Away, Ascended

After realising that Away and Ascension begin in the same key (G minor),  I thought I would try my hand at arranging a piece of music that encapsulates PhoenixFlare and their story. I thus created this arrangement with the narrative of FFXVI in mind - which, of course, would not have been possible without Soken’s marvelous material. For my purposes with this reflection on this arrangement, I will already need to highlight some brief terminology for anyone who is not familiar with music theory:

• “Semitone”: the smallest interval used in classical music (“half of a whole tone” e.g. - the interval between F-F♯-G, D-E♭-E, etc). A scale that consists of semitone intervals is called a chromatic scale.
• “Accidental”: a note that is not a member of the scale or mode indicated by the key signature. The flat (♭), natural (♮) and sharp (♯)
• “Octave”: the interval between one note and another with double its frequency (same pitch but 8 notes higher)
• “Harmonic minor scale”: a minor scale in which the 7th tone is raised by a semitone (in this case, G-A-B♭-C-D-E♭-F♯-G). I also refer to this as the “raised 7th” when describing the use of the harmonic minor scale in this piece.
• “Chord”: a group of (typically three or more) notes played together, as a basis of harmony.
• “Arpeggio”: the notes of a chord played in succession, either ascending or descending
• “Ostinato”: A short, repetitive melodic phrase
• “Syncopation”: rhythmic stresses or accents on beats where they wouldn't normally occur (“off-beat” as opposed to “on-beat”) - 1 + 2 + 3 + 4.
• “Staccato”: when notes are sharply detached or separated from others, indicated by a small dot above the note in question (opposite: legato, which is indicated by a long line above a note)
• “Counterpoint”: when two or more melodies are harmonically dependent on each other, but melodically independent
• “Word painting” (this is not terribly relevant but I realised I briefly mention it a couple of times in my reflection lol): When the melody of a song reflects the meaning of the lyrics
• “Dal segno sign”, “Coda” - these provide instructions on where to return to when you repeat something in a piece (the segno) and where you must then jump to to reach the ending (the coda)
• "Call and Answer"/"Call and Response": a succession of two melodies, where the second melody is heard as a direct response to the first. 
• "Tempo": the speed or pace of a given piece. 

Introduction:

Much like Away, my arrangement begins with one of the two ostinatos we come to associate with Joshua. This one makes use of semitone intervals and accidentals, granting it inherent melodic tension - the notes “clash.” I start with this idea as I believe it is a nice contrast to Dion’s ostinato, which I introduce in the 5th bar. There are also semitones in this musical idea - but the difference is that they naturally occur within the scale of G minor, which means there is much less tension. I chose to have Dion’s ostinato climb in octaves, up and up and up. One of the things about Dion’s music is that he gets quite a few “climbing” melodies like this, so I wanted to already introduce that vibe here. To add emphasis and interest, I introduce the FF prelude here as well. The important thing to note here is that Dion and Joshua’s themes are deliberately separated at the start. Not for long! 

Lament of the Firebird:

This is where I really started to think about the story I was trying to tell with this arrangement. I start with Joshua’s “main” melody (“circled in the strife”). Of course, we meet him first, and I wanted to capture the sadness/tragedy of the prologue - and of the Phoenix/Joshua's arc in general. Although he is “alone” here, I arranged his melody with a sense of “fullness” in mind, with chords on every beat of the bar. As much as I wanted to convey tragedy, I also wanted to convey strength and bravery. I place a lot of emphasis on the minor arpeggios underneath the melody (in the bass clef/left hand), which is what gives it its melancholy tone. This is something that is a little difficult to hear in “Away” itself - but, in each bar the root steps down a semitone - starting on G first, then F♯, then F, then E, then E♭. On a somewhat unrelated note - this fits so well with some of the word painting in the lyrics of Away (e.g. "down and down on weary wings borne") as well as the setting in which we first hear the song, of course. This melody also uses a lot of syncopation - by throwing off our rhythmic balance, it creates a sense of flow, motion - and emotion!

I then build up to the climax of Joshua’s melody, climbing up an octave in the process - towards "throw open your wings and fly." I already start to introduce tiny hints of Dion in the bass clef in bars 26 and 28, and I include the FF prelude a couple bars later too - but for the most part, my intention was for Joshua to be the most heavily featured in this first section. I very intentionally do not include the "A-waaay" resolution upfront here though - more on this in a bit. Instead I introduce Dion's "Solace! Temperance! Virtue! Vengeance!" above the Joshua motif that we typically hear “underneath” the “A-waaay” resolution. Something to notice here is that when I introduce this Joshua/Dion combination of melodies, they are layered on top of each other, as opposed to being a call and answer.

Requiem of the Lightdragon:

Dion’s melody also gets introduced alone this section. We once again have quite a melancholy melody. I mostly wanted to capture how it paints a picture of not only his gracefulness, but also his repression/control of his emotions. Unlike Joshua's lament, which has a notable "flow" through its use of syncopation, Dion's melody is very "stiff" and decorated by elements that are almost ornamental in character. I emphasise this in the tempo change, as well as using sharply separated staccato notes. Dion's melody climbs - which, by the way, also happens to fit with the word painting and setting of "Ascension" (e.g. "higher and higher and higher!"). 

Emotions come “pouring out” towards the end of this section, with that absolutely beautiful, haunting chord progression. When heading into the next transitional section, I wanted there to be a sense of Dion’s unraveling - so I hold fast to these chords for a few more bars. Of course the tempo picks up again - I decided to write his chords as staccato for a few bars, followed by this sudden shift to much more flowy/legato vibe when Joshua is reintroduced.  Similar to the first transition, the two musical ideas highlighted here are layered. I wanted to convey that inner conflict at the heart of Dion’s arc, as well as the idea of Joshua coming back into his life when he finds himself in the thick of it. 

Fire in the Sky:

This title says it all, doesn’t it? This section is intended to be representative of the Twinside chapter.  I once again layer their melodies, but this time it’s very tense and agitated, in line with the Phoenix and Bahamut doing battle. And In the first 8 bars of this section, the Phoenix’s “minor arpeggio” ostinato is at the forefront, while I introduce these little rhythmic hints of Bahamut’s “on wings of an angel” melody beneath. I like to think that it is Joshua who is “in control”, so to speak. 

In the second half of the section, I modulate down to D minor (which is something that Soken does in “Away” too). I think this has such an impact, almost “darkening” the feel of the music even more. In this second half, it is Bahamut who takes centre stage with that beautiful baroque-esque melody. I think what makes both of these melodies sound tense is the raised 7th of the harmonic minor scale being emphasised in every second bar (first F♯, when we’re in G minor, then C♯, when we modulate down to D minor). I was so pleasantly surprised when I was scoring the second half, since I was not expecting Dion’s melody to “fit” so well harmonically over Joshua’s - it all comes down to that raised 7th!

Sacrifice of the Saints:

Are you ready to feel sad? This section is a prelude to the ending, and is intended to convey the inherent tragedy of Joshua and Dion as characters. Finally, they are able to truly come together, yet it is on the eve of their shared sacrifice. I use counterpoint/call and answer here, which is in contrast to the previous sections where their melodies were layered neatly, or “fighting” each other. We hear Dion’s “on wings of” melody lead, followed by Joshua’s “a stormhead fills the horizon” a couple of bars later. They converse, they dance, they fall in love - and the FF prelude serves as the connecting element between them, the thread of fate that weaves them together.  But ultimately, we know how this ends - and so when we return to the dal segno sign, it is only Joshua who follows.

Final Flight:

We return once more to “Lament of the Firebird” - but it has a different meaning now. If we circle back to my earlier reflection on this section: it conveys strength and bravery, as much as a deep melancholy. When Joshua’s melody at long last resolves into "A-waaay" in the coda, he enters his “final flight” (which brings new meaning to the idea of "flying away" at the core of his theme.) I still brought in Dion in the return of his ostinato and chords as a support to Joshua in these final moments - but his longer melodies are (intentionally) absent. At the very end, we hear only the FF prelude close the piece - as Joshua, too, sacrifices himself. 

I KNOW IT’S SAD I’M SO SO SO SORRY but their music is really really really melancholy, and I couldn’t help but lean into the angst a little. I know the ending is a little vague/ambiguous on their sacrifices, but what matters here is the intention - they both did what they needed to do, no matter the cost.

Regardless, thank you so much for listening! And for reading this reflection if you did. Unfortunately, I will not be playing this on piano myself lol, it’s my second instrument and this is a rather advanced piece. Maybe one day…