Grand Accord

The Grand Accord is an event where, according to The Legend of the First Song, the leaders of each kingdom, also known as the Maestros of Melody, laid the foundations of the current Geo-political state of Orchestria. It is credited with bringing in a period of peace that has not been replicated since the first Stanza. It has many different versions being told across Orchestria. This occurred due to the lack of documentation from the first Stanza and regional rulers have promoted the use of their preferred version to justify their actions. The exact date of this event is unknown but it is hypothesized that is occurred around 1S 40.

## Different Versions

The most popular recounts of The Grand Accord vary depending on the area of Orchestria you are in.

#### String Kingdom

In the String Kingdom, the prevailing culture is one of unity. This is reflected in their version of the event. This version tells of a grand meeting between all of the Maestros of Melody, where the borders of kingdoms were decided and everyone swore to never fight a war with each other. According to this version, this peace was upheld for many generations and Orchestria prospered. Who broke the peace is unknown due to it changing along side the String Kingdom's enemies. This is seen during the second Stanza. At this time, the most popular telling was that the Percussion Kingdom broke the peace. It was popular due to King Snare I's long invasion of string lands. However, after King Snare VI's peace treaty, public opinion changed and the rising Brass Empire became the one to break the peace, due to their increasingly antagonistic actions. This culminated with the subjugation of the Woodwind Kingdom, now known as the Woodwind State, and the Tuba Wars.

This is the most popular version of the event due to the influence of String culture, which emphasizes unity. It is not uncommon to hear this version of the event when far away from String lands. The String version became even more popular among the masses due to the Tuba wars and the popular belief that Orchestria should unite against the Brass Empire but this belief is being suppressed by the kings of all of the kingdoms except the String Kingdom, this is because they fear any increase of String soft power would lead to a repeat of the war that ended the second Stanza.

#### Percussion Kingdom

The Percussion Kingdom's version of the event is similar to the String Kingdom's. In this version, the leader's of Orchestria united willingly under a single percussion Maestro of Melody but willingly had limitations on their power. Every law had to be passed by a meeting of nobles. The exact instrument of the Maestro is subject to change along with dynasties, since the current dynasty uses it as evidence of their legitimacy.

This differs from the String Kingdom's version because Orchestria's rulers united into one kingdom, whereas in the String version of the story each instrument family had their own kingdom. This reflects the percussion people's attitude towards other kingdoms and towards unchecked power.

#### Brass Empire

The Brass Empire's version of the event is by far the most different and alien compared to the other versions. In this version, Orchestria was unified under a brass Maestro of Melody, via a brutal conquest. The exact identity of this Maestro is never specified in the telling. According to this version, the Maestro brought law and order to the then uncivilized lands and taught the people the first songs.

It is said that this Maestro had a powerful archmage that lengthened their lifespan, so they can continue to rule Orchestria, but when this archmage was assassinated, his magic could no longer heal the Maestro and so he passed soon after. This sudden loss of leadership caused unrest in the empire and soon it was torn apart by rebellions.

This telling mirrors brass culture almost perfectly. It clearly shows the brass people's militarism and paranoia about other instruments. This version has also been used as justification for the recent Tuba wars.

This version is almost unique to the Brass Empire and is almost never told outside of it, in fact it is often seen as Brass propaganda and is wholeheartedly rejected by almost all non-Brass people. Although it is starting to grow in the former Woodwind Kingdom.

#### Woodwind State

The Woodwind State's version was not too dissimilar to the Brass Empire's version, but it focuses on the economic aspect after the conquest instead of the law and order. According to this version, the Maestro was a Woodwind instrument and also encouraged economic growth above all else.

Unfortunately, since the Brass conquest of the area, this version has slowly been losing favor with the people of the former Woodwind Kingdom.

#### Key Kingdom

The Key Kingdom used to have it's own version of the event, but this has long since been forgotten due to the influence and assistance of the String Kingdom and the Percussion Kingdom.