Chudah's Corner - Liner Notes

# A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

SaGa Frontier II Original Soundtrack

Catalog Number: SSCX-10031
Translation By: Ongakusei

Liner Notes

I've come to think that, until finishing work on this, my own SaGa title, I had experience of nothing but writing music for other people's gratification. Pitifully, I succumbed to the pressure working on a series as storied as SaGa engendered, and fell into despair. And yet one day, in a moment of serendipity, my whole attitude changed, and I decided here was where I would assert my own musical identity.

The idea that "game music should sound like this" is, I'm sure, a more than common sentiment. But I felt that conforming to the atmosphere of the previous game was not necessary.Why was I chosen to write music for the new SaGa? Must I cede to the preconceived expectations of SaGa fans in what I create?....No. If so, then why bother doing what any other composer could do just as well.

It was imperative for me to create with the sense that "This is my own voice now. I would love for you to listen to this..." Only in the last 2 months of production did I realize that attempting to express my own unique character to the utmost was the best medicine for dissolving the misery that had plagued me. I believe nearly two-thirds of this music was written free of the guilt pandering bears.

I extend a heartfelt thanks to the SaGa staff for dealing with these self-absorbed struggles of mine. And also to the synth manipulator, Yamazaki-kun. In addition to the brilliance of his work, it was the appreciation he showed me for my harmonic style that was my greatest source of happiness.

-Masashi Hamauzu (Composer)

Greetings. I'm Ryo Yamazaki, the synthesizer manipulator for this project. It's been 3 years since I began working with game music, but my work with Hamauzu-san here forced me countless times to confront the dilemma of "What exactly is game music?"

At present, hundreds of game titles flood the marketplace, and game music has been forced into a process of mass production in order for it to keep up with this excessive demand. As a result, listeners now expect from game music only those conventional elements they are accustomed to, and what's truly worse, creators seem only too willing to capitulate to this trend. This is not to say, however, that I believe everyone surrenders to the status quo. Why? It's because of the figure of Masashi Hamauzu, who rejects the habitude of musical inanity and strives instead to communicate a music of genius. But above that, above anything, Hamauzu's genuine, personal, and heartfelt delight in music brought to me a strange sense of relief. I've become newly aware that game music was not meant to be a moribund form doomed to wander aimlessly across predefined rails, but can be an arena for personal, joyous expression. I think the key for game music to improve its future prospects is for both creators and listeners to expand the flexibility of their senses. With that in mind, Hamauzu's music has provided a hint to game music in general on how to ripen its depth of character.

-Ryo Yamazaki (Synth Programmer)