MEDIA COVERAGE SUMMARY REPORT

MEDIA COVERAGE SUMMARY REPORT
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The Greatest Video Game Music Album Available Now
The
Greatest Video Game Music, performed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra, hits stores today. The
album features a slew of revered classics and contemporary tracks from games as old as Tetris and as
recent as Angry Birds.
"If Beethoven and Tchaikovsky were alive today, they would be composing music for video games,"
commented The New York Times. "This is the first orchestral version of one of my compositions and it
really comes alive. It has such a great depth and a majestic touch, and it was very emotional for me when
I heard it the first time. I love it!" Added Angry Birds composer Ari Pulkkinen.
The concert was performed last month to standing ovations and is now available for purchase on Amazon
and iTunes for only $9.99 ($2.99 on Amazon if you purchase the direct MP3 album).
You can find below a glimpse at a recording session with the London Philharmonic Orchestra and how
the project started, the tracklist and some sample tracks. The Bonus Track Edition includes one additional
track: Hanging Edge composed by Masashi Hamauzu from Final Fantasy XIII.
Published: Nov.8, 2011
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The Greatest Video Game Music released today
Gamers everywhere are rejoicing today in validation by the arts community. The Greatest
Video Game Music is in stores and available online now and features music from some of the
biggest videos games ever produced. Classic games like Super Mario Brothers, Zelda, Final
Fantasy, Call of Duty and everyone’s most addictive app, Angry Birds, have be remastered and
performed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra.
Check out the full tracklisting below. Will you be picking up The Greatest Video Game Music
album?
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1. Advent Rising: Muse (Composed by Tommy Tallarico, Emmanuel Fratianni, and Laurie
Robinson)
2. Legend of Zelda: Suite (Composed by Koji Kondo)
3. Call of Duty – Modern Warfare 2: Theme (Composed by Hans Zimmer)
4. Angry Birds: Main Theme (Composed by Ari Pulkkinen)
5. Final Fantasy VIII: Liberi Fatali (Composed by Nobuo Uematsu)
6. Super Mario Bros Theme (Composed by Mahito Yokota and Koji Kondo)
7. Uncharted – Drake’s Fortune: Nate’s Theme (Composed by Greg Edmonson)
8. Grand Theft Auto IV: Soviet Connection (Composed by Michael Hunter)
9. World of Warcraft: Seasons of War (Composed by Jason Hayes)
10. Metal Gear Solid: Sons of Liberty Theme (Composed by Harry Gregson-Williams)
11. Tetris: Theme (Composed by Alexey Pajitnov)
12. Battlefield 2: Theme (Composed by Joel Eriksson)
13. Elder Scrolls: Oblivion (Composed by Jeremy Soule)
14. Call of Duty 4 – Modern Warfare: Main Menu Theme (Composed by Stephen Barton and
Harry Gregson-Williams)
15. Mass Effect: Suicide Mission (Composed by Jack Wall and Sam Hulick)
16. Splinter Cell: Conviction (Composed by Michael Nielsen, Kaveh Cohen, and Amon Tobin)
17. Final Fantasy: Main Theme (Composed by Nobuo Uematsu)
18. Bioshock: The Ocean on his Shoulders (Composed by Garry Schyman)
19. Halo 3: One Final Effort (Composed by Martin O’Donnell and Michael Salvatori)
20. Fallout 3: Theme (Composed by Inon Zur)
21. Super Mario Bros: Gusty Garden Galaxy (Composed by Koji Kondo)
Side note: This is the most humble album title of all time.
Published: Nov. 8, 2011
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The bleep goes on
Videogame soundtracks have come a long way from their humble eight-bit roots.
BY: Neil Karassik
There was a time when videogames sounded less than symphonic. Before popular franchises
adopted movie-calibre music, players were treated to a barrage of gritty bleeps and blorps that
were largely cued to increase tension. The music in Space Invaders would get faster as the aliens
came closer, for instance, or the Super Mario Bros. theme would speed up just as the level’s
timer was about to expire. Those compositions might sound a bit primitive to a more refined ear,
but today, we look back on that era with warm, fuzzy, nostalgic affection and wonder if maybe
we didn’t appreciate the unassuming, endlessly looping ditties enough at the time.
Given the bare-bones nature of the medium’s earliest tunes, it may come as a surprise that
classical musicians are turning to videogames for inspiration. Since 2005, a concert series called
Video Games Live—which features international orchestras performing old and new video-game
music alongside game footage and synchronized lighting effects—has been touring worldwide to
sold-out crowds. And this month, the London Philharmonic Orchestra released The Greatest
Video Game Music, an album made up of reinterpreted songs from old-school classics (Super
Mario Bros.), cutting-edge blockbusters (Call of Duty) and even popular apps (Angry Birds). The
covers span the spectrum from eight-bit to Dolby mixes and beyond, but the most memorable
ones are from the first-generation Nintendo age—perhaps surprisingly, they’re great for more
than just ironic reasons.
As much as consumers want their games to look and sound as revolutionary as possible, that
impulse often comes with a reactionary nostalgia. The better technology gets, the more some
consumers will feel compelled to regress to simpler times—hence the modern-day success of
vinyl and the Hipstamatic app. As gaming has lost its innocence, indie developers and online
marketplaces like the Wii’s Virtual Console have been working to revive the quaint qualities that
made games (and their soundtracks) so unique. A similar retro romanticism has inspired
musicians to give vintage videogame consoles a new life.
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Some savvy tunesmiths have repurposed old gaming tools as musical instruments, which they
use to create original compositions. This new genre, “chiptune,” emerged out of a shared
nostalgia for the rudimentary chirps of eight-bit games. During Toronto’s last Nuit Blanche
extravaganza, the TIFF Bell Lightbox held an all-nighter of live chiptune bands playing
alongside game clips that were projected onto a big screen. Further proof of chiptunes’
snowballing popularity can be seen by visiting the music-sharing website eight-bit Collective
(8bc.org), which has over 30,000 members.
This isn’t to say that advances in videogame music haven’t upgraded the actual gaming
experience. Back in the day, Mario’s accelerating soundtrack was the acme of immersive
integration. It’s still highly entertaining to listen to those tinny tunes, but there’s also an element
of silliness that doesn’t jive with today’s more mature content. If these sonic backdrops once
suited the goofy, fantastic nature of games, now they strive for pulse-pounding realism and hearttugging drama, because that’s how gaming has evolved in terms of narrative, visuals and
gameplay.
With the proper audio equipment, cop car sirens, shotgun blasts and exploding skyscrapers sound
as convincing in videogames as they do in action movies. Like those films, games such as Halo
supplement their surround-sound effects with equally high-concept music. All the glowing
reviews of the Wii’s just-released The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword made mention of its lush
music, likely because it’s the first time the franchise has used an orchestra. If you think that’s
extreme, the soundtrack of 2007’s Halo 3 featured a 60-piece orchestra and a 24-piece choir.
Many factors have contributed to the new/old videogame music craze, but one stands out.
According to a recent survey conducted by the Entertainment Software Association, 50.5 per
cent of American households own current-generation game consoles—and that’s not even
counting handheld devices, smartphones or last-gen models. Like all of the game-centric kids
who grew up to become game-centric musicians, many of today’s parents grew up with
videogames. What used to be a childish or geeky pastime is now a legitimate medium enjoyed by
almost every demographic, who have myriad different tastes. Angry Birds is no longer just an
annoying but strangely addictive app on your smartphone—now it’s on your iTunes playlist, too
Published: Nov. 23, 2011
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London Philharmonic To Release Album Of
Greatest Video Game Music (VIDEO)
What do Brahms and Super Mario have in common? Aside from equally impressive facial hair,
they have now both had their music played by the London Philharmonic. The upcoming album
from the London Phil will have the suspense of 'World of Warcraft,' the grace of 'Legend of
Zelda' and the drama of 'Angry Birds.'
To be released on November 8, the album 'The Greatest Video Game Music' will feature 21
pieces that hope to appeal to high society and teenage boys alike. 'Angry Birds' composer Ari
Pulkkinen recalled hearing the orchestral rendition: "This is the first orchestral version of one of
my compositions and it really comes alive. It has such a great depth and a majestic touch, and it
was very emotional for me when I heard it the first time."
Is the London Phil's venture into pop culture territory a sign of the expansion of classical music's
relevance or a move of desperation? Check out some of their songs and let us know what you
think.
Published: Oct.13, 2011
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The Greatest Video Game Music Performed
by London Philharmonic Orchestra
If you enjoy listening to the video game
music as you play your favourite games
you might be interested in a new CD
which has been created by the London
Philharmonic Orchestra who have taken
some of the most popular video game
titles of all time and remastered them.
Title remastered include Angry Birds,
Call of Duty 4, World of Warcraft and
Mass Effect to name a few. View the full
list after the jump.
You can listen to a sample of the the Call
of Duty theme composed by Hans
Zimmer to whet your appetite and the full
CD is available from Amazon for around
$10. Tech Crunch also say if you use the
coupon code “GAMESMP3″ you can get
the MP3 version for just $1.99. Enjoy!
1. Advent Rising: Muse (Composed by Tommy Tallarico, Emmanuel Fratianni, and Laurie
Robinson)
2. Legend of Zelda: Suite (Composed by Koji Kondo)
3. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2: Theme (Composed by Hans Zimmer)
4. Angry Birds: Main Theme (Composed by Ari Pulkkinen)
5. Final Fantasy VIII: Liberi Fatali (Composed by Nobuo Uematsu)
6. Super Mario Bros. Theme (Composed by Mahito Yokota and Koji Kondo)
7. Uncharted – Drake’s Fortune: Nate’s Theme (Composed by Greg Edmonson)
8. Grand Theft Auto IV: Soviet Connection (Composed by Michael Hunter)
9. World of Warcraft: Seasons of War (Composed by Jason Hayes)
10. Metal Gear Solid: Sons of Liberty Theme (Composed by Harry Gregson-Williams)
11. Tetris: Theme (Composed by Alexey Pajitnov)
12. Battlefield 2: Theme (Composed by Joel Eriksson)
13. Elder Scrolls: Oblivion (Composed by Jeremy Soule)
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14. Call of Duty 4 – Modern Warfare: Main Menu Theme (Composed by Stephen Barton and
Harry Gregson-Williams)
15. Mass Effect: Suicide Mission (Composed by Jack Wall and Sam Hulick)
16. Splinter Cell: Conviction (Composed by Michael Nielsen, Kaveh Cohen, and Amon Tobin)
17. Final Fantasy: Main Theme (Composed by Nobuo Uematsu)
18. BioShock: The Ocean on his Shoulders (Composed by Garry Schyman)
19. Halo 3: One Final Effort (Composed by Martin O’Donnell and Michael Salvatori)
20. Fallout 3: Theme (Composed by Inon Zur)
21. Super Mario Bros.: Gusty Garden Galaxy (Composed by Koji Kondo)
Published: Nov.9, 2013
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