ALBANY — The Albany Symphony Film Music Festival next weekend will bring together music from films, video games and more.
David Alan Miller, the symphony’s music director and conductor, said there will be something for everyone at the festival, which runs from Thursday to Monday, Oct. 9.
“A few years ago it occurred to me that even though there are a lot of film festivals all over the country, as far as I know there aren’t really any festivals of film music in the country. There are a few isolated ones in Europe, but I thought it would be really great to celebrate the rich tradition of New York film.”
Saturday afternoon there will be a workshop for high school and college-age students or anyone interested in a career in film or film-related fields. “Scoring Work in Show Business” will take place from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. at the University at Albany Performing Arts Center.
Saturday night will feature the Soundtrack New York concert at the Palace Theatre in Albany from 7:30-9:30 p.m. The concert will include a variety of music from movies set in or created by composers from New York. Miller will conduct on selections from “West Side Story,” “King Kong,” “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” “The Lord of the Rings” and more.
Saturday’s concert will include a guest appearance by pianist Kevin Cole performing George Gershwin’s 1941 cartoon “Rhapsody in Rivets.”
On Sunday, the Albany Symphony brings Video Games Live! to the Palace. The award-winning, immersive concert event features music from popular video games, as musical arrangements work alongside synchronized video footage.
The performance will feature music from popular video games such as “Final Fantasy,” “Halo,” “Skyrim,” “Kingdom Hearts,” “The Last of Us,” “Undertale,” “League of Legends” and more.
Miller is hoping for a large crowd. The shows will also have visual elements, he said.
“The music is great in and of itself, but it’s especially exciting for film lovers,” Miller said. “Hopefully it’s fun for anybody. The thing about film is that the music is very often submerged in the film so it’s not always audible. Composers go to great lengths to write this gorgeous music and then it’s often hard to hear it, or it’s so linked to the drama that people are not always aware of it.”
Monday afternoon will feature the Movie Music Play-In at MVP Arena in Albany from 3-5 p.m. The concert will feature iconic movie scores with music from such films as “Harry Potter,” “Star Wars” and “Pirates of the Caribbean.” Musicians of all levels, ages and experience are invited to sign up to perform onstage. Interested musicians can register online through the Albany Symphony website.
“It’s going to be great music you know and great music you may have never heard before,” Miller said. “There’s going to be lots of dazzling, fizzy fun. All of the concerts are designed to be joyous and really accessible music for everyone.”
The creator and host of Video Games Live, Tommy Tallarico, said the show has been traveling around the U.S. and the world for moer than 20 years, and has performed over 530 different times in 42 different countries.
“One of my goals in creating Video Games Live! was to help usher in a whole new generation of young people to appreciate the arts and the symphony,” Tallarico said. “It’s such a great festival that they have going on this year, and we’re happy and proud to be a part of it.”
Video Games Live is a compilation of some of the greatest video game music of all time performed by a big symphony and combined with lasers, lights, live action and synchronized video, Tallarico said.
“I created this show for the whole family,” Tallarico said. “Some of the greatest letters and emails we will get after a performance are from the nongamers — family members who had no idea how beautiful game music was, and how incredible the storylines and the background is — they really get a better appreciation of why their friends or kids love video games so much.”
Here’s a look at the festival schedule:
Kevin Cole’s Hollywood Cabaret
WHEN: 7:30 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 5
WHERE: Troy Savings Bank Music Hall
TICKETS: $49
Festival symposium: Scoring Work in Show Business
WHEN: 10 a.m.-2 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 7
WHERE: University at Albany Performing Arts Center
TICKETS: Register for free at AlbanySymphony.com
Soundtrack New York: Musical Scenes from a Cinematic State
WHEN: 7:30 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 7
WHERE: Palace Theatre, Albany
TICKETS: $20-$68
Video Games Live!
WHEN: 7:30 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 8
WHERE: Palace Theatre, Albany
TICKETS: $20-$68
Free Movie Music Play-in Concert!
WHEN: 3 p.m., Monday, Oct. 9
WHERE: MVP Arena, Albany
For more on the festival, visit AlbanySymphony.com.
Categories: Life and Arts
