Prom 21: Gaming Prom – From 8-Bit to Infinity (1.08.22)

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Gaming Prom – From 8-Bit to Infinity
19:30 Monday 1 August 2022 ON TV
Royal Albert Hall

Matt ROGERS (AKA gameshow outpatient)/Tim Follin, arr. Matt Rogers: Loading Chronos
(BBC Commission: world premiere)

Koji KONDO, arr. Nic Raine: The Legend of Zelda

CHAINES: Tribute to Pokémon, Ecco, and Secret of Mana
Original compositions by Junichi Masuda, Hiroki Kikuta, Spencer Nilsen, Attila Dobos, András Magyari, David Javelosa and Andy Armer

Nobuo UEMATSU, arr. Andrew Skeet Final Fantasy VIII: Liberi Fatali

Kow OTANI, arr. Tomomichi Takeoka: Shadow of the Colossus Suite

Yoko SHIMOMURA, orch. Kaoru Wada: Kingdom Hearts

Austin WINTORY: Excerpts from Traveller – A Journey Symphony

Hildur GUÐNADÓTTIR & Sam SLATER, arr. Robert Ames: Selections from Battlefield 2042 (European Premiere)

Jessica CURRY, arr. Jim Fowler I Have Begun My Ascent/ The Leaving (from ‘Dear Esther’/ ‘So Let Us Melt’)


Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Robert Ames, conductor

In the first ever Gaming Prom, an electronically expanded Royal Philharmonic Orchestra explores the musical universe of gaming: from the classic console titles of the 1980s to the European concert premiere of a suite from Battlefield 2042.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

I suppose it's just incidental music with a new lease of life.

[oddoneout]

I have tried to find the starter thread for Prom 21 but failed (too well hidden?), so I will just record here that I listened to the live broadcast of The Gaming Prom and greatly enjoyed it, and this evening watched most of the the TV broadcast on BBC4 (missed the first part) and enjoyed that even more. Seeing the very large orchestra ( several less common instruments on show) playing with such precision, making such glorious sounds, being able to see and understand how some of the sounds I'd heard on the radio were produced, the astonishing array of percussion and noise making items (scrunched up sainsbury carrier bags among others...) used in the penultimate piece, all made for immensely satisfying viewing and listening.
The subject matter is anathema in these parts I realise, but I'm not sure it's a good idea to dismiss such a large body of work out of hand. Something that came over from this Prom ( and was mentioned by one of the presenters)was that as the games themselves have become ever more advanced technically the music has come to use orchestral resources ever more ( and more inventively) for the soundtracks, which runs counter to what one might assume. There can't be many concerts for which the the cor anglais player and one of the harpists find themselves in action for the greater part of the programme.

[alywin]

You might be interested in catching up with this afternoon's The Listening Service, then.

In a review Fiona Maddox commented favourably on the new air conditioning system that has been installed at the RAH. Has anyone who has attended a concert this season noticed an improvement?

I was up in the Gallery the other night - it felt like an icebox if you sat on the rear wall. (Didn't stop them adding an extra aircon unit, though) Cold air blasting out of the top of the units. I'd been wondering why on earth TPTB hadn't put the seating in front of them, but I guess everyone would have had seized-up necks.

I sat down in the stalls a couple of months ago, and was quite surprised that it didn't seem nearly as hot as I'd remembered.

[Joseph K]

I have tried to find the starter thread for Prom 21 but failed (too well hidden?), so I will just record here that I listened to the live broadcast of The Gaming Prom and greatly enjoyed it, and this evening watched most of the the TV broadcast on BBC4 (missed the first part) and enjoyed that even more. Seeing the very large orchestra ( several less common instruments on show) playing with such precision, making such glorious sounds, being able to see and understand how some of the sounds I'd heard on the radio were produced, the astonishing array of percussion and noise making items (scrunched up sainsbury carrier bags among others...) used in the penultimate piece, all made for immensely satisfying viewing and listening.
The subject matter is anathema in these parts I realise, but I'm not sure it's a good idea to dismiss such a large body of work out of hand. Something that came over from this Prom ( and was mentioned by one of the presenters)was that as the games themselves have become ever more advanced technically the music has come to use orchestral resources ever more ( and more inventively) for the soundtracks, which runs counter to what one might assume. There can't be many concerts for which the the cor anglais player and one of the harpists find themselves in action for the greater part of the programme.

http://www.for3.org/forums/showthread.php?24139-Prom-21-Gaming-Prom-%E2%80%93-From-8-Bit-to-Infinity-(1-08-22)

[oddoneout]

http://www.for3.org/forums/showthrea...nity-(1-08-22)

Thanks Joseph. I did go through the,list but missed it - it had been a long day and I think my brain was determined to assume a numerical sequence when scanning rather than taking in what was actually there.

[oddoneout]

You might be interested in catching up with this afternoon's The Listening Service, then.

I did briefly consider it as I had the radio on for the Friday Afternoon concert but despite my interest in the subject matter, within a few seconds of TS launching himself I switched off. The prospect of 18 snippets in 30 minutes didn't help; at least the programmes on gaming music R3 put out played complete or substantial sections of a soundtrack.
Watching last night something that did cross my mind was what is it like to be simply listening (and in a setting - concert hall/orchestra - that would likely be unfamiliar to many) to music that would normally be accompanied by action and interaction?

[Master Jacques]

Watching last night something that did cross my mind was what is it like to be simply listening (and in a setting - concert hall/orchestra - that would likely be unfamiliar to many) to music that would normally be accompanied by action and interaction?

Much the same as film music, surely. If we don't jib at Alexander Nevsky or Henry V the least we can do is provide a level playing-ground for recent scores which serve far larger audiences than even film has ever done.

I was pleased to see Japanese game composers represented, but wondered why the true stars in the genre (such as Yuki Kajiura) were absent - composers whose music is far more personal, offering much greater rewards in isolation from the gaming context. This concert seemed more a gesture than a strong artistic statement, as a result (I think) of "playing safe".

[oddoneout]

Much the same as film music, surely. If we don't jib at Alexander Nevsky or Henry V the least we can do is provide a level playing-ground for recent scores which serve far larger audiences than even film has ever done.

I was pleased to see Japanese game composers represented, but wondered why the true stars in the genre (such as Yuki Kajiura) were absent - composers whose music is far more personal, offering much greater rewards in isolation from the gaming context. This concert seemed more a gesture than a strong artistic statement, as a result (I think) of "playing safe".

Any such overview of a genre is always going to be open to "why was XYZ" missed out, and I think this one had a lot of ground to cover. I can't comment from any informed stance as ironically I have never played a computer game ( my children did from the days of windup cassette player and Beeb micro onwards) and would never have come across a whole world of music, much of which I have found to my liking, if it wasn't for R3. My experience of film watching is almost as deficient but I don't find listening to film scores, certainly from more recent years, nearly as satisfying, and in fact stopped listening to Sound of Cinema for that reason quite some time ago. Even knowing the storyline and context more often than not it didn't seem to conjure up those images or feelings.
Regardless of the pros and cons of such music being at the proms I hope that it has given some people a chance they might not otherwise have had to see and hear a real live orchestra in action.

[Master Jacques]

Any such overview of a genre is always going to be open to "why was XYZ" missed out, and I think this one had a lot of ground to cover.

My criticism was less specific and more general, along the lines of "why was the more experimental end of gaming music conspicuously absent?" Yuki Kajiura's work was just one example, but there could have been many others. The whole thing gave the impression that game music as a genre is as deeply conventional as bland, modern film music, which is not the case. It is a massive field.

Much as I share your pious hope as to new audiences, I doubt whether this Prom repertoire would have attracted many actual gamers: they're all at home, enjoying the real thing! I'd be interested to know, though, just how attendance figures compared with other concerts. Is there a way of finding out, I wonder?

[oddoneout]

My criticism was less specific and more general, along the lines of "why was the more experimental end of gaming music conspicuously absent?" Yuki Kajiura's work was just one example, but there could have been many others. The whole thing gave the impression that game music as a genre is as deeply conventional as bland, modern film music, which is not the case. It is a massive field.

Much as I share your pious hope as to new audiences, I doubt whether this Prom repertoire would have attracted many actual gamers: they're all at home, enjoying the real thing! I'd be interested to know, though, just how attendance figures compared with other concerts. Is there a way of finding out, I wonder?

Perhaps in trying to reach a wider audience ( gamers of various types and non-gamers) it fell into the 'not satisfying either cohort' gap for someone such as yourself? The vox pops after the TV broadcast suggested that at least some of the audience were gamers. My comment about hearing a live orchestra wasn't a pious hope for new audiences just the hope that for some at least it had been a new experience that would stay with them and perhaps lead on to other things.
I don't think that listening to a film score without the visuals is the same as listening to a game score with neither the visuals nor physical actions. A film is the finished article, the audience doesn't get to participate in or control the action and outcomes, so the listening is passive as is the watching, hence my query about how gamers found the experience of just listening; if I understand correctly the music changes according to the direction of the action so won't be the same each time, which is rather different from listening to the set score of "a suite from", as in the Prom or indeed the examples in the R3 programmes . Is listening without action something that is done or is popular? As I said, it's a whole other world to me.

[Master Jacques]

I don't think that listening to a film score without the visuals is the same as listening to a game score with neither the visuals nor physical actions. A film is the finished article, the audience doesn't get to participate in or control the action and outcomes, so the listening is passive as is the watching, hence my query about how gamers found the experience of just listening; if I understand correctly the music changes according to the direction of the action so won't be the same each time, which is rather different from listening to the set score of "a suite from", as in the Prom or indeed the examples in the R3 programmes . Is listening without action something that is done or is popular? As I said, it's a whole other world to me.

You make a good point about the immersive element of most games: others (the so-called 'adventure games' with heavy text content and no fighting) are more like film in their comparative passivity - more multiple choice than free-ranging, in the way of Role Play or Action Games (for example).

None the less, the scores of the blockbuster American, Japanese and European games only tend to shift gear between generic 'background' (exploring) outdoor and indoor musics, fight music and NPC (non-player character) themes, with special climactic numbers for 'boss' fights, so suites are perfectly in order, and make just as much sense as film score equivalents. As gamers will associate particular themes very strongly with the appropriate visuals, having heard them hundreds of times during the course of an average 90-hour RPG (for example), even while footling about, they'll identify even more strongly with well-known material than filmgoers, who may only experience a film (and their scores) a comparatively limited number of times.

[oddoneout]

You make a good point about the immersive element of most games: others (the so-called 'adventure games' with heavy text content and no fighting) are more like film in their comparative passivity - more multiple choice than free-ranging, in the way of Role Play or Action Games (for example).

None the less, the scores of the blockbuster American, Japanese and European games only tend to shift gear between generic 'background' (exploring) outdoor and indoor musics, fight music and NPC (non-player character) themes, with special climactic numbers for 'boss' fights, so suites are perfectly in order, and make just as much sense as film score equivalents. As gamers will associate particular themes very strongly with the appropriate visuals, having heard them hundreds of times during the course of an average 90-hour RPG (for example), even while footling about, they'll identify even more strongly with well-known material than filmgoers, who may only experience a film (and their scores) a comparatively limited number of times.

Interesting, thank you. As I say it's unknown territory for me and that's helped to fill in some more of the gaps.

[RichardB]

"why was the more experimental end of gaming music conspicuously absent?"

Why do the Proms ignore the more experimental end of music in general? Look at the concert music composers commissioned every year.

[Serial_Apologist]

Why do the Proms ignore the more experimental end of music in general? Look at the concert music composers commissioned every year.

Indeed! That said, this discussion is not without interest, to say the least. I am trying to envisage the kind of gaming music that would have been appropriate to the "original" ping pong I used to play with my late ex-girlfriend's 13-year old. back in the 1970s. It would not have been some obvious parody on, say for argument's sake, "Rule Britannia", to accompany a games show themed to zapping othered peoples in some too-easily configured jungle situation in, say, Vietnam; more probably something akin to early Reich, in which the set regular rhytmic patters would disrupt in conjunction to the position of the ball hitting various parts of the frame, as affected by being struck or missed by each contestant!