ReMix:Final Fantasy V "The Wander" 4:29

One word: AMAZING.

RiverSound's contribution to Final Fantasy V: The Fabled Warriors ~II. WATER~ was a highlight among highlights on the album, pairing Celtic folk with cinematic atmosphere & bringing the whole thing to glorious life via some passionate, expressive performances:

"Be it coincidence, be it fate - when I first contacted Shariq about a song I had made with the third part of the Fabled Warriors, FIRE, in mind, he mentioned he also needed someone to cover the Summoner-theme for WATER. I immediately saw potential in arranging it in Celtic style, something I've always wanted to try. With that in mind, I chose the Merged World theme as the source; its eerie and otherworldly atmosphere seemed to match the theme of Summoner like a glove.

So what set out as a plain and simple Celtic arrangement eventually grew into progressive, orchestrated Celtic-folk complete with live accordion, guitars, melodica, tin whistle, mandolin and violin -- the most instruments I have ever used in a single song. I think they all contribute nicely to the mystical and magical elements of the Summoner.

To close the song out, I wanted something epic: A bombastic Polska section. It's a traditional Scandinavian family of music and I'm a huge fan of it. I was fortunate enough to get a violin virtuoso friend of mine to play the part and the awesomeness that ensued was overwhelming - you just gotta love live violin mastery. Many thanks to him and my other friends who helped me along the way. To me, creating awesome music is not a 1-man project, but a collaboration of many talented people.

The name of the song refers not only to the summoned creatures who must undertake a journey through worlds to aid the Summoner in battle, but also the musical variety and development from warm and subtle acoustic beginnings to orchestrated and bombastic climax.

Hope you enjoy my most ambitious piece of music to date."

Ambition certainly resulted in achievement, in this instance, as Markus put together a piece full of heart & soul which not only tells a story, but spans from intimate to epic in just under four and a half minutes; no small feat. Album director Shariq "DarkeSword" Ansari writes:

"Markus came out of nowhere for me; the guy PMed me begging to be on the next volume of The Fabled Warriors after WIND came out. Usually, I'm wary of relative unknowns cold-calling me about album participation, but once he sent me a sample of his work, the tables were turned and I was begging the guy to be on the album.

The idea behind the Summoner's theme was to do something big and sweeping, suggesting another place where the summoned originate. Markus KILLED it on this track. I love Celtic music, but I never imagined we'd get something so organic and beautiful on the album. The main part of the arrangement is lyrically gorgeous, but then he closes it out with a wonderful rhythmic section. Fantastic work."

Can't agree more; I love the structure of this arrangement, the performances are exquisite, the whole thing somehow feels simultaneously familiar & fresh, and the overarching concept is fully realized. Markus debuted with another Celtic FF album track earlier this year, and in both cases he made the albums he contributed to that much stronger. Excellent work; highly recommended.