OCR01081 - Final Fantasy VI 'Anthem of Exile'

[djpretzel]

What did you think? Post your opinion of this ReMix.

[maplejet]

YES! Its been a while since FF6 has had a remix! And this time, its Figaro Style. I like the use of brass and how he did the piece.

First, it was classical sounding. Around 1:45, the drums kick in for a jazzy style. Later, the organs come rolling in providing a classic rock style that just rocks. Another great remix from JigginJonT that uses great instrumentation.

[The Xyco]

i seem to remeber this posted some time ago as a WIP..

since then i can clearly tell you've cleaned it, polished it, and made it run much smoother, very nice, i love it.

[Fieari]

This is beautiful stuff... while I've heard better trumpet playing from people who make a living off the trumpet (and not on the street corner) this sounds quite nice. And it's been a while since I've heard this theme... I love it! FF6 had really great music, and so many tracks...

OCR has lots of FF6, but still hasn't covered nearly all the tracks yet. So many to go... and all worthy of mixing.

The organ solo is definitely worth the effort I can tell you put into it. It rocks. ROCKS man. And back to the trumpets afterwards... some of your better playing right there! Oooh, this is nice.

The balancing is perfect, the actual mixing went well... a worthy submission, I say. Worthy indeed.

[The Orichalcon]

It's nice to listen to. But I'm simply not a fan of the trumpet.

[Silvercloud]

I'll be blunt. There might be many of you that like it, and to you, probably I'm just some 'purist wacko.' But I cannot enjoy the Figaro Castle theme when the trumpet's parts are not played loudly, proudly like the originals were. This is a declaration of grandeur, a statement of freedom, this 'Anthem' of Figaro, and playing it like some damned jazz piece feels like a tresspass against the memory of the original.

Now, I know I sound harsh, and really, I'd totally be a position to tolerate, and perhaps even appreciate this level of experimentation if there was at least one remix that was a vanilla orchestration of the Figaro theme.

So, good job, but I can't find myself liking it more than the harsh trumpets of the original MIDI.

[pixlz]

giving it a second listen through now. the beginning really bugs the crap out of me. the piano barely gets an intro and the trumpets just cut in like that? sure its merely the first couple seconds, but thats terrible. no offense.


okay, i just can't get used to it. too much going on. o.O since i'm the first to complain it can't bug anyone else terribly. but the piano seems to complex to go with the beautiful noise the trumpets are making. i love the trumpet playing so much, and the piano.... isn't simple enough to go with it. >.o dunno.

1:54, everything goes into lounge singer mode. Beautiful right to the end of the song man. the complex piano suddenly sounds in place, but because the trumpets aren't the focus anymore. and even when the focus picks back up to the trumpet, not even remotely complex piano playing in the background, simplistic how it shoulda been in my opinion for the beginning.

Edgar and Sabin is my favorite theme in this game(well really coin song, but y'know). but up till 1:54 it just bugs the crap out of me. Specially that intro. >.<; terrible. TERRIBLE!

i'd give it 3 and a half out of 5 stars.

[whiteknight]

i seem to remeber this posted some time ago as a WIP..

since then i can clearly tell you've cleaned it, polished it, and made it run much smoother, very nice, i love it.

yeah man, thats exactly the thought I had myself. I usually dont venture into the reviews forum, but I figured I would just stop by and say how impressed I am with the transformation this song went through. I listened to the WIP and the OC_remix versions back to back, and the difference is astounding.

good job mr Jon T.

[Fray]

Very creative, ambitious remix. I absolutely love that organ solo -- you've got some good chops to be able to play all of this live.

The recording quality and processing are excellent. Unlike many remixes that include a lot of live instruments, I can "forget" that this is live while I enjoy its organic quality.

Arrangement is really excellent, with a lot of variety and good transitions.

I feel bad bitching about stuff when I know this was hard to do, but the intonation on the trumpet really hurt this one for me. I would have liked this 100% better if you'd gone the extra mile to get the trumpets in tune with each other as well as the rest of the music. My youth orchestra conductor used to always get on my case to practice everything with a tuner -- otherwise your ear gets used to how it sounds when you play it out of tune and you never fix the problem.

Good stuff with all the creativity I've come to expect from JigginJonT.

[Bluntobject]

Very creative, ambitious remix. I absolutely love that organ solo -- you've got some good chops to be able to play all of this live.

The recording quality and processing are excellent. Unlike many remixes that include a lot of live instruments, I can "forget" that this is live while I enjoy its organic quality.

Arrangement is really excellent, with a lot of variety and good transitions.

I feel bad bitching about stuff when I know this was hard to do, but the intonation on the trumpet really hurt this one for me. I would have liked this 100% better if you'd gone the extra mile to get the trumpets in tune with each other as well as the rest of the music. My youth orchestra conductor used to always get on my case to practice everything with a tuner -- otherwise your ear gets used to how it sounds when you play it out of tune and you never fix the problem.

Good stuff with all the creativity I've come to expect from JigginJonT.


I agree totally. The ideas presented are wonderful, and it's a wonderful piece that you wrote, but the trumpets swtich between sounding wonderful and making me cringe. But everything else it top notch. For a piece that switches styles so often, you really put it together well.

[KeeperS]

I'll be blunt. There might be many of you that like it, and to you, probably I'm just some 'purist wacko.' But I cannot enjoy the Figaro Castle theme when the trumpet's parts are not played loudly, proudly like the originals were. This is a declaration of grandeur, a statement of freedom, this 'Anthem' of Figaro, and playing it like some damned jazz piece feels like a tresspass against the memory of the original.

Now, I know I sound harsh, and really, I'd totally be a position to tolerate, and perhaps even appreciate this level of experimentation if there was at least one remix that was a vanilla orchestration of the Figaro theme.

So, good job, but I can't find myself liking it more than the harsh trumpets of the original MIDI.

That's funny... I liked this song because it strayed from the original while still sounding good. Anyone can take a midi of the original and give it better instruments, but it takes a true master to reinvent the song in a unique way. Ah well, I guess different people have different tastes.

Anyway, it's nice to hear some real instruments. I'm not an audiophile or anything, but I don't think this would have been nearly as good without them. I've been listening to this song on repeat for a while, which is something I rarely do.

[Kamikaze Noodle]

I am impressed. Fantastic transitions, incredible playing, clever arrangement, and all this without a sequencer. Alas, as is the curse of being a drummer on OCR, the drums in this song make me wince when they come in. Occasionally I can't help but notice the total lack of dynamics on them, but the organ solo mostly covers them up. Speaking of which, that has to be one of the most bitchin' rock organ solos I've ever heard. Granted, I mostly hear Hammond organ solos, but the power of a B3 is not to be underestimated. It should also be said that your trumpet work is fantastic as well. The way the two play back and forth is just awesome. All around quality work, John. So far, you haven't let me down. I'm looking forward to your next work. :nicework:

[Bruk]

This is an excellent rendition of the Figaro theme. The organ was a nice touch, and the way the entire song flowed just grabbed my attention. Very very nice.

[sae]

Cool man, real cool.

[Fritz the Cat]

I thought the drums could have been louder, myself.

[Edgar]

Jazz? Sounds like it.

It sounds like Coin Song with trumpet, cool :)

Who the hell played that organ?! Gimme the score for it!

Very refreshing to hear something 'real' for once.

Can tell that guitar was Yamaha brand. I've heard thousands of these sounds from my piano tuition center.

Great work btw :D

[Drugski]

I love it. Very nicely done!

[Thaneros]

Very Good Mix. J takes a so-so tune and makes it something that is waaay better than the original.

[dragnmastr85]

First let me start off by saying I have been visiting OC Remix for about 2 yrs now and I browse the forums quite often but never has a remix persuaded me enough to register to the forums and comment on it. Well, obviously, this one has. I am a HUGE FF 6 fan. It was the first rpg I fell in love with (FF4 was too hard for me at the time). I was 7 when I started playing them. I was also 7 when I started playing trumpet. I am 18 now. The trumpet work on this song is beautiful. Its not that easy to keep a trumpet in perfect tune mind you. We have 3 valves. The clarinet and other instruments have a crapload that will give them much better intonation. With trumpet you must hear what you are going to play before you do. Trumpet is one of the hardest instruments to master because of it. The organ work was superb. It really caught me by surprise. The guitar was a very nice touch (I also play guitar). This is by far my favorite oc remix and I have downloaded nearly 300. Congrats on the work. Its amazing.

[GrayLightning]

As I told you before, groovy. 8)

[Jaxvon]

I really like the fact that Jon played the stuff himself. I wish I had wind talent. Anyway, I play some jazz piano (and keyboard) myself and I really don't think too much of the organ solo. Many people were praising it (and I'm not going to down it) but I really thought it wasn't up to Jon's standards. There is far too much reverb for half of it and it isn't long enough to get enough emotion in. It's like high school jazz band with the ol' 12-bar blues solo, "Ok...now SOLO! Ok you're done!". The piece is well arranged, and the intruments are played well; but in terms of impovsation, I enjoyed Live from the Yggdrasil much more.

Overall, well done. But I'd really like to hear something...more.

Too bad we're on opposite sides of the country. Jon would be a fun person to collaborate with.

[DrumUltimA]

Beautiful. One of my favorite arrangements from final fantasy 6.

Except your high C's are flat =Þ.

[Kaelor]

Nice work, about time we had a Figaro ReMix. I have to say I like the beginning better than the end, but that's probably because I like sad themes in music.

I now listen to this mix every time I go on my comp.

Good work, Jon.

[samari]

Very well done. Smooth and flowing... plus you gotta love the all human aspect. Look forward to more remixes by Jon =)

[TheShroud13]

I thought this was an awesome piece, the one complaint I have is that I was not too keen on the drum sounds that were used. Besides that, however, it was really awesome to listen to.

[neostormx]

if only i could get this guy to play trumpet whenever i needed :).. simply just awesome.. just freaking AWESOMEEEEEEEEEEE! download this.

[Blowbo]

Very good.

Reminds me of something the wingless would do.

[eyefragment]

Very nice re-interpretation, but being a trumpet player myself, I'm going to be a little harsh on the trumpet portion. It sounds like you're slowing your air down when you hold some of the notes. As another poster here said, you go from sounding beautiful to sounding like a 5th grader =(. please don't take this as a nasty comment, because I did think that you had very good tone at parts, but this remix would be much better with a more sustained trumpet sound.

[JJT]

Very nice re-interpretation, but being a trumpet player myself, I'm going to be a little harsh on the trumpet portion. I don't know if you're slowing your air down or what, but as another poster here said, you go from sounding beautiful to sounding like a 5th grader. Don't take this as a nasty comment please, because I did think that you had very good tone at parts, but this remix would be awesome with a more sustained trumpet sound.
One of the reasons I sound like a 5th grader is that i when i started recording this, I hadn't touched my horn in a few months (and it's been several years since I've practiced regularly). My chops were never outstanding, but when this was recorded my options were to do the trumpet parts myself on what little proficiency my lips could muster, or use synth patches. I hate brass synth patches. They're lame.

P.S. One look at your sig shows me that you ARE in fact a real trumpet player ;)

[wangcomputers]

this rendition is superb.
I registered in order to counter-balance some of the unjustified critique.

[z38stinger]

Good song, good times. 8)

[Skullknight]

My first post. :D I think this remix was done very well. However, I do have a request of the trumpet playing. I don't know if you were trying to play softly and that made it sound gagged but I really would have liked a more solid sound and some vibrato, the duet is great but it would have been so much better with solidity. I do not doubt the musical talent, being able to play that many instruments says a lot. That is my only complaint. :)

[Itinerant]

I really loved this. The trumpet is AWESOME. I would love to see the trumpet parts on paper. The chords are great.

[Domukaz]

I personally like this very much. I hum "bastardized" versions of video game tunes all the time, so I don't have the same kind of knee-jerk "no!" reaction to new interpretations of the tunes./editorial

The organ solo is awesome and all, but that first part with the trumpets is the one that pulls the heartstrings and captures the imagination. Great stuff.

[risingson77]

Excellent. The trumpet duet works very well in this piece. I would have excised the noodly, uninspired organ solo, but that's minor.

[Hotlanta]

Quite possibly my favorite remix on this site. The jazz-inspired motif is an excellent choice, and the trumpets really bring out the regal mood of the Figaros. The organ solo near the end adds to the originality of this piece, and that is what I like about it. It's absolutely original. Congratulations on a job well done.

[Angelus Laminarum]

I must begin with an often-heard "I love OCRemix!"

I've been "lurking" about here for a while, and recently (September, as you can see to the left) registered as a member here. Needless to say, this site is a blast, and I've finally got into the swing of things to start requesting ReMixes of music I like, as you will see on the Request forum...

When djpretzel said this site was originally made to combine... I hate the term "old"... Game music of the past with new, modern techniques, and to expand the musical horizons of musicians kept herein, I think he may have forgotten the impact of these music interpretations upon the general viewing public... Now I am not an ordinary teenager (15, as a matter of fact *cringes as the expected people stop listening immediately at the sound of his age*), but I have never had too strong of a passion for jazz. I mainly orient my tastes around rock (classic and modern), pop, electronica, classical orchestra, and other genres. This song, I believe, puts a few jazzy songs into a certain perspective for me, personally, and may open me up to future jazz songs.

JigginJonT (I feel abbreviated names for people to be looked up to as demeaning, no offense to those who don't, or feel the opposite), this is an awesome remix from an awesome game. Keep up the good work, and draw more people... maybe even those "young whippersnappers" the youth are often called... into your circle of music...

And that goes for all of you here!

[KelVarnsen]

This is one of my favorite remixes here so far. The arrangement is amazing, with so many textures, if you know what I mean. I love the floating piano and guitar bits towards the end.

Overall it has a solemn tone... it really does something interesting with the original theme.

This is just great music. This is the kind of music that makes me love this site.

[Larryboy]

8O D.O.W.N.L.O.A.D.I.M.M.E.D.I.A.T.E.L.Y. 8O

Seriously, this could have come from an arranged Final Fantasy soundtrack. It is just awesome. The transition to smooth jazz at 1:54 and what comes after it is simply jawdropping.

[Bummerdude]

Allthough the original is a statement of freedom, this song definetly ISN'T. It's meant to be a musical journey detailing Sabin's exile from Figaro. The emotions being conveyed are sadness, mourning, and a hope that lies buried underneath all of that. Why would I want to re-create the exact setting of the theme when you can just listen to the MIDI?


Sadness eh? Then how do you explain that part at 2:19? That was a pure jazz arrangement to be sure, very nice done, and the rest of the whole remix was actually a very sad trumpet in exile. My family actually have a trumpet, but I can only manage to blow air through it. How do you play that thing?!

Very solid mix JonT, did it all by yourself and got in my opinion a good remix with a soothing trumpet and piano with a slight touch of jazz. Bravo.

[Vitamin FF]

I cant think of anything bad about this song, and there's no reason too. Usually, it's best if a artist sticks with a compatible title, but hearing someone double-fist out an organ solo, you honestly don't care anymore. I love the song, and it makes a amazing Listerine to rinse out the taste of other....well, nevermind that. The point is that I've been downloading for a while, and this song made me register just to say how utterly brilliant it is. This is, without a doubt, my favorite song on OCRemix, with "Seized with Fury" as a close second. Thank you for a trip I can keep on taking for a long time.

[Leon K.]

That organ solo blows my mind.


That is all.

[Radiowar]

this is really nice

only the snare got too much reverb, not enough presence

[Mr Azar]

Four years later, and still great.

[Marmiduke]

The live quality keeps me coming back to this. There's a humanistic air about this that adds so much to the emotive aspects of the theme. I'm all for synth instruments, but in this instance, the outcome of actually performing this was an extremely smart and productive move.
Of all the instruments, the drums stick out as the weakest. But it almost doesn't matter. This mix isn't supposed to be flashy and robust. Merely emotive. And that it is. The trumpets sound incredible, and as per usual, JJT is a master of the ivory. The organ solo, whilst unnecessary, also sounds great.
I could have listened to five minutes of this, even if it were just just the piano and trumpets. Everything else is just spoiling me. I wish we'd see more mixes convey the feelings and conviction present here. I'm a massive fan of this mix, and what it stands for.

[OA]

I absolutely adore the trumpet playing and piano in this one. The first 1/3 is pretty close to arrangement and performance perfection. A few production tweaks would made it flawless completely, but as is, it's still amazing.

Beautiful and generally subdued, rocking solo or no. :-)

[tweek]

Right out of the gate, great trumpet playing Jon. It was a good performance and was captured well. The piano accompaniment was a great driving force. It's almost something that I would hear in Final Fantasy 11, but much better produced! The slight panning of the trumpets was a good way to seperate the parts to have them heard easier.

The drums, while I liked the beat, felt thin. The gut bustin' clav/organ solo was great, but the drums needed more meat behind them to really drive them! The bass is groovin' left and right. Like it. The acoustic guitar was a nice element, but could've used a little less verb. In fact, the song kind of feels like its drowning in parts from it when everything kicks in. I only bring it up cause it drowns out the awesome parts.

This is a rare occasion where the fade out worked well. Great job Jon!