(no subject)

[deckardcanine]

For the third time (and the first that I requested), my sister bought tickets to a Wolf Trap concert of the National Symphony Orchestra in honor of my birthday. This was back in May, and we both forgot the date (last night) until it was almost too late. Thanks for the reminder, Dad.

I wrote before about the first two concerts. One was the music from five Hitchcock movies, accompanied by parts of the movies on screen. My sister and I both kept forgetting the music as we watched. Last year it was music from pre-1960 Looney Tunes shorts. Less distracting, but the cartoons haven't all aged well. That concert must have had the most children under 13 in attendance, but last night's audience may have had a lower average age: "Play! A Video Game Symphony."

One thing's for sure: This latest audience was the most enthused. Applause came frequently during video montages of popular games or when a popular piece turned up in a medley. The conductor, Andy Brick, actually encouraged people to shout and dance as they pleased. I didn't see any dancing, but then, I was looking at the screens. I did hear a nearby call of "Let's-a go!" when the Mario music was starting. It must have helped that we heard no dialog or other sound effects.

As much as I play and remember, I recognized fewer than half the themes of the evening. Almost all that I did know was from the first half, before intermission, because all those series at least premiered on a Nintendo system long ago: Mario, Chrono (sadly lacking visuals), Metroid, Castlevania, and Zelda. In the second half, after the Kingdom Hearts medley, they moved to modern single games made in the west: Civilization V, Dragon Age II, Guild Wars, Halo: Reach, and World of Warcraft. Only the encore, a Final Fantasy medley, got back to the familiar for me. Fortunately, the selections were still pretty without a nostalgia factor, perhaps especially when they included a vocal soloist. The two hours total went quickly, tho I doubt if it would for minors.

Sometimes my sister asked me to identify musics or visuals; I was glad to help where I could. She took interest in the graphical contrasts across time, and the Metroid series looked especially cool to her. My own interest in each game remains basically unchanged, except perhaps for recent Castlevania entries. I doubt I'll get anything I haven't already. But it's nice to see some of the awesomeness I've been missing.

I expect to continue coming to Wolf Trap concerts, partly for their own merit and partly for familial bonding. But I doubt if any more will appeal to me this much.

EDIT: I wasn't the only program reader to notice that the "Trigger" in Chrono Trigger had been misspelled "Tiger." Have to admit, that game could sell well.

Comments

[nefaria.livejournal.com]

I miss the old days, when there were one or two game systems and there were only a couple truly great games each year. An alert person could experience all the best games. These days it's so hard to separate the wheat from the chaff, and only people with severe OCD can buy all the best games for all the platforms and find enough time to play them.

I'm also heartbroken and a little mad that "Calvin & Hobbes" is slowly fading into obscurity, possibly because no media exists for it besides the comic strips online and the books. Walt Kelly's "Pogo" is already deep into a similar fate. It hurts to see such beautiful things buried in the sands of time.

[deckardcanine.livejournal.com]

I read C&H at GoComics, where some commenters don't realize it's in reruns.