ReMix:Dark Souls III "The Ashes Judge" 3:56

Today we've got TWO superb orchestral arrangements for you, from Dark Souls 3 & Bloodborne, respectively. If you're thinking "Cool, more amazing work from RoeTaKa!!," you're in for a surprise, as both of these mixes are from newcomer Ophanin (Mathieu Deltour); we start with his adventurous, spirited take on "Iundex Gundyr" that flows with a Wagnerian Romanticism:

"I've already submitted a Dark Souls remix before but I do it again with an orchestral work this time. Maybe I like this game too much! The history of Iudex Gundyr is so sad, he's waiting for an unkindled to kill him and finish his quest. I try to illustrate it and pay tribute to him. So it goes from light to darkness, with an orchestra that simplifies itself for a more powerful reading of the theme, something heroic, not in a negative way.

Thanks a lot for the appreciations and compliments on the writings and orchestration techniques I used! I spend so much time to remix it in an original way.

I'm sorry for the production issues. I don't know what happened with the 8Dio Requiem VST, so I've corrected it by a simple reloading. And then I added a limiter to increase the volume of the track. (I've changed some details on staccato trumpets too, nothing important.)"

Very glad Mathieu revised this based on panel feedback, since the tweaks were not only relatively easy, but they opened the piece up & prevented some production issues from dampening the splendor. And it's pretty darn splendid; orchestrated with lots of Sturm & plenty of Drang (not Kong), this mix delivers a hot-blooded adventure, with epic motifs & darker turns around each corner. DragonAvenger writes:

"Definitely an interesting take on the original here. The opening starts out pretty triumphantly, and there is a mix of emotions throughout as the track progresses. The main motif is definitely the highlight here, being playing and altered throughout, and juggled between the various instruments. There's a lot of techniques I recognize from various orchestral pieces I've heard throughout college, which is pretty neat to hear being applied here. There's quite a lot going on at time, and I do feel like the track gets a little bit cluttered sometimes, through I didn't find it to be a dealbreaker as the main parts are still legible even when the orchestra is going full bore."

Definitely some contemporary, if not aleatoric, goings-on in the brass section specifically, with random flutter and a nice, satisfying rasp on the lowend; this contributes to an unsettling/uncertain mood that lends more edge & dynamism. I dig it; always cool to see powerful, higher-end sample libraries being put to effective use. Employing some of these techniques and oscillating between triumph & darker themes gives the overall piece a sense of being larger & longer than the modest four minutes it occupies, in a good way. Alex set a high bar with his series of grand, evocative symphonic/cinematic arrangements in the DS/BB universe, but the world is (easily) big enough for another voice in a similar but still very distinct vein. Ophanin marks a strong, memorable debut - excellent work!