I've always been intimidated by the idea of writing battle themes. They are just very different from my usual sentimental piano or jazz pieces. I decided that it's time to tackle my fear head on and compose one.

Inspired by music from the Final Fantasy series, Octopath Traveler, and various other JRPGs. 

I'm planning to compose several more battle themes to hone my skills and get faster at making them. This one required trial and error since it was a first attempt. I had to consider looping, structuring the music so that it wouldn't get too boring after repeated listens, balancing many active instrumental lines, and much more. I learned a lot and am excited to compose the next one.

Battle Theme 1

To me, this piece is about life after experiencing tragedy. Your pain might be quiet for a time, one that you try to keep muted and invisible. But as time passes, you finally confront your emotions. They overflow and you can't control the outpour. Soon you are drained, no tears left to shed. Maybe after that you can start to live again.

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And just for fun, here is my music theory analysis. :)

The first section starts in F Phrygian and quickly moves to F Dorian and then F Aeolian, all over a root pedal tone. Then, using the same F pedal, it transitions into C harmonic minor, where the section reaches an authentic cadence. This first section is written in four-part counterpoint, and the melody regularly passes between voices.

The next section is more pianistic, switching to a homophonic texture with lush harmonies and a singing right hand melody. It begins in G# minor, but the tonality become increasingly ambiguous starting with an E#11 chord. Then the harmony spirals into murky territory, moving through interesting colors such as G Lydian dominant. The phrase settles into a half-cadence on C# major.

The following phrase begins with a fake out. The previous chord suggests a new tonic of F# minor, but the phrase instead begins with a destabilizing B fully diminished 7th chord. Although the harmony briefly moves through an F# minor chord, the resolution is weakened by the fact that the chord is inverted and only occurs in passing. The progression moves to a G Lydian dominant sonority, similar to what happened in the previous section. However, it now moves to a different target chord, landing on a Cb9 half cadence.

That chord sets up for a return to the piece’s starting root of F. The final phrase features a simple descending bassline in F minor, ending on yet another C half cadence to cement the tonality and prepare for a loop to the beginning of the piece.

To Those Who Yet Live

"He found himself suspended in the expanse between dreaming and wakefulness, vivid images washing over his mind. When he finally awoke, all that remained was a lingering vision."

Made with EWQL Hollywood Strings.

A Lingering Vision

Edit: By popular request, this track is now on Spotify! 
https://open.spotify.com/album/5xZoIVzis1iCbTDHMxCsbL

My final project for Intro to Digital Audio class this semester.

I'm working hard to get better at mixing and would love to get some constructive criticism!

Midnight Sizzle

Feeling creative, so I recorded some piano improvisation. Pleased with how it turned out!

Improvisation on a rainy day

Gerudo Valley Remix WIP

This piece was my submission for round two of the Newgrounds Audio Deathmatch 2012. I originally planned on it being twice the length, but time didn't allow for that. I scrambled up until the very last minute to finish this. It's rough, but I really put a lot of effort into this. A little about the music:

This piece depicts the world as I viewed it when I was a child . Everything was larger than life and adventurous, magical and intriguing. Evey day was a chance to discover something new. I tried to capture the feelings of curiosity, joy, and to an extent, anxiety that came with childhood.

I would like to scrap the ending and really finish this piece. It was a joy to work on so far and I'd like to clean it up when this contest is over.

Trevor Crookston

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