Who will replace Sugiyama?

It would be a dream come true if Kentaro Haneda was the substitute. He is a classical-trained composer and his works for Falcom and for several anime soundtracks endorse him.

Yeah, and being realist, I think that Hayato Matsuo is the ideal candidate.

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Originally Posted by isdapi

It would be a dream come true if Kentaro Haneda was the substitute. He is a classical-trained composer and his works for Falcom and for several anime soundtracks endorse him.

Blesed thy be. I rarely see a person mention the name of Kentaro Haneda. You're the second person I know in this forum after bishop who knows his name. But the chance for Kentaro Haneda would be close to zero. He rarely composed video game music anymore.

How ya doing, buddy?

I think Sugiyama works was just too unique and none of the composer so far that was mentioned in this thread can replace him, especially with most known composers. Guess DQ was never the same without Sugiyama... Sakimoto's too medieval, Shimomura tends to go techno, Mizuta was kinda boring (I've never forget his work on Parasite Eve 2 which was terrible, although his contribution at FFXI was much better compared the last time he did though still kinda boring), Uematsu's Celtic-alike. Hamauzu might be good since his works feel more fantasy-like but still pale in comparison with Sugiyama. Kanno could be good choice, but she's kinda different since her works more traditional & jazz mix.

I've actually never heard Hayato Matsuo before, but if what @Maul said was true, then Matsuo might be considered since he worked with Sugiyama before.

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Matsuo's tracks in FFXII aren't all that great. I haven't heard any of his other works.

I don't think anyone could replace Sugiyama. His sound is simply too ingrained in the games. Let's hope he lives a long life...

I was speaking idiomatically.

Originally Posted by jb1234

Matsuo's tracks in FFXII aren't all that great. I haven't heard any of his other works.

I don't think anyone could replace Sugiyama. His sound is simply too ingrained in the games. Let's hope he lives a long life...

Well, he did orchestrate and partly compose the Opening and Ending themes, though I agree that his original tracks weren't all that interesting upon first impressions.

EDIT: Just found out that Matsuo used to be a pupil of Sugiyama's.

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There is a part in Matsuo's "Abyss" from FFXII that sounds EXACTLY like something Sugiyama would do. Im gonna lean toward Matsuo replacing him now.

FELIPE NO

Originally Posted by Mr. Maul

Well, he did orchestrate and partly compose the Opening and Ending themes, though I agree that his original tracks weren't all that interesting upon first impressions.

EDIT: Just found out that Matsuo used to be a pupil of Sugiyama's.

Heh? Now that's interesting, wonder why this guy doesnt have more project. I really liked his contribution on FFXII.

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Heh? Now that's interesting, wonder why this guy doesnt have more project. I really liked his contribution on FFXII.

He's had plenty of projects, but not all of them are well-known.

Like most Imagine composers, he dabbles in the field of anime too. His anime works are listed here. He's also a major contributor to the Troubadour series of non-game albums.

Here is a list of scores he has worked on:

Original Scores

Battle Garegga Perfect Soundtrack (arrangement)
Dragon Force II ~ When the Gods Abandoned Earth
Final Fantasy XII Original Soundtrack
Front Mission 3 Original Soundtrack
Front Mission 5 ~Scars of the War~ Original Soundtrack (reprise from FM3)
Front Mission Online Original Soundtrack (reprises from FM3 - announced soundtrack, but no details as yet)
Master of Monsters
Ogre Battle 64: Person of Lordly Caliber Original Soundtracks
Ogre Battle, All Sounds of
Panzer Dragoon Orta Original Soundtrack (arrangement)
Panzer Dragoon RPG, Azel (arrangement)

Arranged Albums

Ogre Battle Image Album ~ The Entrance
Ogre ~Grand Repeat~
Sakura Taisen III Music Collection ~ Paris Music Hall
Sakura Taisen V ~Farewell, Loved Ones~ Music Collection New York Music Hall
Sakura Taisen V ~Farewell, Loved Ones~ Vocal Collection New York Songs Collection
Shenmue Orchestra Version
Sword Maniac

Other Albums

Dragon Quest I CD Theater
Dragon Quest II CD Theater
Dragon Quest III CD Theater
Dragon Quest IV CD Theater Vol. 1
Dragon Quest IV CD Theater Vol. 2
Dragon Quest IV CD Theater Vol. 3
Dragon Quest V CD Theater Vol. 1
Dragon Quest V CD Theater Vol. 2
Dragon Quest V CD Theater Vol. 3
Dragon Quest VI CD Theater Vol. 1
Dragon Quest VI CD Theater Vol. 2
Game Music Concert ~The Best Selection~
Game Music Concert 2 ~The Best Selection~
Game Music Concert 4 ~The Best Selection~
Panzer Dragoon RPG Mini Album, Azel

I'm still not 100% sure about whether he composed all CD Theater albums, but the translator I work with from time-to-time seems to think so. There might be other Sakura Taisen and possibly Tengai Makyou albums as well, so if anyone can confirm them, tell me.

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Hmm... he arranged Ogre Battle Grand Repeat and... Ogre Battle Image Album Enterance? Interesting... he actually arranged both one jewel and one crappiest album in VGM history.

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Originally Posted by eriol

Hmm... he arranged Ogre Battle Grand Repeat and... Ogre Battle Image Album Enterance? Interesting... he actually arranged both one jewel and one crappiest album in VGM history.

I should explain... For an album to be listed as featuring him, it simply means compositions or arrangements of his feature. The Panzer Dragoon albums are arranged by him, but feature no original compositions. Grand Repeat features compositions from him (one, if I remember correctly), but he doesn't take an active arranging role. Sorry if this is confusing!

The credits for Ogre Battle Image Album state that Hitoshi Sakimoto, Masaharu Iwata, and Hayato Matsuo were the arrangers. That baffles me, as none of them have ever produced another bad work. Masatsugu Shinozaki (a master violinist) was the arranger of Grand Repeat.

IMO, Shenmue Orchestra Version was the pinnacle of Hayato Matsuo's orchestral arrangements.

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Originally Posted by Mr. Maul

I'm still not 100% sure about whether he composed all CD Theater albums, but the translator I work with from time-to-time seems to think so. There might be other Sakura Taisen and possibly Tengai Makyou albums as well, so if anyone can confirm them, tell me.

As far as the Dragon Quest CD theaters are concered, he actually didn't work on the first one (ECD-001), as Sugiyama is credited solely for both music and arranging. I can confirm that he did work as an arranger on the second one (ECD-002) though, together with Sugiyama. (there's really no mistaking this as the credits are all in English for these two cds) Hope that helps

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You guys automatically dismissed Nobuo Uematsu, but there's absolutely no reason why Uematsu couldn't handle the Dragon Quest series. Uematsu, short of Sugiyama himself, is the most melodic game composer out there. He's explicitly said that when composing he always develops the melody first and then builds the song around that. Uematsu is also the only composer I know of to not even really *have* a distinctive style of his own. He's completely versatile, having demonstrated mastery over orchestras and operas as well as synthesizers, and can compose in basically any style of music effectively. I have no doubt he could take over the Dragon Quest series.

That said, as a militant Hamauzu fanboy, I also think Hamauzu could handle it. But I would pick Uematsu first and foremost.

I was speaking idiomatically.

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As far as the Dragon Quest CD theaters are concered, he actually didn't work on the first one (ECD-001), as Sugiyama is credited solely for both music and arranging. I can confirm that he did work as an arranger on the second one (ECD-002) though, together with Sugiyama. (there's really no mistaking this as the credits are all in English for these two cds) Hope that helps

That was helpful, yet confusing! The only two DQ CD Theaters that I've seen solid English confirmation that Hayato Matsuo was the arranger were the first and second (that source was RPGFan). Thanks for revealing this anyhow; it makes everything much more complex for me, but at least I won't be publishing any inaccurate information now.

I'll do some searching of '松尾早人 ' and see what I come up with.

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You guys automatically dismissed Nobuo Uematsu, but there's absolutely no reason why Uematsu couldn't handle the Dragon Quest series. Uematsu, short of Sugiyama himself, is the most melodic game composer out there. He's explicitly said that when composing he always develops the melody first and then builds the song around that. Uematsu is also the only composer I know of to not even really *have* a distinctive style of his own. He's completely versatile, having demonstrated mastery over orchestras and operas as well as synthesizers, and can compose in basically any style of music effectively. I have no doubt he could take over the Dragon Quest series.

Difference is that Nobuo Uematsu really hasn't demonstrated mastery over orchestras. Practically all FF orchestrations (in-game or arranged album) were done by another arranger, most often Shiro Hamaguchi. Hamaguchi produced the orchestrations in the FFVII Reunion Tracks, FFVIII FITHOS LUSEC WECOS VINOSEC, Tour de Japon, Dear Friends, and 20020220, and was principally responsible for a wide number of in-game gems -- including "FFXI Opening Theme," "Liberi Fatali," "Suteki Da Ne" (orchestral and original), FFVIII's ending theme, "Eyes on Me," "Melodies of Life," and "One Winged Angel."

Nobuo Uematsu isn't trained in orchestration, whereas Koichi Sugiyama received extensive training and is one of the most technically proficient composers out there. Some things don't require training, but orchestration certainly does (I should know). There'd be an incredible regression in technical quality were Nobuo to take over.

Hamaguchi + Dragon Quest wouldn't be ideal, IMO. Hamaguchi is melodramatic, in my opinion, and would make DQ overstated. Hayato Matsuo would be far more appropriate, though both come from the same company (Imagine). Besides, Hamaguchi is away from Japan for some time, receiving education in Boston.

Not sure about Masashi Hamauzu's skills as an orchestrator... Coi Vanni Gialli was rather good, though Dirge of Cerberus required an external orchestrator.

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Originally Posted by Mr. Maul

Difference is that Nobuo Uematsu really hasn't demonstrated mastery over orchestras. Practically all FF orchestrations (in-game or arranged album) were done by another arranger, most often Shiro Hamaguchi.

Originally Posted by Mr. Maul

Nobuo Uematsu isn't trained in orchestration, whereas Koichi Sugiyama received extensive training and is one of the most technically proficient composers out there.

Quoted for truth. This is also the main reason I dont mention his name in the first post. While he's melodious, his style is radically different with Sugiyama. Uematsu's music is more melodious and play in the simpleness, Sugiyama music is more complex and colored by classical ornament, even Baroque ones (blessed he be). I never heard Uematsu arranged his works himself.

But would be nice to see Uematsu + Hamauzu cope together, though Hamauzu is more brilliant as piano arranger.

FELIPE NO

Originally Posted by Mr. Maul

The only two DQ CD Theaters that I've seen solid English confirmation that Hayato Matsuo was the arranger were the first and second (that source was RPGFan).

That's strange. I guess whoever made the review of the first one must have made a mistake then. He is credited as music producer for it though, together with a few other people.

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Originally Posted by seanne

That's strange. I guess whoever made the review of the first one must have made a mistake then. He is credited as music producer for it though, together with a few other people.

To be honest, from the review, it didn't seem like they had listened to the album at all, so I guess there was a misunderstanding down the line.

Music producer, eh? Very interesting. Thanks for the help, seanne.

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Originally Posted by eriol

I never heard Uematsu arranged his works himself.

He arranged Dear Friends, if I remeber correctly.

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Originally Posted by Namakemono

He arranged Dear Friends, if I remeber correctly.

Yup and Final Fantasy III Eternal Legend of Wind.

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Originally Posted by Mr. Maul

Difference is that Nobuo Uematsu really hasn't demonstrated mastery over orchestras. Practically all FF orchestrations (in-game or arranged album) were done by another arranger, most often Shiro Hamaguchi. Hamaguchi produced the orchestrations in the FFVII Reunion Tracks, FFVIII FITHOS LUSEC WECOS VINOSEC, Tour de Japon, Dear Friends, and 20020220, and was principally responsible for a wide number of in-game gems -- including "FFXI Opening Theme," "Liberi Fatali," "Suteki Da Ne" (orchestral and original), FFVIII's ending theme, "Eyes on Me," "Melodies of Life," and "One Winged Angel."

That was definitely an education, and I respect what you mean when you say Sugiyama can't be at all traded in for Uematsu.

However, Uematsu was the composer for all the albums you mentioned above, and there's no reason he couldn't take over as composer for DQ. He could have Hamaguchi continue to help him with the arrangements for orchestra. I'm not convinced that there would be a "huge regression in technical quality" if Uematsu were to take over. Uematsu has learned how to compose and produce fantastic orchestral music, even if he had someone help him fill in the gaps in his training.

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Originally Posted by Mr. Maul

Well, he did orchestrate and partly compose the Opening and Ending themes, though I agree that his original tracks weren't all that interesting upon first impressions.

Is there any proof that he helped with composing those pieces? They sounded strictly Sakimoto to me (with Matsuo's orchestrations).

I concur that Uematsu would be a bad choice to take over the DQ legacy. He doesn't have nearly the training needed to pull it off. In addition, his recent music has felt very tired to me (basically anything FFIX and after).

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(Uematsu) explicitly said that when composing he always develops the melody first and then builds the song around that.

That's part of the problem right there. Most composers understand that there's more to music than melody. That's part of the reason why Sakimoto's FFXII score worked so well and why Sugiyama's work is so textured. All Uematsu has working for him are pretty melodies and lately, he's seemed all melodied out.

I was speaking idiomatically.

Sugiyama's work is far more simplistic and melody-focused than Uematsu's. Uematsu *begins* by making the melody, but Sugiyama basically stops after that. The orchestrations come out very well, but his original compositions for the Dragon Quest games, as beautiful as they are, are nothing in sophistication compared to the work Uematsu did for 7, 8, or 9.

Uematsu's greatest strength may not be his melodies, but that he builds songs of wildly different styles and takes a lot of risks in composing. The Final Fantasy VIII soundtrack alone shows probably about a million (a million!) very different sounding pieces. The FF8 boss theme was an amazing electronic organ piece, the battle theme was a wonderful 5/4 time orchestral song, and the Laguna battle music wouldn't have sounded out of place in a rave. And yet all three of these songs are best of breed for an RPG soundtrack.

You're selling Uematsu short here, and to call Sugiyama's work "textured" and to say that all Uematsu does is make good melodies is seriously mistaken. I'll freely admit Sugiyama's orchestrations are some of the most beautiful music in all RPGs, and I wish he did more than just DQ. But Sugiyama has really carved himself a very specific niche into my heart, while Uematsu continued to reinvent himself with every game he did. Uematsu is the man.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

I think a perfect team (although odd) would be Yoko Kanno and Masashi Hamauzu. Both composers are capable arrangers, and are quite talented in coming up with outstanding works that are both creative and breathtaking.

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Is there any proof that he helped with composing those pieces? They sounded strictly Sakimoto to me (with Matsuo's orchestrations).

He composed 3:50 to 4:25 of the "Opening," but didn't compose any specific section of the ending theme, though orchestration often involves some composition as well.

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I would like to see Hamauzu go with the series, but he may be too out there with his compositions to follow in Sugiyama's wake. I doubt it would happen, but I wouldn't be suprised to see DQ stop altogether. I feel the same with the Silent Hill series and Yamaoka as well.

It would be harder to replace Sugiyama for DQ than it was to replace Uematsu for FF.

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I don't know, it was pretty damn tough to replace Uematsu; they needed to use two entire Final Fantasy soundtracks as transition time alone with Uematsu working alongside other people, and he's still going to be working on the main themes for 12 and 13. If something as intensive as that was done with DQ it would probably work out.

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