Music in gaming can truly transform an experience. From sweeping overtures to character-specific themes, the musicality of a game can elevate it to new heights. Depending on the type of game you’re playing, the music could be something light and zany. Or, if emotions are heightened, it 🔯could be rousing a🐭nd stirring. Regardless, it should be memorable.
It's no surprise that there have been a number of concerts celebrating the best in video game music. While some concerts hone in on one series or specific game, others take a broader approach and offer music from a selection of well-known and exciting games. If you’re looking to have an intimate night out with some of the best gaming music, some of these video game orchestras still tour. If you prefer a quiet evening at home, many of these can be listened to online, including ones that aren't traveling anymore.
Updated September 15, 2023 by PJ Molloy: There's something magical about video game music, and nowhere is that more apparent than the endlessly talented touring video game orchestras that bless the world with beautiful arrangements of some of the greatest video game music of all time. Now that the pandemic is over, music venues are open again, and video game concerts are making a comeback. Some are scheduled to tour throughout 2024, while others have sadly stopped and can only be experienced through YouTube or Spotify. Either way, if anyone tries to argue that video game music isn’t real art, show them these breathtaking video game orchestras and watch their argument crumble.
11 ෴ Press Start: A Symphonꦛy Of Games
Who would've thought there would be a video game orchestra organized by the same mind behind the 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Super Smash Bros. series? started performing in 2006 and toured throughout Japan and internationally for ten yeꦅars.
The tour was organized by video game le🌳gends, including Final Fantasy composer ♔Nobuo Uematsu, Kirby composer Shogo Sakai, and Super Smash Bros director Masahiro Sakurai. The orchestra performed gorgeous renditions of music from Super Smash Bros, Mega Man, Donkey Kong Country, Xenoblade Chronicles, and much more.
10 𒆙 Kingdom Hearts World Tour
168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Kingdom Hearts is known for its beautiful, moving, and epic m🦄elodies. is a jaw-dropping way to experience these gorgeous pieces of music. This stunning video game orchestra debuted in 2017 and toured worldwide untꦰil 2018.
Concert-goers were able to hear fan favorites like the deeply moving Dearly Be༺loved and character themes for Sora, Riku, and Roxas. If you want to experience the outstanding arrangements of these songs, the orch🀅estra released a full album you can find online.
9 ♈Sonic Symphony 𝓀
The Sonic series has 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:some phenomenal soundtracks, so the is a dream come true🐈 for fans of the fastest thing alive. This video game symphony tours the world with a full orchestra and rock band, with special appearances by series composer Jun Senoue at select shows.
The Sonic Symphony plays beautifully orchestrated versions of famous Sonic songs from the Sega Genesis, Game Gear, Saturn, Dreamcast, and modern era. As the cherry on top, the rock portion of the concert includes hits like Live And Learn, Escape From The City, and Reach For The Stars. As of 2023, the orchestra is still touring, with dates scheduled well into 2024. If you can't make it to one of their live shows, you can watch the entire performance on the official Sonic The Hedgehog YouTube channel.
8 A Ne𝔍w World: Intimate Music From Final Fantasy
The 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Final Fantasy series is no straཧnger to beautiful and epic music. From grand, exciting battle themes to tracks that elicit the strongest emotions, the series has had music from one extreme to the next.
takes the best tracks from various games throughout 30-plus years of the Final Fantasy series and combines them into one moving orchestral concert. It's a smaller-scale intimate performance arranged by Arnie Roth and Eric Roth of AWR Music Productions — both of whom are widely respected international conductors.
7 The Legend Ofꦅ Zelda: Symphony Of The Goddesses ꦇ
While it hasn’t been performed recently, the Symphony of the Goddesses is known for its commitment to 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:The Legend of Zelda series. The Zelda games have some of 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:the most iconic music in gaming, and this orchestra features music from fan favorites like A Link to the Past, 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Ocarina of Time, 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Twilight Princess, and Wind Waker.
This video game concert was initially intended to promote the 2ജ5th anniversary of the series but would later go on to run for several seasons, with the third being titled the “Master Quest.” The orchestra would go on to tour continuously through 2018. Despite its lack of presence in recent years, you can still listen to the concert o♕nline.
6 ﷽ Pokemon: S🐭ymphonic Evolutions
As you probably know, Pokemon is a game series where the goal is to catch ‘em all. If you’re a Pokedex completionist, you know how long a feat like that can be. It’s key to have some good tunes in the background, and thankfully, the Pokemon series 𒁏delivers.
From 2014 to 2017, a video game orchestra called toured, celebrating the very best Pokemon music from both the games and the anime. Concerts always ended with an encore of the anime's original theme song Gotta Catch 'Em All.
5 Assassin's Creed Symphony World Tour
The 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Assassin’s Creed games have been immensely popular for years. It's a series that dives into the history of various civilizations across time and place, and it’s no wonder fans have fallen not only for the rich stories and characters but also for its music.
The features an 80-piece symphony and live choir. Like many video game concer🔯ts, it features game footage that p♛lays simultaneously with the company. Over the course of their concerts, over one hundred tracks have been played from across ten different games.
4 🗹 The 8-Bit Big Band
If you’re looking for soꦡmething different, is a jazz and pop video game orchestra that plays its own arrangements of some of the most popular gaming tunes. They take fan favorites and add a twist 🌟to reimagine them into something fresh and exciting.
From Super Mario 64 to Katamari Damacy to Earthbound, there is a little bit of something for everyone. While it won’t sound exactly like the versions in the original games, it injects an extra layer of jazz into classic tunes and guarantees a good time. They even won a Grammy in 2022 for their arrangement of Meta Knight's Revenge from Kirby Super Star.
3 V⛄ideo Games Live
is a little more than just a video game concert. It is a full-on experience. Not only does it feature music from some of the best games with a full orchestra and choir, but there are also synchronized lights, solo performers, and interactive segments. If you attend one of their performances, you'll be graced with gorgeous renditions of music from Metal Gear Solid, Halo, Sonic The Hedgehog, and much more.
The concert is put on by people in the gaming industry and truly acts as a love letter to gaming and the good it can do. It's also listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the world’s largest, most successful, and longest-running video game concert.
2 Final Fantasy 7 Remake World🧜 Tour
Most video game orchestras cover an entire series or even 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:a variety of games. But when a tour focuses specifically on a single game, you’re in for a treat. The concert tour for 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Final Fantasy 7 Remake features✅ a grand or♛chestra with music from Nobuo Uematsu.
Expect favorites like Flowers In The Church and the epic but anxiety-inducing One-Winged Angel. It's all featured alongside electrifying high-definition video scenes created just for the concert. If you’re a major Final Fantasy 7 fan, you owe yourself to look them up and experience the gorgeous melodies.