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Name: 8-Bit Symphony Volume 1

Alternative Titles:
Comic Bakery, Rambo First Blood Part 2, Green Beret, W.A.R, Stifflip & Co., Forbidden Forest, Beyond the Forbidden Forest, Kentilla, Ghosts 'n Goblins, Flash Gordon, Barbarian 2, Parallax, International Karate, Monty on the Run, Commando, Firelord, Trap, The Last Ninja, William Wobbler

Year: 2019
Catalog Number: N/A
Platforms: Commodore 64
Published by: High Technology Publishing

Description: 

8-Bit music played with an orchestra as big as the one that played on "Star Wars" and "Raiders of the Lost Ark", in a plush 1200 person venue. 90+ minutes of amazing orchestrations including five from Rob Hubbard himself!

First half

Imagine Ocean - a medley of a small "Comic Bakery" bassoon solo, the iconic Ocean Loader 2, and an excerpt of Martin Galway's iconic loading theme from Rambo First Blood Part 2.

Green Beret - A medley of the loading and title tunes from the game released in the UK by  Imagine, which was also called "Rush'n Attack" for US release. This medley portrays war - in all its 8-bit forms: beginning from the call to action, to a build up to the big push. Despite this being an arcade conversion, both the title tune and loading tune were original Galway pieces.

W.A.R - One of Rob's heavier pieces, the origins of this firm fan favourite date back to a 1980s cassette tape, and the tune has followed him through his career. Appearing first in orchestral form in 2001 as part of the CD "Back in Time 3", this modern-style orchestration by Rob himself alternates grand sci-fi with delicate wind and pitched percussion.

Stifflip and Co. - a zany adventure romp from Palace Software through a 1920s world. It was released on Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum and Amstrad CPC amongst others, and is an example of the sort of cross-platform arranging composers did at the time. This wonderful bit of zest was composed by the late Richard Joseph, who is sorely missed since his death in 2007. This arrangement is thus a tribute that we hope he looks down on with unalloyed delight: especially the drunk bit!

Forbidden Forest and Beyond - a medley of music from the classic US Cosmi games "Forbidden Forest" and "Beyond the Forbidden Forest". If it wasn't the first horror survival game ever released, it sure was the first 4D one (complete with blood splatter). The multi-talented Californian composer Paul Norman wrote the game and the music. His themes were very short but hugely evocative.

Kentilla - the first of Rob Hubbard's own orchestrations of his own favourite tracks, this is an abridged version of his original mega-tune to accompany medieval adventures that only cost £1.99 from Masterstronic. Originally designed as a series of interactive subtunes, that plan didn't come to fruition and so he stitched them together for the game release. Always envisaged as an orchestral track, this was the first of his pieces that he arranged, the first version in 1997/1998. This one, with additions made by Orchestrator Alisdair J. Pickering is considered the ultimate version.

Ghosts 'n Goblins - The 1980s British computer industry was a freewheeling time, and so when musician Mark Cooksey was assigned the music for Elite Systems' port of Capcom's Ghosts 'n Goblins, he decided to raid his collection of Klaus Wunderlich LPs for inspiration and come up with the distinctly kooky (but spooky, with percussion that's ooky) theme of his own, which quickly became a classic for its catchy melody and distinctive percussion (if each percussion instrument in the original were assigned a member of the orchestra you would have nine percussionists!). This arrangement by Chris Abbott re-imagines the piece as a Clown Spy Thriller, starting with the regular circus moves, evolving into the clowns doing 007 moves, then taking it a little bit too seriously and getting lost in their performance, before coming back to earth. Be honest, how many Clown Spy Thriller symphonic arrangements have you heard today?

Flash Gordon - not a cover of anything from the TV or films, though influences from the film creep into some of the slower parts given this Mastertronic game's connections with the iconic 1980s film. This rousing tune became an orchestral cover in 2001 for the "Back in Time 3" CD from C64Audio.com arranged by Chris Abbott and Alistair "Boz" Bowness. A subsequent orchestral port for this concert by Chris was then thoroughly reworked by Rob himself to improve the playability, and to implement new ideas and add drama and variety.

Barbarillax - the first tune Chris Abbott attempted at the beginning of the project, it started out as Richard Joseph's theme from the Palace Software game "Barbarian 2" arranged as "Superman". Halfway through, Chris realised that Martin Galway's "High Score" tune (from Ocean's Sensible Software masterpiece "Parallax") was ploughing the same field, and so he merged them (hence the name of the piece). The back and forth between Barbarian 2 and Parallax even extends to the ending which alternates phrases from both before ending in a satisfyingly John Williams-y way. Although Barbarian 2 is not the most well-known of SIDs, its heroic melody is a great example of Richard's talent: and Parallax has always been a Martin Galway classic to lift the most depressed of hearts.

Second half

IK - the third of Rob Hubbard's orchestrations, taken from the game "International Karate" by System 3 Software which feature fighters engaging in impact martial arts in various exotic locations. Conceived and originally orchestrated in 2005 for an orchestral concert attached to the Game Developers Conference in Leipzig, Rob adopted a "tour-de-force" approach to orchestrating. He has been working hard on improving it using an extra decade of experience, and here's the premiere of the result.

Monty's Journey - Gremlin's "Monty on the Run" was Rob Hubbard's breakthrough game and score, and the two subtunes from it have become iconic. This orchestration originated in one by Chris Abbott which re-imagined this jaunty yet slightly wistful victory score as an epic journey: after Monty has escaped, he embarks on a world journey alone: first filled with loneliness and determination, and through various moods until the epic but wistful ending: remembering all he's left behind. The final version is Rob's own take on this idea to develop the musical ideas into a 19th century romantic epic. Halfway through, another Rob Hubbard classic makes a cameo appearance: "Commando High Score". Since these were always sister pieces, the transitions are seamless.

Monty on the Run - When first released, this piece redefined what was possible in C64 music and launched Rob as a musical star. It was inspired by Devil's Galop (the theme to famous radio show "Dick Barton", subsequently heavily parodied such as in Monty Python's "Spanish Inquisition" sketch). Yet it wasn't a cover: Rob had far bigger plans than that, and the piece feature frantic violin, keystone kops mayhem, and an extended guitar solo with rock drums: all on a three-voice soundchip. This version plays up the freneticism to take Monty's escape into an entirely more filmic arena, with an entirely new section and structure to tell the new story of Monty's escape.

Firelord - an arcade adventure from Hewson Consultants, this medieval piece has proved a firm fan favourite over the years. In 2001, the arranger Glyn R. Brown released a symphonic version that topped the C64 remix charts (yes, there is such a thing) for a very long time. The version presented here is an adapted version of a later improved arrangement by Glyn. It's gone through a lot of hands, but it's still a thing of beauty, and a wonderful epic tribute to Ben's genius, and the genius it inspired in others.

Trap - Alligata's "Trap", written by programming rockstar Tony Crowther and up-and-coming musician Ben Daglish is most fondly remembered for its easter egg: "The Gladiator Demo": a demo that starts with a sizeable gladiator bashing his timpani omninously, and tells a story of a spaceman, aliens and battles. This orchestration has its genesis in an orchestral version from the "Back in Time 3" CD in 2001 by Chris Abbott and Alistair "Boz" Bowness, with Ben performing much of the initial string section work on keyboard. This orchestration represents its final journey to playable score, and loses none of the size or emotional contrast that the original conveyed, and Ben was again intimately involved.

The Last Ninja® - An oriental journey through the most well-known sub-tunes from System 3's "The Last Ninja". They were composed by legendary music Ninja Ben Daglish, and represent a quiet hero's journey from quite reflection, to battle, to epic successful return over the mountains.
"The Last Ninja" is a registered trademark of System 3 Software Limited.

William Wobbler - everyone needs a bit of fun. This bouncy Ben Daglish tune arranged by Chris Abbott and Ben himself comes from an equally bouncy game from Ben's long-time collaborator Tony Crowther. Immense fun, and susceptible to bouts of audience participation, this is a wonderfully uplifting end to the evening, and a fitting tribute to Ben's legendary bounciness.

Comic Bakery, Rambo First Blood Part 2, Green Beret, W.A.R, Stifflip & Co., Forbidden Forest, Beyond the Forbidden Forest, Kentilla, Ghosts 'n Goblins, Flash Gordon, Barbarian 2, Parallax, International Karate, Monty on the Run, Commando, Firelord, Trap, The Last Ninja, William Wobbler

Published on site: 23rd of September, 2024