In this series I will share my favorite pieces of game music, mainly focusing on fan-made remixes and arrangements. As with my Classical Music Picks series, if you have any recommendations you would like to share, please let me know in the comments.
This time my picks are from the video game Chrono Trigger, which is one of the games I discovered until as an adult. SNES was pretty much obsolete when I was a kid, so I grew up with Pokémon, Game Boy Color/Advance and PlayStations instead. A few years ago I found the OST of the game on YouTube and immediately fell in love with the music; not long after I had played through the game on emulator. I did enjoy the game but I haven't played it since then, however my love for the soundtrack has lasted.
Corridors of Time: remix by Mathew Valente
Beginning with perhaps the best-known theme of the game, which I consider to be a bit overrated. However, this remix is great. The "time element" present in the original is somewhat lost in this version, but I much prefer the groove this remix has.
There is a piano transcription of the remix by zohar002 (played by Verdegrand), which is also a good listen:
Main Theme: Chrono Trigger (Arrange Version 1) by Yasunori Mitsuda
Also known as the cutscene version by the OG himself, and my favorite theme from the game. Sound quality isn't that great anymore by current standards, but the arrangement itself pure ear-candy for me. One can always dream, but boy how cool it would be if this was played by a live orchestra. I really hope it happens someday.
Secret of the Forest: remastered version/remix by sschafi1
Very true to the original but not boringly so. Though the tempo is slightly higher than I would like, wind and birdsong sound effects create the "earthy" ambience in an obvious yet neat way. This was one of the first remixes of the theme I listened to, and it hasn't still lost its charm.
Epoch - Winds of Time: orchestral arrangement by The Synthetic Orchestra
It's amazing how much you can achieve with good use of high-quality sample libraries and a couple original ideas. This arrangement makes a radical deviation from the original version which is often risky, but in this case very successful. Instead of bringing the rigid, ABBA-style pop disco beat (or something along those lines) to the table, Blake Robinson delivers a soaring and much more elegant take of the theme. Beautiful work.
Guardia Millenia Fair: piano arrangement by Casey Ormond
I'm very glad I came across to this hidden gem by accident a couple years ago. It isn't just another boring copy-paste piano adaptation, but a well-crafted and delightfully pianistic arrangement. Thematic variations and modulations halfway through are pretty clever, and an occasional jazzy chord here and there is a nice touch. Overall, excellent.
(Honorable mention) Main Theme: orchestral arrangement by Andrew Skeet, played by London Philharmonic Orchestra
The Greatest Video Game Music albums have a lot of quality goodies, but this arrangement unfortunately falls a bit short. It's wonderfully orchestrated, but I simply find the lack of energy disturbing; more stuff like 2:15 onwards and my money would have been taken in silence (enjoy the nice memes). I still feel this deserves an honorable mention, so I will include it here.
Chrono Trigger & Chrono Cross: Symphonic Fantasies by Jonne Valtonen & Roger Wanamo, played by WDR Radio Orchestra
Every game music enthusiast should be familiar with the Symphonic Game Music Concerts series, which is probably the best thing that has happened to game music in general. This orchestral tribute (from Symphonic Fantasies, 2009) by Jonne Valtonen and Roger Wanamo is a definition of an arrangement taken to the next level, and it's all made possible by Thomas Böcker's wonderful producing of the game music concert events. It's simply impossible not to recommend listening to this fine masterpiece, made by professional arrangers and played by a professional orchestra. I don't like the word 'epic' as it's ridiculously overused on the net, but in this rare case it's definitely fitting.