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Album Information Reviewer Rank
Dragon Quest III: Into the Legend... Symphonic Suite
Published by: Sony Records
Release Date: December 12th 1996

Composed by: Koichi Sugiyama
Arranged by: Koichi Sugiyama

1 Disc, 14 Tracks
Catalog: SRCL-3563
100

Reviewed by: Ersatz Sobriquet

Vivaldi, Mozart, Bach. These names might wander into your psyche while listening to the very classical pieces found on this album. Koichi Sugiyama makes all his music in the style of these famed composures, while adding very little influences from elsewhere. Very little.

Roto is a very recognizable piece to anyone who's ever played anything Dragon Quest related. This is the intro piece, done very shortly, 1:40, and very well I might add. Certainly a fine way to introduce this album.

Around The World is also an excellent piece that has some tender parts of the town theme and other elements unbeknownst to me, since I never played DQ III. It's a very enjoyable sound nonetheless, with a heavy brass section where needed, with a violin section in the background simply to fill up the empty space between melodies.

Sailing sounds just like a sailing song. The movement of the waves, the salty sea air, everything in this song reminds you of classical pieces related to sailing. A very enjoyable piece as well, with some sections of the song reminding me of other classical pieces that can be found in Vivaldi's Spring song. Anything that reminds me of Vivaldi is alright for me.

Grueling Fight is probably one of the most dramatic fight songs I've heard in for a long time. While I'm used to the upbeat playing of Uematsu's fight songs, I was a bit unprepared for the seriousness and urgency of Sugiyama's take on a fight. Nothing enjoyable at all, the warriors wishing it were over as they struggle to be the one to come out victorious. The brass section is nothing short of spectacular and the violins remain fierce without being the focal point.

Into The Legend remains to be one of my favorites off this album, what with the strong opening brass section. Very lively in all its passion before dropping to let the string ensemble move the rhythm some. The flare presented on this song is great, because it's so moving the whole while, never boring you.

Adventure spurs on feelings a brave warrior would have while embarking on his, well, his adventure. The classical drum is a nice touch, and I'm glad it remained classical in its nature. Very upbeat song without alienating the type of classical music you'd expect from Koichi Sugiyama.

I really cannot find any fault whatsoever with any of the tracks on this album. None are so brash as to make the others seem inferior, and none are too soft as to make you upset at the harsher bits. I encourage all to at least listen to this once, especially if you love classical music, the likes that I mentioned at the outset. You won't be disappointed.

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