number1

Final Fantasy IX - Zidane's Theme
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSQjsYLUDk0

Clearly, picking #1 is a really difficult choice. But this track does it for me. You scarcely hear this track in the game, and usually when you do, you don't realize the parallels of the movements that occur in this track.

I think Zidane is an unappreciated character. A lot of people tend to write him off as a goofy, lighthearted thief who bumbles around the world without too much aim besides chasing tail. But I think if you pay close attention to the dialogue throughout the game, you can gain a great appreciation for someone who's attempting to be a stable, supportive character who gets bogged down by the world. Baku supports him, but often beats him up (growing up) or supports him in this weird semi-fatherly distant way. Steiner spends the first disc yelling at him and accusing him of being worthless. Dagger tries to rely upon him but she herself can't figure out what she wants, and thus he doubts himself around her while attempting to stay positive. Eiko tests his patience and Amarant constantly challenges him. The only person who really looks up to him is a small, clueless Black Mage (and to some degree Freya too, but more as an equal). Yet through all of this, he remains steadfast and upbeat throughout the majority of the game, and you see flavors of him getting down and frustrated (like when Dagger becomes queen, or when Baku tells him the world is devoid of treasure).

Then the Terra arc shows that he himself was a pawn for a greater purpose, and he questions what he even exists for. The steadfast rock of upbeat attitude finally crumbles during the You're Not Alone sequence, as it takes everyone in the party to rescue him from his dilemma and show him that he is in fact important to all of them, which he himself doubted for the entirety of the game up until that point (one of the coolest scenes I've ever seen in a game).

So why not You're Not Alone? That track is amazing and if I didn't choose this theme, then I'd choose that. But Zidane's Theme has this special quality that demonstrates the multiple layers of his personality. He's not just an optimistic wayward soul (the first major movement of this piece), he's also this internally sensitive and evolving being that wants the best out of him and his partners (the second movement). It's a beautiful progression, where the upbeat first movement goes up and down and plays with being quiet then booming again, and the second movement is just one of the most inspiring, fluid pieces that invokes a sense of sensitivity for Zidane & his struggles. The instrumentation is great, the pacing is great, and it just represents his optimistic yet sensitive, conflicted character so well.