Nobuo Uematsu Reflects on the Origins and Creative Shift of Final Fantasy IX’s Soundtrack
- ⚡Xe⚡
- 1 minute ago
- 3 min read
Continuing Weekly Famitsu’s Final Fantasy IX 25th anniversary retrospective, the third interview focuses on composer Nobuo Uematsu. The discussion covers Final Fantasy IX’s musical direction, the circumstances around its overseas development, and the long-term impact of “Melodies of Life” on the series.
Final Fantasy IX’s development in Hawaii was not the result of careful long-term planning. According to Uematsu, the decision reflected Squaresoft’s bold and sometimes unstructured mindset at the time. The move was made quickly, without a clear roadmap, but it allowed American animators to join the project. Uematsu himself spent about a year in Honolulu, working mostly in isolation under the same intense schedule he had in Japan.
Outside of work, he briefly enjoyed the location early on. He earned a scuba diving license and ran the Honolulu Marathon at around 40 years old. He expected the workload to increase later, and that proved true when, about a month after arriving in Hawaii, the game’s story and characters changed significantly. Since Final Fantasy IX’s music and story were developed at the same time, this led to major revisions to the soundtrack.
Musically, Final Fantasy IX was meant to be a clear shift away from the more electronic style of recent entries. To prepare, Uematsu traveled through Europe to visit medieval castles and take in the atmosphere firsthand, paying for the trip himself. The goal was to base the soundtrack on early music influences without letting the idea become too limiting.
“With ‘A Place to Call Home,’ I felt like we were able to decide the world of Final Fantasy IX.”
A vocal theme was planned from the start of development, building on the reaction to “Eyes On Me.” Uematsu strongly believed that the lyrics should be written by someone closely involved with the game, which led director Hiroyuki Ito to write “Melodies of Life.” One line, which directly states that life continues even after death, stood out to Uematsu because of its straightforward meaning rather than symbolism.
“There’s a line in the lyrics that says, ‘As long as you are alive, Even if I die, Life will endure’ When I read that, I remember thinking, ‘So this is the kind of thing Ito thinks about.’”
That line was originally meant to open the song, but vocalist Emiko Shiratori felt it did not work well as an introduction. The structure was changed, and the line was moved to the ending instead. Uematsu noted that this kept the meaning intact while improving the overall feel of the song.
“He never does anything without meaning. Every detail has purpose.”
“Melodies of Life” was written early and carefully woven throughout Final Fantasy IX in many different arrangements. This helped give the soundtrack a strong sense of unity and influenced how later Final Fantasy games handled vocal themes.
“If I had stuck strictly to early music, I probably couldn’t have written something like ‘Melodies of Life.’”
As Final Fantasy IX neared completion, Final Fantasy X and Final Fantasy XI entered development at the same time. Realizing the limits of working alone, Uematsu asked for a three-composer system for Final Fantasy X.
Looking back on the soundtrack, Uematsu named “Roses of May,” Beatrix’s theme, as his favorite track. He also mentioned “The Final Battle,” which includes eerie vocal sounds recorded late at night by synthesizer programmer Keiji Kawamori using his own voice.
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About FINAL FANTASY IX
FINAL FANTASY IX tells a grand story of love, war and betrayal in a world of incredible magic and larger-than-life characters. Zidane and the Tantalus Theater Troupe have kidnapped Princess Garnet, the heir of Alexandria, but to their surprise, the princess herself yearned to escape the castle and see the world for herself. Together, they explore the world and encounter new friends and enemies to embark on an adventure unlike any other.
FINAL FANTASY IX is available on App Store, Google Play, STEAM, Playstation, Nintendo Switch, Xbox, and Windows..