ReMix: Final Fantasy VII 'Ascension to Cosmo Canyon'

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Final Fantasy VII

I love me some solo piano arrangements, don't get me wrong, but I also love it when there's a bit of additional instrumentation thrown in as accompaniment. Such pieces are still essentially solo instrumentals, they just add that little bit of sumtin' sumtin' in the form of some extra timbres that can conjure tones that, while perhaps achievable in an impressionistic sense with the solo voice alone, are more visceral and immediate with the alleyoop assist. Reuben does exactly this with his latest ReMix from FF7:

"This is a little different from my usual arrangements, due to the combination of instruments. After Nanaki (presumably asexual?) had offspring, I believe a creature of such intellect would also have a deep culture and heritage. Imagine a grand ascension taking place ontop of cosmo canyon. That was the image which I based my inspiration on while working on this piece. All comments welcome. PS: I Know he's presumably male, I just called him asexual because he was shown with offspring without any mention of a mate :p "

Androgynies aside, this is some great work from someone who has already well established himself on the ivories, adding in some extra flavors. Things intro with a delicate piano motif that very early on is joined by string pads in the distance as the detectably Celtic melody is established and developed upon. Strings build and become more prominent, then after a break, at 1'32" a men's choir enters with tribal taiko drums and a gorgeous wind lead that's just exquisitely articulated takes over on melody. Overcoming some initial hesitancy, zyko writes:

"reu is quickly making a name for himself with his eastern tones. very good stuff and while i didn't like it before (i had issues with the choir and the volume of the taiko drums), the more i listen to it the more i appreciate how soothing and well this is orchestrated. i appreciate the piece's subtleties and nuances. and they outweigh any concerns i had the first time i heard this. good stuff, man"

I'll second that. With the addition of the choral pieces especially, this felt very cinematic, somewhat reminiscent of portions of Vangelis' Alexander score. The added impact of the percussion is a good example of the type of effect nigh impossible to achieve in a straight solo arrangement, and the whole package comes together quite picturesquely as one of those emotive, epic, dramarama arrangements, with class to spare. Reuben's got a good thing going on with this, and I think people into film scores and/or FF7 (pretty large slice of the pie) will enjoy his ascension quite a bit.

― djpretzel

Discussion: Latest 15 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
Personally whenever I hear this piece I think of a native American vibe which is what Nobou was going for when he first wrote this song. Still one of my favorite pieces

- jordash11 on May 10, 2009
this is incredibly well arranged, i love the drums being used and the hymns just give it that tribal feel if you get what i'm saying, i think my only problem with this piece is the flute but then again it does fit into the concept. i guess its just me, maybe i'm just not feeling the flute that much maybe some chinese string instruments would've worked better. but that aside great mix 9.5/10 =]

- Ascendancy on March 17, 2009
Reuben Kee didn't just create arrangements. He created worlds.
I actually started actively watching this site just weeks before his passing, and by then I had already heard and downloaded this song, so to me it's the piece that's the closest testament to his genius.
It's just beautiful and powerful in so many ways...I only wish he was around so I could tell him personally what an amazing job he did with this and all of his work.

- Lucentas on December 6, 2008
My apologies to anyone I offend with this statement but this remix is hands down the best remix I've heard to date. It just builds on itself so well. And the chanting at the end (which I would have liked to hear more of personally) just put the emotion of the piece over the top. This one will be on my MP3 player for as long as it works I guarantee it.

- twitch2021 on January 14, 2008
This is without a doubt my favorite mixes on OCR, The song just carries so much emotion with it.. and now with Reuben gone...
It's, it's just beyond words really.

- Trapical on November 29, 2007
Everything about this song is amazing. The Cosmo Canyon theme was always my favorite track from FF7, and Ascension just puts such a [i]majestic[/i] feeling to it. In particular, the instrumentation, and the way the crescendos/decrescendos are handled are incredible, and really lend to the overall emotion that's conveyed by this song.
On a more personal note... This was the song I referred to in the memorial thread as one that I associate with certain events in my life. This was the first song I heard when I moved out of my home in Nashville (after college) to find a new place in DC. It captured what I was feeling perfectly, and I'll always associate Ascension to Cosmo Canyon with that sense of uncertainty and optimism that I felt when moving out after college.
It does seem a bit late for me to review this, since this is perhaps the second or third remix I heard from this site, and it's what encouraged me to join the community and listen to everything else here... KF

- Kizyr on November 27, 2007
I suppose today is the best day to do this...
Truth be told, this remix was the reason I found OCR. A friend of mine was listening to it and telling me how awesome it was and I wondered where he got it from and pointed me towards here. This is a perfect tribute to a favourite scene from my favourite game, and listening to it really makes me feel happy.
I'm listening to it right now and thinking about the tragedy and I just shed a tear, which I haven't done in years, so if thats evidence enough of what a emotive and sincere remixer Reu was then I don't know what is. RIP man.

- Fishy on November 25, 2007
This is beautiful. Why haven't I listened to this before?
I'm almost in tears from this.

- Jaybell on November 25, 2007
It's truly a great loss that we won't see more of Reuben Kee's excellent work. Cherish what's already here. Like this amazing, beautiful arrangement.

- Another Soundscape on November 25, 2007
Beautiful fucking work man... I'm practically in tears at the thought of the music you'll never get to write

- Sam Ascher-Weiss on November 25, 2007
At the death of the author to this remix, OCR's own Reuben Kee; I would like to get a few of his remixes up on the bulletin so people who are new can get acquainted with his great work.
If you don't have this remix, download it. Excellent arrangement.

- Flare4War on November 25, 2007
incredible

this truly justifies the original cosmo canyon theme. very nostolgic and powerful without the incredibly loud area. 10 out of 10

at first, i didn't approve of the flute part because it just didn't sound in place, but i listened to a bunch of times and now the song seems like it would be nothing without it

- GreyMage on November 16, 2007
Oubliette wrote:
Txai wrote: In 01:32 appear beats and voice of "mormons"!

I can't help but ask... why Mormons?

For the record the tabernacle choir is among the elite in vocals religous views aside they are incredible vocalists.

- Hyperion5182 on August 6, 2006
well, my 2 cents on this masterpiece:
i loved the way you used the taiko drums and the choir the create the grandness, and the flute definitely played a part. my only muse is that the flute style was celtic and not an oriental flute (japanese/chinese), coz i felt small bit of disharmony arising from there...somehow i feel that if a chinese orchestral instruments were used instead, this piece would be perfected. Anyway, that's just me being picky. Near perfection, definitely something no FFVII fan should miss.

- Firestorm8880 on August 5, 2006
This is definetly one of my favorite remixes by Reuben Kee. He is an amazing musician and this piece certainly shows it.

- Ranael on June 21, 2006

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