Ace Combat The Symphony 25th Anniversary

[Boleslao Drinker]

ACECOMBAT/S THE SYMPHONY,[a] shortened to ACE/S, is a series of live orchestral concerts in Japan organized by Bandai Namco Entertainment and exclusively featuring tracks from the Ace Combat franchise.

The first concert took place on July 27, 2019 in TIAT SKY HALL in Ōta, Tokyo. The second concert was initially scheduled for 2020 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the franchise; after being postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it took place on August 7, 2021 in Ota City Residents Hall Aprico.

The first ACE/S was held in TIAT SKY HALL, a musical venue located next to Haneda Airport. GAME SYMPHONY JAPAN's Kenichi Shimura conducted the performers, which included the Tokyo Chamber Orchestra and the Philharmonic Chorus of Tokyo.[1] Soprano singer Mao Morita also appeared as a special guest to perform "penses". The pieces were arranged by Hironori Anazawa.[2]

Two performances were held: a matinee at 1330hrs and a soiree at 1630hrs. Tickets were priced at JPY9,000 including tax and were initially granted based on a lottery system. Potential attendees had one week to sign up for the lottery, from May 21 to 26, and were notified on May 31 if they had been selected. They then had until June 3 to pay for the tickets. Any remaining tickets were made publicly available on June 8.[1]

During the intermission between Sets 1 and 2, Kazutoki Kono and Keiki Kobayashi appeared on stage and thanked everyone for attending from all over Japan. During the matinee, Kono also made mention of a flight jacket that would be announced at the end of the concert. Kobayashi came back on stage during the intermission between Sets 2 and 3 to explain the premise behind "penses".[2]

At the end of Set 3, the ACE COMBAT 7: SKIES UNKNOWN ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK was announced and official details were provided on the Ace Combat 7 flight jacket designed by Alpha Industries.[3] Lastly, a trailer for the ADFX-01 Morgan Set played, followed by a surprise encore performance. A photo shoot area was also set up, including prototype flight jackets and a cut-out standee of Cossette's dog.[2]

The event staff attempted to record the performances for later release, but Kono reported a few months later that they had sound capture equipment trouble, so no recordings of either performance exist.[4]

On June 30, 2020, the 25th anniversary of Ace Combat, Kono tweeted that a celebration symphony concert was planned but COVID-19 prevented it from happening.[5] It was rescheduled to August 2021 with full details announced on April 27.[6] Keiki Kobayashi conducted the performers, credited as the "ACE COMBAT 25th anniversary AIR TACTICAL ORCHESTRA," some of which helped perform the Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown Original Soundtrack. Guest performers included vocalist Kiyoka Wada (the lead singer for "Daredevil"), guitarists Masahiro Itami and Yusuke Horikoshi, pianist Atsushi Abe, bassist Yoshinori Uchida, and drummer Masa Amakura.

Two performances were held: a matinee at 1130hrs and a soiree at 1600hrs (originally scheduled for 1230hrs and 1700hrs, respectively, before COVID-19 restrictions forced a rescheduling).[7] Tickets were priced at JPY9,500 including tax and were initially granted based on a lottery system.[8]

Look at this fucking cool cover art!

If the Void Stranger OST wasn't enough, also dropping on streaming services and digital platforms1 today is a recording from an Ace Combat symphony concert held in 2021. That concert was a COVID-delayed follow-up to the first ACE/S concert held in 2019, which itself was a promotional affair for the release of Ace Combat 7. A funny thing about that first concert is that afterwards, audience members could get their picture taken in a flight jacket next to a cutout of the game's infamous dog.jpg2

Where the first concert was mostly AC7 tracks, the second concert diversified the set list with some of the best tracks from ACs 2, 4, 5 and Zero, including performances of "Megalith", "The Unsung War", "ZERO" and "The Liberation of Gracemeria", the obligatory final mission epics from 4, 5, Zero and 6 respectively.

Unlike the Kirby 30th anniversary concert, which HAL took down from youtube after a month, the livestream from this concert is (for now) still accessible, complete with English-subtitled host segments and embedded right here. Timestamps can be found in the video description.

Since 1995, ACE COMBAT has left its mark on the history of the flight combat genre. In celebration of the 25th anniversary of the series, 2020 was host to a variety of activities including; new DLC, anniversary videos on the official ACE COMBAT YouTube channel, and the launch of official clothing lines through collaboration with apparel brands.

Formerly from BANDAI NAMCO Entertainment, Kobayashi has been involved with composing much of the music for the series since ACE COMBAT 04: Shattered Skies. Since 2014, he has worked as a freelance music composer and arranger.

In late April 2021, the ACE COMBAT series announced on its official Twitter channel that 25th Anniversary celebrations would be kicking off yet again. Can you tell us about how these anniversary event delays came to be?

Watanabe: All the Ace Combat staff work to provide their very best, but their work goes before internal scrutiny to determine whether it works properly as part of the greater picture. We end up switching up the order of the music, examining how we might play it, and make detailed tweaks to improve the overall impact.

Kono: I honestly believe that the music in ACE COMBAT makes up a full 30% of how it is received and reviewed. You have the visuals, the scenario, the gameplay, and then you have the music accounting for the remaining 30 percent.

Kono: For me it would have to be the last mission in ACE COMBAT 04: Shattered Skies. Kobayashi came forward saying he wanted to change the song used in the scene where the Megalith, a massive enemy weapon, bursts into the fray.

Kobayashi: The acoustics will be a lot different. Performing in a concert hall provides reverb and lets sound grow, echoing off the walls and ceiling. This will allow us to offer a true orchestral experience in the manner we desire.

Kobayashi: I typically conduct whenever we record. I have an idea in my head of exactly how I want the music to be performed, so I conduct our musicians myself in order to directly convey to them what I am looking for.

Kobayashi: In every entry in the ACE COMBAT series the story starts off with the heroes at a disadvantage. The characters are pushed to their limits, but overcome their situations by refusing to give up, flying full speed towards the future they hope to create. The series has continued to find support because these characters strike a chord with our fans and offer them emotional experiences.

In the real world, we all face moments when we are in a losing or unfavorable situation. Sometimes we may even get frustrated or give up. Yet despite it all, we get back up and try again, fighting tooth and nail to overcome the challenges that face us. I imagine the story of ACE COMBAT rings hardest in the hearts of people who go about their daily lives always striving to do their very best, who see themselves reflected through the characters.

This concert is a performance of music from ACE COMBAT, the very music used to add color to a story of overcoming adversity. Today, all of us are standing in the face of adversity with the COVID-19 pandemic. Which is exactly why I hope that everyone attends and lets the music of ACE COMBAT put them in high spirits.

The Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses was a concert tour featuring music from Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda video game series. Jason Michael Paul Productions, who was licensed by Nintendo to produce and tour the show,[1] hired Jeron Moore to produce the show as well as Composer Chad Seiter to create the music.[2] The tour is named after the Golden Goddesses in the Zelda series.[3]

In June 2011, at Nintendo's Electronic Entertainment Expo press event, Jason Michael Paul Productions hired composer Chad Seiter and Producer Jeron Moore to create a four-minute overture spanning 25 years of Zelda music accompanied by images from the same period. After this performance, Shigeru Miyamoto of Nintendo announced that an orchestral CD would accompany the release of Skyward Sword, also produced by Jason Michael Paul Productions with Composer Chad Seiter and recorded by Hollywood recording engineer Bruce Botnick. A 25th Anniversary concert series would be performed in Tokyo, Los Angeles,[6] and London. All of the concerts were produced by Jason Michael Paul Productions.

The second season, known as "Second Quest" (after a feature found in many Zelda games) consisted of concerts in spring, summer, and fall of 2013.[8] The show went on hiatus after its final "Second Quest" performance in San Jose, California, at the San Jose Civic, performed by the Skywalker Ranch Orchestra.

The third season, known as "Master Quest", consisted of worldwide concerts in 2015 and 2016 and achieved the most success of any of the Zelda Symphony tours traveling to over 150 cities. This continued as the production further iterated until its tour concluded in 2018.[9][10][11]

The San Francisco event in March 2012 included over 1000 attendees. The Los Angeles concert in June featured Zelda Williams (daughter of actor Robin Williams) as the emcee.[1] She was named after Princess Zelda, the video game series' titular character. A concert was held in May in Atlanta and was conducted by Susie Seiter.[3][12]

Symphony of the Goddesses started a worldwide 2015 tour of a third season entitled "Master Quest".[9][10] "Master Quest" season was extended with performance dates through 2016.[11] The extended concert dates featured music and visuals from Tri Force Heroes for the Nintendo 3DS.[11]

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