OCR01444 - *YES* Seiken Densetsu 3 'Not So Ordinary People'

[djpretzel]

As I am continually forced by my professors to compose original music in various modern idioms, I feel more and more drawn to arranging game music in styles I'd prefer to listen to. Next up is a take on the Ordinary People track (1-03) from Seiken Densetsu 3 that resembles the quick and colorful orchestrations of Russian composers Alexander Borodin and Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov. This is actually the first time I went the other way around and decided upon what style I wanted to do first, then found a track that fit the criteria. I wanted a rustic, folk-sounding dance, and I found that here.

For the B theme I used my favorite track Can You Fly, Sister? (3-01) which resembles the original much more than what I do elsewhere in the piece. Why? I guess you could say it's because much of this arrangement is based on the first four measures of the Ordinary People track, but I do manage to make other references to the original. I really hope people will listen to this and say "Yeah, that's SD3 alright!" and not "There he goes again, off on some kind of tangent."

ReMixer name: Jeremy Robson
Real name: Jeremy Robson
e-mail: jeremy.robson@gmail.com
website: http://jeremy.narphonax.com
Forum ID: 9734
Title: Seiken Densetsu 3 Not So Ordinary People (this title sounds like it's been used before, so let me know if it has and I'll change it)
Game remixed: Seiken Densetsu 3
Pieces used: Ordinary People (1-03) Can You Fly, Sister? (3-01)

~Jeremy

[Liontamer]

http://snesmusic.org/spcsets/sd3.rsn - "Ordinary People" (sd3-1-03.spc) & "Can You Fly, Sister?" (sd3-3-01.spc)

Short and sweet once again. I thought the orchestration of the two themes was handled pretty creatively here, much like Jeremy's previous Tetris mix.

After staring with "Ordinary People", 2:16 transitioned quickly into "Can You Fly, Sister?" and worked with that for a while before going back into "Ordinary People" from 3:07 until the end. Personally, I thought the samples and overall texture could have sounded richer, but that doesn't impact my judgement. I'm impressed with the end result of these tools.

The approach was more conservative to start, but certainly no issue in the big picture. Comparing this with the sources, I think Jeremy succeeded in keeping the themes recognizable, not straying too far off the beaten path, but still comprehesively interpreting the melodies from section to section. He had some pretty inspired melodic interpretations going on. Particularly with "Ordinary People", I liked hearing so many permutations of the same theme; it speaks well for the thought and effort put into the piece.

As per the Tetris mix, I'm again interested in whether Danny B, Jared Hudson, and Shnabubula like this. And as per the Tetris mix, anything that's inspired by Russian music gets a free YES!

http://www.theartcollectiononline.co.uk/contemporary/bolsoboev_evengy/RussianVODKA.jpg

ВОДКА

ПЕЙ!

ОПЯТЬ! (http://www.ocremix.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=1822183#1822183)

ДА!

[JJT]

Ah, I love me some Rimsky-Korsakov. I can definetly hear the influence, especially in the use of the low brass and in the percussion.

Very nice work, Jeremy. You've got a great ear for arranging, and throw plenty of variations of the main themes into this piece.

As you'd expect from a Robson ReMix, the samples are good and used effectively.

Need I say more?

YES

[Vig]

samples generally sound beautiful. the brass sounds a little mushy in some spots.

The arrangement is very solid. Never repetitive, thorougly dynamic, and full of good ideas.

Solid YES

[GrayLightning]

Jeremy's russian exploration has been really evident in his last few submissions. Jeremy has been growing in this department and lately is showing to be one of the best in the orchestral department. His book knowledge is formidable and it's becoming more and more apparent in his works.

The arrangement is really great. Great combination of expansion and flow throughout. I like the pacing and dynamics of the piece as well.

The brass is a bit dry for my tastes, especially when the brass is at its strongest and blattiest, I think they sound better wetter and densier than this dry upfront. Also the trumpets could have benefited from more reverb to make it thicker and bigger.

Great ending to finish things off.

Small issues aside, really wonderful work. High quality start to finish. Easy YES.