07-15-2010, 11:17 PM
(This post was last modified: 07-15-2010, 11:54 PM by [wcip]Angel.)
Oxymorons aside... for the last 10 years or so now, I've grown to love symphonic music more and more, but for some reason, it's not the symphonies of Dvorak, Brahms or Shostakovich (although I *do* love the latter's Leningrad-symphony) that have caught my attention, but rather the music of of Uematsu, Soule and Gregson-Williams.
I've spent some time on Youtube these last few days and discovered that there is a larger following of this kind of music than I thought. I was alreay familiar with the US-based "Play! Symphony", as Gametrailers provided decent coverage a few years back. I knew also of a Japanese concert series entitled "Dear Friends" (playing music exclusively from the Final Fantasy-series), but other than that I was clueless.
Last few days though, I've come to learn that this genre of music (despite its nicheness), seems to be growing in popularity. More and more orchestras are putting on music from videogames such as World of Warcraft, Legend of Zelda, Super Mario, etc. Although this type of music is definitely most popular in Japan, it seems to be spreading. The Final Fantasy-clip I linked to previously was from Germany.
Obviously, because (live renditions of) symphonic game music is still in its infancy, (and perhaps also due to other reasons), it has yet to garner mass appeal (and probably never will). Because of this, productions tend to be smaller than mainstream symphonies and the quality of some of these "game orchestras" can't really rival that of the LSO, The Vienna or Chicago symphony; orchestras that play "real" classical music. Arrangements are often very good, but performances vary, from the mediocre "Twilite"(sic) Orchestra to Australian-based Eminence Orchestra.
Some of you might recognise Eminence. They did the music for the StarCraft 2 trailer, and have also released a kick-ass album entitled "Echoes of War", featuring re-orchestrated tracks from WarCraft 3, World of WarCraft, Diablo 2, StarCraft and SCII. (check out En Taro Adun) I've checked out some interviews on youtube with these guys, and I appreciate what they're trying to do. They said that one of the main purposes for this orchestra and for doing these types of projects is to get young people interested in classical (symphonic) music; that having them get hooked on full orchestrations of game-classics might lead them to pick up one of Beethoven's symphonies.
While I don't feel that there is anyhing inherently *better* about classical music than other - more modern - genres of music, I do think a lot of people (myself included) are missing out on some great musical experiences by not giving classical music a decent chance. I don't know if Eminence's way of attracting more people to symphonic music is the way to go, but I applaud their commitment and spirit (as well as their talent!)
Do you think game music will ever become mainstream? Will this type of music ever be popular to anyone who hasn't played the games the music was scored for? Will young gamers swap out their Final Fantasy CDs for Chopin once the dust settles?
One of the problems, perhaps, is the lack of auteurs. Everyone has heard of Beethoven, but who the hell knows who Nobuo Uematsu is? (well, this audience apparently does, as they applaud the composer when he takes the stage (1.26 in the clip), but this is obviously a Japanese venue so...)
Is game music enjoyable to people who don't have the visual images and the emotional experiences that are so entwined with the chords, rhythms and harmonies of that particular piece of music? The first few notes of "The death of Aeris" (Final fantasy VII) will bring tears to millions of fans across the world, while a billion more will wonder what all the fuss is about.
I've spent some time on Youtube these last few days and discovered that there is a larger following of this kind of music than I thought. I was alreay familiar with the US-based "Play! Symphony", as Gametrailers provided decent coverage a few years back. I knew also of a Japanese concert series entitled "Dear Friends" (playing music exclusively from the Final Fantasy-series), but other than that I was clueless.
Last few days though, I've come to learn that this genre of music (despite its nicheness), seems to be growing in popularity. More and more orchestras are putting on music from videogames such as World of Warcraft, Legend of Zelda, Super Mario, etc. Although this type of music is definitely most popular in Japan, it seems to be spreading. The Final Fantasy-clip I linked to previously was from Germany.
Obviously, because (live renditions of) symphonic game music is still in its infancy, (and perhaps also due to other reasons), it has yet to garner mass appeal (and probably never will). Because of this, productions tend to be smaller than mainstream symphonies and the quality of some of these "game orchestras" can't really rival that of the LSO, The Vienna or Chicago symphony; orchestras that play "real" classical music. Arrangements are often very good, but performances vary, from the mediocre "Twilite"(sic) Orchestra to Australian-based Eminence Orchestra.
Some of you might recognise Eminence. They did the music for the StarCraft 2 trailer, and have also released a kick-ass album entitled "Echoes of War", featuring re-orchestrated tracks from WarCraft 3, World of WarCraft, Diablo 2, StarCraft and SCII. (check out En Taro Adun) I've checked out some interviews on youtube with these guys, and I appreciate what they're trying to do. They said that one of the main purposes for this orchestra and for doing these types of projects is to get young people interested in classical (symphonic) music; that having them get hooked on full orchestrations of game-classics might lead them to pick up one of Beethoven's symphonies.
While I don't feel that there is anyhing inherently *better* about classical music than other - more modern - genres of music, I do think a lot of people (myself included) are missing out on some great musical experiences by not giving classical music a decent chance. I don't know if Eminence's way of attracting more people to symphonic music is the way to go, but I applaud their commitment and spirit (as well as their talent!)
Do you think game music will ever become mainstream? Will this type of music ever be popular to anyone who hasn't played the games the music was scored for? Will young gamers swap out their Final Fantasy CDs for Chopin once the dust settles?
One of the problems, perhaps, is the lack of auteurs. Everyone has heard of Beethoven, but who the hell knows who Nobuo Uematsu is? (well, this audience apparently does, as they applaud the composer when he takes the stage (1.26 in the clip), but this is obviously a Japanese venue so...)
Is game music enjoyable to people who don't have the visual images and the emotional experiences that are so entwined with the chords, rhythms and harmonies of that particular piece of music? The first few notes of "The death of Aeris" (Final fantasy VII) will bring tears to millions of fans across the world, while a billion more will wonder what all the fuss is about.
