LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR
Welcome to the Twin Cities Gamer Symphony Orchestra’s inaugural concert!
We’re very excited to officially add orchestral video game music to the vibrant Twin Cities music scene. Our concert theme is “Power: On”; like a PC or console, our ensemble has just booted up and is now ready to play. On that note, all the songs you will hear tonight play at the beginning of their respective games.
The “Halo Theme”, especially its chant, needs no further introduction due to its almost memetic status far beyond just Halo fans; “Prelude” plays at the start of every Final Fantasy game, and in Final Fantasy VII, players hear it even before choosing between New Game and Continue; “Coronation” plays upon starting Civilization IV and then segues into “Baba Yetu” for the title screen; the main theme of Myst III: Exile prepares players to unravel the mysteries in the classic puzzle series; and the orchestral version of “Hikari”, the vocal theme for Kingdom Hearts, plays when the start menu is left unattended.
I sincerely hope you enjoy this dynamic mix of classic opening, title, and main themes from a variety of game genres and studios as we change the TCGSO’s power setting from Power: Off to Power: On!
-KatARTISTIC DIRECTOR
Kat Felicis Ioco, Artistic Director and Conductor Friday, January 17, 2025
Chant from “Halo Theme” from Halo: Combat Evolved Composed by Martin O’Donnell and Michael Salvatori Transcribed by Olly Manning
Please join us in the cafeteria for a reception following the program.
Violin I
Ken Schuster, Concertmaster *
Suki Sun, Asst. Concertmaster
Linda Bagley
Anthony Hamer
Anne Marie Ludwig
Violin II
Michelle Babb
Olly Manning *
Anna Starman
Viola
Joshua Dieringer *
Evan Folie
Oboe
Zach Wacha
Clarinet
Laura Benson
Cass Casarez ^
Storm Hart ^
Karolina Krajewska ^
Luke Peña ^
Alex Pritchard *
Bass Clarinet
Rockie Reiss
Bassoon
Eddie DiBlasi
Trombone
Tyler Davis ^
Daniel Gebur ^
Ben Lutz ^
Andy Schulz *^
Rachel Lindquist
Nicki Whelan ^
Euphonium
Michael Blomberg
Nathan Riley
Tuba
Lauren Martin
Percussion
Becca Mitchell
ELECTRO/POP/ROCK MARIMBA
LISTEN TO HIS DEBUT ALBUM “BOTTLED MEMORIES”
STREAM OVER 200+ VGM COVERS
C A L
Passionate about video game music? Join the TCGSO and join a vibrant VGM community committed to bringing your favorite and most iconic soundtracks to life! We welcome musicians of all levels. Email officers@tcgso.org to get involved! Email publicity@tcgso.org
The official concert poster for the TCGSO draws inspiration from the start screens of video games and features the venue where the TCGSO held its inaugural video game jam session— Blue Tree Music Education in Minneapolis.
