Nobuo Uematsu
A picture of Nobuo Uematsu as seen from the Final Fantasy V OST liner notes December 7, 1992.
Background information
Born	March 21, 1959 (1959-03-21) (age 48) Kōchi, Kōchi Prefecture, Japan
Genre(s)	Orchestral, New Age, Electronic, Rock, Symphonic Rock, Neo-classical metal
Occupation(s)	Composer, musician
Instrument(s)	Keyboard, Organ, Piano, Violin
Years active	1985-present
Label(s)	NTT Publishing, DigiCube, Square Enix, Universal Music
Associated acts	The Black Mages

Nobuo Uematsu (植松 伸夫, Uematsu Nobuo^?, born March 21, 1959) is a Japanese composer of video game music, and one of the most well-known, prolific, and versatile in the field. He has composed music for many games produced by Square Co., Ltd./Square Enix Co., Ltd., including much of the Final Fantasy series of role playing games, and some pieces for Chrono Trigger. This work is copyrighted. ... Final Fantasy V ) is a console role-playing game developed and published by Square Co. ... OST can have more than one meaning: Office Supply Technology Established in 1987, OST Group, Inc. ... December 7 is the 341st day (342nd in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday. ... March 21 is the 80th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (81st in leap years). ... Year 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Japan. ... Obiyamachi in downtown Kochi Kōchi (高知市 Kōchi-shi) is the capital city of Kochi Prefecture on the Shikoku island of Japan. ... Kōchi Prefecture ) is located on the south coast of Shikoku, Japan. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Orchestra at City Hall (Edmonton). ... New Age music, is a vaguely defined style of music that is generally quite melodic and often primarily instrumental. ... Electronic music is a term for music created using electronic devices. ... For other uses, see Rock music (disambiguation). ... Symphonic rock is a subgenre of rock music. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... A composer is a person who writes music. ... A musician is a person who plays or composes music Musicians can be classified by their role in creating or performing music: A singer (or vocalist) uses his or her voice as an instrument. ... A musical instrument is a device constructed or modified with the purpose of making music. ... An electronic keyboard is a keyboard instrument which uses electricity to produce or amplify its sound. ... Organ in Katharinenkirche, Frankfurt am Main, Germany The organ is a keyboard instrument played using one or more manuals and a pedalboard. ... A short grand piano, with the top up. ... The violin is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. ... This does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... NTT Publishing Co. ... DigiCube Co. ... SQUARE ENIX (Japanese: スクウェア・エニックス) is a Japanese producer of popular video games and manga. ... Universal Music Group (UMG) is the largest major label in the record industry, with a 23% market share. ... For their eponymous first album, see The Black Mages (album). ... March 21 is the 80th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (81st in leap years). ... Year 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A composer is a person who writes music. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Square Co. ... SQUARE ENIX (Japanese: スクウェア・エニックス) is a Japanese producer of popular video games and manga. ... For the first installment in the series, see Final Fantasy (video game). ... Computer role-playing games (CRPGs), often shortened to simply role-playing games (RPGs), are a type of video or computer game that traditionally use gameplay elements found in paper-and-pencil role-playing games. ... Chrono Trigger ) is a console role-playing game developed and published by Square Co. ...

Biography

Born in Kochi City, Kochi prefecture, Japan, Uematsu began to play the piano when he was twelve years old (his greatest role model early in life was Elton John) and is a self-taught musician. After graduating from Kanagawa University (his major was not a music degree), he composed music for commercials before joining Square Co., Ltd. (now Square Enix Co., Ltd.) in 1986. He went on to compose music for over thirty game titles, including the award-winning Final Fantasy series. In October of 2004, Uematsu formed Smile Please Co., Ltd. and continues to compose for Square Enix along with several other companies. Kōchi (高知市 Kōchi-shi) is the capital city of Kochi on the Shikoku island of Japan. ... Kōchi Prefecture ) is located on the south coast of Shikoku, Japan. ... A short grand piano, with the top up. ... This article is about a person who sets examples for others. ... Sir Elton Hercules[1] John CBE [2] (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight on 25 March 1947) is a multiple Grammy and Academy Award-winning English pop/rock singer, composer and pianist. ... Square Co. ... SQUARE ENIX (Japanese: スクウェア・エニックス) is a Japanese producer of popular video games and manga. ... 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... For the first installment in the series, see Final Fantasy (video game). ... Look up October in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Smile Please Co. ...

Uematsu has written a column, "Nobuo Uematsu no Minna Sounano?", for popular Japanese gaming magazine Weekly Famitsu for several years. Two compilations of the columns have been released. Additionally, Uematsu signed to finish the Chrono Trigger soundtrack after his friend, Yasunori Mitsuda, contracted stomach ulcers ([1]). Cover art for Issue 1 of Famitsu magazine, June 1986, then known as Famicom Tsūshin Famitsū abbreviated ファミ Fami) is a Japanese video game magazine published by Enterbrain, Inc. ... Chrono Trigger ) is a console role-playing game developed and published by Square Co. ... Yasunori Mitsuda (光田 康典 Mitsuda Yasunori, born January 21, 1972) is a Japanese composer, sound programmer and musician best known for his work in video game music, specifically Xenogears, Xenosaga Episode I: Der Wille zur Macht, Mario Party and Chrono Trigger. ...

Uematsu currently lives in Japan with his wife, Reiko and his dog, Pao.

While he is best known for his work in video games, Uematsu's work spans a wide-range of outlets. Some of those works include composing the theme song for the anime film Ah! My Goddess The Movie and writing music for top Japanese vocalists such as Emiko Shiratori and Rikki. The main cast of the anime Cowboy Bebop (1998) (L to R: Spike Spiegel, Jet Black, Ed Tivrusky, Faye Valentine, and Ein the dog) For the oleo-resin, see Animé (oleo-resin). ... Oh! My Goddess: The Movie In 2000, the Oh! My Goddess: The Movie (Japanese: AA! Megami Sama: The Movie) featuring the characters Keichii, Belldandy, Celestine and Peorth, among others, was produced by AIC. It was distributed in the US by Geneon Entertainment in 2001. ... Emiko Shiratori (白鳥 英美子 Shiratori Emiko) is a Japanese singer. ... Ritsuki Nakano (中野律紀) (born January 19, 1975), later known as Rikki, is a famous Japanese folk singer. ...

Music style

The style of his compositions range from stately classical-like symphonic pieces that are sometimes similar to the style of German composer Peer Raben, who is quite popular in Japan, to New Age, to hyper-percussive techno-electronica, similaras been touted as increasing the appreciation and awareness of video game music, not just in Japan, but also in North America and Europe. A prime example is the Final Fantasy VIII theme song, "Eyes on Me", composed and produced by Uematsu. The theme song featured Hong Kong pop diva Faye Wong and sold a record 400,000 copies. It then went on to win "Song of the Year (Western Music)" at the 14th Annual Japan Gold Disc Awards in 1999 — the first time music from a video game won the honor. Classical music is a broad, somewhat imprecise term, referring to music produced in, or rooted in the traditions of, European art, ecclesiastical and concert music, encompassing a broad period from roughly 1000 to the present day. ... Peer Raben (born July 3, 1940 in Viechtach, Bavaria, Germany) is a composer best known for his work with German film-maker Rainer Werner Fassbinder. ... New Age music, is a vaguely defined style of music that is generally quite melodic and often primarily instrumental. ... Techno is a form of electronic dance music that became prominent in Detroit, Michigan during the mid-1980s with influences from electro, New Wave, Funk and futuristic fiction themes that were prevalent and relative to modern culture during the end of the Cold War in industrial America at that time. ... World map showing North America A satellite composite image of North America. ... World map showing the location of Europe. ... Final Fantasy VIII ) is a console and computer role-playing game developed and published by Square Co. ... Eyes On Me is the theme song for the video game Final Fantasy VIII, composed by Nobuo Uematsu, with lyrics by Kako Someya. ... Faye Wong, or Wang Fei (Chinese: ; pinyin: ) (born August 8, 1969 in Beijing) is an iconic Chinese singer, songwriter, actress, and model. ...

Concerts

After a string of successful concert performances in Japan including a six-city, seven-show concert series titled "Tour de Japon – Music from Final Fantasy", the first stateside concert, "Dear Friends - Music from Final Fantasy", followed May 10, 2004 at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, California selling out in three days. The performance featured music from world-renowned Final Fantasy video game series, performed by the acclaimed Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra and the Los Angeles Master Chorale and tasy series and was conducted by the American Arnie Roth. At this concert, Nobuo Uematsu confirmed his participation with Play! A Video Game Symphony he wrote the official opening fanfare for. Play! is a symphonic world-tour featuring video game music, including Final Fantasy. Uematsu, along with long-time friend Yasunori Mitsuda and other composers such as Koji Kondo, Akira Yamaoka, and Yuzo Koshiro, was in attendance at the world-premiere of Play! A Video Game Symphony in Chicago on May 27, 2006, the European debut in Stockholm on June 14, 2006 as well as the Canadian performance in Toronto on September 30, 2006. His music from the upcoming Mistwalker game Blue Dragon was performed, as well. Tour de JAPON music from FINAL FANTASY is a concert tour featuring music from the Final Fantasy video game series that toured Japan from March 12 to April 16, 2004. ... May 10 is the 130th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (131st in leap years). ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Main entrance of the Walt Disney Concert Hall. ... Nickname: Location within Los Angeles County in the state of California Coordinates: State California County Los Angeles County Incorporated April 4, 1850 Government  - Type Mayor-Council  - Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (D)  - City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo  - Governing body City Council Area  - City  498. ... For the first installment in the series, see Final Fantasy (video game). ... The Los Angeles Philharmonic is an orchestra based in Los Angeles, California, USA. From 1964-2003, the orchestra played its concerts in the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion of the Los Angeles Music Center. ... The Los Angeles Master Chorale is a famous professional chorus in Los Angeles, California. ... PLAY! concert series logo PLAY! A Video Game Symphony is billed as the first symphony world-tour featuring music from video games. ... Yasunori Mitsuda (光田 康典 Mitsuda Yasunori, born January 21, 1972) is a Japanese composer, sound programmer and musician best known for his work in video game music, specifically Xenogears, Xenosaga Episode I: Der Wille zur Macht, Mario Party and Chrono Trigger. ... This article or section includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Yuzo Koshiro Yuzo Koshiro (古代祐三 Koshiro YÅ«zō, born December 12, 1967, in Tokyo, Japan) is one of the well-known faces of Japanese video game music. ... Mistwalker logo Mistwalker (Japanese: ミストウォーカー) is a Japanese video game development studio started by Hironobu Sakaguchi (the creator of the popular Final Fantasy series) in 2004. ... Blue Dragon is a RPG for the Xbox 360 video game console. ...

A picture of Uematsu and Elrinth from Play! A Video Game Symphony, June 14, 2006

Image File history File linksMetadata Mr_Uematsu. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Mr_Uematsu. ...

Recent history

In 2003 Uematsu formed The Black Mages and released an album of specially arranged versions of his classic Final Fantasy pieces. The Black Mages, in which Uematsu himself played keyboards, are a group of technically accomplished rock musicians who reinterpreted and expanded on the original compositions found in the series. In the same year, for the first time ever, his music from Final Fantasy was performed in a Symphonic Game Music Concert outside of Japan. It took place as the official opening ceremony of Europe's biggest trading fair for video games, the GC Games Convention in Leipzig, Germany. Another symphonic concert at the GC Games Convention featuring Final Fantasy music took place in 2004 and 2006 again. The concert in 2006 featured a word Final Fantasy VIII's "The Man with the Machine Gun" and Final Fantasy X's "The Skies Above". For their eponymous first album, see The Black Mages (album). ... Final Fantasy music refers to the soundtrack of the Final Fantasy series of console-based, usually plot-intensive Japanese role-playing games. ... For the first installment in the series, see Final Fantasy (video game). ... The annual European Symphonic Game Music Concert-series (also called GC Concerts) started in 2003 (08 / 20). ... World map showing the location of Europe. ... The western wings and central hall of the new Leipziger Messe Fairgrounds. ... Map of Germany showing Leipzig Leipzig [ˈlaiptsɪç] (Sorbian/Lusatian: Lipsk) is the largest city in the federal state (Bundesland) of Saxony in Germany. ... Final Fantasy VIII ) is a console and computer role-playing game developed and published by Square Co. ... Final Fantasy X ) is a console role-playing game developed and published by Square Co. ...

His company, Smile Please, will compose music for various video game companies, including Square Enix and Mistwalker. Smile Please Co. ... SQUARE ENIX (Japanese: スクウェア・エニックス) is a Japanese producer of popular video games and manga. ... Mistwalker logo Mistwalker (Japanese: ミストウォーカー) is a Japanese video game development studio started by Hironobu Sakaguchi (the creator of the popular Final Fantasy series) in 2004. ...

He composed the main theme for the upcoming Wii game Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Though Uematsu has officially only been contracted to write one song, he has stated he would "definitely love to do more" if he were asked. The Wii (pronounced as the pronoun we, IPA: ) is the fifth home video game console released by Nintendo. ... Super Smash Bros. ...

Associated acts

Influences

• Koichi Sugiyama
• John Williams
• Elton John

===Contempo(1986) Koichi Sugiyama (すぎやまこういち Sugiyama Kōichi; born April 11, 1931) is a Japanese music composer. ... John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932) is an American composer and conductor. ... Sir Elton Hercules[1] John CBE [2] (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight on 25 March 1947) is a multiple Grammy and Academy Award-winning English pop/rock singer, composer and pianist. ...

• King's Knight (1986)
• Aliens (1987)
• 3-D WorldRunner (1987)
• JJ (1987)
• Apple Town Story (1987)
• Cleopatra no Mahou (1987)
• Rad Racer (1987)
• Final Fantasy (1987)
• Nakayama Miho no Tokitoki High School
• Hanjuku Hero
• Final Fantasy II (1988) — Rescored by Tsuyoshi Sekito on the Wonderswan Color and PlayStation versio Yasunori Mitsuda and Noriko Matsueda (also with Tsuyoshi Sekito for PlayStation version)
• DynamiTracer (1995)
• Front Mission: Gun Hazard (1996) — With Yasunori Mitsuda, Masashi Hamauzu and Junya Nakano
• Final Fantasy VII (1997)
• Final Fantasy VIII (1999)
• Final Fantasy IX (2000)
• Final Fantasy X (2001) — With Masashi Hamauzu and Junya Nakano
• Hanjuku Hero Vs. 3D (2002)
• Final Fantasy XI (2002/2003) — With Naoshi Mizuta and Kumi Tanioka
• Hanjuku Hero 4 (2005) — With Kenichiro Fukui, Hirosato Noda, Tsuyoshi Sekito, Naoshi Mizuta, Kenichi Mikoshiba, Ai Yamashita and Kenji Ito
• Final Fantasy XII (2006) - With Hitoshi Sakimoto
• Blue Dragon (2006)
• Sonic and the Secret Rings (2007) - Title theme with Steve Conte^{[citation needed]}
• Super Smash Bros. Brawl (2007) - With Koji Kondo
• Lost Odyssey (2000)
• Final Fantasy IX - Original Soundtrack Plus (2000)
• Ah! My Goddess The Movie - Original Soundtrack with Shiro Hamaguchi (2000)
• 20020220 music from FINAL FANTASY (2002)
• Over the Fantasy — with Kana Ueda
• The Black Mages (2003)
• The Black Mages II - The Skies Above (2004)
• Final Fantasy VII Advent Children (2005)

Kings Knight is a video game developed and published by Square Co. ... Aliens ) is a video game that was manufactured for MSX computers in 1987. ... // Story Solar System #517 is being overrun by a race of Serpentbeasts led by the evil Grax. ... JJ ) is a video game developed and published by Square Co. ... Apple Town Story ) is a port of the 1985 Activision computer game Little Computer People to the Famicom Disk System. ... Rad Racer, known as Highway Star in Japan on the Famicom, was a racing game made for the Nintendo Entertainment System. ... Final Fantasy ) is a console role-playing game developed and published by Square Co. ... Egg Monster Hero (also known as Hanjuku Hero in Japan) is a video game on the Nintendo DS. The game was released in Japan on March 24, 2005. ... Final Fantasy II on the SNES, see Final Fantasy IV Foundation for a Free Information Infrastructure Final Fantasy II ) is a console role-playing game developed and published by Square Co. ... Tsuyoshi Sekito (関戸 剛, born April 3, 1963 in Osaka, Japan) is a Japanese video game music composer, arranger and performer. ... The WonderSwan Color is a handheld game console designed by Bandai. ... Yasunori Mitsuda (光田 康典 Mitsuda Yasunori, born January 21, 1972) is a Japanese composer, sound programmer and musician best known for his work in video game music, specifically Xenogears, Xenosaga Episode I: Der Wille zur Macht, Mario Party and Chrono Trigger. ... Noriko Matsueda (松枝 賀子 Matsueda Noriko, born December 18, 1971) is a Japanese composer of video game music. ... The Sony PlayStation ) is a video game console of the 32/64-bit era, first produced by Sony Computer Entertainment in the mid-1990s. ... Yasunori Mitsuda (光田 康典 Mitsuda Yasunori, born January 21, 1972) is a Japanese composer, sound programmer and musician best known for his work in video game music, specifically Xenogears, Xenosaga Episode I: Der Wille zur Macht, Mario Party and Chrono Trigger. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Junya Nakano (仲野 順也 Nakano Junya), a composer who creates video game music, has worked for Square Enix for over five years. ... Final Fantasy VII ) is a console and computer role-playing game (RPG) developed and published by Square Co. ... Final Fantasy VIII ) is a console and computer role-playing game developed and published by Square Co. ... Final Fantasy IX ) is a console role-playing game developed and published by Square Co. ... Final Fantasy X ) is a console role-playing game developed and published by Square Co. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Junya Nakano (仲野 順也 Nakano Junya), a composer who creates video game music, has worked for Square Enix for over five years. ... Final Fantasy XI ), also known as Final Fantasy XI: Online or simply Final Fantasy Online, is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game developed and published by Square Enix Co. ... Naoshi Mizuta (born January 24, 1972) is a Japanese video game music composer. ... Kumi Tanioka (Fan Festival 2006) Kumi Tanioka (谷岡久美, born August 29, 1974 in Hiroshima, Japan) is a Japanese video game music composer. ... Kenichiro Fukui (福井健一郎) is a Japanese video game music composer, arranger and performer. ... Hirosato Noda (野田博郷) is a Japanese video game music synthesizer programmer currently working at Square Enix. ... Tsuyoshi Sekito (関戸 剛, born April 3, 1963 in Osaka, Japan) is a Japanese video game music composer, arranger and performer. ... Naoshi Mizuta (born January 24, 1972) is a Japanese video game music composer. ... Kenji Ito (伊藤 賢治 Itō Kenji) is a video game music composer. ... Final Fantasy XII ) is a console role-playing game developed and published by Square Enix Co. ... Hitoshi Sakimoto ) is a video game music composer. ... Blue Dragon is a RPG for the Xbox 360 video game console. ... Sonic and the Secret Rings, (formerly known by the working title Sonic Wild Fire), is a video game within the Sonic the Hedgehog series that was released exclusively for the Wii on February 20, 2007 in North America, in Europe on March 2, 2007[1] and in Japan on March... Steve Conte playing with the New York Dolls in Irving Plaza, NYC (2006) Steve Conte is the guitarist & lead singer in the bands The Contes, Crown Jewels and is the current lead guitarist of the New York Dolls. ... Super Smash Bros. ... This article or section includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... Lost Odyssey is one of three RPGs currently in development (realease europe: 5 january 2007) by Mistwalker for the Xbox 360 (the others are Blue Dragon and Cry On). ... Final Fantasy IX ) is a console role-playing game developed and published by Square Co. ... Oh! My Goddess: The Movie In 2000, the Oh! My Goddess: The Movie (Japanese: AA! Megami Sama: The Movie) featuring the characters Keichii, Belldandy, Celestine and Peorth, among others, was produced by AIC. It was distributed in the US by Geneon Entertainment in 2001. ... Shiro Hamaguchi ) is a Japanese composer for various anime and arranger of songs from various games in the Final Fantasy series. ... 20020220 music from FINAL FANTASY is a live recording of an orchestral concert of arranged video game music from the Final Fantasy series of computer role-playing games, produced by Square Co. ... Final Fantasy: Unlimited is a Japanese anime series based on Squaresofts popular Final Fantasy video game franchise. ... Ueda Kana (植田佳奈 Ueda Kana) is a seiyu who was born on June 9, 1980 in Osaka. ... The Black Mages is an arranged soundtrack album of video game music from the Final Fantasy series of computer role-playing games, produced by Square Co. ... Final Fantasy VII Advent Children[1] ) is a computer-animated film based on the highly successful PlayStation and PC game Final Fantasy VII. The film is set two years after the events of Final Fantasy VII, and follows the games hero Cloud Strife as he unravels the cause of...

References

See also

• Final Fantasy music

Final Fantasy music refers to the soundtrack of the Final Fantasy series of console-based, usually plot-intensive Japanese role-playing games. ...

External links

• Nobuo Uematsu's official Japanese website
• [http://www.
• Interview with Nobuo Uematsu about his work, his company and Square Enix
• Composer profile at OverClocked ReMix
• Nobuo Uematsu at MusicBrainz

YOUR FACE OverClocked ReMix, also known as OC ReMix or OCR, is a website dedicated to reviving computer and video game music from the past and re-interpreting it with new technology and software, as well as various traditional means. ... MusicBrainz (MusicBrainz. ...