OCR02230 - *YES* Final Fantasy 5 'A Healer's Touch'

[OceansAndrew]

Notes: This is a song for DarkeSword's FFV secret project, so please keep it hush-hush until whenever that project is posted. I'm not sure of any specifics, so please talk to him if you have any questions outside of the actual song. Thanks!

Song name: The Healer's Touch

Contact Information:

Your ReMixer name – Level 99, Avaris

Your real name - Stephen Bortz, Shaun Wallace

Your website –

Your userid – 13318, 15843

Submission Information

Name of game(s) arranged – Final Fantasy V

Name of individual song(s) arranged – Dear Friends/Prelude (I'm not sure if this counts as including the original FF, but the Prelude was incorporated into the song)

Composer: Nobuo Uematsu

The OST is already on the site.

Comments on the song:

Since my last sub email to OCR was way WAY too long, I'll keep this one much shorter. DarkeSword was randomly asking in IRC for someone to do an FFV mix, and he informed me about the project he was doing. I said I'd give the theme for the white mage (Dear Friends) a shot. The first revision was good but too short, and it took a number of further attempts and the collaboration with Avaris to get the song finalized.

I wanted to have a sad, depressing take of the Prelude at the beginning. The healer is in the party for a reason, and no one likes to get hurt. I was aiming to get out the fears that someone who would need to go to a healer would have: what if I can't be fixed? After about a minute of a minor-focused rendition of the Dear Friends progression A with the Prelude theme incorporated on top with acoustic guitar and a variety of orchestral instruments, the healer's theme of Dear Friends is switched to major with acoustic guitars carrying the song. The healer evokes a warm, caring aura, the kind that only family or close-friends can give off. When in the healer's pressence, it seems that everything will end up all-right. The warm acoustic is backed by some subtle instruments meant to reinforce the Dear Friends melody with some small counterplay (I'm not sure if I'm using the right terminology here). As it switches to progression B, the guitars strum a bit more and the theme is carried on with a hopeful trumpet laying on top of the melody, low strings still holding the basic chords. At the end of progression B, a last resonating guitar note echoes as the pain is now completely gone and the healer's job is done, the fear and doubt all but a memory. This person truly has the healer's touch: to cure ailments and allay fears.

I took care of nearly all the arrangement, playing off of DarkeSword's feedback whenever it was given, and approached Avaris for mastering and production. It would not have had either any of the warm sound and feeling without his touching-up the work I had written. Working with him is always a great pleasure, and one I've been lucky to have taken part in more often recently, such as the Xenogears track "Quickening".

I hope the healer's touch warms your hearts.

~Stevo

Source:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FGJza6YGAes

[OceansAndrew]

The source here checks out- the initial combination worked really well, and the guitar performance was really nice. Some of the orchestral bits could have been a little more fluid and humanized, but they were such a background element, that I didn't feel that it really detracted. Besides the really creative intro, the arrangement was a bit conservative, though there were some nice changes to a few rhythms and notes. Nothing over-the-top, but a few nice melodic surprises. The orchestral elements were also slightly different than the OST version, so I think i'm comfortable with the arrangement.

Production is nice and warm, and the acoustic guitar sounds awesome. Good panning and soundfield.

Yes

[Palpable]

Excellent take here, not a huge stretch from the original, but more fleshed out and humanized. The bittersweet emotion of the original is more pronounced. The arrangement is pretty much perfect - there's nothing I would change, it says what it intends to.

The production... I would raise the levels of the backing instrumentation and probably adjust the EQ of the lead guitar. It's hard to hear the backing instrumentation when the guitar is going, there's no reason it needs to be so much more present than everything else. That's the only issue I've got and as such I feel fine passing this, but I would have liked it more with some tweaks amd maybe I'll suggest you guys make those if others agree.

YES

[anosou]

Yeah, I agree with Vinnie the production isn't the best. The guitar is really up in your face and while it's nice and warm, it's drowning out the other instruments a bit. Nothing major but could be better balanced.

Overall though it's a potent arrangement that keeps close to the source while still having a personal approach to it. Very emotive track and you took that one step further. I think this is a great overall package and I'm glad to give it the pass.

YES

[The Orichalcon]

I like the source, even though I haven't heard it much before.

The inclusion of the prelude at the beginning was a nice touch, fit in well with the theme. The production is fine. The guitar might come across as a bit loud to some, but it's nice to my ears as it is the focal point of the mix. I would've liked a boost in the strumming guitar's volume though.

The theme is easily recogniseable, and might even be a little too conservative when compared to the source. There's enough reimagination there though to pass this.

The ending is kinda sudden, that's my only gripe. It didn't really finish properly, just.. ended.

Anyway, This is a YES from me.