques you are teaching actually work. I think personally that Uematsu's music is way more complex than what you make it out to be. The melodies are incredibly catchy and memorable, that's the difficult part. Same thing with Kondo's music, Like the Zelda and Mario music. The melodies really get stuck. Kondo is of course using more Jazz influences than Uematsu, but they are both excellent at using modes and creating catchy melodies. Uematsu also use a lot of colored chords, And he's often breaking the chords up between the instruments. for example the baseline might add notes that are not present in the chord the string ensamble is playing. By breaking the chord up between instruments he can make complex chords sound less crowded and it often feels like multiple "Sub-melodies" coming together in a very pleasing way.
Also Uematsu is no stranger of using unusual time signatures. Ambush Attack from Final Fantasy IX is an interesting one it starts off with some unusual time signatures. Not sure if I want to count it as 9/4 or a combination of 8/8 and 10/8. Final Fantasy IX "Run" sounds like an instrumental section of a Dream Theater song haha! We have 5/8,6/8,4/4, 15/16 and who knows what else :D Final Fantasy VIII battle theme is 5/4 Final Fantasy VII Soundtrack - "Hurry Faster!" is another example where the time signatures keep changing Final Fantasy X - Decisive battle is also and interesting one The main part is something like 4/4,3/4,4/4,5/4 and then it has like a 6/4 part and a 4/4 intro. There's probably some that I missed, I believe that Dancing Mad has some unusual time signatures as well on a later part. I also believe that Final Fantasy V battle of the big Bridge also has some interesting stuff going on in the intro
tried making an FF battle theme a while back, and i REALLY wish i'd watched this beforehand. i feel like i could've made it sound WAY better, and more true to how Uematsu composes stuff.
Sabbastian Wilson-Webb Yeah, some people label bVI>bVII as “flat 6 Mixolydian” or just “Mixolydian”, even though yes, a true Mixolydian only has the flat 7. Regardless, it’s definitely a mode mixture!
@@StevenMelin I can see where you're coming from. My argument would be that we flatten the 3rd of the scale to give the bVI its 5th. So the harmony is still coming from minor rather than mixo b6. At the end of the day we both know the sound we're talking about, so *shrugs*
Uematsu does more than Final Fantasy. His themes have been used in Rad Racer as well as Chrono Trigger. Whenever you're playing a game with his themes, you're in a weird sense playing FF...even when you're playing Super Smash Bros. Brawl; you know he did the main theme to that, right?
Great video! I'd love to see an analysis like this on Masashi Hamauzu's music. He's the co-composer of FFX and FFVIIR, composer of FFXIII (which has a phenomenal soundtrack), World of Final Fantasy, SaGa Frontier 2, Unlimited SaGa, FFVII Dirge of Cerberus and many many others. I find his compositions very unique sounding and bringing more complex harmonics - more influenced by jazz and classical.
Loved this! Thank you for your time to make such well made and explained video! Love your final product as well really top quality! Do you like Dragon quest? It’s very different in terms of music! Btw it looks to me you don’t have problems with latency when you record in real-time, do you have any advice concerning this problem of mine?
Thanks so much! RE: Latency - it helps to only use a fraction of your CPU / RAM. I use multiple drives on my PC to share the workload. I have a dedicated projects drive, samples, apps, backup, etc. and it alleviates my PC from having to work so hard. I also always create sessions in 48kHz, 24-bit while my audio interface can handle double that, so it’s the same principle - use nicer gear and only use a small percentage of its power.
@@StevenMelin I see, basicaly the first tip is to use multiple external storage drives (organized), and have a nice interface, I use my roland RD2000 directly pluged by usb to my computer, would love if there was a way for us to talk, I really find this latency problem very dragging in my motivation. BTW THANK YOUU FOR REPLYING, you must be one of the few youtubers who actually replies to your followers hahaha thank you so much
This was great! Been looking like a video about this topic for a while. I'm an amateur composer in that I'm self taught, I was wondering should I take up some form of course, or what would my best bet be for getting into gaming composition? Very open ended questions I know. But thank you so much for this rich resource of lessons.
Vasioth So glad to hear that! I encourage you to take one of my Best-Selling Udemy courses for your next steps - 75% off link here: www.stevenmelin.com/courses Also check out my #1 Amazon Best-Selling book Family-First Composer: www.stevenmelin.com/ffc And come join our free FB / Discord group Screen Music Academy: www.stevenmelin.com/sma
One of my favorite songs from the series that pays homage to FF battle themes is the theme for 'The Twinning' dungeon in FFXIV, "A Long Fall". It has the syncopation at the start, it's in 4/4 time and has a well-known melody (the Crystal Tower theme). It's such a good theme!
Wow nice video. Ty for breaking it all down. I just want to make a correction when you say that a minor V is not standard practice in classical music you must be thinking of music strictly from the Classical period. However, after 1820s or so model mixture became a common practice of what would later be termed the Romantic period. During this time it was not uncommon to treat a tonality as both major and minor at the same time. Therefore the I, iii, IV, V, vi, and viiº chords could regularly appear as I, bIII, iv, v, bVI, and bVII. Also remember that even as far back as the Renaissance composers were replacing the minor iiº chord with a ii from the major mode, a v with V, and a VII with viiº. Then in the baroque the final i chord was often replaced with a more stable I chord. So yeah, composers have been using modal mixture for a long time, but after 1800s it became much more common and composers started even to tonazise these chords and to switch back and forth regularly. Schubert, Mendelssohn, and Brahms among many others.
I thought there was a lot of dorian scale also. Like in ffix, with its medieval flutes intro. But I may be mistaking. Super great work anyway! A french new fan!
Just bought my first piano... I love the town theme. Been stuck in my head since I was little. Did you learn how to memorize this with sheet music or just by ear?
what was used to make the old Final Fantasy music in games? Also like Chrono Trigger and other old Square games. I was thinking maybe the sc-55? or something similar?
The NES and Famicom had a Ricoh RP2A03 chip. The PAL NES had the 2A07, which is the same chip running at a slower clock speed. It really hacks a lot of the musical intent tbh. If you're curious check out the ShadowGate soundtrack NAR/PAL comparison.
oh that's a really nice video! tks a lot....one question : in your composition you did Ab9 Ebm Ab9 Ebm then you did E C#m E F# then goes back to Ab9. I don't get it why you used E C#m and F#....could you clarify that? Tks a lot
I used E instead of Fb because...Fb-Dbm is ugly 😆 Tbh either is fine - when changing modes like this it’s irrelevant. I hate Fb & Cb unless I absolutely have to use them.
Tks for your answer! But I still can't get why some of those chords like (Dbm/C#m) . Were you using A flat mixolydian ? If so In that case wouldn't be Dbmaj7 ? Sorry to ask some many things but modes always drive me crazy hehe
k but for real...Aerith or Aeris!? 🧐 FF7 Remake has me all kinds of confused.
Aeris was just for the west because they thought they wouldn't like the name Aerith 🤣 they kept it because the anagram of Aerith actually makes sense to the story and character
ThepurposeofTime And yet they use Aerith in FF7 remake 🤷🏻♂️
@@StevenMelin It has nothing to do with the west not liking "Aerith", but more to do with ambiguity. Japanese doesn't have a "th" sound so they substitute "s" for it in their writing. So, Aerith was spelled as "E-A-RI-SU" (エアリス) in katakana, which could either be Aerith or Aeris. "Aerith" was derived from "Earth", which was what the developers intended.
EDIT: I fixed a typo in the katakana writing lol
@@StevenMelin Exactly!
gemmy2492 Ah, interesting!
Nobuo uematsu has heavily inspired how I write music.
Nobuo Uematsu is king.
This is the clearest, most practical breakdown of Uematsu's style I've seen on youtube. Thanks so much.
What a wonderful tune you made at the end there. That chromatic element in the melody really sells the individualism. Great work!
I just find it so inspiring that these 80's and early 90's videogame composers and artists were able to do so much with such limiting and primitive equipment- so it's really useful and helpful to study them as an aspiring creative
It was the same with composers on old music programs such as FT2
I'm a simple woman. I hear FFIX soundtrack, I melt
That Doga and Une track from FFIX is pure meltation
Try " eternity - memories of lightwaves " from ffX-2 , it's amazing
WAP?
I'm a depressed man. I hear FFX soundtrack, I cry 😎
❤🔥
Fun fact for those interested.
According to retrospective videos and the like, "The Prelude" from FF 1, which became the signature theme for Final Fantasy, was the last song composed for the game, and it was composed in 10 minutes. It was a rushed job. 😸
That’s nuts!!
@@StevenMelin Oh, here's the video where Uematzu said they gave him 30 minutes to make the song:
ruclips.net/video/A6FiLh0-0jA/видео.html
I don't know anything about music, i just wanted to see how Nobuo Uematsu would've started making music and you've given me a great idea of that, thank you, you did amazing
Thanks! Uematsu is one of my heroes.
As a game dev myself, I oughta learn how to emulate Uematsu and work on arpeggios, ostinatos and the like. Your video seriously helps me with my RPG project. I'll be watching this more than once.
7:30 holy shit, he made that all the way back then on the NES Soundchip?, he really used mashed fruits to paint the Mona Lisa on cave walls
Ha, absolutely!! Fantastic analogy.
Im sorry.. but this deserve proabably another 500k more likes AT LEAST!!
it’s crazy cuz just watching this you can understand a lot of choices in the FFXIV collective soundtracks. seems they all got similar ideas/notes from nobuo’s work haha. that song he writes at the end sounds straight out of XIV
That Balamb Garden roll is... and it gets me every time.
dude, I did'nt skip your 31mins video. I was really inspired, you really gave me ideas. I'm a game developer and I also plan to compose music that is as good as the music in ff, I will use it in my future games.
I hope you have good results!
As a tip, learning to play an instrument and covering mny different FF tracks really helps interiorize certain musical patterns.
It's really about the time haha
But anyway, keep it up!
Thanks a lot, man ! I was just trying to search "nobuo uematsu composing" on RUclips and found your video. I repeated what you're talking about on my piano, and try to keep these chords progressions in my brain. I also almost shed a tear when you had shown the scene of Aerith being murdered. What a piece of art is this game...
That scene gets me every time!
I couldn't help but hear bits of Rydia, along with pieces of Cyan, and flourishes of Aria/Aerith. Awesome composition, like taking a sip of good wine. Not sure how direct those influences are, but definitely captured the Uematsu sound!
I haven't even played Final Fantasy 7, not the original, nor the remake. But hearing Arieth's theme on piano still sturs up the emotions within me. I don't understand.
Scott Whiting Good music needs no context. But ohhhhh man, if it means something to you now, do yourself a favor and play the game. When this theme comes in, it’s the most emotional moment in video game history.
same :3
That just the magic of music, it can do that to anyone :D
It is not only the theme that will bring the feels. Game, theme and characters are delcious in FFVII. I found this the other day, might be for you. A video about why we love Aeriths theme. ruclips.net/video/jVhcwfQa15k/видео.html
Because Uematsu is one of the most amazing composers ever!
Another thing he seems to like melodically is using the Lydian mode, where essentially the 4th note of the major scale is sharpened. He used it a lot in FF8, including in the Balamb Garden theme which was mentioned here.
Definitely! Great point.
Your video was totally on point.
I am amazed by how structured, instructive, and precise is your info.
When I was 5 years into guitar I started composing music, and a lot of peope told me my music sound "movie or game like".
And it was because all I learnt were J-RPG pieces! hahaha and I had interiorized a lot of patterns instinctively. I knew what worked, how and when, but by instinct.
Your video brings an amazing perspective. Thank you so much.
The final result definitely sounds like something from FF ! Though I think Uematsu goes a bit further than that : I think he really focuses on what feelings the song must convey and making it suit the tone of the story. It has a subtlety to it, it doesn't just shove sad piano in your face. To think he knows nothing about music theory...
Great video! I personally love this format! I immediately took my keyboard and laptop and created a tune inspired by the Town Themes you mentioned! Thaaaanks!!
Wow, cool! Care to share? I'd love to hear what you wrote in the FF style.
@@StevenMelin Well I'd be really honored! Just a couple of things: 1) Don't expect anyting too fancy since I am amateur in terms of music production. It is just a short piano loop and a tenor sax melody.
2) How can I share it with you? I don't usually post my music anywhere
Thanks for being interested in it!!
David Alonso No expectations here! Upload it to Soundcloud, DropBox, or Google Drive and post the link here in a comment.
@@StevenMelin Here you go: drive.google.com/open?id=1OEiElODaXf7LWMbHXsvvOpjZUbjang_Y
I'd love to hear your opinion order to get better!!
@@davidal2175 Awesome work! Loving the character of your melody. 0:22 - 0:25 sends nostalgia chills down my spine! I'm not a composer, but I'd definitely consider 0:00 - 0:25 to be on par with what I'd expect out of a game I pay money for, not amateur at all. The last bit seems to drop off a bit, but that may just be me.
I absolutely loved this video! Amazing job!
thank you!! i threw all my gil at this one
Great video, but I understood mixolydian as having only a flat 7 as compared to major/ionian, and not a flat 6 also.
YES!!!!! GOOD VIDEO, how emotional this is at the same time. SUPERB
Wow! I've been looking for content like this for so long. Your explanations are really comprehensive and concise, with great examples. Seriously so helpful. Keep doing what you're doing!
Thanks so much! Much more on the channel here and in my Udemy courses: www.udemy.com/course/video-game-music-the-complete-composers-guide/?referralCode=4F9F6710AC8A61755504
One of the biggest things with me for me to enjoy a video game and the biggest reason I was drawn in to FFVII as a toddler is the music. I've always wanted to compose my own music and that was always inspired by Uematsu and now I have the keys to the kingdom to where I can do so thanks to this video.
🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼
I'm amazed at your final product. It 100% sounds like it is from a Final Fantasy game!
Thanks! You should try these steps out yourself :)
found this video and your channel through searching for different tips and tricks to help my writing go further, and this video caught my eye because i love ff soundtracks! i was NOT disappointed and this video gave me so much inspiration and was so helpful to further my own compositions!
thank you so much for the work and time you put into this! can’t tell you how much i’ve been needing something like this video to help me out of a creative rut!!
That’s so great to hear! Thanks for sharing
This was done surprisingly well. Good stuff! Thank You!
i found this 4 years later and im learning 😭
This is one of the best made videos I have ever seen. The editing/pacing was wonderful and easy to follow. Loved how you played the in-game clips to show everything you were explaining. All game-music composers should definitely watch this video. Thank you!
Thanks so much! This was a blast to make.
your track sounded awesome, very good video, thanks :)
Thanks for the vid! Was good fun to watch through :) and some Uematsu is always a winner :D
This deserves more views! I have been trying to write songs like Nobuo for years and I finally wrote something thanks to this lesson 😁😁 subscribed!
So awesome to hear!!
I'm a lucky guy cause I found this video. Excellent job man. I will share this on internet and friends, you deserve more views.
Thanks, I appreciate that!
Thank you for the effort spent on making this. Super helpful
Glad to hear!
This is an awesome video! You do a great job editing this and it's clear you spent s lot of time with this one! I smashed that like button for you. This video should have 100k views or more. One thing to consider maybe titling it the theory behind Final Fantasy Music, or What makes Final Fantasy Music so special? Or The Secret Revealed to what makes Final Fantasy music so Special! Another thing is you could potentially split the video into 2 separate 15 minute videos and reference the other video in each one Not sure if it would help but a lot of people have short attention spans and 10-15 minutes seems to be the length of most youtube videos it seems. Anyway I am not trying to diminish anything, awesome content! I just want more people to see your video especially with how much work you put into it!
Thanks! 🤘🏼 I’ve settled this year all new vids will be a minimum of 10 min in length and I’ll allow them to be as long as needed, so long as every additional minute is valuable. I’ve also started doing keyword / SEO research for each video title to help give it as much searchability as possible! So far this vid is performing great, so I’m very happy with the reach & response :)
Wow this was amazingly good. Nice job!
Amazing stuff. Thanks for sharing your knowledge regarding video game composition, its helped me out alot!
This is one of my favorite videos. I've watched it again and again to help with composing music for my own games. Thank you for all the work you put into it.
Is there any chance you could do a similar video about Yasunori Mitsuda's style (particularly the Chrono soundtracks)? I suppose many of the techniques are similar - if my non-musician brain had to try and differentiate the two, I'd say maybe Mitsuda's instrumentation is a big key to unlocking his style, particularly in Chrono Cross.
Awesome video! Really awesome to see music involving my favorite game broken down and utilized.
Awesome video man! Uematsu is the king.
Pat Carter He’s definitely one of my greatest inspirations
Absolutely stellar video. Cheers!
Great video. This was actually very inspiring, and I'll probably write some more final fantasy like music later now that I have a new drive.
Philemon Holmes Awesome to hear!! Exactly why I started this Composer Style series.
now over a year old video, I'm watching this for the third time making soundtracks for a DND session using this video for reference because FF has the most beautiful soundtracks
I always think of borrowed chords with Nobuo’s music.
Great video. Your piece at the end sounds so much like a Nobuo track!
that was fun, thanks for a cool vid bruh, also really liked the piece.
Oh boy, I had plans this evening but I think I'm gonna cancel them because I'm watching this video and gonna write a few new tunes because of this!
TOPmusicman8 woah, that’s commitment!! 🗡
Just gained a sub from me. Incredible video. The whole major 1 cord to a minor 5th chord is something i've never thought of doing before. So simple yet so effective. Definitely going to be applying that to my own compositions. Thanks for the video. Keep up the great work.
Great to hear! Uematsu is a legend for his calculated simplicity.
Great video dude, really taught me a lot and gave me inspiration.
Great to hear!
10:20 c#m in the key of E is a minor chord, but the interval to the root is not a minor sixth, it's a major sixth. Just want to point that out cause it got me confused for a moment.
Ah yes, C#min in the key of E is called a “minor 6” chord in that key.
@@StevenMelin I see, but it's easy to misunderstand if you say it that way!
This is beautiful! Now I wanna learn some music theory!
Always a lot of inspiration from your videos. Great job, as usual! 👍
If you made a whole Udemy course on this topic I would definitely buy it!
Thanks so much! Here’s your golden ticket for learning more like this: www.stevenmelin.com/25questions
Really good video. I never slapped like and subscribe so hard. Hope all is well!
The World Building and music of Final Fantasy and the Progressive Rock genre just screams my two favorite works of art and became somehow over the years very influential to how I will create my Game Compositions in the near future!
A lot of music in the Prog Rock genre also has that adventurous vibes to it! From Genesis, ELP, King Crimson, etc up to modern Prog like Moon Safari, Transatlantic, Dream Theater and many more!
Love this video. So much gold content.
thank you! i poured all my heart & soul into this one.
Definitely one of your best videos yet!
I swear your demo track is a legit Final Fantasy Music !
Oh man. I miss that QL harp patch. I worked at EastWest building the PLAY software for several years but I lost access to all of the instruments when I got a different job. I loved that harp.
This was fantastic, thank you for the video! I really liked how in depth you went with the explanations 😄👍
You speak well. Good job! Thanks for this. FF fan.
Hahaha the Ifrit battle in FFVIII... it really hook me up to the series.
And in that game I realized too, that Nobuo Uematsu is really good at his job.
Many of the songs really connected to the main theme. And using clever / good variations.
(Video watching in progress and I love it so far!
you're right! mixolydian b6 is often called 'mixolydian' though. i gotcha ;)
@@StevenMelin Amazingly great video anyway, the demo at the end sounds familiar even if it is created on the spot and it was the first time I listen to it. Thank you for what you do! :)
Remy Luciani Thanks! Channeling my inner-Uematsu
Very Interesting, love this! Thanks for this :)
Brien Todio Thanks for watching!
@@StevenMelin Btw what vst is the solo oboe from? Sounds very nice :)
Brien Todio 8Dio Claire Woodwinds! Here’s my full list of favorite libraries: www.stevenmelin.com/bestvsts
So if I played the Final Fantasy VII - Overworld Theme in the same key as you, I would play.
E,C#m,E,C,D and then E,C#m,E,F#m,A,B and then land on E again.
And then I could transpose that so that next time I start on G instead of E.
One small tip for next time you decide to teach how to write in the style of someone else, Give us a sample of something you have written in that style before you go on to break it all down.
That will give your viewers confidence that the techniques you are teaching actually work.
I think personally that Uematsu's music is way more complex than what you make it out to be.
The melodies are incredibly catchy and memorable, that's the difficult part.
Same thing with Kondo's music, Like the Zelda and Mario music. The melodies really get stuck.
Kondo is of course using more Jazz influences than Uematsu, but they are both excellent at using modes and creating catchy melodies.
Uematsu also use a lot of colored chords, And he's often breaking the chords up between the instruments. for example the baseline might add notes that are not present in the chord the string ensamble is playing. By breaking the chord up between instruments he can make complex chords sound less crowded and it often feels like multiple "Sub-melodies" coming together in a very pleasing way.
That’s right! Double check your chords there - final progression is E-C#m-E-A2-F#m-Bsus4-B-E
@@StevenMelin yes that sounds about right, thanks for clarifying that
Also Uematsu is no stranger of using unusual time signatures.
Ambush Attack from Final Fantasy IX is an interesting one it starts off with some unusual time signatures. Not sure if I want to count it as 9/4 or a combination of 8/8 and 10/8.
Final Fantasy IX "Run" sounds like an instrumental section of a Dream Theater song haha!
We have 5/8,6/8,4/4, 15/16 and who knows what else :D
Final Fantasy VIII battle theme is 5/4
Final Fantasy VII Soundtrack - "Hurry Faster!" is another example where the time signatures keep changing
Final Fantasy X - Decisive battle is also and interesting one
The main part is something like 4/4,3/4,4/4,5/4 and then it has like a 6/4 part and a 4/4 intro.
There's probably some that I missed, I believe that Dancing Mad has some unusual time signatures as well on a later part. I also believe that Final Fantasy V battle of the big Bridge also has some interesting stuff going on in the intro
Thank you, this video is beyond helpful and inspiring.
Carmine Dominicus Glad to hear!
tried making an FF battle theme a while back, and i REALLY wish i'd watched this beforehand. i feel like i could've made it sound WAY better, and more true to how Uematsu composes stuff.
Give it a shot now!
Thanks! I just started trying my take on this !
I can’t wait to see it!!
@@StevenMelin 😳🙌🏾
Mixolydian would be a natural 6 and a b7. The bVI > bVII > I progression is utilizing mode mixture from the parallel minor.
Great composition at the end. Very FFVII.
Sabbastian Wilson-Webb Yeah, some people label bVI>bVII as “flat 6 Mixolydian” or just “Mixolydian”, even though yes, a true Mixolydian only has the flat 7. Regardless, it’s definitely a mode mixture!
@@StevenMelin I can see where you're coming from.
My argument would be that we flatten the 3rd of the scale to give the bVI its 5th. So the harmony is still coming from minor rather than mixo b6.
At the end of the day we both know the sound we're talking about, so *shrugs*
Great video! Fortunately I did not miss it due to the low view numbers.
Thanks for checking it out!
Before I watch this video, as a composer myself, the trick to Nobuo Uematsu is lots of minor add9 chords
suburbanindie I call those “2” chords in the vid, but you’re spot on :) One of the many characteristics of Uematsu’s music!
nice,i really like ff music and it's my main influence in my music
Evelyn :3 I’m glad you liked this! Care to share one of your fav FF-inspired tracks?
@@StevenMelin FFXIII - The Promise :D
Uematsu does more than Final Fantasy. His themes have been used in Rad Racer as well as Chrono Trigger. Whenever you're playing a game with his themes, you're in a weird sense playing FF...even when you're playing Super Smash Bros. Brawl; you know he did the main theme to that, right?
Awesome lesson thank you very much
Nice video but mixolydian doesn't always take a b6 - see at 10:49
Yeah. Its a b7
Great video! I'd love to see an analysis like this on Masashi Hamauzu's music. He's the co-composer of FFX and FFVIIR, composer of FFXIII (which has a phenomenal soundtrack), World of Final Fantasy, SaGa Frontier 2, Unlimited SaGa, FFVII Dirge of Cerberus and many many others. I find his compositions very unique sounding and bringing more complex harmonics - more influenced by jazz and classical.
Great suggestion! Hamauzu is fantastic.
I was so disappointed with XIII, but the soundtrack was soo good. Some of the best music in the series.
EndlessEtudes i was also sorely disappointed with XIII (and XV), but both have great soundtracks
Thank you so fucking much for this video. Great job, seriously. I love the FF soundtracks, especially FF7, cause this was my childhood.
Great video. Really enjoyed and helped a lot.
Now I really want to play a game with that theme you created in it..
seeibe FF24! 🔥
Loved this! Thank you for your time to make such well made and explained video! Love your final product as well really top quality! Do you like Dragon quest? It’s very different in terms of music! Btw it looks to me you don’t have problems with latency when you record in real-time, do you have any advice concerning this problem of mine?
Thanks so much! RE: Latency - it helps to only use a fraction of your CPU / RAM. I use multiple drives on my PC to share the workload. I have a dedicated projects drive, samples, apps, backup, etc. and it alleviates my PC from having to work so hard. I also always create sessions in 48kHz, 24-bit while my audio interface can handle double that, so it’s the same principle - use nicer gear and only use a small percentage of its power.
@@StevenMelin I see, basicaly the first tip is to use multiple external storage drives (organized), and have a nice interface, I use my roland RD2000 directly pluged by usb to my computer, would love if there was a way for us to talk, I really find this latency problem very dragging in my motivation. BTW THANK YOUU FOR REPLYING, you must be one of the few youtubers who actually replies to your followers hahaha thank you so much
Class is in session musicians!
good...this vid took 7 hrs+ to edit :P
This was great! Been looking like a video about this topic for a while. I'm an amateur composer in that I'm self taught, I was wondering should I take up some form of course, or what would my best bet be for getting into gaming composition? Very open ended questions I know. But thank you so much for this rich resource of lessons.
Vasioth So glad to hear that! I encourage you to take one of my Best-Selling Udemy courses for your next steps - 75% off link here: www.stevenmelin.com/courses
Also check out my #1 Amazon Best-Selling book Family-First Composer: www.stevenmelin.com/ffc
And come join our free FB / Discord group Screen Music Academy: www.stevenmelin.com/sma
One of my favorite songs from the series that pays homage to FF battle themes is the theme for 'The Twinning' dungeon in FFXIV, "A Long Fall". It has the syncopation at the start, it's in 4/4 time and has a well-known melody (the Crystal Tower theme). It's such a good theme!
Wow nice video. Ty for breaking it all down. I just want to make a correction when you say that a minor V is not standard practice in classical music you must be thinking of music strictly from the Classical period. However, after 1820s or so model mixture became a common practice of what would later be termed the Romantic period. During this time it was not uncommon to treat a tonality as both major and minor at the same time. Therefore the I, iii, IV, V, vi, and viiº chords could regularly appear as I, bIII, iv, v, bVI, and bVII. Also remember that even as far back as the Renaissance composers were replacing the minor iiº chord with a ii from the major mode, a v with V, and a VII with viiº. Then in the baroque the final i chord was often replaced with a more stable I chord. So yeah, composers have been using modal mixture for a long time, but after 1800s it became much more common and composers started even to tonazise these chords and to switch back and forth regularly. Schubert, Mendelssohn, and Brahms among many others.
Great points! Lots of modal mixture throughout history.
Interesting. Watched this video and 2 weeks later I am unwittingly taking your Udemy course. Thi8
I thought there was a lot of dorian scale also. Like in ffix, with its medieval flutes intro. But I may be mistaking.
Super great work anyway!
A french new fan!
Uematsu definitely uses plenty of Dorian too :) Here’s your golden ticket for learning more like this: www.stevenmelin.com/25questions
I study Yuzo Koshiro's style. He's amazing also! Will you do his music in the future? Streets of Rage series and Revenge of Shinobi to name a few!
15:04 this theme is so familiar to me, but i never played final fantasy. Interesting
AshCovers this is a super popular theme, so I’m not surprised :)
Is one of the best themes in all of FF. And that is saying a lot.
Great video 💯
Would love to see how you would add a B section to your A section! Great work!
Just bought my first piano... I love the town theme. Been stuck in my head since I was little. Did you learn how to memorize this with sheet music or just by ear?
All by ear and over 23 years of experience playing tunes by ear.
Become A Game Composer wow that’s amazing. I was wondering what is the best way to go about learning. Just by ear or also using sheet music...
HighMonkeyMonk sheet music is a tool, so it’s definitely worth learning
thanks for a great video!
I’m glad this was helpful for you!
what was used to make the old Final Fantasy music in games? Also like Chrono Trigger and other old Square games.
I was thinking maybe the sc-55? or something similar?
SNES samples were individually created by each composer! Usually downsampled keyboard sounds.
The NES and Famicom had a Ricoh RP2A03 chip. The PAL NES had the 2A07, which is the same chip running at a slower clock speed. It really hacks a lot of the musical intent tbh. If you're curious check out the ShadowGate soundtrack NAR/PAL comparison.
oh that's a really nice video! tks a lot....one question :
in your composition you did Ab9 Ebm Ab9 Ebm then you did E C#m E F# then goes back to Ab9.
I don't get it why you used E C#m and F#....could you clarify that?
Tks a lot
I used E instead of Fb because...Fb-Dbm is ugly 😆 Tbh either is fine - when changing modes like this it’s irrelevant. I hate Fb & Cb unless I absolutely have to use them.
Tks for your answer!
But I still can't get why some of those chords like (Dbm/C#m) .
Were you using A flat mixolydian ? If so In that case wouldn't be Dbmaj7 ?
Sorry to ask some many things but modes always drive me crazy hehe
Great content!
This is a very helpful video :)
Josh_Dan So glad to hear that!
Dude really Said he wants Me to Help Support my Family 😂😂
Didnt expect that lol
Beautiful, thank you