SYMPHONIC SUITE "DRAGON QUEST III"

Dragon Quest was a series that had a profound effect on my childhood. It got me interested in reading, and writing and classical music. I was not until I entered college that I discovered that they had produced the Dragon Quest soundtracks on cd. At the time I managed only to find the first soundtrack but now I have collected all the orchestral arrangements. The soundtrack for Dragon Quest III is a perfect example of how videogame music should be orchestrated. From it's timeless overture, majestic castle theme "Rondo", and the bombastic overworld theme entitled "Adventure" draw the listener in to a large and vast world of adventure. While at the same time the quieter pieces "Requiem~Small shrine", "Distant memories", and "heavenly flight" bring home a more personal and quieter sound that many modern videogame soundtracks have seemingly forgotten about or glossed over. The finale entitled, "Into the Legend.." beautifully mixes many of the games themes into a moving symphonic piece, that in my opinion is to short to fully bring closure to the emotions the music envokes in the listener. But even though the finale is short, it is beautiful.