Libera's Arrangements (Soulcalibur 3: Forsaken Sanctuary)

[Libera]

It's been another year at NSM!  I didn't do quite as much arranging as I did in my first year due to being busier, but I think I've still put out some decent stuff.  Last year I failed to get something big ready so I posted some smaller sheets.  Sadly, this year I can only celebrate with a single sheet, but at least it's more substantial!  Here's to another year on this website, and thanks again to everyone here for making it so much fun!

Duty: [Musx] [Pdf] [Midi] [Mus]

Spoiler

Unless, of course, you would also be interested in The Fell Star That Slaughters The Gods?

God-Shattering Star (Rain): [Musx] [Pdf] [Midi] [Mus]

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[Maelstrom]

you absolute madman



I really should get around to finishing twilight of the gods one of these days

[Latios212]

Happy two years, here's to more

that's... that's quite the sheet there, good job finally seeing it through! xD

[Zeila]

Gratz on your two year stay and for putting out such quality sheets

Spoiler

yessss God-Shattering Star! \o/ This is my favorite of the four final map themes. Thank you for putting in the effort

• I think it is more accurate to have the beginning phrases last 4 measures each instead of 3 measures. I know that it's more loosely interpreted but when using a metronome it's consistently a closer match to 4 measures as opposed to 3 (also, when I'm pointing out specific measure numbers I'm referencing what you currently have)
• You should change all the quarter + eighth rests to dotted quarter rests. You could allow dotted rests in the midi/audio -> quantization settings and then retranscribe the selected region to automatically change them, but then that would also mess with formatting
• m6 you're missing a short syllable at the very end of that phrase
• m17/19/etc. RH it sounds more like the first beat is G nat - D (lower) - G nat instead of F# - D (higher) - G nat
• m32 RH I think you should have harmonies playing on beat 3 too
• m50 RH last quarter note sounds more like 2 eighth notes
• m69/70 RH I think the second chords should be accented
• m71 beat 3 RH sounds like D instead of B
• m72 RH I think it would be better to write out the trumpet part (which goes F#-E-D-C#) as that is more distinct
• m76 RH just personal preference but I think it is worth adding the eighth note run on beats 3 and 4 to lead into m77
• m97 beat 2 RH sounds like D instead of B
• m105-108 RH I think you should add the vocal harmonies
• m106 beat 2 RH should be F instead of D
• m123/124 LH bass note sounds more like C instead of G
• m133 why not Eb minor here?
• m133-136 RH the original rhythm sounds more like consistent half notes; the current rhythm is a little jarring
• m140 you could also add a B natural and B# to the last two chords either in the RH or LH
• m153 RH first note in melody is actually A and should be tied to a quarter note, then it's followed by a G# quarter note (with A at the end like you already have)
• m156 RH the piano part (layer 1) sounds like the A should be a half note, and then the last quarter note octave you have sounds like an E instead of F#
• m157/158 RH the first two notes rhythm should be half note - quarter note instead of two dotted quarters

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[Libera]

you absolute madman

Happy two years, here's to more

that's... that's quite the sheet there, good job finally seeing it through! xD

Gratz on your two year stay and for putting out such quality sheets

Thanks everyone!  It was fun to get something exciting ready in time!


Thanks Zeila for the feedback; I've updated the files and I'll detail what I changed in here.

Spoiler

I think it is more accurate to have the beginning phrases last 4 measures each instead of 3 measures. I know that it's more loosely interpreted but when using a metronome it's consistently a closer match to 4 measures as opposed to 3 (also, when I'm pointing out specific measure numbers I'm referencing what you currently have)

Yeah this is a tricky one.  I tried a few different barrings while preparing this before settling on three bars per phrase.  Although you're right that in tempo its closer to four bars than three, he never really sings in tempo so I found that the phrasing didn't really make as much sense when I stretched it to four bars.  That being said, if you've got more concrete suggestions about how to write it out then I'm happy to hear them as it's not a straightforward place to write down at all.

You should change all the quarter + eighth rests to dotted quarter rests. You could allow dotted rests in the midi/audio -> quantization settings and then retranscribe the selected region to automatically change them, but then that would also mess with formatting

If you look at any of my other sheets in compound time signatures you'll see the same thing.  It's how I'm used to doing rests in compound time although I know many here prefer dotted rests.  It's also not totally unorthodox and (I believe?) is the more traditional way of doing things (you can easily find examples of it on imslp if you want to.)

m6 you're missing a short syllable at the very end of that phrase

I heard it more as the end of the word being enunciated which is why I left it out.  Some of these calls would be easier to make if we access to the lyrics, which unfortunately will probably never will.

m17/19/etc. RH it sounds more like the first beat is G nat - D (lower) - G nat instead of F# - D (higher) - G nat

This one's is quite tricky for me to tell, but I think it's clearer that it starts on an F# if you listen to it at the end of the loop.  Admittedly though it is still pretty unclear in the recording so I'm not 100% confident but I've left it as it was for now.

m32 RH I think you should have harmonies playing on beat 3 too

It's true that I restrike the harmony along with the melody in some other places nearby this one, but they usually have a good reason to be restruck (prominent movement in harmony part, first strike not being able to have all the harmony etc.) and 32 didn't really feel like it needed it to me.  Might have another think about it though later.

m50 RH last quarter note sounds more like 2 eighth notes

This is another tricky one that would be helped by having lyrics, but I decided to change it in this case.

m133 why not Eb minor here?

I thought harmonically it made more sense as D#m due to how it transitions into F#m in 140.  You could probably get away with it in Ebm also but this just made more sense to me.

m133-136 RH the original rhythm sounds more like consistent half notes; the current rhythm is a little jarring

Yep, the rhythm is really jarring haha.  But I think you'll have to blame the composer because I'm pretty confident that this is what's going on here.  I tried counting along with it again slowed down and it really doesn't seem to match up with 4+4+4.  The rhythm sounds jarring in the original to me so I don't think it's a bad thing anyway.

At this point you might be thinking I'm going to disagree with nearly everything you say, but all of this:

• m69/70 RH I think the second chords should be accented
• m71 beat 3 RH sounds like D instead of B
• m72 RH I think it would be better to write out the trumpet part (which goes F#-E-D-C#) as that is more distinct
• m76 RH just personal preference but I think it is worth adding the eighth note run on beats 3 and 4 to lead into m77
• m97 beat 2 RH sounds like D instead of B
• m105-108 RH I think you should add the vocal harmonies
• m106 beat 2 RH should be F instead of D
• m123/124 LH bass note sounds more like C instead of G
• m140 you could also add a B natural and B# to the last two chords either in the RH or LH
• m153 RH first note in melody is actually A and should be tied to a quarter note, then it's followed by a G# quarter note (with A at the end like you already have)
• m156 RH the piano part (layer 1) sounds like the A should be a half note, and then the last quarter note octave you have sounds like an E instead of F#
• m157/158 RH the first two notes rhythm should be half note - quarter note instead of two dotted quarters

^ Has been changed.  These are all good catches or nice suggestions.  I wasn't entirely sure what you meant for 105-108 but hopefully I did what you wanted.  Also for 76 I only added them on beat 4 because I thought they were more prominent there and it helped to keep the previously running melody more intact.  Thanks particularly for checking some of the vocal lines pitches because it's often really hard to hear actually what pitch he's singing due to the vibrato and rich accompaniment.

Thanks again for giving it a look; it's greatly appreciated!

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[Zeila]

Thanks Zeila for the feedback; I've updated the files and I'll detail what I changed in here.

You're welcome :>

is there a point to keeping the spoiler now

Yeah this is a tricky one.  I tried a few different barrings while preparing this before settling on three bars per phrase.  Although you're right that in tempo its closer to four bars than three, he never really sings in tempo so I found that the phrasing didn't really make as much sense when I stretched it to four bars.  That being said, if you've got more concrete suggestions about how to write it out then I'm happy to hear them as it's not a straightforward place to write down at all.

That's pretty fair as the way you wrote it makes it easy to understand. Maybe something like this could work:

Even if you choose to stick with 3 measure phrases, I do think that one thing you could still change is the note lengths for the first two phrases. In the original, there doesn't seem to be much space in between the end of the vocal line and the orchestra, so an eighth note rest or nothing at all would be more accurate imo

This one's is quite tricky for me to tell, but I think it's clearer that it starts on an F# if you listen to it at the end of the loop.  Admittedly though it is still pretty unclear in the recording so I'm not 100% confident but I've left it as it was for now.

I admit that the first note is harder to tell, but the following D sounds like it should be lowered an octave because it sounds lower than the G natural. It even sounds lower in the Thunder version if that means anything (although in that one there seems to be an eighth rest at the beginning). Unless you intentionally raised it an octave to make it easier to play, which I'm assuming was the case for the ostinato at m125 since you wrote it correctly at m149

Yep, the rhythm is really jarring haha.  But I think you'll have to blame the composer because I'm pretty confident that this is what's going on here.  I tried counting along with it again slowed down and it really doesn't seem to match up with 4+4+4.  The rhythm sounds jarring in the original to me so I don't think it's a bad thing anyway.

Maybe it is just the slightest bit off/late, but I think the way you currently have it is too much. I guess someone else can vouch for it either way. Also, when I tried using a metronome, dotted quarter = 166 seemed more accurate than 167. It's a small difference but 167 goes off beat after a while

I wasn't entirely sure what you meant for 105-108 but hopefully I did what you wanted.

The ones you put are good enough, but I was referring to the actual vocal harmony that starts at m101. At m105-107 it sounds like thirds all the way through, then at m108 it sounds like A on beat 1, and there's a horn part that plays E which you could add to the quarter notes

Thanks particularly for checking some of the vocal lines pitches because it's often really hard to hear actually what pitch he's singing due to the vibrato and rich accompaniment.

Thanks again for giving it a look; it's greatly appreciated!

Np! It's definitely understandable if you make a few mistakes with this behemoth of a song lol. Everything else you commented about was fine, and I also have a few more tiny things:

- m109 RH the brass part sounds like the F is 3 beats long and then there's a C on beat 4
- m113 RH beat 3 sounds like D instead of G
- m149 you could probably just extend the crescendo across all 4 measures, or at least make it mf at m151 instead of m150

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[Libera]

@Zeila: I'm sorry to say that I haven't had the energy to do any more edits to GSS but I will at some point in the (hopefully near!) future.


I took a little break after finishing up the arrangements for the anniversary post but I'm back with more Fire Emblem Fates.

A Dark Fall: [Musx] [Pdf] [Midi] [Mus]

I also wrote up this short sheet yesterday for a request.

Royalty (Royal's Theme): [Musx] [Pdf] [Midi] [Mus]

And finally I submitted this sheet earlier but hadn't yet posted it in my PA.

October Mermaid: [Musx] [Pdf] [Midi] [Mus]

[Libera]

Managed to update my PA this month, impressive.  I've actually been working on a few sheets but most of the interesting ones aren't finished yet.  So here's a shorter piece from Xenogears and another from Clannad that I had lying around.

Unstealable Jewel: [Musx] [Pdf] [Midi] [Mus]

Her Determination: [Musx] [Pdf] [Midi] [Mus]

[Libera]

It's been almost two years since I last posted a Drakengard arrangement.  This one required a lot of messing around with stuff in finale to get it to work properly.

Twelfth Chapter - In the Sky: [Musx] [Pdf] [Midi]

[Libera]

This marks 100 Fire Emblem arrangements.  I initially thought of doing one of the longer beefier tracks to celebrate, but a) I've done some of those recently b) I don't have loads of free time at the moment; and c) I thought it would actually be more appropriate to go for something more reflective.

Bubbles: [Musx] [Pdf] [Midi] [Mus]

(For some reason the new non-extended OST upload I found doesn't include this track...)

[Latios212]

oh man I love this track ;-;

Nice job making it fit! There parts don't overlap in the easiest way...

[Libera]

oh man I love this track ;-;

Nice job making it fit! There parts don't overlap in the easiest way...

Thanks!  Yeah I wasn't really sure if it'd work at all when I started it but I got there in the end.


Haven't done a Xenoblade 2 sheet in a while.

Garfont Mercenaries: [Musx] [Pdf] [Midi] [Mus]

[Latios212]

Thanks for doing this one! It's one of my favorites in Xenoblade 2 - it's got a really nice melody and I really like the use of the E7b9 chord.

Not an easy one with all the parts but this looks overall pretty manageable, I like it

[Libera]

Thanks for doing this one! It's one of my favorites in Xenoblade 2 - it's got a really nice melody and I really like the use of the E7b9 chord.

Not an easy one with all the parts but this looks overall pretty manageable, I like it :)

What a coincidence! :P  Glad you liked it.


Happy Halloween everyone!  Here's something less spooky than what I put in the update, but spooky enough for the occasion.

Serious 8: [Musx] [Pdf] [Midi] [Mus]

I couldn't find a non-extended version but at least this one isn't obnoxiously extended.

[Libera]

It's been a long time since I've arranged anything from Shadows of Valentia, which is one of my favourite soundtracks, so I thought this was a fitting choice for #200.

If you're interested, this makes an average of 4.375 days per sheet since I joined, and exactly 51% of those sheets have been from Fire Emblem.  Maybe expect more SoV stuff in the future, maybe not.

The Heritors of Arcadia: [Musx] [Pdf] [Midi] [Mus]