Distant Worlds: Music From Final Fantasy Review

Many of you may recognise the name Nobuo Uematsu. Chances are even if you haven't, you will have heard some of his music. You probably know it very well indeed. For 24 years now Nobuo Uematsu has provided scores for one of the most beloved gaming franchises of all time, the Final Fantasy series. Uematsu's name is synonymous with the Final Fantasy games, and even the few recent titles he has not scored fully (XII and XIII) have his finger prints all over. Over the years Nobuo Uematsu has strived to bring his music to live audiences. One of his avenues for this has been his band The Black Mages, who cover classic themes from the Final Fantasy games in a rock/metal fusion. The other way Uematsu has spread his music beyond gaming sessions is through a series of concerts titled Distant Worlds. This year Uematsu took his show world wide, touring America, Asia and Europe and on November the 5th I was fortunate to be one of the hundreds that packed out the Royal Albert Hall to see this remarkable performance. Tickets for Distant Worlds went on sale in December 2010 and by January were completely sold out, which goes some way to illustrating how much people love this music. However, if that wasn't abundantly clear by the sales figures, the atmosphere on the night showed just how passionate Final Fantasy fans are for the music. As you can imagine, many people decided to cosplay as their favourite characters and it was fantastic to see some of the most memorable characters from the games brought to life. The Royal Albert Hall is as you would imagine, a stunning venue and one of the best places in the country to hear an orchestra. Rather than fly a full orchestra and choir around the world the show makes use of the finest local orchestra and in London that means none other than the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and the London Voices Choir. I was slightly disappointed that it wasn't a Japanese orchestra but then again, I had never had the pleasure of hearing the Royal Philharmonic so any disappointment was soon expelled. While I am not a classically trained musician I have a good ear for music and through writing my own music for many years, have a solid understanding of composition and performance. I also have both the Distant Worlds albums so I knew 90% of the music played like the back of my hand. As such, I feel qualified to make a fair judgement of the performance that isn't influenced by fan boy enthusiasm. For the most part, the performance was flawless, especially the slower and more emotional pieces. Tracks like Zanarkand that feature a heavy amount of woodwind were exceptional and breathtaking. The subtle expression that came from the flutes was especially beautiful and were perfectly balanced by the phenomenal string section. I didn't count but I am guessing it was at least an 18 piece string section and the sound was panoramic, delivering in both power and subtlety when needed. The harpist was also a stand out performance, especially during the opening title that many would recognise as the menu music for most of the games. The brass was on the whole epic and powerful, especially the French horns (probably my favourite instrument of all time) though sadly during Jenova the trumpets all failed to confidently hit the highest note. I can't say that there is much call for that particular note as, if I am not mistaken, it is at the very top of the instrument's range but sadly, you expect perfection when watching the Royal Philharmonic. The only real let down among the musicians was the organ soloist. The Royal Albert Hall has a very impressive pipe organ that consumes the entire back wall of the auditorium so to say I was looking forward to Dancing Mad (an organ led piece) would have been an understatement. Sadly, the soloist made a number of noticeable mistakes, fumbling the more complex sections and not grasping the feel of the piece. Granted, Dancing Mad is a very complicated song, written with midi and not an actual pipe organ so perhaps it is very hard to play. I wouldn't be surprised if it is harder than Bach's most ostentatious works however, there was no heart in the performance and no expression. It sounded very mechanical when played correctly which sadly made the mistakes unforgivable. On the whole the track was a bad choice as it also lacked the electric guitar work that is fundamental to the climax of the piece. One of the most fun things about the concert was the two huge screens showing classic moments from the games. The video was timed with the music, reminding you of where that music came from and the context it was used in. This worked best at the very start of the concert, where the audience got to see a little bit of FFVIII (the opening mission in the town) which served as a reminder of how far the series has come. As the characters talk to each other (sadly in Japanese) the audience chuckled at the old school pixels and animation. But then Squall and co came to a bridge and after a few steps the screen blurred into a vortex of colour and a battle begun. As did a full orchestra playing the FFVIII battle theme. A true fangasm ensued and everyone instantly felt they had got their money's worth. Another great moment was the Swing De Chocobo which featured a montage of chocobo action from FFI - FFXIV. Seriously, chocobos were so cute in 8-bit. The proceedings ended on a high with an encore of One Winged Angel (it had to be really) featuring footage from the excellent Advent Children. The choir even got an extra voice courtesy of Nobuo himself which was fun but I will admit a little disappointing. When Nobuo hit the stage and the conductor started the banter I thought Nobuo was going to conduct his most beloved piece himself but it was not to be. Still, who can blame him, I would certainly love to shout Sephiroth at top volume. All in all this was a great experience and well worth the money. If you are a fan of Nobuo's music or a fan of the series (likely you are both or neither) this is a once in a lifetime opportunity. You may be thinking "well it was, but I missed it you idiot" but I'm not being stupid as this once in a lifetime opportunity is in fact at least a twice in a lifetime opportunity. Distant Worlds will be back in London next November. They are here on the 25th anniversary of the original Final Fantasy so it is likely to be bigger and better and fingers crossed involve more Nobuo interaction. Tickets for next years show will be on sale this December so make sure to check out the Royal Albert Hall website and get hold of those hot potatoes.