Quote:
Originally Posted by LiquidAcid
Disappointed by:
The Orchestral SaGa -Legend of Music-
I think the review on VGMO nails it. It's pretty much color-by-numbers arrangements, with little to no "creativitiy" present. Disappointing because the arrangers could definitely do better than this. Seems more like a management decision. |
This album has proven to be rather divisive among SaGa fans. I think Chris' statements in the VGMO review make sense. But I really think it is simply a matter of expectation, and whether or not we can value what's there. "color-by-numbers arrangements" -- or to use another phrase, "phoning it in" -- is the sort of critique I've heard from different friends and family who cared about this album.
But even if the arrangements don't deviate from source material, even if they don't do the super-cool layering that Valtonen and Wanamo do on their "Symphonic [x]" projects, the work of transcription and of assigning the proper voices to the proper parts of a symphony orchestra is *not* *easy*. I can say with some certainty that lesser arrangers could have truly f*cked this project up, and there a handful of orchestral arrangements in the world of VGM where I would point and say "see that there? THAT is how you f*ck it up."
At the end of the day, the two main arrangers did great work, the orchestra performers did their jobs well, and the album is enjoyable to listen to. AND, I never ever in a thousand years expected SaGa to get dedicated orchestra music.
So for me, that still makes it a win.