Aria di Mezzo Carattere
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"Aria di Mezzo Carattere" (translates to Air of Half Character from Italian), or simply "Aria" (アリア?) in its original Japanese, is an aria from the opera The Dream Oath: Maria and Draco, written by veteran Final Fantasy video game music composer Nobuo Uematsu for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System game Final Fantasy VI (originally released for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in North America under the title Final Fantasy III). The Dream Oath is the only opera to be created and composed for a video-game. The opera is mostly in the game for one's enjoyment but also features a small game element. Three times during the opera the player must choose the correct line for Celes to sing; failing to do so will result in the player being ejected from the opera house and being forced to attempt the sequence again. Celes Chere must take this role to help the party get an airship from Setzer Gabbiani.
In the original Japanese version of the game, the music is closely aligned with the lyrics, co-written by Uematsu and scenario writer/game director Yoshinori Kitase, although because of technical limitations, no voice is heard, except for an attempt at recreating a voice on the SPC700 sound format. On the album Final Fantasy VI Grand Finale there is a live version of the opera performed by the Milan Symphony Orchestra with vocals by mezzo-soprano Svetla Krasteva in Italian. The singing part of Maria is a Mezzo-Soprano, the singing part of Draco is a Tenor and the singing part of Ralse is a Baritone when performed with vocals. This song is also found in the second full motion video included in Final Fantasy VI as part of Final Fantasy Anthology and Final Fantasy VI for the PlayStation in Europe and Australia with the same lyrics but a different musical arrangement. The lyrics for this version of the song are also found below.
A longer arrangement with Japanese vocals (including a true ending to the opera) can be found on the track "Opera - The Dream Oath" in the ultra-rare CD, Orchestral Game Concert 4 which was released only in Japan and consists of an orchestra playing arranged versions of video games music. Although the opera actually has an ending in this arrangement, "Grand Finale?", the theme used during the fight with Ultros, is also included. The music was arranged and conducted by Kousuke Onozaki and performed by the Tokyo City Philharmonic Orchestra featuring Wakako Aokimi (mezzo-soprano), Tetsuya Oono (tenor) and Hiroshi Kuroda (baritone).
Another shorter arrangement of "The Dream Oath", titled "Opera 'Maria and Draco'" was also performed during the Tour de JAPON music from FINAL FANTASY orchestral concert tour, using Japanese vocals and the arrangement was done by Shiro Hamaguchi. The same arrangement appears in More Friends music from FINAL FANTASY ~Final Fantasy Orchestra Concert in Los Angeles 2005~, performed in English at the Gibson Amphitheater in Los Angeles by the World Festival Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Mannheim Steamroller violin player and conductor Arnie Roth featuring Stephanie Woodling (mezzo-soprano), Chad Berlinghieri (tenor) and Todd Robinson (baritone). Many of the original English translated lyrics were rewritten to sound more fluent. The same arrangement was also performed at the VOICES music from FINAL FANTASY concert held at the Pacifico Yokohama on February 18, 2006, with the lyrics again sung in Japanese with Arnie Roth conducting the Prima Vista Philharmonic Orchestra featuring Etsuyo Ota (mezzo-soprano), Tomoaki Watanabe (tenor) and Tetsuya Odagawa (baritone).
A unique version of this song is also played during the ending full motion video of the game's PlayStation remake; this is a "humming" version.
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[edit] Japanese Romaji lyrics with English translation
Impresario
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Impresario
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Draco
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Draco
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Impresario
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Impresario
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Maria
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Maria
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Draco
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Draco
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Draco
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Draco
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Maria
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Maria
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Chancellor
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Chancellor
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Messenger
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Messenger
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Ralse
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Ralse
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Soldiers
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Soldiers
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Draco
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Draco
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Draco
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Draco
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Maria
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Maria
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Ralse
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Ralse
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Draco
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Draco
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Ralse
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Ralse
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[edit] Italian lyrics with English translation
| Italian Amor mio, caro bene Nei momenti di tristezza Un legame senza speme Ti ringrazio, caro bene Dolcemente, con amore |
English My love, dear one In times of sadness Why must I have I thank you, dear one Sweetly, with love |
[edit] See also
- Final Fantasy
- Final Fantasy VI
- Final Fantasy VI Grand Finale
- Nobuo Uematsu
- Orchestral Game Concert 4
[edit] References
- "The Opera, including Aria di Mezzo Carattere (from FFVI)". The Opera House. Accessed on January 3, 2005.
- "Final Fantasy VI - Aria Di Mezzo Carattere :: Lyrics". Square Enix Music Online. Accessed on May 9, 2006.
[edit] External links
- "Aria Di Mezzo Carattere" at MusicBrainz
- "Aria Di Mezzo Carattere (Arranged & Remixed Version) (FFVI)" at MusicBrainz
- "Aria Di Mezzo Carattere (Remix) (FF6 Grand Finale)" at MusicBrainz
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