Kohji Kondo's early work was deffinately his best. He was a pioneer with the
original Zelda game back in the 80's. Then he topped himself on the SNES
with the outstanding Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. The Legend of
Zelda Sound & Drama brings those to outstanding soundtracks together in one
package. Plus, it adds a little something extra to make this collection even
more worthwhile.
One part of this soundtrack takes you for a trip in the wayback machine. It
contains, in all it's 8-bit glory, the soundtrack of the original Legend of
Zelda. Nothing has been changed, it is all straight from the 1986 game. The
strange thing is it is still pleasant to listen to. Although short, it
contains what may be the most recognizable song this side of Super Mario
Bros. in the "Overworld" theme. This is where it all began. Although
containing many other short fanfares for moments such as rescuing Princess
Zelda, getting a Triforce piece, and of course dying, the only other real
songs of substance is the suspenseful "Underworld" and "Death Mountain"
pieces. All of these pieces are sure to bring back memories for those who
took up the quest to find Zelda, for the first time.
The second part of the collection contains the soundtrack for Legend of
Zelda: A Link to the Past. There is a night and day difference in sound
quality between the 1993 Link to the Past and the 1986 Legend of Zelda. A
Link to the Past has an actual deep orchestral sound to it, and contains the
best music of all the Zelda games. It begins with the "Title" fanfare and
the "Overworld" theme hasn't sounded this good before, or even after A Link
to the Past. The power of the SNES' music can really be felt in the
beautiful "Kakariko Village," and "Dark Overworld" sounds as great now as it
did back then. A piece that could overshadow them all is "Hyrule Castle." It
pushes the sound capabilities of the SNES and is composed beautifully. The
Sound and the Drama also contains the basis for a few pieces that have been
used in later parts of the Zelda series. Pieces such as "The Goddess
Appears" which has been used as the fairy theme in every game since A Link
to the Past. Even the "Ending Theme" shows the musical mastery of Kohjui
Konda as it serves as a great ending to one of the best soundtracks of all
time.
Now, all of that would make this collection well worth the money. However,
Kohji Kondo with the help of Masumi Ito and Yoshiyuki Ito, added a bonus to
Sound and the Drama that brings the collection to a whole new level. They
made arranged versions of several of the best songs from the Link to the
Past soundtrack. Imagine if you will what the pieces would sound like if it
where re-made for the Playstation. Not orchestrated, but the sound quality
has been enhanced and the endings tweaked somewhat to make them more stand
alone pieces rather than gameplay pieces. The arranged songs include:
Overworld, Hyrule Castle, Forest Theme, Dark Overworld, The Goddess Appears,
and Kakriko Village. All of them are amazing, especially the power pieces
from the original Link to the Past soundtrack. Those being "Overworld,"
"Dark Overworld," and "Hyrule Castle."
The Legend of Zelda is one of the most memorable games of all time,
containing some of the most memorable music of all time. It is great that
they put the first and the greatest into a single collection, with the
arraged pieces as the icing on the cake. This is a must have for any Zelda
fan, or maybe even those that didn't get to expierience the early Zelda
games and just love great game music. A Link to the Past may even rival
Final Fantasy VI for the best music on the SNES.
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