When I first heard the title of this cd, I was excited at the prospect of another fine Falcom arranged symphonic album. Upon listening, I was not at all surprised to by the symphonic tracks, as they are wonderfully arranged preformed. What did surprise me however was that there were some great rock arrangements mixed in with them.
Usually when I listen to an arranged game music cd, I start it at track one and play it all the way through, occasionally skipping tracks I do not particularly like. Often I play them while I am involved in an activity. Arranged game music CDs tend to work well for me in this capacity, as most of the tracks have a similar feel. Whether the activity is studying, writing a paper, playing a video game with a poor soundtrack, or going on a long drive, I prefer a consistent feel of the music that I have playing in the background. With Ys Dramatic Concert, this is difficult, as it has two completely different styles: Symphonic arrangement, and Rock/Jazz arrangement. Both were executed well, but they are all mixed together throughout the seventeen tracks of this album. This leads to difficult listening in my style. For instance, I may be in bed listening to a relaxing orchestrated track before I go to sleep, and the next track may be a blasting Falcom rock arrangement, nearly sending me to the permanent sleep by giving me a heart attack.
I don’t wish to give the false impression that I have a negative view of this CD. The above problem may be corrected by programming your cd player to play the tracks for which you are in the mood. Also, many may consider what I call a problem to be a blessing, as listeners may prefer variety within a CD.
I strongly recommend this album to fans of Falcom music, as this is some great music, from the eleven symphonic arrangements to the six rock arrangements. At 55:45, this album has some good length, as well. Buy it if you see it come up at an online auction.
