ReMix:Chrono Trigger "Glenn" 3:49

By Squint

Arranging the music of 2 songs from 2 games ( view all )...

"Depths of the Night", "Theme of Love"

Primary Game: Chrono Trigger (Square , 1995, SNES), music by Nobuo Uematsu, Noriko Matsueda, Yasunori Mitsuda

Posted 2011-12-03, evaluated by the judges panel


Squint's debut has been a great story for 2011; I'm a huge fan of both his posted mixes, and they never would have been released through OCR had Palpable not stepped in & stepped up the production/recording quality to match the amazing arrangement & performance that was already there. For his latest, Hai Nguyen returns to Chrono Trigger & solo piano:

"Hey guys, first things first - I'm sorry. Yes, I did another Chrono Trigger piece. But wait, wait, I can explain! Before I submitted my first piece ("Gusty Piano in a Garden"), I had already finished "To Far Away Inspirations" (<crossing fingers for acceptance>), was putting the finishing touches on this one, and had started another one that I might submit (from FFVII...again, sorry!). At that time, I had only really been writing this stuff for my own benefit (didn't even consider that they could get onto OCRemix), so I didn't feel the need to try my hand at something uncommon, y'know? Now that this one's done, I figured I might as well send it in and see what you guys think. If it's any consolation, I'm pretty sure there aren't any mixes on the site for this particular track.

Also, I wanna say thanks once again to Vinnie, as he once again helped out with the production on this one, which makes three in all. I swore to him that this would be the last of the bunch, since now I can start fresh with recordings and all that, and hopefully get my own software for quality recording.

Anyway, to the piece itself. This track is one of the first things I can remember trying to copy when I was a kid, right when I got my first demo version of Finale. Of course, back then, I was just trying to copy it note for note, but yeah, I've always admired how this piece adds so many different parts one by one, and then they come together to culminate into something so sad, but so beautiful at the same time. I thought it would be really cool to try and emulate this with just the piano, since it's such a versatile instrument and can really play as many parts as needed, so long as the composer is creative enough to cram 'em all in there somehow. Of particular inspiration was Zohar's "Concert Paraphrase," where he takes the B Section of "Yearnings of the Wind" and beautifully presents it with two hands, nothing seeming out of place at all. Incredible. I also am not ashamed to admit that I took inspiration from his intro to "Concert Paraphrase" in writing the intro to "Glenn."

And now I'm babbling. The piece is definitely more classical this time around. It just came out that way, I guess. And I also sneaked in a portion of the Theme of Love from FFIV (Rosa's Theme), just because it sneaked up on me somehow while I was just plunking out ideas! It fits surprisingly well. So yeah, I hope you all like it. And don't worry, I have plans to start work on a piece for a game that somehow has no representation on OCRemix at all!"

Heh, don't feel TOO bad, Hai - there's a reason the classics are classics, and you're certainly not the first to revisit the same game twice in a row. I'm definitely interested in those plans to cover an unmixed game, but in the meantime we've got another of Squint's nuanced, beautiful solo piano arrangements to enjoy. I was sort of assuming a titular double reference to both Frog's original name and noted pianist Glenn Gould, but I guess the latter is coincidental, since it wasn't explicitly mentioned. I literally need to strain to find anything to critique in Squint's arrangements or his performances of those arrangements - he's really done great things for solo piano mixes on OCR this year. This is no exception, and I think fans of his previous two mixes, or the genre/style in general, will agree. As Deia puts it:

"I love your arrangements, they are so fantastic. To me, doesn't matter what game we are talking about, do what inspires you! Anyways, the level of personalization you add to these tracks really makes listening to them a unique, personal experience every time."

Indeed; truly looking forward to hearing MUCH more!

djpretzel

Discussion

Latest 15 comments/reviews; view the complete thread or post your own.
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Martin Penwald
on 2012-03-27 15:17:09

Great solo piano piece. Has none of the overboarding, hitting the keys with the entire length of your forearm stuff, so it is right up my alley.

Good job, Squint (and Palpable).

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454Casull
on 2012-02-13 21:14:24

Awesome work!

Also, sheet music!

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Squint
on 2012-01-02 03:46:52

Hey guys, thanks for all the kind words, it means a lot!

Vinnie - You're right. I only just used Finale to notate the music. It would be crazy if you could get Finale sounding that good! The little bit I mentioned in my writeup about Finale was just talking about when I used to listen to the piece on repeat and copy it note for note on my computer. :)

Bahamut - Those small mistakes in the performance bug me so much! I hope they aren't too noticeable!

Again, thanks for the support, and I hope everyone had a great holiday!

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ryankeeton
on 2011-12-28 13:46:53

Extremely pretty and kinda jazzy in places. Very impressed with this one, one of my favorite solo piano remixes I've heard. Makes me want to replay CT

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Tuberz McGee
on 2011-12-25 01:07:42

The expression in this mix brings back memories. This is my favourite game.

This source is not represented enough. You did it absolute justice.

A SINGLE MANLY TEAR WAS SHED... SERIOUSLY... DON'T JUDGE ME

But it actually brings back memories of when I used to go to my Grandma's house too.

She would play piano for hours, and I would listen.

This transcended the video game that it pays homage to... and entered my real life.

I can't thank you enough for such a beautiful mix.

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Perigryn
on 2011-12-20 12:54:40

Dear Squint,

Why are you so great?

Love, Greg

Seriously, beautiful and touching piece. It just rolls out the emotion, the passion and romance in my mind. I just picture lovers embracing, lovers parting, trains in black and white leaving the station - y'know, that sorta' thing. Great rendition of these themes. You make that piano sing, and your love of the material shines through. Thanks for yet another great piece to add to my already ginormous OC ReMix library!

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Squinter Cell
on 2011-12-11 18:46:11

Yes! More piano music! A few years back, a friend heard me complaining about how I wanted to hear video game music as interpreted by the piano. I happily joined this sight when I first heard such a song. Now I get to hear awesome pianists like Squint and pu_freak do their thing. Keep on being awesome!

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NegimaSonic
on 2011-12-06 09:05:41

I'm not familiar with the source but it sounds really good. 0:23-0:26 sounded a little harsh but other than that it was solid.

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Bahamut
on 2011-12-05 22:04:11

This is a quaint solo take on a quaint theme. The performance is not without mistakes, but it is still enjoyable. It shows off some of the subtle nature of the piano, although I wish there was a bit more of a transition in playing from the harder struck notes to the gentler, delicate notes. The song still ends up quite good though, and it is quite hard to really complain too much.

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Flexstyle
on 2011-12-05 17:12:46

I haven't enjoyed a solo piano mix this much in a LONG time. Stunningly gorgeous job here, sir Squint.

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Palpable
on 2011-12-05 16:24:46

Hai can correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm fairly sure this song, like his other posted remixes, is a recording of him hand-playing it on his keyboard. He probably started out on Finale but I don't think this was done in Finale. Though I'd love to see him get his own setup going, I'll continue to fix up anything else he sends me because it absolutely deserves to be up on this site.

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Crulex
on 2011-12-04 21:12:54

Oh, man, this is gorgeous! I think this is one of the best solo-piano pieces I've heard in the last few months. Hard to believe this was all on Finale. Loved how you managed to get Theme of Love in there as well. You can really feel the emotion in this ReMix and it just sounds so natural. Damn, dude, so good.

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pu_freak
on 2011-12-04 10:31:29

Awesome stuff. 'Depths of the Night' is a song I play a lot on the piano myself, and you've certainly did the theme mroe than justice! I hope you keep pumping out much more of these great solo piano mixes

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Rexy
on 2011-12-04 03:37:39

Being a fellow pianist I'm always game to see other blood come to bat, and to do something that meshes together two source materials in quite an affective counterpoint-driven way is definitely a good way to go. I can feel a light jazz piano here influence here, which managed to work in regards to the performance and left hand writing.

To consider that this was actually written in Finale and not exactly a live performance astounds me; very few piano writers of that caliber have been able to make something sound as realistic as that (two people I can think of that handle piano sequences like that are Kevin Stephens and trickwaters, still worth checking out too). True, it may still have its grid-locked spots that don't quite give in as much freedom to the expression as it should, but I'm assuming that would come down to the nature of the software. It can be a good consideration to see such touch-ups could be done through a DAW's key editor, but otherwise I'm still cool with how it came down.

All in all, a very sweet arrangement, and it's done a world of good for OCR's solo piano representations. Let's hope you don't stop here, Hai :)

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Victor1283
on 2011-12-04 02:38:38

Wow this can make a man think....hence making it can make a grown, tough, man shed a tear.....Awesome!

Make all the Chrono Trigger remixes you want.

This makes me want to play Chrono Trigger again.

Sources Arranged (2 Songs, 2 Games)


Primary Game:
Chrono Trigger (Square , 1995, SNES)
Music by Nobuo Uematsu,Noriko Matsueda,Yasunori Mitsuda
Songs:
"Depths of the Night"
Additional Game:
Final Fantasy IV (Square , 1991, SNES)
Music by Nobuo Uematsu
Songs:
"Theme of Love"

Tags (3)


Genre:
Classical
Mood:
Instrumentation:
Piano
Additional:
Arrangement > Solo

File Information


Name:
Chrono_Trigger_Glenn_OC_ReMix.mp3
Size:
5,577,414 bytes
MD5:
1109640cf3439433e84a6f8d2fb63b5b
Bitrate:
192Kbps
Duration:
3:49

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