You can check out NieR:Orchestra Concert 12024 [the end of data] on the official website, on Facebook, on X, and on Instagram.

You can check out upcoming tour dates and find tickets available for purchase here.

SPOILER-FREE REVIEW

If you’re like me, then you want to know whether or not NieR:Orchestra Concert 12024 [the end of data] is worth seeing without having anything about the contents of it spoiled. The answer is that if you are a fan of NieR, Yoko Taro, and Keiichi Okabe, then unequivocally yes: you should absolutely go because you will love every moment of it.

The composition selection is fantastic, the story plot is well-done, and I was more than a little impressed with how simply Yoko Taro-esque it all felt. Just one word of warning: This concert will spoil the plot, in detail, through ending E of NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139… and the grand majority of NieR:Automata. Also, if you haven’t played either game in a while, you might want to refresh yourself on the finer points of both before you go.

In short, I am giving NieR:Orchestra Concert 12024 [the end of data] a perfect score, as it is a concert that no NieR-lover should miss out on.

If you’re looking for a more spoiler-filled review about everything but the concert’s canon plot details, then read on below the image of Yoko Taro!

SPOILER REVIEW

When I bought the ticket back in July 2023 for the debut performance of NieR:Orchestra Concert 12024 [the end of data] in Los Angeles for January 27, 2024, I had not played either of the NieR titles or any of Yoko Taro’s other titles besides a little bit of the now-defunct SINoALICE mobile game, his FINAL FANTASY XIV Online tie-in content, and watching the BABYLON’S FALL event online. I ended up playing through both NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139… and NieR:Automata BECOME AS GODS Edition in the months leading up to the concert. And even though I mildly groaned at having to complete both games five times, I did so and found a wonderful, unique, and different world in each game with memorable characters. I actually wrapped up NieR:Automata and its DLC a week and a half before the concert started.

I am glad I did so, because this concert is designed for those gamers who have wrung out every drop of plot-related gameplay they could. Everything from the game’s beginning until the end of Ending E in NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139… is described and shown in depth throughout the show. NieR:Automata isn’t spoiled quite as deeply, but almost all of the major twists-and-turns of that game are covered here too. If you haven’t played both games, then you’re probably going to be lost plot-wise for quite a bit of the concert’s story.

Yes, this concert has a story scenario that fits fairly neatly into the storyline of NieR:Automata. While I will not go into depth about the plot itself, I will say that I was drawn rather deeply into it. The voice recordings by 2B (Kira Buckland) and 9S (Kyle McCarley) both fit in perfectly with how the characters were brought to life in the game a half-decade ago, and I was impressed with how strong the voice direction and script writing was. It really felt like Yoko Taro put a great deal of time into making sure that NieR:Orchestra Concert 12024 [the end of data]’s plotline didn’t feel like a rushed, unimportant piece of NieR lore but was instead a true labor of love.

Amazing cosplay was everywhere at NieR:Orchestra Concert 12024 [the end of data]. (Photos by author).

What surprised me more than anything else about NieR:Orchestra Concert 12024 [the end of data]’s plot was how he integrated it into the two-hour-and-change concert. Ordinarily with a video game orchestra concert, a selected video game composition is played while gameplay content and cutscenes relevant to that particular piece is played in the background. Then, another piece is played afterwards and different cutscenes and gameplay are shown. It serves to invoke different emotions for, say Aerith’s Theme and Chocobo Medley, in the viewer because they use wildly different accompanying scenes and music.

NieR:Orchestra Concert 12024 [the end of data] takes a different tact. Before most of the 21 musical pieces, the plot would continue on the screen via voiceover and text like how the storyline was told in the Forest of Myth in NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139… or in the Devola & Popola’s Memories novels from NieR:Automata. The vignettes would then frequently tie into the next musical selection either directly or thematically. Later on in the concert, 2B and 9S’s plotline itself would suddenly continue through text on the paired video screen. This smartly made the entire concert into a single, continuous story that I have not seen since the FINAL FANTASY VII: A Symphonic Reunion concert in June 2019 that I reviewed.

Unlike that one-off performance, however, NieR:Orchestra Concert 12024 [the end of data] amazingly succeeds. You will find yourself flowing from musical piece to musical piece, your attention and your heart drawing deeper into 2B and 9S’s adventure, clinging to every word that appears on the screen and that comes through the audio setup as Yoko Taro made something simply special here. Most importantly, it truly felt like a fully-realized and canon episode of the NieR universe instead of a cash-grab side project.

If you’ve played through both NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139… and NieR:Automata, then something you’ve probably noticed is that there are not a ton of rendered cutscenes in those games like you would find in a modern FINAL FANTASY or KINGDOM HEARTS franchise game. At least, there certainly is not enough to fill up two hours of performance in both games. NieR series director Yoko Taro and series composer Keiichi Okabe decided to smartly intermix clips of cutscenes with panning shots of various areas in the two games and by using effects such as blossoming fire and colorful polygon lines in sync with the music. While you would think this would be detrimental to the show itself, that couldn’t be any further from the truth, as the non-cutscene graphics’ synchronicity with the music really elevated each other in a way I wasn’t expecting. The unique ways in which the cutscenes were also often shown (which I am deliberately not sharing to keep it a surprise) also served to keep me on my toes with anticipation of what would be coming next.

The orchestra, titled the NieR Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus, was expertly conducted by Eric Roth. I immediately recognized him, as he had previously conducted the April 2022 A New World: Intimate Music from FINAL FANTASY performance at Hertz Hall in Berkeley, California that I attended. While he did not chat with the audience between pieces like he did at that prior show, his conducting mastery was on display. He kept the live orchestra perfectly in sync with the video, and he was able to make sure that all of the orchestra was presented as a unified vision. The NieR Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus themselves gave a top-tier performance as well. They presented the different pieces clearly and cleanly, and I did not hear any obvious mistakes in their performance. I would like to draw special attention to the chimes – you will hear those in various points throughout NieR:Orchestra Concert 12024 [the end of data], and they always rang clearly through the surrounding orchestra while not overpowering everyone else. The chorus, which I gave up trying to count after close to 20 people, managed to sing the made-up ‘Chaos Language’ lyrics clearly and distinctly.

The other real stars of the show are the two singers who sang on NieR:Automata’s OST: Emi Evans and J’Nique Nicole. Both artists came on at multiple times throughout the show to sing various tracks, but their standout performance was Weight of the World. You could tell that everyone in the Peacock Theater was focused only upon them, and they earned every bit of the applause they got. Both Emi Evans and J’Nique Nicole have extremely unique voices. I loved how they brought themselves into harmony with each other in the Chaos Language while singing various songs, and that is something that I cannot imagine being easy. Finally, the dresses they both wore – Emi Evans in blue and J’Nique Nicole in red – were both incredibly striking and really helped to make them stand out among the darker colors of the orchestra.

NieR:Orchestra Concert 12024 [the end of data]’s concert length itself was surprising, despite being split into the standard two-parts-and-an-intermission-plus-encore. Clocking the show from when the first piece started, the first half went for 48 minutes, then there was a 23-minute intermission, and then the final part plus encore was an hour and five minutes long. Adding in the late start time and the pre-performance introduction by Keiichi Okabe, the show lasted until about 10:50 PM, and I wasn’t able to get out of the building until 11 PM. If you’re going to see a subsequent show, definitely take the late start and finish into consideration for your parking/transportation needs.

Finally, I need to talk about NieR:Orchestra Concert 12024 [the end of data]’s merchandise and how it was sold. In what would be a first for me having attended so many of these type of concerts in the past, the company handling the merchandise started selling the merch four-and-a-half hours before the show itself started outside of the venue. There were clearly marked queue lines that snaked back and forth through the outdoors plaza, and they only took card. I arrived an hour-and-40 minutes before they started to sell merchandise, and I was able to buy anything and everything I wanted from the show. While a lot of the items were also available on the SQUARE ENIX Online Store, there were unique concert items such as T-shirts, keychains, and postcards available to buy. The line also moved incredibly quickly, and I was able to get all my buying done within about 20 minutes.

The biggest surprise with the merchandise though? They held back a significant amount of it for purchase inside of the event hall itself. I ventured my way to the mezzanine floor 10 minutes before the official (and ultimately delayed) start time to see that even after 50 minutes had passed since the Peacock Theatre’s doors opened, there were still plenty of T-shirts of all sizes available for purchase. It really felt like that if you wanted a T-shirt for NieR:Orchestra Concert 12024 [the end of data], you could absolutely get one if you put a bit of pre-planning into it. I sincerely hope that SQUARE ENIX and AWR Music Productions adopts this practice of selling merchandise for all future concerts that they both have a hand in.

While I have extolled the many, many, positive aspects of NieR:Orchestra Concert 12024 [the end of data], there are three small issues I had with the concert. First, the late start time. This was the first video game orchestral concert I’ve attended that had a significant delay in start time (20 minutes, or so?). Second, there was a very minor volume level issue with J’Nique Nicole’s microphone for her first performance, but it was corrected by the time she returned to the stage. Finally, in what is probably the only true hiccup of the evening, it was announced that the voice performers for 2B and 9S were in the audience for the performance towards the end of the show. Everyone started to look around for them, and they were not spotlighted and did not stand up for everyone to see. That was more than a little baffling. All three of these were ultimately minor issues, however, and did not detract from the overall show.

Overall, NieR:Orchestra Concert 12024 [the end of data] was fantastic. Yoko Taro and Keiichi Okabe did an amazing job creating a show for fans of the NieR franchise, and their heartwarming statements at the beginning/end of the show really made my night.

If you love NieR and you can get tickets to the show, even if you can’t get to participate in a meet and greet session, then you have to go because you will not regret a second of it. NieR:Orchestra Concert 12024 [the end of data] is an orchestral masterpiece and you must not miss out on it. I almost never give out a perfect score for an orchestral video game-inspired concert, but NieR:Orchestra Concert 12024 [the end of data] is something truly special.

Review Score
Overall

You can check out upcoming tour dates and find tickets available for purchase here.

Did you attend NieR:Orchestra Concert 12024 [the end of data] in Los Angeles?

What musical piece are you most excited to hear?

Let us know in the comments below!

The post REVIEW- NieR:Orchestra Concert 12024 [the end of data] Is A Must-See Show appeared first on oprainfall.

Tickets are on sale now.

Everything after these two paragraphs will be spoilers about the concert. If you’re looking to simply determine if Eorzean Symphony – FINAL FANTASY XIV Orchestra Concert 2023 is worth going to, the answer is: Yes, even if you previously attended FINAL FANTASY XIV Orchestra Concert 2018 -Eorzean Symphony. While a handful of tracks are shared between the two symphony concerts, there is enough new material that I would unequivocally state that you should go if you can get a ticket.

That said, if you plan on bringing a light-up Elpis flower (sold on the SQUARE ENIX Store, at FAN FESTIVAL, or at the symphony itself) to the concert as recommended, then be sure to install the batteries beforehand. If you are planning on buying the Elpis flower at the concert itself, then bring a small eyeglass screwdriver with you to install the batteries with because the merchandising booth does not have the necessary screwdriver available to use.

Eorzean Symphony – FINAL FANTASY XIV Orchestra Concert 2023 is a concert that will both feel incredibly familiar to those who attended FINAL FANTASY XIV Orchestra Concert 2018 -Eorzean Symphony during its two-night North American tour and yet completely new at the same time. Whereas the 2018 concert focused only on 1.0, A Realm Reborn, and Heavensward, this 2023 symphony sought to showcase the entire storyline for the past 10 years, starting with A Realm Reborn and until the end of Endwalker.

Eorzean Symphony – FINAL FANTASY XIV Orchestra Concert 2023 took place the day after the second day of FINAL FANTASY XIV FAN FESTIVAL 2023-2024 in Las Vegas at the Virgin Theater. During the two-and-a-half-hour show, there were 20 songs played that told the entire story of FINAL FANTASY XIV Online in chronological order starting with A Realm Reborn until the end of Endwalker. Alexandra Cravero conducted the Eorzean Orchestra, with the Desert Angels All Star Choir backing them up. After each expansion’s suite was played, Naoki Yoshida, Masayoshi Soken, Michael-Christopher Koji Fox, or some combination of the three would come on stage to present the next expansion’s musical selections. The concert was split up into two parts, separated by a 15-minute intermission. In the first half, there was pieces from A Realm Reborn, Heavensward, and Stormblood. In the second half, there were suites from Shadowbringers and Endwalker.

“My heart always goes a million miles an hour when I sing those songs [Shadowbringers and To the Edge] back-to-back.”~ Jason Charles Miller

The storytelling aspect was incredible. For each expansion, a particular song would pick up one of several story threads and tell it. For example, Dragonsong (with vocals by Amanda Achen) told the story of the Heavensward expansion from start to the final fight. Next, the song Heavensward (again with vocals by Amanda Achen) repurposed the clips of the professional SQUARE ENIX trailer to accompany it, and it helped to tell the proceeding story of the expansion in a different way. Finally, the song Heroes picked up the final trial fight and told the remainder of Heavenward‘s story. For other expansions, the story plotlines would be split between two or three songs, and only by listening and watching all of them would you feel like you saw the full story that you experienced in game. I have attended a lot of video game concerts and symphonies so far, and the way SQUARE ENIX and The Wild Faery Company arranged Eorzea Symphony – FINAL FANTASY XIV Orchestra Concert 2023 is the best version yet.

During the show, Amanda Achen and Jason Charles Miller would repeatedly take the stage to provide vocals for different songs. Despite having heard both of them repeatedly over the prior two days at FINAL FANTASY XIV FAN FESTIVAL 2023-2024 in two other mediums, both of them pulled off amazing performances with a backing orchestra. I’ve made no secret of how I love Ms. Achen’s voice and stage presence previously, and she is just as great here too. Mr. Miller’s voice really filled the Virgin Theater here too, and I could just tell he was passionate about what he was singing as we explored the Endwalker expansion.

I mentioned at the top of this review that there are some songs that are shared between Eorzean Symphony – FINAL FANTASY XIV Orchestra Concert 2023 and FINAL FANTASY XIV Orchestra Concert 2018 -Eorzean Symphony, and that is true. Seven of the 10 musical pieces from the first act were also present at the 2018 performances. I will say that I loved them then, and I loved them now – even if the video for Dragonsong felt almost identical at both performances. One of my biggest concerns was whether or not I would still enjoy the 2023 version, even having attended the 2018 shows: and the answer is absolutely yes.

Finally, there is the Elpis flower. During a part of the second half of the show, attendees are encouraged to turn on an Elpis flower and light it. I am going to say that it was a really cool moment when everyone did so, and the music swelled up again. It fit in so perfectly, and it was my favorite moment of the show to look around and see all of the lit flowers. If you can get an Elpis flower either through the SQUARE ENIX store, at the FAN FESTIVAL merchandise booth, or at the concert itself, you should. I purposefully bought a flower at the show just to be a part of that moment, and I was glad that I was able to join in.

“The reason we are here is because of you – Thank you so much.” ~Naoki Yoshida

So far, I have raved about all the good things about the show, but I would be remiss if I didn’t point out what I didn’t like as well. First and foremost: I strongly disliked the video accompanying the second song, A New Hope. Even though it is set during A Realm Reborn, all that video did was show NPCs in various cities standing around and/or doing minor automated actions. I get that it is supposed to show off how the world is recovering from the Seventh Umbral Calamity, but I felt like it was underwhelming – especially compared to the high quality of storytelling that later songs would present. I also wish that there was something from 1.0 (perhaps Answers or Rise of the White Raven?) present, as 1.0 is part of the story for FINAL FANTASY XIV Online.

The venue itself was okay, though not great. The audio during the symphony had issues, as I could hear it reverberating in the back of the hall from where I was sitting near the front, and the camera that showed off the orchestra displayed low-quality images that sharply contrasted with the high-quality gameplay clips. This is not the fault of SQUARE ENIX or The Wild Faery Company, but simply how the Virgin Theater is. I was sitting in row H from the front on the left-hand side, for reference.

The merchandising situation was a mess. There were two performances that Sunday, and an Eorzean Symphony – FINAL FANTASY XIV Orchestra Concert 2023 T-shirt was exclusively sold at the show itself. For whatever reason, the merchandising booth did not hold enough large and extra-large T-shirts back for both performances, and instead sold them out during the first show. This meant that they had only a limited supply of small and medium T-shirts for the second performance and that if you wanted a chance to get a T-shirt, you better have attended the first performance. This is uncommon for SQUARE ENIX concerts from my experience, as they have been letting people buy the merchandise online through a secret weblink so that they do not run out of merchandise.

“I am very proud that I was able to spend these last ten years with you.” ~ Naoki Yoshida

Additionally, if you bought an Elpis flower at the concert itself, the merchandise booth did not have a way to help you install the batteries before the concert so that you could light it up during the Symphony. It apparently caused enough of a problem that SQUARE ENIX tweeted out about it between performances. Thankfully, two Warriors of Light from the Aether server stepped forward and were installing batteries in Elpis flowers in an assembly-line fashion with tools that they brought into the show with them. It shouldn’t have been necessary for them to be the ones to do this, and I can only hope it will be corrected for future performances.

If I have the opportunity to attend Eorzean Symphony – FINAL FANTASY XIV Orchestra Concert 2023 again, I absolutely would. Most importantly, the audience around me absolutely loved it too. This is simply a magical show that has some of the best video game concert storytelling that I have ever seen, and I found myself listening to some of the music on the walk to the bus station afterwards because I wasn’t quite ready to leave Eorzea yet and return to the real world.

If you just read about what I didn’t like about the show, and you’re wondering how I can score it a 4.5/5…then just know that the musical performance itself is THAT strong to overcome any possible issues with the venue itself or the merchandise.

Go see Eorzean Symphony – FINAL FANTASY XIV Orchestra Concert 2023. Seriously.

You won’t regret it.

Review Score
Overall

The next performance of Eorzean Symphony – FINAL FANTASY XIV Orchestra Concert 2023 will be held at the Eventim Apollo on October 23, 2023 in London, England.

Are you planning on attending an upcoming performance of Eorzean Symphony – FINAL FANTASY XIV Orchestra Concert 2023? 

If you were present at the Las Vegas performances, what did you think?

Let us know in the commens below!

The post REVIEW: Eorzean Symphony – FINAL FANTASY XIV Orchestra Concert 2023 appeared first on oprainfall.

If there is one takeaway from The Game Awards 10-Year Concert with Fireworks this past Sunday, it is this: Geoff Keighley knows how to pull off a well-oiled show that fits within a time limit. There was very little downtime during the two-hour concert, it was clear that the concert was incredibly well-rehearsed, and I loved every moment of this celebration of 10 years for The Game Awards.

First, The Game Awards 10-Year Concert with Fireworks could not have picked a better venue than the Hollywood Bowl. I viewed the concert in the pool circle, but I purposefully walked up to the very back of the venue before and after the show and I found that it was a great view no matter where you were. The acoustics from where I was up front was admittedly very great, and you can see the iconic Hollywood sign in the background from the very top of the bowl. It is the spot in Los Angeles to see a concert outside of possibly the Microsoft Theater in downtown L.A., and it is certainly the most iconic place to be.

The producer and host of The Game Awards and The Game Awards 10-Year Concert with Fireworks, Geoff Keighley, opened the concert by saying that this was “[s]uch a special night for me”. You could feel a real, honest, charisma radiating from him as he introduced each upcoming musical selection in an extremely-well rehearsed and scripted bit of dialogue. Amazingly, Mr. Keighley pulled off the tricky balancing act of not overstaying his welcome at any given point while also setting up the next suite or single to be performed or guest to be welcomed to the stage, and he did not overshadow the various guest appearances or the Los Angeles Philharmonic itself.

There were 15 different suites and singles performed during The Game Awards 10-Year Concert with Fireworks, and almost all of them were from recent titles such as God of War: Ragnarök, Elden Ring, Hogwarts Legacy, and just-released titles such as FINAL FANTASY XVI and Star Wars Jedi: Survivor.  The Game Awards 10-Year Concert with Fireworks even flexed the strength of its popularity and success by playing music from two un-released games: a debut suite from Starfield and the main title track from Spider-Man 2. There were only a handful of older games  represented at the show: Diablo II and Diablo III as part of the Diablo IV suite, and a suite from The Last of Us. If you played video games at all, chances are there was something that you recognized being played during the concert.

No matter what game The Game Awards 10-Year Concert with Fireworks wanted to present music from, the concert made sure to have the defining version of that music played. For example, Hades had the vocal track In the Blood, and the concert had Darren Korb and Ashley Barrett, who sang the original track, perform live. Eivør, a vocalist from God of War: Ragnarök, sang as part of that game’s suite. Finally, Gustavo Santaolalla himself came onto the stage to perform part of the melody (and a solo!) for the music he composed from The Last of Us. Every moment performed by the Los Angeles Philharmonic honestly felt a bit like magic, and they really showed off just how much the music in video games are art.

The most intriguing part of the show, for me, was the video accompaniments for each of the 15 of the 15 pieces performed, as the Ten-Year Theme for The Game Awards had fireworks to view overhead instead. Mr. Keighley informed the audience throughout the show that the studios were the ones who came up with the suites, and it was intriguing to see how each studio approached the video accompaniment. On one end, Riot Games created a League of Legends and Arcane suite with an accompanying video that contained plot content from Arcane mashed up with videos from LoL competitions and video game cutscenes. On the far other side of things, Naughty Dog’s suite for The Last of Us was only accompanied by panoramas of various locations in the game that gave nothing away if you haven’t played the series. Having attended a wide variety of video game concerts over the years, I found myself loving how each studio created its own ‘voice’ in how to set up the video musical accompaniment. The wide variety of styles also ensured that I would never get bored or know quite what to expect when a new game was about to be performed.

Of course, then there is Jack Black and Tenacious D. I have never seen Tenacious D perform before, but the first half of the The Game Awards 10-Year Concert with Fireworks was capped off by Tenacious D coming on stage and performing their new-single Video Games. Tenacious D absolutely owned every bit of that stage they were on. I had never heard the song before, but it definitely was a lot of fun to listen to. The real shock of the night, for me, was when Jack Black returned at the very end of the show to perform the single Peaches from The Super Mario Bros. Movie. This song, which peaked at number 56 on the US Billboard Hot 100, had Jack Black performing in a full Bowser outfit and singing his absolute heart out with a grand piano accompanying him. It was amazing, it was ridiculous, and it was literally everything I wanted to see at The Game Awards 10-Year Concert with Fireworks.

It was also, unfortunately, the only musical representation that Nintendo-exclusive titles had at the show. All of the various pieces performed came from games that were exclusive to or cross-platform on the PlayStation, Xbox, or PC platforms. While some games such as Hades are available to play on the Nintendo Switch, I was quite surprised that there were no suites from Nintendo-exclusives such as The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom or Super Mario Odyssey that were played. I do not know if this was Nintendo simply refusing to permit scores from their games being played or if this was a decision by The Game Awards 10-Year Concert with Fireworks to not include Nintendo-exclusive music, but their absence was definitely felt by me until Peaches was performed by Jack Black and it felt like Nintendo was finally represented in some way at the very end of the show.

As Geoff Keighley said right before the Ten-Year Theme was performed, “[t]his has been so incredible.” And honestly? He wasn’t wrong. The Game Awards 10-Year Concert with Fireworks is one of my favorite video game concerts that I have ever been to, and I cannot wait to see what The Game Awards has planned next. If there was just more Nintendo-exclusive content, this concert would have been an easy perfect score. However, it is due to the amount of high-quality games and performances present, plus the conclusive performance of Peaches, that it almost completely makes up for it.

If you did not get to go, then you truly missed out on something special. Personally, I want some version of The Game Awards 10-Year Concert with Fireworks to become a yearly thing, as I would definitely attend again, and I encourage anyone who can to attend whenever another show is hopefully put on.

Review Score
Overall

Were you able to attend The Game Awards 10-Year Concert with Fireworks? What was your favorite performance?

Let us know in the comments below!

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You can see tour dates and buy tickets for upcoming performances of CRYSTALLINE RESONANCE: FINAL FANTASY Piano Concert here.

You can also find out more about La Fée Sauvage on their official website.

CRYSTALLINE RESONANCE: FINAL FANTASY Piano Concert is, more than anything else, an amazing concert to attend. If you’re a fan of the FINAL FANTASY series, even casually, you will recognize a lot of the music being played during this show. The two pianists (yes, there were two) put on an amazing performance by syncing up the video presented on the screen while making sure their hearts were clearly invested in pulling off highly-emotional compositions for the audience. That said, there are some odd choices made by SQUARE ENIX and La Fée Sauvage that do detract from the performance and serve somewhat as a distraction during the show. All in all, CRYSTALLINE RESONANCE: FINAL FANTASY Piano Concert is genuinely a concert for FINAL FANTASY fans that should not be missed.

“Both pianists were emotionally and physically invested in their performance, and I was in awe while watching them perform complex scores from the venerable FINAL FANTASY franchise.”

First, the music: I attended the early evening performance of CRYSTALLINE RESONANCE: FINAL FANTASY Piano Concert on March 3, 2023 in San Francisco, and there was a total of 23 pieces played. The concert was clearly geared towards people who started playing the series starting with FINAL FANTASY VII, and it had a special emphasis on music from FINAL FANTASY XIV Online in the second half of the performance. For me, this was not surprising as FINAL FANTASY only truly entered mainstream gaming after the beginning of the PlayStation era, and so it makes sense that SQUARE ENIX and La Fée Sauvage would want to create a show aimed at that audience. This concert played all the ’hits’ from other FINAL FANTASY concerts such as Distant Worlds: Music from FINAL FANTASY or A New World: intimate music from FINAL FANTASY. For example: you’re going to hear Ronfaure (FINAL FANTASY XI Online); you’re going to hear To Zanarkand (FINAL FANTASY X); and you’re definitely going to hear Aerith’s Theme (FINAL FANTASY VII). All of these classic pieces were all extremely well arranged and very recognizable even if there wasn’t a full or small backing orchestra playing.

The concert hall itself was a small, intimate setting that was not unlike the concert I attended in Berkley, California for A New World: intimate music from FINAL FANTASY. There was only one seating level, and there were not a TON of seats available in the theatre. This had the dual purpose of both letting everyone have a good view of the pianists and the stage while also creating a much more ‘cozy’ feeling. I do not know if this is simply a feature of where I am currently seeing FINAL FANTASY concerts in Northern California or if this is how these shows are now put on, but I honestly love this change from the massive theaters that I had previously attended SQUARE ENIX concerts in before. You could also hear the sea gulls from outside during the performance, and it added a bit of local ‘flavor’ to it that made me really wish Fisherman’s Horizon (FINAL FANTASY VIII) had made the final setlist.

The first half of CRYSTALLINE RESONANCE: FINAL FANTASY Piano Concert took place over roughly 45 minutes with 11 pieces played, and the remainder took place after a 15-minute intermission. After the intermission, the pianist was changed out for the last half of the concert. Once the second part was completed, both pianists then alternated playing an encore performance. Each musical piece was introduced with the title of the FINAL FANTASY game that it came from before being played against a video from that particular game that either was directly taken from the part of the game where that score was first played or through a montage that showed off the game in general. The video pieces were continually intercut back-and-forth with live clips of the pianist playing the song, either from the keyboard itself or a waist-up view of the performance. Interestingly, the clips from the NES and Super NES-era FINAL FANTASY titles seemed to be taken from the FINAL FANTASY PIXEL REMASTER versions of those games. This was a bit unexpected for me, as I had played those games on various original Nintendo/PlayStation One platforms they were published on for North America, and I have not yet picked up these newest retro re-releases.

The pianists were the clear star of the show. As various FINAL FANTASY cutscenes and gameplay swirled on the screen overhead, the performers would frequently lean into the keyboard or lean back while playing, depending on the intensity of the piece. Both pianists were emotionally and physically invested in their performance, and I was in awe while watching them perform complex scores from the venerable FINAL FANTASY franchise. There was no ‘phoning it in’ for this show by either performer, and I was constantly pulled away from watching the cutscenes projected on the screen to focus on their actual playing, as it was completely enchanting. The pianists were not afraid to demand the audience’s attention to make sure that this was a concert for FINAL FANTASY fans and that they were the ones who were making it happen.

What was most interesting for me was how many arrangements were presented for the ‘sung’ themes for FINAL FANTASY games. There were piano versions for Eyes On Me (FINAL FANTASY VIII), Melodies of Life (FINAL FANTASY IX), Kiss Me Good-Bye (FINAL FANTASY XII), FINAL FANTASY XIII- The Promise (FINAL FANTASY XIII); and Answers (FINAL FANTASY XIV Online) was featured as one of the encores. I have listened to all of these pieces before as part of various CD collections, and I was able to mentally track the lyrics for each song in my head in time with the live performance. The piano really ‘sung’ the melody notes for Eyes on Me and Melodies of Life in such a way that it made both songs sparkle and stand on their own. For fans who do know all of the lyrics, La Fée Sauvage and SQUARE ENIX occasionally synced the video clips and live piano performances up with the imagined-lyrics in such a way to make the piano-melodied lyrics fit perfectly with what is happening on screen. I am being a little vague on purpose here, as I think it was simply one of the most magical parts of the entire show and I do not want to spoil it for anyone else. But trust me: you will gasp like I did when you see and hear it.

My favorite two pieces, were, by far, A New Horizon- Tavnazian Archipelago (FINAL FANTASY XI Online: The Chains of Promathia) and Valse di Fantastica (FINAL FANTASY XV). It is no secret that FINAL FANTASY XI Online is my favorite FINAL FANTASY title. This particular song was played perfectly, and I felt myself drawn into so many memories of struggling through that expansion and discovering the beauty of the Marquisate of Tavnazia while the story of Prishe and Selh’teus played out for the fate of Vana’diel. Valse di Fantastica was one of the pieces that I openly voiced during the intermission would be played. I loved Altissia in FINAL FANTASY XV- enough so that I actually visited it’s inspiration, Venice, and wrote about it in as a travelog– and the encore performance for that song against the game’s story perfectly closed out the night.

I have, so far, talked about a lot of positives for CRYSTALLINE RESONANCE : FINAL FANTASY Piano Concert and that is because it truly was a great show. That said, there were some disappointing and odd choices for this performance.

First and foremost, for a concert that opens with a montage of all the mainline FINAL FANTASY games through FINAL FANTASY XV, there were no stand-alone pieces for FINAL FANTASY I, FINAL FANTASY II, or FINAL FANTASY III. I was really hoping to hear The Rebel Army (FINAL FANTASY II) or The Crystal Tower (FINAL FANTASY III), both of which are truly iconic songs from those games and which are perfectly suited for the piano. There was also no love for the various FINAL FANTASY spin-off titles. For example, the song Sunset Path from Lightning Returns: FINAL FANTASY XIII is one of the most beautiful compositions in the entire franchise and it is easily adaptable for the piano. While SQUARE ENIX is finally giving some love to the MMORPG expansions for FINAL FANTASY XI Online and FINAL FANTASY XIV Online in their mainline concert series, it is truly a tragedy that these spin-off and sequel titles are still ignored.

“CRYSTALLINE RESONANCE : FINAL FANTASY Piano Concert is a concert that I don’t think you should miss if you’re looking to hear your favorite FINAL FANTASY compositions in a new way.”

All of the pieces in CRYSTALLINE RESONANCE: FINAL FANTASY Piano Concert, with the exception of Mambo de Chocobo (FINAL FANTASY V) that closed out the first half of the show, comprise a very somber setlist. Some of the FINAL FANTASY series’ more light-hearted pieces, such as Jesters of the Moon (FINAL FANTASY IX), Costa del Sol (FINAL FANTASY VII), or Ride On (FINAL FANTASY VIII), would have been great to sprinkle in from time to time to break up the heavy mood. I do recognize, however, that this would have resulted in some fairly deep cuts being performance that more casual FINAL FANTASY fans would not have recognized. Even though this is a show that played almost all of the classic and modern ‘hits’ that people want to hear live, with the possible exception of Aria Di Mezzo Carattere (FINAL FANTASY VI), and that not everything can fit into a two-hour block, I still would have liked a bit more tonal variety.

The part of CRYSTALLINE RESONANCE: FINAL FANTASY Piano Concert that bothered me the most, and the part that some of the audience around me had issues with too, was that there was no opening or closing remarks during the show. In fact, the two pianists were not introduced to the audience whatsoever. For a show that placed such an emphasis on the pianists’ performances to the point where their playing was constantly intercutting the cutscenes on the video, it would have been nice to know who they were. This strange choice of not acknowledging the performers had the unintended effect of somewhat reducing them both, despite their clear reverence for the series’ music, to being performance props. I have been reviewing video game concerts since 2017, and this is the first time this has happened. I don’t know if it was only for this particular San Francisco show or if that is a reoccurring event for CRYSTALLINE RESONANCE: FINAL FANTASY Piano Concert, but failing to identity and recognize the sole performers for the show that is so intricately intertwined within the shown cinematics is inexcusable.

There were a couple more odd things that I noticed that are worth mentioning. The only merchandise sold at this show was a three-disc CD piano-arrangement album titled Piano Opera FINAL FANTASY I-IX. You could only buy this album in cash, and I was a little surprised that they didn’t have any other merch, such as a themed tote bag, a themed T-shirt, or even generic character keychains or music boxes from the various games that are already being sold in the online SQUARE ENIX Store. The other odd aspect was that this was, in a lot of ways, a ‘spoiler-free’ performance for the games. You don’t see the pivotal moment of what happens to certain characters in FINAL FANTASY X, FINAL FANTASY VII, FINAL FANTASY XV, etc. Instead, you just see the direct before and after of it with that little bit just cut out. What this does is that it slightly lessens the emotional ‘punch’ that you know is inevitably coming in the piece because of what happened in the game. The only reason that I could figure is that this is intentional by La Fée Sauvage and SQUARE ENIX to not spoil the various games for people who may not have picked up those FINAL FANTASY titles yet to play through.

Finally, I wish we could have gotten a ‘sneak peek’ musical performance from the upcoming newest release in the series, FINAL FANTASY XVI. It would have been the perfect way to cap off the night, though I totally understand why SQUARE ENIX didn’t include that game within the setlist.

CRYSTALLINE RESONANCE : FINAL FANTASY Piano Concert is a concert that I don’t think you should miss if you’re looking to hear your favorite FINAL FANTASY compositions in a new way. The final score that I am giving this concert is one that I honestly thought a lot about before scoring, and it is definitely one of the hardest that I have had to give so far. The quality of the pianists is just so good, and the song selection is so amazing, that it does overpower any other issues I had with the show besides not introducing the performers to the audience. I ultimately had a wonderful time going, and I will gladly wait for the next FINAL FANTASY concert series to be announced.

Review Score
Overall

You can see tour dates and buy tickets for upcoming performances of CRYSTALLINE RESONANCE: FINAL FANTASY Piano Concert here.

Ticket was purchased by the reviewer.

Have you been to see CRYSTALLINE RESONANCE: FINAL FANTASY Piano Concert? 

What was your favorite FINAL FANTASY composition played?

Let us know in the comments below!

The post REVIEW: CRYSTALLINE RESONANCE: FINAL FANTASY Piano Concert appeared first on oprainfall.

You can find out more about A New World: intimate music from FINAL FANTASY on their official webpage, on Twitter, on Instagram, and on Facebook.

You can also buy tickets here.

If you don’t want to be spoiled about the concert or what songs could be played, then just know this: the performance of A New World: intimate music from FINAL FANTASY that I saw at the Hertz Hall in Berkeley, California is my favorite video game music concert that I have ever attended since the Distant Worlds: Music from FINAL FANTASY premiere in March 2008. If you have a performance coming anywhere within a few hours of you and you love FINAL FANTASY, then you need to go. You are in for a magical evening that will make you fall in love with this series even more.

If you want to know more, then please read on after the photo!

If you’ve ever attended a Distant Worlds: Music from FINAL FANTASY concert (or really any other video game music concert), then you have a fairly good idea of what to expect: a full orchestra will be playing a live arrangement while a large screen is showing a curated cutscene arrangement from the game above/behind in a large, darkened theater. It has been that way ever since I first attended the North American debut of Distant Worlds: Music from FINAL FANTASY at the Rosemont Theater in March 2008.

A New World: intimate music from FINAL FANTASY takes a different approach: instead of a full orchestra, there are just a handful of musicians (called the New World Players), plus the conductor, present. Instead of dropping the lights and showing off a carefully selected cutscene sequence for each song, there is…nothing. Finally, at least in the venue I attended, the theater is much smaller and there is only one level of seating. The result of all of these changes is an amazingly intimate (as in the show’s title!) setting where the music is the first and only focus.

First off, you won’t miss the cutscenes being gone. It was a bit unusual at first for me, but I quickly stopped noticing that they were not there. The music being performed was the true star of the show, and I honestly think that cutscenes would have taken away from the intimate nature of the music being performed. As even though there were only 11 musicians (and Eric Roth, who was conducting) present, the music pieces did not suffer whatsoever in the process from the lack of a full orchestra, as the compositions were cleverly arranged and selected to take full advantage of the instruments at hand. For example, during the performance of “One Winged Angel” from FINAL FANTASY VII, there is traditionally a chorus that sings lyrics in Latin. Obviously, there wasn’t a chorus present at this show and so instead, the piano and the trumpet would alternate taking over the vocal section by ‘singing’ those notes. The biggest surprise for me was hearing “Zanarkand” (FINAL FANTASY X) being played so well with only a handful of musicians. I have only previously heard this song played on the Distant Worlds soundtrack and within the game itself, and I was impressed with how aptly adapted and perfectly this song was performed with the limited musicians present.

A limited number of musicians (as you can tell from the above photograph) also meant that everyone had, at some point, an opportunity to uniquely shine with their instruments (as some were performing multiple instruments as part of the show, which is impressive in its own right). However, this also gave a great opportunity for solo performances. First there is Mike Smith, who played “FINAL FANTASY Theme” as a guitar solo encore, and this arrangement was incredible and unexpected. I believe that during one of Mr. Roth’s chats with the audience (which I will talk about later), he said that this was a new piece for the concert series but it felt like it had always belonged in the show to me. This performance was also lucky enough to have Benyamin Nuss as the pianist. The name should sound familiar if you’ve followed FINAL FANTASY concerts before, as he has performed at numerous Distant Worlds: Music from FINAL FANTASY concerts and at various FINAL FANTASY XIV Fanfest events while also maintaining a wholly separate music career. He performed several solo piano pieces, including “Aerith’s Theme” (FINAL FANTASY VII) and “Blue Fields” (FINAL FANTASY VIII). He is a literal magician with the piano, as both of these songs were expertly arranged and played with so much heart by him to a captivated audience.

Yes, I said “Blue Fields.”

A New World: intimate music from FINAL FANTASY does something rather unique by playing a LOT of deep-cut pieces from the FINAL FANTASY series. Coming in that night, I never expected to hear a version of “Sorrow” (FINAL FANTASY XII), “Land of the Dwarves” (FINAL FANTASY XIV Online), “Force Your Way”/”Find Your Way” (FINAL FANTASY VIII), “My Home, Sweet Home” (FINAL FANTASY V), or “Red Wings” (FINAL FANTASY IV). These are all not necessarily the most well-known compositions from these games, but it surprised me to hear these absolutely gorgeous arrangements live. There were numerous times during the show that Mr. Roth would state that this was the first time this song was being performed for the concert series, and it just showed that A New World: intimate music from FINAL FANTASY is a constantly evolving concert series that seeks to bring in new music from the FINAL FANTASY series.

This brings me to the various monologues that Mr. Roth would have with the audience. After every song or two, he would turn back to the audience and talk with us about how excited he was to be here, thanking us repeatedly for coming out, or talk a little about the concert itself before he introduced more musical pieces. He had an incredible warmth and energy to him that made it clear that he was EXCITED to be there and that he was so happy that all of us (including his family, who was present!) were able to come out to the show. An interesting theme that he kept bringing up was that FINAL FANTASY is a series that had been going on for decades, and he would talk about what was happening at the time certain games came out. For instance, he discussed how the top song in 1992 when FINAL FANTASY IV was released was “I Will Always Love You.” It was a great way to really anchor in how historical FINAL FANTASY is, and Mr. Roth really made this show spark in a way that made me feel like it was especially being played for me.

“A New World: intimate music from FINAL FANTASY is a performance by people who clearly love FINAL FANTASY and who understand why it is such a special series to so many people.”

If there is ONE thing that I wish that the concert did differently, it is that I wish that the concert would play music from some of the FINAL FANTASY sequels or spinoffs. For instance, “Sunset Path” from Lightning Returns: FINAL FANTASY XIII would have fit in perfectly with both the deep-cut nature of this concert while also being something that could be conceivably (to me at least- although I am not a music expert) be played with just a limited number of musicians. There are so many games outside of the mainline series that deserve love too, after all. This wasn’t enough to make me feel any differently about the show as a whole, and it was only something that I thought about as I was writing up this review.

Regardless- this is a concert that is clearly meant to speak to people who love FINAL FANTASY, even if that love is for only one or two games out of the series. For me, this was no more evident than the performance of “Sarutabaruta” from FINAL FANTASY XI Online after the intermission. I was not expecting this piece to be played, as I purposefully went into the show without knowing anything about the potential songs to be played and come on- who really expects FINAL FANTASY XI Online to be recognized in 2022 in such a public way despite it being it being the game’s 20th anniversary?

The moment that those opening “Sarutabaruta” notes started to play, I was instantly transported back to 2004 when I first bought the game, and I was trying to slaughter Yagudo just outside the Federation of Windurst as a White Mage. There was magic in that moment, and it reminded me of everything -and everyone- that I had met while playing that MMORPG both in-game and in real life. FINAL FANTASY XI Online is my favorite FINAL FANTASY game and it is one of the biggest influences upon me as a person, and Mr. Roth and the handful of performers managed to get the emotions and heart of that piece exactly right. What FINAL FANTASY XI Online means to me is undoubtedly what FINAL FANTASY VII or FINAL FANTASY X means to another person, and I know that that same love and care as interjected into each song played across the two-and-a-half hours that night in that small setting. A New World: intimate music from FINAL FANTASY is a performance by people who clearly love FINAL FANTASY and who understand why it is such a special series to so many people.

As I said at the top of this review: if you can go, go. You honestly won’t regret it.

Review Score
Overall

My ticket was provided to me by AWR Music.

You can see upcoming performances and buy tickets (on sale now) for upcoming performances of A New World: intimate music from FINAL FANTASY here.

What songs do you hope for them to play at an upcoming concert? Are you planning on attending?

Let us known in the comments below!

The post REVIEW: A New World: intimate music from FINAL FANTASY appeared first on oprainfall.