About
|
What is ZREO?
ZREO stands for Zelda Reorchestrated. It is our goal to transcribe the musical masterpieces that you have heard in the greatest video game series ever created: The Legend of Zelda! Our goal is to give each and every song from The Legend of Zelda series a realistic and atmospheric sound with the quality that you would expect from such film composers as John Williams, Howard Shore, and James Horner. We don't look to seek profit or fame. This is merely our own form of artistic expression that stems from The Legend of Zelda. If it weren't for Zelda, ZREO wouldn't exist. So we are grateful to have such a legendary video game series that can pull so much inspiration out of us.
When did this project first begin? ZREO began in October of 2004.
ZREO started with FireGS himself. His musical ability, inspiration from Zelda, and soulful determination allowed him to give birth to ZREO. From there, everything has just accumulated. Like a snowball rolling down a snowy mountain, ZREO grabbed the attention, and touched the hearts of the Zelda community. It was clear that ZREO was a project never seen before. The majority of the staff here at ZREO stepped on board to help lead ZREO to success because they themselves were inspired by FireGS's talent and persistence.
What or who inspires you to do this? Well, besides the video games them self, Koji Kondo, the man himself behind this legendary music, is our main source of inspiration. Of course, we can not forget the guy who invented Zelda in the first place, Shigeru Miyamoto. His creative mastermind behind the series is so absolutely astounding and we only aim to musically recreate what his mind has accomplished over the last twenty years. Finally, John Williams, one of the leading composers in the film industry, is an inspiration for the sound we create.
No. The ZREO team uses high-end sequencer synthesizers to transcribe the sounds of legend. From there, the MIDI's created by our musical team are sent through sound libraries, where the computerized sounds are transformed into very realistic and believable orchestrated masterpieces that are must-haves for any Zelda fan!
Are the MIDI versions available for download? No. The goal of ZREO is to realistically recreate the music from The Legend of Zelda in the most believable manner. MIDI format simply does not support the realistic sound we are trying to achieve.
ZREO shut down? What was that all about? It was very unfortunate that ZREO shut down on January 1, 2006, mostly due to a poor financial situation. FireGS had to make the dark and difficult decision to discontinue the ZREO project. It left behind a very devastated, but loyal fan base.
Before its demise, ZREO was only fourteen months old. During that time, ZREO had successfully reorchestrated 71+ songs, achieved over 71,000 home page hits, built a popular MySpace music profile with over 600 friends, had established an online radio station, attracted a very loyal fan base, maintained an active forum community, and developed a dedicated staff. As with any significant project of this sheer size, it is needless to say that ZREO attracted quite a bit of attention, not just from the Zelda community, but from MySpace users and music fans not associated with The Legend of Zelda.
Great things come with a price. ZREO is not cheap to maintain. It costs money, time, and lots and lots of dedication from its staff. FireGS has achieved the financial stability to create new music, the inspiration from The Legend of Zelda is enduring, and the dedication of the ZREO staff never really went away. Call it fate, but ZREO returned because we have a common love: Zelda music.
ZREO isn't going to shut down again, is it? With the support of the greater Zelda community, the staff's persistent dedication that pierced through the void of ZREO's non-existence, and FireGS's financial stability, ZREO won't be going anywhere. We are here for the long haul. HTLOZ, the sister-site that supports our forums, had kept the ZREO project alive during our void by preserving the music we had created. This gave us hope that one day we would return. Now that we have, HTLOZ is still in favor of our project and lends us the extra support and persistent stability needed for maintaining our project. Just take a look around the site and you will see how committed we are to staying on the web and giving your eyes and ears the satisfaction they have come to expect from ZREO.
Where is the ZREO MySpace profile? Will there be new one? The ZREO MySpace profile was deleted by MySpace administration for unknown reasons. We have since then tried to recreate the profile, but with no success. Instead, we have made a ZREO MySpace Group and a ZREO Facebook Group (search for ZREO in the Facebook search box) for your enjoyment.
Along with our December 2006 launch, FireGS increased ZREO's quality standards in order to achieve the best possible sound. You will notice a huge increase in quality from older tracks produced in 2004 and 2005, and ones released now. That is because FireGS's musical ability has improved immensely. Since some previously released tracks do not satisfy the new ZREO quality standards, certain songs will be reprized to meet the new ZREO standard. These tracks will be formally known as 'REDUX tracks' and will be distinguishable from their older versions by having the word "REDUX" in their track name.
How can I talk with the ZREO Staff? The ZREO forums are the best way to interact and chat with the ZREO members. If you wish to contact them personally, visit their blogs or the contact page.
Who designed the new site layout? Master of Zelda's artistic direction combined with F3's talented web design skills allowed ZREO to achieve a fresh, new look to accompany its return. You can expect the same quality to continue as ZREO ages gracefully into its unknown and mysterious destiny.
What do you use to create the ZREO CD covers and wallpapers? The 2004 and 2005 CD covers were created by Master of Zelda, using a program application specifically made for graphics appearing on the web, Macromedia Fireworks MX. This program is similar to, but different from, Adobe Photoshop in the way it exports images for use on the web. It consistently achieves high quality images while maintaining low file sizes for maximum load times online. The newest CD covers and new set of wallpapers were created with a new visual style in mind. With FireGS's music as a main source of inspiration, Master of Zelda set out to achieve a visual accomplishment that would perfectly accent ZREO's musical achievements. They were created with an updated program, called Macromedia Fireworks MX 2004.
Theres too much reverb on this track! We get this a lot. Here we can explain a few things. First of which, we agree, in some songs, there is too much reverb, however, we would like to point out that the songs we are talking about specifically were made over four years ago, when the author "didn't have much of a concept of how little, or much, verb to use". Currently, we try our best when it comes to authentic classical environments. Something many people aren't aware of, is the difference between reverb and echo, and the recording styles between classical music and movie scores. Firstly, on the difference between reverb an echo. Echo, quite simply, is the persistence of a sound after its source has stopped. In audio signal processing and acoustics, an echo (plural echoes) is a reflection of sound, arriving at the listener some time after the direct sound. A true echo is a single reflection of the sound source. The time delay is the extra distance divided by the speed of sound. For example, if you yell into a cave, you'll hear yourself repeated over and over until its gone. Reverb (short for reverberation), however, is the acoustic environment that surrounds a sound. Natural reverb exists everywhere. Whether the space being described is a bathroom or a gymnasium, music hall, or the inside of a soda can, the essential characteristics remain the same. Reverb is composed of a series of tightly-spaced echoes. The number of echoes and the way that they decay play a major role in shaping the sound that you hear. Many other factors influence the sound of a reverberant space. These include the dimensions of the actual space (length, width, and height), the construction of the space (such as whether the walls are hard or soft and whether the floor is carpeted), and diffusion (what the sound bounces off of). Basically, the idea behind adding reverb to the music we create, is that it literally changes the sound of the samples we use. Without any reverb, it would sound synthetic, and with too much, sounds like mush, and no distinction. I'd like to now point out the differences between movie score recordings and classic music recordings, and their environments. Movie scores are recorded in either scoring stages, or silent stages. Each instrument section is mic'd at a close proximity to the instruments, to capture a most direct , clear sound. The music for movies is recorded and mixed then rather dry, because the music will have to stand out and stand up against the sound effects, and dialogue of the movie. In this respect, reverb is intentionally not wanted, nor missed. Sound stages are generally small, and acoustically treated for the best sound capture possible. Below shows a typical sound stage for movie recording.
On the reverse, classical music is generally recorded in medium to large sized auditoriums, music halls, and music chambers. These venues are typically larger than scoring stages. When classical music is played in these grand halls, the sound is totally different, and will change, depending on your location inside the hall, which is the reason they are chosen for classical work. Classical orchestras are rarely mic'd by instrument section, but rather by stage and hall location. They usually have an array of mics set up in three or so general locations, the Close-to position, closest to the instruments and players, the Stage position, located either at the front of the stage, or the first few rows in the audience, and then a Far, or Surround position, at the back of the hall. All three positions are recorded at the same time, giving the sound engineer multiple ways to mix the three recordings. A diagram is shown below.
Most currently, since the reopening of Z.R.E.O., we take special care for authenticity, and unlike many, we use all three types mic positions for our music, and mix them accordingly. There really is no right or wrong way. The only way to tell, is to listen to many classical recordings, and get an idea of how its done. The Z.R.E.O. Team does not make it's music and website for awards, we want to remind you. We do it for the sheer love if it. That said, Zelda Reorchestrated has proudly taken home the Exploding Deku Nut.net's Golden Deku Nut for "Most Unique Site", both in 2005, and recently in 2007. Some say we would have also won in 2006, had we not shut down. We will see in 2008. We would like to thank everyone who voted for us, and for those who have stuck it out through the years with us. Thanks a million.
There are many ways you can help the Z.R.E.O. team! First of which, the first mode of help, which has a direct effect on the website, is donating to the project via Paypal. Please visit our Donation page for more details. Second, tell your friends about the site and invite them, the more the merrier. Lastly, and most importantly,your participation on the site and forum. |
