Symphony of the Goddesses: A Night to Remember

Nearly six weeks ago now, I attended the Symphony of the Goddesses in Boston, and at risk of sounding cliché, I can truly say I remember the night as though it were yesterday. This is due in part to the wonderful friends with whom I shared the experience, but our evening out isn’t what matters here. What matters here is the concert itself, and let me tell you, I’ve never seen anything like it.

Symphony of the Goddesses, for those unfamiliar, is a fully orchestral retelling of the history of Hyrule. Symphony of the Goddesses builds off the program established by the 25th Anniversary Symphony, introducing new tracks and an all-new cinematic component to compliment the music.

After listening to the 25th Anniversary Symphony CD that was packed in with the first copies of Skyward Sword, I thought I knew what I was in for when I was invited to the pre-show rehearsal. Boy, was I wrong. I’ve always known live performances make a world of difference for an orchestra, but just as important to the experience were the cutscenes assembled by Producer and Creative Director, Jeron Moore. In conjunction with the orchestra, they made the concert not about music alone, but about the story, and they did a damn good job of it.

First in the concert’s program is naturally the Overture. For those who didn’t see the official website before the recording was taken down, the Overture begins with the classic main theme before exploring other classic Zelda motifs, including “Ganon’s Theme,” “Princess Zelda’s Theme,” and Zelda‘s newest motif, “The Ballad of the Goddess.”

Following this was a delightful medley of various dungeon themes from throughout the franchise. It expectedly covered the themes from A Link to the Past, Zelda II, and the original dungeon tune from The Legend of Zelda, but the pleasant surprise came when they played the excellent “Bottle Grotto,” from Link’s Awakening. The “Item Get” fanfare at the end was a wonderful touch, as well.

Next on the agenda was “Kakariko Village,” which substituted the usual low strings for higher-frequency chimes in a beautiful rendition that conveys Kakariko as the quaint, lovely village it is. The footage, of course, consisted largely of Link chasing various cuccos around the village (and their subsequent attacks). Oddly enough, a lot of the screen time was given to footage of the village in Twilight Princess, but that game’s version of the song was nowhere to be seen—Or should I say, heard.

To warm the audience up for the really meaty parts of the show, the orchestra went on to play a medley of a large selection of ocarina songs, called “Songs of the Hero.” This piece included “Song of Time,” “Song of Healing,” and, of course, “Song of Storms.” What was particularly noteworthy about this arrangement was the way in which several songs acted as the countermelody to another, which I noticed during the “Serenade of Water.”

At this point, the concert comes into full swing with the Ocarina of Time movement. Starting here, each of the four “movements” sheds the prior goal of fanservice and instead tells the story of each respective game through motifs and cutscenes. This is where Symphony of the Goddesses quits being a tribute to video game music and becomes an exemplary orchestral experience, period.

One of the highlights of the show was the following movement, based on The Wind Waker. The breathtaking renditions of “The Legendary Hero,” “Outset Island,” “Departure,” and others more than made up for the absence of “Dragon Roost Island,” and the piece masterfully tells the emotional story of a brave young boy on a quest to save his sister—and then the world. The conductor, Eímear Noone, using a replica of the Wind Waker itself as a baton for the performance was the icing on the cake.

After the intermission (and several failed attempts to convince the security guard that Moore actually did invite me backstage), the orchestra welcomed us back with a warm rendition of the classic “Fairy’s Fountain” theme, played with beautiful dueling harps leading the way.

Next came the Twilight Princess movement, and subsequently, the A Link to the Past movement. Though the entire second act of the show was wonderful, the most exciting part without comparison was when the introduction of the Dark World theme.

To finish the evening off, the orchestra plays a wonderful reprise of the Overture, but no matter how many times Jeron Moore comes comes back on stage to try and convince you the concert is done (I counted—it’s three), do not listen. Do not leave. It’s not over until it’s over, and the best is yet to come.

The first encore performance is an unconventional yet remarkable rendition of the famous Gerudo Valley theme. Completely overhauling the traditional flamenco style with short strings and xylophones was a big risk, but it played out well in the end. With a beautiful flute solo during the bridge and french horns playing the lead melody, I’ve never heard “Gerudo Valley” played so well.

The second encore, and what I consider the best performance of the entire show, was a surprise fifth movement: Majora’s Mask. This wonderful medley introduces us to the bustling Clock Town as they prepare for the Carnival of Time. As the movement progresses and the moon draws nearer, the lower ends of the orchestra begin to play the chords looming over the theme during the third day. The expertise in this piece becomes especially clear as tensions build and the video clips show all sorts of chaos around town before finally displaying the giants’ triumph over Majora. This is the movement that epitomizes everything the creative team at Symphony of the Goddesses does right.

Sadly, the third encore, “Ballad of the Windfish,” was not played at the Boston show. This was apparently due to a lack of rehearsal time for the orchestra, but the rehearsal session earlier that night ended ten minutes early. Evidently, ten minutes was not enough time to rehearse, which is a shame, because the original is brilliant.

Chad Seiter and Jeron Moore join Eímear Noone and the orchestra on stage in Philadelphia

My biggest fear heading into it was that the crowd would be noisy and cheer every time a new song came on during the medleys. I can gladly say that at least in Boston, this was not at all the case. I can, however, only speak for Boston, so while this doesn’t necessarily mean much for your local shows, it’s hopefully part of a pattern.

Furthermore, the orchestra was incredibly talented. The Rhode Island Symphony Orchestra may not the BSO, but they played flawlessly. I was most impressed with the size and skill of the choir, perfectly assembled to supply the proper grandeur to the world of Hyrule. Orchestras, unfortunately, change by locale, so the experience will change from show to show, but I’d be shocked if the respective prowess of the various orchestras is ever noticeably different.

Jeron Moore and Eímear Noone pose with some young cosplayers

Tickets are still on sale for every remaining performance date of the freshman tour of the symphony. Most shows start at 8:00 unless stated otherwise, but I recommend arriving between 7:00 and 7:30 in order to get settled and socialize with the other fans. If you hate socializing, you can always listen to the in-house speakers, which play masterpieces that didn’t make it into the final program. Season 2 is coming up soon, so don’t pass up the opportunity to see the concert back in action.

Conductor Eímear Noone with the Vancouver Film Orchestra

For those interested, the complete track listing, including all themes played during the medleys, is as follows:

To Jason Michael Paul, to Jeron Moore, to Chad Seiter, to Eímear Noone, to every musician, to everyone who had a hand in making Symphony of the Goddesses, thank you. Thank you for the hours of hard, focused work that went into creating this incredible tour, and best of luck in creating the second edition of the symphony for 2013. For all the outstanding dedication and care that’s gone into this unforgettable show, awarding anything short of five Reggies would be a crime.

Click here for an exclusive interview with the symphony’s Producer and Creative Director, Jeron Moore.

Have you been to a performance? What was your favorite segment? What did you like best about the event? Are you going to one in the future? What do you look forward to most? Are there any burning questions you still have left?