Hitoshi Sakimoto

Originally Posted by BurningRanger

Can someone tell me what is good about this man, or any of the things he has done.

He is an absolutely TERRIBLE composer...
And yet, I have seen people praise him - so can someone explain to me where the merit is in his unmitigated dreck?

I don't like Final Fantasy XII either but to say he is a terrible composer from being exposed to 1 of his numerous soundtracks, leaves your statement feeling horridly rushed.

I think his "failure" is more or less a reflection of your belief that music should speak according to set guidelines. It doesn't, due to its subjectivity. For instance, there is no fixed positioning for chords which might indicate a specific emotional quality. Different chords mean different things to different peoples and inspire unique characteristics.
Personally, if there were a definable set of rules for inciting emotions, I appreciate Sakimoto's attempts at creating something original that defines itself and doesn't use musical methodologies which are already becoming far too commonplace as is.

Here's another principle about the musicality of Final Fantasy XII and can also be true of much of Sakimoto's work; there is a lot going on. Its not as accessible as Nobuo Uematsu's melody riddled efforts, thats for sure. Whereas Nobuo's Final Fantasy music is appreciable right off the bat, Sakimoto's music has a very unique character to it that is often appreciated through continually being exposed to it. His music is much more dissonant, much more percussively driven and quite a bit more complex. That is, it takes time to become familiar with Hitoshi Sakimoto's musical idiom.

At first, I listened to Sakimoto's work in Final Fantasy Tactics and thought to myself, what is this guy doing? He's not developing this piece properly!!!
However, through listening to the music again and again, it becomes understood that there is a methodical precision with which Sakimoto creates music and through realizing that, it allowed me to better understand the intent behind his work. Furthermore, each of his works has its own sense of character, which makes it difficult to pin him down.
Listen to Vagrant Story if you don't believe me.

So in closing, appreciating Sakimoto's musicality requires an effort to understand how it all fits together. Each of the soundtrack's that I have of Sakimoto are unique and brilliant in their own ways. The interesting thing about Sakimoto's music is that it isn't always what it appears to be...its almost always much more.

How ya doing, buddy?

Goldfish, 1)no it isn't true of any composer. Every composer has a different formula for creating music and therefore styles greatly differ from musician to musician. Whereas some composers provide music which sustains a mood or is successful at first glance, the fact may be that the music only holds that quality for that very initial phase without providing food for thought later on. I find Sakuraba to be one such musician. That is, the sense of discovery in exploring the music is very limited beyond the first playing. It doesn't make Sakimoto 'special' to create music that gets better with analyzation, it does make him unique and off the beaten path, which in my mind at least, sets him apart from various other musicians who are more widely accepted.
2)

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"Tri-Section", "Electricity Supply Building" or "Apoplexy" didn't jive with me the first time I heard them, but I found at least something moderately appealing in them...all are quite enjoyable now.

You partially proved my point. Did you not enjoy these pieces considerably more after spending more time with them?

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Originally Posted by GoldfishX

Spending more time listening to his material is not going to make the listener enjoy or appreciate it more if one does not initially find it at least moderately appealing.

Its unfair to assume that any given person is going to judge a piece of music only according to a very sketchy initial impression. If I had said, "Oh ya know, I don't really like Prokofiev's Toccata. It sounds too strange! I have heard it once and I think its terrible, so I guess I won't listen to it ever again." Then I would be a great fool and overconfident in my abilities to analyze something properly in due fashion. Music, to me, is a journey.
Certain pieces of music simply require more time to appreciate. Why? Because the musical makeup is such that the beauty present in the music isn't clear at first glance. It requires more time to work its magic.

You are making the claim that we only appreciate what we like up front and that is all that's worthy of examination, and I simply think that is rather false.

Why does that matter in this discussion anyways? The gameplay in Final Fantasy Tactics is such, that the gamer will hear most music in the game multiple times anyways, whether they like it at first glance or not. So, the player is forced to become more familiar with the music.
Furthermore, you are needlessly eliminating an important step from the musical listening process and assuming everyone follows that same standard. Music can and does grow on us through invention. That is the main point I am making...not to be confused with the degree with which we like a piece the first time we hear it.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

^^^Sure, why not? Just allow me to keep my cyanide nearby...

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

This thread is a circus!

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I wonder in what proportions is Sakimoto's fame due to him working for Square rather than his actual composer talents.

What does that mean? I don't think he is famous, whatsoever.
I think Sakimoto has earned every inch of his 'success', or whatever you wish to call it. He is a skillful composer and can can create a large volume of tracks fairly quickly, which is a very valuable asset in today's video game industry and is also one of the reasons that he is so "popular" at the moment with various projects.
Are you going to assume that Sakimoto achieved all the fame and prestige based upon his employment at Square? I mean, for Christ sakes, he was only employed by Square for 2 measly years and has worked freelance since 2000, creating titles for literally dozens of companies.

I think Sakimoto got his real break with Mr. Matsuno who was working with Quest, at the time. (developer of Ogre Battle) Its the relationship that Sakimoto shared with Iwata and Matsuno that mainly bolstered his reputation for writing video game music.

When you add up all of the projects he has accumulated throughout his composing career, his time with Square is minimal at best.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

I don't believe Sakimoto is a household name like Uematsu or Mitsuda.
I believe there are plenty of composers that get more recognition than Sakimoto so I am speaking of Sakimoto's fame via comparison to other prominent and well regarded composers in the industry.

How ya doing, buddy?

Datschge, you're fired.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Bollocks. I know what I like...understanding something more elaborately can oftentimes lead to enjoying it more, I don't care what it is. From a blade of grass, to the inner workings of a space shuttle to a swiss clock. Understanding is a means for appreciating. Without a basis for understanding, there is sometimes no sense of perspective with which to grasp a particular principle or metholody, so a subjects true worth evades us.
Uncovering intricacies which display the capabilities for exploring new worlds, await us at nearly every turn. This is true in almost every sense, in everything that we do as humans, least of all in regards to music.

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by Mr. Maul

Ahh so it's relative, not absolute like initially stated.

Relative, yes of course. I thought you would've learned to read my mind by now.

I think deservedley good things await Mr. Sakimoto.

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