Beauty, as they say, is in the eye of the beholder. In the case of Final Fantasy VI Grand Finale, whether or not you find that beauty in the art of Yoshitaka Amano - which graces both covers of the CD as well as a number of the interior pages - or in the art of Nobuo Uematsu's compositions, there is little argument to be had over the existence of beauty therein.
One of the most common problems in orchestrated game music is a lack of 'fullness' to be found in it. A good portion of the time it's simply a problem of converting only the synthesized notes from the game into symphonic notes for an orchestra; when this kind of music is held up against classical, new age, or even motion picture music, it can become immediately and blatantly obvious that the 'background' sounds an orchestra is designed to showcase are forgotten in this simple cross over of styles.
This soundtrack suffers from none of that. Although every track will be immediately recognizable to anyone already familiar with the Final Fantasy VI Original Soundtrack, simply hearing the fine details added to the arrangements of each tune on this CD should be more than enough to separate it from the general clutter of orchestral game music. It also features some of Uematsu's trademark woodwinds in true-to-the-original detail, which is very nice.
All in all, the music contained on these CDs is nothing short of spectacular. Using several of the strong character themes from the game, this symphony is capable of making you relive the most emotional moments of your adventure; from the deeply melancholic Gau's Theme to the whimsically chaotic Kefka's Theme, for not a single moment of this aural masterpiece will you be capable of forgetting your hatred and your sorrow.
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