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London Philharmonic Orchestra goes cover band with tribute to video game themes
If you've ever caught yourself humming the Angry Birds theme song, then perhaps you should check out tonight's London Philharmonic Orchestra's video game tribute concert. The group will play more than 20 songs made famous by games like Tetris, Zelda, Call of Duty and of course, Mario Bros., as part of London's annual music festival. When asked to create the ultimate gaming remix, composer and arranger Andrew Skeet vowed to keep it old school, while giving folks the best bits of music. It's not the first time someone's paid tribute to these hits, and we're hoping it's not the last. Check out the full setlist and video after the break.
Nick Jonas is Wizard101's mystery composer
The cat is out of the bag and the teenage girls are out of their minds: Wizard101 has announced that Nick Jonas of the Jonas Brothers is the "mystery composer" whom we've been trying to guess for the past couple of weeks. Jonas both wrote and produced the soundtrack for Wizard101's latest world of Wintertusk, which includes seven pieces of music. Apparently, the songwriter was psyched to be a part of a video game for the first time: "This was a first for me. I never produced or wrote music for a game or in this case, a whole world before. So I jumped at the chance to work with KingsIsle. It was very cool to be part of a project that allowed me to help create the mood for Wintertusk and interact with an audience in an entirely new way." Players can even meet Nick Jonas -- well, his virtual equivalent -- in the game and watch as his character conducts an orchestra. The world of Wintertusk with all of its "cool" music is currently open for all to experience.
Golden State Pops Orchestra exhibits art of World of Warcraft
If you're going to be around the San Pedro, California, area between April 7-9, the Golden State Pops Orchestra is proud to announce the Art of World of Warcraft, a showing of WoW artwork provided by Blizzard. The show will be open during the San Pedro First Thursday Walk as well as Saturday the 9th. WoW art exhibits are really awesome, especially when you get to see the high-quality prints of the game's concept art. It's a lot of fun. Check out all of the details on the Golden State Pops Orchestra website.
Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra gets in the video game concert game
Hey, Video Games Live isn't the only contender in the market for orchestral performances of ludological accompaniment, you know. The Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra -- for those unfamiliar with their Midwest geography, that's Dayton, Ohio -- is putting together a game-themed show, aptly titled PLAY.
Zelda Reorchestrated seeking donations for 'Twilight Symphony'
The talented musicians from Zelda Reorchestrated are asking the gaming community for a bit of help in realizing their most ambitious project to date: a two-and-a-half-hour, 40-track compilation of orchestral pieces inspired by the score for Twilight Princess. The group needs a full-sized choir to lend its vocal talents on some of the songs, but unfortunately, hiring a full-sized choir is a super expensive thing to do. You can find out more details about the project, and make a helpful contribution, over on the ZREO Kickstarter page. There's some sweet incentives for donors too, including a personal arrangement of your favorite Nintendo theme song. (We'll take the ending theme to Little Nemo, thanks.)
Breakfast Topic: What's your favorite piece of music in WoW?
This Breakfast Topic has been brought to you by Seed, the Aol guest writer program that brings your words to WoW Insider's pages. World of Warcraft is a game with great sound and great sound design. Players might not always notice it, but for those of us who play with the music on, these themes can really set the tone for the game. Ashenvale music never fails to remind me of my first foray into the zone; after Darkshore, which was a bit bleak, my baby druid stepped into Ashenvale and it seemed like all of Azeroth opened up, wide and colorful and filled with swelling orchestral tracks. Though the game world seems much smaller to me now, I still remember that moment whenever I hear the Ashenvale theme. My favorite piece of WoW music, however, has got to be the one in Mulgore. I play mainly Alliance, so I don't go there often, but every time I visit the zone for the Darkmoon Faire or head to Thunder Bluff for some holiday achievement, I'm struck by the beauty and tranquility of the Mulgore music. It really fits the environment, and it never fails to relax me when I fly through. The slow, soft yearning reminds me of the Tauren people and their culture, while the undercurrent of tension hints at the conflict brewing in the world outside that secluded valley. What's your favorite piece of WoW music? Does it remind you of a particular time or a nostalgic feeling, or is it the pure beauty of the composition that you admire? When do you feel the WoW music is at its most epic?
Video Games Live announces 42 North American shows
If you're a resident of the great continent of North America, you don't have much of a reason for not seeing a Video Games Live performance during the next few months. The orchestra recently announced 42 shows across America, Mexico and Canada, covering both coasts -- and quite a few fly-over states as well. (H-town WV, represent!) Check out the full list of upcoming concerts after the jump! Update: The Kansas City, Mo. show has been canceled. [Thanks for the heads-up Courtney!]
Video Games Live: Level 2 hitting Blu-ray and DVD October 19
If you're looking for a new addition for the rack you keep on your entertainment center which specifically houses your concert DVDs, we've got a great suggestion for a box that'll look great between "Rush in Rio" and Dixie Chicks' "Top of the World Tour: Live." We're speaking, of course, of "Level 2," the upcoming concert video from Tommy Tallarico and his band of gaming troubadours, Video Games Live. "Level 2," which will be released on DVD and Blu-ray on October 19, features a 100-minute concert performance and hours of bonus interviews and behind-the-scenes featurettes. A CD will be released on the same day, featuring 16 of the group's video game-inspired suites. For a full tracklist, as well as information about pre-orders, check out Video Games Live's official site, or check out the trailer after the jump for a sneak peek at the performances therein.
See the Super Mario Galaxy 2 orchestra live (on video)
For Super Mario Galaxy 2's soundtrack, Nintendo went all-out, recording the main theme with a 70-person orchestra. Footage of the assembled musicians playing the sweeping opening music has been released via the Japanese Nintendo Channel (watch it after the break), allowing us to see just how much more epic a piece of music is when you see it played by a room full of people. If you're wondering why Shigeru Miyamoto looks so bored, it's because there was no room in the orchestra for his banjo. Fans of Galaxy 2's music will be crushed to learn that Japan's Club Nintendo is offering a two-disc soundtrack for just 300 points with the registration of a copy of the game. It's possible for this bonus to make its way to other regions' Club Nintendos, as the first Galaxy soundtrack did in Europe, but we'd rather take such anomalies as delightful surprises, rather than disappoint ourselves by expecting them. [Via ONM]
Video Games Live holding another performance at E3
Once again, the ludological troubadours of Video Games Live will take time out of their busy schedules to visit their orchestral brand of rocking upon attendees of the Electronic Entertainment Expo on Thursday, June 17. Tickets are now available for purchase, with prices ranging between $24.99 and $74.99 (for the nosebleeds and the court-sides, respectively.) You don't have to be an E3 attendee to gain access to the show -- but if you're in L.A. that week, why wouldn't you go check out all those piping hot new games? Come on, now. You're being ridiculous. [Via BigDownload]
World of WarCrafts: Player-composers create sounds of Azeroth
World of WarCrafts spotlights art and creativity by WoW players, including fan art, cooking, comics, cosplay, music and fan fiction. Show us how you express yourself by e-mailing lisa (at) wow (dot) com with your not-for-profit, WoW-inspired creations. The atmospheric listening music for this week's World of WarCrafts comes to us from Rehmaar of <Knights of Valiant Fury> on US Destromath-H. This original, orchestral-style composition, "Knights of the Valiant Fury Overture," is dedicated to the composer's guild. "We are a radical bunch on the Horde side of Destromath, but we have an awesome time playing together and this is my gift to them," writes Rehmaar. "The piece captures what it means to be a member of our guild and depicts the struggles and glory our characters face in Azeroth." How's that for some faction and guild pride? Join us after the break for two entirely -- and we do mean entirely -- different musical takes on Azeroth.
Zelda Reorchestrated project completes Ocarina of Time score remake
On Christmas day six years ago, one boy had a legitimate dream: To recreate the soundtrack for The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time, making it sound like it was recorded by live musicians. Three-fifths of a decade passed, and the boy became a man. More importantly, the Zelda Reorchestrated project produced its first succulent fruits: A 22-track compilation of Ocarina's tunes, as performed by a virtual philharmonic. You can stream some of the tracks off the Zelda Reorchestrated site, or download the entire shebang for free. Or, you can just wait for the group to recreate the timeless music of Wand of Gamelon, which should be just around the corner.
iPhone orchestra at the vanguard of smartphone music-making push
The relationship between cellphones and music has almost always been a quirky one, producing bouts of the surreal punctuated by an occasional flourish of the sublime. Latest to join the melodic fray are Georg Essl from the University of Michigan and his "mobile phone ensemble." Each of the participating students has designed a noise-making app for his or her iPhone, which is used in conjunction with the built-in accelerometer and touchscreen to make (hopefully beautiful) music. Though we may consider this a gimmick for now, Professor Essl is most enthusiastic about the future prospects of utilizing smartphones to make music with legitimate aspirations. The debut performance of this newfangled orchestra is on December 9, or you can check out a preview in the video after the break. [Thanks, Ry]
Original soundtrack to flOw coming soon
thatgamecompany's first PSN game, flOw, captivated players looking for a relaxing game experience. The soothing visuals and unique motion controls are certainly vital components of creating the feel of flOw, but the music is certainly driving force behind the game's soothing presentation. A recent PlayStation.Blog post has an interesting orchestral rearrangement of flOw's soundtrack, which you can watch after the break. Replacing the electronic sound of the original game with live instruments creates a totally different feel. After watching the performance, we wouldn't mind playing the game with a full choir cheering us on. Those inspired by the performance will be saddened to know that this orchestral rendition will not be available for download "for various contractual reasons," according to Austin Wintory, the composer of flOw's score. Wintory does appease fans, however, letting them know that "an original soundtrack is in the works featuring the actual music from the game." Hopefully, the flOw soundtrack follows the steps of the PixelJunk series, releasing on PlayStation Network sans DRM.
The importance of good audio in an MMO
In recent years, there has been a dramatic increase in the development budgets of new MMOs. To stay ahead of the technological curve, a large portion of the budget invariably goes toward the graphics department. Studios produce impressive graphics engines and mountains of art assets in an effort to make their game one of the most visually impressive out there. Amidst all the fuss over graphics and gameplay, audio is often overlooked and underfunded. It's been shown that good music and sound effects can have a significant impact on the perceived quality of a game. This is something that some development studios recognise and support but many continue to neglect this vital part of the gaming experience.In this article, I examine the importance of good audio in an MMO and explain the underlying psychology involved.
Australian orchestra records tribute to WoW, Blizzard in general
Australia-based Eminence Symphony Orchestra (who performed pieces for the soundtrack of the console fighting game Soul Calibur IV) have recorded a vast musical tome called Echoes of War that encompasses virtually every game Blizzard has made -- including World of Warcraft. The international (Australia, United States, Japan) project is made partly out of the proverbial love of the game, but the folks behind it also want to get a young generation interested in classical music by playing "the music they want to hear." The samples on the website (which include two WoW tracks) are impressive, and should entice hardcore Warcraft fanatics to pick the full package up online. There's a standard edition for $29.95 that just includes the 90 minutes of music, and the pictured-above "Legendary" edition (geez, even video game soundtracks have CEs now) which includes the music, a making-of DVD, a "32-page color booklet" (whatever that means), and nine bits of artwork on cards. That'll cost you $49.95.Sure, other MMOs have gotten soundtrack albums, but we're pretty sure this is the first time we've seen a soundtrack for the entire catalog of an MMO developer other than Square-Enix; Final Fantasy fanatics proudly challenge even the Warcraft guys and gals in sheer enthusiasm.[Via Kotaku]
Blizzard and Eminence Symphony Orchestra announce 2-disc set
For those of you that enjoy the music of WoW and Blizzard's other games, there's good news from our sister (brother? cousin?) site BigDownload. The Eminence Symphony Orchestra and Blizzard Entertainment have announced a 2-disc album and DVD collection of music from across their franchises. Starcraft II, Diablo III, and Wrath of the Lich King are all accounted for in this 70 minute collection.In addition to the basic two disc package, they're going to be offering a limited-print Legendary Edition (think Collector's Edition) featuring the Echoes of War DVD which features interviews with the composers and behind-the-scenes footage. The Legendary Edition will also include a 32-page "commemorative tome" with lots of pictures and artwork. It will retail for $49.95 on November 1st, while the basic 2-disc set will not be released until November 22nd, at a price tag of $29.95.
Blizzard orchestral soundtrack CD available in November
Australian-based Eminence Symphony Orchestra is releasing a two-disc compilation of Blizzard Entertainment's best known symphonic pieces. The album, called Echoes of War, covers music from the Diablo, StarCraft and WarCraft universes -- sorry, Lost Vikings fans.The box set, which features 90 minutes of music, will cost $30 and release in mid-November. There's also an orange Legendary Edition with an extra DVD, featuring a making-of featurette and other dross supporting material for $50. Good peons will find the CD's full track list after the break. Zug-zug.[Thanks, Jayson; Via OSV]
The Daily Grind: Unforgettable MMO music
For some, the music in MMOGs is just something to be listened to the first time through, then flipped off in favor of our own particular mix. For others, music in MMOGs is not only really enjoyable, but something we seek out and will even occasionally listen to when not playing! (This blogger still gets goosebumps when listening to the opening strains of the EverQuest theme song.) From great EBM in EVE Online and the fight music in The Matrix Online to more orchestral/choral pieces like those in Age of Conan and World of Warcraft (Lament of the Highborne anyone?) there's a lot of really great MMOG music out there. If you had to pick some of your favorite MMO songs, what would they be? Do you have any nostalgia choices in your mix? How about new favorites? Which ones jump to mind as part of your gaming experience that you'll never forget?
Video: ASIMO burns as Yo-Yo Ma fiddles
Stand down oh gentle readers and defenders of the flesh, we're getting reports from Detroit that the baton wielding ASIMO did not direct the human race to its doom. Instead, Yo-Yo Ma is safe and the Detroit Symphony Orchestra concert went off without a hitch while netting the DSO a cool million for the musical education of Grosse Pointe's children. Of course, the Honda-built robot wasn't so lucky as he got "keyed" on his walk back through the parking lot. We kid, we kid.Update: Video added after the break.[Thanks, Funke]
