Romancing SaGa 3 Windy Tale

Romancing SaGa 3 - Windy Tale, is perhaps one of the greatest arranged CDs of the '90s. If people ever doubt the musical genius of Kenji Ito, then all they have to do is pop this CD into their players and experience the subtle moody power that this man evokes in his compositions and arrangements. The mood of the music on the CD is very much like that from its predecessor, Romancing SaGa 2 - Eternal Romance - very light in mood and extremely relaxing. You won't find any clashing cymbals, wailing guitars, or overtly loud instrumentals at any time on this CD. Also, if you're looking for triumphant marches and themes a-la the Final Fantasy and Ys series, you won't find them here either. It's completely low key. Now, the question is: "Is this a bad thing?" The answer is a resounding "no". The orchestrations are top-notch. Strings, flutes, oboes, clarinets... Ito has arranged every piece of the orchestra into one fluid, emotionally stirring body, beautifully effective in its delivery.

"Windy Tale" begins with "Overture", a brilliant piece that uses the orchestra to its fullest extent, with rising and falling flutes, gentle harp strummings and light brass, among others. It's only 2:41 long, but as an opening overture, it sets the mood and tone for the entire CD. Also, some fans may recognize a passing similarity with the notes in the beginning of this song and those from the opening movement of the Final Fantasy VI opera.

Track 2 starts out very soft and peaceful, transitioning between piano solos and wind and string instrumentals. Then, it builds in intensity to a more uniform sound that is extremely moving, before reaching a high-point climax, then downshifting into a charming piano solo that leaves you feeling very satisfied indeed.

If listening to the Dracula Perfect Selection rock arrange CDs made you want to air guitar, then Romancing SaGa 3 will make you want to air violin or piano. From the beginning, it grabs you ever so gently by the heart and soul and pulls you in. I was a goner after track 2.

Track 5 is a much more upbeat selection - a waltz with a great violin and piano accompaniment. Very upbeat and fun to listen to. If you are into waltzes, then this is one of the best. Another excellent song is "Fairy's Whisper", a track with a vocal accompaniment. I'm afraid that I cannot translate the name of the beautiful woman whose voice sings this song as well as two others on the CD. It's truly beautiful, and goes along with the orchestrations perfectly, so the singing never feels out of place. It is as if the soul of the music itself is calling out to you.

The last track is a re-orchestration of the first, expanding on it extensively (to 7:25) and adding vocals. This brings the CD full circle, creatively and musically. Starting out softly with the overture (track one) and building in overall intensity through tracks 5 and 6, then slowly coming back down with the use of vocal arrangements, the CD comes to an inevitable but perfect end.

This is definitely music you can relax to. It affects a deeper area of your brain, connecting with you in way that is more personally special than with any other kind of music CD. It is just as stimulating as the louder, more intense tracks on other CDs, even more so because of its somber emotional groundings. It's just beautiful.

Beautifully orchestrated and composed, Romancing Saga 3 - Windy Tale never ceases to amaze me. The original soundtrack to the game I found rather dull; with the exception of a few action tracks, it put me quite literally to sleep. Windy Tale has more of the contemplative, soft and soothing quality that I like so much.

The first couple of tracks are excellent, especially "Overture" with its longing qualities and the all-too familiar "Opening Theme - The Saga Continues". If you've heard any of the Romancing Saga soundtracks, the theme used in that track should be very familiar. In the arrangement, it is slowled to a crawl, and made much more soothing and beautiful.

"Town Theme" doesn't sound much like town music at all. It would be better as a character piece, but it is still a pretty piece of music. "Lost Memories" is also a town music, but you wouldn't know it by listening to the piece. It is very mellow and utilizes the pizzicato strings to great effect. "A Shy Smile" is great mostly because it is the only upbeat track on the CD. The arrangement is in the form of a piano quartet, and it sounds marvelous. "Tears" pretty much follows its title. It has a very tragic quality, and with the help of a beautiful female voice, it turns out to be my favorite track.

Low points include the unremarkable "A Fairy's Whisper" and "Stardust Waltz", which pretty much sounds like something out of a musical. Neither is particularly bad, but they aren't quite up to par to the rest of the tracks.

Fortunately the CD ends with "Windy Tale", the longest track on the album. It virtually bubbles with quality. With the help of the female singer, it brings the soundtrack to a triumphant close. It astounds me how much the arrangements manage to sound so superior to the original. Kenji Ito clearly knew what he was doing here.

Romancing Saga - Windy Tale is performed very nicely. The sounds are rich with composition and the tracks are very tasteful. It is usually of the slow and sad nature, but it sounds so nice, you won't really care. Ikuko Nogucci of FF Love Will Grow fame supplies vocals with some of the songs and the full-fleged lyrics of "Windy Tale". She sounds extremely good, almost surpassing Risa Ohki. Originally, Kenji Ito's songs didn't sound that great in the original, but now they sound just spectacular. I guess sometimes it takes an arranged version to realize how good some music can really sound.