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Distant Worlds: Music from Final Fantasy Review

Posted by Arcady in News Articles July 16, 2009 at 05:06:27 PM

For anyone who appreciates the symphony and classical music, Distant Worlds: Music from Final Fantasy may be any other beautifully orchestrated performance. For Final Fantasy fans, it is a mind blowing experience that will have one’s blood racing, catalyzed by the sheer force and drama of a familiar soundtrack. It awakens childhood memories and revives all the wonder Final Fantasy has given us over the past twenty years. For a few hours, one is transported to a distant world by song. A world of dreams, heartbreak and adventure.

Distant Worlds played for three nights in Seattle, Washington from July 9th to the 11th. The concert was held at the home of the Seattle Symphony, Benaroya Hall. Grammy award winning conductor, Arnie Roth opened the show and was greeted with an enthusiastic reception. He then introduced the man responsible for the music of Final Fantasy, Nobuo Uematsu.This may be hard to believe for a classical genre setting, but the crowd literally went wild. The hall thundered with applause - there were cheers and whoops, even declarations of love. Nobuo Uematsu is considered a genius in the video game music industry; no doubt some fans worship him as a god.

And yet despite his distinguished reputation and high level of admiration, he was very down to earth. Clearly delighted by the recognition, Uematsu happily waved and yelled words lost in the applause – all the while, holding up a large fish – the significance still lost on me. He then took a seat in the middle of the audience, looking pleased that he was about to witness a concert compiling his life’s work. And so, the music played.

A massive screen displayed video and concept art stills synchronized with the music. There were times when the audience was completely submerged in a dramatic piece, mesmerized by accompanying cut scenes from games past played. Other times, people laughed, finding the crude graphics of Final Fantasy I, II, and III amusing on a large screen in a symphony hall. The same reaction occurred during clips of turn based battle play. Distant Worlds captured a range of emotions: mirth, undying attention, and a few tears. Distant Worlds: Music from Final Fantasy is a must see event. The only complaint is, two hours is just not long enough.

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Posted by Cless Alvein on July 17, 2009 at 04:30:15 PM

I have another complaint. It was on the other side of the country. ;_;