How Nobuo Uematsu Composed FF7's "One-Winged Angel"

We spoke with Nobuo Uematsu, composer for Final Fantasy VII, about the detailed process by which he composed the game's most iconic song, "One-Winged Angel." Check out our full in-depth Final Fantasy VII feature on Polygon! bit.ly/2iKCIiP
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[@Shezmen88]

A Legend.

[@theavpman4834]

How does this comment only have six likes after three years? You are also a legend your animations are halarious and awesome.

[@JallenMeodia]

Looking forward to seeing his music in your upcoming animation ✌

[@hiimIan1872]

Yes

[@worawatsr9803]

The greatest music in gaming history.

[@andrewchurch77]

LEGEND 🔥

[@GimR]

This man deserves to sit with the greats. He was the SOLE COMPOSER for multiple Fantasy Games with 50+ tracks. Many of them are classics. It's just insane.

[@lols5534]

And here I am listening to the song while playing smash. He makes great battle songs

[@neek01]

Most Game/Movie composers don't get the recognition they should to be real honest. They make or break the game/movie, Good music can make a shitty actor look epic

[@krisshietala2119]

Takeharu Ishimoto also did great soundtrack for crisis core.

[@missbelled6700]

Unbelievable range in his work is what strikes me most. His battle music and things like this are of course iconic, but his character themes and general background OSTs span such a range of styles and emotions. The live renditions of his songs really do the compositions justice.

[@logie9672]

I think he did kingdom hearts as well, not sure tho He didn't but he is still great

[@1nkf4ng57]

"So, how did you compose this world famous video game song?" "I came up with a bunch if different pieces for the song randomly and puzzled them together. I then never did this again." Iconic.

[@hencytjoe]

Absolutely based

[@SirAuron777]

Imagine you walk into a grocery store and walk past him thinking “He seems like a nice old man” not knowing he’s a musical genius that makes godly music for an iconic video game series lol

[@AverageCatz]

Nah everyone would recognize him

[@lokijoker1878]

@@AverageCatz this is literally the first time I've seen his face

[@t0xicdmg443]

@@lokijoker1878 same lol

[@thevioletskull8158]

@@lokijoker1878 same

[@ValentineSolstice]

I'd def recognize him, I met him in 2013 during a meet and greet for a Distant Worlds concert. So awesome.

[@Corrieography]

You can be cool... But you'll never be "Nobuo Uematsu singing 'One-Winged Angel' with his own orchestra choir" cool.

[@NOXXism]

He did that in the last Distant Worlds concert in London. He asked us to sing Sephiroth too :) What a privilege

[@shae4043]

NOXXism kek let’s all gather in chorus for our lord and destroyer -Sephiroth!

[@max917]

Damn straight! lol

[@DodderingOldMan]

To be fair only a few humans in the history of the world have ever been that cool.

[@MMuraseofSandvich]

While there's a strong element of talent in musical composition, I'm sure Uematsu-san worked/listened harder than many because he's self-taught. That level of cool started as a 12-year-old boy trying to jam Elton John on a piano or keyboard.

[@JessiNaka]

I was extremely lucky to be part of a choir singing the choral portions of this piece on stage. It was difficult to learn but so, so rewarding, and one of my most cherished performance memories. 植松大先生、ありがとうございます！✨ Edit: oh hey. I wrote this comment like 2 years ago...idk what the issue is but apparently I didn’t write clearly enough. I did not sing this piece for the game lol. It was part of a performance of various video game pieces with a full orchestra. I don’t know this man personally. I just wanted to thank him for his beautiful work. The show was called “Play!” or something like that. Iirc it was in 2009 or 2010.

[@seanrussel4776]

tell me what you cherish most This legendary comment:

[@williamcote4208]

Sean Russel Dispo so that I’ll have the pleasure of taking it from you

[@dnakatomiuk]

Give me the pleasure of taking it away... I pitty you... You just don't get it at all

[@Pikachu-qr4yb]

Nice! What part was he refering to with the half note singing. Is it that female voice ? I tried to find the notes on Keyboard, is it D C#, C#, F, E, D, C#?

[@armandowillem3694]

Pics or it didn't happen. Provide links. There solved all the doubters and people defending her arguing. You're welcome.

[@SuperAlphamale13]

i love how he's getting excited and happy when explains what his thoughts were on each specific part this man loves his job

[@mommozz123]

You'll never find musicians who don't love their jobs.

[@ssj7gokurpg]

SuperAlphamale13 his wrestling entrance song/theme would be One Winged Angel.

[@m_5373]

SuperAlphamale13 So True !

[@Indurok]

I wish I loved making music as much as this guy. But it's too time-consuming for me, and I've kinda lost my motivation to make music now, even though I still have a bunch of tracks in my head that I want to get out. But since my channel is mostly gaming stuff, that's what my mind is set to. Now if only I could stop procrastinating.

[@ethanotoroculus1060]

@@mommozz123 Oh, they exist. DM Dokuro for example.

[@nickmagrick7702]

sephiroth wouldn't be half as popular without this song

[@hypnotoad28]

I feel like that's probably at least 30-40% true. As in, he'd be at least 30-40% less popular if this song didn't exist

[@Khazz81]

one winged angel is the cherry at the top of the cake, it's just not the same without it

[@m0002856]

honestly... I don't think that's necessarily true. The song is neat, but nobody remembers the actual boss that happens while it's playing really. The most famous version of Sephiroth is the basic human looking version which is generally accompanied with "Those Chosen By the Planet" (its influence can be heard within this song even as well). I do think the song is bombastic enough to make people question where it comes from, but they don't see Safer Sephiroth when they hear it im sure.

[@xyannail4678]

@@m0002856 I'm not really sure if One Winged Angel takes from Those Chosen by the Planet leitmotif, or I would think Those Chosen by the Planet has One Winged Angel leitmotif in it to foreshadow the theme itself.

[@ysetiadji]

True. No other FF final bosses have their own theme song, thus nobody remember any of them beside Sephiroth.

[@Ragesauce]

So how did you come up with this song? Nobuo Uematsu: "Oh you know, I just created 20 or 30 different measures in my head, and then re-arranged them until it created a timeless masterpiece, ez" Gosh...

[@MMuraseofSandvich]

It's the orchestral version of sampling, only he took samples from his own mind.

[@carllazarraga2858]

Simple bruh

[@carllazarraga2858]

@Kind Citizen me? I was attempting to be sarcastic lol

[@Cole-ek7fh]

not in his head. he said he wrote them down.

[@princevegeta6679]

This!

[@ludogatari9558]

Uematsu humming his masterpieces is one of the cutest things I've ever seen.

[@natashagilbert3]

Cutest thing everrr❤❤❤

[@Red88Rex]

This man is a genius - self taught, no less! I'm so lucky to have grown up completely immersed in his music since around 1991 with Final Fantasy IV. I wouldn't be a musician myself if it wasn't for him.

[@bunchamp85]

He made me want a piano, and i got one!

[@joshuamayo2433]

He made me join band in high school and now major in music composition

[@foomp]

Joshua Mayo While it wasn't what got me to join band (geographical exception was my reason), his work on FFVII is absolutely what kept me there in high school.

[@evewhoo]

Red88Rex and he just seems like a really happy, nice person to talk to as well.

[@amsbeats841]

Red88Rex he is completely self taught? that doesn't seem possible that he doesn't have a background in classical music

[@PlayerPro119]

In anime, there's always a white-hair old man who is the strongest

[@spaghettimonster2798]

The final boss of musicians

[@hiiambarney4489]

He kinda has that Beethoven aesthetic to him too.

[@tembakaugunung6139]

Nah ... whitebeard didn't had any white hair ... he didn't even had any beard! But nobody dare to say about it ... thats why he is what he was

[@ssjay5870]

@@tembakaugunung6139 he didn't mean literal. But most

[@prometheanrebel3838]

The OP Grandpa Boss. Gotta have big buff Grandpa in an anime.

[@shepherdsgamingrun]

2:30 Those first two measures became so iconic most gamers recognize the tune immediately from those first notes.

[@aprilbeson2073]

I'm not even a gamer and never played a single FF, but those two measures send me immediately in manic-panic-fangirl mode

[@ppletnyakov]

Interestingly enough this recognizable first measure is from Rite of Spring by Stravinsky (mentioned in the video), here is how it sounds and looks in ballet: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nl6WqHxpitWpptk

[@MariusBoss11458]

Though I swear they sounded a lot more different. Instead of a "Tun, Tun, Tun, Tun" it's something else. I dunno how to say it.

[@CrunchyDark]

He Frankensteined his own emerging melodies and polished it into one of the most memorable melodies in video games. Awesome. I should apply this to everyday life.

[@alexanderarrington2393]

Frankenstein’s angel

[@trackeralias1124]

@@alexanderarrington2393 Fitting, given who Sephiroth is and how he came to be.

[@thundageon5962]

It's alive ITS ALIVE

[@Retrovoider]

@@alexanderarrington2393 could be a cool name replacing Frankenstein with something else perhaps "A Cruel God's Angel" or something

[@mettatonneoex]

Hojo really is like Frankenstein

[@armandowillem3694]

This song EXEMPLIFIES boss music. PERFECTLY. Also he basically told the world he came up with THE MOST EPIC piece of music in history by playing a tile slide puzzle game in his head. WOW! GENIUS!

[@cameronfield7313]

Uematsu: "Everytime we play the song at a FF concert, the reaction is a...great reaction." Me and the crowd at one of those concerts: "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!"

[@wchan39]

Well, he's not wrong.

[@polmao]

Yea can confirm. Crowd goes absolute crazy as soon as it starts. Its perfect live with a full orchestra

[@cameronfield7313]

@@polmao I actually got to see the performance of One Winged Angel live at Otakon (an anime convention) and Nobuo Uematsu was there like 10 seats away from my right!

[@oofyalDAMMIT]

Yea I'd just get a big ass buster sword and cloud all over the place

[@braidena1633]

My biggest takeaway from Dear Friends is that people indeed lose their fucking minds over this song.

[@Striderskunk]

Wow, just to hear him hum parts of it, best part of video.

[@brandongriffith2010]

1. Go fullscreen 2. Pause when full sheet music is shown 3. Alt + Print Screen 4. Paste in MS Paint 5. Print 6. Play "One-Winged Angel" on keyboard 7. Win

[@maxdriever7668]

Based

[@spudman1734]

Step -2 know how to read music Step -1 know how to play the piano

[@ninoramos7185]

Fun Fact: This guy is an avid wrestling fan. When he was young, he dreamed of becoming a professional wrestler.

[@DoubleADwarf]

Just imagine - there's a timeline out there that knows Nobuo Uematsu as a wrestling legend.

[@returnedtomonkey8886]

Imagine this guy entering the ring with One winged angel as his music. It would be both hilarious and terrifying.

[@FreeFlow__]

and then he realized how fake that world is and turned to truth.

[@ATTJ7628]

I wonder what he thought of Kenny Omega basically using a remixed version of his song and using the "One Winged Angel" as his finishing move.

[@johnphilip2977]

And hulk hogan composes for final fantasy LOL

[@moeflamelord6900]

This boy really just went. “This sounds good. Oh, and this, and that.” Made jigsaw puzzles and then just...put it together.

[@Aenygma_]

The 18th century had Mozart. The 19th century had Tchaikovsky. The 20th century had Stravinsky. We have Nobuo Uematsu.

[@RedElm747]

Bach was better than Mozart.

[@Aenygma_]

That is not the point of my comment.

[@sawmesalami]

+RedElm747 Bach was a barque musician, not a classical composer.

[@taltos2467]

Still not the point of his comment.

[@RedElm747]

Bach was baroque but still an 18th century composer.

[@originalbestdadofgaming]

I’ve never played any version of FFVII but I KNEW from the first hit that Sephiroth was the new smash fighter

[@thx4chrckingin]

Same! I actually first learned of the full song from Smooth McGroove'a cover!

[@Haimi-fv5xj]

I'm genuinely happy to hear that Nobuo Uematsu's music transcends its games to the point where people that have never played the games still recognize it. Because love it or hate it, Final Fantasy introduced us to Nobuo Uematsu. And now theres more than 3 songs from him in smash. It's been a while since I played smash, but now I'm hype to get some games in with my friends sometime soon.

[@bitharne]

Check out Advent: One Winged Angel with lyrics. It’s an amazing sequel song (I love sequel songs)

[@specialnewb9821]

@@Haimi-fv5xj He talks about being influenced by Rite of Spring. That was originally written to go with stage performance illustrating its themes but the song itself far overshadowed any stage production and is a legendary piece with vast influence. I feel like this piece is moving in the same direction.

[@Astfgl]

Aside from One Winged Angel being a remarkable song in itself, the way it is used in Final Fantasy VII is nothing short of brilliant. The screen fades to black after the defeat of Bizarro Sephiroth, the earth still trembling from his demise. As the rumbling fades away, we hear a sound that we learned earlier is that of the Planet screaming in agony. The screaming dies away, to be replaced by silence while we still stare at a black screen in anticipation. Then suddenly, the first booming notes of One Winged Angel erupt. Tension builds while the PlayStation is taking its time loading the final boss. Finally, a swirling mass of clouds appears over a pink-purple sky, and Safer Sephiroth slowly floats down from above, marking the beginning of one of the most memorable final boss battles in RPG history. It's an amazing sequence that manages to give me goosebumps to this day.

[@WarMomPT]

That's the thing with FF7, it's become iconic to the point of losing a lot of its meaning. I mean, when I finally got around to playing it (5 years ago?) I occasionally had to step back from 'Final Fantasy VII: The Cultural Landmark' and look at things in light of 'Final Fantasy VII: A Game That Came Out In 1997'. And everything in it just seems like such a huge accomplishment. I was trying to imagine what it would be like to be around 10 years old or less and hearing that for the first time.

[@Lex1P1xel]

I was about 8 when my dad brought home FF7 from Blockbuster Video. It was hilarious. Boxed in three separate giant VHS style boxes hastily wrapped by a rubber band. Blockbuster used these back then for Playstation 1 Game rentals. I was tiny, and got stuck for ages on the Guard Scorpion boss because of the miss translation of Barret saying, "Cloud watch out! Attack while its tail is up! It's gonna counter attack with its laser!" I would always throw everything I had at that boss whenever Barrett said that and always got decimated and could never pass the boss haha! But I loved the game, and I played the beginning up to that boss like 60 times before it finally clicked that the game is Japanese in origin and something must have been lost in translation. My dad finally just buys me the game seeing I love it so much and I managed to beat the Scorpion. And from there it was smooth sailing until Materia Keeper (another scorpion that kicked my ass), then after that I hit Sephiroth. The feeling I can describe to you, I remember it well. I was probably about 10 by the time I beat the game the first time ( I was just learning how to play RPGs as FF7 was my first one. Took me a while). I defeated Bizzaro Sephiroth and the screen fades out. Then the music "Ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba" and his final heavenly form appears (I was not prepared). I felt dread. Confusion. Anger at the villain for seeming so powerful. It was like, as a hero, everything I worked for was about to truly be tested, I felt fear and anxiety, but also a determined excitement. It wasn't over. It had just begun. What a feeling. Palpable excitement for a young me. I am quite excited to experience it all for the first time one more time with the Remake. I don't care how different it is my original and my memories of it will always be there. Haha that said, I discovered Ruby weapon after that and well...Suddenly Sephiroth wasn't such a big deal. ;)

[@LittleBabyWheeler]

The first time I played it, somewhere around 2001, I wasn't really impressed with it. The games I spent my time on at the time were Gran Turismo, Spyro, MGS etc., but when I finally played the game one bored afternoon after school, and got past the first part of the game where you blow up the first reactor, I realised how deep an experience was embedded on that set of black-bottomed discs. I played the game every moment I was able to, and it was my favourite video game for many years after that. And even at the time the graphics were dated, but the story and the characters just carried it all through to the end.

[@Gallzatron]

Astfgl just reading your comment gave me goosebumps

[@selfblumpkin]

absolutely this. I don't think I'll ever forget that sequence, as long as i live, and the feeling i felt when first playing it at 16 years old. I went down too early and got destroyed. then i got all my guys to 99, KotR and went back and destroyed him. The ending sequence of that game is just perfection.

[@catplantASMR]

this man is a genius

[@LoneTreePeak]

It's funny because even that word might be an understatement to his abilities👍😆

[@mokie7421]

yo 😳 shes here

[@CEHA]

fact

[@crimsonrose]

Polygon, more videos like this about the artistic process would be greatly appreciated! They are super interesting!

[@ravenrodriguez7818]

Agree!!!!!

[@mercuryon8608]

He looks so happy singing this song that makes me happy too

[@JWSoul]

As a child I remember fighting the one winged angel at my dad's house. My step mother paused while walking through the front room and said "wow that's a really good song" Kinda says it all really.

[@krisersn3092]

Fighting Frost lmao

[@chibill467]

@@niceyoutubehandle what are you gonna use to guarantee ? run them thangs

[@SaharaM18]

My brother got to this boss first, and was playing it again when I came into the room. "You're gonna like this song," he told me. That's the only time anyone told me that and was right.

[@hitkid2456]

Your dad wasn't Safer?

[@davetate77255]

My mum would also comment on FFVII music, it was referred to as "the game with the nice music"

[@googelle7555]

I always laugh when I hear someone say that classical music is dead. I hope everyone knows that VG composers like this man are an integral part of human music history. Such an overload of talent brings tears to my eyes.

[@RahvinCairhien]

I underestimated the impact FF music has on me. Nostalgia is huge and i am even close to crying. I loved this man but never knew him. What a legend.

[@Ockeroid]

Fantastic!! Is there a video of the full interview?

[@mxrsh27]

gamer

[@emilioaguilar3264]

gamer

[@Panther-kid]

In the Advent Children special features I believe he also mentions he was inspired by the introduction of Jimi Hendrix's Purple Haze, so cool hearing a Master talk about their work.

[@d33pakkkk]

Noticing how very down to earth and humble he is. Does this man even know how many millions are rabid fans of his music? The best video game musician ever, without a doubt.

[@synysterpain]

I'd put Yoko shimomura right after him.

[@Toonami4EvaX]

Yoko Shimomura is a very close second imo. And TBH every time I listen to the FFXV soundtrack I'd even go as far as to say that she is slightly better. Kingdom Hearts first got me into videogame music so I may be a little biased 😅 Still Uematsu will forever be a Fxxxing legend.

[@synysterpain]

@@Toonami4EvaX sameeee. Kingdom hearts actually got me into final fantasy lol

[@Toonami4EvaX]

@@synysterpain When I first played Kingdom Hearts I had no idea that some of the characters were Final Fantasy characters until my cousin told me to play FF7 lol 😅

[@synysterpain]

@@Toonami4EvaX the only one I knew was cloud lmao just cause I knew of his character.

[@MrMikkyn]

The way he sings it is so goofy, but the music he created is so iconic and genius. What a great juxtaposition between his lighthearted persona, and such genius music. Wow.

[@Asgard314]

Venias is definitely my favorite phrase of the song as well. Whenever I heard it as a kid I'd get chills and become a bit stressed, like I was about to fight. God I love this man's music

[@masterblaster1552]

It doesn't help that Sephiroth normally begins (or is already using) Supernova around that time. In terms of how the song fits in context to the game, that's one of the best moments

[@WiiMoteGodYT]

Years later, Nobou now has his masterpiece playing while Minecraft Steve can fight Mario, Sonic, Pikachu, Ryu and Banjo, Sans, and Cuphead on Shadow Moses Island.

[@caseys2698]

🥰👍

[@reyonXIII]

Even better, he was part of Smash history since Brawl, since he composed its theme. One could say that everything FF in the franchise is Sakurai giving back to FF, and letting MORE players experience the beauty of his work, rearranged by other greats like Yoko Shimomura and Motoi Sakuraba.

[@C_Yo]

Put Sans and Cuphead in there too

[@christians8821]

Can we just admire that he created the measures at different times And then just put it together like a puzzle (not sure if this is how others do it but it's amazing to me)

[@jeniffer7799]

I saw him last year in Bruxelles. He is such a humble man, the audience stood up the moment he came to the stage. It was unreal. To see one of the, if not THE best video game composer ever.

[@Tohlemiach]

This is actually some fascinating insight when you consider how the FFVII Remake team arranged One-Winged Angel - Rebirth. Considering the story content at that point in the game, i.e. "things changing", I found it fascinating that they basically took all of his 20-30 sets of measures and rearranged them just as he did, but in some places they still follow his original pattern, whereas in other places they're arranged in different orders. It's just one example out of many examples in that soundtrack where, instead of merely taking the original song and upscaling the sound quality with live instruments or better samples, they actually figured out the very spirit of the original and then took that idea and embellished on it. Good example is the opening sequence, they have a fakeout for the big crescendo before the title drop. That crescendo happens once in the original, but in the Remake, they play it quietly the first time, which then ramps it up for a second go before finally exploding into that title drop, and it takes that original suspense and climax of the original and essentially doubles the impact. I almost can't even listen to the original now because of how much better the Remake version is.

[@LakteOz]

I remember back in the day repeating that last battle over and over again just to go nuts while listening to this masterpiece. Nubuo Uematsu is truly a living legend

[@mozmger]

One of Best song in video games :) never forget when I listened in first time. Thanks Nobuo -san for making this masterpiece.

[@HZZ2023]

Can help but smile with this interview, I hope you live longer so I can enjoy more of your music

[@SaferSephiroth87]

cant count how many eargasms i had because of this man. uematsu is the mozart of our gaming generation. a true living legend.

[@Something_Elemental]

I wish I had just 1% of this man's talent and genius.

[@Erduk]

Congratulations, you do.

[@brotherjauffre]

2:42 Actually, the second time, he says "Fortississimo"

[@Astfgl]

Who're you calling a sissy?!

[@patrickimperial579]

Ok

[@user-yv4mm6bx3c]

When my friends and I heard that the "Dear Friends" concert series was coming to our home city, I immediately bought tickets, even though we had little money. We just finished high school. Well, concert day finally came and there was a local choir who did one piece of music at the start of the concert and we didn't see them again. The final piece of the concert was finished and the crowd was on our feet applauding since this was the first we had ever heard any of this music outside of the games themselves. When the choir came back out the cheers erupted into a loud roar. Everyone knew what was coming next. The conductor Arnie Roth even mentioned that he knew, that we knew what was next. He announced "One-Winged Angel" the crowded cheered all the louder and when the final note played, there was a standing ovation for at least ten minutes. A day my friends and I will never forget.

[@quadmaxx4829]

Now you guys need to get Shoji Meguro for literally any song he's done for the Persona franchise. Basically all of them are brilliant. Maybe one of the theme songs?

[@CrypticCreationProd]

Quad Maxx I love the persona series and it's soundtrack.

[@Deivid_Dono]

I think that his SMT soundtracks'd be a better fit tbh

[@Itsumi456]

@@Deivid_Dono Especially nocturne. Holy hell that soundtrack was intense.

[@Fatih120]

>persona trauma team would like to speak to you

[@mr.nebula6824]

Can’t wait to make this play 100% of the time on FF maps in smash now

[@wohdinhel]

Strange that he didn't even touch on the development of the use of vocals, it being the first PSX FF game (meaning the first FF game that was capable of using sampled audio with decent quality) and the technology that went into doing that.

[@Gnostic88]

I love how he clearly really loves the piece.

[@OliverHatched]

The "Rite of Spring" just scared the living shit out of my cat.

[@refl3ktor]

Lol, this is too funny!

[@ShinigamiUchihax2]

One of the best music composers in the gaming industry and classical music as a whole can't harmonize with his voice to save his life, how cool that is? He it gets right in his brain, can come come up with complex stuff ordinary people can't and arrange complicated pieces all in his head but can't harmonize with his voice. Strange world we live in. What a genius this man is you can also tell he loves what he does he did this entire interview with a smile in his face and very humorous.

[@Leinarth_]

A fucking legend.

[@ty_sylicus]

The song is a work of genius - a lightning bolt of creativity into a puzzle of a composition. I find is fascinating that he's only used this method the one time.

[@prodbyANT]

I love this man so much, he's such a huge inspiration to me musically.

[@HollowMoonFan]

"One Winged Angel" is truly a masterpiece.

[@WorldofCosplay1]

protect this man at all costs

[@YamiFoxx]

Nobuo uematsu is a legend, I still go back to some final fantasy OST's now just because I love them so much! Final fantasy 7 was easily the most memorable soundtrack for me

[@taluca8474]

I really want to get into Final Fantasy and because everyone says about Final Fantasy VII, I'll give that one a try

[@NikiWonoto26]

one of my favorite music composer that I respect a lot for his music compositions, I always love this type of 'music-compositions analysis' video! it makes me, as a musician myself, to appreciate even much more deeper the music as well as the 'brain behind the music' (the composer), it's very interesting,.!

[@philswaim392]

I freaking KNEW it. When i was young and would listen to this introduction especially i was like "where is he going with this? None of this really follows. Its almosy as if he's just slapping riffs together." And its EXACTLY what he did. But dang does it sound so awesome still.

[@abid101]

absolute legend!

[@Felhek]

SsJ Abid Absolute delicious

[@TMV420]

Absolute unit!

[@TheSplitOne]

This man is already a legend

[@shinaji08]

I love all songs from ff7 Nobuo is a genius!

[@setsuna7618]

Living legend. Thank you for giving us this wonderful time!

[@rcookie5128]

This man is a genious!

[@riyazahmad154]

+ΜrCookie But you aren't ;)

[@AscendantStoic]

The music of FF7 and FF8 specifically are some of the best music in video games, if not some of the best modern music period, this man is a genius.

[@Rascarrr]

Cannot forget about FFVI, my man.

[@Slappaccino]

Agreed. 8 is easily my favorite, with 6 close behind. 10 had some good tunes, too.

[@physika]

A masterpiece that really puts FF7 ahead as the best RPG in 1997.

[@TiagoBettencourt-sk8dy]

Best RPG independently of the year, you mean.

[@kevinquinn1085]

This beloved classic of the final fantasy series and poster child for its music basically boils down to a collage of little performances all expertly placed to form a cohesive whole. Like little bits of confetti arranged into a piece of fine art.

[@thecardboardstacker]

Next time you see him, ask him how he composed "Dancing Mad"

[@RandalfElVikingo]

Cardboard Stacker That's his magna opus.

[@donkinney143]

The Black Mages version of Dancing Mad is incredible. I listen to it more than One-Winged Angel

[@austinkersey2445]

@@donkinney143 There is a better version than that. The Symphonic Arrangement by Sangnoksu kicks all kinds of ass and is intentionally dissonant on the fourth movement. That said both are equally viable boss themes and, in my humble opinion, equally good. One's more classical and is more based upon horror whereas the other is basically a massive power flex with a rock-styled orchestra. You can't go wrong.

[@christian5256]

Came down here looking for this comment. For those who don't know, it's the FF6 final boss theme, and it might be the greatest thing he ever made for the series. You should seriously go check it out if you haven't heard it.

[@mbras9176]

@@christian5256 i still think OWA is way better with dancing mad being a close second

[@allendrake6960]

No way! Rite of Spring was always (and still is) one of my favorite orchestral pieces since first hearing it in Fantasia as a kid. I could more or less recognize One-Winged Angel having a similar sound to it, but to learn that he was specifically inspired by it is so cool!

[@w7sxi]

This man is genius, and yet makes it sound so simple! Love him and FF7

[@TheKessi1000]

A man, a professional, now a legend that just kept on upping his talent as his career unfolded. Nobuo Uematsu is someone who stayed "Hungry" his entire life and kept putting in the effort to keep everything he did a quality piece of work, no matter what.

[@ElProf]

I love this man with all my heart. His work has been a part of almost my entire life. Thank you, Nobuo-san.

[@princevegeta6679]

For starting out making sound bits on the NES he had come a VERY long way. Self taught and able to create masterpieces... That is the sign of genius my friends. Nobuo Uematsu easily one of the greatest composers of our time and deserves eternal recognition like many others before him.

[@Gallzatron]

A musical genius

[@inkmage4084]

He is one of the most important composers of the modern world and should be viewed and treated like the classics of the old world because his music is truly amazing.

[@aiinsant]

Friends: He created a nightmare!!! Such scary song!! Me: This is a banger, how can he create such masterpiece!!!

[@fantonledzepp]

Love seeing him at all the concerts and recitals.

[@idleeidolon]

so he made individual measures and just puzzled the pieces together. this explains why the FF7R version is puzzled together in a different order -- to match the pace of the fight, and the metastory of the game.

[@fullmetalalcoholic6624]

I also felt like it was remixed slightly to throw off expectation

[@spellsnare]

that guy will always be a legend no other composer will have the same recognition as him

[@artud2158]

This Man will never be memory of a ok guy........ "He will Be a Legendary memory guy in all of music History"

[@dannyhartwig7595]

its awesome.. so many tracks for diffrent games each with their own charakter and overall the same style.

[@beardsleymcturbanhead1911]

Short summary: I'm a genius, kneel before me.

[@Pintkonan]

but, you have to admit that someone has to be somehow been born with a gift or talent to make such music, this is not something that you can learn. ( IMHO )

[@siegvash]

You can learn it from zero with no talent at all. Once you learn music theory you begin to understand how it molds music and how everything fits where it belongs. There are tons of people like Uematsu-san but only some of them had a chance to prove it and even less escape the mold.

[@i.147]

+Pintkonan Saying his talent is a gift and that he was born with it is weakening all the years of work he did to be at this level.

[@Harkz0r]

It's likely the case that the greatest in any field have some inborn predisposition towards what they do. But only the ones who put in the effort and toil necessary to hone that potential will ever fulfil it.

[@TheFlyingZulu]

Greatness is achieved with a combination of natural born talent and a lot of hard work.

[@matthagen67]

Long live Nobuo Uematsu-sensei, the God of video game music!!! I've been a die-hard fan of Final Fantasy since early '90s. The music of this series means so much to me... more than any other game or even movie. If I ever had an opportunity to meet this man, I would probably burst in tears.

[@crush3146]

This is a true masterpiece, this track has haunted my head for so much time and still does.

[@AnnexationMusic]

It lights me up to see Nobuo break down his process. When he smiles I can't help but smile with him. This man has written the soundtrack to my life and every day I try to live in a way befitting of such wonderful music.

[@ryou63]

Uematsu-san, you're a genius!

[@aaronnapier1167]

This song gives me goosebumps to this day

[@artuigi1241]

Must be very proud to have this piece in Smash with Sephiroth joining the fight

[@mbras9176]

Its not like being in smash is a special merit reward or something like that... His music was in lots of games and movies and concerts already. So it's just another thursday for him.

[@ryugaroxas]

imagine Having a masteriece like this in that kiddie game filled generic anime girls and caliing that proud . must be delusional or something

[@westlink1985]

For hin to create THE most iconic song in video game history and then continually reinvent the song over the course of 30 years is true genius. The level of talent this takes is insane.

[@JMLippert]

I totally agree with him this is the best part of the song : it reaches the finest and reminds me Bach when harmony meets geometry.

[@kingfacundo]

The referenced tune he sings at 3:08 is incorrect. It corresponds with ~2.40 in spotify version of One-Winged Angel by Nubuo Uematsu.

[@hathbeenslain]

Great video! More features like this would be appreciated.

[@HL-lk5ln]

This man is a genius, one winged angel gives me chills every time I hear it

[@sladey21]

Ff7 (for me) has one of the most memorable and amazing scores in a game.

[@Gellarfan666]

I love how much he clearly enjoys his work.

[@bigsweaty8088]

I love this guy so much that I almost start crying when I look at him.

[@Vincent-kb8lq]

Hearing Nobuo mimick his work by mouth is amazing. I love all that he's done.

[@TheLuisberg]

In the advent children interview part of the song was partially inspired by Jimi Hendrix's purple Haze

[@Aeonofdoom360]

This was actually fantastic. The idea of coming up with all those separate pieces and then fitting them together like a puzzle is super interesting. Thanks.

[@The_General_Zubas]

1:10 that's why it sounds so good with a Rock Band. Gotta do both. Rock and Orchestra.