The fantastic concert featuring Journey, Legend of Zelda, StarFox, Unlimited SaGa, Final Fantasy and Turrican II among others will be streaming live today worldwide on WDR4 radio. The concert took place last week Friday, and was another smash-hit sell out from Thomas Böcker, producer of Symphonic Fantasies and many other acclaimed concerts.
Be sure to tune in at WDR4 website at 2:05pm EST, and let us know what you think of the show afterwards!
The journey of Merregnon Studios is a tale of incredible fantasies, great odysseys, and shades of perfection. For Thomas Böcker and his productions, the 10 years that passed us by has not only been a story of fulfilling his own dreams, but also fulfilling the dreams of thousands of fans worldwide, all who come in order to experience an excitement that can never truly be felt through a screen or recording, the greatest live video game music productions of all time. And in 2013, comes the concluding act in the adventure that has been the Symphonic series, Final Symphony.
Celebrating Böcker’s 10 years of producing concerts, Final Symphony will feature music from Final Fantasy VI, VII and X, arranged and orchestrated by the team of Jonne Valtonen, Roger Wanamo and special guest Masashi Hamauzu. The concerts take place May 11, 2013 at 2:30 PM and 7:30 PM at the Stadthalle Wuppertal, Germany and will be performed by the 80 piece Sinfonieorchester Wuppertal, conducted by Eckehard Stier from Symphonic Fantasies Tokyo fame, and also feature Benyamin Nuss. The ceremony will be hosted will be Winfried Fechner, former director of the WDR. Hamauzu will also be in attendance along with the rest of the team and take part in the free Meet and Greet session prior to the concert, allowing the fans to meet the industry legend in person.
Tickets will go on sale on August 24th at WestTicket.de, and be priced at €22 ($27). The concert is officially produced in cooperation with Square Enix and Nobuo Uematsu. Check out more info at ffsymphony.com as it becomes available.
It goes without saying (although I’m saying it now) that the Symphonic series is probably the best concert production in the world focusing on game music. Not only are they impressive feats of arrangement and orchestral performance, but Thomas Boecker and crew managed to pull off two such shows in 2011: Symphonic Legends focusing on the music of Nintendo and Symphonic Odysseys, a concert dedicated to Nobuo Uematsu, not to mention a repeat production of Symphonic Fantasies in Japan that just took place a couple weeks back.
While it’s unlikely that we’re see Symphonic Legends on CD given Nintendo’s track record with licensing music (a real shame), we do have Symphonic Odysseys courtesy of Dog Ear Records, and it’s just as good if not better than previous Symphonic efforts.
Hit the jump for more. (more…)
This is seriously one of my most anticipated releases of 2010. After watching the live Internet stream of Symphonic Fantasies in my underwear from the comfort of my own home, I’ve been looking forward to a CD release, and it’s coming in September. For those who don’t recall what the show was all about, you can refresh your memory with Audun’s extensive report, but to summarize, it features entire suites of music from Kingdom Hearts, Secret of Mana, Chrono Trigger/Chrono Cross, and Final Fantasy.
So, down to the details.
While it’s currently available for pre-order directly from the WDR website for those in Germany and around Europe for 19.95 EUR plus shipping and handling, it will release on September 24, 2010 in those regions with an international release to follow via Amazon. Those who pre-order get a little bonus in that they have the opportunity to win copies signed by Shimomura, Kikuta, Mitsuda, and Uematsu, all of whom were involved with the album by giving their approval of the final mixes. This album is a big deal in that it’s published by Universal Music, and it’s set to feature the Symphonic Fantasies “Fanfare” written by arranger and orchestrator Jonne Valtonen with suites for the titles mentioned above. Unfortunately the boss battle medley that acted as the performance’s encore is not on the album, but it will be available digitally (the disc is 73 minutes long without it). It will also come with a 16-page booklet, and I really love the official cover art pictured above (it certainly beats the bland logo they were using for the performance itself).
What do you think? Are you looking forward to getting your hands on this album?
Can you guess who’s putting this one on? If you think Symphonic Fantasies sounds similar to Symphonic Shades, you’re on the right track. Producer Thomas Boecker is at it again, but rather than featuring the works of a single composer as was the case with Symphonic Shades, Fantasies will spotlight the music of Square Enix, including music from Final Fantasy, Kingdom Hearts, and the Mana and Chrono series. Sounds like win to me!
Unfortunate for those of us in the States, the concert will be held at the Philharmonic Hall in Cologne, Germany. At least it’s set for September 12, 2009, giving you plenty of time to book your trip! So far, we know that the WDR Radio Orchestra and Choir will be performing alongside percussionist Rony Barrack and conductor Arnie Roth. If Thomas’s past productions are any indication, this should be a great show. Stay tuned for more information.
Are you Europeans happy to have somebody like Thomas Boecker around? Are you others with me in wondering when Thomas is going to bring a concert like this to the States?
Read the official press release for more details after the jump. (more…)
