PLAY! A Video Game Symphony

Well Roth basically took the Brass De Chocobo from FFX and expanded it. The Opera from FF6 in the FF concerts were from an older arrangement as well, and they updated and fixed it. They are still considered arrangers of the music even if the base of the arrangement already existed, if they added anything or changed and extended anything, it can still be considered their arrangement. Not to mention they needed to orchestrate Brass De Chocobo for a full symphony, not just a brass band like in FFX.

As long as they credit the original arrangers as well, I think its fine.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Well the Detroit concert has ended, I'm talking to Cow from KHU website and hes gonna put up his report on the concert on Friday, along with photos. His video interview of Shimomura needs to be send to PR people, but after that, we will see it! This is a rare opputunity that a fan site gets to talk to Yoko for the first time!

Oh and if anyone who has gone and has recorded the Shadow of Colossus track, please post here, as we would all love to hear it.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

All the music is took down so it doesn't matter anyway. They took all of them down before they contact the PR people of the concert.

And many fansites offer mp3s anyway, if not the whole OST, then weekly mp3s. There really is not stopping it, at least KHU took them down before approaching the idea of an interview.

Can't wait to read your report Josh!

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

I spoke to Cow and the first part of the concert report should be up tomrrow.

And has anyone recorded the Detroit concert? I like to hear how the performance for Shadow of Colossus was like.

How ya doing, buddy?

Hmph, given the bad press from Play!, I wonder what it will take me to go to their concert... Not guests appearance cause they CHARGE you for meeting them.

Quote:

While the idea of video game concerts isn't new with the rise of events like Video Games Live and performers like the Video Game Pianist, it is the first time that something of this scale will be seen in the southern hemisphere.

Whoever wrote this must be living under a rock, what about Eminence?! Support your locals dammit, not lying foreign producers! The concert this year was just as good as VGL's, and way better than Play!'s subpar arrangments.

I think the only way for me to go is if someone pays for my ticket... But we'll see, maybe the program will improve.

I was speaking idiomatically.

....Akira is coming to Sydney?

GODDAMIT! Play! just HAD to give me a reason to wanna go to their concert! But its gonna cost me 100 bucks JUST to see him!

Argh Dilemma dilemma....

Then again... My Silent Hill CDs are back in Hong Kong so there's nothing for him to sign...

I am just totally screwed either way....

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Even if they did bring the CDs over for me, it will cost alot of money just to see Akira. Play! charges people for meet and greets.

FELIPE NO

Seems like they tend to not keep their promises from what I've heard, so this doesn't surprise me at all. Cancelling concerts, switching programs despite annoucements... Its one thing to make mistakes or things didn't go through occasionally, but Play! seems to always have some sort of sloppy organizing or just plain fibbing for the past couple of concerts. They should learn to NOT announce something untill its fully ready to happen, otherwise you're causing dissapointment to fans who may have already pre order tickets.

And god forbid if anyone here is gonna post they didn't even refund the pre order. Though again, that would not surprise me.

Its crap like this that is swaying me to the "not going" crowd despite Akira's appearance.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Unique arrangements my ass.

The Chrono arrangments were mostly already existed, with some orchestrations yes, but the way it was put together showed there wasn't that much work. The ending part with Frog's theme and To Far Away times? Its straight from the PS1 anime ending. I've heard the Trigger theme performed in the much older concert CD, along with Eminence's version of Time's Scar. Both did in my opinion a better performance, and didn't hinder it by throwing it into a copy and paste medley. Something about Time's Scar in the Play! medley puts me off. Maybe is the inclusion of Brass.

Kingdom Hearts? Oh god don't even get me started. Invited someone like Yoko to the premiere only to play less than 1 min of her work in a 4 min medley? Should have invited Utada instead. And there was no original arrangment in that one, cept some bad Copy and Paste that caused the themes to NOT flow well together.

The arrangments for Mario, Zelda already existed in other concerts and CDs way before Play! 's time, so again, no real original work was put into it.

MGS theme was just... meh, it was original, but it wasn't even good. VGL was better, and the Eminence's version was also bad ass. I mean, just listen to the beginning, terrible build up to a great theme with just strings, this isn't chamber you know. The drums were playing this weird beat that just throws me off, its really messy and creates dissonance. And no it has nothing to do with the crappy quality of the fan's recording device. If the theme wasn't already strong the whole thing would have fallen apart. And worst is there isn't too much going on between the SAME MAIN THEME being played OVER and OVER. VGL and Eminence combined various main themes from the main game, where as Play! kept playing on the same theme over and over in a very mediocre arrangement. The ending sucked as well, with a slow up the scale ABCD with the theme? Wow, pathetic attempt at dramatic exit. Sounds like a amatuer studen arrangement to me and created little dramatic tension, where as Eminence gave it a very symphonic feeling, and VGL gave it a very cinematic treatement.

You want a unique GOOD arrangement? Listen to Eminence's version of MGS on youtube, or VGL's.

Compare this from Eminece and VGL:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZfKA4b5SFq4 (The part at 2:14 kicks so much ass.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_6LG8dyE0U (The part at 3:25 creats great tension players felt when they infiltrate in the game. Simplistic but very effective.)

Both have very strong endings with the slow military drum beat that makes it sound like an anthem and tribute to the soldiers.

To this from Play!:

http://media.putfile.com/Metal-gear-Solid-from-Play (Mediocre compare to the above. I felt NOTHING.)

The new works are more impressive, like Blue Dragon and what not, but those were likely arranged already by the original composers. Silent Hill only rocked when Akira was there to perform, and its the only reason I'm very tempted to go. (Well, and the fact its gonna be at the friggin Opera House and the Sydney Symphony, which means superb performance and acoustics, but if the arrangements are mediocre, why bother?)

Play! has the money and resources to do ALOT better, and JMP needs to stop pulling the "My Girlfriend works at Square Enix" card to boost whatever he's trying to pull. Though I am glad they're trying to expand their program, but the sudden change from Lost Oddesey to Lair is disconcerting. Oh, and charging fans to meet and greets is retarded no matter what.

And I doubt game soundtracks make as much profit as one thinks, and I do believe they're released for the sake of the art moreso than just business, look at Mitsuda, alot of his albums latly are from very obscure games not many have really played. He releases it because there are fans who appreciate his work. Most business would have turned away from releasing soundtracks from games no ones heard of, but Mitsuda didn't. And I don't see him hopping on board for some major big game either.

There is always some level of business in anything, but I believe VGM and anime music DOES have some goddamn integrity and art left, alot more than Hollywood movies defintly. When I went to VGL and Eminence, I see alot of work and love put into them. What I have seen from Play! so far in both arrangments and organizing? I don't get the same vibe, and see no reason to waste MY money to see them depsite the fact they have great guests, whom they CHARGE people to meet them.

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Are you kidding? The drum kit is what MADE it great for Eminence! Play!'s drums were horrid, messy and create dissonance throughout the piece. VGL had the advantage of synth. If Eminence didnt use the drums, it would have lost ALOT of its tension and it would feel dry. And MGS is all about tension, be it action or stealth.

And Play!'s version may be new and original, but its no excuse to crappy mediocre arranging. I'll respect it when they actually put some actual good work into it instead of throwing it together like some highschool homework. And its grating after listening to it on repeat for the night. The VGL and Eminence one? God it makes me feel good. Passion from KH2 needed some getting used to and it will grow on you because its experimental. This MGS theme by Play! does not because it plains sucks

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Right, because as long as there's money involved the quality has to be good right?

Then tell me why there are god knows how many crappy movies in the world.

Money doesn'y equal quality. Where as VGL and Eminence actually work to make sure their arrangments are the best as possible, Play! not only barely does any work, but when they do it comes out crappy.

Just because it involves money doesn't mean the concert isn't gonna be crappy. Now Play! is not TOTAL crap, but it could be alot better with the franchises involved. I like them to get some better arrangers for one thing. Money is no shield or excuse when it comes to cristism and quality control. Some of us enjoy studying music and like to see better arrangements of VGM. The Play!'s version is no where as good as what VGL and Eminence did, and it sounds so amatuer as well. Like something out of a highschool music student. Some of us do give a shit about well arranged music.

You say money means the music can't be crappy? I've heard fan remixes of VGM that sound better than what Play! did to MGS. Dedication and talent is what makes good music, not money.

And most of my complaints were legit. If I was Yoko, I like to hear MY music played when I'm invited to a concert as a composer guest, instead of a 10% part in a medley. The crappy cut and paste job for the KH theme was horrid and insulting to her.

Arrangment is essential to any piece of music, and its more important for VGM BECAUSE it started with beeps and bops. How is game music gonna be taken seriously if people like Play! butcher the arrangments? Anyone can make up a tune, the arrangement is hard and crucial part.

And Mr.X, Eminence wanted to keep things symphonic and not rely on synths, hence the drum kit. And the beat was alot better than the mess Play! called a drum beat. Considering the changes from synth to drum kit, they did a superb job and the theme was still energetic and cinematic/modern sounding. While I regonise its your opinion, by comparison, the Play!'s version sound so bland, where as Eminence actually sounds like it could be from the soundtrack.

Please don't imply that Eminence is trying to scrimp their budget when you don't know the full situation.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Then don't imply anything if you dont' know anything about it. Sheesh.

And while a drum kit is techincallly not part of the orchestra, MGS is a modern theme that requires some sort of modern beat. I can't say that the orchestral percussion can cut it. I mean look at Play!'s version, its a mess cause they seem to wanna replicate a modern rock beat on orchestral percussion, but it sounds like a total mess. I can barely decipher each beat.

Point is, Eminence had stated before they will NOT be using electronics and synths. To me, that sounds like anything else is fair game, as I last recall the drum kit is NOT electronic.

Funny thing, I'm not even a volunteer. I just support them. If anything you should have called me a fangirl to insult me. But at least I actually went to their concert instead of making assumptions.

Now let's stop derailing the thread, I had my say in this whole matter, and I believe my critisims are legit.

How ya doing, buddy?

Heh, sarcasm eh?

Maybe its because as well as praise there should be some critisim (and from the crap Play! has done in both organizing and arrangment, they deserve it), and I still respond to Play! news that I care about, like say, Akira san coming to good ol's Sydney.

I am still debating on that...

And there's a part of me that has this lingering hope that they will improve themselves.

Bottom line is, this is constructive critism, which I believe I have the right to post on. The only thing Play! can rely on is desperate fans wanting to hear their fav game music live, along with meeting their fav composers. That doesn't affect me much since I've met most of my fav composers (Minus Akira) and I've heard most of the themes live already in other concerts that arranged and peformed better. For those fans, go ahead and have fun, but I have a feeling their money will be more well spend if they went to another concert that's NOT Play!, saves them the extra bucks needed to meet their idols as well as avoiding the horror of the MGS butchery. (Among others I mentioned).

If in the end despite my legit reasons you still wanna support them, go right ahead. But don't say I didn't warn you.

I was speaking idiomatically.