Final Fantasy Is The Perfect Gateway To Opera
Across Final Fantasy’s storied 33-year history, the franchise has taken us on journeys through vast fantasy forests, bustling metropolises, and even the laddish of bro road trips. We have fought mass conglomerates to save the world, witnessed Gods commit matricide in a bid to gain ultimate power, enrolled in mercenary school to become a SeeD, and learned the true meaning of friendship…saving the world. Even when we have played a prince going on a car journey with his mates, we have ultimately saved the world. Each of the mainline Final Fantasy games has taken place over vast and varying worlds, but one thing has persisted from the very beginning—a world-beating, awe-inspiring soundtrack.
Final Fantasy’s lead composer, the legendary Nobuo Uematsu, has consistently created music that not only represents the world that the games are set in, but also music that stands on its own two feet as exceptionally beautiful pieces of work. No piece exemplifies this better than Final Fantasy X’s “To Zanarkand”. The original piano piece is beautifully sweet and incredibly gentle, perfectly reflecting the dreamlike memories of the former inhabitants of the titular city. This piece has been covered over and over again, from piano covers to violin accompaniments through to Game Music Collectives magnetic orchestral version from earlier this year.
Within the relatively young and exhilarating world of video games, Final Fantasy stands tall as a shining example of adventurous storytelling and mesmerising music, but it’s worth remembering that this style of storytelling has existed for hundreds of years before video games, within European opera houses.
Before we dive into the nitty-gritty, let’s go over opera. Most people’s expectations of opera might stem from the hit 80s’ rom-com Pretty Woman or maybe the odd soprano that appears on a TV talent show, warbling their way through Broadway classics before belting out a note so high-pitched that dogs start barking. Opera has been gatekept from the masses as an experience exclusively for the “educated” (rich) and “sophisticated” (also rich). The truth is that opera is one of the most interesting, expressive, and downright bizarre forms of entertainment to exist, and it doesn’t require a degree in musical theory to enjoy, especially for those of you who already enjoy the storytelling of Final Fantasy.
Opera is a collective term for when music, poetry, dance and acting are all merged into one. It has existed for over 500 years in some way or another, from the early revivals of greek tragedies by Monteverdi, the high aristocratic opulence of Scarletti and Vivaldi’s opera serias, to Mozart’s revolutionary German operas such as his magnum opus, Die Zauberflöte. Each has added its own flavor and instrumentation to the art form. To best understand how Final Fantasy plays into this; however, we need to look at the biggest, boldest, and most terrifying of operatic eras—the romantic gothic opera.
As time passed, orchestras became bigger and bigger, with each era innovating and incorporating new and emerging technologies. The romantic operas of the 19th Century, with the rise of the middle-class thanks to new money from industrialisation and the mass genocide of indigenous peoples thousands of miles away, pumped new money into European opera. This meant that the stories that composers could tell became more daring, more abstract, and much darker. One of my favourites, Weber’s (no relation) Der Freischütz is a spoken dialogue opera in three parts with themes of magic, mystery, love, and betrayal all set to a score with increasing instrumental and compositional depth. Whereas earlier operas were commissioned by aristocrats who expected their pieces to play to their whims, Weber’s score is allowed compositional freedom. It ebbs and flows like the tide, perfectly underpinning the helplessness of Max’s plight to marry Agathe, the desperation of Max plunging into the dark glen to cast the magic bullets which will ultimately be his downfall, the joy of the initial hunt, and Prince Ottokar’s hunting challenge. Even though the whole opera takes place in German, every emotional and expositional beat can be felt to its fullest thanks to excellent music and outstanding storytelling, regardless of linguistic competency.
This brings me right back around to Final Fantasy, a franchise that tells increasingly daring and abstract stories all underpinned by incredible music. Really, Final Fantasy is just the opera of video games. Final Fantasy X’s “To Zanarkand” is a haunting piece that reflects both the beauty and fleetingness of the people from this ruined city. Verdi’s Atilla tackles similar themes, with the titular Hun dreaming of the sacking of Aquileia only to find it was an omen of his future demise. Aerith’s death by the hands of Sephiroth in Final Fantasy VII was a jaw-dropping twist for all that first experienced it, much like Tosca’s stabbing of Scarpia in Puccini’s Tosca. Final Fantasy VI even has a whole section of the game take place in an opera house, which birthed the iconic Aria di Mezzo Carattere, an absolutely breathtaking aria of the very highest quality, standing toe-to-toe with any defining aria, such as La Mamma Morta from Giordano’s “Andrea Chénier”.
The very fabric of operatic storytelling has been woven into Final Fantasy. This franchise, soon heading back to a gothic fantasy setting in Final Fantasy XVI, represents the natural evolution of opera, bringing ostentatious, brave stories with stunning music to an audience that would either be put off or straight rejected from the standard operatic circles. So, when this pandemic is all over, and we gain some sense of normality, consider supporting operas. Opera houses around the globe are suffering from underfunding, forcing them to commission tired and uninspiring operas to suit the rich and boring. If you can, support exciting pieces like Tyshawn Sorey’s Cycles Of My Being, because if you love the stories that Final Fantasy has told you over the last three decades, you have hundreds of years of joy yet to discover.
MICHAEL LEOPOLD WEBER
Michael is a freelance journalist currently living in West Japan. Though he has a degree in music from The University Of London, he still often plays out of time (shouting "it's close enough for jazz" whilst it happens). When he isn't obsessing over II-V-I's, Michael can be found digesting a whole range of video games from farming sims to FPSs. He also loves tea a little bit too much.