arrangers:
- names:
    en: Chris Abbott
- names:
    en: Alisdair J. Pickering
- names:
    en: Rob Hubbard
- names:
    en: Allister Brimble
- names:
    en: Ben Daglish
- names:
    en: Peter Connelly
- names:
    en: Mark Cooksey
- names:
    en: Alistair “Boz” Bowness
- names:
    en: Glyn R. Brown
- names:
    en: Patrick Nevian
catalog: N/A
categories:
- Game
category: Game
classification: Arrangement
composers:
- names:
    en: Martin Galway
- names:
    en: Rob Hubbard
- names:
    en: Ben Daglish
- names:
    en: Paul Norman
- names:
    en: Mark Cooksey
- names:
    en: Glyn R. Brown
- names:
    en: Alistair “Boz” Bowness
- names:
    en: Richard Joseph
covers: []
discs:
- disc_length: '101:22'
  name: Disc 1
  tracks:
  - names:
      English: Imagine Ocean
    track_length: '4:39'
  - names:
      English: Green Beret Part One
    track_length: '4:27'
  - names:
      English: WAR
    track_length: '5:27'
  - names:
      English: William Wobbler
    track_length: '2:26'
  - names:
      English: Forbidden Forest And Beyond
    track_length: '5:14'
  - names:
      English: Kentilla
    track_length: '7:02'
  - names:
      English: Ghosts 'n' Goblins
    track_length: '4:31'
  - names:
      English: Flash Gordon
    track_length: '7:16'
  - names:
      English: International Karate
    track_length: '7:22'
  - names:
      English: Aztec Challenge
    track_length: '3:33'
  - names:
      English: Last Ninja Wastelands Loader
    track_length: '4:35'
  - names:
      English: Last Ninja Wastelands
    track_length: '3:28'
  - names:
      English: Monty's Journey
    track_length: '5:27'
  - names:
      English: Firelord
    track_length: '5:46'
  - names:
      English: Trap
    track_length: '9:54'
  - names:
      English: Monty on the Run Suite
    track_length: '8:35'
  - names:
      English: Stifflip and Co
    track_length: '2:44'
  - names:
      English: Barbarillax
    track_length: '4:02'
  - names:
      English: Dragon's Lair II (Piano)
    track_length: '4:54'
link: album/94785
lyricists: []
media_format: Digital
meta:
  added_date: 2019-12-28T09:19
  edited_date: 2021-04-11T05:49
  fetched_date: 2026-01-03T23:16
  ttl: 86400
  visitors: 1357
name: 8-Bit Symphony Volume 1
names:
  en: 8-Bit Symphony Volume 1
  ja: 8-Bit Symphony Volume 1
  ja-latn: 8-Bit Symphony Volume 1
notes: '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'
organizations:
- &id001
  names:
    en: High Technology Publishing
  role: publisher
performers:
- names:
    en: Patrick Nevian
picture_full: https://media.vgm.io/albums/58/94785/94785-1577556852.jpg
picture_small: https://medium-media.vgm.io/albums/58/94785/94785-1577556852.jpg
picture_thumb: https://thumb-media.vgm.io/albums/58/94785/94785-1577556852.jpg
platforms:
- Amstrad CPC
- Commodore 64
- Sinclair ZX Spectrum
products:
- names:
    en: Comic Bakery
- link: release/33759
  names:
    en: 'Rambo: First Blood Part II'
    ja: 'Rambo: First Blood Part II'
    ja-latn: 'Rambo: First Blood Part II'
- names:
    en: Green Beret
- names:
    en: W.A.R
- names:
    en: Stifflip & Co.
- names:
    en: Forbidden Forest
- names:
    en: Beyond the Forbidden Forest
- names:
    en: Kentilla
- names:
    en: Ghosts 'n Goblins
- names:
    en: Flash Gordon
- names:
    en: Barbarian 2
- names:
    en: Parallax
- names:
    en: International Karate
- link: product/9719
  names:
    en: Monty on the Run
    ja: モンティのドキドキ大脱走
    ja-latn: Monty on the Run
- names:
    en: Commando
- names:
    en: Firelord
- names:
    en: Trap
- link: product/7933
  names:
    en: The Last Ninja
    ja: The Last Ninja
    ja-latn: The Last Ninja
- names:
    en: William Wobbler
publish_format: Commercial
publisher: *id001
related: []
release_date: '2019-06-08'
release_events: []
release_price:
  currency: GBP
  price: 23.0
reprints: []
vgmdb_link: https://vgmdb.net/album/94785?perpage=99999
votes: 0
websites:
  Official:
  - link: https://www.8-bit-symphony.com/the-concert-experience.html
    name: The Concert Experience
