James Horner was the composer that made me want to be a composer. Though as a young child I was familiar with the music in movies like The Land Before Time and An American Tail/Fievel Goes West, I didn’t start paying attention to film composers/soundtracks until I saw Braveheart in the late 90s and was enamored by the score. I spent a lot of time in high school tracking down his music on Napster/WinMX and buying everything I could on Ebay. I stopped playing video games when I discovered I would rather buy and listen to film scores.

A few years later I would read online discussions about Horner’s influences such as Prokofiev and Shostakovich, which lead me to buy recordings of their music as well. After completing my Horner collection I then sought out classical music, enrolled in the Bachelor of Music program, and the rest is history.

It’s safe to say without Horner I would likely not be the person I am today.

Terrible, awful news...

R.I.P.

I didn't know about this until I clicked on this thread...
R.I.P...

Well, now that Horner's dead, we have one less talented person in the world. Still, as long as we remember him, and his music, a part of him will live on, with all of us. Every time someone listens to his music, whether they know he made it or not, a part of him is with us, and in this way, we can still be impacted by him, and he will still have a presence in people's lives. Perhaps an upcoming composer who has been influenced by Horner will occasionally remake something that Horner did and give it new life, and cause younger generations (hearing it for the first time) to seek out the original work by Horner. And perhaps some record company will use his death as a means to promote the sales of anything they have that he may have worked on, simply to make a profit (bastards). But, no matter what happens, James Horner's music, and the memories created by it, will be with us forever. Horner has joined the likes of Bernstein, Goldsmith, Ifukube, Kamen, and others as one of those who have shaped the lives of millions with only music. Rest in Peace, James Horner. Rest in Peace.

.

In other news, my work for my album The ETHEReal String Project is complete. We are getting the last of the recording sessions completed and the final mixing. The end product of these are more improved than the previews I have released so far on Soundcloud. I have also made some minor changes to some of the older ones (such as Fang's Theme) to give it a more colorful orchestration and make it more suited for strings. I'm really excited for my MGS 2 suite to be done as it clocks in at 9 minutes and is a more cinematic approach to the opening part of the game. I took inspiration from John Barry and David Arnold's visions of Bond for this one and according to one of the guys in the group, it sounds like Shostakovich in places which in my book certainly isn't a bad thing ;).

Looking forward to it, Josh.

I heard about James Horner's tragic passing whilst I was away from home - on the other side of the world, as it happens. I'm back home in London now, and it has yet to sink in. In any discussion that includes Horner's musical output, it is impossible to avoid the elephant in the room - his unprecedented plagiarism. That, and my own personal feelings on the subject, are well known and do not need rehashing now. Suffice to say... James Horner was a fine, fine composer - I suspect, far greater than any of us can truly realise.

Jerry Goldsmith was and will always be my number one... but James Horner was always the king of melody. He shared with John Barry that unmistakeable sixth sense - the ability to convey so much with so little. Casper was the first film score to make me cry, at the age of 11... and once it started, it never stopped - Horner, the only composer who ever scared me with his ability to break my heart with just a handful of notes. Was there anything he couldn't do? Romance, tragedy, horror, action, experimental, comedy... everything executed with panache. Farewell, James Horner.


"In the midst of our sorrow, it should be noted that this death takes place in the shadow of new life, the sunrise of a new world."

It feels unusual to speak of good things now... but life MUST go on... Two of Michiru Oshima's latest have surfaced today and they are both simply glorious. "LIttle Witch Academia - The Enchanted Parade" receives - completely against my predictions - a huge scale Moscow score that extends and betters Oshima's ideas from the first score - an extravagant, mostly major key spectacular that DOESN'T fall into the danger zone of sequel score laziness. Yes, the famous LWA theme plays occasionally, at opportune moments, but the work is 90% original. The end roll is splendid as always - it begins as did the end roll from the first film, but moves on to a lovely brassy suspense/action cue, a heroic fanfare, a cheerfully bouncy section, and a delicious grand finale.

Oshima #2 - Rokka no Yuusha also appeared tonight - it is indeed another Moscow score! We have a slightly more cheerful Tempest here - killer melodies (the main theme being one of Oshima's very best) and superlative orchestration and, frankly, it has this feeling... it has greatness stamped all over it.

Wow, Rokka no Yuusha... I'm getting Full Metal Alchemist vibes from this! Probably not as sophisticated and as well crafted as Tempest but certainly goosebumping so far. The show itself also recieves a recommendation if only for the fact that it allows the music to drive the scene (well... or if you are into aztec albino bunnies).

LWA2 is really lovely. The new Parade theme reminds me so much of the glory days of Disney and that magical moment when Oshima reprises the Main Theme in the middle... I hope the OST will be out soon.

EDIT: Oh my, Akagami no Shirayuki-hime :D :D :D Three Moscow scores in one season and each is sounding fantastic so far!!! Oshima really makes every note count and there's so much beauty and lyricism all around, she is single-handingly elevating this season to greatness.

As for the rest this season, well things are now looking good... Gate is really nice even if crippled by not enough budget. Chaos Dragon is unfortunately all synth and also pretty generic for Sakimoto (Tower of Druaga was better). Classroom Crisis is bland but at least has a decent piece at the end. "Jitsu wa Watashi" wa is quite pleasant so far, Akito Matsuda could turn out to be be one to look forward to in the future. Symphogear GX seems to have more budget than usual so I hope Elements Garden kicks it up a notch, Dragon Ball Super: :D not bad, opening with Cha-La for orchestra but the rest is kind of a mixed bag... judging from the second Overlord PV this one should have at least a decent orchestra, perhaps another Bahamut?


On the Hollywood front I'm delighted that at least Seth MacFarlane still fights for quality music. Walter Murphy's TED 2 is really lovely, especially Meighan's Speech at the end. If only we could live in a world with more Murphy and less Junkie XL (I feel sorry for every professional orchestral musican whenever I'm watching a behind-the-scenes while Junkie is all excited like a little child because he figured out lots of brass can make even bigger fart sounds, what idiogracy).

In other news I'm pretty pissed that fate is against me getting my hands on Nobita's Space Heroes. The cd is currently in customs but of course postal service is on strike and here in germany, the land of regulations, I cannot get it myself until I have a certain document which by the way must be send to me via mail and probably won't arrive in 14 days so the package will be send back to japan, just lovely :(


Oh and welcome back Tango :)

https://soundcloud.com/josh-barron/forest-of-awakening?in=josh-barron/sets/etherealstringproject

This is an original composition written by me for my album The ETHEReal String Project releasing July 28th. I hope you all enjoy :).

KEIJI INAI - DANMACHI ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK VOL.1
MP3 320K | 104.6 MB | 27 TRACKS | 00:47:27
Studio Orchestra


VGMdb (http://vgmdb.net/album/52202)
Catalog Number: 1000571491-CD
Release Date: Jun 24, 2015

Tracklist
01. Into a Fantasy (http://picosong.com/gpxn/) http://i.imgur.com/v9WfOyB.gif
02. Meikyuu Toshi Orario
03. Boukenshatachi no Kyuusoku
04. Hestia Familia e no Ieji
05. Yukai na Machikado
06. Jagamaru-kun wo Tabeyou
07. Kibun Joujou Megamisama
08. Houjou no Onna Shujintei
09. Bell-kun, Kimitte Yatsu wa...
10. Realis Phrase
11. Date Shiyou ze? Bell-kun!!
12. Kore demo Boku wa Kami nano da
13. The DOGEZA of Goddess
14. Kamigami no Seikurabe
15. Yori ni mo Yotte...
16. Yasashisa ni Tsutsumareta nara
17. Makareta Inbou no Tane
18. Megami Freyja no An'yaku
19. Monsterphilia
20. Sakusen Kaigi
21. Rubellite eyes
22. Zetsubou no Fuchi de
23. Yuuki wo, Kimi ni
24. Shoukei no Saki ni Misueru Mono
25. Kokoro, Suimen ni Utsushite
26. Kami to Ko wo Tsunagu Mono
27. Ashita mo, Kitto.

Download: https://mega.co.nz/#!kYUyHQha!0O_ra2j9CJitr2zo_NFo2hb3CBqbMORIvWpCFB9 4bho

Anyone might share the two latest Oshima albums? I am very curious to hear them now :).

Tango, though Casper never made me teary, I always found the opening and closing theme to Patriot Games rather emotional. But that's Maggie Boyle for you.

Anyone might share the two latest Oshima albums? I am very curious to hear them now :).
They aren't out yet. They've only aired. It will be some months before all the scores are released.

Also, there's a third one that aired today and it's lovely. :)

Oh, my good lord, what is Oshima playing at? Akagami is utterly gorgeous - lyrical, romantic, and so very rich... A score for which I can think of only one word to adequately describe - classy. How does Oshima manage three enormous scores at the same time, each one immense in quality but stylistically distinct and strong in different ways, completely retain her own voice in every single note, AND continue to innovate and improve? She's been composing since puberty and nearly forty years later she's still there and still working to better herself.

At this point I wouldn't care if the remainder of July 2015's new season was completely scored by Hiroyuki Sawano. In these three scores, Michiru Oshima gives us some of the best music ever written for anime, full stop.

Incidentally... Death Note has a TV drama which started a couple of days ago and who scored it? Takayuki Hattori, with a budget! Some jaw-dropping moments in there.

Well that's just good news all around, now all that is missing is another glorious orchestral extravaganza from Amano for Attack on Titan... which will obviously happen, just look at the track titles and smile (http://vgmdb.net/album/52417) :D

Oh and look forward to Sunrise next big original project in 2016... classical and romantic composers appear as giant robots to battle to the death... yes this is really happening... Oh Japan

Ooh, Masamichi Amano is back again... :D

For the life of me, I will not understand why he's basically retired from writing solo scores but it still endlessly busy orchestrating for the likes of Shiro Sagisu.

The money is still there, obviously... does the guy who scored Giant Robo not sell CDs any more but Shiro Sagisu does? Or is Amano "too old and too rich to give a shit" and somehow finds these jobs less stressful? Or are producers just not asking him any more? (If not, WHY NOT?! Twenty years later Giant Robo is STILL talked about and clearly Amano's style is very much still in vogue because he turns up on every Sagisu score and is clearly not "just" orchestrating here...)

A big, big conundrum...

So are any of these new anime series any good (besides the music)? I've been wanting to find another good new series to watch but so far most anime I have tried to watch lately has been so bad I just gave up. Something with somewhat realistic characters and a plot that doesn't just go in random directions all the time would be wonderful. Good music is a bonus (considering most TV shows I watch have generic horrible scores.)

This season ... you can try the ones with Oshima, those have not waving red flags right at the start and have rather beautiful visuals. Still if you really want some great quality all around you're better off with the recent anime movies, Odyssey of the Celestial Ark in particular. It was quite tastefully done and it had some glorious SciFi moments but I'm always a sucker for that stuff. It was also nice how it expanded on some plot points from the series and it also had some nice character development. Not to mention the score which is on par with the series (THAT Gatlantis motif is so good if you have not been exposed to it prior to 2199). There were some small references to Star Trek (Klingons + Photon Torpedos) as well as some Stargate awe moments which feature the best musical piece I've heard for Project 2199 so far "Shambleau" (which by the way means a lot since I love that score to death).








Kan Sawada
Doraemon Movie Soundtrack History 3
Nobita's Space Heroes & more
Studio Orchestra



Download (https://mega.co.nz/#!O5YEDACK!3XcEmBZXDI3SUx2dMBEbO_b2hvtrdZWzdq1Qchp 7xAw)
CD-Rip / MP3 / V0 / 2 CDs / 2h35m


PV1 (https://kiwi6.com/file/fsqb4cp3ju) PV2 (https://kiwi6.com/file/800m7axsff) PV3 (https://kiwi6.com/file/92zjefjatr) PV4 (https://kiwi6.com/file/iq20wd3cn6)


Well it's finally here and oh boy is it glorious. Kan Sawada takes you (again) on a tour de force across the different styles and periods of good old quality Hollywood music with some obvious references to Williams, Horner, Goldsmith and Silvestri. Nowadays it seems like music of this quality has become an obscurity in the place it was originaly born but thankfully it lives on and prospers in other places. If you take into consideration how much the japanese seem to value traditional "western" concert and film music it will certainly not die out in my lifetime, on the contrary it seems these days.

So enjoy this marvel, I'm certain this will not be the last Movie Soundtrack History we see of Doraemon...
As always please buy the soundtrack if you love it. This one was well worth the purchase and custom charges.


With three Moscow recordings, two potential Warsaw Recordings and dozens of Studio recordings to look forward to in the coming months
2015 is already shaping up to be a phenomenal year and Kantai 2 is not too far off.

https://soundcloud.com/josh-barron/sets/the-ethereal-string-project-demo-playlist

To give you an idea of my album... here is a special playlist that has a preview for each track :). Feel free to let me know what all of you fine astute people think of it!

Bakemono no Ko's soundtrack is out on Hikari no Akari. The director and the guy who did the music is the same as Wolf Children's, so Mamoru Hosoda and Takagi Masakatsu.

Masakatsu TAKAGI - BOY AND THE BEAST, THE (2015)

For the film score cryosx mentioned in the previous post (English title: "The Boy and the Beast"), there's a link by nipponsensei here:
Thread 191453 (MP3 320)

I haven't listened to it yet, so I cannot comment.

Masakatsu TAKAGI - WOLF CHILDREN (2012)

From the composer's 2012 film score for WOLF CHILDREN, I like this one track. Uplifting. Lush. Japanese style/scale?
youtube.com/watch?v=WzljtlGj_lA (Track 12 - "Kito Kito - Dance of Your Nature")

For FLAC files, from elixir1349's thread (Thread 184713):
1fichier.com/?ydat0af5ev

Both of these animated films, and other ones, are from director Mamoru HOSODA, often debated whether he's being the next Miyazaki (both directors attracting wide audiences). Now Hosoda & Takagi having worked together twice, this collaboration could superficially resemble the team Miyazaki & Hisaishi.

<hr>

Akihiko MATSUMOTO, et al. - SUMMER WARS (2009)

An overture (sometimes) may just be a quick showcase of the themes of work, but the little bridges inbetween make them for good standalone listening (and are often part of concerts just because, like Bernstein's "Candide" overture, Wagner's Vorspiele of his operas). Another film by Hosoda, Summer Wars had such an overture. Unfortunately, the score itself only used the romantic theme later on, and none of the action material (that galloping theme, also sounding like circus music?). This one is composed by Akihiko MATSUMOTO (credited for "co-music" overall? in the booklet / as orchestrators on IMDB: Kae. M. Black/Kae Matsumoto Black, and Randy Miller).

There's a Japanese blog post about it, with the blog generally focusing on the orchestral music. Link for those who can read it / or willing to Google Translate: ocn.ne.jp/~music001/animation/summer_wars.html [25th July, 2015: Website down]

youtube.com/watch?v=1pFIXC3pZlI (Track 2 - "Overture of the Summer Wars")

For FLAC files, from elixir1349's thread (Thread 184713):
1fichier.com/?nxb64vmv5m

<hr>

Fan Panel "The Music of Yoko Kanno: The Genius of Eccentricity and Eclecticism" // Anime Expo 2015 (7-2-15)

From Anime Expo 2015, professors John Marr, M.M., Elliot Jones, D.M.A., and David F. Lopez, D.M.A. from the Music School at Santa Ana College present and delve into the creative genius of composer, pianist, musician and artist, Yoko Kanno.


The talk started out well with a brief history of Kanno's musical background, but then regressed into a bunch of fan boys playing their favourite tracks.

I would have preferred more insight into Kanno's career and the musical choices made in the games and anime she scored (the "Chain" scene in Escaflowne, for example.) I think the crowd was bored by the music theory 101 bits.

The Green Bird discussion was the most interesting bit because it mentioned the idea of the anti-scoring of a scene like in Platoon. Another scene that comes to mind is the final duel between Luke and Vader. It's a neat trend of scoring violent or sad moments with a requiem of sorts. It was used a bit in Children of Men as well.


Yeaaaah, I was kinda disappointed they didn't tackle for more variety of her works (I'm still trying to look on how she wrote that "Shiro, Long Tails" piece from Wolf's Rain or other several orchestral pieces from Escaflowne), instead of mostly Cowboy Bebop, just because the majority of the audience seem to know that one score of hers only.

I was actually quite interested when they mentioned about the composers that weren't usually mentioned on her "influences" like Francis Poulenc, but it felt that they never went onto full detail about it and just "here, have a list of similar composers works to that one track" and ran in circles with the music theory for a one hour panel.

Interesting idea for a panel that sadly, never reached it's full potential.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8tlR6fExzfo (youtube.com/watch?v=8tlR6fExzfo) (1 hour)

NHK just announced that Takayuki Hattori will score the 28th taiga drama Sanadamaru. It is set to air in January 2016.




Akihiko MATSUMOTO, et al. - SUMMER WARS (2009)

I've been interested in hearing another score from Matsumoto ever since hearing his Overture of the Summer Wars. Unfortunately he hasn't had any anime work since 2009.

Doraemon

Aah, thank you! I have to admit, I started at the beginning and my heart sank as I heard modern film-music cliche after cliche, trotted out in a roll-call of short, fragmented tracks.

Then, as the album went on... truly glorious cues began to appear. The first score on the album - from the most recent film - seems overall bad to my ears... but the others!

I'm at work at the moment but I could've swore I heard one cue riffing off Grieg's piano concerto. When I get home I'll note down which one.

nextday: Glorious news! I wasn't thrilled with Hattori's Shinsengumi - the main theme was maybe the greatest three minutes of music ever written for television, but the rest of the score just didn't do it for me. This is becoming a common theme with Hattori which I hope doesn't continue. Even if it does, we can probably count on a killer main theme so I'll be looking forward to this one for sure!

How was Naoki Sato's effort for the latest Stand By Me Doraemon?

Sanico (Film, Television and Classical Music Download Links admin, and friend of the thread), is currently inactive. Sparktank is the new Film... admin. He has rightly locked several threads lately, among them the Star Trek thread. Below as a quote, the post of Sparktank.

I think the only crucial point could be the OP, arthierr, not being around anymore. The last post of arthierr was in May 2013.



forums.ffshrine.org/f92/official-star-trek-thread-82011/366.html#post3001449 (http://forums.ffshrine.org/f92/official-star-trek-thread-82011/366.html#post3001449)


I went as far back as Jan 2015.

Any mention of downloads really just refers to other threads.

As it has turned out to be a discussion thread, I'm going to close it. (since OP is not around).

If anyone wants to continue:
A) Download links, please create a new thread in the download section.
B) Discussing, please create a new thread in one of the appropriate discussion forums: http://forums.ffshrine.org/#general-media-discussion

I would simply move the thread, but I don't want to move it to a discussion section only to have members start posting download links in the discussion forum.

Threads involving discussion are okay, as long there are (active/recent) downloads available.
And, it would certainly help if OP was around for the thread.

In this case where OP is banned, it would really serve better just to create new threads (one for downloads, one for discussion).

Sorry for the inconvenience.

I don't see what he is trying to accomplish.

I have never heard so much stupidity on this forum - and that's saying something.

It doesn't matter who started the thread or whether he or she is still present. What matters is that the thread is a going concern. If it's not attracting undue legal attention and hasn't degenerated into a pissing contest... then for Christ's sake let it be.

This thread is not just a thread; it's a community within a community - and the reason that had to happen was because this place has the most appalling moderation.

This is a thread where you download stuff AND TALK ABOUT IT - where the usual forum ethic (namely, this is a database of download links and attempts at conversation should be crushed like the Third Reich) does not apply. This thread has been open since 2008 and has received new posts pretty much every single day since then. It has created friendships that will last a lifetime. It has attracted the attention of industry specialists.

Regards OP's "responsibility" - OP has never had responsibility for any thread because he cannot do anything to his thread or to the participants. He cannot even edit the title of his own thread. He can ask moderators for assistance regarding bad behaviour in his thread, but those requests are consistently ignored. What "responsibility" does OP enjoy, besides his status as the man who clicked "Post new thread" instead of "Post new reply"?

I miss Arthierr... but this thread goes on just fine when he's not here. I am SURE he is happy with that - knowing that his creation, which nobody could have predicted would grow in the way it has, can continue to work in his absence.

The ONLY time a thread should EVER be locked... is when it has become the focal point for an argument which is out of control - and even then, I would favour the approach of warning the participants in the argument, banning them if they don't stop, and clearing the mess out of the thread later on.

If this stuff happens, I'm outta here.

Would be pretty stupid to end the thread just like that but sometimes I forget what an enigma it really is. On paper it's just one of thousands of threads in a film and classical music download section on a forum about Final Fantasy and to most it would seem no big deal to close it for whatever reason.

It is true that it is almost preposterous these days to encourage discussion in a download section (but not just here, basically anywhere on the net) but some don't want any discussion in fear of being judged for what they like or dislike and others just don't care enough to engage in conversation.
It's a shame but I think this thread demonstrates that a living and debating sharing community can work and does have more merit for everyone in the long run than simply sharing a link and getting off to likes.

Anyway I'm keeping fingers crossed that it continues undisturbed.



Rokka no Yuusha... after listening to the Main Theme I got the feeling that I've heared it already somewhere. I listened to Lee Holdrige's Walking with Destiny and I think I found it by accident in "Homecoming" (https://kiwi6.com/file/3dbsy3k7gi/) which has some similar moments. But I'm probably missing even more obvious canditates that are flying right over my head at the moment.

I don't see a problem about this thread....
I mean, posting link for albums to download, and then give each one their impressions about? What is so bad about that?
I can understand one thing though. This Thread is a Chaos if you think about the stuff shared in here. If the first post was someway collecting the links (as shortcuts to the original sharing posts in here), then maybe this would be not so chaotic when a person is looking for whatever there is in here orchestral shared. 622 pages..... imagine someone browsing page by page. Now you say "Search Function"... if "they" know what to search for... if not, they are doomed to look page by page by page...
I think if the first post looked liked what I referred with links, this thread would be somewhat "protected".
Anyone understands what I mean here?

I listened to Lee Holdrige's Walking with Destiny and I think I found it by accident in "Homecoming" (https://kiwi6.com/file/3dbsy3k7gi/) which has some similar moments.
Isn't this Jerusalem by Hubert Parry?

Yes it's based on Jerusalem but arranged by Lee Holdrige.

I don't see a problem about this thread....
I mean, posting link for albums to download, and then give each one their impressions about? What is so bad about that?
I can understand one thing though. This Thread is a Chaos if you think about the stuff shared in here. If the first post was someway collecting the links (as shortcuts to the original sharing posts in here), then maybe this would be not so chaotic when a person is looking for whatever there is in here orchestral shared. 622 pages..... imagine someone browsing page by page. Now you say "Search Function"... if "they" know what to search for... if not, they are doomed to look page by page by page...
I think if the first post looked liked what I referred with links, this thread would be somewhat "protected".
Anyone understands what I mean here?

I think that a little chaos is very good for this thread. I see this thread as a research aid and a journey - not a download repository. If it were TOO easy to browse, users would be able to specifically target the downloads they are specifically after and then run - as it is, there's encouragement to read around the downloads and maybe learn a bit, or discover something else completely different.

I doubt that there's a single person in this thread who hasn't been enriched in some way because they took a punt at something or someone unfamiliar. How many times have we heard variations on "Oh, I liked The Big O... What else has Sahashi done?" and then the thread becomes a Toshihiko Sahashi speakeasy for a few days, for example. We're not here for quick downloads... we're here to share each other's tastes and broaden our horizons. This thread is not suited to fly-by-night downloaders... you have to put a bit of time and effort in, but it's worth it.

We've had projects where we get together and source rare copies of albums to bring them back to general availability. We've had some truly exceptional projects - restorations, remasters, and re-edits of existing albums. We've even had musicians producing their arrangements, in some cases they have even recorded those arrangements with live musicians. This thread has created a love of music and it has created music itself. This thread started close friendships which have planted the seeds for professional relationships. We have been bought together as a group, but we have also brought OURSELVES together as human beings.

If this thread were too structured, that couldn't happen. Everybody starts out looking for *something* - when I first came here I wanted Sahashi's Symphony Seed Destiny. I didn't want to talk or make friends, I just wanted a download link. That was eight years ago...

Just refers to other threads
I, myself have redirected many downloads that I know of on the forums to their actual threads...

---------- Post added at 11:21 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:20 AM ----------

I love contributing to this thread but with all these japanese composer malarky, I don't fit in too well. I try. ;_;

Relax, no one is discouraging you from contributing. I'm perhaps guilty of making this thread appear like one of those japanese composer threads but sometimes I just need to sit back and remind myself that not everyone is head over heels in love with certain orchestral music as I am. I believe I made enough remarks how it's not the composer origin that matters to me but the quality of music. Just venture further into the thread and you will notice that it is far from a "japanese only" thread so you're welcome to post anything you like :)
It would be nice if you could voice your opinion why you like/love something and everyones happy. Just for the record, I love every fellow human being in this thread and every bit of cynicism and disappointment is directed to the music I hear. If it gives you enjoyment, all the better, I sometimes just need to wrap my head around certain things people like that are just baffling to me.


I come from a very simple school: Music is a very important narrative and emotional tool for the human soul. The most powerful musical tool ever created is the (symphony) orchestra. In film/tv/games it can help develop a story alongside the scene and even fill the gaps of a poor script or low budget. Therefore if you want to express something profound and you have a good story to tell then the music should reflect that ambition. Here's where the composer steps in, he/she should be an individual with a strong personal voice who will breath life into your project, perhaps even elevate it to far greater hights than you original envisioned (see STAR WARS). He/She has mastered this tool called an "orchestra" and he/she can do any genre/mood/style that is required.

This is how it was for Hollywood until the 00s and with the rise of RCP and more vicious and aggressive corporatism the "art" of film music is in decline ever since. If you look at the standards for a composer in the 60s and now there is a HUGE difference in theoratical knowledge of music and general skill with an orchestra. Thanks to progressing technology in the sampling of live instruments (which is in no way a bad thing itself) many people stepped into the world of composers with ZERO skill or knowledge, people who have never heared of the concept of counterpoint, and sadly these people make almost 80% of the Hollywood scores today. I would have no problem if Zimmer for example would have become a second Vangelis and business would be going on as usual but today there's almost nothing combined that could even rival the quality of one "generic" score from the 70s. The many composers working today have nothing to say with their music, it's just a collection of assembly lines that increase in volume. Worse, the people in charge have even demanded that composer with years of skill and knowledge should adapt to those low standards. And they did so without much complaint! Now they pay the price with a loss of their musical identity, disapponted fans and grunting musicians and music engineers who hate their jobs.

Furthermore, "newcomers" like Giacchino or Desplat can give no more than mere imitations of the days when skill actually mattered. A time when Hollywood music expressed beauty, lyricism and epic tales.

I detest the ambient scoring of today or rather the way people value it, sound design for the sake of sound design and toying with the orchestra like a cruel violent child just because no one is telling you "no, that's stupid" (otherwise known as stripe) is the bane of the western world. Therefore there is very little left for me in Hollywood.



Now let's look at the upsides and alternatives...


There's still some quality music made in Hollywood but it is few and far between. The new Star Wars could revive a new interest but I'm still sceptical about it.

The game music world is still very open for quality music, although by far not as frequent as old Hollywood stuff. But composers like Lennie Moore, Grant Kirkhope, Bob&Barn, Tilman Sillescu, Yuri Poteyenko, James Hannigan, Joris De Man, Kai Rosenkranz and Benny Oschmann have appeared and graced me with much joy. Film composer John Debney composed the best score of his career for a video game. Even Giacchino and Brian Tyler managed to deliver a gem. The future looks alright so far. We'll get quality orchestral music, no doubt, it will only be in a very small dose.

...and now we have another alternative that absorbs 90% of my musical interest these days... Japan.
What makes this country so special is the way in which it values "western" orchestral music. They have dozens of educational music programs for example. There is not one composer over there I love who has not a musical education. In general there is a huge difference in the way their music business works over Hollywood. As far as I know a composer over there is usually not restricted and they can write what they want most of the time. And even if they are required to do an RCP impression there's in general much more substance because of said musical education. Even though I usually do not like composer Hiroyuki Sawano there are very few composers in Japan who sound like him. Best recent example of this is Aquarion. You go from a freaking tone poem by a classical trained composer to orchestral Hip-Hop not because of a producer decision but just with the change of composer. They even have exceptional composers who experiment with many modern pop genres and sound design but incorporate that into their own voice and never let it fall to superficiality because at their core they're still musicians. In 2015 I hear scores that would not feel out of place for a TV show in the 70s, an italian film in the 60s, a Hollywood movie in the 80s or a classical concert in the 19th century. They really try their hardest with their inadequate recording facilities and small budgets. It's really endearing and heartwarming for me to see and hear how much ambition and soul there can be found.
It's a whole new world I discovered 10 years ago and I thank the gods for its existence.



Let's revive the MONSTER POSTS :D

I think this thread could at least use a little renewal. Maybe not a download repository - I am opposed to that as well.

I really love this thread. This is the only thread in the vast Internet where I can talk about my favorite Japanese soundtrack composers, and giving them a recognition for the music they have created outside the context of anime. When I first came to this thread searching for some beautiful tune that Michiru Ooshima wrote, I was amazed by the wealth of information that encompass other similar composers. Across Korean, Japanese, and English forums, nowhere have I ever seen an extensive discussion and admiration of non-VGM/classical Japanese composers whose names are not Kanno or Hisaishi. There were also many mentions of western film music composers that got me listening to the music of Korngold, Rozsa, Herrmann, Goldsmith, Williams, etc. I ultimately culled all western film music in favor of classical, but this thread was what started my musical journey. Without exaggerating, I have to say I'm in tremendous debt to every contributor here.

In the context of FFShrine, however, this thread's place sometimes makes little sense to me. Almost all currently active users are here to pirate albums from the game, film, and anime music boards. The game and anime music sections have no more than download links and various forms of "thanks!". Outside this thread, the musical discussion in the film section is limited to trashing/defending of Zimmer & Co and minor comments along the line of "this is good/bad". People who want to talk more seriously about film music seem to drift toward the FSM board, but I could be wrong. It just looks more active over there. We talk mostly about anime music but sometimes bring up western scores that are more classical-inspired.

This thread just feels like a little island with a steep slope to entry. Unless one has limitless time to burn, another case that replicates my musical journey is bound to be rare. Catching up on 600+ pages of posts that led to the more anime music-heavy discussion is just daunting. As much as I like this small community-within-community, I think newcomers would find themselves very confused at what's going on here. Clearly it says "BIG ORCHESTRAL ACTION MUSIC" in the title, but we are talking about anime shows and their composers. Why are we talking about these composers over the likes of Desplat and Giacchino - not to mention that they are not even EPIC?! Well, good luck with the right Google keywords. In the end, the current posters of this thread (myself included) have a common interest in a very niche genre and want to have a discussion rather than just download links. I think this is only fine for people who already had an interest, or have an extremely open mind.

FFS is a curious place to host this thread but please, let's at least change the thread title to let people know what to expect.

Well I think this thread is great for 1) sharing lesser known anime scores (I no longer spend much time in that area and otherwise would not know what is out) and 2) discussing newer scores from all areas. I love having good discussions about things but ultimately I am addicted to orchestral music and this thread helps me find some things I wouldn't otherwise know about. Plus with the cost of importing things from Japan I am not about to start buying things without hearing them first. That just doesn't make good sense. And Tango already said that in many cases the Japanese companies don't really care about foreign interest. We are after all a very small minority.

Sure there could be some more recognition here of certain styles that are not necessarily classically lyrical but are still enjoyable but then it is hard for most people to express their enjoyments more than "This score is epic" or "I like the theme." I am not musically inclined enough to dissect scores.

If the focus of this thread has gradually moved east, it's for the sad reason that there is little else worth talking about. In the West, the orchestral score is dead. Plenty of modern Hollywood scores employ an orchestra, in the same way that I could employ a chauffeur-driven Rolls-Royce to transport me to the toilet. If you want to talk about genuine scores - living, breathing works of artistic merit, tastefully written by skilled, educated musicians who exploit the abilities of the modern symphony orchestra, in the finest tradition of motif and melody as originally pioneered in late romantic opera... you have to go east, and specifically to Japan.

It has the useful side-benefit that Japanese producers, by and large, don't give a s**t about the marketplace outside of Asia, meaning we can continue our activities without legal persecution and also be morally satisfied that our actions are not hurting those we profess to respect. In the end credits of the latest Little Witch Academia film, Kickstarter backers are listed and thanked for their support - and amongst their names "GG Fansubs". Japanese anime film producers openly acknowledge and even thank a Western anime piracy group - literally within the very fabric of a film that was 90% funded by people who illegally watched the first installment. Isn't that headline news? From that we discover two important facts about the Japanese anime industry: A) By and large, they're not bothered by limited foreign piracy, and B) They even understand that if they play the game they can BENEFIT from it.

Hundreds of westerners, faced with no legal alternative, pirated Little Witch Academia, and when the producers offered them a way to show their appreciation... they responded by donating $625,000, which the producers used to make another film. TRIGGER didn't do this out of the goodness of their hearts - they did it because it makes them money. It WORKS.

In the West, the orchestral score is dead.

Certainly in Hollywood where perfunctory drums, drones and "power chords" mostly need only apply….

I have never heard so much stupidity on this forum - and that's saying something.

It doesn't matter who started the thread or whether he or she is still present. What matters is that the thread is a going concern. If it's not attracting undue legal attention and hasn't degenerated into a pissing contest... then for Christ's sake let it be.

This thread is not just a thread; it's a community within a community - and the reason that had to happen was because this place has the most appalling moderation.

This is a thread where you download stuff AND TALK ABOUT IT - where the usual forum ethic (namely, this is a database of download links and attempts at conversation should be crushed like the Third Reich) does not apply. This thread has been open since 2008 and has received new posts pretty much every single day since then. It has created friendships that will last a lifetime. It has attracted the attention of industry specialists.

Regards OP's "responsibility" - OP has never had responsibility for any thread because he cannot do anything to his thread or to the participants. He cannot even edit the title of his own thread. He can ask moderators for assistance regarding bad behaviour in his thread, but those requests are consistently ignored. What "responsibility" does OP enjoy, besides his status as the man who clicked "Post new thread" instead of "Post new reply"?

I miss Arthierr... but this thread goes on just fine when he's not here. I am SURE he is happy with that - knowing that his creation, which nobody could have predicted would grow in the way it has, can continue to work in his absence.

The ONLY time a thread should EVER be locked... is when it has become the focal point for an argument which is out of control - and even then, I would favour the approach of warning the participants in the argument, banning them if they don't stop, and clearing the mess out of the thread later on.

If this stuff happens, I'm outta here.And here I was going to criticize the same points. I could not have said it better, Tango. Some people just have no common sense.

How was Naoki Sato's effort for the latest Stand By Me Doraemon?

I rather liked it! It's not on the same ginormous scale as Naki or K-20, but that's because the film is quite intimate. The film tries to compact thirty years of Doraemon into 94 minutes and it does so mostly with success...

Doraemon achieves his goal, putting Nobita on the right path to a life of happiness, and so has to return to his own time. Nobita and Doraemon have only been together for an hour of OUR time and have flown around a bit, had some fun, went on a little journey... but the film is playing it like we're watching the separation of two lifelong friends... and after the tearful farewell - which is played completely straight, thanks to a Deus Ex Magicpotion, Doraemon returns for a tearful reunion precisely three minutes later. At the beginning of the film, Sewashi reluctantly deposits his faithful companion Doraemon with Nobita and then disappears - and at the end of the film Doraemon goes to live with Nobita ostensibly "forever"... so what about the GENUINE separation of Doraemon and Sewashi? He had (what is implied by the film as) years of separation from Doraemon, then they are back together, and then they are separated AGAIN - presumably permanently. Wasn't that a story worth telling?

Sato has a big orchestra but only wheels it out occasionally for the film's "big" moments. For the rest of the score, he never puts a foot wrong and all the music is good.

Game Music Concert Series (1991-1995)
-Remastered-






Excerpts

Toshihiko Sahashi
Super Metroid
Tokyo Symphony Orchestra



PV1 (https://mega.co.nz/#!DpRH1QSK!VnLZ6G2wLhTMtdNBZOa2eXhMw0aYYTgcaQUEX4G nfOw)


Toshihiko Sahashi
SimCity
Tokyo Memorial Orchestra



PV2 (https://mega.co.nz/#!jwIFxb4I!EnWkshsMIrwpiBDrvKHHGKf__D0APzB14S9TKsT 96vA)


Kosuke Onozaki
Star Fox
Tokyo City Philharmonic Orchestra



PV3 (https://mega.co.nz/#!f8xiRQLS!8y2gmhDRlF3f8ZclpNugrzjvx9a4SlWRCoJ8yO3 hnIY)



It's now 20 years since the last Orchestral Game Music Concert Series cd has been released in japan. The five albums certainly deserve a little love and attention now and then so I've been revisiting those old gems and found the sound to be too flat and muffled in general and decided it's time for a little "cleaning". I have done a complete remastering of the Game Music Concert Series. I carefully adjusted EQ and reverb to match the concert hall environment and applied "warm" saturation as well as tape simulation. I also did some tricks with virtual mics which may sound odd at first but the results are very pleasing to my ears. In general the sound is more bright, more warm and closer to a soundtrack recording. Everything was done in the highest possible quality, converted from cd to FLAC, edited in FLAC and finally saved as FLAC. THEN I converted it to MP3 V0. First and foremost I did it for my own enjoyment and to suit my preferences but I thought why not share it with you all... Unfortunately my internet is not good enough to upload 1,5 GB at the moment so MP3 will have to do, expect it tomorrow. I will have "much" better internet in september so I could update it in the future.

I hope you enjoy it.



Game Music Concert 1 (1991)
Tokyo City Philharmonic Orchestra
-Remastered-



Download (https://mega.nz/#!2phCTQ6B!eQXAbiiAqOiy8TvJM2mwiSxyLJvKXCaTQW08H-r40BI)


Game Music Concert 2 (1992)
Tokyo Memorial Orchestra
-Remastered-



Download (https://mega.nz/#!C0ZWgRyC!SyFGMtoywbSQjitNcvQsxrL3zF2iEXZTth-DKZp3A6k)


Game Music Concert 3 (1993)
Tokyo City Philharmonic Orchestra
-Remastered-



Download (https://mega.nz/#!v55mVZbI!zSqjtcY_pj7PPDnLd_FgpxXlifBKMJvh7OXGi9Cm63c)


Game Music Concert 4 (1994)
Tokyo Symphony Orchestra
-Remastered-



Download (https://mega.nz/#!C4xQGRRA!EpllGFGT0SChK5jkWzralykbOjzWWj5e_jpVFgeycB4)


Game Music Concert 5 (1995)
Kanagawa Philharmonic Orchestra
-Remastered-



Download (https://mega.nz/#!mhRDCaRK!jcPpcOBTUjkhUlgMm3UXtX9xxsWXLihS1iUOqflkL7Y)


All things considered, they are fantastic orchestral albums and well worth the money. Many famous (and soon to be famous) composers and arrangers worked on this series. Keiichi Oku, Kohei Tanaka, Toshihiko Sahashi, Toshiyuki Watanabe & Yoko Kanno to name just a few. They gave a brilliant tribute to the musical quality of the 8-Bit and 16-Bit Era and showed everyone that melody will always be king, at least in japan. I grew up on a Super Famicom and I remember vividly with a smile how I hummed all the killer themes written for the games of that era for hours. Music played a huge part in my enjoyment of these games and to hear it arranged for a whole symphony orchestra brought me to tears the first time I listened to it. I hunted down the CDs which were quite expensiv even then but my love for the melodies was stronger than my economical reasoning.

Everything is properly tagged: Who arranged, who composed and who conducted. The one fault with the series in my opinion is that Sugiyama's own symphonic series makes the Dragon Quest pieces feel quite redundant but that's only a minor complaint.




Also, as a bonus, I remastered the Smash Brothers DX Orchestral Concert, of course with the same attention to quality as the rest, have a listen:


Dairantou Smash Brothers DX Orchestra Concert (2002)
New Japan Philharmonic
-Remastered-



Download (https://mega.nz/#!Wg4SWDQL!l6nDOZt3tutf7B4dvME5jdl3-9u4eFE9Zxob4bgx-w0)

Holy S***!!!!!! Sahashi arranged for those albums? I never knew! No wonder the Metroid track is my favorite out of the whole series!

Thanks for these remastered albums. Now they are even better :)

WOW, listen to the trumpet players dying at the end of the Super Metroid suite! I know it's a live recording, but c'mon guys, really?

Animator Expo PV III (http://animatorexpo.com/promotional03/)

Seems like Sagisu/Amano are still very active. I assume that this is not the only piece from the session, so it could be a leftover for Attack on Titan or it could be for another project still in the works. You never know with the japanese.

MP3 version (https://mega.co.nz/#!ChgVmaiA!wWk9NP3elemen7STECfFP4B-blxj9plvtYBonIEkvGg)

.

Wow, Rule Britannia vs Giant Robo vs For He's A Jolly Good Fellow... Plagiarism alive and well! Well done Masamichi Amano! :D

Unfortunately, Amano doesn't get to do much on the Attack on Titan soundtrack that just came out. It's more of a Sagisu soundtrack than an Amano one.

This track is Amano's main contribution: Le Soleil d'Or by Shiro Sagisu - picosong (http://picosong.com/mBc5/)

Still it is lovely that we actually get a different composer for the movie.

Does anyone have the full soundtrack for it yet? I was kind of hoping for properly orchestrated versions of Hiroyuki's theme's but regardless I'd still like to hear it.

Does anyone have the full soundtrack for it yet? I was kind of hoping for properly orchestrated versions of Hiroyuki's theme's but regardless I'd still like to hear it.
Shiro Sagisu - Attack on Titan Original Soundtrack
https://mega.co.nz/#!cE8mUCLY!GhBh8Rlq-APZLjMhQazVxNl3tW5Af0BKvbTAROBP3NM


I've only really skimmed it. I think he overuses the chorus because I hear it in almost every track. And I don't usually care for Sagisu's weird chorus.

Alright here we go;

First off:

Thank you for the link nextday! I've been waiting to see what the Shagisu/Amano combo would come up with for this movie :D

Second: My thoughts after listening.

I don't know why I didn't saw this coming, leftovers from the Berserk films combined with the electronic stuff from Black Bullet, as for Amano's contribution, I doubt he just did one piece considering the following tracks I'll mention:

01 Le Soleil d'Or: What a glorious entrance, heroic brass with frenzy woodwind trills to then end in doom fashion starting from 1:12 (forgive my ignorance, but I'm pretty sure there's a composer(s) who I can't put my finger on right now whoose known for using this type of movement). Definitely Amano here.

Lets just throw tracks 03, 05, 12 & 17 to the repetitive electronic soundscapes dumpster even if I enjoy some of these at a certain extent

07 Boule de cristal, piano: Interesting piece, not very sure which use would have in the movie, which I haven't seen yet.

08 For the dead: The segement starting from 2:57 is my favorite part from this track, perhaps my favorite from all the excessively used choir on this soundtrack.

09 Die die die die!!: A bit of Steve Reich with those repeating "Die die die die die" (https://youtu.be/zLckHHc25ww?t=1m40s)?

11 Orchestre, lent: I feel as this could've been great if it went just a little further with build-up.

15 Attack of Titans: BLOODS... AND... GUTS... AND... BLOODS... AND... This was pretty obvious (https://youtu.be/MC7H1rOU1Gg?t=27s). At least the first 40 seconds, still I think it's more effective than the main theme of the anime.

16 Orchestre, g�ant � l'est: Another one I think Amano contribute, even if it has similar structure to Orchestre 'Darkness comes to us all (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ywm-e35E2vc&index=16&list=PLf7UmRDdqrCdxCXC2qPqG6UiNq3Jf7Bhh).

18 Orchestre, apog�e: Despite the ridiculous amount of english choir in this one, the second half of this makes it up for a moment during 2:14-3:55 as a proper action track that I would've loved to see in the anime.

19 Golden Sun: Ok for a moment we were going full on Braveheart here, but I DID NOT expect that delightful romantic-esque section starting from 3:30, I really liked it.

In the end, I rather like this one. Might not have alot of Amano and it definitley recycles alot from their previous works, nothing really new or outstanding, but I definitely could see it's use for a show about man-eating titans as it captures the fear and hopelessness much better than what Sawano did (not that I dislike him entirely...yet).

And finally, Third:

Hi there, I've been on this forum for a while now, and crossed by and read this thread for over 2 months. And boy what JOURNEY OF JOY it was to see the amount of in-depth discussion here, I think I may shed a tear right now, because this is absolutely WONDERFUL! I've always wanted to find a place were we could discuss more than just praising the soundtrack without pointing it's flaws and the ability it has to stand by itself as proper one would. I'm looking foward to what sort of discussions & news you guys come up with, and I hope to refine my musical critique skills (and my atrociously horrendous grammar) as time passes on. Nice to meet you all! :)

Welcome, pensquawk!

shiro sagisu has lost anything for me a long time ago. I can't really appreciate his music anymore. Someone, take him the london orchestra, and give him a synthesizer or a guitar. that way, I am sure we can have something NEW from him. Meanwhile, I literally say that it is ALL THE SAME thing, he has been composing fro some years now since rebuild of crap-engelion.

A warm welcome from me as well, pensquawk :)


I agree completely. It's Sagisu with The London Studio Orchestra and it's generally enjoyable for once. Most tracks have no overblown electronics and at times the english choir can be quite effective although it was most effective in "Darkness comes to us all". It also does help that Amano's arrangements do save a lot of tracks from being annoying. Still the main reason for me will always be Amano's contributions and there are certainly enough tracks to make me happy this time.

Shiro Sagisu - Attack on Titan Original Soundtrack
https://mega.co.nz/#!cE8mUCLY!GhBh8Rlq-APZLjMhQazVxNl3tW5Af0BKvbTAROBP3NM


I've only really skimmed it. I think he overuses the chorus because I hear it in almost every track. And I don't usually care for Sagisu's weird chorus.Yeah, it is a bit odd. Still better than the weird ...noise... we would have heard if Sawano were to write it.

As many of you know (due to my promotion through this thread and other media outlets), my album The ETHEReal String Project releases tomorrow through Loudr and is priced at $12 for over an hour of music. Not just any music, mind you, but chamber string music game arrangements with some piano. I hope that many of you here will pick this album up through Loudr and support the team and I to do larger projects in the future. I would love to do full orchestrations someday and when that happens I will be doing a whole Vagrant Story album ;).

Anyway, release is tomorrow and for those who haven't checked out the samples you can find them here :).

https://soundcloud.com/josh-barron/sets/the-ethereal-string-project-demo-playlist

Sorry to double post, BUT... here is the purchase link to my album :D!

This has been such a labor of love for me and for the musicians. I really hope this album gets great support from the community!

https://loudr.fm/release/the-ethereal-string-project/T26Eu/listen

The discussions in here have made me a better composer/arranger/orchestrator and I thank all of you for the great topics and debates made here!

Sorry to double post, BUT... here is the purchase link to my album :D!

This has been such a labor of love for me and for the musicians. I really hope this album gets great support from the community!

https://loudr.fm/release/the-ethereal-string-project/T26Eu/listen

The discussions in here have made me a better composer/arranger/orchestrator and I thank all of you for the great topics and debates made here!I like this a lot. I have been following the thread for years, too, and have realized how much the discussion has had an impact on my view of a lot of the music, and my musical ideas. I may not take part in the discussion (as someone generally states an opinion I agree with), but that will soon change, and I still have learned a lot. I like that we not only can post and discuss (in my opinion) the best genres of music here, but we also inspire creativity in knowledgeable people (by supplying them with each others' knowledge and making them more knowledgeable of what we like and what we don't), thus creating new music in said genres that we wouldn't have otherwise had.

In case anyone was wondering the Ethereal String Project page does allow you to download FLAC or ALAC after paying :) And the speeds are actually fast so the FLAC downloads in a minute or less.

I wasn't sure if they did offer all formats at no extra cost... That is super cool :D!

Akito Matsuda
Glasslip
String Quartet, Piano Arrangements & Soundtrack


Download (https://mega.co.nz/#!ToRFFb4K!Kc8xopnWSDHkg0st98fI39yN_dOK0pLI6uy0g_v 030Y)
MP3 / 28 Tracks / 75min



Akito Matsuda
Sound! Euphonium
Kitauji Quartet: Euphonium, Tuba, Contrabass & Trumpet



Download (https://mega.co.nz/#!e4YW2aYJ!8Vzp3nenTcrsXvVG1-m9FW1XGQeihERaGrTJj5Fm8qo)
MP3 / 4 Tracks / 14min



Sound! Euphonium "Music Memories"
Senzoku Gakuen College of Music: Freshman Wind Ensemble
Conducted by Masahiro Owada



Download (https://mega.co.nz/#!yowUDChK!4jxk8H4AeQNAL3wNLd2FyueOTP0Zhb4dd33Uxak WajA)
MP3 / 30 Tracks / 90min


Well Akito Matsuda has come a long way since his first days as NIJINE. He did countless works of which I generally liked most, my favorites were of course the pleasant string pieces perfect for a pleasant afternoon. But in recent years I really noticed how he evolved. I think his score for the Chunibyo movie was a really good effort as far as orchestral "film" writing goes.

He is also venturing further and further into "classical/concert" territory and thankfully he works in a musical environment which encourages such tendencies. So it's no conincidence to find a whole String Quartet piece in four movements on his soundtracks these days. I've also really enjoyed his score for Euphonium for the most part. His music has that shamelessly schmaltzy drama quality I adore and his score certainly matched the beautiful visuals. But he also did some arrangements for the concert pieces as well which also feature the melody of the drama score.

However, his major "concert" composition for Euphonium, "Kitauji Quartet" is NOT on the soundtrack. It also features the familiar melodies and showcases the lyrical and natural beauty of the prominent instruments. Normally you would need the character song cds for the complete score but thankfully it was also available on itunes. If you just want the new pieces and not my usual custom score I've put a separate link up above. My version of the scores for Glasslip and Euphonium fit nicely on a 80min and 90min disc with everything substantial included. Akito Matsuda is really improving and as of late it won't be long now until I'm reallly looking forward to one of his scores in the future.

About the show itself, well, if nothing else we got little intimate moments where the instruments shined and a beautifully animated concert performance. Pretty damn neat.
On a side note I'm also enjoying the music around the Euphonium project, it's neat to hear your standard pop performed with a little more meat & Brass :D

Very nice :) Looking forward to listening to these.

Also on a side note, I have been listening to the new Mission Impossible soundtrack a lot lately and I really love the sound they got going from the London musicians. It has such a great power to the action music. Joe Kraemer really did a great job with the music for his first big score with full orchestra.

Also, I thought I would see here if anyone on this thread is anywhere near London, Barcelona, or Munich. I am heading there in late September so I figured I would see if anyone is around those areas and can meet up. Long shot for sure but worth a try.

Michiru Oshima updated her website today. Here's the main things for anyone interested.

Rokka no Yuusha was recorded in Moscow. Akagami no Shirayukihime was recorded in Paris.

She composed a song for French viola player Sylvain Durantel for his new CD. She has been moving around between Paris, Tokyo, and Moscow since this spring.

She also announced that she will be having her very own concert on August 30 with the Kyushu Symphony Orchestra where she will be premiering her second symphony "Symphony No.2: since 1945".

@Sirusjr

Well I'll be damned, woodwinds in a modern action blockbuster that is almost entirely devoid of synth?! The score certainly is a pleasant surprise like Jack the Giant Slayer but I'm not quite as fond of the action tracks overall. It's no Rise of the Guardians or A Million Ways to Die in the West, still, a nice effort.


@nextday

Oh boy.... any word on a soundtrack release? Please let it not be another bonus cd, it's a criminal injustice that a quality score like Tempest has no official release. Same with the recent Soul of Gold, there's barely 3 minutes of score and while the Main Theme is a Killer the rest of the score won't be out till next year. Just look at what happened with Captain Earth, at least three really great tracks with a FANTASTIC reprise of the Main Theme will propably never see the light of day thanks to the dreadful business strategy (who would be crazy enough to buy the last volume for just 10 minutes of music).

It's the one thing I absolutely hate about the japanese soundtrack world. Yes, good music will be out one way or another but in some cases not even all of it and in the worst case never because nobody is stupid enough to buy a 300 dollar collection just for the soundtrack, no matter how good the music is. Recent example I don't get is GATE. Yoshiaki Fujisawa orchestral scores for Love Live! and Rail Wars! did get a soundtrack release but of course since he put a little more craft and effort into GATE it won't get a CD release. These crazy peple. I know a soundtrack purchase probably won't support the artist directly but at least I would be voting with my wallet for something. For the love of everything at least put it on itunes after some time. That way I would not feel frustrated knowing great orchestral cues written for Hellsing or Captain Earth are out there but not attainable.

Laurent Perez Del Mar Pourquoi j'ai pas mang� mon p�re

Performed By Bulgarian Symphony Orchestra & Choirs



Www.gigabase.com (http://pesnikino.biz/engine/go.php?url=aHR0cDovL3d3dy5naWdhYmFzZS5jb20vZ2V0Zml sZS9fSWJkZmk3SWJLNUFBRHdJVE96aE0tQkI%3D)

Propos du compositeur sur la musique

Jamel �tait tr�s impliqu�.
On a fait de longues s�ances de travail dans un studio pour discuter. Il a tout �cout�. Il est venu � Abbey Road pour l'enregistrement. De plus, il adore et conna�t tr�s bien la musique de film, y compris celle des ann�es 60/70. On a eu une vraie collaboration. Jamel a vraiment consid�r� que la musique avait un r�le � jouer, il pensait aux films am�ricains qui mettent la musique en avant. Je le connaissais comme tout le monde en tant que comique, et je ne savais � quel point il �tait sensible � la musique. Il a toujours eu dans le travail des avis pertinents. Il a un vrai sens de la musique � l'image. Il sait en quoi la musique peut contribuer � faire fonctionner ses "vannes", par des arr�ts ou des changements de rythme. La musique doit savoir laisser la place aux situations comiques. On a ainsi enlev� des musiques pour que la "vanne" vive pleinement.

Les th�mes.
Il y a trois th�mes dans le film : celui de Edouard, celui de Vania, et celui de Sim�on. J'ai proc�d� � l'ancienne en jouant sur ces th�mes, un peu comme dans "Indiana Jones" ou "Star Wars" qui �taient des r�f�rences pour Jamel.

Les chansons.
Jamel savait exactement � quels endroits il allait mettre des chansons. Elles �taient d�j� choisies quand je suis intervenu. Pour la sc�ne de la tornade, on entend Barry White, ce morceau �tait l� d�s le d�part donc j'ai adapt� la tonalit� de ma composition pour cette sc�ne � la tonalit� de Barry White. Pareil sur la derni�re musique qui s'encha�ne sur Stevie Wonder.

A l'image.
J'ai �crit la musique � l'image, donc c'est pr�cis, � l'image pr�s. M�me si je n'aime pas les synchronismes sur les actions, je m'adapte au rythme du montage, � part sur la premi�re sc�ne du film pour laquelle Jamel est parti au tournage avec mon th�me �crit en amont.

I believe that a general consensus around here is that orchestra is dead in Hollywood. It is, to a degree, I suppose. However, I believe that what's truly dead isn't so much orchestra, as dynamic and experimental compositions that use the orchestra is creative ways. With the passings of both Jerry Goldsmith and Elmer Bernstein in 2004, a huge blow was dealt to the experimental music score in mainstream Hollywood films. However, in recent years, television and video games have picked up where Hollywood left off with dynamic orchestras.

Yet, it is quite apparent that composers who have shown a great deal of creativity and experimentation in the past, such as Alan Silvestri and Elliot Goldenthal, have become somewhat...average, so to speak. Goldenthal's last truly brilliant score was for 2001's The Spirits Within, and with the sheer negative reaction and financial failure that accompanied that film, his score often gets overlooked by many music fans. Many of his later works, while still enjoyable, lack the creativity and weight that his earlier scores contained. Alan Silvestri, as another example, is even more aggravating in how average his compositions have become. Listen to his work from Back to the Future or The Abyss, or Predator, or Judge Dredd, and then listen to his work from later films, such as Night at the Museum or Captain America. The latter two are decent efforts, especially Captain America, yet they both feel somewhat stagnant and lack memorability. Neither of them display the creativity that Silvestri infused with his earlier works from the 1980's and 1990's, which is a shame because he clearly displays small inklings of previous creativity in small doses at various points in his later scores, proving that he still has what it takes to make something grand and memorable.

As for the standard sound that we've been given recently in Hollywood, I blame Hans Zimmer. In my opinion, it was the success of Batman Begins that, ironically enough, brought about the death of creative orchestra usage. While Zimmer's orchestra was creative for Batman Begins, the problem is that the sheer popularity and success of it meant that studios wanted composers to imitate it, and Hans Zimmer, both himself and his style, have over-saturated contemporary Hollywood. And I hate that fucking noise that all trailers use from Inception, you know the one, whenever some big epic movie has a trailer and there's that Hans Zimmer loud Twangish sound. It was fine for Inception, but now it's used in everything, and I fucking hate it! Anyway, I sincerely hope that the dearth of experimental orchestra in Hollywood is only temporary, and within a decade or so, we may see a resurgence in creative scores that populated Hollywood from the 1970's through the mid 2000's again.

As for the standard sound that we've been given recently in Hollywood, I blame Hans Zimmer. In my opinion, it was the success of Batman Begins that, ironically enough, brought about the death of creative orchestra usage. While Zimmer's orchestra was creative for Batman Begins, the problem is that the sheer popularity and success of it meant that studios wanted composers to imitate it, and Hans Zimmer, both himself and his style, have over-saturated contemporary Hollywood. And I hate that fucking noise that all trailers use from Inception, you know the one, whenever some big epic movie has a trailer and there's that Hans Zimmer loud Twangish sound. It was fine for Inception, but now it's used in everything, and I fucking hate it! Anyway, I sincerely hope that the dearth of experimental orchestra in Hollywood is only temporary, and within a decade or so, we may see a resurgence in creative scores that populated Hollywood from the 1970's through the mid 2000's again.

The problem isn't really with Zimmer; it's the producers and studio executives that hire him and the declining musical literacy of the creatives. The Zimmer power anthem sound came about because of an asinine edict from Jerry Bruckheimer, who unfortunately has had one of the most successful producing careers in Hollywood history and, in Hollywood, pretty much the only measure of success is money. Couple this with the replacement of film executives that are actually interested in movies as an art form as well as a business (like the Golden Age moguls) with MBA-wielding yuppies who are part of a multi-national conglomerate and are merely on their "failing upwards" trajectory, and you have a prescription to mindlessly copy-copy-copy the latest huge blockbuster, even down to the soundtrack.

I'd say your guess is in the ballpark, but I think a little late. The loss of voices such as Goldsmith and Bernstein coincided with the advent of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. Ascending towards the end of the LOTR trilogy and on the tail end of the popularly disappointing Star Wars prequels, this was the next big blockbuster series and is responsible for not only establishing quirky Johnny Depp as a bankable star but also that a rich, Korngoldesque milieu wasn't necessary for a period pirate adventure; good ol' Hans and his boys and their synths would do and the public would still eat it up. They did indeed replace poor Alan Silvestri, Gore Verbinski's original choice and yet another victim to that arbiter of musical taste, Jerry Bruckheimer. They were retained for the sequels because no one wanted to mess with what they perceived as a winning formula. A couple years later and Batman Begins was a modest commercial success, but as we all know The Dark Knight was the film that really took off. Then Iron Man put Marvel (and Djawadi) on the scene. Suddenly every big blockbuster had to be Dark Knight, and they all had to have a Remote Control score. Inception also being a phenomenon sealed the deal. Hans was getting all the biggest films in a town where more money means more work; it's a self-perpetuating cycle. Additionally, the Oscar win for Reznor and The Social Network made ambient scoring respectable and fashionable, while also allowing control freak directors like Fincher to maintain autocratic control over the sound design.

It really comes down to working relationships. Unfortunately for robust orchestral scoring, Zimmer has great working relationships with many of the biggest filmmakers of the past decade. Hans has a reputation for always following the filmmakers' wishes, bending over backwards to give them what they want. It's very professional and industrious of him, and they love him for it. They use him because he's congenial, he knows where his bread is buttered, and most of all because the films he scores are successful. He produces the music that he does because it's what his skill set allows and because that is what is being asked of him. Similarly, that is why Giacchino is the most popular "big orchestral" guy right now: because he's friends with the hottest filmmaker in town (J.J. Abrams) and is the resident composer for the most respected studio in town (Pixar). Unfortunately for us, he's just not a Williams, Goldsmith, Horner, Elfman, or Silvestri.

I actually like a fair number of Zimmer scores, but I certainly don't believe 90% of all Hollywood blockbusters should have his sound. Apparently, Hans himself feels the same way (http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/arts/film/article2426831.ece):


Most film music written today is terrible, with few scores lingering in the memory like the underwater menace of Jaws or the whimsical Moon River from Breakfast at Tiffany�s, top composers have told The Times.

Hans Zimmer, who wrote the music for the Hollywood box-office hits Gladiator and The Lion King, dismissed the majority of contemporary screen compositions as unmemorable. �They drift around like cows grazing. So many scores sound like nobody really thought about them.�

Anne Dudley, whose music in The Full Monty won an Oscar, and Christopher Gunning, whose score for La Vie en Rose picked up a Bafta this year, attacked the �blandness� of soundtracks.

The public appear to agree. A recent poll of the nation�s all-time favourite film themes was dominated by scores from decades ago by composers such as John Williams (Jaws) and Ennio Morricone (The Good, the Bad and the Ugly).

Gladiator and Pirates of the Caribbean were among five scores in the poll by Zimmer, whose Oscar-winning soundtrack for The Lion King has sold more than 15 million copies.

�Where is the next Jerry Goldsmith?� Zimmer asked yesterday, referring to the late composer of the Stravinsky-inspired score for Planet of the Apes and the jazzy theme of Roman Polanski�s Chinatown.

Zimmer praised the craftsmanship of Williams (Schindler�s List, Jurassic Park) and Morricone. �There�s never a lazy note from them,� he said. �I go to movies a lot and I find myself disappointed again and again [by] the blandness of the music. Where has melody gone in film music? What do you remember of Breakfast at Tiffany�s? Moon River by Henry Mancini. You can�t get it out of your head.�

He said that these days scores were more likely to be written by keyboard players with computer skills learned at film schools rather than composers trained at music college.

Dudley blamed American studios for choosing music �by committee�.

Fortunately, things appear to be looking up. Marvel actually bothered to get a real composer to finish Age of Ultron when Tyler's wallpaper failed to satisfy, and Elfman's cues were probably the best part about the film, even if he was only riffing on Silvestri's theme and they were still a far cry from his own standard set in the superhero genre 25 years ago. Beck's Ant-Man was surprisingly tuneful in film, and Kraemer's Rogue Nation made a point of not only being orchestral, but also prominently featuring and later even incorporating Puccini! With Morricone being hired to score a Tarantino[!!!!] movie and Williams poised to set records with his return to Star Wars by year's end, perhaps the tide has begun to turn and Hollywood blockbusters will soon be graced once again with brash orchestral powerhouse scores, even if we're still lacking for a truly promising crop of young composers to jump in and assume the mantle. In the meantime, there's a century of Hollywood scoring to look back on and plenty outside of Hollywood to enjoy, as this thread continually proves. And that's not even touching the world of concert music.

TL,DR: The real problem is the Jerry Bruckheimers of the world, not Hans Zimmer.

To the post by TazerMonkey (man that is a cool name): I find your perspective on the matter to be quite interesting. Indeed, it is not so much Hans Zimmer himself that is the problem, but, as you say, the Hollywood executives who wish to make more money by playing the safe route, having composers imitate Zimmer's style, and produce a field of lifeless clones with music scores. This is also the reason behind the aggravating usage of that Inception twang in every other trailer. They wish to use people's association of that sound with cool or good movies in order to make more people buy tickets.

You mentioned that things are looking up, and your examples seem to support that claim, but I still have a little voice in my head saying that this may be a fluke, a short tidal resurgence before the status quo takes hold once again. Let us hope that you are correct and that I am wrong. Again, even with John Williams scoring Star Wars (which is a status quo of its own, oddly enough), the number of creative and experimental scores will still be very small in number for a long time, at least here in America. Giving more thought to it, perhaps this is not so much an end of an era in regards to film music, but merely part of a cycle, just with any other. There are periods of heavy and open creativity (1970's to 2000's) and periods of safe, boring, unmemorable blandness (mid 2000's to...well, the time of this post), with small bouts of creativity here and there, before a full resurgence into another heavily creative period begins again. After all, the film score has only existed since the 20th century, and it has changed a great deal since the time of the silent film era. Perhaps we are both correct in certain ways, and your claims merely point to the beginning of another cycle.

Or maybe I'm just rambling to make myself feel less depressed about the state of current film music in America.

---------- Post added at 09:35 AM ---------- Previous post was at 09:15 AM ----------

This post relates to the Attack on Titan Live-Action score.

Hmm...Attack On Sagisu! Well, having listened to the score last night and again this morning, I can say that this is a most exquisitely bitchin' score! Yes, there are a few moments that seem...well, as though Sagisu rehashed his Rebuild of Evangelion scores, but its still pretty damn good. The last three tracks; Golden Sun, Orchestre Apogee, and Boule de Cristal Epilogue, are just wonderful, in my opinion. The only tracks that don't seem to resonate with me very much are ATM Rhythmetal, Masterplan Metalopera, and part of Le Soleil d'Or. In all honesty, I actually prefer this score over Hiroyuki Sawano's score for the anime adaptation, although I still wish that EMI had been included somehow. That was my favorite track from the Sawano score. There's a very old-school type feel to Sagisu's score that still seems modern, yet it doesn't seem overly so. At times it can feel reminiscent of Rebuild of Evangelion and even BLEACH in some parts, but it's all still very good.

If I did truly have a complaint, would be in agreement with nextday's post, in that Sagisu's weird chorus does seem overused. My favorite track, Golden Sun, is almost perfect, except that the chorus just seems to come in out of nowhere, and I think that the piece would have been much better without the chorus in the middle of it. Still, it is nice to hear a score that even sounds like this anymore, even from Japan. I will need to listen to the score a few more times before I can post a truly descriptive account of its merits and detractors.

I think Tazer hit it on the money but I think it is more than that in that a certain style of film making has become common such that atmospheric scores fit. It is easy to complain about a score and say it doesn't fit your expectations of what a score should be but then many times if you see the movie it fits perfectly. I can especially say this for Zimmer in many cases. The Dark Knight and Inception both are strange films that don't really call for big heroic music. In fact so many films these days are going the darker route which necessitates using darker more brooding music to fit it. Man of Steel for example was heroic at times but barely and instead was more brooding because of the way the film maker focused on it. Probably the only reason Ant Man score is as playful as it is has to do with the approach of the film itself. I haven't seen it but I hear it is quite playful at times, a nice change from the darker stuff we see so much of. The same can be said for the recent James Bond scores as well. Skyfall was not really anything close to the feel of the earlier films so it makes sense that the music was darker and less tuneful. It is also why when a score is more traditional you can usually tell that the film will be as well (War Horse).

I think Tazer hit it on the money but I think it is more than that in that a certain style of film making has become common such that atmospheric scores fit. It is easy to complain about a score and say it doesn't fit your expectations of what a score should be but then many times if you see the movie it fits perfectly. I can especially say this for Zimmer in many cases. The Dark Knight and Inception both are strange films that don't really call for big heroic music. In fact so many films these days are going the darker route which necessitates using darker more brooding music to fit it. Man of Steel for example was heroic at times but barely and instead was more brooding because of the way the film maker focused on it. Probably the only reason Ant Man score is as playful as it is has to do with the approach of the film itself. I haven't seen it but I hear it is quite playful at times, a nice change from the darker stuff we see so much of. The same can be said for the recent James Bond scores as well. Skyfall was not really anything close to the feel of the earlier films so it makes sense that the music was darker and less tuneful. It is also why when a score is more traditional you can usually tell that the film will be as well (War Horse).

Perhaps so, but that is no reason for a lack of creativity. Even at Goldsmith's most mainstream and autopilot, he still managed to infuse a sense of creativity into his works and lift a bad film up into watchable territory. Same thing for Elmer Bernstein. Hans Zimmer? Once in a blue moon, but he mostly just dances to the strings of the executives. His music is always...appropriate for the film, but it lacks passion and creativity. Just because a film is dark and brooding (Dark Knight) doesn't mean that it can't be creative. Just listen to Danny Elfman's score for Batman Returns. That film was dark. It was also very gothic, and it had an interesting look, and it is one of Danny Elfman's most interesting works. In fact, I dare say that it is one of his best. It was dark and creative, much like Jerry Goldsmith's score for Gremlins. Batman Returns had a very tragic and dark feel to it, as did the music.

Being dark and brooding is no reason to not be creative. Elliot Goldenthal's score for Alien 3 is an excellent example in this regard. Is it dark and brooding? Yes. Is it atmospheric and haunting? Mostly. Does it have heart? Absolutely. Now lets talk about Man of Steel? It is also dark and brooding, much like Batman and Alien 3, but does it have heart? Does it still stay with you after not listening to it for over a week? The key driving force for any memorable score is creativity. It is how you play with and use the tone and atmosphere of the film, and how you play against it in order to make people remember it. It is how you use the orchestra to create sounds that fit the tone and still seem strange and fun. That kind of scoring is what is missing today, and it is only very slowly starting to return.

Not sure what you mean by creative. It has less to do with "creativity" than Zimmer's probable lack of ability to write veritable music that is more classical-derived. I also don't care for what's been coming out of Hollywood, but I just don't think being "experimental" or "creative" made the past good composers good. Bernstein, Williams, or even Goldsmith weren't pulling new tricks that deviate from the established Romantic/late-Romantic rep (plus some Stravinsky). If we are gonna judge scores based on those two arbitrary meters, then Zimmer's Inception or Lion King should be rated just as highly as Silvestri scores.

Also I think some in this thread might like to know that Intrada just released an expanded version of Homeward Bound by Bruce Broughton and a new Rozsa score. Homeward bound is sounding especially nice with the remaster.

Not sure what you mean by creative. It has less to do with "creativity" than Zimmer's probable lack of ability to write veritable music that is more classical-derived. I also don't care for what's been coming out of Hollywood, but I just don't think being "experimental" or "creative" made the past good composers good. Bernstein, Williams, or even Goldsmith weren't pulling new tricks that deviate from the established Romantic/late-Romantic rep (plus some Stravinsky). If we are gonna judge scores based on those two arbitrary meters, then Zimmer's Inception or Lion King should be rated just as highly as Silvestri scores.

Perhaps you are correct. I suppose I'm being a bit narrow-minded in my presumptions regarding what makes a good music score. Zimmer's scores are indeed good for what they are, but I still feel that his Inception and Dark Knight compositions are imitated far too often and that the subdued and non-passionate feel of many scores as of late is just too common. Perhaps, if given a chance to go nuts, Zimmer may give us something truly unique in the future, but given how most studios are playing the safe route with music and everything else, it's unlikely to happen soon. And for the record, I quite enjoy Hans Zimmer's score for The Lion King, and I consider it to be one of his better scores, especially the track titled, "King of Pride Rock." Another score of his that I find to be truly great is The Prince of Egypt, which is very dynamic and ethereal. Did you know that he also worked with Mark Mancina on the score for the anime Blood+? It's a pretty good score. So, while I don't think Zimmer is a bad composer, I do feel that his most successful works are imitated far too much.

Not sure what you mean by creative. It has less to do with "creativity" than Zimmer's probable lack of ability to write veritable music that is more classical-derived. I also don't care for what's been coming out of Hollywood, but I just don't think being "experimental" or "creative" made the past good composers good. Bernstein, Williams, or even Goldsmith weren't pulling new tricks that deviate from the established Romantic/late-Romantic rep (plus some Stravinsky). If we are gonna judge scores based on those two arbitrary meters, then Zimmer's Inception or Lion King should be rated just as highly as Silvestri scores.

Don't give classical composers such as Stravinsky too much credit. Film composers took over continuing the Romantic tradition and made heaps of progress in tonal, thematic, emotional music without the help of Stravinsky. Only purists and academics dismissed film music whilst forgetting that classical composers were turning to film to write some of their most memorable works: Korngold, Prokofiev, Shostakovich, Vaughan Williams, Walton, etc. It's not something us classical fans like to talk about, but a lot of the talent in the 20th century went into film scoring. Purists like Stravinsky weren't interested in that direction, and preferred bickering with Schoenberg over 12-tone vs. neo-classicism.

Stravinsky did inspire film composers with his orchestral colour, but looking past the big-3 ballets (Rite of Spring, Firebird, Petrushka) nothing stands out quite as much. He thought film music was wallpaper. He said he cannot accept it as music. Film music was already on its way to becoming an interesting and creative new genre before Stravinsky came along, but thanks to people like him academia never took it seriously, and now even Hollywood doesn't take it seriously.

In summary, Bernstein, Williams and Goldsmith weren't just pulling old tricks but also inventing new ones. It's just hard to notice because the music often remains tonal, and many like to think anything tonal can't possibly be original for some reason...

I have to say over time I revised my opinion of Zimmer many times, as a composer he's sometimes really good. In my eyes a good Zimmer score usually involves a good orchestrator and woodwinds, so my bias leans towards Prince of Egypt and Backdraft. I imagine many people were awestruck by "Show me your firetruck" the first time (I was), is it simple? ... yes ... does it do it's job? ... yes! (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8izEMywMoxs)
It was something new and exciting (Amano liked it :D) and I agree the real problem is not with the composer himself but with his success with producers and his imitators.

It would have been so great to see a second Vangelis giving some interesting take on orchestral scores (recording a stadium full of people as choir) but only as a side note of film music, like a refreshing visit from normal days. Kinda like Sawano is only a side note in japanese media scoring world, not the center. The problem is the music does not deserve to take the spotlight based on it's own merits, it simply is not memorable enough or has enough quality to go beyond powerful rock anthems. Another much more important fact is tone. I agree that Pirates of the Caribbean was a tragic event for film scores because to my ears the music does not fit the movie at all. A disney pirate adventure film and the music sounds like something out of The Rock. It got better with the sequels (Davy Jones theme and the final maelstrom battle was nice) but the damage was done.

Of course not all movies need orchestral scores but many genres require more than to use the orchestra like a rock band. I long for a world in which music like this (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RF6GNqYvqt4#t=47m03s) is used for a pirate movie and music like this (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEpYwck7C-k&list=PL4DB0610C16920298&index=10) for games like Witcher 3 or music like this (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x8R6M65d5NA) for Dark Souls.



I also agree with Streich, traditional film music should stand head high next to classical music. I don't get the debate that divides the classical community. Yes a Mahler Symphony will always be superior to 99% of film scores and yes, almost nothing in film music comes close to the "epicness" of Daphnes et Chlo� but that does not devalue film music as an art form. Eliot Goldenthal's Titus and Spirits Within are great works of art as well, same with Herrmann's Vertigo, Korngold's King's Row, Horner's Krull and Land Before Time, Williams' Star Wars and Hook, Goldsmith's Star Trek and Poltergeist, Poledouris' Conan, Davis and Rozsa's Ben Hur and many more examples. It was incredibly hard to score to picture back in the day and in very short time the many composers wrote music that not only served the picture but could also work in a concert context. That is an artform in itself that is rarely recognised.

It was incredibly hard to score to picture back in the day and in very short time the many composers wrote music that not only served the picture but could also work in a concert context. That is an artform in itself that is rarely recognized.

Oh, yes indeed. Akira Ifukube scored the first Godzilla film without seeing a single reel of footage, and Jerry Goldsmith scored Air Force One in less than a few days after the previous score was rejected. James Horner had to score Aliens with less time and equipment than expected, not to mention the film was constantly being edited, requiring him to re-score sequences constantly, and he had to work with James Cameron, who makes good movies but is also a bit of an ass. Kind of like Michael Bay, only Cameron's movies are consistently good, with one or two exceptions. Still the time constraints placed on many composers back in the day, and even now in some cases, meant that the scores they produced could often be nothing short of miracles in just how good they were. I wonder, though, if sometimes that pressure is what may have caused them to become creative with different ways of scoring a film with limited resources? I don't think that is the case for all film scores, but it must have been for at least a handful. Even really bad movies could have a good music score as a redeeming factor, such as Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within or The NeverEnding Story II: The Next Chapter.

I don't know about that Ultima X piece working with Dark Souls. The games are intentionally dark and that music just doesn't have the same emotion going for it. Just how I suggested some big orchestral choral music would work with the most recent Mad Max film and people indicated it wasn't mad enough. There is a certain expectation these days that a score should more directly mirror the emotions of the movie or game and not so much score the subtext like it used to. I haven't actually played Dark Souls but I think the producer would never have approved something like that. It sounds very good but wouldn't really fit.

Elliot Goldenthal on Mad Max would have been a dream come true then, NOTHING gets more MAD than his music. Never have I truely felt madness more than in his concert pieces and art film scores. But now I'm actually picturing Junki XL and Goldenthal next to each other and that is just so absurd I better stop.


On Dark Souls: Actually I use that piece as a Victory fanfare after a boss (I'm oldschool). Infact I played through the game numerous times, as original intended, with no music for the environment, then just with Sakuraba music and finally with a collection of classic orchestral fantasy tracks from various game scores. Guess which run made the most impact while playing the game...
Dark Souls really feels like the quintessential european RPG at times, a knight in armor venturing into dark and mysterious places, ancient ruins and majestic cities. The incredible art just evokes classic western fantasy legends mixed in with some asian mythology. You have your catacombs with skeletons, your forsaken castle with knights, your bug infested swamp, your ghost town and a fiery hell. There's also barely any story at forefront, you kind of make your own and try to make sense of the world, the meat of it is actually hidden deep within the game. Infact, there's very little moments were the game truely becomes "dark". Infact Demon Souls and Bloodborne have far more disturbing moments now that I think about it. Only New Londo and to a lesser extend Oolacile can sort of match Latria from Demon Souls. In many cases the game is a classic fantasy adventure so a classic fantasy score does indeed work from my experience. If you're curious how it sounds, here's my custom score (https://mega.co.nz/#!ngg2wTpb!_DM3u4PKwo55udvMz-ZKS_3_lkMT0gC8qNGMrji7Pyw).



Also coming up soon: If you thought "The World is Still Beautiful" is Yamashita's jolliest theme, then you might have to reconsider because a challenger approaches...
And also a little bonus for all who are still disappointed about Gaist Crusher and deserve some form of consolation.

Don't give classical composers such as Stravinsky too much credit. Film composers took over continuing the Romantic tradition and made heaps of progress in tonal, thematic, emotional music without the help of Stravinsky. Only purists and academics dismissed film music whilst forgetting that classical composers were turning to film to write some of their most memorable works: Korngold, Prokofiev, Shostakovich, Vaughan Williams, Walton, etc. It's not something us classical fans like to talk about, but a lot of the talent in the 20th century went into film scoring. Purists like Stravinsky weren't interested in that direction, and preferred bickering with Schoenberg over 12-tone vs. neo-classicism.
No, I think those classical composers deserve all the credit they get. I don't see how that's even up for debate. The broad palate of sound that Wagner, Mahler, Debussy, Stravinsky, etc (and even Schoenberg) served as THE base for what we call "classic" scores from past 80+ years. From the big, lush sound of R. Strauss/Mahler that pervade Korngold's music and even the twelve-tone technique in Planet of the Apes... I do admit that I was often awed by Williams' use of themes, but as masterful as these composers may be in channeling their influences, their music often sound like a collage of sound that is confined to what's on the screen. If you count Williams channeling Stravinsky or Horner borrowing from Prokofiev and Schumann creative, then I guess we just have a different definition of the word "creative". They sure do have a distinct voice that is often enjoyable, though.

And of course, making music that fits the visual IS the whole point of the art. When I hear some sort of trope-y "love" or "action" themes in classic Hollywood scores, however, I often just hear tunes that are well-crafted. Most scores feel like a patchwork of sound evoking emotions that often falls apart as standalone music. Even Walton himself said that his film music serves no purpose outside the cinema, and I don't disagree. This is not to say I don't enjoy film music because I do love Kanno. I guess it's because her works tend to sound least like a soundtrack.

Yeah I agree with that for sure. I sometimes play classical music when my husband is around and sometimes he will say "Why does this sound like John Williams (though I think he usually says "Why does this sound like Harry Potter")?" I think most recently I was playing some Vaughn Williams. So I find it interesting when he is able to recognize stylistic similarities between my favorite composers and certain classical works that I don't even really hear all the time. Though even when I am able to hear the similarities between say Lincoln and War Horse with various pieces of Copland I still tend to prefer the more simplistic presentation of Williams because it doesn't take as much effort to pay attention to.

I see your point. I always know in the back of my mind that the music on my death bed won't be a film score, it will most likely be Beethoven. My problem was this notion that exists in the classical community that film scores are nothing but amateurish childsplay. To channel the great moments of Mahler and Prokofiev in just under three minutes with the same force and intensity of a 30 minute tonepoem is a colossal task, of course it will fall short but what is still there after all those restrictions and limitations deserves admiration, at least in my eyes. I would even classify film music as a subgenre of classical music with easily identifyable and hummable melodies and one that stays mostly tonal.

Still this "confinement" is a very interesting topic, especially in comparison to japanese scores which work so differently from most Hollywood scores of present and past (99% of the time). Infact Kanno rarely scores to picture and her orchestral works are really mini-symphonies or even tone-poems when you get down to it, sometimes featuring western film themes. The orchestral composer as an "artist" is far more noticeable in the east these days. Almost every score I hear from Iwasaki, Kanno, Hirano, Hisaishi, Oshima and Senju never seems to have this "confinement to the screen" problem. Even just a minute long piece from one of them seems to be so free of any restrictions. It's a different feel from a minute long take from a Hollywood recording session. But some Hollywood scores have this feeling as well, Poledouris Lonesome Dove for example or Goldsmith's Rudy. Another good example is Star Wars, I enjoy the "Parade Of The Ewoks" and "The Forest Battle" concert pieces much more than the film segments. I love pieces that feel more like concert arrangements than film cues in general and I prefer pieces that are allowed to "breathe" and feel complete much more than a collage of 10 different cues forming a track on a soundtrack.










Kousuke Yamashita
Her Husband (Otto no Kanojo)
Studio Orchestra



Download (https://mega.co.nz/#!ntJCGDpB!korFmnHWTXhUM-vm7jnyCWSg3v7420BKLdWS7ob7Nt0)
AAC / 16 Tracks / 41min


The first track is a five minute bouncing and jolly ride that feels more like a concert piece than a happy-go-lucky Hollywood afternoon drama. What a lovely theme it is, definetely among Yamashita's best. Some tracks are also reminiscent of Silvestri's Forrest Gump. The rest of the score is more or less just variations of this piece but it's so good I can forgive that.

Kousuke Yamashita
RUNAWAY
Studio Orchestra



Download (https://mega.co.nz/#!WxAxhZxI!5EiU6nTYYpPg7_Kllchi3kfSY2-HEphUlsjdufcZZOs)
AAC / 9 Tracks / 29min


Somehow I think of Goldsmith with this one, another rocking six minute Main Theme. A very enjoyable Yamashita. Both scores only have the orchestral tracks since I just bought those. I hope you enjoy them.



As a bonus here is Tanaka's contribution for a 2014 mobile game.


Kenji Ito & Kohei Tanaka
Puzzle & Dragons Battle Tournament
Studio Orchestra



Download (https://mega.co.nz/#!vlIHQS5Z!G6BU3wS3ROM-YfXPSl5SM-24rOAKwRVv85TZ9C-Wm3U)
AAC / 4 Tracks / 19min


Typical good Tanaka, sadly it's not Gaist Crusher but you take what you can get. There's some little hints from his other works, some gestures from Gravity Daze
/Sakura Wars 3 in "Light and Darkness" for example.

No, I think those classical composers deserve all the credit they get. I don't see how that's even up for debate. The broad palate of sound that Wagner, Mahler, Debussy, Stravinsky, etc (and even Schoenberg) served as THE base for what we call "classic" scores from past 80+ years. From the big, lush sound of R. Strauss/Mahler that pervade Korngold's music and even the twelve-tone technique in Planet of the Apes... I do admit that I was often awed by Williams' use of themes, but as masterful as these composers may be in channeling their influences, their music often sound like a collage of sound that is confined to what's on the screen. If you count Williams channeling Stravinsky or Horner borrowing from Prokofiev and Schumann creative, then I guess we just have a different definition of the word "creative". They sure do have a distinct voice that is often enjoyable, though.

And of course, making music that fits the visual IS the whole point of the art. When I hear some sort of trope-y "love" or "action" themes in classic Hollywood scores, however, I often just hear tunes that are well-crafted. Most scores feel like a patchwork of sound evoking emotions that often falls apart as standalone music. Even Walton himself said that his film music serves no purpose outside the cinema, and I don't disagree. This is not to say I don't enjoy film music because I do love Kanno. I guess it's because her works tend to sound least like a soundtrack.
I'm not saying that film composers didn't look to the classical realm for ideas once in a while, but the large majority of what composers such as Williams or Horner et al. produced was, in fact, original, and unique from classical music being written at the time (1900-1980s.) This is why many classical purists struggle to find any similarity to classical music in film scores besides 5 seconds here in Star Wars or 5 seconds here in Jaws. Trying to find what modern pieces inspired The Asteroid Field, or what modern pieces inspired Riding the Firemares is fruitless, and believe me I've tried.

Using your Planet of the Apes example, that's not a case of Goldsmith thinking "only 12 tone rows work best here, thanks Schoenberg!" It's Goldsmith thinking "look, I can do 12 tone music too, plus I can write intense action music and beautiful love themes." It's music that rivals what many non-film composers were doing in the 60s. Goldsmith's whole career rivals that of Schoenberg because they were both insanely talented composers. But academia rewards the latter with "originality points" because Goldsmith was too tonal most of the time. That's where I'm assuming your stance about "Bernstein, Williams, or even Goldsmith weren't pulling new tricks that deviate from the established Romantic/late-Romantic rep" comes from, and I'm saying that is incorrect because said film composers were definitely inventing new tricks, just as Berlioz invented new tricks after Beethoven and Debussy invented new tricks after Wagner.

After Mahler, film scores and academia branched in separate directions, so I'm also not saying Mahler and those before him don't deserve credit. Stravinsky, on the other hand, gets a little too much credit for film music. Just because Trevor Jones imitated a simple rhythmic motif from the Rite of Spring in You Have The Power doesn't mean Jones owes Stravinsky for that amazing soundtrack. You can't discount film composers from borrowing from classical music, or else you have to discount classical composers for borrowing from themselves (Stravinsky borrowed from Rimsky-Korsakov, Mahler borrowed from Hans Rott, etc.)

I've been meaning to get to it but has anyone checked out Taku's new score for Gatchaman? Opinions?

War Thunder Original Game Soundtrack

Composed by Strategic Music (Georgy Zheryakov, Alexander Chorni, Dmitry Kuzmenko, Ekaterina Kuzmenko), Zahar Antonov

Performed by Baltic Symphony Orchestra and Choir

War Thunder OST (http://www.mediafire.com/download/np2ld2u44q6r092/War+Thunder+OST.rar)

I find that when Hans Zimmer releases a good score, the good parts of the score are usually by his "Underlings" like Geoff Zanelli.

---------- Post added at 01:05 AM ---------- Previous post was at 12:58 AM ----------

However I will not just Bitch and Run.

Here is a little arrangement I edited together of some action cues from David Arnolds James Bond Scores.

https://mega.nz/#!eddhXSxC!egxH0WRyGy7zUKRLSndl-fSdravZt6rUvuGocvo94Vo

It's only 192 Kbps as 2 years ago when I created it, I didn't really care much about high res audio and
how Mp3 changed the way my ears listened to the music.

But with that said it still sounds pretty good.

Enjoy :0)

And of course, making music that fits the visual IS the whole point of the art. When I hear some sort of trope-y "love" or "action" themes in classic Hollywood scores, however, I often just hear tunes that are well-crafted. Most scores feel like a patchwork of sound evoking emotions that often falls apart as standalone music. Even Walton himself said that his film music serves no purpose outside the cinema, and I don't disagree. This is not to say I don't enjoy film music because I do love Kanno. I guess it's because her works tend to sound least like a soundtrack.

If you want a creative score that works as a standalone experience, might I suggest Jerry Goldsmith's original score for ALIEN (1979)? A truly creative and, oddly enough, alien sounding piece of work. I could also suggest Goldsmith's score for the original Planet Of The Apes from the 1960's, and even Outland (1981), although Outland bares a great deal of influence from ALIEN, as does Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979). Goldsmith's Enterprise theme is, when compared, really a variation of his main Nostromo theme from ALIEN, although it takes a while to notice. Still, Goldsmith's 1960's to 1980's work are great examples of his creativity, with the exception of LEGEND, which actually sounds kind of...the norm for Jerry, although it's still good in it's own right.

Or perhaps I could suggest Kou (Koh, Kow, how is it officially spelled!?) Otani's works for the 1990's Gamera Trilogy, especially Guardian of the Universe (1995). Or Yoko Kanno's Macross Plus score. Stay away from Macross Frontier, though. It's a decent work, but it sounds way too mainstream and pop-ish in far too many tracks. I could also Recommend Kuniaki Haishima's score for Macross Zero, although Haishima is a bit of an acquired taste, so perhaps that isn't the best example. For a normal standalone experience, then perhaps Jerry Goldsmith's Total Recall (1990) score. It's easily one of his best, and the man himself even said so before his passing. I could also recommend Elmer Bernstein's scores for To Kill A Mockingbird and Far From Heaven (2002) which is one of the most beautiful scores I've heard from the man. it was also one of his last scores. Or perhaps Christopher Young's score to The Fly II (1989)? It's a really nice score, especially as a standalone experience. Or, if you're willing to gamble, much of Robert Folk's resume, since many of the films he worked on were...not so great. I could also point you towards Kenji Kawai's score for Patlabor The Movie 2 (1994), which I think is one of his best works. Of course, as usual, for a good experience, I suggest something made prior to 2008, if you're looking at American film scores.

great job on the remasters, vinphonic, now they are listenable

edit: that is, I now find them listenable :-)

thank you

:O My face at the 3:00 mark.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3FU-sbfd9j4

A new announcement... I am arranging a string orchestra version of one of my favorite FF7 pieces for Loudr's collaborative project titled "Materia". The album brings over 150 artists together to arrange the music of FF7. I am very fortunate to be asked to be one of those artists :).

Aside from that I am arranging the music of Ori and the Blind Forest in a tone poem format for string orchestra. I will be using some unique orchestration techniques to create a more colorful version of the music. The poem is divided into different elements: The Introduction, Water, Wind, and Fire. Each part represents Ori's journey to stop the villain Kuro and restore the Spirit Tree.

Then after that, it is ETHEReal String Project number two in which I will announce in full once my above projects are completed and released. I CAN tell you that it will feature music from one composer in particular.

Until then seek out my already released album The ETHEReal String Project on Loudr. For further updates regarding my projects, you can find me on Facebook (www.facebook.com/joshbarronmusic), Soundcloud (soundcloud.com/josh-barron), and my recently created Twitter (BarronJcomposer).

Now that the album has been out what do all of you think of it? Are there any arrangements you like in particular? What could be improved on for the next release? You feedback is critical for me as an artist and call many of you some of the most knowledgeable people on orchestral music. Your critique is quite invaluable to me :).

Kosuke Yamashita has scored the upcoming period film about the Japanese ocean liner Hikawa Maru. Brief samples can be heared in the PV: "Hikawa Maru Monogatari" (https://www.facebook.com/hikawamaru2015/videos/vb.1558628727733452/1614111958851795/?type=2&theater).

Kosuke Yamashita has scored the upcoming period film about the Japanese ocean liner Hikawa Maru. Brief samples can be heared in the PV: "Hikawa Maru Monogatari" (https://www.facebook.com/hikawamaru2015/videos/vb.1558628727733452/1614111958851795/?type=2&theater).
Aww, I was looking forward to a new score from Reijiro Koroku. I wonder why they replaced him with Yamashita (not that I don't like Yamashita).

In case anyone missed out on the Herrmann box set Kritzerland just re-issued Hangover Square along with 5 Fingers. 5 Fingers sounds especially delightful considering its age. Audiophiles may prefer the Chandos re-recording of Hangover Square, a delightfully well done recording.

Interview with 99 year-old Harry Rabinowitz - BBC Radio 4 - Desert Island Discs, Harry Rabinowitz (http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0606vtx)

Product Title: Pili Heroes Music Collection Vol.55 (2CD)
Singer Name(s): Taiwan TV Soundtrack OST
Release Date: 2015-08-19
Language: Taiwanese
Country of Origin: Taiwan
Disc Format(s): CD
Other Information: 2CD
Package Weight: 180 (g)

Publisher: Pili International Multimedia Co., Ltd.
YesAsia Catalog No.: 1045009884
Product Information / Track List
商品內容：CD1(19首)+CD2(4首)、專輯精美手冊1本
專輯內附明信片3款「麒麟星」、「亂世狂刀」、「末日之狂」

All The Wishes From PILI Music 所有的希望，都來自霹靂音樂
霹靂布袋戲2015年全新大戲「霹靂謎城之九輪異譜」強勢登場，專輯雙CD完美收錄：林宗興搖滾獻唱主題曲 「叱吒風雲」、風采輪演唱片尾曲「心魔」、蔡佳瑩演唱插曲「等待」，以及亂世狂刀氣勢登場、魔吞不動城、九 輪異譜預告曲、赦天琴箕武曲II、龍戩悲傷曲…等精彩曲目。超值加贈CD2「紅冕七元迷你專輯」，以及專輯 明信片三款。

CD 1
01. 叱吒風雲（九輪異譜第一片頭曲）04:36 詞/荒山亮、林宗興 編曲 小林玉置 曲/唱 林宗興
02. 隱春秋（隱春秋角色曲）03:14 曲/編曲 丁天牧
03. 伏羲閻王雙琴奏（赦天琴箕武曲II）04:21 曲/編曲 孫敬凡 古箏 吳習鳳
04. 再世刀鋒（亂世狂刀氣勢登場）03:26 曲/編曲 風采輪
05. 天琴不了情（不了情角色曲）03:52 曲/編曲 黃建秦
06. 八分書（盜天下角色曲）04:13 曲/編曲 孫敬凡
07. 黑暗的希望（魔吞不動城場景曲）03:45 曲/編曲 風采輪
08. 蒼鷹（蒼鷹角色曲）03:18 曲/編曲 風采輪
09. 千古功成（祿名封角色曲）04:15 曲/編曲 孫敬凡
10. 等待（縹緲月之歌）04:31 曲/詞/唱 蔡佳瑩 編曲 風采輪
11. 雲龍風虎鬪（九輪異譜搶先看預告曲）04:07 曲/編曲 孫敬凡
12. 紅雪十握（無明一刀齋武曲）04:12 曲/編曲 孫敬凡 琵琶 徐瑩燕
13. 神遊八極（縱橫子角色曲II）03:37 曲/編曲 黃建秦
14. 符水靈（符水靈角色曲）03:41 曲/編曲 風采輪
15. 別見黃花落（別見黃花落角色曲）03:51 曲/編曲 黃建秦
16. 魔息邪變（魔息大帝武曲）03:53 曲/編曲 孫敬凡
17. 紫陌封塵雪已深（龍戩悲傷曲）03:44 曲/編曲 黃建秦
18. 天外無天（天外無天場景曲）03:25 曲/編曲 黃建秦
19. 心魔（九輪異譜第一片尾曲）04:48 曲/編曲/演唱 風采輪 詞 廖明治

CD 2
01. 赩異蒼鸆（挽風曲武曲）03:25 曲/編曲 翁偉瀚
02. 赨夢（氐首赨夢）04:17 曲/編曲 孫敬凡
03. 鬼方赤血斬（鬼方赤命武曲）02:58 曲/編曲 張恩興
04. 乞巧情緣（赦天琴箕的回憶）04:16 曲/編曲 孫敬凡 二胡 吳政君

https://mega.nz/#!ck9DlLJJ!gDmZ7Co7lga_e1f6o9uSiQVBPh11f7AiTzoZjDabIfU

Interview with 99 year-old Harry Rabinowitz - BBC Radio 4 - Desert Island Discs, Harry Rabinowitz (http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0606vtx)

Thanks for sharing that. Nice 40 minute interview with some pieces of music played in between.

恋愛偏差値 ~ Love Quotient Original Soundtrack (2002)
Composed, Arranged and Conducted by Shiro SAGISU
The Royal Mirrorball Orchestra, Tomoyuki Asakawa on the Harp
with contributions by DJ Gomi

MP3 (https://mega.nz/#!5QMwhI4K!O1-zJXhqfR1CMn0k15-lmz_AoDQjPjutZI8fCGnQfaU) | ALAC (https://mega.nz/#!kAtghBCa!pf3gbFa6OgnX4ZJw6Bgh90UdembStc6dN3zdzNKFvIw)

Monsieur Sagisu. Ah, mon amour. No eerie choirs. No guest arrangements, save for the bonus tracks by DJ Gomi. A nostalgic farewell to Sagisu's lush orchestral compositions of the 1990s. Au revoir.

I give you another Masaru musical experience :) This is probably one of my favorite soundtracks of the man, so far. I really enjoy this from start to finish, and it gives me chills all over my bones in some composed pieces. Masaru also uses some electronic pieces to mix in some cues, and it works awesomely. To be fair, there is a lot of tunes to are memorable, enough to make me remember them all day and kept them in my head in loop. :p
"Till the next ep" is my pick in all of these tracks, and, I think I will risk say that, the better is saved for last. ;)
Because of this I started to watch this TV drama, and although there are things that make me laugh in the production, because it looks and sounds cheesy and cliche, the story is very well driven and it' really is getting glued to it. :)

So, not going beside the point, please, do enjoy this soundtrack. :)




TBS Kei Kin'you DRAMA [ALICE no Toge] ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK
TBS系 金曜ドラマ「アリスの棘」オリジナル・サウンドトラック
(MP3 VBR -V0) (Thread 193066)

Release date: 2014.06.11
Catalogue number: UZCL-2056
Label: Anchor Records

Music Composed & Arranged by: Masaru Yokoyama
Masato Suzuki (鈴木真人) (17) Arrange


Vocal and Lyrics by: Goami Luna (五阿弥瑠奈 / AJYSYTZ) (17, 18, 22, 23)


Tracklist:

01 Alice's Thorn
02 15 years ago
03 the beginning
04 Clever Hospital (Simple version)
05 Are you all right?
07 She changed her name
08 Remember the days
09 Personal Space (Simple version)
10 eating together
11 Personal Space
12 Platonic Dialogues
13 Nobody Knows
14 close call
15 Clever Hospital
16 Medical Error
17 her mission
18 chasing down
19 A FOOL ON THE DEATH
20 come up with
21 Ur's
22 Myosotis
23 Till the next ep
24 She changed her name (Solo Piano version)

Kei Yoshikawa

Mobile Suit Gundam AGE
Score Selection -REMASTERED-

Studio Orchestra



Download (https://mega.nz/#!D443HLZC!CS5PbEteOffduJuPpeFM7TAsR9u_zAndGoMB3ApgTlg)
MP3 / 40 Tracks / 90min


This is everything noteworthy from the different orchestral sessions (spread across four soundtracks) and it fits nicely on a 90min cd. Gundam AGE sure as hell started promising but the later sessions feature far too much drones, drum loops and electronics for my taste. I still enjoyed them but it didn't help that the writing wasn't as strong as on the first soundtrack. Nonetheless the later cds still feature some great cues as well as a proper conclusion. Overall I feel the concept of AGE deserved a better score. A story of three generations, each with their own theme is a dream come true for any orchestral composer, sadly that potential was never fully realized and the first generation remains a strong indicator of what could have been. But what is still there is 90 minutes of very good orchestral music with strong themes and motifs. I also liked the presentation of the albums. The remaster is another one from my recent undertakings in fixing the "bad" sound of japanese scores. I tried to take the "harshness" out of the recording and made it sound more like a recording from a Hollywood scoring stage. I hope you enjoy it.





Speaking of Gundam, of all the potential candidates from MONACA to Tatsuya Kato... and it's Masaru Yokoyama. I hope I'm wrong but the PV indicates that it will just be another one of his generic scores. However, I know Gundam usually evokes the best in composers and perhaps he could surprise us all but if I compare it to the PVs for Reconguista then it sounds very uninspired in comparison. Keeping my fingers crossed that it won't suck.

In other news I'm really pumped for an official release date for anything Oshima because all of her recent scores sound wonderful and fantastic so far. I'm also eagerly awaiting the scores for the Kancolle Movie and the second season in 2016. Until then I will be buying Arslan and Girls und Panzer der Film. A shame the Date A Live movie score has been canceled but it will most likely be released with the Blu-Ray. Oh well, just another 6 months to wait.

So I'm curious, when you make these selections do you keep the original soundtracks? Or do you just keep this? I ask because the tagging would suggest you don't keep the originals. Personally I tend to tag the album name of these with "Orchestral selections" at the end and keep it along with the soundtracks.

In general I also keep the original soundtracks, as a subfolder of my selection. Most of the time I make them so I can listen to an orchestral score back to back like a film score or for CD prints so I can put them to my physical collection. In the case of Gundam AGE it's much too tiresome to go through four discs and skipping all the time so it's a blessing to have all I want on one disc or in one folder. Recent example is the new Gatchaman, the "meat" stuff with an orchestra or string ensemble involved is the main folder and the subfolder has all rock/pop/dubstep tracks. If a soundtrack has many jazz, rock or electronic tracks I put those in a different category, for example all jazz tracks of "Zettai Karen Children" have an additional folder in "Jazz & Bigband" so if I'm in the mood for some wacky jazz I can listen to them quickly and without the need to create a dozen playlists.

Thanks for your response. I listened to the selections with the remastering and I think it sounds great. Thanks again.

Yamashita's Ninninger is out... worryingly there have been no follow-up announcements for more CDs. Remember, traditionally Super Sentai albums come in fours - OST 1 in May, OST 2 (no score, just songs), OST 3 with predominantly the movie score in the summer, and a two-disc OST 4&5 set nearer to November. Toqger last year released "Sound Express 1" in June 2014 and then bugger all until February of 2015 when a three disc "Terminal Box" appeared.

Yamashita's Ninninger is not advertised as being volume 1; it heavily implies that it will be the only release. If this is the case, we're in trouble... (There's SOME good stuff on this disc... about the usual proportion of crap on volume 1... meaning 90% of the good stuff remains unreleased - and judging by track 16, Yamashita's right on the ball for this one.)

THE 4 MUSKETEERS



Music composed by
MATT DUNKLEY

Re-ploads Please !

Does anyone recognize the music in this youtube video? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Qw4VzirNNM

I tried the recognition software at mooma.sh but it gave a false positive.

Just curious, are we going to get soundtrack for the new JOHN WOO's film THE CROSSING, composed by : Taro Iwashiro??

Toaru Hikuushi e no Koiuta (http://forums.ffshrine.org/f94/toaru-hikuushi-e-no-koiuta-original-soundtrack-178634/2.html)
(The Pilot's Love Song) is finally out.
Kudos to yyqian99 for sharing it.



Kow Otani really hit the spot for me with this one. Easily in the same category as Shadow of the Colossus and Haibane Renmei and some pretty damn good writing in the orchestral stuff. Although some parts are obviously reused from SotC and other works there's still enough original material to make it one of his best. There's also a lot of catchy tracks like "Cheerful Festival" witch features a sexy trombone. The usual complaints I have with Otani's other scores are mostly absent and the heavy use of organ, church bells and syntheziser works well with the orchestra this time around. The only downside is the action which at no point is as strong as in Colossus. A shame the score is found on an obscure bonus cd because this deserves a release far more than other scores from the same season. But in that regard the world is never fair these days.

Typhoon No Noruda:
I was waiting, eager to know what Masashi Hamazu would bring to the table with this one, specially when his facebook page mentioned it was gonna have some brass and woodwinds in it other than his standard piano/violin trademark:



Does it hold up? Well first I'd like to mention I'm a fan of this mans work, I really like his workforce on the FF series and his Vielen Dank/Sony α always makes up for when I need a focused studying ambiance. Of course, I'm aware Hamazu has his limits in terms of orchestration, and he needs a proper person to add textures and layers of symphonic splendor when it comes to more fully orchestral works, like Final Fantasy XIII with Yoshihisa Hirano, whose arranging, orchestrating and composing abilities are nothing short of amazing, not wasting a single instrument to bring a grandosie sound with the proper budget given.

So when I first heard that Masashi himself was going to compose entirely his work for this movie, I'll admit, I was quite interested to see what he could do without Hirano's support. Did we see anything new out of the ordinary, stepping out of his comfort zone with a small budget that at least was a bit more than his usual chamber set, to do something that one would say "Woah, I didn't knew this was from him!"?

NOPE

And don't get me wrong I like compositionally, some of the pieces in here. I still dig his trademark style of piano & violin set as main, I was expecting that. What I did not like at all was the poor treatment he seem to gave to the rest of the instruments, brass is barley noticeable and it seems to be the least amount in this set, woodwinds were I could only hear most noticeably only flute and clarinet and percussion was used in the bigger segments. It sort of dissapointed at the very least, I was finally able to see what he could do with a small ensamble. Oh and did I mention that starting from 1:10 of Track 07 sounds like it came from a videogame danger segment? *sigh*

Negativity aside, this wasn't a bad work at all, it just didn't stand out from me and I guess I was expecting too much from him of what he was given. My favorite tracks in here must be 01, 02 and 08, 02 being my fav among all, it seems to be the one that integrated the most. If any of you are interested in giving it a listen, I'll link it right here (http://hikarinoakariost.info/typhoon-noruda-original-soundtrack/) (not my upload or link). As for the film itself, quite incoherent and I don't know but, I've seen alot of complains with the VA and I'm starting to believe it's true as I'm rewatching this artsy fartsy Ghibli wannabe of a film.

You know what OST I'm eagerly waiting for sure? Michiru Oshima's Rokka No Yuusha & Akagami No Shirayukihime soundtrack releases when their respective series finish! I like Rokka's action cues alot more than Akagami, but Akagami's melodic romantic nature has captivated me, in a way I actually feel butterflies in the tender moments, great job from this woman!

I've seen some post mentioning Kousuke Yamashita, and I've been hearing many of his lately, by god, I've been missing alot haven't I? Any of you fellows, care to give me a short Yamashita 101, since I'm very interested to see alot more of this guys work :)

Don't worry, I'm here to help ... with my unoffical Kousuke Yamashita awards :D



Best Score: Garasu no Kantai (http://kiwi6.com/file/afu093jj8m)

Best TV Score: Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger (http://kiwi6.com/file/6if5ap8d4k)

Best TV-Anime Score: Chihayafuru (http://kiwi6.com/file/pbhpbgoxzh)

Best Movie Score: Hana Yori Dango Returns (http://kiwi6.com/file/ms78qt07px)

Best Anime-Movie Score: Ozuma (http://kiwi6.com/file/olo7fwip9l)

Best Game Score: Reign of Revolution (http://kiwi6.com/file/mpuemxbsjm)

Best Lyrical Score: Papa to Musume no Nanokakan (http://kiwi6.com/file/awox1xz5zk)

Best OST release (Price/Value/Structure/Flow): Nobunaga's Ambition (Supreme Record) (http://kiwi6.com/file/2ldjti0da7)

Best Theme: Soredemo Sekai wa Utsukushii (http://kiwi6.com/file/1oanscredz)

Best Ending: Ozuma ~Epilogue~ (http://kiwi6.com/file/ny25j2060n)

Best Experimental Composition: Yamato Nadeshiko Shichihenge ~Main Theme~ (http://kiwi6.com/file/rrt1z58uxz)

Best Solo Composition: Overture - The Earth (http://kiwi6.com/file/y9nlbo2h8p)

Maybe it's time to start a blog....




I agree with you, I must confess I deleted it after a quick listen :(
And how typical of japan that the three best scores of the season have no physical release or even a release date as of now. The recent episode of GATE has some really good stuff but I fear the score will be stretched across numerous bonus cds. Sahashi's Soul of Gold really suffers because of this this and I hope nobody else gets that treatment. But I expect Yuusha to be released on a bonus cd like Tempest (there's not that much orchestral material afterall, considering that two or three pieces appear in every episode) and Akagami to get a cd release after part 2.

Sadly, Yuusha is only twelve episodes. That means one orchestral session... which means about 30 minutes of the full orchestra, with maybe another 30 of smaller-ensemble stuff to pad it out. Oh, well... There's not nearly as much as Tempest, but it's SO BLOODY GOOD... and it makes me really, REALLY happy to see that Oshima's 2012 Moscow burst wasn't a one-off, but the start of a new composer/orchestra relationship that will hopefully continue well into the future.

Akagami's just gorgeous. No big orchestra theatrics, and only very rarely does the full ensemble come in... but REAL, old-fashioned romance - lovely themes, sumptuous harmonies. The latest episode has some truly glorious score; that tender love theme with a delicious violin solo, and a gorgeous key-change at JUST the right moment... might just be my favourite Oshima cue of all time... and that's saying something. Love it, love it, love it.

GATE... wow, didn't expect this! It sounds so deliciously cheap - and ironically I mean that as a compliment. It's nice to hear a newbie (Fujisawa had his 34th birthday on Saturday) who is aware of his small orchestra and works it twice as hard... and isn't drowning every cue in synthesizer sweetening and drum loops.

Thank you very much Vinphonic for that post, I'll make sure to check out all the Yamashita right away. :D

And yes indeed! That last episode of Akagami was just flowing with beauty, specially in the last scene, dear goodness gracious I almost shed a tear on how beautiful that last piece was :,D (I'm a freakin' crybaby, mkay!?), I haven't teared up for a piece this long, Oshima please keep killin' it.

I'm guessing there might be new recordings for the second season of Akagami, scheduled already for January 2016 (with an OVA at the 5th of the same month).

The thing that really got me about GATE is how much effort Fujisawa put into it. There's a scene in the anime which is pretty much frame by frame the helicopter attack from Apocalypse Now! but instead of just using the easy way out, in typical japanese fashion he actually incorporates Ride of the Valkyries into an almost six minute action cue. If this was performed by Warsaw it would have been ecstatic but as of now a tremendous effort with a studio orchestra. His score for the LoveLive movie is really good as well, there's some lovely tributes to good old romantic america and even a reprise of the happy-go-lucky theme from the TV series. I'm glad that Fujisawa already has projects for the next seasons, most notably a collaboration with Go Shiina in Winter 2015/16 for a project that screams high production values. I hope he gets a Gundam in the future.


EDIT: Oh so Gravity Daze 2 really is happening but it's just a quick mock-up from Tanaka this time. No surprise considering a release is still far off. Still my guts tell me this will be another wonderful Tanaka with hopefully much more orchestral score than the first game.





Yugo Kanno
Mobile Suit Gundam: G no Reconguista
Score Selection -Remastered-


Download (https://mega.nz/#!ihg3QIBR!BNJ_rbr75GtAQ9Km1BZCSEg3LbBakZkrBU13u_941lw)
MP3 / V0 / 36 Tracks / 90min



Yugo Kanno
Jojo's Bizarre Adventure: Stardust Crusaders
Score Selection -Remastered-



Download (https://mega.nz/#!6xYVHCAA!XHP1PplFOFTFLB2E9Mkv2zha0Qp9u9v3TsPEVx5nc7c)
MP3 / V0 / 35 Tracks / 90min


While these two are not Kanno's absolute best there're still very good modern orchestral scores that feature lots of electronics and drones but are still worthwhile. There also cannot be a Kanno score these days without some delicious symphonic concert pieces. Yes G could have been so much more, especially the development and use of the Main Theme, but it's still good enough. There is also a rather decent villain motif that is poorly placed on the album with every variation in quick succession. Especially in Jojo there's a huge amount of beautiful stuff and it certainly has one of Kanno's best THE END cues. The battle tracks strike a nice balance between electronics and RC strings patterns and classic orchestral writing with melodic development.

On the Remaster: To go a bit more into detail this time, Gundam G had the opposite problem of Gundam Age, the sound was too muffled instead of too dry and too close, most noticeable in the strings and the percussion. My goal was to improve the "room" sound where it was recorded so that the instruments sound brighter, warmer and with more energy. The "magic trick" comes with certain EQ tools, virtual room and mic placements and various reverb and tape plugins. I hope you enjoy it.

My main problem with Reconguista - compositional deficiencies aside - are related to the sound of the recording. The orchestra isn't too bad, but some of the percussion (most notably the snare, which is just atrocious) is recorded bone dry, instantly making it sound like an overdub.

These remastering efforts have a habit of doing something I really, REALLY like... they make me revisit things I'd not properly investigated and I usually end up finding more to enjoy than I'd expected. For that, I'm very, very grateful. :)

Speaking of which, Kanno's next project, Summer Train! seems to be from producers whom have been involved in numerous Studio Ghibli movies in the past.

Source (http://en.rocketnews24.com/2015/06/26/studio-ghibli-animators-west-japan-railway-ad-has-us-ready-for-summer-%E3%80%90video%E3%80%91/)



Here's a 16 sec trailer. Music by Yugo Kanno.


https://youtu.be/9DdRLfU2E0o

I think he's done some pretty good slice-of-life in the past, so lets hope he sets the bar high on this one, considering he's getting lots of field work from renown titles these last couple of years.

So I recently got a copy of the two disc set The Magic of Inspector Morse and was going to share it here. Something odd happened with disc two though. It plays normally on a standard CD player, yet when ripped on a computer a number of the tracks on the disc, including the main theme annoyingly enough, have a strange audio quirk which I suspect may be some form of early copyright protection. These tracks start out a bit quiet and jump right up to normal volume around the 10 second mark in the track. It's very irritating and does this on multiple machines. I am quite perplexed. Anyone else run into this issue before?

I have some of those supposed copyright cds. and I only had issue when making a image copy. My Bombfunk Mcs album is like that. but.... I ripped the cd with dbpoweramp, just fine. I can tell you to try using it.
My Maou dante soundtrack also is impossible to make an image and the record to cd. It is protected against that... but I rip the tracks fine.

I'll keep Dbpoweramp in mind. I think I tried using it once and didn't like it, and it's also one which has to be paid for if one wants the full version I believe. Well I tried it, still have the anomaly, damn. Thanks for trying to help anyway.

dBpoweramp is now a superior ripper to EAC...

Grossly over-simplifying, both are doing nothing except copying data off the CD. There is no code in there that modifies volume - it is a straight transfer... [Edit: Unless you've got an errant DSP switched on... Could you check, please?]
Would you mind uploading a sample of one of these knackered tracks for me to have a listen to? This is really weird. I've never heard of anything like it...

Cheers :)
TT

I tried to like Jojo but even the highlights seemed pretty bland and uninspired. I ultimately ended up deleting the whole lot of it, which I rarely do.

dBpoweramp is now a superior ripper to EAC...

Grossly over-simplifying, both are doing nothing except copying data off the CD. There is no code in there that modifies volume - it is a straight transfer... [Edit: Unless you've got an errant DSP switched on... Could you check, please?]
Would you mind uploading a sample of one of these knackered tracks for me to have a listen to? This is really weird. I've never heard of anything like it...

Cheers :)
TT

You're telling me it's weird. I'll make a transfer when I can, have a friend over for the week-end. And I can assure you I have NO DSPs running. This is the first time I have ever run into this. When I get a chance to, where do you want me to upload the sample?

BAND ISHIN 2008
JASDF Central Band



1. Shigeaki Saegusa - Overture: Gundam Char's Counterattack
2. Akira Nishimura - Initiation I
3. Katsuhisa Hattori - Invitation to the stars (Theme of Seikai no Monshou:Crest of the Stars)
4. Toshi Ichiyanagi - Poem Rhythmic
5. Kazunori Maruyama - Cubic Dance
6. Reijiro Koroku - The Angelus Bells (Theme of NAGASAKI 1945)
7. Makiko Kinoshita - Cyber Trip
8. Michio Kitazume - Comrades
FLAC (https://mega.nz/#!8sIiUBDK!XvnPs5tHae4FCUrgNj4lkpdFpjS__kHnvzCslOKj-5k)


Yuushun ORACI�N Original Soundtrack - Shigeaki Saegusa (1988)
優駿 ORACI�N オリジナル・サウンドトラック - 三枝成章

FLAC (https://mega.nz/#!c9QUFQzQ!vS8Ex1HrswWzSDVL9cyDA7bLyaD1dK_JHpOuv2nYwAM)

And so it came to pass, that Oshima's two 2015 firecrackers come to an end... and we are faced with the frightening conclusion that Oshima, despite nearly 40 years composing, is STILL getting better. Neither Rokka not Akagami ultimately rate as her finest work - rather as a tantalising glimpse of the future. Rokka - a companion piece to Tempest - spread itself thin. If the show had been 26 (or even 50) episodes, it could have surpassed everything. As it stands, it's score of the year and a work of which Oshima should be very proud.

Akagami, smaller in scale but infinitely larger in feeling, I think, fares better in the long run. With her scary melodic gift, Oshima was born to score romance - and Akagami gave her so many opportunities to shine. This isn't gritty romance, or syrupy romance, or ditzy romance... it's not ironic, self-aware, or pastiche. It's a score that's about love, and it doesn't hide. It's warm, melodic, emotional, and sometimes heartbreakingly beautiful.

Edit: Amish, THANK YOU! Yuushun ORACI�N is uttery glorious! And Band Ishin is VERY interesting... It's going to take longer to take this one in, but I have a feeling it's going to be very worthwhile. Cheers! :)

Thanks Amish for the score from the racehorse film Yuushun ORACI�N, it's beautiful music.

really looking forward to Oshima's music...

Oracion is lovely, thank you Amish!

I obviously need to hear more of Saegusa's work, because this is great!

Can anybody recommend some other Saegusa scores? I've heard Taiheiki (love it) and his Gundam work.

Wow, yet another japanese composer to rock my socks off after a first listen, ORACI�N is sublime. I absolutly love the use of choir here and I really dig the ocean texture in track 4. But the fate-outs are a bit strange.



Now the fall season is almost upon us and look at that, two big MONACA projects BUT if they are full on orchestral is not yet certain: I suspect "GARO" will be similiar in tone to the first season, but "Concrete Revolutio - A Superhuman Fantasy" could turn out either way, it has Keigo Hoashi on board afterall. It's also really nice that a soundtrack is already announced for january, if only this could happen more often. As always, my fears regarding bonus cds are proven right again, as GATE will be stretched out as well. I will be surprised if all of Sahashi's Soul of Gold gets shared in a year, considering Galilei Donna, Denpa Kyoushi, Captain Earth and many others. It's just lunacy to release 5 minutes of score on a cd, that's just a waste of ressources.

Anyway... fall will get crazy: Old veterans are returing [Yuji Ohno!!!], Rasmus Faber makes his debut as a composer, Tatsuya Kato on an Eureka Sevenesque Mecha series, more Warsaw with Fafner, Keiji Inai teams up with Maiko Iuchi again for some heavy SciFi action, Hashimoto Yukari goes into lovely retro territory (again), Elements Garden finally delievers a convincing english choir with Dance with Devils and a suprisingly decent Sawano production continues.

Hiromi Mizutani should satisfy my classical appetite with Ore ga Ojou-sama and Ruka Kawada will provide my sugar fix with another Gochuumon.
Speaking of classical sugar, Princess Precure continues and is as lovely as ever. I'm pretty excited for the movie score and OST 2, Takaki really pushes the lyricism up to eleven with this show.

My next undertaking comes in Tone Poem form and will feature music from Ori and the Blind Forest. I know many of you did not care for the music of this game, but I plan to add a more lush sound and more color to it :). It will be, at minimum, 20 minutes in length and will encompass many themes to chronicle the story of Ori as he sets out to restore the forest of Nibel.

Teaser will be out soon featuring the first minute and a half of the poem performed by the same orchestra of my debut album 'The ETHEReal String Project' which you can purchase here (https://loudr.fm/release/the-ethereal-string-project/T26Eu)and please do as this will fund future projects and help support the musicians who worked on this for over a year.

The sites for Ori and the Blind Forest Tone Poem for String Orchestra are below! Please share on all social media! Thank you very much!

Twitter - https://twitter.com/Ori_Symphony
FB - www.facebook.com/oriandtheblindforestorchestra

The word "orchestra" comes up a lot - but the ETHEReal String Orchestra page on VGMDB shows three violins, one viola, one cello, one bass, and one clarinet - and just one performer - which, to me, is a string sextet plus clarinet and a helluva lot of overdubbing! I can't even begin to imagine the amount of work that must entail at the mixing stage... Can you clarify? :)

Of course I can clarify! We set out to do this as an experiment to make the sound of a full string section with using only three musicians. The guy who mixed it did put in a lot of work for our first outing. However, we are still a work in progress to perfect the sound. This is why the group is called "ETHEReal" in part because the orchestra is completely real however, we are not using the full amount of musicians. Also, emphasis on ETHER ties the music to our passion for RPG music. Ether revitalizes magical energy obviously ;). But yes some of the pieces are smaller ensembles and others we recorded to sound larger. Ori will sound bigger than anything we have done so far as we are focusing strictly on string music. Not to mention it was completely outside my budget to hire an orchestra. This is why I am focusing on smaller groups until I build the funds to get one for my Vagrant Story album.

Hello, everyone. Feels like I haven't been around for a while. Just wanted to say thanks for all the recent uploads, although I haven't had a chance to listen to any of them.

Vinophonic, thank you SO much for Yamashita's Otto no kanojo. I have set my eyes on it for months but never pulled the trigger. I should also definitely check out Saegusa's Oracion since a few people here are speaking very highly of it!

In terms of anime from this past season, I haven't kept up so I have no clue. I did skim through an episode of Akagami and it was obviously great, but no CD release announced? Hmm... I also got to watch Patema last week at a local screening event in its obnoxiously dubbed incarnation. Music was its only saving grace, although maybe watching it in its original Japanese voice acting could change my opinion entirely (the ending theme in particular was fitting and superb).

And what happened to the "Like" button? It was a very convenient way of saying "thanks".

It was apparently removed because of a vulnerability. Might not be coming back.

Saegusa (2)

Violin Concerto "The Snowcapped Legend" - Epitaph for Sibelius (1992)
Sapporo Symphony Orchestra / Naohisa Miyama (Vln)
ヴァイオリン協奏曲「雪に蔽われた伝説」

FLAC (https://mega.nz/#!osIkxQCJ!32yZLOpd1CEzhVkKmr0nUsYHIJu2mL7aVYbc7VcJH4I)


Four Concertos -Violin, Cello, Piano and Sangen- (1994)
Tokyo Symphony Orchestra
コンチェルトの夜 ヴァイオリン、チェロ、ピアノそして三絃の競演

FLAC (https://mega.nz/#!c5I0DLjB!xkgQw2ZqC7wc5tsr5_f8rQfohzLc3mB_bteag4SC6Z8)
101. Violin Concerto "The Snowcapped Legend"
102-103. Shamisen Concerto "1 December 1993 Sangen"
201-202. Cello Concerto "Elegy for a King"
203. Piano Concerto "Look! Mount Fuji in the West Wind" (Miyo, Nishikaze kara no Fuji)
204. Hana no Ran -Main Theme-


Symphony Douran (1979)
交響曲「動乱」

Yotube:1 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w4O7L_y7EEU)/2 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_H10zJGrU-E)/3 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1dw3U2mevNA)
Theme from "Douran"(Coup d'�tat, 1980 Toei movie)

Danmachi's second soundtrack is out: Thread 194725

Better than the first soundtrack in my opinion (how can you not love that main title?). As a whole, this score is Keiji Inai's best to date. :)

Keiji Inai has that certain little *something* going on in the background of every single piece he writes; the same thing you get with Kosuke Yamashita. That sensation of quality. Even in the stupid bits, or the bits that are drowned in electronica, there it is. Superlative arrangement, great melodies, and a very classical sense of ebb and flow. There's even leitmotif. That main title... it'd be remiss of me not to mention that it's another 100% cliche piece (like Benny Oschmann's theme from "The Book of Unwritten Tales") but then look again... It's glorious.

Speaking of which... The new season begins, and Heavy Object is here... and so far, the orchestral pieces are VERY orchestral and seem to be 100% Inai. I was expecting (and somewhat looking forward to) another Iuchi / Inai crazy electronica/orchestra hybrid... but what we seem to be getting instead of Inai's breakout. A proper budget, subject matter that's a composer's wet dream, and clear instructions for a traditional, symphonic score. He's going for it big time. Can't wait for more!.

Keiji Inai has that certain little *something* going on in the background of every single piece he writes; the same thing you get with Kosuke Yamashita. That sensation of quality. Even in the stupid bits, or the bits that are drowned in electronica, there it is. Superlative arrangement, great melodies, and a very classical sense of ebb and flow. There's even leitmotif. That main title... it'd be remiss of me not to mention that it's another 100% cliche piece (like Benny Oschmann's theme from "The Book of Unwritten Tales") but then look again... It's glorious.

Speaking of which... The new season begins, and Heavy Object is here... and so far, the orchestral pieces are VERY orchestral and seem to be 100% Inai. I was expecting (and somewhat looking forward to) another Iuchi / Inai crazy electronica/orchestra hybrid... but what we seem to be getting instead of Inai's breakout. A proper budget, subject matter that's a composer's wet dream, and clear instructions for a traditional, symphonic score. He's going for it big time. Can't wait for more!.
It's so cliche (and certainly reminded me of Oschmann) but I still love it, simply because... you don't really hear much music in that style any more.

Also, according to his twitter he had a ~60 piece orchestra for Heavy Object.

Woodwinds: 2/2/2/3
Brass: 6/3/3/1
Strings: 10/8/6/6/4
+ harp & percussion

The five minute pre-title track seems like a nice taste of what's to come.

These orchestrations are exactly what I need :)

Saegusa (3)

Suite Provence - Shigeaki Saegusa (1989)
プロヴァンス組曲

FLAC (https://mega.nz/#!01ZUkAoS!Z9P-4fJ3yqv7WDQfD3eMq75VLBZHaxtBrgu4JFR--2g)


Hana no Ran Soundtrack (1994)
NHK大河ドラマ「花の乱」サウンドトラック

FLAC (https://mega.nz/#!ghJl2QJL!V571HedPN3lqoPkmRFwcxVT1lI-q80slXnN8YGYejRE)


Paradise Lost (1991)
失楽園

FLAC (https://mega.nz/#!ds51nb7Y!aFmO918hdHTetGx9V6SOvngdSSN4xERf2UZ0E4ziqpM)


Cantata TENGAI (2004)
カンタータ「天涯」

FLAC (https://mega.nz/#!0gZQHYoZ!oBjVWsIYSEeS2r4GSq5NgHtMlVK6la4zvF0tAGyo-LM)


Requiem (2004)
Coro Maschile Roppnghi / The Tokyo Symphony Orchestra
三枝成彰 レクイエム [曾野綾子のリブレットによる] 六本木男声合唱団

FLAC (https://mega.nz/#!JoYQyCAL!hZzQxSUQZGpgGq7nzDiv23QBdZehXmW_G9Vr-x3iqx0)

Have a Saegusa weekend!

It's so cliche (and certainly reminded me of Oschmann) but I still love it, simply because... you don't really hear much music in that style any more.

Aye... It would be lovely if that style could be "viable" again, instead of being trotted out every now and again when somebody needs a theme that makes them think of the good old days... There are guys around today, RIGHT NOW, who can do that stuff... and yet we get Steve Jablonsky.


Also, according to his twitter he had a ~60 piece orchestra for Heavy Object.

Neat! I thought it sounded a little more than the usual Japanese ensemble. How does Inai suddenly command sixty players when two years ago he had to fight for a live string section for Karneval? (And he was the secondary co-composer with Shiro Hamaguchi...)

And that opening cue... MARVELLOUS isn't it! :D

Edit: Amish, THANK YOU SO MUCH for the recent Saegusa... I was only just barely aware of this composer and thanks to you I'm pretty much smitten. Particular gratitude for the cross section of works - a bit of classical, a bit of traditional symphonic film score, a bit of early 90s synthesiser fun... Really, really appreciated! :D

Marvelous stuff, thank you very much :D

I agree that Dungeon is quite lovely and it certainly has that "movie magic" quality woven into it, even amidst the rather simple percussive action. Looking forward to his Heavy Object aswell.

I think Heavy Object is going to knock Familia Myth right out of the park. It's going to be more serious and have less of the delightful magical fantasy feeling of Myth... but it feels like it's going to be an ORCHESTRAL SCORE proper, not just a score that uses an orchestra. All you need to get an orchestra is money - but to give them something proper to play, you need somebody who knows what they're doing. That's Keiji Inai all over. In the space of three years, he's gone from "Who the hell's he supposed to be?!" to the name that you see and get excited at the prospect of what might be coming. He moved from nobody with no budget to possibly the most exciting newcomer (Natsumi Kameoka hot on his tail) - miraculous and wonderful.

Push and pull, folks... Iron Blooded Orphans is utterly terrible. Oh, well.

Surprisingly enough, I had the fortune to pause the first seconds of this new Gundam series that just popped up and look for the staff involved, and when I read Masaru Yokoyama, I just said "This is going to blow big time, isn't it?" as I slowly press the play button again with an uninterested look on my face.

And boy does it sounds worse than ever, shitty rhythmic guitars crammed with obnoxious electronica and don't get me even started with the horrible brass+string in here.

Can't keep your standards high when it came from the guy who did the scores for Queen's Blade and Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso.

In regards to Keiji Inai, I'm very excited as well to see more of that Heavy Object score, the intro scene that's almost 4:30 minutes long had me drooling for more. While his Danmachi score for me wasn't perfect as a whole, he really knows when to send an orchestra to full blast and you can really hear that grand surround quality on this one. :)

Masaru Yokoyama must be the oddest choice in history to write a Gundam score. Hiroyuki Sawano would've been a *worse* choice, but it would've at least been a choice I could have grudgingly understood. I just can't get my head round it.

Never mind, I guess. You win some, you lose some. I'm 99.9% sure this is going to be one we lose... but in a season with a breakout score like Heavy Object, and a year with Rokka, Akagami, Little Witch 2, Kancolle, Familia, Fafner, Soul Of Gold, and Kindaichi 2... I guess I can forgive a crappy Gundam score from Masaru Yokoyama. ;)

I've actually been moderately impressed by two recent scores, Alan Silvestri's The Walk and Harry Gregson-Williams' The Martian. Neither one was something I expected to enjoy but both were interesting in some way. The Walk is the first decent theme to come from Silvetri in quite some time even if he still relies too heavily on synths. Still it is refreshing to hear a recent film score that is recorded properly and actually sounds clear as it should. The Martian gives us a solid modern score that actually mixes the synths properly with solo instruments showing restraint and occasionally brings out some larger ensemble parts. This one is more texture than themes but it works nicely and I quite enjoyed it. Neither one is anything close to what we should be getting out of hollywood but they were both quite nice and both got me to revisit them. Which is a lot more than I could say for John Powell's Pan, which seemed like a childish effort compared to his HTTYD scores (surprise?). You can hear the smaller ensemble and something about the theme seems surprisingly familiar, though I'm not sure why.

Also, I actually met up with Tango while I was in London recently. It was nice to share a few beers and mostly chat about everything but music. It would certainly be interesting to meet up with others from the group in person some day over a beer or other similar beverage.

MICHIRU OSHIMA - LITTLE WITCH ACADEMIA: THE ENCHANTED PARADE ORIGINAL SOUND TRACK
FLAC | 159.1 MB | 22 TRACKS | 00:28:09
Russian State Symphony Cinema Orchestra, conducted by Sergei Skripka


VGMdb (http://vgmdb.net/album/54267)
Catalog Number: LWA2-BD-02
Release Date: October 2015

Download: https://mega.nz/#!sA8BgR4Z!7lUL-z9_iQ5rnEtitYUaA5qE4ygDB4sAjoBNLq8dFuM

Thank you, nextday. This is glorious. Everything I'd hoped a new Oshima score would be, except it could be a little longer.

Yoh Yoshinari's autograph...

I normally post in the Film Score thread, but since Oshima is also a regular in this Thread, here are 3 scores I recently added.....

SOUTH BOUND (2007): Thread 195084

MISAKI #1 !! (2011): Thread 195081

HOTELIER (2007): Thread 195080



coming soon (lossless):
Dakara Koya (2015)
Kenkaku Shobai (2013)
Mohou-Han (2002)
The Doctor (1999)
Gall Force:Revolution (1996)
Operetta Tanukigoten (2005)
Omizu no Hanamichi (1999)
Jeiku no Okurimono (1997)
British Museum Vol 1 (1990)
Tomoko no Baai (1996)
Ashura no Gotoku (2003)

Bloody YES, YES, YES! Thank you! :D

For those with Spotify, you can check out my latest arrangement of "Holding My Thoughts in My Heart" from Final Fantasy VII. This is my sole contribution to Materia, a project from Loudr that includes over 200 musicians and artists known as the Materia Collective. My arrangement brings back my string musicians. I combine styles from David Arnold throughout to give the music a contemporary sound. I combine Tifa and Aerith's themes together. You will notice that to start, Tifa's Theme will be be more dominant Cloud knows her from his past. Aerith's Theme is used lightly until the music progresses her theme comes to the forefront as Cloud ultimately decides Aerith is the one he loves. Yeah, I go deep into the meaning behind the music and the themes, but I think that making a strong musical narrative makes for smarter music. In my opinion music must have intent behind it which is why Star Wars is nothing without the music. The score is a narrative all on its own. Anyway, I digress... here is the link to my arrangement :). Oh and below that is a link to the first four tracks of 'The ETHEReal String Project' completely free.

https://open.spotify.com/track/5x25XEfu9u7OCHxW4PlEF0

https://soundcloud.com/josh-barron/sets/etherealstringproject

A truly lovely arrangement, but the performance is wonky as hell... Badly, badly out of tune. I would love to hear this one in a professional performance... :)

Some of the other tracks on that album are genuinely shameful - One Winged Angel must sure rate as one of the poorest arrangements in the history of recorded music; add to that the atrocious synthesiser and the badly recorded, tuneless chorus... and the fact that it doesn't even finish properly but instead awkwardly lurches straight into Track 13, and you're really on to a loser. What a shame.

benjamin wallfischs gamba score is fantastic, if you can get over the main titles similarities to holdriges beastmaster.its a mostly classic action adventure score with lots of highlights.a small part of it is more modern kinda like powell and brian tyler, but more classical orchestrated.big orchestral action music.the final 3 tracks alone are worth it.

Hahaha, how the hell did Ben Wallfisch end up scoring a Japanese anime film?!

Some wonderful stuff in there... music basically untouched by the horrors of 21st century cliche. Thank you! It wasn't even on my radar until you mentioned it. :)

Hahaha, how the hell did Ben Wallfisch end up scoring a Japanese anime film?!

Some wonderful stuff in there... music basically untouched by the horrors of 21st century cliche. Thank you! It wasn't even on my radar until you mentioned it. :)

well its not completely untouched of it but definitly not overdone and much more enjoyable than scores that are nothing but that.it is a great listening experience with a constant build up , something that i really really like.i would compare it to the later doreamon scores.

Weekend Saegusa (4)

Kawa yo Towa ni Utsukushiku (1981)
日本合唱曲全集「川よとわに美しく/旅の途の風に」三枝成彰/佐藤敏直作品集 (1997 CD)

FLAC (https://mega.nz/#!1gAhgACQ!de9ofjIvXpKL1vyK9RiQFfL7mD026dx7wQbyKCptXlA)

1-5. Kawa yo Towa ni Utsukushiku (River, Be Beautiful Forever, Shigeaki Saegusa)
6-10. Tabi no To no Kaze ni (To the traveling wind, Toshinao Satoh)
Saegusa's (perhaps) most famous choral work / Eisaku Yoneda(米田栄作)'s poem. Counted as one of the 100 Japanese Choral Masterpieces (http://chorch.fc2web.com/e/100jcm.html).


NOSTALGIE - Shigeaki Saegusa arranges Japanese Lyric Melodies (1994)
「泣きたいだけ泣いてごらん」 三枝成彰編曲による「日本の歌」

FLAC (https://mega.nz/#!dkgzjQAD!MbbtF3Dr42W-e26gP2k5_0QyXBEXafe4XJR2dxTRcpU)


Overture FIVE RINGS (from "Miyamoto Musashi" 1985)
Wind Band arrange:
Reference Performance Collection of All Japan Band Competition's Required Pieces
Tokyo Kosei Wind Orchestra
全日本吹奏楽コンクール課題曲参考演奏集1983-1986 / 東京佼成ウインドオーケストラ

FLAC (https://mega.nz/#!0IJgiI5J!wfkvtHNhkhLYr4AoOGr6lz8x7kC4QatVmgqB42gpR_Q)

Original OP: YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0vTwzYOo7yA)
OST unreleased


Elfaria Suite (1993)
エルファリア組曲
Music for SNES "Elfaria" VGMDB (http://vgmdb.net/album/238)
from NicoNico(mp4/aac) (http://www.nicovideo.jp/watch/sm8418936) - mp3 re-encode (https://mega.nz/#!xVhCCLwY!bSt2dtD1LITNz-mkI_nY3DWzwKM_XklUdYjMqGuKaVY)

More Saegusa. Lossless. Thank you so much!!! :)

Didn't he write a theme for some of the older Gundams? I remember him on the Symphonic Gundam 20th Anniversary Concert. (Lossless Herr Salat reposting Tri Thread 85630)

Speaking of Gundam ... Kawasaki's Gaia Gear has popped up in lossless on What. But only the second ost, with the concert suite. The first one missing. They'll get here eventually.

well its not completely untouched of it but definitly not overdone and much more enjoyable than scores that are nothing but that.it is a great listening experience with a constant build up , something that i really really like.i would compare it to the later doreamon scores.

Hence my use of words like "some" and "basically" - no, it's not COMPLETELY timeless... but there's enough there for it to be a worthwhile listening experience for me. Ben Wallfisch is an actual composer - a musician who thinks musically - and you can hear that running through this score in ways that other scores with a similar "sound" (like the cookie-cutter Powell scores you mentioned) are sorely missing. :)


Didn't he write a theme for some of the older Gundams? I remember him on the Symphonic Gundam 20th Anniversary Concert. (It's somewhere on ffshrine btw if I remember link still works)

He scored Zeta (1985), ZZ (1986), and Char's Counterattack (1988) - I must confess, I have trouble getting my head around his Gundam scores... :O


Speaking of Gundam ... Kawasaki's Gaia Gear has popped up in lossless on What. But only the second ost, with the concert suite. The first one missing. They'll get here eventually.

Ooh, fantastic! I can't wait for that! The second one is, I think, the most valuable of the two... but as you say, it'll turn up sooner or later! :)

EDIT: I see that Oshima's Rokka has just appeared on VGMDB showing a Bonus CD release on December 10th. A shame that it's a bonus CD... but at this point in time not a surprise, and I'm grateful it's coming out... That'll be a nice Christmas present! :)

Hello everyone, I'm back after a week-long trip to Croatia (nothing musical related) and I sure have missed a bunch of fantastic shares! Thank you all for LWA2 and the recent Saegusa scores. I'll eat them up asap.
I had Gamba on my radar for quite some time now and with each trailer my excitment grew. Glad to know that it delivers. In general, contributions from western artists are rare but they do happen from time to time. I would love to see this trend continue because a Japanese production usually allows and evokes the best in composers.

EDIT: I see that Oshima's Rokka has just appeared on VGMDB showing a Bonus CD release on December 10th. A shame that it's a bonus CD... but at this point in time not a surprise, and I'm grateful it's coming out... That'll be a nice Christmas present! :)
A bonus for the English release, no less. A soundtrack CD has yet to be announced in Japan.

Benjamin Wallfisch Gamba soundtrack reploads please !

A bonus for the English release, no less. A soundtrack CD has yet to be announced in Japan.

What?! That's unusual! Maybe they're plotting their own CD release?

Anyone have the 5 Halo 5 tracks released as of yet? Been trying to find them everywhere

What?! That's unusual! Maybe they're plotting their own CD release?
Probably in one of the later blu-ray volumes. It won't get a CD release because the show sold poorly in Japan (first volume only sold 500). In any case, this seems to be one of those rare occasions where English fans get something before Japan.


Also, I reuploaded Little Witch Academia 2 with track titles for anyone who wants that. Or here's the tracklist if you want to add it yourself:

01 Mushroom Menace In The Lab
02 Title Intro
03 Parade Of The Witch Hunt
04 The Three Mischiefs
05 Akko's Idea: The Happy Time Project
06 Dance Of The Brooms
07 The White Mage Appears...
08 Confrontation With Diana
09 A Trip To Town
10 Tomato Fight
11 The Evil Stirs...
12 The Magic Of Chariot
13 Akko's Parade Preparation
14 Shiny Rod's Revival
15 Luna Nova's Witch Parade Happy Time
16 The Giant Awakes
17 The Show Must Go On...
18 Sucy To The Rescue / The Chase
19 Lotte's Song Of The Spirits
20 The Witches Versus The Giant
21 Happy Time Ending
22 End Credits

It did badly? Gaahhh... :(


Also, I reuploaded Little Witch Academia 2...

Ooh, thank you! It's a lovely score, although it suffers inevitably from the same problem as did the first - namely, short cues. 22 tracks for 28 minutes of music (ten of them under a minute long, and three under thirty seconds) is always going to be bad news.

It's also sad that the second longest cue of the album (track 20) is nothing more than an extended performance of the main title theme - AGAIN... granted, it's a slightly improved arrangement on the first score, but it still feels like something of a kick in the face for me.

The End Credits cue re-uses the first 40 seconds of the LWA1 end credits recording (it's slightly remixed, but it's the original recording) then glues on track 1, then track 15.

I'm all for thematic consistency between two different scores, but this one feels like a cheat; once you have subtracted the cues which are verbatim restatements of music from the previous score, and the End Credits suite you're left with about 10-15 minutes of actual, unique music. That makes me sad.

I do realise that I probably said something along the lines of "Oshima will never in ten thousand years go back to Moscow for LWA2" which turned out to be dead false - I believe I even predicted that LWA2 would either not get an original score at all (it would reuse the LWA1 score) or that it would get something considerably cheaper and almost certainly not by Oshima. I'm very, very, VERY glad to be proven wrong there... but at the same time it's hard to not be disappointed with the end result, of which about 50% is repetition. Granted, the rest is GOLD, but still...

:(

Has anyone here heard the new Yuri Poteyenko score Fort Ross?

The samples sound good imo - http://www.keepmovingrecords.com/eng/disc/63/

[...] "During the composition of Fort Ross, Poteyenko revisits his classics pirate-themed video game scores (Sea Dogs, Age of Pirates: Caribbean Tales) as well as one of his own personal favorites, Isaak Dunayevsky score for the Soviet production of Captain Grant�s Family. The lush, symphonic swashbuckler score pays equal parts homage to Hans Zimmer's Pirates of the Caribbean for the marauders as well as John Williams whimsical family adventures for the journalists' adventures. Recorded in Moscow, the score recruits all the top talents of the local film music scene who contributed to Poteyenko's past successes."

Takashi Kako Concert 2001
加古隆コンサート～"scene"発売記念サントリーホール・コンサート～
Aired on NHK-BS. I recorded its Audio, not Video. Hard drive capacity at that time...
(1-6) Part 1: Piano solo
(7-18) Part 2: Kako's soundtrack works with orchestra

MP3 128 (https://mega.nz/#!gRATXagB!M0eaGTV-TD6g13yds2ORQPAOKeOpzHUb6Qx2TXCu3e8)

Oh, more good news! GATE gets an official release and it looks like the first volume of GATE only had the leftovers that didn't make it on the soundtrack. GATE is Fujisawa's best score so far and a promising glimpse of a great composer in the making. I can't wait to hear him with a symphony orchestra in the future.



@Sunderella

Fort Ross sounds very promising but I hope it's not just an addon to Age of Pirates. I have to say I prefer Poteyenko, or any classical trained composer for that matter, if they have the freedom or the incentive to write pieces that are several minutes long, and start, develop, and finish properly. This is one of the reasons Age of Pirates is one of my absolute favorite game scores next to Outcast, AFRIKA, MediEvil Resurrection and Ni No Kuni. Games are usually much more open to the classic symphonic structure so I hope Poteyenko scores another game sometime in the future.

PILI HEROES MUSIC COLLECTION LII 56

天籟般樂音，譜繪這江湖情義
九輪異譜原聲帶貳-精選56，在第一CD部分持續以九輪異譜等重量級音樂為主，包含第二片頭曲「君子劍」、片尾曲「少年遊」、 齊天變之歌「男人旅途」，以及傲笑紅塵2015登場曲、病弦角色曲、沖隱無為角色曲、遠滄溟角色曲...等 精彩音樂，給您九輪異譜的最美詩篇！

專輯完美收錄：君子劍、少年遊、男人旅途等演唱曲，以及傲笑紅塵2015登場曲、沖隱無為、墨傾池、遠滄溟 、神機、病弦、不了情琴曲…等精彩曲目。第二CD超值加贈「三足天」迷你專輯，以及專輯3款魔吞不動城明信 片！


精選56專輯主題為「義譜」。象徵英雄化明為暗的高貴情操。


【專輯曲目】：

CD1. 九輪異譜原聲帶貳【精選56】曲目：

01 君子劍（九輪異譜第二片頭曲）

02 縱橫天下（縱橫子氣勢曲）

03 浮世紅塵路（傲笑紅塵2015登場曲）

04 魔夜聽劍（魔夜聽劍角色曲）

05 逢魔七夜（魔夜聽劍武曲）

06 道樸（沖隱無為角色曲）

07 雲天望垂（墨傾池角色曲）

08 潛道者（江南無路角色曲）

09 黑手（唐絕角色曲）

10 魔城獻祭（不動城開陣）

11 神機（神機角色曲）

12 天行無方（遠滄溟角色曲）

13 奪天造化（齊天變氣勢曲）

14 男人旅途（齊天變之歌）

15 聚散一生（別離禪角色曲）

16 夜魔琴（病弦角色曲）

17 情義刀劍淚（君子劍悲愴曲）

18 弦外之音（不了情琴曲）

19 少年遊（九輪異譜第二片尾曲）

CD2. 【三足天元】迷你專輯曲目：

01 三元歸位（祭月崖解靈封）

02 恩斷義連（卻塵思與鶴白丁）

03 血染沙塵（三足天意抗異識）

04 月悠悠情悠悠（縹緲月與祿名封）

https://mega.nz/#!4sUEwJaS!DFlvHjNq8k0imSxOwRLbT2uuINVut2xAnnfprTyERbQ

Saegusa (5)

Radiation Missa (1981/2013 Remaster)

FLAC (https://mega.nz/#!MQZjzC7Y!KxECDlibbaBHcaBJRYIa3FMtNBS9nh85r6sMbB-y2mc)


ME (Eyes 1988)
眼

FLAC (https://mega.nz/#!hEwEkQzA!NCtWj0WhSJdq1bN_HoJWW90_X8_ZqeXqYVNVNqp_2fM)


MOTHER Saigo no Shoujo Eve Original Soundtrack (1995)
MOTHER 最後の少女イヴ オリジナル・サウンドトラック

FLAC (https://mega.nz/#!pAxXDLza!nNdw6zC4ucJBeLf8z_Lu_UAA2VhiOmxO5M4KlHzJbDE)
1-22 Naoki Nishimura
23(ending theme) Shigeaki Saegusa

MOHOU-HAN: Thread 195524

GALL FORCE: THE REVOLUTION: Thread 195526

OMIZU NO HANAMICHI: Thread 195527

Wow what the hell is that music in Radiation Missa? Tango is going to love the crazy disco renditions of latin hymns. It's so off the wall I can almost listen to it. Kinda reminds me of Katamari music with the crazy synth vocals. Lots of crazy synth in Me Eyes too, but at least some instruments added as well.

LOL! Thank you for thinking of me. ;)

That must rate as possibly the most truly bananas album I've ever heard in my life. I think I hate it, but I cannot stop listening to it. It's utterly crazy, fascinating, and completely horrible. Amish - thank you for this experience, and I mean that from the bottom of my heart. It's been almost twenty years since I heard a piece of music (Shostakovich's first piano concerto) that made me feel such contrasting emotions.

And, thank you for the other Saegusa albums... We were ignorant of Saegusa's music - you answered the call and shared with us such wonderful music, which probably could've happened only in this thread. This is the sort of thing that makes me keep on coming back, and I think it's the sort of thing that has resulted in this thread rarely going a day off the top page - in eight years. This thread is the third most popular active thread on the forum - the others being the Film Score Hunt V2 which exists only because I made an impassioned plea for it after childish arguments burned its parent, and a thread about Doctor Who audio dramas that is a mixture of one sentence posts interspersed with download links.

This thread is a jack of all trades, AND a master of all trades. Discussion, check. Quality musicological analysis, check. Friendship, check. Great music, check. Teamwork, check. Discovery, check. Education, check.

Thank you, everyone. :)

It's 1981 LP (before MIDI). Totally performed by hand.

Arslan Senki (2015) - Taro Iwashiro



mp3 (320k): https://www.nyaa.eu/?page=view&tid=740879

In my opinion easily Iwashiro's best work in recent years. But be wary, it's still an Iwashiro soundtrack.

Nonetheless Iwashiro's best in years. The ARSLAN is a pretty damn good concert suite and the rest ranks above the likes of Red Cliff although it lacks a killer theme and the action is (as usual) pretty weak. Still, there are some really nice moments of grandeur and overall the music is well suited for an ancient epic. After his recent disappointments this one is a keeper.


Thank you so much, amish, for the massive share of Saegusa. I really love the choral stuff. But his non-orchestral stuff is, as mentioned, quite bizarre. I will be happy to see more works from him that are not so easily available on the net otherwise.


And thanks yepsa for more early Oshima. If you compare "the Solem Earth" in Gall Force to a very similar musical idea in Rokka no Yuusha you can clearly hear how much her technical mastery of the orchestra has matured. It's executed in a much more sophisticated way, there's more energy and life in the orchestration and the feelings of grandeur, epicness and adventure are much more clearly conveyed. I kind of see parallels to John Williams, were it took quite a bit of time until his melodic sense matured enough that he stepped into my pantheon of worldclass composers with Jaws, Raiders, Star Wars and all the other masterpieces, culminating in Hook, which is not only one of my favorite christmas scores but also one of my favorite orchestral scores of all time. Oshima doesn't seem to stop maturing anytime soon and her best work could still be years away. But even right now she is already a worldclass composer in my eyes. Hopefully we'll get many more Moscow scores in the future.

For those of you who don't like to deal with torrents, I am uploading a cleaned up version of that link that I tagged to my liking.

Grab a direct version of Arslan Senki Here (http://mir.cr/OSGPQIQW). Same files just tagged in Romaji.

Saegusa (6)

SHIGEAKI SAEGUSA SELECTION Vol.1-3 (2008)

Vol.1 Two Phantasms
三枝成彰セレクションVol.01 二つの幻

FLAC (https://mega.nz/#!wFg0GDCS!dxOdZRuKrMcCS2IAFnTyzVdPr3VaaccARBIPRaceduM)

Disc 1
1st movement from Wind Quintet
Novelette for String Quartet
3 Stars in Judea
Madrigal for 6 Sopranos
Disc 2
Radiation Mass (Live)


Vol.2 Requiem (for mixed chorus)
The Tokyo Symphony Chorus / Tokyo Symphony Orchestra
三枝成彰セレクションVol.02 レクイエム (混声合唱版)

FLAC (https://mega.nz/#!VJZDEAJZ!3N69xYmIFDNGN7gDJsESFCx2pGfAttA3glya2CHFm28)


Vol.3 �ber die Trommel
三枝成彰セレクションVol.03 太鼓について

FLAC (https://mega.nz/#!RdYigJaQ!jhlpNoPhVR6kAl_7KFZJ4CQAB_KFxlZhzrOloi0s1Dc)
Konzert f�r Trommel und Orchester "�ber die Trommel"
Flute Concerto


The Works of Shigeaki Saegusa (1989)
三枝成彰の音楽

FLAC (https://mega.nz/#!MRYgXQJQ!mZn6OjAOLyTjjFr84t_W6v2ZNfIaLu9wL3QtxoUjHn4)


That's all for now. Still some missing albums...Tetsuwan Atom(Astro Boy 1980), Amon Saga, Banipalwitt(Catnapped!), 24 Eyes, and opera DVDs. >See you tomorrow (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DOxxb_3JMFs)

Thank you @nextday for the kankyou soundtrack. I love the music

amish, thanks for more Saegusa.

https://soundcloud.com/josh-barron/seal-of-the-wind-for-string-orchestra-and-piano-preview

Thanks, Tango for your feedback! I am sorry I didn't reply sooner! We are always looking to make out recording better :). Every bit of input helps us improve! I'm glad you think the arrangement is nice as that means a lot :D. I have another string and piano piece above in the form of an arrangement from FFX-2. I just got my sample libraries up and running so I can start writing music faster then putting everything to sheet music :P. Anyway, I plan to get this recorded with live musicians in the future, but for now here is a mockup version performed by yours truly ;).

MIDI was only two years away from final completion in 1981, and there were other ways to "do it" many years previously; granted, none quite as simple and "plug and play" as MIDI, but sequencing very much existed. Particularly in the percussion, it is very obvious that those passages aren't performed by humans; the mechanical, machine gun fire precision gives the game away and I presume it's exactly the effect Saegusa was going after. :)

JBarron: Thank you for taking that feedback as it was intended; not as a criticism. As a word of friendly advice... It's a whole lot easier to make sure that you're a) in tune, and b) in tune with each other if you have all your musicians playing together in the same room! If you're recording each instrument one at a time, your performer simply can't rely on tuning by ear; inaccuracies which aren't readily obvious when heard in isolation suddenly become glaringly obvious when placed in the mix with the others. All you need is for your violin to be a little sharp and your viola to be a little flat... then the whole thing sounds like crap.

Your technique - which is giving you the ability to basically build a string orchestra using one person and a bunch of technology, but have the performance 100% organic and not synthesized in any way - is 100% DOING IT RIGHT but you've got to be so careful...

I knew a guy who wrote a cello concerto a good fifteen, almost twenty years ago and recorded it in this manner. He played cello in a local community ensemble - from the members of the orchestra, plus some of his own friends, plus calling in a number of favours, he got together about twenty people who, between them, had or could get hold of (and could play - to a good standard) every instrument in a standard symphony orchestra (except timpani and snares, which could not be transported for whatever reason so he over-dubbed synthesised percussion later on. He recorded them steadily, one by one, in his home studio over a period of months and then started to glue the recordings together. Once all the overdubbing had been completed, he had an "orchestra" of about sixty players. The recording sounds bloody amazing even if you don't make allowances for 1997-ish audio editing capabilities not being up to much. It sounds a bit... "off"... sometimes, but the headline is that he "created" a recording of his cello concerto played by a sixty piece orchestra, and it basically cost him nothing but beer and a HELL of a lot of time. He used every trick in the book - even things that today are considered pretty smart in online editing; pitch correction for wrong notes and mistunings, note lengthening, time-shifting, gain-riding on individual parts, the whole shebang.

It can be done. :D

JEIKU NO OKURIMONO: Thread 195974

BRITISH MUSEUM VOL. 1: Thread 195976

ASHURA NO GOTOKU: Thread 195978

TAKAYUKI HATTORI - RESTAURANT DE ROI ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK
FLAC | 163.6 MB | 13 TRACKS | 00:37:24


Catalog Number: SRCL-3235
Release Date: May 21, 1995

Tracklist
01. Ouverture de Restaurant de Roi (http://picosong.com/6j7M/) http://i.imgur.com/v9WfOyB.gif
02. Le grande gar�on dans la legende
03. Gastronome aimable
04. Le temps paresseux
05. Precious Junk (version orchestral)
06. Bon courage!!
07. Le r�ve solitaire
08. Le jour de repos
09. Bol�ro des gar�ons
10. La illusion
11. Un verre de la larme
12. Precious Junk (Solo violoncelle avec piano)
13. Th�me de Restaurant de Roi

Download: https://mega.nz/#!YUVl3IYJ!XiR3tIwQULuaGA3T5uRcdOZvfgn13cuEEjx4cWsMMDY

Here's another old Hattori score released around the same time as Kura (Thread 169292) and The Longest Tour (Thread 174019).

It seems many of Hattori's older works were very symphonic, more so than many of his drama scores from recent years. I hope he returns to his roots for his upcoming taiga drama score!

Oshima's Adiantum Blue score holds a special place in my heart, but alas! I can't seem to find my copy. The Mega link in the request thread has expired as well. Would someone upload this treasure for me again? Thanks in advance.

Yepsa, I really appreciate you uploading these live action Oshima scores. Her and others' non-anime works are so easily overlooked in the forums, but in this thread they're given the attention they deserve. T. Sahashi's Deerman, R. Koroku's Under Aurora, K. Sugiyama's Little Sinbad, for instance, I wouldn't have found anywhere else. When I have more disposable income, I'll try to contribute some as well. : )

I'll reupload Adiantum Blue this evening when I get home from work. :)

MICHIRU OSHIMA
Adiantum Blue
Moscow International Symphonic Orchestra
conducted by
Konstantin D Krimets



FLAC - http://www.solidfiles.com/d/03297bb874/ (210mb)

My rip at FLAC Level 8 - scans included - track titles in Romaji.

Michiru Oshima in a melodramatic, full-on weepy. 'Nuff said. :)

tangotreats, thank you! I'm going to get lost inside this album now. Good night all.

Has anyone listened to Simon Rattle Conducts Sibelius? OMG the performance is perfect :D!

How about a dose of good SciFi? ...well you know how it goes...



AKB0048
The Orchestral Score (REMASTERED)
Hiroshi Takaki and Slavek Kowalewski



Download (https://mega.nz/#!25xyRQ5A!AUT_p4ORGJCL6l2Z61EvvCiw1XOQSH0fQS3IJTt-OzA)
FLAC / Level 8 / 18 Tracks / 52 min

AKB0048 is certainly the most unexpected show to get an orchestral score in recent years. We have a show about an idol group and in best japanese fashion, a Grade A classical trained composer scored music for it. The only way this could be more amazing is if they actually went to Moscow or Warsaw. Still we have here a surprisingly epic score that covers all the important checkpoints of a classic SciFi adventure. All the pop arrangements feel less like your standard "happy-go-lucky" and more like a proper orchestral score. The action is really good as well and almost steps into Kanno territory with Jet Fight. Takaki shows so much promise and it's unreal how little projects he actually has under his belt. I'm of course more than happy with Precure because in my personal opinion, his Precure scores are fantastic, and if nothing else, I can really feel the joy and love for music in his writing. But it would be nice to see him on more "serious" projects, so please give this gentleman Galactic Heroes or anything more prestigious in the future.


STAR DRIVER
The Orchestral Score (Remastered)
MONACA



Download (https://mega.nz/#!y5g3UT7S!0HrcZ--GGEl2IjrTVTAD7KCvvMSmiDSma_PhgxKPUTM)
MP3 / 320kbps / 47 Tracks / 103 min

Star Driver has a bit of everything for the orchestral lover: Superhero action, fantasy wonder, a sinister waltz, classic SciFi battles, silverscreen romance, a mini ballet and even orchestral J-Pop. It's less of a cohesive score like Captain Earth but rather an impressive portfolio for MONACA, Ryuuichi Takada and Keigo Hoashi in particular. For a music production company there is a surprisingly big amount of talent and individual voice which you can really see flourish in Captain Earth which to this day is not completely available. Unless MONACA pulls another surprise release like Star Driver in 2016 I will be more and more tempted to buy the last volume because the music for the final episode is a real killer.


Enjoy





@nextday: I'm quite fond of his Slayers movie scores. Now that would be a joy to listen to in FLAC but last time I checked only 192kbps is available on the net :(
Nonetheless many thanks for more Hattori.


@JBarron2005: It certainly is quite impressive but over 70€ for the complete CD set is a bit much for me right now.

@JBarron2005: It certainly is quite impressive but over 70€ for the complete CD set is a bit much for me right now.

Yeah I found the price tag staggeringly expensive. I love the clips of Symphony 7 though. I believe it will be the definitive set :).

For me, the only Sibelius symphony cycle I truly love is Collins' early 50s set with the LSO. It's mono, but I find it unsurpassed to this day - even by Rattle and the mighty BPO. :)

So the new Macross series was officially unveiled with episode 1 to premiere in just two months from now. The bad news: there's no mention of Kanno.

There isn't a composer listed at all, actually. And the PV had a synth orchestra so they haven't even recorded any music yet. Not good signs.

That music does have a somewhat Kanno sensation about it, though, particularly in the harmonic movement in the final 40 seconds...

I have a feeling we will get Kanno, and I have a feeling it will be a biggie. I hope I don't get proven wrong in January; it's been eight years since Kanno's last "big" score (I speak of Frontier) and if nothing else, surely a show fronted by Kawamori - the director whose collaboration with Kanno has given us Escaflowne, Aquarion, Frontier, and Plus - can wake her up...

Besides, Macross makes money, Kawamori makes money, and Kanno makes money. Japanese productions aren't known to screw with winning formulas.

Even if we don't get Kanno... it doesn't look like it's going to be a cheapo copout show... I'm sure it will produce *something* decent. Kawamori got Takaki for AKB0048... now THERE'S a possibility to think about... :D

Edit: Gundam Origin Episode 2 turned up today... loads of music not on the first soundtrack album and some of it is really brilliant. :)

I wonder what happened during AKB0048. Seemed like a perfect fit for Kanno to work on.

Maybe they couldn't afford her. Takaki is insanely talented but you can bet that his fee isn't a quarter of Kanno's - plus, I doubt Kanno will get out of bed for anything less than Warsaw these days and just lately seems to be picking her projects pretty much exclusively based on the fun travel opportunities it provides. (She hasn't recorded a score with a domestic orchestra in more than twenty years... but she HAS recorded in Israel, Warsaw, Vienna, Reykjavik, London, New York, and God-knows where else... I imagine she has enough money and enough kudos that she no longer composes as a job, but takes projects that interest her or which feed her desire for international travel.)

Kowalewski... I will never understand how he ended up involved - again, a great composer (Star Fight in AKB0048, for example, is all his) but the guy is barely doing anything at all; adverts here at there, a drama every couple of years... Being not Japanese and trying to work in Japan as a solo artist is pretty much impossible unless you brand yourself as a) the cool foreign guy, b) the stupid foreign guy, or c) the guy who does donkey work for other artists with better reputations; in a similar vein as Hamaguchi is to Tanaka but with added difficulties.

On other matters... why the FUCK is everybody (in other threads) going crazy over the music in the latest Star Wars trailer? It's a pile of poorly written, cheap synthesized shit with a humiliatingly amateurish version of Leia's theme tacked on the end. Is that really all you need now? Do people actually like it for any reason or are they just having a fangasm over hearing something that peripherally sounds like Leia's theme?

Besides, Macross makes money, Kawamori makes money, and Kanno makes money. Japanese productions aren't known to screw with winning formulas.
This is the main reason why I would be very confused if they didn't get Kanno. It wouldn't make sense financially for them to switch out Kanno with someone new.

Macross Frontier's music broke records. In total, they ended up selling over one million CDs from all the singles and albums. The first soundtrack alone sold 190,000 copies.

Macross Frontier's Soundtrack is 1st Anime Album in 11 Years to Rank in Japan's Top 3 | Anime News Network (http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2008-06-10/1st-anime-album-in-11-years-to-rank-in-japan-top-3)

Bloody hell! That thing must've made its money back a hundred times over.

Surely Kanno's going to turn up here...

What is it about some of these Japanese composers/anime studios and their passion for recording stuff abroad? It is not like they don't have good and affordable musicians for big projects like this, domestically.

I wanna stay optimistic regarding Macross, but they're usually pretty proactive about giving Kanno top billing in the announcements of staff, so I'm not sure that's a good sign.

The trailer music gives me a heavy jrpg vibe, but that might just be the sheer synthiness of the temp track(and the mention of Capcom in the staff.) After the 40 sec mark, it honestly reminds me most of Hamauzu. Boy, that would be a trip. :D

It's a pile of poorly written, cheap synthesized shit with a humiliatingly amateurish version of Leia's theme tacked on the end.

You mean Han Solo and the Princess, which could be argued is Han's theme and it's in the middle Luke's theme is at the end ;)

But I agree that as music it sucks. I guess all the love stems from some so-called "emotional hype" people got from it.

The Star Wars trailer music was easily recognizable as typical, trashy trailer arrangements that Williams never laid a hand upon, for me, at least. But for my better half, it moved him to actual tears to listen to the music-only version on repeat, and I couldn't bring myself to take a jab at it in front of him. I'm super excited to hear what Williams has in store for us, but I shake my head in shame for people who think that it's in any way representative of his new score.

I wanna stay optimistic regarding Macross, but they're usually pretty proactive about giving Kanno top billing in the announcements of staff, so I'm not sure that's a good sign.

The trailer music gives me a heavy jrpg vibe, but that might just be the sheer synthiness of the temp track(and the mention of Capcom in the staff.) After the 40 sec mark, it honestly reminds me most of Hamauzu. Boy, that would be a trip. :D

Aaah! I thought I got a little bit of Hamauzu as well, but I thought I was losing my mind so I didn't mention it! It's in the rhythm.

Actually now you're making me think of it... this whole thing has Hamauzu stamped all over it.

My own personal distaste for his music aside, that would sure be an unusual choice - he doesn't have much of a reputation in the world of anime and he seems to be very busy working on various FF projects right now... but stranger things have happened!

One thing I think we can be sure of, if nothing else... the music in the trailer isn't the finished score!


What is it about some of these Japanese composers/anime studios and their passion for recording stuff abroad? It is not like they don't have good and affordable musicians for big projects like this, domestically.

Japan isn't really blessed with studio facilities to produce that kind of sound. Domestic ensembles typically hover around 40-45 players because that's about all you can squash into the biggest rooms at Sound Inn and Avaco Creative, where 90% of the domestic scores are recorded.

The domestically-recorded scores have a very identifiable sound about them; closely miked, no room ambience, and mixed in a way contrary to the natural layout of a symphony orchestra. It's quick, and it gets the job done... but when they're after something a cut above, there really aren't many choices - you record in a full scale concert hall, twist NHK's arm and get 509 studio, or you go abroad.

The Warsaw relationship has obviously been a fruitful one since it's been going for almost thirty years - recording in Poland is cheaper than recording in Tokyo and everything is already there. They can fly to Warsaw, record the score in one of the world's most envied acoustic spaces with an A-Grade symphony orchestra (used to playing together and almost always in that same hall; the domestic scores are usually performed by freelance, ad hoc players) and get a performance and sound that's up to classical standards, have a fun holiday in Poland, and probably still have money spare from what they'd have to pay to achieve something similar in Japan. (If they went to Prague, it'd be cheaper still - but the CoPP is a recording orchestra - cheap and cheerful, whereas the Warsaw Philharmonic is world-class.)

Going to other places - particularly Kanno's globe-trotting escapades - I suspect have more to do with extravagance and showing off. No matter how they try to dress it up ("I needed a specific kind of sound I could only get here", etc) Kanno's journey to Austria to record a sappy soap opera score with the Vienna Opera Ball Orchestra happened because Yoko Kanno wanted to go to Vienna. Lovely score, lovely performance... but they could just as easily have done that in Tokyo.

Also, in 2011 we have the ludicrous situation of Toshihiko Sahashi recording Majin in Tokyo, but coming to London to overdub the brass! Yes, English brass players are pretty special, but they didn't need to do that. The score didn't use the brass in any particularly special way. Even if it had, nobody seriously believes that people playing that game will find their experience enhanced by recording the score in two different countries. Sahashi wanted to go to London again, there was money in the bank, they made it happen - simple as that.

Weird, very weird... :)

One thing I think we can be sure of, if nothing else... the music in the trailer isn't the finished score!

I think we are over-evaluating the tune, which is hopefully something completely random the sound department put together for the presentation. Part of me thinks the production may be far from the point where a composer could walk in and score a reel (didn't they say the new year special thing will be a "mostly complete version" of the first episode? They haven't reached the point where they could at least fully wrap up that one?) My guess is whoever is on board, if anyone, is likely working on the songs right now.

I sure hope they are not rushing this thing though. Some of the mecha footage from the PV looked kind of antique, as if they were made around the same time as Frontier (you know, back when there were huge contrasts between CG mecha, and characters and backgrounds) Surely they can do better than that after all this time?

Traditionally, anime scores are recorded weeks or months before the series or even the first episode is anywhere near to being finished. Anime is rarely scored to picture; composers see plot outlines, perhaps art, storyboards, and early animatics to get a feel for the show, and then write a "library" of cues of varying lengths and moods which are then cut up and edited into the episodes as necessary. (There are exceptions that prove the rule.)

If the first episode is indeed airing in January, the score has almost certainly been recorded already in its entirety; perhaps it's not mixed or mastered yet but if there are live musicians involved in any way, it's already done. It entirely depends on the schedule. Perhaps they're cutting it fine - for instance, maybe they recorded it a couple of weeks ago and the recording sessions hadn't been mixed well enough to be ready in time for the PV. Perhaps it was a conscious decision to actually score the trailer.

Time will tell. I really hope Macross Delta is going to be 2016's big Warsaw score... and I really REALLY hope it's going to turn out to be Kanno's triumphant return to the large scale orchestral score, her first since 2007's Frontier.

Incidentally, Frontier premiered their first episode at Christmas 2007, but the rest of the series didn't start proper until the April season - and that first episode had fully completed Warsaw score. I expect they're pulling the same trick here. The fact that there's been no Kanno announcement at the same time as the rest of the staff, I actually find quite encouraging. It seems like a little bit of marketing hype building. If it wasn't Kanno they'd have just said so and the composer announcement would've passed by with the complete lack of fanfare such announcements usually do. (With the exception of Kanno, Hisaishi, and possibly Sagisu, does the mainstream really give a shit who's scoring something?)

On other matters... why the FUCK is everybody (in other threads) going crazy over the music in the latest Star Wars trailer? It's a pile of poorly written, cheap synthesized shit with a humiliatingly amateurish version of Leia's theme tacked on the end. Is that really all you need now? Do people actually like it for any reason or are they just having a fangasm over hearing something that peripherally sounds like Leia's theme?

I absolutely agree that the arrangement itself is crap, but the second that the "Han Solo and the Princess" theme appears in the trailer makes my eyes tear up... Nostalgia (especially that fueled by hype) is a helluva drug.

I actually was getting my hopes real high up that the new Star Wars was going to be a return to old class, with Williams on board, real animatronics, make-up and sets, perhaps with enough movie magic to make way for the return of traditional orchestral scores. You even have enough classical trained composers, old and new, working right now to make it happen: Benjamin Wallfisch, Kevin Kaska, Mike Verta, Frederic Talgorn, Lennie Moore, Wataru Hokoyama, James Hannigan. BUT the new trailer made that hope faint a little. Instead of returning to class with a special arrangement for the trailer like the first teaser we get the same generic garbage like all the others. Williams is still not in good health so perhaps he intended to score the trailer but at the last minute they went with an alternative.

I actually was getting my hopes real high up that the new Star Wars was going to be a return to old class, with Williams on board, real animatronics, make-up and sets, perhaps with enough movie magic to make way for the return of traditional orchestral scores. You even have enough classical trained composers, old and new, working right now to make it happen: Benjamin Wallfisch, Kevin Kaska, Mike Verta, Frederic Talgorn, Lennie Moore, Wataru Hokoyama, James Hannigan. BUT the new trailer made that hope faint a little. Instead of returning to class with a special arrangement for the trailer like the first teaser we get the same generic garbage like all the others.

First off, I apologize if this is a difficult read - English is not my first language.

You think of what's ideal. I bet the production diary of something of this caliber - a resurrection of an immensely popular franchise - is closer to being an absolute nightmare or hell itself, than ideal. I'm thinking of development process for this teaser clip alone. All the many meetings they attended to please god-knows-how-many opinionated individuals who have a stake in this film, the excruciating process of getting approvals for every frame and sfx and music: I'm sure there were many scenarios they had to deal with where some group liked the same approach for one tiny little sequence of this teaser and the other didn't, and no side would back off (they never do). All the re-cuts of the clip that were made in the wake of this, the many different edits of the music that were assembled to fit the new picture, all those other meetings they attended for approvals of the new cut - only to realize what they've done to save that sequence has now broken that sequence, or even another sequence, with another group of opinionated individuals who were previously happy with it. I suppose this keeps going until deadline looms in and finally some approvals are made. I'd be very, very surprised if the tune you guys are criticizing here for example was made with love and care. It was likely finalized at the eleventh hour after going through endless amount of frustration and direction changes and alterations - all to the point where those who assembled it couldn't care less if it was recorded, appropriate, clever or what not. Of course what I said here is purely a guess I took based on stuff that often slips from composers or production crew about troubled productions but it goes without saying that pleasing those crowds at film studios, particularly in the case of big titles, is something no amount of background training in music or talent could do. I also think one of the reasons some of these talents you mentioned don't get much "stage time" these days is simply because when it comes for pleasing crowds, they don't really shine, whereas certain others (and I don't wish to call names here) farm all the big titles simply because they know how to handle this situation.

Well, all I can say is that I could've done better myself with less than an hour's work - with a day's work it could've been amazing, and I'd have done it for free. A thousand composers who are infinitely more talented than I am would have also done it for free, just for the pleasure of being involved in something Star Wars. The wally they got to score it (his name escapes me) has enjoyed a jobbing career scoring small and cheap TV shows - and his inherent lack of musical ability shines through like a beacon, when you hear how he has taken Williams' nuanced, gorgeously orchestrated, harmonically colourful theme, broken it down to a basic melody and series of chord progressions, and dressed it up in the clothes of a piece of common trailer-music trash.

Obviously, this is the year 2015 and film-making is no longer about the craft - it's about making money, riding on the backs of successful franchises, remakes, reboots, and appealing to the lowest common denominator. It would have still been nice if somebody had thought "Hmm, this is one of the most successful franchises in history, which has become an integral part of Western culture, and music was a very important part of that, and this film is maybe the most greatly anticipated IN THE HISTORY OF CINEMA... so maybe we should make a bit of an effort with the trailer and not score it like a cheap commercial."


First off, I apologize if this is a difficult read - English is not my first language.

May I ask what your first language is, please? Your English is better than most native speakers. :)

The wally they got to score it (his name escapes me)

The "music" the trailer was by some guy named Fredric Lloyd (Force and Luke theme) and a trailer "music" company called Confidential Music (Piano and Han Solo and the Princess).


Williams is still not in good health so perhaps he intended to score the trailer but at the last minute they went with an alternative.

Also apparently there was still a session left at the time, so perhaps he was busy working on the film's score

May I ask what your first language is, please? Your English is better than most native speakers. :)

LOL. You flatter me. It is the one spoken in the country that has had quite a bit of a hurdle with the rest of the world over a topic I can only summarize into the word "nuke" - though fortunately there has been a resolution/deal/whatever you want to call it, so, I hope that era is over for good. Whoa, don't run away now! I don't bite! ;-)

Yeah, there will be zero creative risk-taking in the next 15 years of Star Wars movies. It's not just that it's Disney, it's also that they spent billions of dollars buying this, and they're damn well going to micromanage the process of getting twice as many billion back out of it. IMDB lists 11 (eleven!) producers and directors credited for this one.

And to be blunt: this trailer's music doesn't matter, because it was a freebie. It's the first star wars movie in ten years; a legion of fans had already decided to see the movie, long before any footage came out, and aren't going to change their minds based on the trailer's music not being a masterpiece. The trailer will be completely forgotten in two months. Trailers for the next five movies will be able to use chunks of the actual new John Williams material.

Evilwurst: Normally I'd agree with you, but this is Star Wars. Every last frame of every single trailer is going to be analysed and examined and talked about and pulled to pieces for the next fifty years. I realise that the trailer having good music or not doesn't in any way impact on the box office receipts... I just think back to interviews conducted in 1977 related to the original Star Wars; they made that film hoping to come up with a moderately sucessful kid's film for a rainy Sunday afternoon. Not once did any of the producers think "Ah, fuck it, this'll make a fucktonne of money anyway so let's not bother with the hard stuff".

They didn't take any creative risks - but they DID have a really, really good story and they told it really, really well. I don't want risk-taking in Star Wars; as I don't want risk taking in Indiana Jones. If ever there was a film that needed to remember its roots and stick to its formula pretty closely, it was The Force Awakens. Star Wars should be fun, theatrical, larger than life, exciting, but relatively straightforward. Don't get me wrong, this bloody film shouldn't be made in the first place and nor should the prequels - but it's going to happen regardless of whether or not it's a good idea so I'm going at it from that perspective...

This is 2015; they're not trying to make the best film they can make - they're trying to make the most MONEY they can make, because as you said, they've spent frankly insane sums of money getting hold of this franchise and now they want to make their money back. Every one of them can talk until the cows come home about "It's Star Wars, we have such respect for this cultural phenomenon!" and all the rest of it... but there's one reason they're making this film, and one reason only - because it's going to make money. They've run out of new ideas and don't like new ideas because they're risky - and when you're spending �130 million making a sodding movie (Star Wars 1977 cost �7 million) you don't want to take any chances that you might not get your money back. So, they're going to shove electrodes up yet another dead franchise's arse and carefully fine-tune every single aspect of this movie to disconnect you with EVEN MORE of your money.

And it's going to work. This film is going to break every single box office record you can think of.


LOL. You flatter me. It is the one spoken in the country that has had quite a bit of a hurdle with the rest of the world over a topic I can only summarize into the word "nuke" - though fortunately there has been a resolution/deal/whatever you want to call it, so, I hope that era is over for good. Whoa, don't run away now! I don't bite!

To be honest, the one country I associate with the word "nuke" is the USA, because they're the only country to have ever actually USED a nuke - twice. ;)

Might you be talking about Russia? Can you shed any light on "blyat suka"? ;)

LOL. You flatter me. It is the one spoken in the country that has had quite a bit of a hurdle with the rest of the world over a topic I can only summarize into the word "nuke" - though fortunately there has been a resolution/deal/whatever you want to call it, so, I hope that era is over for good. Whoa, don't run away now! I don't bite! ;-)

I really hope we dont elect a Republican into office next year... Sanders, may the force be with you. :)

Heart Cocktail Vol.5-6 - Shigeaki Saegusa (1991)
TV anime soundtrack / Saegusa & Masatsugu Shinozaki Orchestra

FLAC (https://mega.nz/#!gIgEwbQI!AQ7k_BPwZwQZIHU31AUbo-JEpgO7l0bSqHCRz2h0Fzo)
Heart Cocktail[OST]
1-2 Naoya Matsuoka
3 TONY'S SHOW
4 Ken Shima
5-6 Shigeaki Saegusa


for Kaoru Wada collectors

Miyazawa Kenji Sono Ai Original Soundtrack (1996)
Tetsuji Hayashi / Arranged by Kaoru Wada
宮澤賢治 -その愛- オリジナル・サウンドトラック (林哲司/オーケストレーション:和田薫)

FLAC (https://mega.nz/#!5sRGWRAa!v_g8Y1lvgRyi_T4yvRgxa6-Yl4ZakQxce_btRcRKMBg)


Another album dedicated to Kenji Miyazawa

KENJI - Takashi Kako (1988)
Kako(piano), Nachi Nozawa (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nachi_Nozawa)(narration), Hajime Mizoguchi(cello), Masatsugu Shinozaki Strings
KENJI - 加古隆 (朗読:野沢那智)

FLAC (https://mega.nz/#!VUxUDLLL!sZWJI-ImG3zm60mJuW8PI9R7rxDwngGsD4uZWamNyOM)

Saw on my Twitter that Natsumi Kameoka is currently in London for a recording session. Hopefully something exciting.

:D

Probably something Kancolle related. Best case for me is a symphonic album with the LSO but it's most likely the movie score.

Wot????! Ooooh that's got to be nice!

Edit: Not just London, but Abbey Road. I think we ALL know what this means... :D

Edit again: Wrote that from a taxi driving about five minutes away from Abbey Road. Spooky or what?!

Nextday: Love the picture you put up on VGMDB for Kameoka - it's a British organ but the text on her Facebook page suggests she was in Melbourne! Do you know the full story? :)

I don't know, tango. The only thing I can think of is that Eminence is based in Australia (Sydney, not Melbourne) and Kameoka has previously done arrangements for works they performed.

Looking for suggestions for anime score albums/cues to explore. I am interested in beautiful, harmonic and emotionally weighty tunes written for/performed by an orchestra or a solo piano. Not interested in suspenseful, horror, goofy, wall-to-wall action, or band-style stuff.

Some of the tunes I have enjoyed in the past that I associate with this description are
"Chihayafuru Main Theme" (Yamashita),
"Intermittent Hope" from Space Brothers (Watanabe),
"Oath" from Romeo X Juliette (Sakimoto),
"Solitary Pilgrimage" from Fate/stay Night (Kawai),
"My Dear, What is Your Name?" from Aquarion EVOL (Kanno),
"Sis Puella Magica!" from Puella Magi Madoka Magica (Kajiura),
"Swirling About the Rough Seas" from Gargantia (Iwashiro),
the last 50 seconds of "Forest of Deer God" from Princess Mononoke (Hisaishi),
"Kira, Whose Heart Never Falters" from Gundam SEED DESTINY OST 3 (Sahashi)
etc

I have more or less explored the discographies of the composers I just mentioned to find similar, if not more of the same, sound so I'd most appreciate suggestions from other musicians/scores that offer tunes like this, even if it is a cue or two.
Been thinking of making a start with the works of Michiru Oshima so if she has anything like these in her body of work, I'd much appreciate suggestions here too.

Boy you're in for an adventure. In my opinion there is currently no other media composer working today excelling more at what you want. I'm serious, at the very least its a tie between her, Joe Hisaishi and Akira Senju.

Fullmetal Alchemist (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O67bH25sO4A)

One of my favorite if not my favorite Oshima score.

Blast of Tempest (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkoJOvwYffw)

Her best score from a technical standpoint and so damn beautiful.

Xam'd: Lost Memories (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1szIi3eWyg&list=PL15618AA8BC998D7F&index=53)

Here she channels Hisaishi with such effortlessness and what a beautiful yet tragic melody it is. Orchestration is undoubtly French school.

Patema Inverted (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xpHDELDVQoc)

This is pure movie magic music, it is very reminiscent of Max Steiner's Gone with the Wind.

Sound of the Sky (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLpZ2Bd6rdM)

A very intimate and pastoral orchestral score, it also has a very beautiful verson of Amazing Grace.

Hana Yori Dango (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNXbTYImQ4E)

Here you can clearly hear how close her music actually is to the romantical repertoire.

Le Chevalier D'eon (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZIfDhNtteVU)

A "typical" Oshima score with beauty, lyricism and a tragic core.

I could also list countless TV series and films: "Pride", "Year One in the North" and "Tenchijin" ranking among her best work.


I've said it before but the state of mind she is in right now reminds so much of Williams golden period where every note is timeless and an instant classic. She's now better than ever and rising up to take Hisaishi's place as my favorite japanese composer.

Yeah, you're in for a treat. Oshima is pretty much a master of the type of music you're looking for. I'd put her down as my favorite Japanese composer, just above Hisaishi.

I don't have time to make a list of cues right now but the list above is a pretty good place to start. :)

Though I can at least add in one of her best piano solo pieces: "Watashi" no Theme (Piano Ver.) (http://picosong.com/6tDy/)

I'll throw this in as one of my favorite Oshima pieces. So simple yet beautiful and obviously inspired by Debussy's early pieces: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mwn6YNvax90

This woman could be so good at writing smaller-scale chamber music. I just want her to write something in that style more frequently. Also check out track 11 from the first Tenchijin soundtrack.

I don't know, tango. The only thing I can think of is that Eminence is based in Australia (Sydney, not Melbourne) and Kameoka has previously done arrangements for works they performed.

It's funny how this stuff works sometimes... One day you're an orchestrator for Yasunori Mitsuda, the next you're playing a vintage pipe organ in concert in Australia, the next you're recording in Abbey Road with the London Symphony Orchestra.

Crazy! :D

Thank you so much for your suggestions!
Can't really put the experience into words. To quote something from the movie Amadeus, albeit with a positive tone, "I didn't think music like this was possible (anymore)".

Sunstrider - You may also appreciate my Loveliness, Elegance, and Nobility compilations. I think they give a nice taste of some of my favorite anime music. I don't know if the links are still up but if they aren't let me know and I can re-post some. Also, I agree with Tango that your English is very good. Welcome to the thread and thanks for joining the discussions.

So Kousuke Yamashita's anime project in january is not Grimgar, which could have been another opportunity to write a grand fantasy score but it's ... "Idol Fighter" Nurse Witch Komugi-chan R? ...ehm... ok ... but ... why?

Sunstrider - You may also appreciate my Loveliness, Elegance, and Nobility compilations. I think they give a nice taste of some of my favorite anime music. I don't know if the links are still up but if they aren't let me know and I can re-post some. Also, I agree with Tango that your English is very good. Welcome to the thread and thanks for joining the discussions.

Thanks for pointing me to that thread, Sirusjr. Looks very good (and pretty crazy) there. Would definitely appreciate, and jump right in if you ever get time to do a reup (all the links seem to be down from my end)

On a side note, honestly, how on earth do you folks keep on top of this!?



So Kousuke Yamashita's anime project in january is not Grimgar, which could have been another opportunity to write a grand fantasy score but it's ... "Idol Fighter" Nurse Witch Komugi-chan R? ...ehm... ok ... but ... why?

...is that even being made to begin with!? LOL

More importantly though, who is scoring Grimgar. (I don't know where one gets this info or I'd have looked instead), and why was Yamashita assumed to be involved? I know with respect to Hollywood, one tends to look into composer/director/producer past relation as a start but that doesn't seem to hold in anime, maybe save for a few cases.

Usually you can get the info from sites like Anime News Network, anidb and other anime news sites. In addition there are some japanese blogs about bgm scoring as well as twitter/facebook/websites of various composers but since I don't know japanese I have to rely on translation software or other good fellows willing to share info.


I just assumed he would be scoring Grimgar because it would be right up his alley. He gave us a fantastic fantasy score with Reign of Revolution and another good one with Call of Chaos. From the visuals and the pv it would be a perfect fit. I'm just baffled what he scored music for instead. Best case is another AKB0048 but I imagine at the very least it will be good fun.

Links have been updated for Loveliness, Elegance, and Nobility 1, 2, and 3. Check the thread for the new links. Vol 3 might not work just yet since I just finished uploading it. This is a good chance for anyone else who may have missed these too.
Thread 118491

Also unlike others on this thread, I don't search out much about projects from my favorite composers as they go on but I do try to keep an eye out for new things from composers I recognize once they do get released. This thread has helped me to do that quite nicely.

On a side note, honestly, how on earth do you folks keep on top of this!?

From my perspective, it's easy. I'm a natural introvert with a deliberately curtailed social life... so it's easier than it would be for some. ;)


Kousuke Yamashita is scoring some weird crap that looks like a cheap ripoff of PreCure

Uh... OK, that's interesting. Looks like a shrewd piece of decision making. Think about it. Every composer wants a franchise that could become big, that he can coast along with, bring in the money, and take the stress off wondering who will write the next pay cheque. I'm 99% sure that's why you end up with Takaki on Precure, Hirano on Hunter, Oshima on Gokusen, etc. You can bet that Yamashita doesn't sit at home dancing around in a state of pure stupefied ecstacy at the thought of scoring this...



...But you can also bet that he can pretty much get away with phoning this one in and know that the mortage still gets paid.

Plus... you never know, this could turn out to be his finest work. Weirder things have happened...



...Who'd have pegged THAT to end up with one of the most glorious, shamelessly grand Warsaw scores of all time?

Oh that's perhaps my favorite aspect of the japanese music world but regarding paychecks: I always wondered about the role of the Japanese Composers & Arrangers Association (http://www.jcaa1970.com/english.htm) and other japanese music associations. Is it somewhat similar to Unions in the US or are they in any shape or form ensuring pay? Takaki, Oshima, Yamashita and almost everyone posted here is a member afterall.

I have no idea how it all works. With the level that Japanese productions get micromanaged and money-focussed, with fifty different companies getting their noses in on the game, I can't even begin to guess... How the HELL does that kind of thing happen, but yet each and every composer gets to write music 100% stylistically typical and unique? When they ask for an Oshima score, they get one... not one note could've been written by somebody else. Imagine if Japanese composers were restricted as Western composers are... :O

I am interested in beautiful, harmonic and emotionally weighty tunes written for/performed by an orchestra or a solo piano. Not interested in suspenseful, horror, goofy, wall-to-wall action, or band-style stuff.
I think Taku Iwasaki also fits this description. He has a certain knack for composing beautiful orchestral cues. For example: Is it okay for me to fall for you? (from Katanagatari) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2us1DVPo2oA)

Vinphonic has put together a nice selection of some of Iwasaki's best tracks here: Composer Spotlight: The heart of Taku Iwasaki (2001-2014) (Thread 185096)

Links have been updated for Loveliness, Elegance, and Nobility 1, 2, and 3. Check the thread for the new links. Vol 3 might not work just yet since I just finished uploading it. This is a good chance for anyone else who may have missed these too.
Thread 118491

Oh, thanks a lot! That was quick!


I think Taku Iwasaki also fits this description. He has a certain knack for composing beautiful orchestral cues. For example: Is it okay for me to fall for you? (from Katanagatari) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2us1DVPo2oA)

Vinphonic has put together a nice selection of some of Iwasaki's best tracks here: Composer Spotlight: The heart of Taku Iwasaki (2001-2014) (Thread 185096)

Thanks! Will look into those next. His name does pop up every time I see people's lists of favorite composers but the only time I looked him up on YouTube and (blindly and aimlessly) schemed through some of his works, I got put off by the heavy dosage of electronics I heard. Though I did walk away from that short listening party with two (orchestral) vocal songs he wrote (or maybe arranged) for an old anime called "Romeo's Blue Skies" (score by Kei Wakakusa). The opening and closing score themes from 009-1 are deliciously groovy too.

On a completely different note - what happened to the Like button on this board?

Thanks! Will look into those next. His name does pop up every time I see people's lists of favorite composers but the only time I looked him up on YouTube and (blindly and aimlessly) schemed through some of his works, I got put off by the heavy dosage of electronics I heard. Though I did walk away from that short listening party with two (orchestral) vocal songs he wrote (or maybe arranged) for an old anime called "Romeo's Blue Skies" (score by Kei Wakakusa). The opening and closing score themes from 009-1 are deliciously groovy too.

Iwasaki is interesting. He's very classically influenced and yet the majority of his soundtracks in recent years fall into the category of experimental or electronic. Even then, he still throws in a few orchestral tracks on most of his scores. My favorite is Binchotan, a lovely melodic score for chamber orchestra (with no electronics!): https://mega.nz/#!IRckSQIC!evOUepdSiecBtiRSK6RMcm_KmGWf4CGvsU_CMRPKm0k


On a completely different note - what happened to the Like button on this board?
The 'Like' button plugin had an exploit which was used to hack the forums. The hackers were able to retrieve a database with the username, email address and hashed password of every user. This database has been posted publicly and is easy to find. If you haven't changed your password yet, you probably should.

Iwasaki is interesting. He's very classically influenced and yet the majority of his soundtracks in recent years fall into the category of experimental or electronic. Even then, he still throws in a few orchestral tracks on most of his scores. My favorite is Binchotan, a lovely melodic score for chamber orchestra (with no electronics!): https://mega.nz/#!IRckSQIC!evOUepdSiecBtiRSK6RMcm_KmGWf4CGvsU_CMRPKm0k

Lovely, thanks a lot!


The 'Like' button plugin had an exploit which was used to hack the forums. The hackers were able to retrieve a database with the username, email address and hashed password of every user. This database has been posted publicly and is easy to find. If you haven't changed your password yet, you probably should.

Thanks for the warning. I changed it back when I read about the breach on the main page, though I didn't know it had anything to do with the like button. Jeez, the world is getting spooky. I guess it won't be irrelevant to picture a scenario in the near future where you walk in your kitchen, starving, and nothing works because someone's hacked your entire house. X__X

The 'Like' button plugin had an exploit which was used to hack the forums. The hackers were able to retrieve a database with the username, email address and hashed password of every user. This database has been posted publicly and is easy to find. If you haven't changed your password yet, you probably should.At least we still have the Add reputation button.

At least we still have the Add reputation button.

I really need to ask, where do I find this "Add Reputation" button? :confused: :sad: :o

I can't see it anywhere!!

I really need to ask, where do I find this "Add Reputation" button? :confused: :sad: :o

I can't see it anywhere!!
Look under the post count on the post in question. The very bottom left corner of the entire rectangle that is your post body. There will be a badge symbol that just blends in with the background.

It's not very... visible (at least with the "Timewarp" theme).

More importantly though, who is scoring Grimgar.
Shusei Murai has scored all of the director's previous works so it would be safe to assume he will show up here too.

If he gets a budget, that could be really something!

Thanks for posting here about the database hack. I hadn't heard about that.

So that recording in London was for a secret project by Unique Note (a team of former Capcom composers) so it's probably game music related with Kameoka handling the orchestration.


Thanks for posting here about the database hack. I hadn't heard about that.
Yeah, they aren't very good at disclosing things around here... I only found out from a third party posting about the hack on Twitter.

Bugger.

Bugger.
In any case, it should still be something good.

So I just wanted to say a big "thank you!" to Vinphonic for the brilliant Oshima suggestions (I was able to track down a good number of them. Just finished listening to Hana Yori Dango, can't wait to jump into others!), another big "thank you!" to nextday for his share of suggestions as well as point me to Vinphonic's amazing Iwasaki playlist (this one was a huge surprise - didn't think I was in for something of this caliber) and also one final big "thank you!" to Sirusjr for those terrific "Loveliness, Elegance, and Nobility" playlists. So many good stuff in there a whole bunch of names I hadn't heard of before. Haven't had this much fun listening to film music for quite some time! Thanks guys!

Anyone got any suggestions for this anime season? Going on vacation to Denver soon so I should be able to catch up on stuff.

It's been a few weeks since I checked everything but this is my impression so far:

Apart from one or two shows I watch to catch up with the music, I'm only enjoying Lupin III, Gundam the Origin and to a lesser extend One Punch Man, Valkyrie Drive and Gochuumon. Lupin is straight out of the 70s and a delightful return. The opening is a killer for sure.


Regarding the music:

Nothing spectacular this season, unfortunately. BUT I'm surprised how even the stupidest of smut is getting real music.

Ore ga Ojou-Sama has some Steel Angel Kurumi vibes and it's scored like a serious drama (and not the shameless Zettai Ryouiki porn it really is). Even Valkyrie Drive has some suprisingly emotional cues with a modest budget.
Dance with Devils is delightful, Elements Garden has a bit more budget than usual and it's almost operatic at times.
Heavy Object is really good so far, Inai has a big orchestra this time around and I like it much more than Tokyo Ravens.
Iwasaki is business as usual, mostly electronics but a few string pieces as well.
Gakusen Toshi Asterisk is Rasmus Fabers debut and it's ... decent, might be worth a listen but it was all synth as far as I remember.
Kindaichi Returns is more pure orchestral vintage from the days of Inuyasha.
Gochuumon wa Usagi Desu ka?? is wonderful and heartwarming but the show is too much sugar for my taste at times.
Sakurako-san, Rakudai Kishi no Cavalry and Hidan no Aria AA sound pretty good to my ears and Seraph continues to be surprisingly decent.
Gundam Blood Orphans is ... ok, could be worse but I'm not interested in the soundtrack.
I'm only really disappointed in MONACA's projects and Kato's Comet Lucifer. I fear that Buddy Complex will remain the peak of his career for a long time but the show seems to be a mess so perhaps he is not entirely to blame for it.