1247: Easy Listening, Part 3

I’m feeling marginally lazy, so I thought I’d continue with a post style I last did some time ago. Yes, it’s time for a soundtrack post. And, if you know what I’ve been playing recently, you’ll probably know the subject of said soundtrack post. That’s right, it’s Ar Tonelico!

(Note to those who are sick of me rabbiting on about this series: I’m closing in on absolutely, positively and completely finishing the third and final game in the series, so short of deciding to run through the whole trilogy again — which I promise I won’t do for at least a year or two — you will be subjected to enthusing about something else from thereon. Indulge me a little while longer, however.)

The Ar Tonelico series has consistently fantastic soundtracks, but there’s a clear divide in them between the “game” music and the vocal, choral “Hymnos” pieces that mark special events in the story. Today I’m going to focus on the latter and share some of these astonishing pieces of music with you. I urge you, even if you normally skip past the promise of “video game music”, to listen to these in their entirety: they’re simply gorgeous pieces of music in their own right, and carry a significant amount of emotional weight to them when heard in context.

Let’s begin, then. I’ll try and refrain from spoilers while discussing these, but be aware that the lyrics shown in some of the videos may constitute mild spoilers.

This piece, known as EXEC_LINCA — pretty much all the Ar Tonelico Hymnos songs are named like computer processes or programs — marked the moment that made me sit up and pay attention to the music of this series. Up until this point, the music had been competent, even memorable and catchy, but it wasn’t until this piece that I had to just sit back for a moment and take in the majesty of what I was hearing. This led to some rather conflicting feelings, as the moment in the story where this song comes up is a very dramatic one that makes you want to keep pushing forward — but, of course, pushing forward runs the risk of causing the music to end sooner!

In stark contrast to EXEC_LINCA, EXEC_CHRONICLE_KEY is a much more restrained, majestic piece for the most part. To say too much more about it would constitute spoilers, but suffice to say the time when this piece plays is a moment of significant emotional significance in the story of the first Ar Tonelico game, Melody of Elemia.

A significant proportion of Ar Tonelico 2 is spent attempting to assemble the legendary Hymnos Metafalica, which supposedly has the power to magically create new land. This version is the first time we hear half of the Metafalica theme, known as EXEC_METAFALICA.

Here’s the second half, known as METHOD_METAFALICA.

And here’s what happens when you put the two pieces together: possibly one of the most spectacular, beautiful pieces of music I’ve ever heard. Also noteworthy for the moment near the beginning where the two singers are singing in binary code.

Here’s a strongly-contrasting piece from elsewhere in Ar Tonelico 2. This one technically isn’t a Hymnos piece, being in Japanese, but it’s a lovely little song that accompanies a rare moment of calm in that game’s storyline. It’s called “Hartes ciel, melenas walasye”, which translates to “Beloved World, Beloved People.”

And on to Ar Tonelico Qoga, the third and final game in the series. Give this one a moment to get going; it starts slow and gentle, then builds to a furious climax that truly gets the blood pumping.

And I’ll leave you with this one, a grand, majestic piece that accompanies an important story moment in the latter third of Ar Tonelico Qoga. Again, to say too much more would be to spoil it, but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy the regal nature of this piece.

I hope you enjoyed these pieces. If you’ve never played the Ar Tonelico series, rest assured that the music alone makes these three games more than worth playing — it helps enormously that they’re all excellent games in their own right, too.