25 Facts About Masashi Hamauzu

Masashi Hamauzu is a Japanese composer, pianist, and lyricist.

Masashi Hamauzu became interested in music while in kindergarten, and took piano lessons from his parents.

Masashi Hamauzu was hired by Square as a trainee, and his debut as a solo composer came the following year when he scored Chocobo's Mysterious Dungeon.

Masashi Hamauzu has collaborated with friend and fellow composer Junya Nakano on several games.

Masashi Hamauzu was the sole composer for Final Fantasy XIII.

Masashi Hamauzu has become a renowned pianist, arranging for several other composers.

In 2010, Masashi Hamauzu left Square Enix to start his own studio, MONOMUSIK.

Masashi Hamauzu developed an interest in music while in kindergarten.

Masashi Hamauzu grew up in Germany and started to receive piano and singing lessons from his parents at very young age, and when he was in high school, he composed his first original music piece.

Masashi Hamauzu enrolled in the Tokyo University of the Arts, where he joined a student ensemble as a pianist.

Masashi Hamauzu met his wife, Matsue Masashi Hamauzu, at the university, and they have two children.

For Final Fantasy VII, Masashi Hamauzu was the synthesizer programmer for the rendition of Joseph Haydn's "The Creation", and provided bass vocals in the eight-person chorus for "One-Winged Angel".

In 1999, Masashi Hamauzu was assigned with scoring SaGa Frontier 2.

Masashi Hamauzu spent some time conforming to the music Kenji Ito had established for the series before realizing that he wanted to use his own unique style.

Masashi Hamauzu released Piano Pieces "SF2" ~ Rhapsody on a Theme of SaGa Frontier 2, an arranged album featuring piano pieces of the game's music.

In 2002, Masashi Hamauzu composed the music for Unlimited Saga, a game that would be received negatively by critics due to a variety of gameplay issues.

Masashi Hamauzu composed the highly anticipated but critically unsuccessful Final Fantasy VII follow-up, Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII, in 2006.

Masashi Hamauzu released a solo album, Vielen Dank, in 2007 after recording it in Munich, Germany.

At the 2006 E3 event, a Square Enix press conference revealed that Masashi Hamauzu would be returning to the Final Fantasy series, scoring Final Fantasy XIII.

Masashi Hamauzu went on to form his own studio, Monomusik, which he described as a personal studio that did not include any other composers.

Masashi Hamauzu contributed arrangements to the Across the Worlds ~ Chrono Cross Wayo Piano Collection album alongside Akio Noguchi and Mariam Abounnasr.

Masashi Hamauzu composes music in a wide variety of styles, often using multiple styles throughout the various pieces of a soundtrack.

Masashi Hamauzu mostly creates classical and ambient music, and uses the piano predominantly as an instrument.

Masashi Hamauzu frequently uses dissonance to provide an atmospheric effect.

Masashi Hamauzu cites animation composers Hiroshi Miyagawa and Ryuichi Sakamoto of Yellow Magic Orchestra and his father as major musical influences.