Music

[Rodion Romanovich]

I'd like it most if there'd be a combination of metal and folk music and classical music. You've already pointed out some good metal and mentioned folk music so I guess you already have suggestions there so I don't have to suggest anything there. But since you didn't mention classical music I'll come with some suggestions. Unfortunately most classical music pieces needs to be arranged and cut (some of them are like 30 minutes each) and for that we need a composer and an orchestra, or alternatively someone really skilled with editing music with the computer... That's probably impossible to get, but if we could get that there are some really cool pieces that are perfect for the dark age feeling. You've already suggested metal so I don't need to suggest anything more there. Instead here are some examples of cool classical music. Most classical music of the late 19th century was made during a period of nationalistic art, which led to the best composers digging up old folk music and arranging it with their arranging skills (often to make it sound more dooms day styled or more powerfuö) but still maintaining the folk music style. Therefore it could be motivated to use some of these, even though they use a modern orchestra rather than dark age instruments:

1. Kullervo by Sibelius
Only part 1 and 2, and only parts of them would be good, so arrangement is unfortunately needed. Kullervo is based on Kalevaala, the old Finnish collection of sagas and myths that was probably written during the early dark age. Unfortunately it hasn't got a good rythm which means it's probably best suited for menu music. There are some quite cool rythmical parts of it that'd make very good battle music but they're too short and there's also an effect where the rythm is broken and then started again which wouldn't work well in the game context for battle music unless it's removed by editing. Deployment music shouldn't be too wild so those parts can't be used there either, but there are some quite cool calm pieces of part 2 that could be good deployment music.

2. 9th Symphony by Dvorak
Only part 4 (maybe also part 1) - perhaps a little too slow? but it at least sounds quite powerful and is a cool battle music. It follows the same rythms almost all the way through so it can be used as battle music.

3. Carmina burana (part 1 - "O fortuna")
Dunno about this one, but it's often used. I think it gives a good dark age feeling and reminds of Christian church singing, only it's cooler. Reminds of one of the musical pieces in M:TW where they were singing choir song.

4. Funeral march by Chopin
Unfortunately only the very beginning of this piece has a good dark age feeling, and a lot of arranging, editing and composing work would be needed. Still, I think the beginning of it is a really cool theme for a marching music piece if arranged well.

5. Symphonic dance no.1 by Rachmaninov
Editing is also required here. The part of it I'm thinking about would be quite cool for marching music.

6. Cello concerto op. 104, by Dvorak
Part 3 is good marching music

7. Marche slave, by Tschajkovskij
Good marching music if the non-rythmical parts are edited

Conclusion: I think the classical music has good potential as marching music. Some parts of it could also be used for triumphal victory music. There's also some potential for menu and deployment music. However, I think this could be a good system: 1. deployment music - calm classical and folk music, 2. marching music - classical music (mostly marches), 3. battle music - metal, 4. victory music - classical music or folk music. What do you think?

Some thoughts: 1. marching music should be rythmical but not contain any climaxes. 2. battle music should be rythmical and shouldn't contain too huge climaxes. 3. deployment music should be calm, preferably with folk music themes or similar that gives the right athmosphere. 4. for victory music it would be cool to use classical music because classical music has some really, really good triumphal climaxes that no ther music has, and I think the victory music should be really tirumphal. For defeat music, there are also some depressed-sounding pieces with an athmosphere of fate that would be well suited. No rythm is needed for that music, only requirement for victory and defeat music is probably that it should sound powerful.