One-Winged Angel
From Final Fantasy Wiki
| "One-Winged Angel" | |
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"One-Winged Angel" (片翼の天使 "Katayoku no Tenshi") is the name of Sephiroth's theme in all his appearances throughout the Final Fantasy series. The song originally appeared at the end of Final Fantasy VII as the final boss theme, played during the battle with Safer∙Sephiroth. The song's name refers to Safer∙Sephiroth, who has six white wings and a grotesque black wing where his right arm should be.
The song is one of the most recognized tracks in the series, unseating what was originally Sephiroth's theme, "Those Chosen by the Planet". To that extent, the song and its title have become synonymous with Sephiroth, and One-Winged Angel has been used not only as the name of the song, but as a title for Sephiroth himself. One-Winged Angel has been remixed numerous times for different games in which he is featured, and to draw back to the appearance of Safer∙Sephiroth, Sephiroth is now commonly shown with a black wing extending from his right shoulder.
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[edit] Lyrics
The verses for the Reunion Tracks version were taken from the medieval poetry compilation Carmina Burana.
[edit] LatinCHORUS REPEAT CHORUS
REPEAT CHORUS Veni, veni, venias, Veni, veni, venias, Gloriosa Sephiroth |
[edit] English translationCHORUS REPEAT CHORUS Fate - monstrous REPEAT CHORUS Come, come, O come, Come, come, O come, Glorious Sephiroth |
[edit] Other Versions
[edit] Final Fantasy VII: Reunion Tracks
"One-Winged Angel" was included as an orchestrated rearrangement in the album Final Fantasy VII: Reunion Tracks.
[edit] Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-
| The World's Enemy | |
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An arrangement of the song titled "The World's Enemy", plays during a flashback sequence where Sephiroth battles Genesis Rhapsodos, and the Sephiroth boss battle in Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII- along with "Controlling the Iron Beast". Compared to the original song, this arrangement features a shorter introduction leading into the vocals much earlier, and is shorter as a whole.
An interesting note is that this remix focuses on the orchestral elements of the song, providing a sharp contrast between it and Genesis' theme, the similarly titled "A Beating Black Wing" which focuses on rock elements.
[edit] Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children
| Advent: One-Winged Angel | |
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"One-Winged Angel" was remixed in the film Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children for the final battle between Cloud and Sephiroth. This remix is titled "Advent: One-Winged Angel" ("Sarin: Katayoku no Tenshi"), and was meant to be the main focus of the film's soundtrack. The original, orchestral version from the Final Fantasy VII soundtrack was loaded into a computer, with rock instruments playing over it, and the overall tempo increased, to give the song a more intense feel than the original. In Advent Children Complete, the remix is extended slightly to accommodate the longer fight scene between Cloud and Sephiroth.
In the commentary for Advent Children, Nobuo Uematsu comments that the previous orchestration never really quite felt right to him and, by contrast, the combination of orchestra and metal sounds seemed to be what the piece really required all along. Uematsu also noted various rock bands that had performed their songs with an orchestra, and failed, and stated that because "One-Winged Angel" was written for neither an orchestra or a rock band, the two styles ending up meshing together well for the song's remix.
The lyrics of the Advent Children version were completely different from those of the Reunion Tracks. There is a dispute concerning the official translation of the Latin lyrics and another, more literal translation of the first and last stanzas. Whether or not the official translation of the song conveys the same message as its literal translation is entirely a matter of opinion.
[edit] Lyrics
[edit] LatinNoli manere, manere in memoria Saevam iram, iram et dolorem Ferum terribile, terribile fatum Noli manere, manere in memoria Veni, mi fili. Veni, mi fili Noli manere in memoria Mi fili, veni, veni, veni, mi fili Mi fili, veni, veni, veni, mi fili Sephiroth, Sephiroth |
[edit] Official translationWon't remain, remain in memory Raging anger, anger and misery Fierce terror, fierce fate Won't remain, remain in memory Come, my son. Come, my son Won't remain in memory My son, come, come, come, my son My son, come, come, come, my son Sephiroth, Sephiroth |
[edit] Literal Translation[1]
- Don't remain, remain in memory
- Don't remain, remain in memory
- Sephiroth, Sephiroth
- Fierce anger, anger and pain
- Fierce anger, anger and pain
- Sephiroth, Sephiroth
- Wild, terrible, terrible fate
- Don't remain, remain in memory
- Don't remain, remain in memory
- Sephiroth, Sephiroth
- Come, my son. Come my son
- Come here, give me death once more
- Come, my son. Come my son
- Come here, give me...
- Don't
- Remain
- In memory
- Fierce
- Anger
- And pain
- Wild
- Terrible
- Fate
- That [Man]
- Once again
- Will come
- My son, come, come, come, my son
- My son, come, come, come, my son
- My son, come, come, come, my son
- My son, come, come, come, my son
- My son, come, come, come, my son
- He who invited death[2]
- My son, come, come, come, my son
- [Was] born with an ill-fated punishment
- My son, come, come, come, my son
- Don't call his name
- My son, come, come, come, my son
- That [Man] will come again
- Sephiroth
- Sephiroth
[edit] Dissidia Final Fantasy
Dissidia features the arranged version of "One Winged-Angel" from the Final Fantasy VII: Reunion Tracks album as a battle theme, and may be heard whenever a story battle occurs in the Northern Crater. It can also be the default choice for fights against Sephiroth or Cloud.
[edit] Kingdom Hearts series
One-Winged Angel was remixed twice for the series, both times for the boss battles with Sephiroth in Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts II, as well as playing during his fights with Cloud in cutscenes. The two remixes of the theme both feature a much shorter intro, leading almost immediately into the Latin vocals, and the vocals as a whole are more prominent than in the original version.
[edit] Trivia
- The final form of Sephiroth, its name and the overall tone of its leitmotif bear notable elements that seem to make reference to Alexander Pushkin's poem The Prophet:
- An angel with three pairs of wings
- Arrived to me at cross of lands;
- [...]
- He touched my ears in movement, single,
- And they were filled with noise and jingle:
- I heard a shuddering of heavens,
Seraphs are sometimes depicted as angels with three pairs of wings, arranged in the same manner of Safer∙Sephiroth.
[edit] See Also
- "Kurayaminokumo"
- "Zeromus"
- "Neo Exdeath"
- "Dancing Mad"
- "The Extreme"
- "Grand Cross"
- "Decisive Battle"
- "The Battle for Freedom"
[edit] References
- ↑ Tread at the WordReference forums
- ↑ Tread at the WordReference forums
[edit] External Links
- Alexander Pushkin's The Prophet (Full text)

