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Topic: How do you make... (Read 23471 times) previous topic - next topic

How do you make...

Is there any way, in NWC, to make those notes that sort of... It's hard to describe... It goes from one note to a different note, but not like in increments, in one sweep... I just can't get that word!
I've heard this effect in other MIDIs, such as Final Fantasy 5 Fierce Battle and FF6 Fierce Battle, if you've ever heard those.

Re: How do you make...

Reply #1 –
Oh yeah, I know what you're talking about :-). Great songs, those ones, Nobuo Uematsu rules :-)

The feature you're looking for is called pitch bend. Where one note sweeps down into another. Check out the multi-point controller (in noteworthy, hit the "L" key.) A window pops up, and in it you can select the pitch bend option. (You'll see what I mean when you get there). Also be sure you have "linear sweep" selected.

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Reply #2 –
Hmm... How do you actually USE the pitch blend? I can't figure it out.

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Reply #4 –
Thanks! And now, as a special little treat to you, here's a link to a near-complete MIDI soundtrack for Final Fantasy 6 (by, as you indicated, Nobuo Uematsu). Some of the best MIDI aroundhttp://www.telusplanet.net/public/troutman/midi/ff3midi.zip
Unfortunately it's missing a few songs, such as the full Opera House suite. I don't know why. That's some of the best music in the game.
Oh, and don't judge Nobuo by the Final Fantasy 8 soundtrack. It's really bad, especially for him.

Re: How do you make...

Reply #5 –
Thanks for the midis, Aaron. If you're really into turning the music into midis, you can find the whole soundtrack on cd at www.gamemusic.com, or www.animenation.com.

Oh, and I have to disagree about the FF8 soundtrack, it really is his best work to date. He experiments with way more tones, textures and styles than he did in final fantasy 6, which is probably why we in north america don't tend to like it as much, its too easy to reject new ideas. (It seems lots of people in north america limit their tastes in music to such a small range of musical genres). Besides, Uematsu thinks its his best work to date, and I'd rather agree with the original composer than a few meager and soon-forgotten critics anyday.

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Reply #6 –
Hmm. Maybe the samples I heard happened to be the worst songs from the soundtrack. Well, whatever. All I know fore sure is 6 has better music than 1-5, and 7.

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Reply #7 –
Well, I have a handful of MIDIs (those all sound awful, but I can't rely too much on those... What they call "intro" is nothing of the sort), and 4 MP3s. The battle music which is good, but a bit repetitive for me. The victory music, and most people agree on this, is a disgrace. The first part of the ending is a piano solo which sounds kind of nice at first, but it just gets boring. And although the final battle is cool, it's a joke compared to FF6.

Re: How do you make...

Reply #8 –
MIDIs can only do the original music so much justice, after all it's only somebody's interpretation of what they heard.
Also, just like a movie, it really helps if you have played through it first.. that way you understand how the music fits the settings. As I have finished it and have the soundtrack recorded (and ordered myself a copy) I can assure you it is way more complex.
As far as the "final battle" once again it is a matter interpretation.. FF8 has so much more going on in it.. the interwoven piano lines and percussion... and many other subtle details... to say nothing of far better sound and sample quality.. its far more interesting to listen to than FF6 which was limited by technology to only 8 tracks. So we have to agree to disagree there :-)
Another thing interesting about FF8 is since it is Uematsu's last FF work.. the integration of many themes from all the other works in the series throughout the soundtrack. You can pick them out in the backgrounds.. etc :-)
Thats why turning this stuff into a MIDI file is so hard, so many details! Also.. how can you turn the introduction Liberi Fatali into a MIDI file? That would seriously lose something without the chorus singing in latin :-)

Re: How do you make...

Reply #9 –
Well, that's why there is no MIDI of it. What I got was just a completely different tune that was not the intro. Don't know where the heck it came from. Also, I don't know if it's his last work. I heard that FF9 either will be some other guy or him and some other guy.
Well you're right, we'll have to disagree about the final battle. I just can't get over 6's, no matter how primitive the technology was -- it's just... I don't know.
For some much better quality FF8 midis than I got before, go here. http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Zone/9936/ff8/midi.html
Any song title that's a link has a MIDI. Unfortunately, you have to search for the MIDI in your temporary internet files, since it just links to an HTML file that plays the MIDI.

Re: How do you make...

Reply #10 –
Thanks. There's also a FF8 soundfont file out there too, I don't know if you have an SB Live or SB AWE card but if you do.. the link is:
http://members.xoom.com/TSSF/ss.html

And there's some midis there made specifically for the soundfont.. marked for "awe".

Hey, and thats cool about the final boss music. I like em both.. ff6 is neat especially because I like organ music.. I just really like ff8's as well. :-)

Re: How do you make...

Reply #11 –
Well, I'll get an SB Live... What does a soundfont do?
The MIDIs I got from the most recent link I posted are way better than the previous ones I got. I especially like "Ride On"... That's just beautiful.
It's true what you said about the other FF themes being in the soundtrack... I can't really judge for myself too much since I'm getting MIDIs, but Sephiroth's Theme(FF7)/Ancient Weapons (FF5)(they're the same thing) is in "The Successor". Also, something a lot like the FF7 main theme is in "Premonition".
Well, I'm more optimistic about FF8's soundtrack now, since from the old MIDIs, I referred to the game as "Nobuo Uematsu's Drunken Rage".
You can find the old MIDIs here:
http://www.rpg-haven.com/rpgmidis.html
Tell me if these are from the game or not. Well a few of them are.

Re: How do you make...

Reply #12 –
Oh, and another thing -- Let's make sure I know what the Final Battle IS. It's "The Extreme", right?

Re: How do you make...

Reply #13 –
Yeah, its The Extreme.. Actually its "Legendary Beast," "Maybe I'm a Lion"(bizzare but interesting piece, fits EXTREMELY well with the events happening on screen), and The Extreme.... the one that starts out slowly with the distorted vocals.. then breaks into the rhythmic piece with piano and synth.
Have you heard the original piece, or just the midi files?

--Shane

Re: How do you make...

Reply #14 –
It's kinda strange how it works out. I have nothing of Legendary Beast, a MIDI of Maybe I'm a Lion, and an MP3 of The Extreme. Oh wait, I have a MIDI of that as well. gameinfonet.com used to have the entire soundtrack on MP3, but now I can't go there for some reason!
You're right, Maybe I'm a Lion is strange. But I can imagine that it fits the scene well.
By the way, that link you sent me about soundfonts -- Did you hear what they call the intro? Why do people insist that that's the intro, even though it's clearly not?

Re: How do you make...

Reply #15 –
No.. the intro song is the introduction from the demo, not
actually from the game. I can't even remember this song in
the final game.. lots of music was changed from the demo to
the final product.

Yeah, and never judge a soundtrack by the midis. Uematsu
never wrote those midi files.. some people did, by ear, so
they aren't even the exact right notes. Also, depending on
your midi equipment, the sound could completely suck too.
The only thing you can sort of get an idea from are mp3
files, recordings of the actual soundtrack. Like "a one
winged angel" midi.. no chorus singing carmina burana in the
midi files... or the fully orchestrated ending theme from
ff8... a midi file just doesn't cut it.
As another example, if you heard a really crappy midi
version of Beethoven's 9th, that doesn't mean the 9th
symphony sucks. The midi file does.

Re: How do you make...

Reply #16 –
OK, a soundfont is a collection of sounds that can be played
via midi. So it is possible to record sounds from the PSX,
and turn them into a soundfont.. so when you play a midi
file, it will sound "close" to the original. It has many
other uses too, because you can record any instrument in
real life and play it back in a midi file, giving midis a
much more realistic sound.

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Reply #17 –
Hey.. lets try listing all the 'flashback' melodies that we can find.

Like previously mentioned, the Premonition track has some stuff that sounds like the FF7 main theme.

Has anyone played FF5? You know the mountain music has a cadence which is identical to Force Your Way. Anyone noticed that?

Re: How do you make...

Reply #18 –
"Not I", said the Lemming.
I mean, I've played through FF5 all the way, but I don't see the tie-in to Force Your Way. Hey, that rhymed. Wait. No it didn't.
What do you mean by "cadence"? I'm stupid like that.

But anyway, I can notice a blatant Sephiroth theme in "The Successor". Actually, that dates back to FF5, since the Ancient Weapons theme is basically the same thing.
In "Fithos Lusec Wecos Vinosec", part of it sounds SORT OF like Kefka's theme. It's not too definite, though. I wonder what "Fithos Lusec Wecos Vinosec" means, anyway. I looked it up in a Latin dictionary, wasn't there. They use it an awful lot; it's even the name of the special arranged soundtrack CD!
Oh yeah, and the Victory song! Just kidding!
P.S. I hate what they've done to the victory song.

Re: How do you make...

Reply #19 –
While I can't say I like the Victory Theme in FF8 either, it IS an improvement over the jumble of notes in FF7! Hey Square! Bring back the old fanfare!

Anyway, I notice in the final boss music ("The Extreme"), the guitar solo near the start that sounds startlingly like Vincent's Theme (FF7), and there is, of course, the trademark repeated bass (FF4-FF6 battle themes).

Final Fantasy Main Theme, of course, makes it's usual appearance at the end of the game, but for some weird reason, they decided to scrap the crystal theme and put it in "The Loser", albeit in a heavily modified form. Drat.

Lemmhead- does your email address work? I'll send you two short midi files for you to compare.

Re: How do you make...

Reply #20 –
Ah, another thing. At the start of "The Castle", you hear a variation of the odd music you can hear in the 2nd Tier (FF6 final boss). I mean, it sounds like music they play at those grandiose official functions, not while fighting a BOSS.

Re: How do you make...

Reply #21 –
Yeah, my e-mail address works. Did you send them already? Because if you did, then I didn't get them.
I was wondering if The Prologue (FF theme) was in it, so that answers my question. Is that in 7? If so, it's been in every FF game. Same with The Prelude (crystal theme).
I think the best version of The Prelude is in FF6. They finally slowed it down from 1-5, which makes it a lot nicer. Although FF7 had more realistic sounding instruments, they eliminated some of the background stuff and so it just didn't cut it, in my opinion.
"You be dissin' the best part of Dancing Mad?"
Uh, what I mean to say is, are you downplaying Dancing Mad 2nd tier? Not to sound aggressive or anything... I love that part, I think it's so suspenseful! In my opinion, it's okay to slow the music down a bit during the fight... Actually, the best part is probably the Kefka part, but I was just babbling. One thing I really love is how in part 3, you can hear Kefka's theme really softly in the background. That is so spooky!

Re: How do you make...

Reply #22 –
Ah, so it does work :) Hang on, I'll arrange a midi from the mp3 of the boss theme I have, then send both to you.

Well, I'm not against it or anything- it just doesn't sound like a life-or-death situation that Sabin & Co. go through at that time. Thats just my opinion, of course :)

The final tier captures Kefka's personality perfectly. There's the part where they beat the drums like crazy, then it suddenly cuts to Kefka's Theme, then it goes back to the drums again - truly visualising the insane character that Kefka is.

The Prologue is played (as usual since FF5) after you finish the game, during the Ending Cutscene/Credit Roll, the Prelude (crystal theme) was omited from the game except for when you lose, though even then it sounds totally different. I like the new chords they added in, though.

I also just remembered - Eyes On Me is a huge collage of previous FF themes. You can hear a bit of Terra's Theme, Celes Theme, and Tifa's Theme throughout the music. There might be more, but I haven't been able to pick them out.

Re: How do you make...

Reply #23 –
Oops.. just re-read your post.

Yeah, the Prelude is played at the splash screen in FF7 (New Game/Continue) and the Prologue is played during the credit roll.

Re: How do you make...

Reply #24 –
I have noticed them mixes in the Eyes on Me song at least the Terra and Cles ones

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Reply #25 –
and the Little Aries house thing where Barret and the crew are in Aries' house, well that song seems to tie up with the Celes song, just a Lil' ta wee bit :)

Re: How do you make...

Reply #26 –
Fithos Lusec Wecos Vinosec
Idont think it really means anything in any foreign language. however, if you rearange the letters, you get "Succession Of Witches"(the name of another FF8 track) with the word "Love" left over
Interesting

Re: How do you make...

Reply #27 –
Hi everyone! Does anyone have the ending theme of FF8 in midi file? PLEASE send it to me.
quististrepe17@hotmail.com
I can give you an other midi of FF8 just say witch one, I almost have them all.
Some people asked for the midi file of Liberi Fatali, I have it.
But please send the ending theme to me!!! I'm looking for it everywhere!
So help me and do me a faviour.

I really like FF8 and FF9. Just this morning, I have finished FF9. And now I'm sad because it is all over...

(I know my english sucks, because I'm dutch)
Thanx!

Re: How do you make...

Reply #28 –
Does anyone have Melodies of Life from FF9?? If anyone does have it...please send it to me at scoolgirlz@hotmail.com. I like the english version. I also like to have Eyes On Me fromm FF8. Please if anyone has that send it to me!! I have the urge to listen to the midi files.

Re: How do you make...

Reply #29 –
Hi, I'm David from Indonesia.
Is there anyone who can play music, especially in composising ?
You can contact me, there's many that we can discuss.
All 'bout music.
I want to learn about composising more.
As Nobuo Uematsu fan, I just want to make a song like he does.
And I believe that someday I will.
But I need more practise and suggestion.
Please,.. Is there someone could help me ?
Is there someone can teach me the practical way ?
Or maybe you know about your friend that can play music, please introduce him/her to me.

Please...

Dave,-

Re: How do you make...

Reply #30 –
I just came across this site, and I thought, Hmm interesting. So here goes. I know what you mean by trying to get the MIDIs to sound like the original. Its such a pain. Anyways, does anyone have any MIDIs of Conde Petie from FF9? Any tips on using Noteworthy Composer as a whole? And whats the best MIDI player to use?

Re: How do you make...

Reply #31 –
What was Nobuo Uematsu's first song he wrote for Final Fantasy one?

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Reply #32 –
WHERE CAN I FIND FINAL FANTASY VIII PIANO CHORDS!!!!???

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Reply #35 –
Was just asking whats the title of the opera whenever She(The witch) appear?