The Black Mages were formed in Spring 2003, dedicated to arranging and performing Final Fantasy action themes. They have six regular members ? guitarists Tsuyoshi Sekito and Michio Okamiya, keyboardist Kenichiro Fukui, organist Nobuo Uematsu, bass guitarist Keiji Kawamori, and drummer Arata Hanyuda. Guest vocalists Tomoaki Watanabe and Kazco Hamano have also worked with them.

They have released three studio albums to date ? The Black Mages, actually created entirely by band founders Sekito and Fukui, The Black Mages II ~The Skies Above~ and The Black Mages III: Darkness and Starlight. They have performed the material of these albums at several concerts in Japan released in DVD format.

In addition, The Black Mages have made appearances on the Dark Chronicle Premium Arrange, Final Fantasy III Original Soundtrack, More Friends - Music from Final Fantasy, Voices - Music from Final Fantasy, and Extra: Hyper Game Music Event 2007. The band are phenomenally popular in Japan and well-known among gamers of the West.

However, in August 2010 it was announced that The Black Mages would break up. Nobuo Uematsu will continue to perform rock arrangements of his music with his new project dubbed Earthbound Papas.
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Sources:
http://www.squareenixmusic.com/companies/blackmages/index.shtml
http://squareenixmusic.com/musicnews2.php?subaction=showfull&id=1281190773&archive=&start_from=&ucat=2&