Back to the Classic genre! Last year, crystalsuicune pointed out this song as the nastiest tune in Taiko... Do you already recognize it?
From the New World (新世界より) Dvorak --- Old ---| Version |  |  |  |  / |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Taiko PS2 1 | x5 (209) | x5 (274) | x3 (274) (video) | |
| Taiko 4 | x5 (209) | x5 (274) | x1 (274) | |
| Taiko 5 | x5 (209) | x5 (274) | x5 (364) | x4 (364) |
Taiko 4, 5, Taiko PS2 1, CD Blue
152~172
none
clsn(note: Taiko 5's Muzukashii notechart is identical to Donderful)
From the New World (新世界より) Dvorak --- New ---| Version | | | | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Taiko DS 2, Taiko Wii 3 | x4 (162) | x5 (210) | x6 (364/303/243) | x6 (500) |
| Taiko + | x4 (162) | x5 (210) | x6 (364/303/243) | x7 (500) |
Taiko DS 2, Taiko Wii 3, Taiko + 152~172 none clsnFeatured in the first Taiko console game ever made, this classical track is an extract from Symphony No. 9 in E Minor "From the New World" (also known as "New World Symphony"), created by Czech composer Antonín Leopold Dvořák (1841-1904). The symphony was commissioned by the New York Philharmonic, and premiered on December 16, 1893, at Carnegie Hall.
During his visit to United States, Dvořák gained interest in the New World's musical tradition: according to the Czech composer, the beautiful themes from the American background, founded by Native American music and African-American spirituals, might be the base of a serious and original school of composition. This unique musical background gave Dvorak the inspiration for his most popular symphony; the composer himself announced this in an article for the New York Herald newspaper:
"I have simply written original themes embodying the peculiarities of the Indian music, and, using these themes as subjects, have developed them with all the resources of modern rhythms, counterpoint, and orchestral colour."
Indeed, From the New World's four movements feature the vibes of romantic music combined with the inspired sounds of the New World, following several tempo markings. This symphony is scored for an orchestra of percussions (timpani, triangles, strings, cymbals) and a wide selection of wind instruments (flutes, oboes, clarinets, bassoons, trumpets and so on). Together with Beethoven's Fifth and Schubert's Seventh symphonies (not in Taiko), From the New World is well known as one of the 'three big symphonies' of Taiko.
What we have in Taiko is an extract from the fourth movement, Allegro con fuoco, originally about 11 minutes long and marked common time (1/16), both in E minor and E major. Older arcade players might remember this song by a slightly different name, 'Classic From the New World' (クラシック 新世界より), when the Classic genre was still in its fledgling year with only two songs and needed that extra word as a label. The notechart of From the New World changed heavily as it progressed, with three different versions. Taiko 4 and PS2's debut is widely remembered as the birthplace of the first (and only) 1-star Oni song in the Classic genre (though on PS2 it has 3 stars), while Taiko 5's is slightly different, but is also the last arcade to feature the song.
6* on the current Oni notechart is a giant misnomer; together with the annoying bits from the old notechart, sudden changes from 1/16 to 1/12 and then back again in one continuous stream is surely not something that is ever seen in a mid-tier Oni song. Together with the quick succession of clusters later on in the song, and you have a 6* which would easily fit into 8*. That is rectified to some extent in its November 2013 addition to iOS Taiko Plus, where the rating is finally raised to 7* in the new difficulty standard.
