:Masashi Hamauzu
{{Short description|Japanese composer and pianist (born 1971)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2022}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Masashi Hamauzu
| image = Masashi Hamauzu Jan 2012.jpg
| image_size = 200
| caption = Hamauzu in 2012
| native_name = 浜渦 正志
| native_name_lang = ja
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1971|9|20}}
| birth_place =Munich, West Germany
| alma_mater = Tokyo University of the Arts
| occupation = {{flatlist|
- Composer
- pianist
- lyricist
}}
| years_active = 1996–present
| module = {{Infobox musical artist|embed=yes
| instrument = Piano
| genre = {{flatlist|
}}
|website = [http://www.masashihamauzu.com/ Official Website ]
}}}}
{{nihongo|Masashi Hamauzu|浜渦 正志|Hamauzu Masashi|born September 20, 1971}} is a Japanese composer, pianist, and lyricist. Hamauzu, who was employed at Square Enix from 1996 to 2010, was best known during that time for his work on the Final Fantasy and SaGa video game series. Born into a musical family in Germany, Hamauzu was raised in Japan. He became interested in music while in kindergarten, and took piano lessons from his parents.
Hamauzu was hired by Square as a trainee, and his debut as a solo composer came the following year when he scored Chocobo's Mysterious Dungeon. He has collaborated with friend and fellow composer Junya Nakano on several games.
After Nobuo Uematsu left Square Enix in 2004, Hamauzu took over as the leading composer of the company's music team. He was the sole composer for Final Fantasy XIII. He has also become a renowned pianist, arranging for several other composers. His music incorporates various styles, although he often uses classical and ambience in his pieces. In 2010, Hamauzu left Square Enix to start his own studio, MONOMUSIK.
Biography
=Early life=
Born in Munich, Germany, Hamauzu's mother was a piano teacher and his father, Akimori Hamauzu, an opera singer.{{cite web |url=http://www.vgmonline.net/masashihamauzu |title=Masashi Hamauzu Profile |publisher=Game Music Online |author=Chris Greening |date=December 30, 2012 |access-date=September 21, 2014}}{{cite web |url=http://www.d8.dion.ne.jp/~r.beet/profile.html |title=Rosenbeet |access-date=October 31, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110110165811/http://www.d8.dion.ne.jp/~r.beet/profile.html |archive-date=January 10, 2011 }} He developed an interest in music while in kindergarten. Hamauzu grew up in Germany and started to receive piano and singing lessons from his parents at very young age, and when he was in high school, he composed his first original music piece. After his brother, Hiroshi, was born, the family moved to Osaka. He enrolled in the Tokyo University of the Arts, where he joined a student ensemble as a pianist. Hamauzu met his wife, Matsue Hamauzu (née Fukushi), at the university, and they have two children. Matsue worked alongside Hamauzu on the soundtrack to Final Fantasy VII as a soprano and Sigma Harmonics as a scat singer; she was also a soprano for the score to Final Fantasy VIII & a lead vocalist in Final Fantasy XIII. After graduating from the university, he thought about becoming a classical musician, but he eventually found out that he wanted to work with game music instead.
=Career=
File:Concert Masashi Hamauzu - Imeruat - Toulouse Game Show - 2012-12-01- P1500790.jpg
A fan of the Final Fantasy games,Uematsu, Nobuo; Hamauzu, Masashi; Nakano, Junya. Final Fantasy X Original Soundtrack liner notes. DigiCube. August 1, 2001. SQEX-10013. {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20081216115401/http://www.chudahs-corner.com/liners/index.php?catalog=SSCX-10054~7 transcript]}}. Retrieved on December 16, 2008. Hamauzu decided to apply for a job at Square, where Nobuo Uematsu hired him as a trainee in 1996. His debut project was Front Mission: Gun Hazard with Uematsu, Yasunori Mitsuda, and Junya Nakano.{{cite web |url=http://www.gamespot.com/snes/action/frontmissiongunhazard/tech_info.html?tag=tabs;summary |title=Front Mission Gun Hazard Tech Info |publisher=GameSpot |access-date=December 15, 2008}} Later the same year, he created four tracks for another multi-composer game, Tobal No. 1.{{cite web |url=http://www.gamespot.com/ps/action/tobalno1/tech_info.html?tag=tabs;summary |title=Tobal No. 1 Tech Info |publisher=GameSpot |access-date=December 15, 2008}} Working with Nakano on these games, Hamauzu admired his musical style, and they became friends; they have later collaborated on several titles. Hamauzu's first solo project came in 1997 with Chocobo's Mysterious Dungeon. Shortly after the title's release, Hamauzu and Yasuo Sako created Chocobo no Fushigina Dungeon Coi Vanni Gialli, an arranged album containing orchestral tracks from the game's music.{{cite web |url=http://www.rpgfan.com/soundtracks/coi-vanni/ |title=Chocobo's Mysterious Dungeon ~Coi Vanni Gialli~ |publisher=RPGFan |first=Damian |last=Thomas |access-date=December 15, 2008 |archive-date=May 12, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080512092129/http://rpgfan.com/soundtracks/coi-vanni/ |url-status=dead }} Both the soundtrack and Coi Vanni Gialli were praised. For Final Fantasy VII, Hamauzu was the synthesizer programmer for the rendition of Joseph Haydn's "The Creation", and provided bass vocals in the eight-person chorus for "One-Winged Angel".
In 1999, Hamauzu was assigned with scoring SaGa Frontier 2.{{cite web |url=http://www.gamespot.com/ps/rpg/sagafrontier2/tech_info.html?tag=tabs;summary |title=SaGa Frontier 2 Tech Info |publisher=GameSpot |access-date=December 16, 2008}} He spent some time conforming to the music Kenji Ito had established for the series before realizing that he wanted to use his own unique style. The project introduced him to synthesizer programmer Ryo Yamazaki, whom he has worked with on most of his subsequent soundtracks. Hamauzu also released Piano Pieces "SF2" ~ Rhapsody on a Theme of SaGa Frontier 2, an arranged album featuring piano pieces of the game's music.{{cite web |url=http://www.rpgfan.com/soundtracks/sf2-piano/index.html |title=Piano Pieces "SF2" ~ Rhapsody on a Theme of SaGa Frontier 2 |publisher=RPGFan |first=Patrick |last=Gann |access-date=December 16, 2008 |archive-date=May 9, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080509145428/http://rpgfan.com/soundtracks/sf2-piano/index.html |url-status=dead }} In 2001, Hamauzu and Nakano were chosen to assist Uematsu in the production of the score for the critically acclaimed Final Fantasy X,{{cite web |url=http://ps2.ign.com/articles/164/164008p1.html |title=Final Fantasy X Review |publisher=IGN |first=David |last=Smith |date=December 18, 2001 |access-date=December 16, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120718220424/http://ps2.ign.com/articles/164/164008p1.html |archive-date=July 18, 2012 }}{{cite web |url=http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/ps2/finalfantasyx?q=final%20fantasy%20x |title=Final Fantasy X (ps2: 2001): Reviews |publisher=Metacritic |access-date=December 16, 2008 |archive-date=September 17, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080917185724/http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/ps2/finalfantasyx?q=Final%20Fantasy%20X |url-status=dead }} based on their ability to create music that was different from Uematsu's style.{{cite web |url=http://www.nobuouematsu.com/rbaby.html |title=Interview by RocketBaby.net |publisher=nobuouematsu.com |access-date=June 22, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131020034002/http://www.nobuouematsu.com/rbaby.html |archive-date=October 20, 2013 }} Hamauzu also contributed the Piano Collections arranged album of the game, which he described as his most challenging work, and the track named "feel", an arrangement of "Hymn of the Fayth", from the EP feel/Go dream: Yuna & Tidus.
In 2002, Hamauzu composed the music for Unlimited Saga, a game that would be received negatively by critics due to a variety of gameplay issues.{{cite web |url=http://www.gamespot.com/ps2/rpg/unlimitedsaga/review.html?om_act=convert&om_clk=gssummary&tag=summary;read-review |title=Unlimited Saga Review |publisher=GameSpot |first=Brad |last=Shoemaker |date=June 17, 2003 |access-date=December 15, 2008}}{{cite web |url=http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/ps2/unlimitedsaga |title=Unlimited SaGa (ps2: 2003): Reviews |publisher=Metacritic |access-date=December 16, 2008 |archive-date=May 23, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080523112531/http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/ps2/unlimitedsaga |url-status=dead }} After Uematsu’s departure from Square Enix in 2004, he took over as the lead composer of the company’s music team. He incorporates various styles of music in his compositions, though most of the tune he uses classical and ambient tones in his pieces. In 2005, Hamauzu, Nakano, and the duo Wavelink Zeal (Takayuki and Yuki Iwai) scored Musashi: Samurai Legend, the sequel to the 1998 title Brave Fencer Musashi.{{cite web |url=http://www.gamespot.com/ps2/rpg/musashisamurailegend/tech_info.html?tag=tabs;summary |title=Musashi: Samurai Legend Tech Info |date=March 16, 2005 |publisher=GameSpot |access-date=December 15, 2008}} Hamauzu composed the highly anticipated but critically unsuccessful Final Fantasy VII follow-up, Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII, in 2006.{{cite web |url=http://www.gamespot.com/ps2/action/dirgeofcerberusfinalfantasyvii/tech_info.html?tag=tabs;summary |title=Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII Tech Info |publisher=GameSpot |access-date=December 15, 2008 |archive-date=November 3, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121103062847/http://www.gamespot.com/dirge-of-cerberus-final-fantasy-vii/techinfo/platform/ps2/ |url-status=dead }}{{cite web |url=http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/ps2/dirgeofcerberusfinalfantasy7?q=dirge%20of%20cerberus |title=Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII (ps2: 2006): Reviews |publisher=Metacritic |access-date=December 16, 2008 |archive-date=August 20, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110820023845/http://www.metacritic.com/game/playstation-2/dirge-of-cerberus-final-fantasy-vii |url-status=dead }} Later the same year, he arranged the Sailing to the World Piano Score at the request of Mitsuda.{{cite web |url=http://www.rpgfan.com/soundtracks/sailingttw-piano/index.html |title=Sailing to the World Piano Score |publisher=RPGFan |first=Patrick |last=Gann |access-date=December 15, 2008 |archive-date=June 10, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070610161341/http://www.rpgfan.com/soundtracks/sailingttw-piano/index.html |url-status=dead }} The album was well received by fans, and helped confirm Hamauzu's position as a leading piano arranger of video game music.
Hamauzu released a solo album, Vielen Dank, in 2007 after recording it in Munich, Germany. The album includes eleven piano pieces that he composed for personal pleasure after the creation of Piano Pieces "SF2" ~ Rhapsody on a Theme of SaGa Frontier 2 as well as 14 arrangements of his game compositions.{{cite web |url=http://www.rpgfan.com/soundtracks/vielendank/index.html |title=Vielen Dank - Masashi Hamauzu |publisher=RPGFan |first=Patrick |last=Gann |access-date=December 15, 2008 |archive-date=August 16, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070816231348/http://rpgfan.com/soundtracks/vielendank/index.html |url-status=dead }} Two tracks from the album were performed at the 2007 Symphonic Game Music Concert in Leipzig.{{cite web |url=http://www.vgmconcerts.com/main.php?section=news&subs=archive&lang=english&newsid=62 |title=Masashi Hamauzu's music to be performed in Leipzig |publisher=VGMConcerts.com |date=April 30, 2007 |access-date=December 14, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090112000906/http://www.vgmconcerts.com/main.php?section=news&subs=archive&lang=english&newsid=62 |archive-date=January 12, 2009 |url-status=dead}} In 2008, he composed the soundtrack to Sigma Harmonics,{{cite web |url=http://www.gamespot.com/ds/puzzle/sigmaharmonics/tech_info.html |title=Sigma Harmonics Tech Info |publisher=GameSpot |access-date=December 15, 2008}} with synthesizer programming by Mitsuto Suzuki rather than Yamazaki. At the 2006 E3 event, a Square Enix press conference revealed that Hamauzu would be returning to the Final Fantasy series, scoring Final Fantasy XIII.{{cite web |url=http://ps3.ign.com/articles/706/706153p1.html |title=E3 2006: FFXIII Staff Check |publisher=IGN |first=Anoop |last=Gantayat |date=May 9, 2006 |access-date=December 15, 2008}} He left Square Enix on January 19, 2010.{{cite web |url=http://www.squareenixmusic.com/musicnews2.php?subaction=showfull&id=1263934146&archive=&start_from=&ucat=2& |title=FFXIII's Masashi Hamauzu Leaves Square Enix |date=January 19, 2010 |publisher=Square Enix Music Online |author=Chris |access-date=January 20, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100123141427/http://www.squareenixmusic.com/musicnews2.php?subaction=showfull&id=1263934146&archive=&start_from=&ucat=2& |archive-date=January 23, 2010 }} He went on to form his own studio, Monomusik, which he described as a personal studio that did not include any other composers.{{cite web |url=http://www.originalsoundversion.com/?p=11724 |title=Masashi Hamauzu Talks Final Fantasy XIII and MONOMUSIK |date=September 28, 2010 |publisher=Original Sound Version |author=Napolitano, Jayson |access-date=September 28, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120308002307/http://www.originalsoundversion.com/masashi-hamauzu-talks-final-fantasy-xiii-and-monomusik/ |archive-date=March 8, 2012 |url-status=dead }} Despite leaving Square Enix, Hamauzu was still hired to score various games by the company, including Final Fantasy XIII-2, Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII, World of Final Fantasy, and the high definition version of Final Fantasy X. Outside of the Final Fantasy series, Hamauzu also wrote music for games such as Half-Minute Hero: The Second Coming, The Legend of Legacy, and The Alliance Alive in the 2010s.{{cite web |last1=Greening |first1=Chris |title=Hamauzu, Shimomura, Ito, and Sakimoto attached to new RPG projects |url=http://www.vgmonline.net/hamauzu-shimomura-ito-and-sakimoto-attached-to-new-rpg-projects/ |website=Video Game Music Online |date=September 27, 2014 |access-date=November 17, 2016}}{{cite web |last1=Greening |first1=Chris |title=Masashi Hamauzu's next game score revealed |url=http://www.vgmonline.net/masashi-hamauzus-next-game-score-revealed/ |website=Video Game Music Online |date=October 23, 2016 |access-date=November 17, 2016}} He contributed arrangements to the Across the Worlds ~ Chrono Cross Wayô Piano Collection album alongside Akio Noguchi and Mariam Abounnasr.{{cite web|url=https://www.wayorecords.com/en/cd-tapes/692-across-the-worlds-chrono-cross-piano-digital.html|title=Across the Worlds ~ Chrono Cross Wayô Piano Collection|website=Wayô Records|access-date=April 1, 2021}}
Musical style and influences
Hamauzu composes music in a wide variety of styles, often using multiple styles throughout the various pieces of a soundtrack. He mostly creates classical and ambient music, and uses the piano predominantly as an instrument. He frequently uses dissonance to provide an atmospheric effect.{{cite web |url=http://www.rpgfan.com/soundtracks/ff10ost/index.html |title=Final Fantasy X OST |publisher=RPGFan |author1=Schweitzer, Ben |author2=Gaan, Patrick |access-date=December 16, 2008 |archive-date=April 11, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080411094058/http://rpgfan.com/soundtracks/ff10ost/index.html |url-status=dead }} In Unlimited Saga, for example, the style of his compositions mix classical marches, tango music, electronic ambiance, instrumental solos, bossa nova, and jazz.{{cite web |url=http://www.rpgfan.com/soundtracks/u-saga/index.html |title=UNLIMITED:SaGa OST |publisher=RPGFan |author1=Tittsworth, Jeff |author2=McCawley, James |access-date=December 17, 2008 |archive-date=July 3, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080703074209/http://www.rpgfan.com/soundtracks/u-saga/index.html |url-status=dead }}
He cites animation composers Hiroshi Miyagawa and Ryuichi Sakamoto of Yellow Magic Orchestra and his father as major musical influences. During his adolescence, he enjoyed listening to the works of Miyagawa and Sakamoto. While attending university, he developed an appreciation for classical music, especially the compositions of Ravel and Debussy.
Works
=Video games=
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" width="auto"
! scope="col"|Year ! scope="col"|Title ! scope="col"|Role(s) ! scope="col" class="unsortable"|{{abbr|Ref.|References}} |
| scope=row rowspan="2" | 1996
| Music with Nobuo Uematsu, Yasunori Mitsuda, and Junya Nakano |
|---|
| Tobal No. 1
| Music with several others |
| scope=row |1997
| Chocobo's Mysterious Dungeon | Music |
| scope=row |1999
| Music |
| Scope=row |2001
| Music with Nobuo Uematsu and Junya Nakano |
| scope=row |2002
| Music |
| scope=row|2005
| Music with Junya Nakano, Takayuki Iwai, and Yuki Iwai |
| scope=row |2006
| Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII | Music |
| scope=row rowspan="2" | 2008
| Oolong Tea Story | Music |
| Sigma Harmonics
| Music |
| scope=row| 2009
| Music |
| scope=row rowspan="4" | 2011
| Music GunGun! 2 | Music with several others |
| Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection
| Arrangements with Junya Nakano and Kenichiro Fukui | |
| Half-Minute Hero: The Second Coming
| "Final Battle of Revolution" |
| Final Fantasy XIII-2
| Music with Naoshi Mizuta, Mitsuto Suzuki, and Yoshitaka Suzuki |
| scope=row rowspan="2" | 2013
| Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII | Music with Naoshi Mizuta and Mitsuto Suzuki |
| Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster
| Arrangements with Junya Nakano, Tsutomu Narita, and Ryo Yamazaki | |
| scope=row rowspan="2" | 2014
| Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U | Arrangements{{efn|"Green Greens Ver. 2", "Stage Select (Pikmin 2)"}} | |
| Groove Coaster
| "Shooting Star" | |
| scope=row rowspan="2" | 2015
| Music | |
| Chunithm: Seelisch Tact
| "The Ether" | |
| scope=row rowspan="1" | 2016
| Music with Shingo Kataoka and Hayata Takeda | |
| scope=row| 2017
| Music with Ayane Hamauzu | |
| scope=row| 2019
| Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers | "A Dream in Flight" | |
| scope=row |2020
| Music with Mitsuto Suzuki |
| scope=row rowspan="1" | 2022
| "Anne" |
| scope=row rowspan="1" | 2023
| Music with several others | |
| scope=row rowspan="2" | 2024
| Music with Mitsuto Suzuki | |
| Ember Storia
| Music |
=Anime=
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" width="auto"
! scope="col"|Year ! scope="col"|Title ! scope="col"|Role(s) ! scope="col" class="unsortable"|{{abbr|Ref.|References}} |
| scope=row |2012
| Music | {{cite web|first=Lynzee|last=Loveridge|url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2014-10-20/texas-oni-con-will-host-naruto-voice-actress-junko-takeuchi/.80145|title=Texas' Oni Con Will Host Naruto Voice Actress Junko Takeuchi|date=October 21, 2014|access-date=May 13, 2020|publisher=Anime News Network}} |
|---|
| scope=row |2014
| Paulette's Chair | Music | |
| scope=row |2015
| Music |
| scope=row |2016
| Music | |
| scope=row |2021
| "Mediator" |
References
{{Notelist}}
{{reflist}}
External links
{{Commons category|Masashi Hamauzu}}
- {{Official website|http://www.masashihamauzu.com/}} {{in lang|ja}}
- [http://monomusik.com/ Monomusik.com] {{in lang|ja}}
{{good article}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hamauzu, Masashi}}
Category:21st-century Japanese composers
Category:21st-century Japanese male musicians
Category:21st-century Japanese pianists
Category:Japanese male composers
Category:Japanese male pianists
Category:Japanese music arrangers
Category:Musicians from Munich