Play! A video games Symphony Live!

Here’s the iTunes release guys. Enjoy.

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=OM1IYKQ5

Thanks a lot for sharing this!!
More info about this awesome release here
http://www.squareenixmusic.com/sitenews2.php?subaction=showfull&id=1232243732&archive=&start_from=&ucat=1&

Yessss!!!

I ordered this months ago and it still haven’t shipped… Thanks to you I can at last listen to this! 😀

This sounds very interesting, but (pardon my ignorance) what is it all about?

This sounds very interesting, but (pardon my ignorance) what is it all about?

I refer you to the link posted by Sirusjr for more info: http://www.squareenixmusic.com/siten…_from=&ucat=1& (http://www.squareenixmusic.com/sitenews2.php?subaction=showfull&id=1232243732&archive=&start_from=&ucat=1&)

🙂

I just finished listening to the Guild Wars track and it sounds awesome!

Read the link given by Sirusjr, it gives a good description.

Edit: it seems someone was faster…

I refer you to the link posted by Sirusjr for more info: http://www.squareenixmusic.com/siten…_from=&ucat=1& (http://www.squareenixmusic.com/sitenews2.php?subaction=showfull&id=1232243732&archive=&start_from=&ucat=1&)

🙂

I just finished listening to the Guild Wars track and it sounds awesome!

Ah, thank you very much for the link. Cheers.

Damn! Just skipping through the tracks (have no time to actually listen now) and one thing is obvious – recording sucks big time! OMG! What the hell is that? In Halo for example we hear mostly different percussive instruments (orchestra seems to be so… far)! Chrono Cross sounds not good also and in SH orchestra is almost unnoticable. I really was waiting for that thing?! I hope that when I listen to whole it will make me think different. For now first dissapointment of this year…

[EDIT]

Ok, I listened to whole, and now small track by track review:

01) PLAY! Opening Fanfare – meh, mediocre track, Uematsu can do better
02) Commodore 64 Medley – not bad, enjoyable, but nothing special
03) Castlevania – one of the best here, really enjoyable, and has got the power:)
04) Sonic the Hedgehog – nice, can’t say more ’cause I’m unfamiliar with Sonic music
05) Chrono Cross – ok, after few listens it’s not so bad, but still far from being great
06) Silent Hill 2 – sucks very much, bad arrange of great track, maybe could be better if orchestra would play louder or guitar more quietly… the guitar kills everything else, and percussion is so muffled… Mess. But had a potential.
07) Halo – the worst Halo arrange I’ve ever heard! Damn, starts nice, but when it comes to "Main Theme" I was thinking… what the fuck? Muffled sound, messy orchestration, and it’s not the worst part of this suite, after that comes arrange of Earth City, one of the coolest Halo track! And here it is… bad, don’t wanna use another unpretty word. Without power, without imagination, with too loud choir, and to shy orchestra. And it sounds like it wasn’t rehearsed at all. Almost cacophonic. Bad, bad, bad!
08) Kingdom Hearts – worse than original, but after all listenable
09) Battlefield – not bad, I like Rony’s solo in the middle, and the second part is quite good too. Even if the first part is rather flat.
10) World of Warcraft – I’m sick of WoW music, but this arrange is not bad, powerful and nicely orchestrated, but still sound quality is sometimes messy, and percussives are too loud!
11) The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion – very good suite, can’t say a bad word… Epic, with a touch of beauty and emotions
12) Guild Wars – guess Soule is lucky, another good suite, but again – too loud percussive instruments and muddy percussion itself… But still like it.

So after all it’s mediocre CD. Has some great parts, but it has too much VERY bad, at least for my taste. Also the recording sucks (what they were doing in the studio for those months? Certainly not trying too make it sound better), performance also should be better. And don’t tell me that it’s live, and it can’t be perfect, because it would be lie! Check "Symphonic Shades" if U don’t believe me. After all still dissapointment with few very bright points and few just bright. Shame.

Here’s the iTunes release guys. Enjoy.

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=OM1IYKQ5

Thank you very much! Do you happen to have the cover artwork? It’s not included and not available via itunes.

Kick ass! Thank you for posting this.

I’m having a problem with the link, it works but the download option isn’t displaying. I tried under several different circumstances and I’m pretty sure it’s not because I’m having any problems with my internet. Is anyone experiencing the same thing? Would it be appropriate to request a mirror?

Thanks

I have the same problem

Thank you very much for this, Major.Dump

Thank you very much! Do you happen to have the cover artwork? It’s not included and not available via itunes.

Here is the cover artwork

here a bigger one

Im having the same problem too, no download mirror =(

i have the same problem with this file too, anyone post a mirror?

the link is okay (i try this out), maybe the kb-rate is a little bit too slow, but this is megauploads fault XD

i have the same problem with this file too, anyone post a mirror? +1

I think you guys are having a problem because you are using Internet Explorer. Try copying the link to firefox or another alternative browser and if you still can’t get it to work I’ll put up a mirror.

ive been using firefox the entire time

(it did work once for me though so just keep trying)

Rapidspread mirror for you guys. Hope this works better
http://www.rapidspread.com/file.jsp?id=b16feb6s7v

Thanks for the mirror.

Yeah thank you so much!

Wow, yeah. This Halo arrangement is kind of embarrassing. Wrong tempo, not enough punch at key moments, problems with the horn section at parts…

I think you guys are having a problem because you are using Internet Explorer. Maybe Megaupload uses different bandwidth for each country.
Thank you for the mirror.

CRC Error in PLAY! A Video Game Symphony Live!\02 Commodore 64 Medley.mp3 🙁

Are there other CDs like this, or is it just the one so far?

Are there other CDs like this, or is it just the one so far?

There’s VideoGames Live, but I don’t think we can post that here. It was posted a long time ago, but Tommy Tallarico himself (?) requested it be taken down and it hasn’t ever been reposted.

thanks!

Are there other CDs like this, or is it just the one so far?
Well there is the symphonic shades hulsbeck concert if you like that stuff but only this and video games live has tracks from BIG games like this.

There’s VideoGames Live, but I don’t think we can post that here. It was posted a long time ago, but Tommy Tallarico himself (?) requested it be taken down and it hasn’t ever been reposted.

It was Jack Wall actually. I bought the thing and was grossly disappointed. I thought the Video Games Live disc was an absolute joke.

This one isn’t too bad – at least, not as bad as the previous reviewer has suggested – the sound quality problems spoken of before DO NOT EXIST; the reviewer is obviously accustomed to close-miked unnatural sounding recordings, because this is beautifully recorded: the orchestra exists within a natural concert hall acoustic. Unfortunately, this kind of "naked" recording technique presents the less-than-stellar orchestrations – and indeed the under-rehearsed orchestra – but this is not a fault of the recording. It’s a gorgeous recording of a not-very-good concert. 😉

[Edit: I am clearly a deaf moron. Please see my post below… ;)]

This one isn’t too bad – at least, not as bad as the previous reviewer has suggested – the sound quality problems spoken of before DO NOT EXIST; the reviewer is obviously accustomed to close-miked unnatural sounding recordings, because this is beautifully recorded: the orchestra exists within a natural concert hall acoustic. Unfortunately, this kind of "naked" recording technique presents the less-than-stellar orchestrations – and indeed the under-rehearsed orchestra – but this is not a fault of the recording. It’s a gorgeous recording of a not-very-good concert.

You might be right, but you know what? I’ve got recording of Beethoven’s IXth from 1954, conducted by Furtwangler and performed during festival in Lucern. So it’s something like… 54 years old. And it’s much clearer than Play! recording. Of course this old like hell thing was remastered etc, but it sounds just better (still, remember that it’s more than 50 years old), no too loud percs, all instruments are audible etc. So maybe I just don’t like famous Rudolphinum acustics, don’t know;). At least we agree that this concert isn’t the best thing in the world overall:). Symphonic Shades are killer though:).

Jack Wall is no Furtwanger, the Slovak Philharmonic is no Philharmonia, and the composers of the various pieces here are no Beethovens. 😉

The Rudolfinum is supposed to sound gorgeous. I’m very fond of a lot of the recordings made there. I’m recording there myself next year (possibly – might end up going to Smecky!).

I think the problems of this CD come down to: Crap arrangements, crap conductor, under-rehearsed orchestra, and concert hall acoustic unsuitable for genre.

Having just listened to it again, come to think of it, the recording bothers me. I’m beginning to think you’re completely right. It sounds like a concert hall acoustic but at the same time it doesn’t – the timpani sounds like it’s playing right inside your skull and the strings sound like they’re playing fifty miles away. No further comment… what a pile of shite! :-/

Symphonic Shades is superb (apart from the pianist who is bloody awful) – and that’s a crappy German [no offense intended to the good people of Germany] radio orchestra. But the arrangement is absolutely beautiful.

Horses for courses, I suppose…

Dude… is this seriously the iTunes release?

Well… I’m sorry, but, this is a bit subpar.
Everything was fine y’know? It’s ‘listenable’, it’s enjoyable, but it’s not without it’s problems… from both the musicians and the recording staff even.

I downloaded this because I wanted to hear the Oblivion theme played in the full ochestration… Which I got to, and it was good… but come on…

1:57..? A guy coughs that loud? Seriously?

Hey, they’ve had several of these concerts. Is there gonna be more of these albums with different music?

OH yeah, and what about the GC concerts that were peformed at Leipzig? Are they ever gonna release those?

The Video Games Live concert is considered and has always been considered the only official and best VGM concert.

Question, why didn’t they play a Nintendo tune? Super Mario, Zelda, Star Fox, F-Zero, Pikmin..very well known themes. They could play at least one Nintendo tune.

The Video Games Live concert is considered and has always been considered the only official and best VGM concert.

Then how come no CD release or MP3 release of the music?

Oh yeah and are they EVER going to release more of the music from the PLAY! Concerts? There has been quite a few of these and they have alot more music available then just this.

When I saw the topic title I dreamed of a proper version of Dancing Mad featuring the whole show; orchestra, big damn organ, a chorus and those bells at the start of part III. But alas, it seems lady luck has forsaken me again… what would I give(if I had) for a good quality version of this; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0BK7ROzLVl8&feature=related

the best next-to heaven we have right now. Maybe until Saturday.

niceeeeeeeeeeeeeeee thx any one know where get the videos ????

Ooo… sankyuu. I watched a concert of this in Philadelphia, PA. I forgot what year. I really liked it. Everyone was their with their NDS trying to get some games going. It was quite fun.

(Hmm…. I just listened to this right now. Some of the instruments have changed (especially in Chrono Trigger/Cross, I don’t remember the guy playing an electric guitar during the Chrono Cross theme song… it was a harp and piccolo if I remember correctly at mine). We had Final Fantasy VII: Sephiroth’s Theme (complete with a choir) as well as Blue Dragon’s theme play at ours.)

the only good track was c64 medley. VGL is a far better performance and listen as is symponic shades.