Uploaded April 2023 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
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A special arrangement today; a double-whammy of The Wildlands (Day & Night) from Octopath Traveler II, with guest singer Nemo Fairlight.
Check out Nemo's other work!
➤ youtube.com/@nemofairlight
--------------------
➤ Analysis:
It is an incredible feat how Nishiki can create ecstatic beauty from such minimal material.
Here, we open with a simple D minor arpeggio (D-F-A), with the piano continuing with similar arpeggios throughout the track. Accompanying this are occasional vocal "Huh's" and a vocal solo soaring on top.
Starting in D minor, we fall down a tone to C major (0:07), then follow a plagal cadence (chord IV to I; C major to G minor) into G minor (G-B♭-D) which then falls similarly down a tone into F major (F-A-C). This is very simple stuff, but Nishiki adds interest by staggering the placement of these chords. Instead of setting one chord per bar, he shifts to the 2nd chord half-way through a bar and then holds it (at a ratio of 1:3 rather than 2:2). This small structural decision creates so much more interest in the material.
Similar structural attention occurs throughout the entire track, with a quick shift to a 2/4 time signature at 0:13 as we shift down a further tone into E♭ major with an added 7th (E♭-G-B♭-D). As this continues, Nishiki teases the Dorian mode with a shift from G minor into C major (a major version of chord IV in a minor key is a characteristic trait of Dorian).
But we started in D minor! So how do we return to D minor from C major? Well, if you've read any of these past analyses, you'll know about the little trick of "tertiary modulations" (jumping to a chord a 3rd away), which is precisely what Nishiki does here going from C major to A major (a minor 3rd away) which leads us seamlessly back into D minor via a perfect cadence (chord V to I; A to Dm).
From here (0:25), the material repeats with additional sustained choir. But when this section ends (0:42), instead of using the tertiary modulation again, Nishiki simply jumps from C major to D minor. This is also very functional as an "interrupted cadence" (chord V to VI; C to Dm). From here (0:42), we get a brief circle of 5ths (Dm - Gm - C - F - B♭; note how they all fall down a 5th, or up a 4th).
This harmony continues for largely the rest of the track, with a short return to the opening harmonies at 1:29. And then we progress into the (Day) version of the track, which harmonically is nearly identical.
Instead, the difference here is an instrumental one; a guitar ostinato with panpipe melody introduce the material. Strings are then added (2:10), followed by the interesting (but successful) choice of solo trumpet (2:24), and later on a guitar / bouzouki playing with the tremolo technique (3:02) for that fast fluttering sound.
Finally, to tail off the medley, I added a short conclusive ending combining material from both (Night) and (Day) versions, with one final tease of the Dorian mode (Gm - C - Gm) during the final plagal cadence.
--------------------
The score was created in Sibelius 7.5, and the audio was created in Cubase using sample libraries from EastWest, Vienna Symphonic and Sampleism.
★Game: Octopath Traveler II
★Developer: Square Enix, Acquire
★Publisher: Square Enix
★Composer(s): Yasunori Nishiki
★Software: Sibelius 7.5, Cubase Elements 7, Cubase 10, Adobe Premiere Elements 15, EastWest Sample Libraries, Vienna Symphonic Library, Sampleism
★Tags: Octopath Traveler II, Octopath 2, The Wildlands Day, Wildlands Night, Orchestra, Orchestral, Orchestration, Arrangement, Remix, Cover, Sheet Music, Score
#OctopathTraveler
#Orchestra
#TheWildlands
🎵 Sheet Music & Parts ➤ mymusicsheet.com/TandA/433307
💗 MIDI / XML / Sibelius ➤ bit.ly/TandABundle
🎹 Commissions ➤ jshaw.co.uk/commissions
🎮 More Arrangements ➤ jshaw.co.uk/TandA
👍 Facebook ➤ bit.ly/TandAFacebook
🐦 Twitter ➤ bit.ly/TandATwitter
🎵 Bandcamp ➤ bit.ly/TandABandcamp
🎵 Spotify ➤ bit.ly/TandASpotify
🎵 Deezer ➤ bit.ly/TandADeezer
🎵 YouTube Music ➤ bit.ly/TandAYouTube
🎵 Apple Music / iTunes ➤ bit.ly/TandAApple
A special arrangement today; a double-whammy of The Wildlands (Day & Night) from Octopath Traveler II, with guest singer Nemo Fairlight.
Check out Nemo's other work!
➤ youtube.com/@nemofairlight
--------------------
➤ Analysis:
It is an incredible feat how Nishiki can create ecstatic beauty from such minimal material.
Here, we open with a simple D minor arpeggio (D-F-A), with the piano continuing with similar arpeggios throughout the track. Accompanying this are occasional vocal "Huh's" and a vocal solo soaring on top.
Starting in D minor, we fall down a tone to C major (0:07), then follow a plagal cadence (chord IV to I; C major to G minor) into G minor (G-B♭-D) which then falls similarly down a tone into F major (F-A-C). This is very simple stuff, but Nishiki adds interest by staggering the placement of these chords. Instead of setting one chord per bar, he shifts to the 2nd chord half-way through a bar and then holds it (at a ratio of 1:3 rather than 2:2). This small structural decision creates so much more interest in the material.
Similar structural attention occurs throughout the entire track, with a quick shift to a 2/4 time signature at 0:13 as we shift down a further tone into E♭ major with an added 7th (E♭-G-B♭-D). As this continues, Nishiki teases the Dorian mode with a shift from G minor into C major (a major version of chord IV in a minor key is a characteristic trait of Dorian).
But we started in D minor! So how do we return to D minor from C major? Well, if you've read any of these past analyses, you'll know about the little trick of "tertiary modulations" (jumping to a chord a 3rd away), which is precisely what Nishiki does here going from C major to A major (a minor 3rd away) which leads us seamlessly back into D minor via a perfect cadence (chord V to I; A to Dm).
From here (0:25), the material repeats with additional sustained choir. But when this section ends (0:42), instead of using the tertiary modulation again, Nishiki simply jumps from C major to D minor. This is also very functional as an "interrupted cadence" (chord V to VI; C to Dm). From here (0:42), we get a brief circle of 5ths (Dm - Gm - C - F - B♭; note how they all fall down a 5th, or up a 4th).
This harmony continues for largely the rest of the track, with a short return to the opening harmonies at 1:29. And then we progress into the (Day) version of the track, which harmonically is nearly identical.
Instead, the difference here is an instrumental one; a guitar ostinato with panpipe melody introduce the material. Strings are then added (2:10), followed by the interesting (but successful) choice of solo trumpet (2:24), and later on a guitar / bouzouki playing with the tremolo technique (3:02) for that fast fluttering sound.
Finally, to tail off the medley, I added a short conclusive ending combining material from both (Night) and (Day) versions, with one final tease of the Dorian mode (Gm - C - Gm) during the final plagal cadence.
--------------------
The score was created in Sibelius 7.5, and the audio was created in Cubase using sample libraries from EastWest, Vienna Symphonic and Sampleism.
★Game: Octopath Traveler II
★Developer: Square Enix, Acquire
★Publisher: Square Enix
★Composer(s): Yasunori Nishiki
★Software: Sibelius 7.5, Cubase Elements 7, Cubase 10, Adobe Premiere Elements 15, EastWest Sample Libraries, Vienna Symphonic Library, Sampleism
★Tags: Octopath Traveler II, Octopath 2, The Wildlands Day, Wildlands Night, Orchestra, Orchestral, Orchestration, Arrangement, Remix, Cover, Sheet Music, Score
#OctopathTraveler
#Orchestra
#TheWildlands
