Wataru Ishibashi (石橋渡) born on October 25, 1974, was a composer and arranger that worked at Falcom. He joined the company in 1998 and left in 2006. He passed away on February 16, 2014.
Ishibashi is best known for being the main creative mind behind the soundtracks for Zwei!!, Ys VI, Trails in the Sky FC and Gurumin. As an 18-year-old student, he used to send his music demos between 1992 and 1995 to the MSX Fan Magazine under the alias of "みそねこ" (misoneko). In 1998, he officially became a member of Sound Team jdk, and he would turn out to be a key composer for supporting and developing the Falcom sound in the early-to-mid 2000s. After resigning from Falcom, he became a member of SuperSweep for two years.
His mastery of the fundamentals of music and his intrinsic understanding of the "role" instruments play in a song allowed him to create absolutely marvelous tunes. The mark of an Ishibashi song usually comes down to highly complex instrumental layering, beautiful incorporation of a large swath of percussion instruments all at once, mixed together with a delightful contextual flavor that immediately evokes emotions that perfectly fit the scene in a game. His music is often considered a defining element of the "Falcom Sound", with extremely recognizable masterpieces such as "The Merciless Savior", "Silver Will", and "Hollow Light of the Sealed Land" being just a few of his top-class works.
While contributing to Falcom, Ishibashi produced his own doujin/independent albums under the pseudonym of "みらゐ" (mirawi), until he unfortunately passed away at the age of 39 on February 16, 2014. His blending of techno/ambient elements and overall talent definitely left an impact on Falcom.
"I want to make music that makes people feel better." - Wataru Ishibashi (1974-2014)
Works in the series[]
| Game | Ishibashi Role(s) |
|---|---|
| Ys Eternal | Arranger |
| Ys II Eternal | Arranger |
| Ys I & II Complete | Arranger |
| Ys VI: The Ark of Napishtim | Composer & Arranger |
Gallery[]
