In the last several decades, there has been a return to classical music. This stems its use in film and video games, as classical music is often deeply incorporated in entertainment.
From 1:30 – 3:30 p.m. on November 11 in the Bjorling Recital Hall, the Gustavus Wind Orchestra and Gustavus Wind Symphony Fall Concert will focus in on this relationship between classical music, film, and video games.
The Gustavus Wind Orchestra portion of the concert entitled “A Flight into Fantasy” will be a multimedia concert presentation.
“We will perform music based on the video games Skyrim and Journey, music from the film Star Wars, and Baroque and Renaissance reflective works by J.S. Bach and Benjamin Britten.
“Each Piece will be presented in the dark with a video presentation projected over the orchestra,” Dr. James Miller, conductor of the Gustavus Wind Orchestra, said.
This concert will provide the audience with visual and auditory entertainment. “I’m pretty excited because it’s not only going to be a listening experience, we’re also going to be tying visuals with it,” Robert Schreck, euphonium player in the Gustavus Wind Orchestra, said.
The concert dives into the relationship of film, video games and music and presents a new way of experiencing music. “I’ve never presented music like this in a concert, although video projections with concerts are becoming more and more popular and common,” James Miller said.
GWO hopes to draw in people who may not usually attend concerts. “I am glad [Miller] programmed a concert like this because these are some of the funnest concerts—playing music that is familiar to people who may not usually listen to classical music,” Austyn Menk, keyboard and saxophone player said.
As for the music itself, the concert repertoire is expansive and engaging. The Skyrim inspired piece entitled “Riften Wed” by Julie Giroux, is a melodic and emotional direct homage to the game. As the story goes, Giroux had been playing Skyrim Online and her in-game character was married.
Unfortunately, one day her character’s husband unexpectedly died. Giroux, mourned this loss like the loss of a real person, and accordingly wrote this piece in honor of her late virtual husband.
For those who have played video games, and for those who have lost loved ones, this may be a relatable experience.
The other video game piece “I Was Born for This” by Austin Wintory, is from the video game Journey. This is a lush and beautiful piece that features vocals from soprano and senior music major Katie Peroutka.
“Out of the material we are playing, ‘I Was Born for This’ is probably my favorite piece,” Schreck said.
The connection to film and music will be through Star Wars. “We had to find the new piece—the Star Wars Piece—and put it together in the past couple weeks of rehearsal, so that has been a challenge,” Jacob Skold, saxophone player in the Gustavus Wind Orchestra, said.
The theme of classical music as it relates to video games and film is only half this concert.
The other half, presented by the Gustavus Wind Symphony under the direction of Dr. Heidi Miller, will celebrate the life of composer David Maslanka, who passed away in August. They will perform Maslanka’s “Heart Songs” and “Mother Earth Fanfare.”
“These two pieces really display the composer’s incredible understanding of painting with the wind band brush of colors. They also reflect his two distinct styles: dark, introspective and reflect slow music—and fast, bright, and aggressive music,” Miller said.
Dr. James Miller and Dr. Heidi Miller are both “strong lovers and supporters of David Maslanka’s music and his passing deeply impacted both of us. Presenting a program featuring his music will be very special for all of us,” James Miller said.
For those looking for a unique multimedia concert experience and/or a poignant celebration of David Maslanka, this an excellent opportunity; this concert is free and open to the public.