Symphonic Games
Final Fantasy music leaps from game console to live concert
Videogames may become the opera of the 21st century.
It’s not a far-fetched idea, even if no one outside the videogame subculture would think to look at games for inspiration. The medium’s influence is spreading, evidenced by one of this summer’s more unusual performances by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Dear Friends: Music from Final Fantasy. The full-length program features music by Japanese composer Nobuo Uematsu, written for the popular epic videogame series.
If that strikes you as a novel idea - well, it is. Final Fantasy is the first videogame to spawn symphonic concerts from its music, incorporating a full orchestra and a chorus, plus three video screens showing scenes from the games and live cam shots from inside the orchestra itself.
The Los Angeles Philharmonic first performed Dear Friends: Music from Final Fantasy at the new Walt Disney Concert Hall in May 2004 as a single performance during a videogame conference. Tickets sold out in three days, encouraging promoters to develop a U.S. tour, which kicked off last February in Chicago. ASO artistic administrator Frank Dans flew up to hear it, and was so impressed, he solidified June 24 and 25 dates for Dear Friends concerts in Atlanta.
Tommy Jaccino plans to attend one of them for his 22nd birthday. He thinks he may have heard the ASO perform as a child, but as an adult with the ability to decide for himself, no. He prefers recorded music, and listens to MP3s more than CDs. “I don’t care much for concerts generally,” he says. “It takes something pretty big to get me to go out to a concert, and I consider this really big. I’ve never had the chance to hear this music in a concert form, and I’m not likely to get it again.”
Jaccino is more than a typical Final Fantasy gamer; he is also an assistant director of the videogame activities at the annual Anime Weekend Atlanta. He knows videogames and their history. Currently working on a bachelor’s degree in Japanese language, Jaccino’s ultimate goal is to become a script translator in the videogame industry. “Final Fantasy was the first videogame series to take music in the game seriously,” he says.
While most games, like Mario Brothers, offered distinct music for different levels of play, the music was not tied dramatically to a story line. Other games, like Grand Theft Auto, created virtual radio stations of pop music so players could steal cars while listening to Guns N’ Roses’ “Welcome to the Jungle.” But Final Fantasy II elevated the sophistication of the soundtrack, using the 19th-century operatic idea of “leitmotifs” - musical themes identifying characters and dramatic thread. With Final Fantasy VI, the genre hit a stride.
“You know how in Star Wars every character has its own theme?” asks Jaccino. “Final Fantasy started to do that very early.” But while films may run a couple of hours, Final Fantasy games are more like novels, typically taking some 40 hours or longer to complete. Players become strongly attached not only to the characters and story, but to the music itself.
That subculture generated demand for Final Fantasy soundtrack CDs. Several more were released with added vocals. Composer/keyboardist Uematsu applied yet another twist: the Black Mages, a band he formed in 2003 to play Final Fantasy battle music rearranged in a hard-rock style. And now, fans can hear the music played live in full symphonic splendor.
Dans’ observations from the Chicago concert confirm Final Fantasy fans’ devotion. “They’re coming to hear this music,” he says. “But [in many cases] they’re also coming to their first symphony concert. I expect the audience here will do what they did in Chicago: They took this whole experience very seriously. It has certain rock show elements, it’s fun, but it’s a very serious thing for them, too. They believe in the game, and they believe in the music of the game.”
music@creativeloafing.com
It’s not a far-fetched idea, even if no one outside the videogame subculture would think to look at games for inspiration. The medium’s influence is spreading, evidenced by one of this summer’s more unusual performances by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Dear Friends: Music from Final Fantasy. The full-length program features music by Japanese composer Nobuo Uematsu, written for the popular epic videogame series.
If that strikes you as a novel idea - well, it is. Final Fantasy is the first videogame to spawn symphonic concerts from its music, incorporating a full orchestra and a chorus, plus three video screens showing scenes from the games and live cam shots from inside the orchestra itself.
The Los Angeles Philharmonic first performed Dear Friends: Music from Final Fantasy at the new Walt Disney Concert Hall in May 2004 as a single performance during a videogame conference. Tickets sold out in three days, encouraging promoters to develop a U.S. tour, which kicked off last February in Chicago. ASO artistic administrator Frank Dans flew up to hear it, and was so impressed, he solidified June 24 and 25 dates for Dear Friends concerts in Atlanta.
Tommy Jaccino plans to attend one of them for his 22nd birthday. He thinks he may have heard the ASO perform as a child, but as an adult with the ability to decide for himself, no. He prefers recorded music, and listens to MP3s more than CDs. “I don’t care much for concerts generally,” he says. “It takes something pretty big to get me to go out to a concert, and I consider this really big. I’ve never had the chance to hear this music in a concert form, and I’m not likely to get it again.”
Jaccino is more than a typical Final Fantasy gamer; he is also an assistant director of the videogame activities at the annual Anime Weekend Atlanta. He knows videogames and their history. Currently working on a bachelor’s degree in Japanese language, Jaccino’s ultimate goal is to become a script translator in the videogame industry. “Final Fantasy was the first videogame series to take music in the game seriously,” he says.
While most games, like Mario Brothers, offered distinct music for different levels of play, the music was not tied dramatically to a story line. Other games, like Grand Theft Auto, created virtual radio stations of pop music so players could steal cars while listening to Guns N’ Roses’ “Welcome to the Jungle.” But Final Fantasy II elevated the sophistication of the soundtrack, using the 19th-century operatic idea of “leitmotifs” - musical themes identifying characters and dramatic thread. With Final Fantasy VI, the genre hit a stride.
“You know how in Star Wars every character has its own theme?” asks Jaccino. “Final Fantasy started to do that very early.” But while films may run a couple of hours, Final Fantasy games are more like novels, typically taking some 40 hours or longer to complete. Players become strongly attached not only to the characters and story, but to the music itself.
That subculture generated demand for Final Fantasy soundtrack CDs. Several more were released with added vocals. Composer/keyboardist Uematsu applied yet another twist: the Black Mages, a band he formed in 2003 to play Final Fantasy battle music rearranged in a hard-rock style. And now, fans can hear the music played live in full symphonic splendor.
Dans’ observations from the Chicago concert confirm Final Fantasy fans’ devotion. “They’re coming to hear this music,” he says. “But [in many cases] they’re also coming to their first symphony concert. I expect the audience here will do what they did in Chicago: They took this whole experience very seriously. It has certain rock show elements, it’s fun, but it’s a very serious thing for them, too. They believe in the game, and they believe in the music of the game.”
music@creativeloafing.com