The Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses tour once again set sail for UK shores this week, and for the first time in its history it landed in Glasgow. The tour has been going since 2012, after the Symphony of the Goddesses CD was released with Skyward Sword, but the Symphony had previously skipped Scotland whilst it was in the UK.
Having seen the concert in London in April 2015, this was my second time attending, but a first for many of the Scottish concert goers. Zelda fans and Nintendo fans in general sometimes get engrossed in the fandom, and the concerts are no different. Both the London and Glasgow shows were full of people dressed up in costumes that they had made of various characters from throughout the series. Even many of those not in costume had Link hats or Legend of Zelda hoodies.
Costumes ranged from various styles of Link over the years, Skull Kids, Anju, Midna, Saria, Zelda and a Hilda cosplayer. There were more cosplayers to appreciate at the London show, but that was due to there being more attendees as it was held at a bigger venue.
A nice little addition to the Glasgow concert was a camera that searched for cosplays and showcased them on the big screen. I found myself up on screen and didn't realise until I heard cheering and looked up to see the faces of myself and my friend, who was dressed as Link, staring back at us. Concert goers loved taking pictures and selfies with the cosplayers, and the audience camera was a nice way of showing off the costumes for those in the crowd that hadn't managed to spot them.
One of the biggest differences between seeing this Symphony and other classical concerts is the reaction from the audience. Rather than just being music lovers, they are fans of the games and music, and find themselves getting really absorbed into each song as if they were back playing the games again.
A comment that frequently came up was the nostalgia factor. Hearing the music from The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past threw people back to their childhood and the pleasant memories that went along with playing the game. The audience were laughing and crying along with the music as their emotions overwhelmed them. The music spreads through the entire Zelda timeline and takes you on a magical musical adventure, right up to the game that started it all, timeline-wise - The Legend of Zelda:Skyward Sword. The battle scenes had the audience tapping their feet along with the epic drums, and remembering the tough trails they had to endure.
At the end of the concerts, the cosplayers united. We congregated inside the venue and had what felt like endless amounts of people snapping pictures with us, until the venue security kicked us out. The audience left with a happy glow inside and an urge to spend the weekend playing through the games.
Have you been to any of the concerts in this run of the Zelda symphony, or currently planning to go to an upcoming show in Spain or the US? Let us know in the comments.
All images copyright of Louise Saul and The Scruffy Artist.
Comments 28
I was at this concert with my daughter who was mesmerised and also surprised at the audiences emotions
When link to the past session came up...wow! I never realised the impact that game has had on me:)
There was actually a little interview about this and Pokémon Symphonic Evolution on my local news station about how not only did they fill the entire theatre, but ticket sales and attendance for other similar events rose by over 50% after the two things came through!
I loved the experience in Birmingham, ending with Skyward Sword was my musical highlight ☺ Oh and there was an amazing Breath of the Wild cosplayer there too!
To be honest, the projection they had to put during the concert was really ruining it.
The concert we had here, the darn screen was really not meant for the stage.. hiding half of the chorus in the back.
I felt the volume was a little flat at the Glasgow concert, with certain instruments and sections being difficult to hear. I kept thinking, 'More volume!'
I think the tech guys struggled a bit.
I did however enjoy myself. I was really grateful to all the cosplayers who made the effort and who raised many a sprit and smile from the audience. Thanks guys!
@Louise Saul : without being rude, it's too bad, you don't speak about the musicians neither show some photos of them. They're are the most important thing of the concert. There is no point showing the screen, I would rather like to see some photos of the orchestre. It would pay tribute to all of these musicians.
I had great fun attending the Glasgow concert. Even my wife survived the experience...
Wow, a lot of Female Link.
It was in Vienna a few weeks ago but it was just a bit too pricey for me. Kinda regretting not going now, as I think it's finishing for good in December
I went to the Dublin one last year (I'm in the U.K. but they only had London dates last year that I couldn't attend) and I was a little disappointed to be honest.
The music was great and the musicians really talented and passionate. But the crowd just seemed a little lacklustre to me. There wasn't much cosplay (admittedly I didn't do it but I was looking forward to seeing others do it), and it seemed very formulaic (tune, clap, next tune, clap, repeat). Also the conductor was annoying as she kept walking off pretending it was the end then coming back on. Did it about 5 times, it got annoying very quickly!
This concert looked like much more fun though, wish I'd gone to this one instead.
Can't say how was the one in Glasgow, but when I went a year ago to the one held at London, I was EXTREMELY disappointed, to say the least. Not with the music - the music was wonderful, orchestra did splendid job, sound was perfect and the projections were enjoyable. The people however, behaved like an uncivilized crowd who had never been to an orchestra or any more-official event before. There was shouting every 10sec of WHILE orchestra was playing music, so one couldn't enjoy the concert in peace. Really, clap and shout after the performance, after the song, not during ffs. People all over the audience were eating McDonalds and the employees of a venue were selling popcorn, ice-cream and beer. Overall, while the music was amazing, the whole experience was simply terrible. I thought Zelda fans would be more civilized and educated, but it turned out they are just a bunch of annoying kids :/
Sorry about slightly offensive comment, I'm still disappointed the crowd ruined my experience - I'll probably never again go to a video game concert because of that. Will just stick with opera or classical music concerts
@mateq
Oh...i'm so sorry to hear that.
Don't worry. Maybe another game orchestra will cheer you up next time.
That first picture seems to just be a leprocaun with a triforce logo on it.
@mateq I do agree with that sentiment- we had a group of student girls who insisted on talking, laughing and swearing constantly throughout. It's a night at the symphony- what did they even pay for? I won't lie, I was tempted to turn round and slap them. I paid good money for that concert, and their behaviour was simply disgraceful.
@HappyMaskedGuy
If anyone talks during a cinema or theatre performance, you have a human right to silence them in any way necessary. I checked with the UN.
@Dezzy Good to know. Next time I won't fail in my duties.
@gurtifus this is an article on the cosplayers and crowd reactions. Nintendo Life have previously done reviews where they go into more detail about the music and musicians, so you can find that information there
@mateq sorry to hear that you had a bad experience at the London concert. Video game music concerts have a very different audience to other symphonies due to the variety of people that play the games , and tend to be more relaxed.
I went to the one in KC a while back. Great show. I saw a few cosplayers, and some got featured on the big screen.
My wife and I went to this last month when they came through our city. Of all the symphonies we go to, this was by far the nerdiest, but in a good way. Stodgy old people in formal wear were replaced by an army of Nintendo fans and at least a dozen little kids throughout the audience dressed as Link, and it was awesome.
So lucky!!! I would give all my Zelda games to go to this concert!!!
I was at the Glasgow one and thought it was great. The crowd around me were respectful and the show was fantastic. It was difficult to decide between watching the orchestra or screen at times though.
A great concert, I very liked it.
I loved the show in Vienna a few weeks ago, even though they didn't play a lot from Majora's Mask. Would go again if they come back, e.g. with new tracks from BotW.
This makes me more pumped for the Chicago performance next month! I've never been to anything like it before. I'm not a cosplayer, but I'm looking forward to seeing all the costumes!
I attended the Los Angeles one a few months ago, the one that happened during E3, and it was absolutely awesome and unforgettable experience. Tons of people were dressed up, the crowd was into the show and applauded/cheered many times throughout. I would highly recommend the show to any Zelda fan, as it is a tremendous experience.
I remember seeing Skull Kid and Midna in London.
@TossedLlama
Yeah they introduced it around the time they put Saudi Arabia on the human rights council and started asking Japan not to have sexualised women in their videogames.
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