Requiem for the Gods - Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (solo piano cover)
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 1 พ.ค. 2023
- So like I mentioned before, every time I go full lizard brain on something, there is always a teeny tiny piece of sanity remaining that's like, "REMEMBER WHAT LIFE WAS LIKE BEFORE OCTOPATH 2?? REMEMBER YOU WERE WORKING ON ALL THIS OTHER STUFF?!" Lol so here’s one I’ve been picking at since January lol, Requiem of the Gods from SOTN, the theme that plays in the Royal Chapel. Always adored this one as it’s in the same baroque vein as Wood Carving Partita, though whereas Wood Carving is more full on Vivaldi, there is a bit more polyphonic writing in Requiem, which is more reminiscent of Handel and even Pachelbel especially when the organ goes full stop in that last part and intertwines beautifully with the vocal line. Also what makes Requiem interesting is that it’s this anachronistic mishmash of scattered baroque and liturgical compositional elements in ballad form held together by a quasi trap beat LMAO.
We start with a creepy organ intro, sparsely populated with tritones and minor seconds, before launching into a minor four part chorale with all the hallmarks of a typical Handellian cantus firmus, which is then followed up by a repercussive string ostinato interlude, also employed by Handel (ex: Zadok the Priest). Then the vocal melody comes back over it, before launching into a really nice major section that serves as the climax, and in typical Handel fashion of using counterpoint to dramatic end, an extremely interesting countermelody is added in the organ’s lower register. Then it all comes back down the ground when the vocals return with a nice Neapolitan 6th thrown in to close off an epic deceptive cadence that seems to end on a Picardy third only to noodle around until it doesn’t. It’s great, really.
So the challenges I faced in trying to adapt this for solo piano were timbral, mainly-choirs and organ produce this amazingly full, sustained sound that could go on indefinitely, and a piano key dies as soon as it’s struck. But perhaps the biggest issue was that it was baroque era writing in AMERICAN POP SONG FORM. Two repeated verses, a B section (chorus), a transformed repeat of verse A. WHAT DO 😂
Sooooo I did the only thing I could do and threw together my OWN MISHMASH OF CANONICAL AND FUGAL WRITING THAT WOULD NEVER STAND UP WITH ANYONE FAMILIAR WITH FUX’S GRADUS AD PARNASSUM LMAO 😂 but centered around Yamane’s original as best I could. I treated her melody as a fugal subject and began a quasi fugue with the countersubject a fifth apart but that’s as far as it got with proper fugue form lmao and i just embellished the rest referencing figurations from Pachelbel’s Magnificat Fugues (Septimi Toni nos 1, 6 and Primi Toni no. 1), because his two voice contrapuntal writing was simpler due to the type of organ he had at Nuremberg, as opposed to Bach’s incredibly chromatic and dense polyphonic textures. But because I’m a ho for Bach I couldn’t resist slipping in bits from Die Kunst der Fuge (Contrapunctus I) lol and I tried to make the second statement of that organ section more grand, after his Clavier-Uebung III, perhaps one of the greatest organ works ever written (and used on a humble fan cover for one of the greatest PS1 action adventure platformers ever made lmao 😂)
ANYWAYS LMAO it’s a mess that masquerades like baroque but i hope it works! the fact that it was in AABA pop song form was breaking my brain sob
Performance-wise, I had to stick as close to strict tempo as I could, because of the trap beat lmao. I hit the lowest Ds whenever possible!!! LOL! Also because of all the two and three part polyphony, had to treat it like Bach, except way more pedal than I would have liked (FORGIVE ME SOB)
Anyways, Royal Chapel. GOSH i loved that area, just because the layout was so cool, like those super high ceilings, the bell towers, it just made for really neat exploration and combat to have all that vertical space especially with that sentient sword floating around, and once you got the gravity boots that area was just even more fun. And that creepy confessional booth!?? To this day I have no idea what the purpose of that was except maybe for immersion and flavor but it was just such a cool addition, and the music changed, and you got stabbed sometimes, i mean, just one of the many little things that made SOTN a masterpiece.
I have big plans for this OST, I swear! We just gotta ride out this Octopath nonsense first, sorry not sorry lmao. Thanks so much for listening and sticking around everyone!! ❤️ Have a great week!
Castlevania covers: • Castlevania: Symphony ...
Also your regular reminder that @MichiruYamane-eu3ph has a youtube channel and you should all go tell her how much you love her. Check out her piano version of Requiem for the Gods!!! It's so good! • 【神々たちのレクイエム/Requiem fo... - เพลง
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I am a 911 dispatcher and after a long shift, I love to fall asleep to your music. Thank you for calming me.
omg thank YOU so much for your service, I can't imagine the stress you must go through daily!!! I'm glad my stuff is of some help. Thank you again for all you do.
I'm sure Michiru Yamane is proud of this. ❤❤ Amazing. Greetings from México.
AHH thank you so much!! I hope she would be!!! 😭❤️
You know, it's been many years since the release of this video game. I never cease to be surprised that there are people and musicians in the world who keep a good memory of this masterpiece. It's amazing! Your game gives me a good mood and reminds me of the time when I played this game at home, in the dark, with headphones on, trying to figure out where to go next in this old castle... unforgettable! I embrace you, my dear soul))
AHHH!! THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! ❤❤❤❤ and the feeling is mutual, always wonderful when those who remember this amazing game come out of the woodwork, like you!! playing in the dark with headphones on hahahaha, yes sounds about right!!!! Thank you again and I'm so happy you liked it, that means a lot!!
@@purpleschala I love to see your videos. Always LIKE! ))
thank you so much and thank you to Michiru Yamane i love Castlevania so much and all this almost 40 years is for the music for sure.
This is your best arrangement of anything from SotN yet, I think. It really draws out the latent contrapuntal possibilities and goes far beyond a competent transcription. I’d sooner listen to this than the original, actually.
ahh thanks so much, that means a lot!!!!! ❤❤😭😭 it's really nice to know i'm improving with every arrangement!! I try to target and expand the key elements of the style and vibe Yamane is going for in the original themes, and I do feel most at home in classical because that was primarily what I was trained in, and especially baroque since that's one of my favorite eras within classical, so this was very much in my wheelhouse lol. Though I do enjoy dabbling in jazz and jazz adjacent hahaha!!
That's just amazing! And this dialogue between Requiem for the Gods and The Art of Fugue in the polyphonic part is very well written. Brava!
One of the best covers of this piece, and I've heard many. Usually, people try and do too much, but this, for me, was not harsh and very refreshing to listen to. Outstanding job!
No way...this is my favorite track off the SOTN OST. Amazing :)
oh man that's so great to hear, I feel like nobody talks about this one hahaha! Thank you!
Oh how wonderful even after 25 years since the release if the game. Still giving me goosebumps with your wonderful play.
thank you so much!!!!! Love this game and OST, one of my favorites ever!
Oh yeah, another SOTN piece! Beautiful execution, as always. I remember the really long staircase in the Royal Chapel, good times
thank you!!!! hahahaha yeah come to think of it hard to say what my favorite area is (in the right side up castle). they're all so distinct and the unique themes for each one just adds to so much to the atmosphere.
This sound is beautiful and brings back many memories of my childhood.
ahh thank you so much!!
Interpretação maravilhosa, meus parabéns!!
muito obrigada!!!
Thank you thank you thank you. Immediate goosebumps. There are none other like you. ANOTHER masterful interpretation. 👏. "You seem human and yet, what do you here?"
AHHHH THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!!n❤❤❤ "I've come to destroy this castle"
And i listen yours musics from my fones when pedaling 40km climbing the mountains
oh that sounds like a great workout wow!!! ahaha
@@purpleschala in truth your playlist of Castlevania, when I do that
Beautiful and full of emotion.. such a splendid arrangement.. this makes me feel nostalgic as well
thank you!! I'm glad you liked it, one of my fave tracks from the game, though the entire OST is just so good!
I have just discovered this channel and I am loving listening to those masterpieces being played by this woman. I have always loved Castlevania games as well as its soundtracks. I wonder that this is just a game with horrible monsters, but with so great and emotional songs!
thank you so much, that means a lot!!!! I feel the same, it's one of my favorite franchises of all time, especially SOTN, and the music is always so consistently top notch!
The beginning is so haunting i love it ❤❤
thank you!! i love that intro too
My favorite game track and finally someone nails it on the piano. This is crazy awesome.
Listening to this while it's crazy windy outside is definitely an experience haha. Amazing arrangement as usual!!
LMAO!!!! thanks stefan!!!!
Nice! Loved the arrangement, and your breakdown of the piece in the video description was equally awesome - you have so much musical knowledge... most of it was way over my head. PS still waiting for sheet music for Marble Gallery!
ahaha thanks so much Josh, that means a lot you liked it!!! thanks for reading that totally long pointless ramble omg I'm a counterpoint nerd lol most of it is useless knowledge anyways haha. gahhh i'm so behind on sheets
absolutely fantastic
Thank you!!!
wonderful
Thank you! Cheers!
Honestly, one of my favorite SOTN pieces, really encapsulates that western gothic feel to a T. A lot of the music for that series is pretty good at that ^_^.
YES IT DOES!!! 😍😍😍 and I'm glad it's one of your faves, i feel it's so underappreciated and I'm glad to be proven wrong every time someone says it's one of their faves. There's quite a bit of classical baroque that Yamane plays up in this OST and I just absolutely LOVE THAT 😀
Chilling. Love it as always!
thank you so much!!!!!!
It's amazing! I was playing Castlevania sotn when young, the word that describes this is SAUDADE(Portuguese word).
awww thank you so much!!! ❤️❤️❤️❤️ SOTN holds a very special place in my heart too, and I only know the word from the Jobim song Chega de Saudade which I think translates to No More Blues? Does it mean sadness?
@@purpleschala read your comment now. I'm gamer, ciclist for MTB, tenor( I love sing), play futebol, and pharmacist in other's hours😁💪. Show my activities on my channel on yt too. Love your play, so brilliant!!!!
@@purpleschala saudade translate for some how miss something or someone from the past. I speaker Portuguese 😬.
Love it! Gives me goosebumps. 👍
omg thank you so much!!!!!
This is so BEAUTIFUL😢❤
THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!
This brings me so much peace. Such a beautiful arrangement
thank you so much!!!
such a beautiful arrangement!!thanks for sharing!!
thank you so much for listening! I'm so glad you like it!
Such a beautiful arrangement and such gorgeous playing. You can hear Bach everywhere.
ahh thank you so much!!!! for once I'm glad Bach's not around to hear how I bastardized Die Kunst der Fuge lmao
@@purpleschala oh I’m sure he’d adore it. You’re a wonderful pianist, I’m a huge fan!
@@ArdaRen ahh that means so much, thank you!
@@purpleschala Haha, no wonder some bits sounded familiar! Contrapunctus I right? (I've played that for an exam, one or two lifetimes ago hahaha)
SOTN!!!! I love this. You do such amazing work. Great job! Makes me want to replay it.
JOSE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I KNEW IT WAS YOU FROM THE CATS IN YOUR PFP LMAOOOOOO THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!! MISS YOU GUYS!!!!
Thank you very much! 🙏❤️✨
thank you Jin!!!!!!!
@@purpleschala No, thank YOU!!! 🙏😊✨
Glorious SOTN. Love this rendition 😊
you always know what's up ❤❤❤
I've been waiting all day to listen to this. Done sitting with my grandson came straight to the Sony and away I went. Another beautiful piece of musical genius. Swear I love a piano when it's played right. Great job. So much practice pays dividends in the long run. I watch a couple of other players on TH-cam but they haven't reached your level of talent yet. They're getting it, though. But man, every time you put up a video, it's flawless. Thanks again for the 4 minutes beats a short any day. Although I'll take a short anytime for sure.
aww Thomas!!! that makes my whole day to hear that thank you so much for always being so kind and encouraging!!!! love that you're a grandfather as well, what a blessing ❤
Parabéns pela belíssima interpretação da minha música favorita em Castlevania SOTN! Um abraço do Brasil. 😊🇧🇷
muito obrigada!!!! ❤
This is a beautiful sweet piano piece
thank you so much!
Wow! This is so amazing! Thank you for sharing such a wonderful cover ❤ I love how you arranged this for piano. Thank you for always inspiring me!
aw thank you so much Will! you're such a sweetheart!
love hearing castlevania on this channel since it is always a good time and so well played!
aw thank you so much!!! I love the games and the music, just a fantastic series. Doing my best to do it justice lol
@@purpleschala it is much appreciated!
Sou do Brasil e gosto muito dessas melodia.. traz um az de paz..
thank you so much! ❤❤ I have noticed there are a lot of Castlevania fans in South America and Central America!!!! one day I will have to visit your beautiful country!
This feels like your capstone sotn cover. So awesome. You played this like you have 3 hands wow
ahhh thank you so much!!!!!! ❤️ honestly i had no idea people would like this one so much, but that makes me happy to hear!!
Wow! Great cover, very well achieved!!
thank you, glad you enjoyed it!
this is the best version ive listened, awesome.
thank you so much, that means a lot!!!
I'll definitely learn this arrangement. This is by far my favorite track on SOTN, such a cool voice-leading. Much love from Brazil sz (and I loved reading the description, soo much detailllll)
THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!! glad to see people who love this track, it's not one of the popular ones!!! and thank you for reading the very long description hahaha
Maria play the piano perfectly talented!
HOW DOES THIS WORK AS WELL AS IT DOES? 🤣 I see what you're saying though - I could totally see a super-Bach (what, it's a word!) arrangement for this, and honestly I think that would be pretty cool. Perhaps even an arrangement for harpsichord? 🤔
I'm impressed you were able to get all of the layers into this one - this is not a song that was made for a piano arrangement. Kudos!
Also yes, you are right - the Ruler Sword in the cathedral with all of the spectral swords surrounding it was amazing! I also thought the Snipers of Goth were pretty cool (come on, it's such a cool name!) - four armed winged angelic archers.
Sigh. I loved the scale and dynamics of the sprites in SOTN - they were just so pretty. This is a classic game that I play regularly. It's just so well done and the soundtrack is sublime.
An awesome track and a very fascinating write-up, thank you!!
ahahaha thank you for reading that mess omg and listening!!! I appreciate it so much ❤️❤️❤️
@@purpleschala It's my pleasure, literally!
Wow, god tier counterpoint writing here! I'm mind-blown once again by your arranging skills 🥲
AHAHAHAHA OHHHHH it's very fake counterpoint writing like i'm breaking so many voice leading rules in order to hew as close to the original as possible any baroque scholar would be like WTF IS THIS 😂😂😂 but thank you!!!
Amazing! this makes me wanna play the game again lol. Just finished playing SOTN yesterday, welp time to play it again as Richter.
AHHH THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!! oh man I've never done a Richter or Maria run in SOTN, been meaning to for ages lol
your castlevania stuff is so good. A fugue style song in AABA form is exactly what I needed to hear this morning.
HAHAHA!!! Thank you so much shirayasha!!!!❤❤❤❤❤
Excellent game with an immortal soundtrack. And what a wonderful performance! Thank you for sharing! (Notif squad ^_^)
ahhh thank you so much!!!!!!! ❤❤ thanks for being on top of the notifications hahaha!!!
One of the best arragements i've ever heardd!! Michiru would be so proudd omgg, please play dance of goldd cX you're amazingg
ahhh thank you so much, I hope she would be!!! And I am working on dance of gold!!!!!!!
Amazing and beautiful as always, would love you to do a live concert in person!
thank you!! maybe one day!!!!
DAAANG re: that drop at 50ish seconds. I wasn't sure that a piano-only cover of this song could sound to me as melancholic yet tense as Yamane's original, but you really nailed its atmosphere.
omg thank you so much!!!!! that means a lot, since the organ and choir sounds are literally everything in this one!
🙏🏾God bless you Purple Schala for, you possess blessid hand that strike legit notes of pure Divinity ~ 😌🤌🏾🎵🎶
It's like the finest silk upon my ears I Love it ~
Saw your collab with PitTan and loved your part of it. Nice to see you have a back catalog to explore here, hurrah.
Anyway, love this tune and I like your spin on it.
aww thanks so much!!! love that PitTan's got SOTN fans yay!!!! 😀
@@purpleschala I do a cover of Wandering Ghosts with its jazzy guitar. So many classics on that OST!
Brahh learning this on the organ rn, this song super underrated
OH NO WAY THAT'S AWESOME!!
My second favorite Castlevania Sotn song)
And first one that I myself learned on Piano)
Glad to hear version of this song from an Actual professional pianist, and not amature like me XD
Question though, why you didn't tried to play Organ notes at the beginning as an Octave tremolo?
Wow, you like "what was life before Octopath Traveler 2??!!" and your taste in this and wood carving partita - are we the same person? 😂
I also loved this one from the beginning, thank you for feeding my dramatic soul. Greetings from Austria again 👋
If sotn ever gets a remaster or anything Konami seriously needs to hire you to do the ost!! Your sotn covers are always so much better than the original versions 🔥
oh gosh you're too kind Isaiah!! Without the originals I would be nothing though lmao, thank you!!!!!!
My high school art teacher let students play music in his class as long as there were no drums. I asked him if I could play the SOTN OST one day, he told me to pick one song, and so I chose "Requiem for the Gods". He proceeded to play it on repeat for the entirety of the class... much to everyone's dismay. I, on the other hand, couldn't have been happier.
Thank you for this fantastic cover and for evoking such a joyful memory.
EDIT: He broke his one rule for me which made it extra special. Forgot to add that part.
omg that's an AWESOME story and your art teacher was the GOAT for it lol. Thanks so much for sharing!!!!! ❤️❤️
I was wondering if anyone did this song. I am happy to subscribe.
This was the scariest part of the castle for me as a kid.
aww thank you so much, i appreciate it!!!!! ❤❤❤yes this one isn't covered very often, probably because the compositional style is so specific it can be tough to figure out how to expand it. It def presented a lot of challenges for me in that regard. Royal Chapel was indeed really creepy haha esp that confessional chamber! Scariest part for me though had to be Abandoned Pit to the Catacombs. Just going further and further south was so unsettling like what the heck else is down here hahaha
@@purpleschala The Abandoned Pit song was a change of pace and was very striking. It did feel like a descent to hell. I remember feeling lonely.
At the top of the Royal Chapel, the background art of the winged skeletons attacking people had me shook.
Aaaah Schala, I LOVE this rendition. Honestly I like it so much more than the original. I feel like it was made for a solo piano and, more importantly, for your hands to play them!!! SO GOOD! I'm so happy you're always here, posting amazing music on TH-cam. I Also love reading your commentary while listening as it helps get into your head; especially on your arrangements!
Also, just compared Yamane-san's rendition versus yours and, for what it's worth, I honestly prefer your approach to this piece. What can I say; I'm a devoted Schala fan! Haha. ♥
OMG MASAEL SO GOOD TO HEAR FROM YOU AS ALWAYS!!!! ❤️❤️❤️ I'm so glad you liked my version, tbh i wasn't sure what people would think lmao. thank you for listening and commenting, and I hope everything has been good with you! hahaha Yamane-san's version is so INTERESTING to me in that it's just so off the cuff and you can hear her process, like she goes in many different directions but all of it very natural and none of it contrived! It's really so fascinating to catch a glimpse into her brain, as it were! lol!!!
@@purpleschala I love listening to composer's renditions of their own performances because, as you said, it gives us a glimpse into their brain. Rachmaninov's recording of his 2nd piano concerto is so interesting to hear. You definitely have a better ear for piano than I do (violin guy myself, lol) so I'm sure I'm missing things in Yamane-san's rendition. I'm lucky to live in a world where BOTH exist! :D
Always great to see and hear you playing as well. Thank you for constantly being a staple of my TH-cam music listening. I feel like I need to play the Octopath 2 just so I can more properly enjoy your Octopath 2 music that you've released recently!!!
more sotn ost yay.
next one is gonna be crystal teardrops i can feel it
I WISH!!!!!!!! 😂😂😂 that one's gonna take me a while...i know what I want to do with it, but i gotta make sure to do it justice hahaha
@@purpleschala I'm glad you feel this way. I LOVE that track. I remember in some description you wrote about it being next/coming. I know how much you wanna do good by that piece.
I was dreaming it'll come last Halloween, so I'll keep dreaming about it this Halloween too, don't mind me lmao.
Hope you're having a fantastic day btw schala and genuinely thanks for all the music. I had a period were I was working 12h+ a day, and I would listen to you playing for hours daily . It soothed me.
the best game, Michiru Yamane would be proud
i wish so much to hear "Dance of gold" from your golden fingers
@@Aldrannt THANK YOU SO MUCH!! And i am working on that one, don't worry!!!!!! =)
@@purpleschalaomG i'll be trying to wait fast, sleeping a lot (joke)
Alahcs , thank you so much
OMG HEY YOU!!!! how's it been?
@@purpleschala bit shattered but alive hope you’re well love
2:45
J.S.Bach - Art of fugue 🫡💙👏🏼🌸🌸🌸
YES!!!
@@purpleschala playing is like a hidden tribute to the king of music J.S.Bach 🥲.
For the past 2 weeks i am mastering coutra punctus IX
💛
Imagine if this arrangement was played in the inverted castle, at the Anti-Chapel, with a darker environment and enemies emerging from the shadows...
OHHHHHHH I WOULD HAVE LOVED DARKER REMIXES OF THE OG THEMES IN THE INVERTED CASTLE!!!!!! 😭❤️ no shade on lost paintings but man just wasn’t enough variety in the music at that point
😍
Love the emotion you put in your playing, just wondering what type of piano you play?
thanks! Steinway B
Octopath nonsense is the best kind of nonsense! And this is just so great with all the explanations! Kinda like what 8-bit music theory might do.
HAHAHAHA THAT'S WHAT I SAY!!! LOL! and thank you omg i don't explain things NEARLY as well as he does though, his videos are so great
Bathing in the sound like a vampire in moonlight ⎛⎝( ` ᢍ ´ )⎠⎞ᵐᵘʰᵃʰᵃ
LMAO!!!
What a wonderful adaptation! Can I ask for a score? 🙏
thank you!!! coming soon, working on it!
@@purpleschalaThank you very much!
Is there anyway for me to obtain your snowflakes cover sheet music? I could not find it on sale anywhere
Hi sorry no sheets for that one!! I can’t recall but I either improvised it all or played someone else’s sheets, it’s been so long I don’t remember, sorry
@@purpleschala that’s okay thank you
I look to my side, but no have a spike ball in stairs…. Tanks vg Chopin
Growing up i have always disliked this song. Its was just hauntingly beautiful and it’s scary for me. I feel like a ghost is gonna pop up from somewhere
Can I buy your sheets?
yes! this one isn't up on musicnotes yet, but I'm working on it! Very backlogged hahaha
... but can you play, My Little Pony?
Ohhh. Love it.*gets hit by Medusa head* I like the voicing and structure of this arrangement. Bachy. Which makes me think of spinal tap. "A mix of Bach and Mozart. Machy if you will."
LMAOOOOOOOOOOOOO OMG SPINAL TAP THE BEST AHAHAHAHAHAHA it's like 10, but 11 lolololol
@@purpleschala sex farm. The song is about two very sophisticated topics.
@@hanshead we're not about to do a...free form jazz, uh, exploration, in front of a festival crowd
Lovely as always but... the chorus voices fill the song way too much xD i mean in the original music.
thank you!! ahaha i bet in the live version with real humans singing, it sounds fantastic though!