Piano Cover Collection from Square Enix Music Channel

 

Review by · January 21, 2025

For the past few years, Square Enix Music has been producing some exclusive arrangement/performance content on their YouTube Channel. Then, for the 2024 Fall Tokyo Game Show, Square Enix compiled 15 piano solo performances from their channel and put them on one CD. That CD is, of course, Piano Cover Collection from Square Enix Music Channel.

Before digging into the music itself, it is worth taking a moment to consider: why purchase this CD? Isn’t all the music freely available on the aforementioned Square Enix Music YouTube channel? Yes, it is. However, if you’re interested in high-fidelity recording, having this music on CD gives you lossless audio. Even at the highest settings available (1080p HD), YouTube passes this audio through an AAC codec at a 256k constant bitrate. I did a comparison with headphones on and could only notice slight improvements between an HD stream on YouTube and the CD version of, for example, “The Man with the Machine Gun.” Okay, that’s a small bonus, but it’s a bonus nonetheless.

More importantly, though, we have no idea if or when SEM’s YouTube channel might go away or if specific videos from it will be pulled for whatever reason. If you purchase this CD, then you guarantee yourself access to this music. Plus, it’s a fun rare item!

Acknowledging that these are outlier reasons or “edge cases,” I know most people will happily stream these videos instead of buying the CD. After all, those videos have the additional visual contentā€”seeing the performers work their magic on a grand piano!

Now, 10 of the 15 tracks here are arranged and performed by one Yui “Duke of Pianeet” Morishita. His past recordings with Square Enix include Final Fantasy XV, Final Fantasy VII Remake, and orchestral albums for Chrono, NieR, and SaGa. I’ll be visiting his work last, as I’d like to point to the strange and wonderful arrangements from the other pianists on this album.

I will start with the shortest arrangement, though it may also be the most impressive: Ryota Kikuchi’s “Meridian Dance” fromĀ Secret of Mana. This is a highly technical piece in its original form, and Kikuchi nails the crazy 16th note scales and arpeggios. It is truly shocking to experience. While it is a vanilla arrangement and doesn’t veer into “artistic liberty” territory, Hiroki Kikuta’s original composition gave Kikuchi plenty to work with. Again, he absolutely nailed it. And, I would argue, this singular track makes a darn good case for Square Enix Music funding a completeĀ ManaĀ piano collection. Heck, a Kikuta-centricĀ SecretĀ /Ā TrialsĀ piano collection would be great!

Next up is Hiroyuki Nakayama’s arrangement of Final Fantasy IX‘s vocal theme “Melodies Of Life.” Perhaps I should say this is Nakayama’s second arrangement of the song: he previously arranged and performed the piece on Piano Opera Final Fantasy VII/VIII/IX one decade ago. I had written off the first arrangement as mediocre. This new arrangement, while longer and featuring some of the artistic liberty lacking in the aforementioned “Meridian Dance,” is still one of the weaker tracks on this album. I could have done without it.

Final Fantasy XIV‘s dedicated pianist, Keiko, brings us an arrangement of “Heartless,” the fourth phase battle theme for the Titan fight. To my knowledge, Keiko has not arranged and performed “Heartless” on any other album, so this is a special treat. While I am also hoping for Keiko to release someĀ Final Fantasy XVIĀ piano solo tracks eventually, I think “Heartless” was a great exclusive for Square Enix Music to put on their channel, as well as on this CD.

The two remaining non-Morishita tracks are both from the original NieR (Gestalt & Replicant). The arranger/performer is one Takurou Iga, who notably did not work on Piano Collections NieR Gestalt & Replicant. That album had an arrangement of “Song of the Ancients” that I enjoyed, though it was more of a vanilla transcription than anything. Iga takes a decidedly different route: slow, heavy rubato, meandering melodies, and even some reharmonizing. This high-concept arrangement of “Song of the Ancients” was a treat.

We also get “The Dark Colossus Destroys All” from Takurou Iga. This track was not previously featured on the officialĀ NieRĀ piano collection, making this a true exclusive for piano lovers. This arrangement is appropriately grand, even bombastic at times. The decorative arpeggios that allow Iga to transition from the louder sections to softer ones are most impressive. Iga also maintains a strong sense of rhythm across both hands. It’s hard not to be impressed by this performance.

Alright, now it’s Yui Morishita time! Morishita offers fiveĀ Final FantasyĀ tracks, twoĀ Chrono TriggerĀ pieces, oneĀ Xenogears, oneĀ SaGa Frontier 2, and oneĀ LIVE A LIVE. Let’s start with theĀ Final FantasyĀ pieces, where we have ample opportunity for comparison and contrast!

Morishita’s arrangement of “Eternal Wind” from Final Fantasy III is solid, strong, and well-stated. However, I do not think it has the graceful performance and nuanced arrangement of Hiroyuki Nakayama’s version of the piece from Piano Opera Final Fantasy I/II/III. Therefore, while I did enjoy Morishita’s performance here, I already had something on hand that I gravitate towards. Which, for me, is a bit of a shame. I tend to be more interested in piano solo recordings that heretofore had no arrangements in the Square Enix Music catalog.

Speaking of previously arranged tracks, next up is “Battle at the Big Bridge” from Final Fantasy V. This one has been arranged for piano twice over: once for Piano Collections Final Fantasy V (arr. Shiro Satou, perf. Toshiyuki Mori), and again for Piano Opera Final Fantasy IV/V/VI (arr. & perf. Hiroyuki Nakayama). While the old Shiro Satou arrangement is fairly basic, of intermediate difficulty, and generally forgettable, Morishita has big shoes to fill against Nakayama’s Piano Opera rendition. Does he do it? Yes! Morishita’s arrangement moves at a slightly faster tempo than Nakayama’s, and the impressive arpeggiations during the intro land more smoothly. Some of this may actually be the result of higher-quality microphones and overall mixing and mastering. The production value here is surprisingly strong.

For the third time in a row, Yui Morishita competes with Hiroyuki Nakayama. “The Man with the Machine Gun” from Final Fantasy VIII is a notoriously catchy piece with plenty of syncopated rhythm to bedazzle any listener. However, just like with the last arrangement, Morishita ups the tempo on his arrangement and takes bigger risks with flourish and decoration than Nakayama did. I think Morishita’s is the clear superior here, though I must admit I like both versions for different reasons!

Now, finally, aĀ Final FantasyĀ track without prior precedent! Morishita’s “Fight With Seymour” fromĀ Final Fantasy XĀ has just as much syncopation and rhythmic complexity as “Man with the Machine Gun” … if not more! Here, more than anywhere else on the album, we see Morishita’s masterful control of his hands in keeping a steady tempo with machine-like precision on each and every note. I am in awe and can definitely listen to this one on loop. Much as I love Masashi Hamauzu’s work onĀ Piano Collections Final Fantasy X, this is the kind of arrangement that Hamauzu simply wouldn’t tryā€”perhaps that’s why it wasn’t featured on said album.

Speaking of Morishita and Hamauzu, let’s discuss “Blinded By Light” from Final Fantasy XIII. On Hamauzu’s Piano Collections Final Fantasy XIII, he included “Blinded By Light” in a medley with “Lightning’s Theme.” Here, Hamauzu approaches the melodic theme with a kind of stately strength. In contrast, Morishita continues his trend of lightning-fast tempo and impressive flourishes. While I love what Hamauzu can do with his own music, Morishita takes a “hold my beer” approach and provides what may be one of the most impressive arrangements of any Final Fantasy XIII theme.

Time forĀ Chrono Trigger. In short, Yui Morishita’s “Corridors of Time” arrangement proves we need aĀ Chronopiano collection. I honestly didn’t know such a sophisticated arrangement could be possible as a piano solo track. That descending arpeggio mimicking the sitar in the opening measures? Pure genius. So good. So. Good. Be sure to check out his arrangement of the title track “Chrono Trigger” as well. While it’s not quite as impressive as the version on disc three of theĀ Chrono Orchestra Arrangement Box, that arrangement was a piano duo with both Yui Morishita and Takurou Iga, so they were at an advantage. Yui Morishita scaling down the majesty of theĀ Chrono TriggerĀ main theme to just one piano is a feat!

Next up? “Soaring” from Yasunori Mitsuda’s beloved score for Xenogears. Morishita seems to bite off more than he can chew in the opening seconds, especially with those crunchy left-hand chord/cluster runs. However, as he moves into the theme’s heart-wrenching B section, he manages to balance tempo and dynamic so well. I am truly envious of Morishita’s mastery at this point.

MEGALOMANIA” from LIVE A LIVE, you say? This boss theme is so catchy that I’d like to believe any competent pianist could sell this one based on Shimomura’s powerful source material. Of course, Yui Morishita ups the ante with divine right-hand technique and masterful shifts in dynamics across the span of this 2.5-minute arrangement. Yes, this arrangement’s only weakness is its length. I want more!

We end with Yui Morishita once again trying his hand at a Masashi Hamauzu track. And, as an added bonus, Morishita doesn’t overlap with Hamauzu’s self-arranged Piano Pieces SF2. The track is “Roman” from SaGa Frontier 2. Yes, the key motif in “Roman” is also featured all overĀ SaGa Frontier 2, but this exact track has not been arranged for piano before. With this arrangement, Yui Morishita demonstrates that Hamauzu’s impressionist-style source compositions can absolutely benefit from a romantic era arrangement, with all the technique of a neo-romantic pianist likeĀ Rachmaninoff.

All in all, this CD demonstrates some pretty important things about the Square Enix music repertoire and potential for arrangements. First, full piano albums devoted to individual titles or franchises outside of Final Fantasy are overdue. Second: Yui Morishita is a living legend, so let’s get more of him! Third: the Square Enix Music YouTube Channel houses dozens more unique arrangements and performances, and not just solo piano! You’ll find solo guitar, chamber music, and even lute solos. Perhaps this album can be your gateway to discovering even more great arranged music produced by Square Enix, released free for the masses.Ā 

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Patrick Gann

Patrick Gann

Therapist by day and gamer by night, Patrick has been offering semi-coherent ramblings about game music to RPGFan since its beginnings. From symphonic arrangements to rock bands to old-school synth OSTs, Patrick keeps the VGM pumping in his home, to the amusement and/or annoyance of his large family of humans and guinea pigs.