UPDATE MASTERCLASS 11/17[VIDEO]-Hamauzu-Piano Collections:FFXIII: No 10, 1.

[49410enrique]

UPDATE-SAT 11/17/12-Follow up performance to the previously posted Mock performance, from a masterclass I was fortunate enough to be selected to participate.

*note I had to edit out the clinic/masterclass lesson portion immediately following this as youtube said the video was too long. my remarks about this performance are in the 'bump' reply below as well as in the video description if you click into youtube and watch it from there vs from here. thanks for watching and listening, feedback, etc.  
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"WIP"
Program Notes for Piano Collections Final Fantasy XIII
No. 10 - Prelude (to FINAL FANTASY XIII Full Version)
No.  1 - Lightning's Theme~Blinded by Light

Masashi Hamauzu (浜渦正志) was born on September 20, 1971 in Munich, Germany and is one of a select few renowned composers who has been recognized for increasing the appreciation and awareness of the advancements made in “video-game” music. A prime example of the popularity of the genre is that of fellow composer for the Final Fantasy series Nobuo Uematsu. His Final Fantasy VIII work, “Eyes on Me,”   sold a record 400,000 copies. It went on to win Song of Year (Western Music) at the 14th Annual Japan Gold Disc Awards in 1999-the first time music from a video game won the honor.

The music of the modern media series has grown to such notoriety that recognition of the composers has led to such accolades as Time magazine’s “Innovators” in their “Time 100: The Next Wave- Music” feature.  Hamauzu was a relative new comer to the franchise first becoming involved as the arranger for the piano transcriptions to Nobuo Uematsu’s music for the Final Fantasy X Piano Collections. His success with this project eventually led to his becoming the head composer, producer, and arranger of the music for Final Fantasy XIII and XIII-2 (roles he held in previous projects prior to his work on the series). To date there have been at least 14 concert transcription collections from the series, with several other releases from other media titles in similar instrumental piano style.

Employing a fine balance of consonance and so-called tasteful dissonance in his music, one could draw parallels between Hamauzu and the impressionists. Inspiration from composers such as Satie, Ravel, and Debussy can be heard throughout much of his music. Although, Hamauzu also often manages to sound quite romantic despite mixing in styles that many times borrow from jazz in both harmonic construction and in rhythmic complexity.

We hear two selections from Hamauzu’s work from Piano Collections: Final Fantasy XIII (composed in 2010).  Number 10 the “Prelude (to Final Fantasy XIII Full Version) and number 1, “Lightning’s Theme ~ Blinded by Light”. The Prelude opens with bell like tones that very much resemble some of the sonorities found in some of Debussy’s preludes. The introduction (in D minor) leads into an almost hymn like theme (in D major)  that continues its development into some surprising harmonic territory before a modulation (to E flat major this time) at the high point of the work. The piece closes with similar bell like tones returning in the rather unexpected key of E flat minor.

The second piece, number 1, presents a common approach to these transcriptions, two themes juxtaposed within a single transcription. Only this time, both themes actually share a common central melody, giving a work an unusual cohesiveness not normally encountered in these pieces. Lightning’s Theme ~ Blinded by Light, has an immediate improvisational quality to it with its short 2 bar introduction that only serves to give a brief glimpse of the jazz inspired feel of the ensuing music and establishing with, a somewhat ambiguous, clue that we are in the key of B minor (the work as a whole shares the common key signature as the main body of the prelude). The first theme is fairly straight forward with mild development before a surprising short lived modulation concludes the first half of the piece. A toccata like passage with a catchy almost contagious syncopated pulse serves as a brief transition to the second theme (if one wants to call it that, it is so closely related to the first that except for the drastic change in character it could almost be thought of as further transformation and variation of Lightning’s Theme). This time the familiar melody is transformed into a high energy almost dance like tune. This is ‘battle music’ after all, so there is a steady sense of motion and movement ever forward. The piece concludes with a return of the toccata like transition only this time in a rather confusing almost diatonic key of both F major and D minor ending on an ambiguous minor 9th chord.

I put WIP in the title as this is not my 'final' performance of the work, rather we treated this as a mock performance for an upcoming masterclass. We still have some fine tuning, and a few rough spots to iron out but the two pieces are finally starting to feel like a whole performance, I carefully selected these pieces and ordered them in this fashion for not only thematic variety but  also their  tonal relationships to each other. I feel they go to gether nicely in this order vs. how they are normally presented in the album.  Thanks for watching and any helpful feedback I will discuss with my piano professor.

[costicina]

Wow Enriqe!! 
I whish you to play at your masterclass as you played in this 'mock' performance....You seem to have a special feeling to this charming piecese, and are able to communicate them to your audience. I liked especially  the interpretation, the nuances of the musical texture you were able to create: keep on the wonderful job!!!!!

[49410enrique]

Wow Enriqe!!  
...

as always, i think you are too generous to me sometimes   (that'a good thing, you're very kind and thoughtful, really!). i sincerely appreciate the time you took to listen and reflect and respond. it really helps with nerves and confidience durring this stressful time of final prep. i hope to get a better recording of this in the masterclass, the acoustics, lighting and most important the sound of the instrument should be a super nice steinway d so i hope to bring out some more subtle ideas with that that i feel this instrument (espectially with how it has been modified in voicing) just didn't come across as i actaully wanted to.

GEN PS
oh and to clarify something someone else brought up to me-lol i am not going bald. there is a very ill-placed spot light that seems very dedicated to making everyone's scalp that plays under it very noticeable. actually with all the unruly hair i have i might wish i had a little less, sure would make things more manageable from a hair perspective lol

[costicina]

i am not going bald. there is a very ill-placed spot light that seems very dedicated to making everyone's scalp that plays under it very noticeable. actually with all the unruly hair i have i might wish i had a little less, sure would make things more manageable from a hair perspective lol

...and I was going to scold you thinking it was a criminal 'do it yourself' attemp to cut your newborn curls 

[emill]

hello Enrique,

From someone who has never seen a video clip of Final Fantasy .... which will create in one's mind images of heroes and superheroes, space travel and aliens ..... I could never possibly guess the connection of the pieces you played to the images or impression created by the title.

However ... allow me to say in the traditions of YT .... WOW!! that was NICE playing on your part!   THANKS for all the info about the score.

[49410enrique]

hello Enrique,

From someone who has never seen a video clip of Final Fantasy .... which will create in one's mind images of heroes and superheroes, space travel and aliens ..... I could never possibly guess the connection of the pieces you played to the images or impression created by the title.

However ... allow me to say in the traditions of YT .... WOW!! that was NICE playing on your part!  THANKS for all the info about the score.

emill, you are so kind to listen and offer your reaction to the pieces. it is a refreshing compliment to hear from someone unfamiliar with the series (and any preconcieved notions of how they should sound or the imagery they are normally associated with) to offer such a great compliement.

i am glad you liked it and really glad you appreciated the 'performer's remarks' . i am trying to get better at writing program notes and providing interesting and what i feel is sometimes important background information about works and their composers. with such modern pieces that are not usually programmed for formal concerts and recitals, i felt it was all the more imporant to frame and reference the works for people.

again, many warm thanks to you for taking time to watch and respond. i hope to provide more convincing and sensitive performances of these and realted works in the future.

[starstruck5]

Glad you explained the bald patch!   

I liked the first piece most -it has something processional about it -that feeling you get when you defeat a level boss!  The second piece is much more breathless -and you communicated that very well -I couldn't in all seriousness fault your playing at all -there were no obvious fumbles and your playing is exhilerating -marvelous in fact -

[49410enrique]

@starstruck5

my most sincere thanks for your wonderful response. you have given me some of the nicest/highest compliments i think could ever hope to recieve. i so happy you enjoyed it, and that the contrasts and vivid imagery i hoped to portray were able to come through. will continue to hone and refine on my end, but your kind remarks really do a lot to help me with 'settling' into these pieces even more.

[49410enrique]

note, I had the chance to re-perform in a more 'serious' situation (a masterclass, OMG I was a freakin nervous wreck)

Here my nerves got the better of me a couple times but I feel like I recovered quickly. The overall sound quality of this one is greatly improved (especially since I was able to place the camera in the 2nd story balcony giving the sounds more time and 'space' to open up and develop) and I feel like some of the points I discussed with my professor/teacher after the previous mock performance are significantly better here. I also like the acoustics of this hall  much more and the Steinway D here really sounds 'at home' in this space so the overal tonal qualities and subtle 'sound color' characteristics came through here more. Overall I was substantially happier with the musicality of the performance even if I did have a couple un anticipated technical (nerves) stumbles. 

video is now updated and first in the original post/entry.

many thanks for watching. hope you enjoy it!

[chopin2015]

very nice, you are learning so much about these pieces!  I like the first one better than the second one because the second one was too loud. But I am just being picky because I am not familiar with the music...and also because I like the first piece more out of the two. They both ended with really good energy though, so I can tell you have a really good idea of the musical ideas here. Good job!

[rachfan]

Hi enrique,

Excellent playing!  It all has a good flow to it and is very expressive and energetic.  Obviously, you've put much practicing into these pieces to play them so convincingly.  You manage to put this music across to the listener, which is the main point of performance.  Also, thanks for the commentary on the composer and his music--very informative.  A great post.

David 

[costicina]

  Bravissimo!!!!! Nerves did wonders on your interpretation, making it so vibrant and intense. One cannot help loving this piece performed with such a mastery. ghreat, great, great job!!!!

[zezhyrule]

Very nice! Best interpretation I've heard of these pieces. Loved your entire performance! 

[49410enrique]

very nice, you are learning so much about these pieces!  I like the first one better than the second one because the second one was too loud. But I am just being picky because I am not familiar with the music...and also because I like the first piece more out of the two. They both ended with really good energy though, so I can tell you have a really good idea of the musical ideas here. Good job!

thanks so much for the encouragement.  it's funny how satisfyng and frustrating it is to get to a the 'end' studying a piece of music only to discover as you are about to finish your time with it (for the time being, are we ever really done with pieces?) that there is so much more music there, it is like the more you know about a piece, the better you understand and learn it, the more you realize how much more you can do to express yourself in it. after my masterclass on these yesterday (as has been my expereince with previous clinics), i learned how much more I can and could do in these. but that's the point right? once you learn it to a sufficient level, you can now pay the full admission price to really get in and do something special.

Hi enrique,

Excellent playing!  It all has a good flow to it and is very expressive and energetic.  Obviously, you've put much practicing into these pieces to play them so convincingly.  You manage to put this music across to the listener, which is the main point of performance.  Also, thanks for the commentary on the composer and his music--very informative.  A great post.

David  

David, I am incredibly happy you enjoyed these charming and pretty little works and the information I attempted to gather to help 'frame' it for folks not familiar with these wonderful little transcriptions.  I'm happy I was able to convey my enthusiasm and the emotion I read into them.  I have to say that they have certainly been wonderful 'learning pieces' as my clinic yesterday was really quite interesting in terms of where the artist was able to point out and direct what I could to to further refine and make them 'special' (great advice that I know will carry over to other similar transcriptions but also standard repertoire pieces as well).

Thank you for your guidance and feedback durring my preparation for this. It was invaluable advice that really helped me present the pianist with a more refined product with which to work with in the lesson that followed on stage after I performed these for her.

Bravissimo!!!!! Nerves did wonders on your interpretation, making it so vibrant and intense. One cannot help loving this piece performed with such a mastery. ghreat, great, great job!!!!

i'm so happy you enjoyed these so much! i hope to be able to continue my 'serious' study of these pieces alongside my work on more traditional piano art music. i am also very relieved that my nerves did not fully hinder what i tried to bring across. thank you thank you.

Very nice! Best interpretation I've heard of these pieces. Loved your entire performance!  

wow, that is quite a compliment and i am extremely grateful for it. i really am trying to do my best to capture the intent and spirit of these piano collections (and similar) pieces as implied in the score but also to not block my personality from infusing the renditions with my own unique take on them (but not in a distracting manner!), as a fine pianist said to me recently, there are sometimes too many pretty good, clean, 'plain vanilla' performances out there and audiences seem to respond well to and enjoy and appreciate it when a performer connects with the music in a very personal manner (that is I felt confident enough to take a few risks interpretation wise that i felt paid off, that were distinctly different from the offical album recordings-which i think sometimes many people, myself included , can try to imitate too much rather than discover how we are uniquely moved by the score and our own emotion).  i hope to begin work soon on at least a few more pieces  (not too sure which set yet), when i start new spring standard assignments too.

[starstruck5]

It is a shame that anxiety became a factor in your performance -but nevertheless you seemed to use the adrenaline to your advantage.  The recent winner of the Leeds -Frederico Colli, played loads of wrong notes in his final performance and there were even a few mistimed notes -so it isn't a big deal -you understand these pieces so well, and play with such audacity of spirit- -I think that you, yourself could offer a masterclass on them!  Bravo.

[49410enrique]

It is a shame that anxiety became a factor in your performance -but nevertheless you seemed to use the adrenaline to your advantage.  The recent winner of the Leeds -Frederico Colli, played loads of wrong notes in his final performance and there were even a few mistimed notes -so it isn't a big deal -you understand these pieces so well, and play with such audacity of spirit- -I think that you, yourself could offer a masterclass on them!  Bravo.

thanks for the encouragement and your last comment, that really made my day !!! !!!

[drexo]

I'm really fond of the No. 10 Prelude and I fully agree with the comments above. You have this musical touch into your playing which suits this music perfectly!

[49410enrique]

I'm really fond of the No. 10 Prelude and I fully agree with the comments above. You have this musical touch into your playing which suits this music perfectly!

thank you very much! i
im glad you enjoy(ed) it!
 btw you might enjoy listening to this version from the limited ed LP release of a few of the tracks

thanks again for listening and the kind words!