Beginner's Guide to Voicing and Voiceleading || How Nobuo Uematsu Writes a String Part

Nobuo Uematsu is inarguably one of the greatest video game music composers in history, and yet his work often has a certain simplicity to it. Uematsu has the ability to take an extremely basic melody and chord progression and make them sound fantastic, and a big part of that is his approach to both voice leading and chord voicings in his harmony parts. This expert level approach to simple ideas makes Uematsu the perfect vehicle to explore the basics of these concepts of voicings and voice leading in a way that anyone could learn something from, and so we take a close look at the string pads in Final Fantasy IX's track 'Eye to Eye'. Enjoy!
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[@abaaba1509]

Uematsu made me become a musician. I hated playing piano as a child until i heard the final fantasy piano collections. From this day on i practiced every day. Now I‘m a professional jazz pianist. Thank you Mr. Uematsu ❤️

[@dannyv2230]

That’s a great story. What is your favorite song of his? To me To Zanarkand can’t be beat

[@abaaba1509]

@@user-zq9su8jv2k i‘m sorry to disappoint you cutie, you‘re wrong 🙂

[@abaaba1509]

@@dannyv2230 battle with gilgamesh was the piece i fell in love with when i was a child. I always loved the battle themes. To Zanarkand is awesome 🙂

[@abaaba1509]

@@user-zq9su8jv2k So you wanna buy my new album? 🙂

[@nikolaspeippo6066]

@@user-zq9su8jv2k @aba aba I need a follow up :D

[@AlexMoukalaMusic]

Uematsu is a genius. The fact we're still being mind-blown by the music he made for games that are more than 20 years old just shows how much of a visionary he is. That becomes even more apparent when we hear how his music translates when re-arrange in a more modern fashion in the Remakes. Personally, I keep discovering new things in his tracks everyday, even tho I've been listening to them for most of my life at this point! God Tier composer right here!

[@PetarBladeStrok]

That's why he'll always be my favorite composer in gaming!

[@ZlakEdoras]

Alexxxx!! Awesome to see you here :D More FF thicc bassy lofi music coming soon??

[@Dolei]

A visionary... Or an auditionary? 🤔

[@svquinteromusic]

Yeah man, his music is so refreshing and I can still keep listening and get goosebumps every time! Really awesome music that made me want to pursue a music career. So if one day I can I have to thank him personally and throughout my music...

[@BrettHollett]

Did you even watch the video? This is basically theory 1 stuff. Not sure how this is 'genius'.

[@sethhartman]

I teach music professionally and I am very impressed with the true TEACHING that happens in this video. So many videos simply explain something without actually /teaching/. People will begin this video not knowing anything about voice leading or why it's important, and leave understanding it on a deeper level than they ever thought was possible. I can see all of the forethought that went into this video and commend you for being a fantastic teacher. I am definitely going to send this to my students. Thank you for this.

[@SaarkinCho]

This is absolutely why I watch this channel, before I came across it music theory was pretty impenetrable no matter what or who I read.

[@kconrad5893]

It still doesn’t explain much.

[@uncroppedsoop]

@@kconrad5893 then you either weren't paying attention, jumped straight ahead to this before even learning what a mode is, or both

[@scmontgomery]

@@kconrad5893 How so? Because there is quite a bit of explanation packed into this video, especially accounting for the videos length. He focused on an example and broke down the different was voicing and voice leading can be used in planning and orchestration.

[@prolifik302]

This dude is crazy good

[@satyasyasatyasya5746]

I see Uematsu, I click. I see a music theory video I won't actually understand, I click. I see a music theory video about Uematsu music that I won't actually understand, I click even harder.

[@acrophis]

Pretty much this.

[@HalendleofLoc]

I've never felt so called out

[@SianaGearz]

Hey hey hey i understood this one. It took a few passes though.

[@Fuchsia_tude]

This is my life now

[@Pytterr]

After understanding the video, i click smoothly.

[@deanospimoniful]

You literally explained these concepts better than my undergrad music theory professor.

[@tovi3280]

@L Train45 you need a sociology teacher to teach you how to interact with people Except I don’t think that’s what sociology teachers teach in the slightest but sh

[@AaronRotenberg]

@L Train45 You need a KZbin commenter to tell you that it's entirely possible OP is being literal.

[@deriktofil]

Same. I'm studying for an undergrad and i find these videos so helpful. This guy explains things in such a clear and easy-to-understand way.

[@unkykun]

@@AaronRotenberg I litteraly didn't understand what he was mad about

[@Vaxliscious]

I'm an alto, I understand voice leading! C C C C C C C A

[@Antilles1974]

I'm a bass, I understand voice leading! C C C F G G C

[@oldethangoogleacc8484]

imagine unironically being an inner voice rather than outer voice

[@TylerMireMusic]

That’s my favorite alto part!

[@CWMdeschepper]

Wait what is this A note I'm suddenly hearing about?

[@TornaitSuperBird]

@@Antilles1974 I'm not either. All I understand is the key of H.

[@ArdaRen]

The only channel where a subject as dauntingly complex as voice leading seems easy and intuitive...

[@Vextrove]

It's fairly simple, just not easily conveyed

[@funwithphobias]

It's very elementary

[@nowhere.to_go7335]

it is easy and intuitive! that's how i write a lot of chord progression for my music :D

[@marcossidoruk8033]

Apparently this thread is full of JS Bachs and Jacob Colliers.... That or Dunning Kruger examples.

[@65fhd4d6h5]

Musicians explaining how they wrote a piece: I moved this note half a step to smooth the transition into an Am7#b11-13 chord. Musicians actually writing a piece: dis soun goo.

[@penttikoivuniemi2146]

In all honesty, I think he didn't give much thought at all to the beginning of this piece. To me the first eight bars look like he thought like this: "ok, let's pick a simple chord pattern for this part... I VI IV III IV I II V will do, who cares. Now, lets just slap some garbage on top by walking back and forth the scale... Done. Can't be bothered to make too large of an arrangement, let's just have a string quartet play long notes. The less they move around, the easier it is for me to write, so that's what I'll go for." The actual composing in this piece happens from measure 9 onward.

[@65fhd4d6h5]

That's kinda what I mean. The process of writing isn't that intricate and once you compose a few pieces you copy patterns as well. He has composed several other pieces with similar openings and we can say the same about most if not all composers. You don't put this amount of thought to every single note in a score for every piece you write. You just know what works and use those patterns when you write almost unconsciously.

[@ZiggyMandarr]

@@65fhd4d6h5 I think it's a good explanation to WHY we think it sounds good. Music has been around for millennia and there's a reason it's developed the way it has, why we think it sounds good. Music that has a traditional "good" sound follows basic rules that a master like Uematsu wouldn't actually be thinking about. I like this channel because it shows the more technical side of music and it sort of helps explain why something sounds a certain way or evokes a certain emotion. Same way an "irregular" piece of music that doesn't follow certain rules or uses a weird time signature can make you feel uneasy, because it isn't "right."

[@MrYuriTambor]

I do believe he was thinking about chords, voicing and all... Just that he had enough practice that it took much less time and effort than we think.

[@ryguy7227]

I get the impression it's a bit like speaking a language. When you put together a sentence in your mind, you don't think about all the grammatical rules that govern why you put it together the way you did, you just do it. For example, as English speakers if we were given a noun and a list of adjectives, we'd almost always put them together in the same way. To the average person, it's just what soun goo and takes almost no thought, but there's actually a defined order. If a learner asked you why you assembled a phrase in a certain way, though, you might be able to go back and dissect those rules you unconsciously followed. I admittedly don't know too much about music theory, but music seems to be like a language in that way. A musician could spitball a quick tune much like you could blurt out a sentence, but then go back and say "Why did I choose to do that? Oh, I must've been following this rule."

[@parkermiller1631]

My man really made worksheets that’s so mf PRECIOUS I love this channel omfg

[@wholesomecracker1580]

The fact that these videos are so high quality but you make them free is so crazy to me.

[@Fuchsia_tude]

I feel like thanks to services like Patreon we live in the best time for content, maybe ever. People who can and feel like it fund the creation of these things, and then the creators just make them available to everyone for free. It's win/win/win.

[@Audiojunkk]

Cos he’s a legend who understands that sharing knowledge is a joy and a privilege. Thank you 8 bit theory for your wonderful videos and wisdom.

[@iggpodd]

@@Audiojunkk I actually met him at after work drinks one time. That's what lead me here. He's a genuinely nice dude.

[@NeverduskX]

I love Uematsu. His music is infinitely inspiring, especially in the context of the games he makes them for. Then again, even the other Final Fantasy composers are all vastly impressive.

[@Fuchsia_tude]

I'd love to see someone talk theory about Sakimoto's Tactics score. From what I've heard out of him, it's his best, yet it seems underrecognized.

[@midastheunwise2423]

Uematsu is my idol, a lot of his music is very simple but that works in its favour. Initially it was due to limitations of the systems as to how many voices they could handle, but even as that limitation ceased to exist, Uematsu maintained this style. There's a lot of great composers in the game industry, but none have so consistently made music that hits the soul, while being very hummable. That's usually the thing with his music, there's always a very clear main melody, and the way it interacts with the chords behind it is always masterful. He knows how to critical hit your soul with the least notes possible, and that's a rare talent, even among the talented. As you say, he also is excellent at marrying the music to what is happening in the game. Nothing ever feels out of place; it's very clear that he knows exactly the context the music will be used in, and writes accordingly. I could write a thesis on how he does this in FF7!

[@unseensounds]

@@Fuchsia_tude I thought FFT's OST was widely regarded as a masterpiece?

[@dovesr0478]

Nobuo Uematsu tricked me into liking classical music

[@smo7089]

the bastard

[@clinthazzard7397]

He tricked me into techno too

[@WeWillAlwaysHaveVALIS]

You tricked yourself, his music is pretty classical in nature (in so much in his compositional work, he's obviously shown of a far wider range of musicality outside of that work).

[@RohannvanRensburg]

Classical music simply takes a lot more exposure to appreciate. Our brains are lazy and like things they're familiar with. Listening to a piece for the 7th time is a vastly different experience than for the 1st time. Look up Rachmaninoff's Isle of the Dead for a good ear-catching piece.

[@t-06]

He tricked me into learning music theory.

[@gvendurst]

Never thought I'd be happy to be given homework by a youtube video.

[@AwesomeAcoustics]

I always considered one of Nobuo's most distinct traits was composing music that seemed simplistic on the surface but deep down was actually genius

[@klop4228]

imo some of the best music does exactly this. It's the reason Mozart is considered one of the best (if not _the_ best) composers of all time.

[@meuboui]

@@klop4228 Bach*

[@klop4228]

@@meuboui him too, though a lot of his masterworks are less accessible than Mozart's.

[@fernwehn5925]

@@meuboui Bach is definitely the superior composer. However, I don't see how in any way shape or form you consider him to be 'simplistic'. On the surface or otherwise.

[@steves1015]

@@klop4228 “the best” ... do any professional musicians say this, or is this public perception? Serious question, because it does seem like an odd thing to state about what is essentially an art form. Being appreciated by the masses doesn’t mean anything (otherwise Baby Shark would be considered musical genius....). There have also been a lot of composers since Mozart who have explored different ideas in music that he didn’t have accessible at his time. Is it really possible to compare the richness of a Rachmaninov piano concerto with a Mozart one, or the interesting ideas in Schönberg’s orchestral pieces with Mozart’s, and say one composer is “better” than the other?

[@TimeSpaceWormsNow]

"This is some super smooth voice leading. Now in measure 9 Uematsu goes sicko mode . . . ."

[@MuteMusicalMorgan]

I think I have subconsciously done the "Drop 2+4 voicing" trick before, simply by mimicking what I've seen in other choir music. Seeing an actual method behind it is very eye-opening!

[@VoonNBuddies]

Your videos are always engaging and educational but this might be your most accessible one to date. You basically just taught a class on voicing in 16 minutes. Incredible work!

[@DreamerAirazel]

Honestly, videos like these are incredible. There are many terms that music discussion and theory channels use without fully letting the audience understand what's meant. Breakdowns of simpler, more fundamental techniques like these are always nice, as they help your audience be able to keep up with your more in-depth videos. I say keep it up!

[@kennyrichardson3842]

I would second this, I watch the channel without knowing super much about music theory (though I have a friend who watches and explains some of it to me) so having a video like this that breaks down some of those important concepts is really helpful and interesting. I mean, I already enjoy the videos a ton even if I only get like half of them most of the time, but slowly moving that amount that I understand up would be fun.

[@genius11433]

Agreed. I know some music theory, so your videos don't completely sound like a foreign language to me. However, I'd appreciate more videos like these, going into what certain terms mean. It's a good primer for newbies, a good review for experts, and a good means of showing how much thought goes into video game music.

[@1685Violin]

@@genius11433 Don't you mean "primer", not "printer"?

[@genius11433]

@@1685Violin I had caught that and edited it before I saw your reply. But thanks anyway for the correction.

[@PowerPandaMods]

People don't understand how tough voice leading is as a composer. When you understand part of it, but not all of it, you end up giving altos or tenors 1-3 notes over the whole song. One of the most important things to do is to mute other tracks and listen to one voice on its own. By doing that, you usually find that you can give each voice something interesting to do without breaking the chords. Oh, and this is also, as he said, the tell that new composers give that they synthesized everything. You have voices going in and out, one chord that has double the amount of notes of all the others, etc.

[@BrianSantero]

This. 100 times this. Also a good reason for knowing what counterpoint means and having interesting things for the musicians to do. It's why Brahms and Mahler are lauded so highly by audiences AND musicians. It's interesting for both when there's something going on in the middle voices that adds a little complexity/texture not totally noticed, but definitely perks up the ears.

[@TAP7a]

When I was doing Bach chorales I always told myself “if the altos move outside of a cadence, I’ve done it wrong”, although that was probably more to do with trying to score high on the marking scheme than it was accurately assessing stylistic voice leading features

[@jokkearnt]

So true, approaching the voices melodically/with a motif even for short amounts of time is a great way to add so much musicality to pretty much anything.

[@RohannvanRensburg]

100%, great post. Samples are a blessing and a curse. Good composition is bloody hard and for good reason: it's complicated, and you need to understand the sections of an orchestra idiomatically to write accordingly.

[@celparadise3726]

Thanks for this comment, brah! IAre there any books you would recommend that deal with these basic things?

[@rohiogerv22]

The way you cover the actual decision-making process of composition for a piece like this is really impressive. I think what a lot of new musicians miss are the choices a composer could have made, but didn't, and this video does a good job of placing the viewer at those crossroads and giving them a moment to consider the problem before providing the solution.

[@jonathanwingmusic]

I low-key want SUSPENSION in that metal font at 11:02 on a t-shirt. Also great analysis and a very helpful way to look at harmony.

[@noble_rosethorn]

When I saw Uematsu in the thumbnail, I instantly clicked

[@ModernConversations]

aye. I’m a simple man.

[@tej2ni]

aye. the reason why I clicked

[@dannyv2230]

The Mozart of our generation 100%

[@Michail_Chatziasemidis]

Literally me.

[@coffeeris]

This video saved my music diploma I'm not even joking. I was severely struggling with voice leading and the way you explained it here just made it click

[@JanneOksanenMusic]

As a concert pianist and FF fan I’m always looking forward to your videos on Final Fantasy music, especially Nobuo Uematsu.

[@remem95]

You just put into words a thing that I feel I always knew, but don't remotely have the capacity to try and analyze. This was very satisfying to watch.

[@michealmaillet4820]

Coming from a person that just recently finished rearranging a full 2.5 hour long orchestral concert that consists only of music from both Nobuo Uematsu and Yasunori Mitsuda; I fully agree with how you describe the beauty in their works. The simple, yet interactive qualities of their music is one of the reasons I am paying tribute to these two giants. The voice leading is just as you say, along with the use of non functional harmony, quartal harmony, and melody first mentality. Thank you to you for all that you do for the community, and thank you to these two composers for saving my life and fostering my love of music.

[@gavinleepermusic]

This is such a great break down! I've always found it unsatisfying when someone says "It's just voice leading, bro" without getting more specific about what they mean. Nice job!

[@gavinleepermusic]

Of course I do! I look up to 8-bit senpai :)

[@jezzaroddy]

I studied music theory, aural skills, jazz theory, and everything in university, but I left without having any true skills in voice leading. This video has completely opened up a new world for me! Thank you!

[@trentmitchell3496]

Uematsu is the reason I began composing. His work in Final Fantasy 7, and the development of his soundtrack in the remake especially were a catalyst for me.

[@W020-j9o]

Retired engineer/intermediate piano student here with a bucket-list-commitment-to-piano (six years and loving it). Currently learning harmonization from a very capable piano teacher/composer, but one hour a week makes it hard to bridge the gaps sometimes. Your material really helps fill in between one-hour-weekly lessons. It also connects well with my engineering background. Voice leading has always seemed like something that makes sense for analysis, but which is difficult to work with as a constructive/creative tool. Glad to have found your channel. Subbed with thanks.

[@fedoragent0077]

I don’t know much about music but I just like listening to your voice and how you speak about music makes concepts easier to follow. You make me feel smart, and inspire love for art king!!

[@jhlundy]

I worked on Finale and SmartMusic for a decade & love your transformative use of the software to illustrate concepts. Many of us at MakeMusic hoped to see these creative directions people could take but were really locked in to engraving as the only function. Thank you for these videos!

[@klop4228]

I've been replaying FF9, and just watching you talk about this is making me emotional again. Seriously good game, if anyone hasn't played it.

[@jamielangford6534]

Same! This tune gets me every time! Always date ffix as the best in the series

[@klop4228]

@@jamielangford6534 It's certainly my favourite. Finished it last night, Melodies of Life had me tearful. Again.

[@Mageling55]

One thing I will note is it's often advantageous to not consider the bass when analyzing for closed/open position. You get almost the same effect with the 3rd/4th vs 6th/6th voicings when you have the bass down an octave or not in the closed voicing, but when writing for physical instruments you often can't get all voices into a single octave, or if you can, it only works for limited chords without bringing in inversion. This becomes especially true when working with larger numbers of voices. Another neat thing you can do is for some voice sets, you can get really neat effects by crossing over voices because of how physical instruments and especially singers have different timbre in different parts of the range. You can get a really interesting effect when you put the tenor up on the fifth and the alto on the third in closed position, with soprano and bass on the root. It feels very different to when you put them in the more common order Edit base/bass. English is dumb

[@Bardometer]

I am literally learning more from this channel than I learned in my music theory class

[@michaelclark3476]

I learnt to how to voice lead from uematsu, from pieces like this. So I can't overstate how happy it made me to see this video. He is undoubtedly a genius, and inspiring enough to a kid to make me want to become a composer. Some other great examples from other games: the oath from ff8, the truth revealed from ff10, on that day 5 years ago from ff7, and mourning from the sky from this game. But the examples are just endless. It amazes me that he got this good by the age of 20, after which he said he never really learnt anything. Thank you Uematsu, you changed my life, and thank you 8 bit music theory for making this video ❤

[@cesaralvarado8016]

Oh boy, I started composing for fun a little time from now, and your videos help a LOT, Thank you

[@eoinolswold5706]

For anyone wondering why Uematsu adds the B to D movement around 13:00, look at what comes next. The C# of the A chord would mean that without the D, you're going from B to C#, which is an augmented second and a verrry dissonant interval movement that detracts from the tone of the piece. In four part writing, augmented second leaps are pretty much outlawed because of how jarring they are. So to avoid that, Uematsu leaps from B to D, in order to have the much more appealing semitone step down to the C#. He could have done this with the D in the middle, but C#, as a note outside of the key, has importance that Uematsu wants to highlight by making it the highest and most noticeable note. If he wants C# to be the highest note, then he has to do something to make getting there clean.

[@brendankim6015]

Love seeing pros tackle voiceleading, there’s always so much to be learned from dissecting their work. Love the video!

[@BartWronsk]

I spent a quarter learning about voice leading and 4 part writing (as an adult, some course). In a few minutes you explained much better everything I learned in those months and actually clarified it. Excellent, thank you! :)

[@JanneOksanenMusic]

This is definitely one of Uematsu's most beautiful melodies ever! Thank you for a great analysis on the piece!

[@chrisypoo6675]

I really like this video concept as a student studying music theory at my university. What we do in theory seems very unintuitive at first, but seeing it put into practical use in music like this is very cool and makes it easier to appreciate. I'm looking forward to more stuff like this in the future! This is a great video as always, keep it up!

[@andrewsickler8466]

Thank you for talking about the importance of contrasting textures and how smooth voice leading isn’t always the best answer. It really helps to think about voice leading as a flexible technique rather than a set of rules. Great video!

[@Stephen-Fox]

Worksheets are definitely worth doing more often, imo.

[@SeegYT]

BRILLIANT analysis man! I’ve been teaching theory for 12 years and this is probably the most succinct layout/demonstration I’ve seen. I’m going to be sharing this video with my students. Thank you for your insight and hard work!

[@travo6805]

I have school but it’s added to my watch later :)

[@andresdelgado8863]

I love the idea of worksheets, I would enjoy seeing that be an option more often

[@izaccsgansit3507]

Final Fantasy IX - still my favorite of the series. The music still sticks with me and makes me feel everything going on in the game. Uematsu is a genius.

[@LukeWatts85]

I have learned more from your channel in the last 2 days than the 50 other music theory channels I've followed for the last 2 years

[@morgancosseron683]

Thanks ! I love your videos so much JRPGs and specially Uematsus music are so amazing. I love the complexity and simplicity of these songs written with such limitations. Knowing that Uematsu was self taught is mind blowing, he definitely knows how to write music Such a legend

[@Brickzot]

@2:55 “I guess if you’re playing on a keyboard you only have ten fingers, so let’s say ten notes for the second chord.” _stretches left hand two full octaves_

[@feeeshmeister4311]

Maybe it’s arpeggiated.

[@jacobstump1200]

Franz Liszt didn’t seem to care

[@wofls2713]

true musicians can play chords that span 8 octaves

[@jacobstump1200]

@@wofls2713 like the Super Ultra Hyper Mega Meta Lydian chord

[@tovi3280]

@@wofls2713 and practice 40 hours a day

[@Arksimon2k]

Yesss. Nobuo is a huge inspiration in general, but FF9 music especially was such a big part of my childhood and I still listen to it today with the some wonder as I did when I heard it as a teenager. It's jsut so good and I really hope it gets more recognition, since it's usually the FF7 score in the spotlight.

[@Bransbow]

I know this video is a year old now so I don't know if you'll even see this, but I love this style of video. I know quite a bit of music theory from taking piano lessons for most of my life, but composition was never really a focus of my lessons so this was very interesting for me. I like how, rather than analyzing a specific piece of music all the way through like you usually do (nothing wrong with that), you instead took one piece of music theory, found a musical selection that displays it in action, and broke it down step by step. Definitely one of my favorite videos on your channel.

[@emilianonahuelkrembs867]

Wow... making worksheets is something REALLY unique. I don't know of any other divulgator of any field that does this type of things. Thankyou SO much.

[@thomasjones377]

I'm an advanced music student (at this point in time studying towards a perf. degree). Even though I knew most of the stuff you covered here from before, your perspective and means of explaining is so different compared to what I've heard from my teachers that I constantly get the feeling of "I never thought of it in that way", which I find really beneficial alongside allowing me to teach the concept to my peers in a way that they haven't heard before. Thanks for all the videos you make. Your insight has been extremely entertaining and has explained advanced concepts to me in ways I understand well and use examples that I know practically by heart before even watching the video, greatly speeding up the process. ps. Is it just me or does 11:54 sound like Can You Feel the Love Tonight.

[@ping163]

A fun thing to note about the bass in measures 1-4 is that it's also following the shape of the melody, just a 3rd below! The only exception there is in measure 3, when the melody walks up from A to D while the bass has a whole note, but if we wanted we could consider that a bit of embellishment, since the melody jumps back down for measure 4 anyway. Also at 13:54 I get that the F natural creates some harsh dissonances and that leaving it in might have been out of place with the context of the melody and the phrase, but wow it was so beautiful to hear, like it was squeezing the emotions from my heart like a sponge.

[@JD-kf2nz]

The way you breakdown music is 2nd to none!

[@cobwebdragon4611]

Been playing music my whole life, and I’ve always wanted to get into composing music. This channel has helped me immensely, everything is described so clearly and concisely, just thanks a lot👏

[@mikkumi]

8BMT, you've made so many great educational videos over the years, but this may be one of your best yet. You are a fantastic teacher. Thank you for your content, it's been a blessing. 🙏

[@Dyundu]

I wonder how much of this comes from Uemtasu’s experience playing the Hammond organ. A lot of the techniques used in making the Hammond in particular work within a band translate very well to writing voicing like this, particularly in the way you manage inversions and chord transitions-it doesn’t matter if you’re Jimmy Smith or Jon Lord, you have to keep the playing smooth. There’s also the fact that playing the Hammond well requires a lighter touch than other organs-the sound is so distinctive and powerful (especially with some registrations) that less is more, more often than not, which might partially account for his use of around four notes or so for his chords.

[@m4r_art]

I've been watching your channel for years. This is your best video so far

[@maxpowr90]

Melodies of Life is such a great piece. I still feel once Uematsu stopped composing Final Fantasy music, the series fell by the wayside.

[@IONATVS]

I think bad management of the franchise at the top levels of SquEnix was the cause of both, so neither is the direct cause of the other, but yeah, there is definitely a correlation

[@Fuchsia_tude]

@@IONATVS It's a shame, since that period was their most productive and successful creatively. The five-year span 1997-2001 saw four mainline FF releases, plus Tactics, which is just an absurd rate, and on top of that it included some of their best. On the other hand, it's obvious how that could cause burnout, and it clearly did.

[@craigstarbird6915]

The new composers are doing a good job at carrying on the legacy Uematsu left behind. The games themselves might have become less solid as time goes on but you can always count on a great soundtrack in each new release.

[@IONATVS]

@@craigstarbird6915 I absolutely agree that they have a lot of talented composers at SquEnix, some probably the equal of Uematsu...but it feels like the current management don’t give them the same kind of creative input they used to let Uematsu have over the overall style and tone of the game’s phonaesthetics, especially not for the cash cow series of Final Fantasy. Thus you get lots of good SONGS, but fewer consistently good and tonally unified SOUNDTRACKS. They need to trust their talent more.

[@craigstarbird6915]

@@IONATVS in terms of tonal consistency the mainline games hold up pretty well. It’s the spinoff titles that sometimes feel like they are losing that consistency with the FFXIII series showing it most clearly. The more twisty and out there the plot of the spin-offs get from the original the less consistent the feel of the soundtrack. Edit, it also doesn’t really help that Uematsu usually was the sole composer whereas modern FF games have 5 usually in terms of keeping consistent so it’s impressive the coordination that must take

[@milesnagopaleen]

A very good, clear explanation and example of voice leading. 10/10

[@Irene-pz1bs]

This is one of the most insightful videos on composition I've watched, thank you so much!!!

[@cafiristanemperor]

My friend, I am a flute student at the university, on my second major (my first one was Japanese Literature) and I am praying HARD for you to become a university professor! Your teaching is awesome! Cheers from Brazil, my friend!

[@june-ls1hw]

Man, you are one of the greats. Seriously. The stuff you put out here is so accessible and helpful. So glad you're here to make this for us.

[@thesamwisegamegee]

This video has really helped things click for me about voicing, and I just want to say thank you and that I appreciate all you do so much!

[@musicofforester]

Really enjoyed this format! Uematsu has been my favourite game composer since I was like 12 years old, and every video I see like this helps me understand why :O

[@keithkempenich6401]

I always loved this melody in particular, there is something sad about it, but persevering too. Thanks for helping make a little bit more sense of what is going on here that makes the whole thing work so well!

[@virtua_t4695]

The worksheet is amazing! Please do more stuff like this

[@gorfgarf9735]

This Channel is too smart and deserve a million views

[@lukamagicc]

I remember I used to watch these and everything would go COMPLETELY over my head. I just liked relating to someone liking shit from my childhood and an overall appreciation of all music and an acknowledgement of how UNDERRATED video game OST’s are (especially back on limited/difficult to use software back in the day - those are true masterpieces). But now I can keep along decently and I have to say I am actually learning music theory from you and I can’t thank you enough for making shit so relatable and interesting - like that bit about hitting 18 piano keys at the same time. You are a gem brother

[@RemyLuciani]

I love this video. And I've always thought vertically and not enough horizontally, thank you for the explanation on voicing/voice leading, very nicely presented! About the melody, I just analysed the first not of each bar: - In the first part bars mostly start on the third, the fourth and the second, which lead to a quiet/neutral melody - In the second part, 3 bars on 4 start on the fifth, and one on the fourth which is very emphasised by the underlying C sus4 chord ; it gives a more epic/emotional tone to the melody. (Moreover, I guess it becomes simpler because the harmony is more complex) - The last part start each bar on the tonic (the C) which provide a satisfying resolution Well, thanks to Nobuo and thank you to you 8-bit Music Theory, I learn so much everytime!

[@klop4228]

6:05 just a note to that written note: even if we had a separate bassline, excluding the string section (say we have a woodwind section in the background), it's generally considered good orchestration to have each section work on its own anyway, so you want the string section to use the right bass note, whether or not you have an extra bass section somewhere else in your ensemble

[@fashion_geek]

When you mentioned the work sheets, I almost clapped in glee! I was a music student two decades ago, and though I didn't end up pursuing a career in music in the end, I've always wanted to try and brush up on my music theory knowledge for my own little hobby projects. This video was super informative to me, and I will happily practice figuring out voicing using the exercises you've posted. Much appreciated! :)

[@ivanfaigenbom5300]

Loved this more slow pace and detailed video. The wroksheets are a great plus. Love your channel one of my favorites right now :D

[@leviaraujo517]

Loved this video! I watch pretty much everything you upload, but this time I actually understood most of it! :D Please keep making more stuff in this style!

[@guitargod6997]

Splendid exposition of a fundamental and beautiful concept! Thanks!

[@amzrigh]

As someone who is interested in music, but is not a student of music, I am 100% here for these basics.

[@noir371]

Learned so much from this! I had never even thought about using different octaves in the same chord

[@JakeWildMusic]

Was literally just thinking to myself that I wanna learn to arrange strings better. Whaddya know, you put out a video on it!

[@barrycooper1631]

Check out some of Jeremy Lubocks work.You might enjoy it.

[@vitor8276]

I love the ideia of little exercises that we can pratice the video's concepts! Keep it up man!

[@joelmulder]

Wow! Your video took 10 different things I’d learned separately and which thoroughly confused me, and explained them so simply that suddenly everything has come together to make sense. Thank you!

[@bentrolley4316]

I'm somewhere between beginner and expert in this kinda thing. There wasn't exactly anything conceptually new to me but seeing Uematsu's technique broken down like this is just lovely, and whatever level you're at, studying this kind of analysis of such masterful work can always be a benefit. Also big ups for providing worksheets!

[@beecoughs]

Love your videos. I usually watch because I feel like my love of video game music is justified when someone with a deep understanding of theory can break it down, but I really felt like I took something from this one. Thanks for all the amazing work you put into these!

[@abogus1756]

I wasn’t prepared to learn something this morning, but you covered the topic extremely well, and may have sparked a bit of interest. I’m going to have to check out those worksheets!

[@PavelSemin]

I really liked this turn from analyzing famous tunes and discovering it musical components to teaching musical concepts using famous tune as an example

[@celparadise3726]

Man, I could listen to this stuff all day. So interesting. Thank you so much!

[@pakman5542]

I just finished my AP music theory this year and this channel makes me so happy

[@TheViolaBuddy]

Woah, homework, with answers and everything. That's actually really cool! It's always interesting to be able to actually practice or play around with what you talk about in these videos, and here's an "official" 8BMT reason to do so.

[@sebastianvega7227]

Man I really appreciate what you do, you are such an amazing youtuber and I am really happy that I found your Chanel, I have learned so much with you and I hope continuing learning, awesome man, thank you

[@halflearned2190]

What a cool video. Your animations have improved so much!

[@GabrielBlancoCabassa]

I love this -- wish I had seen something like this when I was "self-teaching" myself how to do vocal arrangements. I feel like I learned a lot of these principles the hard way! Would love to see more :)

[@MajorReynolds92]

15:39 me, i am that beginner, im 30 and have been slowly trying to teach myself music theory for the last two years. i've been struggling to understand this topic in particular and you just batted my brain into making so many connections. thank you. so much.

[@tycho25]

I was thinking the whole time about how I wish there was a worksheet or something. Please do this more!!

[@Edendouglas77]

Thanks for the worksheet man! it was fun experimenting with different combinations of chord voicings!

[@AlbertKimMusic]

I watched this a while back, always a nice refresher

[@UltimateDucTape1]

Love this video. The worksheets idea is phenomenal

[@Josh_Fredman]

I definitely appreciate videos like this! These videos about the fundamentals are vital for self-taught composers like me who have many blind spots in theory and a deficient vocabulary for talking about things. The only criticisma I have are that: 1) I'd like to see the "where we are" line (which shows what notes are playing when you are playing something) always be there (it doesn't appear for some of your smaller examples); and 2) slightly wider examples, where you start the music playing a little bit earlier, so we have a touch of context going into the first bar of interest. But on the whole, thank you for videos like these!!

[@MrEd-qc7vr]

You're my favorite... It's fantastic how you are explaining so much technical shit and I still can understand it