{"version":"1.0.0","segments":[{"startTime":8.974,"endTime":13.304,"body":"Hello and welcome to episode 96 of A Gamer"},{"startTime":8.974,"endTime":13.304,"body":"Looks at 40."},{"startTime":13.304,"endTime":14.714,"body":"I'm Bill Tucker."},{"startTime":14.714,"endTime":21.064,"body":"And when I did my Legend of Zelda series"},{"startTime":14.714,"endTime":21.064,"body":"back about a year and a half ago, I made a"},{"startTime":21.064,"endTime":29.514,"body":"huge mistake, a glaring omission in this"},{"startTime":21.064,"endTime":29.514,"body":"very long, almost six month exploration of"},{"startTime":29.514,"endTime":30.634,"body":"the series."},{"startTime":30.694,"endTime":34.734,"body":"I never did an episode dedicated to music."},{"startTime":34.894,"endTime":35.534,"body":"And that's a -"},{"startTime":35.534,"endTime":38.854,"body":"Big deal, music is a huge part of The"},{"startTime":35.534,"endTime":38.854,"body":"Legend of Zelda."},{"startTime":38.854,"endTime":41.174,"body":"It's woven into the fabric."},{"startTime":41.174,"endTime":47.674,"body":"It's a part of the storytelling and it's"},{"startTime":41.174,"endTime":47.674,"body":"one of the most iconic groups of pieces"},{"startTime":47.674,"endTime":50.314,"body":"ever written for a video game."},{"startTime":50.314,"endTime":54.374,"body":"Zelda music is the definition of iconic."},{"startTime":55.094,"endTime":61.634,"body":"For this year's Final Fantasy series, I"},{"startTime":55.094,"endTime":61.634,"body":"vowed to not make the same mistake twice."},{"startTime":61.694,"endTime":64.11,"body":"We will be talking about music a lot."},{"startTime":64.11,"endTime":69.59,"body":"in this series because music, like Zelda,"},{"startTime":64.11,"endTime":69.59,"body":"is integral to the Final Fantasy"},{"startTime":69.59,"endTime":75.87,"body":"experience and every conversation I've had"},{"startTime":69.59,"endTime":75.87,"body":"so far for this podcast series regarding"},{"startTime":75.87,"endTime":79.49,"body":"Final Fantasy, music has just come up."},{"startTime":79.49,"endTime":84.18,"body":"It's as if my guests know of my mistake"},{"startTime":79.49,"endTime":84.18,"body":"from a year and a half ago and are not"},{"startTime":84.18,"endTime":85.53,"body":"letting me repeat it."},{"startTime":85.53,"endTime":90.2,"body":"And as I work through this Final Fantasy"},{"startTime":85.53,"endTime":90.2,"body":"series and get these episodes out, the"},{"startTime":90.2,"endTime":91.79,"body":"order of them..."},{"startTime":91.79,"endTime":92.79,"body":"It's a living thing."},{"startTime":92.79,"endTime":94.72,"body":"I don't have a huge design document."},{"startTime":94.72,"endTime":99.66,"body":"I will release these as they make sense"},{"startTime":94.72,"endTime":99.66,"body":"and I am going to put the music episodes"},{"startTime":99.66,"endTime":100.75,"body":"where they make sense."},{"startTime":100.75,"endTime":107.12,"body":"But this particular conversation, this"},{"startTime":100.75,"endTime":107.12,"body":"episode you're about to hear, I just have"},{"startTime":107.12,"endTime":109.01,"body":"to get it out now."},{"startTime":109.01,"endTime":109.93,"body":"Why?"},{"startTime":109.93,"endTime":112.51,"body":"Because I am really excited about it."},{"startTime":112.51,"endTime":117.14,"body":"But before we get into the meat of the"},{"startTime":112.51,"endTime":117.14,"body":"interview, let's chat with games with"},{"startTime":117.14,"endTime":117.806,"body":"coffee."},{"startTime":117.806,"endTime":121.746,"body":"Now, Ryan was one of my first interviews"},{"startTime":117.806,"endTime":121.746,"body":"for this podcast series."},{"startTime":121.746,"endTime":126.846,"body":"As of this recording, I think I spoke to"},{"startTime":121.746,"endTime":126.846,"body":"him six months ago and he was one of the"},{"startTime":126.846,"endTime":131.186,"body":"first people I reached out to when I was"},{"startTime":126.846,"endTime":131.186,"body":"starting to collect interviews for Final"},{"startTime":131.186,"endTime":131.886,"body":"Fantasy."},{"startTime":131.886,"endTime":137.486,"body":"And while we were talking about favorite"},{"startTime":131.886,"endTime":137.486,"body":"memories of Final Fantasy, he shared the"},{"startTime":137.486,"endTime":138.666,"body":"following story."},{"startTime":138.666,"endTime":141.666,"body":"One of my favorite favorite Final Fantasy"},{"startTime":138.666,"endTime":141.666,"body":"memories, actually."},{"startTime":141.666,"endTime":146.926,"body":"This was roughly 2000, 2009."},{"startTime":146.926,"endTime":147.534,"body":"Yeah."},{"startTime":147.534,"endTime":150.634,"body":"If I remember correctly, yep, this was in"},{"startTime":147.534,"endTime":150.634,"body":"2009."},{"startTime":150.634,"endTime":158.884,"body":"So Distant Worlds is a concert series"},{"startTime":150.634,"endTime":158.884,"body":"featuring orchestral arrangements of"},{"startTime":158.884,"endTime":160.414,"body":"classic Final Fantasy music."},{"startTime":160.414,"endTime":165.554,"body":"So from basically the entire series, let's"},{"startTime":160.414,"endTime":165.554,"body":"put it that way."},{"startTime":165.574,"endTime":169.994,"body":"So they had a concert up here in Toronto"},{"startTime":165.574,"endTime":169.994,"body":"back in 2009."},{"startTime":169.994,"endTime":172.544,"body":"I got tickets for it and I'm like, hey"},{"startTime":169.994,"endTime":172.544,"body":"bro, do you want to go with me?"},{"startTime":172.544,"endTime":173.974,"body":"And he's like, yeah, absolutely."},{"startTime":173.974,"endTime":177.198,"body":"And this was back in the day when my"},{"startTime":173.974,"endTime":177.198,"body":"brother was a band nerd."},{"startTime":177.198,"endTime":180.558,"body":"So he would play trombone, he played"},{"startTime":177.198,"endTime":180.558,"body":"trombone, he played saxophone, he played"},{"startTime":180.558,"endTime":182.378,"body":"oboe, he played..."},{"startTime":182.378,"endTime":183.338,"body":"Oh wow."},{"startTime":184.058,"endTime":187.138,"body":"I feel like he dabbled a bit in trumpet,"},{"startTime":184.058,"endTime":187.138,"body":"but I don't really think so."},{"startTime":187.138,"endTime":188.918,"body":"His main jam was trombone."},{"startTime":188.918,"endTime":189.258,"body":"Mr."},{"startTime":189.258,"endTime":190.818,"body":"Low Brass, okay, very good."},{"startTime":190.818,"endTime":191.278,"body":"Nice."},{"startTime":191.278,"endTime":194.578,"body":"Yeah, so yeah, his main jam was trombone."},{"startTime":194.578,"endTime":196.888,"body":"And so I know he was a Final Fantasy nerd."},{"startTime":196.888,"endTime":200.568,"body":"He was like a fan of the music just as"},{"startTime":196.888,"endTime":200.568,"body":"much as I was a fan of the music."},{"startTime":200.568,"endTime":202.298,"body":"So I'm like, hey, yo, let's go together."},{"startTime":202.298,"endTime":206.838,"body":"And that became our bonding experience."},{"startTime":206.862,"endTime":213.672,"body":"Going to see this concert and yo this"},{"startTime":206.862,"endTime":213.672,"body":"concert dude, we got to see we got to see"},{"startTime":213.672,"endTime":222.812,"body":"Nobuo Uematsu live Wow singing the choir"},{"startTime":213.672,"endTime":222.812,"body":"bits for one -way angel and we were like"},{"startTime":222.812,"endTime":230.152,"body":"holy smokes wow our minds were blown at"},{"startTime":222.812,"endTime":230.152,"body":"that moment he's he's there on stage"},{"startTime":230.152,"endTime":235.502,"body":"that's amazing that's amazing that that is"},{"startTime":230.152,"endTime":235.502,"body":"ridiculous"},{"startTime":235.822,"endTime":238.142,"body":"That was my favorite memory."},{"startTime":238.142,"endTime":240.362,"body":"I wish I had a better camera."},{"startTime":240.422,"endTime":241.382,"body":"Oh, sure."},{"startTime":241.382,"endTime":241.602,"body":"Right."},{"startTime":241.602,"endTime":242.622,"body":"Imagine that."},{"startTime":242.622,"endTime":242.972,"body":"Oh, wow."},{"startTime":242.972,"endTime":243.802,"body":"That'd be amazing."},{"startTime":243.802,"endTime":246.562,"body":"That sounds really fascinating and"},{"startTime":243.802,"endTime":246.562,"body":"amazing."},{"startTime":246.562,"endTime":250.522,"body":"The music of Final Fantasy and one of my"},{"startTime":246.562,"endTime":250.522,"body":"other questions was going to be if you had"},{"startTime":250.522,"endTime":254.922,"body":"to pick one element of the Final Fantasy"},{"startTime":250.522,"endTime":254.922,"body":"experience, right?"},{"startTime":254.922,"endTime":256.922,"body":"Graphics, sound, story, etc."},{"startTime":256.922,"endTime":261.362,"body":"What would you say the most load bearing"},{"startTime":256.922,"endTime":261.362,"body":"element is?"},{"startTime":261.362,"endTime":264.27,"body":"What is the one element that..."},{"startTime":264.27,"endTime":267.59,"body":"that Final Fantasy consistently gets"},{"startTime":264.27,"endTime":267.59,"body":"right."},{"startTime":293.55,"endTime":300.17,"body":"And this actually plays on the train going"},{"startTime":293.55,"endTime":300.17,"body":"back to Sector 7."},{"startTime":300.17,"endTime":304.27,"body":"Just after you bomb the Mako Reactor."},{"startTime":304.27,"endTime":306.35,"body":"Sorry, Mako."},{"startTime":306.35,"endTime":307.87,"body":"Mako Reactor 1."},{"startTime":307.87,"endTime":311.13,"body":"And you're talking with Barrett on the"},{"startTime":307.87,"endTime":311.13,"body":"train."},{"startTime":311.81,"endTime":315.05,"body":"And Cloud goes up and he winks out and"},{"startTime":311.81,"endTime":315.05,"body":"he's like, it's like this train."},{"startTime":315.05,"endTime":319.01,"body":"It can't go anywhere except where its"},{"startTime":315.05,"endTime":319.01,"body":"rails can take it."},{"startTime":319.01,"endTime":321.28,"body":"And that music is playing in the"},{"startTime":319.01,"endTime":321.28,"body":"background there."},{"startTime":321.28,"endTime":323.054,"body":"And it's just like, it's such a..."},{"startTime":323.054,"endTime":325.144,"body":"powerful moment for me."},{"startTime":325.144,"endTime":326.054,"body":"Sure."},{"startTime":326.114,"endTime":330.454,"body":"That was just like that was the moment"},{"startTime":326.114,"endTime":330.454,"body":"where it's just like, okay, I need to play"},{"startTime":330.454,"endTime":331.154,"body":"this game."},{"startTime":331.154,"endTime":334.614,"body":"Like I need to spend every waking moment"},{"startTime":331.154,"endTime":334.614,"body":"in this world."},{"startTime":334.654,"endTime":341.614,"body":"So yeah, no, and I can think of I have the"},{"startTime":334.654,"endTime":341.614,"body":"entire I have like virtually almost every"},{"startTime":341.614,"endTime":345.524,"body":"single Final Fantasy catalog to my brain"},{"startTime":341.614,"endTime":345.524,"body":"and I know exactly where it was and what I"},{"startTime":345.524,"endTime":346.874,"body":"was doing during that time."},{"startTime":346.874,"endTime":348.924,"body":"I mean, I'm not going to go into semantics"},{"startTime":346.874,"endTime":348.924,"body":"about that."},{"startTime":348.924,"endTime":352.214,"body":"I might I might just be I might just be"},{"startTime":348.924,"endTime":352.214,"body":"straight wild in here."},{"startTime":352.214,"endTime":353.038,"body":"Yeah, but."},{"startTime":353.038,"endTime":356.908,"body":"But the music, that's just how powerful"},{"startTime":353.038,"endTime":356.908,"body":"the music is in Final Fantasy."},{"startTime":356.908,"endTime":359.678,"body":"It's like you can't have a Final Fantasy"},{"startTime":356.908,"endTime":359.678,"body":"without a music."},{"startTime":362.094,"endTime":365.214,"body":"And he wasn't the only one with a story."},{"startTime":365.354,"endTime":369.824,"body":"A few months later, I was chatting with"},{"startTime":365.354,"endTime":369.824,"body":"audio producer and video game music"},{"startTime":369.824,"endTime":374.634,"body":"remixer Mustin about the Final Fantasy"},{"startTime":369.824,"endTime":374.634,"body":"series and his inspirations."},{"startTime":374.634,"endTime":377.354,"body":"And he shared the following story."},{"startTime":377.354,"endTime":383.414,"body":"I was the first person that was led in to"},{"startTime":377.354,"endTime":383.414,"body":"the concert hall at the very first"},{"startTime":383.414,"endTime":384.514,"body":"concert."},{"startTime":384.514,"endTime":386.324,"body":"And was it out here 2004?"},{"startTime":386.324,"endTime":389.234,"body":"Yeah, I was, I was up at the front."},{"startTime":389.462,"endTime":392.082,"body":"Uematsu was hanging out up on top."},{"startTime":392.162,"endTime":397.022,"body":"There was like a balcony up there and you"},{"startTime":392.162,"endTime":397.022,"body":"could just recognize his his wacky bowl"},{"startTime":397.022,"endTime":401.692,"body":"cut and his big old glasses just, you"},{"startTime":397.022,"endTime":401.692,"body":"know, resting his chin on folded arms,"},{"startTime":401.692,"endTime":408.262,"body":"looking at all the people just milling"},{"startTime":401.692,"endTime":408.262,"body":"around, waiting to hear his music."},{"startTime":408.322,"endTime":409.842,"body":"Yeah, but I was right up front."},{"startTime":409.842,"endTime":414.832,"body":"And whenever that person opened up the"},{"startTime":409.842,"endTime":414.832,"body":"rope, the big fancy rope, I was like,"},{"startTime":414.832,"endTime":415.592,"body":"here's my ticket."},{"startTime":415.592,"endTime":416.712,"body":"Let me go."},{"startTime":416.942,"endTime":418.362,"body":"Wow, that's awesome."},{"startTime":418.362,"endTime":420.062,"body":"Was this in Japan?"},{"startTime":420.062,"endTime":426.292,"body":"No, this was at the first, I believe it"},{"startTime":420.062,"endTime":426.292,"body":"was the first video game music symphony in"},{"startTime":426.292,"endTime":427.232,"body":"the United States."},{"startTime":427.232,"endTime":434.702,"body":"It was at the Disney, the Disney Concert"},{"startTime":427.232,"endTime":434.702,"body":"Hall in Los Angeles during an E3 event."},{"startTime":434.702,"endTime":437.882,"body":"And I think it was the year 2004."},{"startTime":438.162,"endTime":439.932,"body":"And I'm looking at some, the history of"},{"startTime":438.162,"endTime":439.932,"body":"it."},{"startTime":439.932,"endTime":441.502,"body":"Yeah, 2005 it looks like."},{"startTime":441.502,"endTime":443.122,"body":"I Arne Roth who was..."},{"startTime":443.122,"endTime":443.662,"body":"Yep."},{"startTime":443.662,"endTime":444.602,"body":"At the helm."},{"startTime":444.602,"endTime":445.782,"body":"Arne Roth was conducting."},{"startTime":445.782,"endTime":447.202,"body":"Yeah, Arne Roth was conducting."},{"startTime":447.202,"endTime":448.092,"body":"Yeah, I was there."},{"startTime":448.092,"endTime":449.902,"body":"I was there for the first thing."},{"startTime":449.902,"endTime":457.952,"body":"And I know some people really look down on"},{"startTime":449.902,"endTime":457.952,"body":"the mezzanine, ironically, because it's"},{"startTime":457.952,"endTime":459.382,"body":"where the poppers would be."},{"startTime":459.382,"endTime":465.912,"body":"But I sat right, I was right in the middle"},{"startTime":459.382,"endTime":465.912,"body":"of that up there."},{"startTime":465.912,"endTime":470.452,"body":"And I was able to put my do the same thing"},{"startTime":465.912,"endTime":470.452,"body":"as we monster did, put my arms up there,"},{"startTime":470.452,"endTime":472.046,"body":"put my head down on my."},{"startTime":472.334,"endTime":476.654,"body":"my chin on my arms and just like watch it"},{"startTime":472.334,"endTime":476.654,"body":"was just, it was incredible."},{"startTime":476.654,"endTime":477.454,"body":"That's amazing."},{"startTime":477.454,"endTime":478.944,"body":"That's absolutely incredible."},{"startTime":478.944,"endTime":480.054,"body":"That's so cool."},{"startTime":480.054,"endTime":481.234,"body":"I love that."},{"startTime":481.234,"endTime":484.154,"body":"You were able, you were there when the"},{"startTime":481.234,"endTime":484.154,"body":"first people there and I, you know what"},{"startTime":484.154,"endTime":485.474,"body":"people dunk on the mezzanine."},{"startTime":485.474,"endTime":486.014,"body":"They shouldn't."},{"startTime":486.014,"endTime":487.474,"body":"I prefer, I like mezzanine."},{"startTime":487.474,"endTime":491.864,"body":"I like first few rows of upper mezzanine"},{"startTime":487.474,"endTime":491.864,"body":"for if I'm seeing a theater or play, I"},{"startTime":491.864,"endTime":496.114,"body":"like being able to see the entire set and"},{"startTime":491.864,"endTime":496.114,"body":"make all the, you know, and be able to"},{"startTime":496.114,"endTime":500.614,"body":"take it all in as opposed to focusing on"},{"startTime":496.114,"endTime":500.614,"body":"one performance if it's a play or theater."},{"startTime":500.614,"endTime":501.454,"body":"Um,"},{"startTime":501.454,"endTime":503.104,"body":"But I don't care how you experience it."},{"startTime":503.104,"endTime":508.164,"body":"It's sometimes nice to be in the back, you"},{"startTime":503.104,"endTime":508.164,"body":"know, and let that wall of sound hit you."},{"startTime":508.164,"endTime":511.014,"body":"Yeah, just in one shot, you know."},{"startTime":511.554,"endTime":512.794,"body":"Yeah, that's exactly."},{"startTime":512.794,"endTime":515.014,"body":"I'm glad I bought that ticket for that"},{"startTime":512.794,"endTime":515.014,"body":"spot."},{"startTime":515.014,"endTime":517.774,"body":"But yeah, that was get that first ticket"},{"startTime":515.014,"endTime":517.774,"body":"tear."},{"startTime":517.774,"endTime":520.604,"body":"I've got it still the ticket and let's go."},{"startTime":520.604,"endTime":521.404,"body":"That's fantastic."},{"startTime":521.404,"endTime":522.224,"body":"It's so cool."},{"startTime":522.224,"endTime":523.394,"body":"I love that."},{"startTime":523.394,"endTime":524.114,"body":"Yeah, man."},{"startTime":524.114,"endTime":527.254,"body":"And the first thing they played was that"},{"startTime":524.114,"endTime":527.254,"body":"liberate for Tali."},{"startTime":527.394,"endTime":530.958,"body":"And I like I don't really love Final"},{"startTime":527.394,"endTime":530.958,"body":"Fantasy eight, but man, I just."},{"startTime":530.958,"endTime":536.538,"body":"like welled up with tears, man, it was"},{"startTime":530.958,"endTime":536.538,"body":"like amazing to hear an orchestra after,"},{"startTime":536.538,"endTime":544.068,"body":"you know, like five years of constantly"},{"startTime":536.538,"endTime":544.068,"body":"doing stuff with computers and friends and"},{"startTime":544.068,"endTime":550.038,"body":"live music, like live bands, but that"},{"startTime":544.068,"endTime":550.038,"body":"orchestra was just amazing."},{"startTime":556.046,"endTime":559.746,"body":"Time to meet the mastermind behind the"},{"startTime":556.046,"endTime":559.746,"body":"magic."},{"startTime":559.746,"endTime":565.446,"body":"On this episode of A Gamer Looks at Forty"},{"startTime":559.746,"endTime":565.446,"body":"I chat with composer Arnie Roth about"},{"startTime":565.446,"endTime":570.656,"body":"Final Fantasy Distant Worlds, how the"},{"startTime":565.446,"endTime":570.656,"body":"concert originated, the energy in the"},{"startTime":570.656,"endTime":576.226,"body":"crowd, and the lasting impact of this"},{"startTime":570.656,"endTime":576.226,"body":"world class symphonic series."},{"startTime":576.226,"endTime":581.046,"body":"Time to scan our tickets, take our seats,"},{"startTime":576.226,"endTime":581.046,"body":"and watch out for the sword of that cloud"},{"startTime":581.046,"endTime":582.958,"body":"cosplayer that's sitting next to us."},{"startTime":582.958,"endTime":590.718,"body":"as we dive into episode 96, Final Fantasy"},{"startTime":582.958,"endTime":590.718,"body":"Distant Worlds with composer Arnie Roth."},{"startTime":590.718,"endTime":591.168,"body":"So Mr."},{"startTime":591.168,"endTime":592.418,"body":"Roth, I really appreciate it."},{"startTime":592.418,"endTime":596.918,"body":"Thank you so much for taking the time to"},{"startTime":592.418,"endTime":596.918,"body":"chat about your work with Distant Worlds"},{"startTime":596.918,"endTime":598.738,"body":"and some of the other work you've done."},{"startTime":598.738,"endTime":602.938,"body":"But before we get started, I'd love to"},{"startTime":598.738,"endTime":602.938,"body":"hear a bit about how you first got"},{"startTime":602.938,"endTime":605.778,"body":"introduced to the world of video game"},{"startTime":602.938,"endTime":605.778,"body":"music."},{"startTime":605.778,"endTime":609.738,"body":"And because given your experience, that"},{"startTime":605.778,"endTime":609.738,"body":"was never your first place."},{"startTime":609.738,"endTime":612.686,"body":"You've done a ton of stuff in your career."},{"startTime":612.686,"endTime":616.686,"body":"How did video game music first enter into"},{"startTime":612.686,"endTime":616.686,"body":"your orbit?"},{"startTime":616.686,"endTime":621.936,"body":"It's an interesting story and maybe not"},{"startTime":616.686,"endTime":621.936,"body":"as, actually not as fascinating as you"},{"startTime":621.936,"endTime":622.786,"body":"might think."},{"startTime":622.786,"endTime":623.246,"body":"Fair enough."},{"startTime":623.246,"endTime":631.416,"body":"I was music director and conductor of an"},{"startTime":623.246,"endTime":631.416,"body":"orchestra in the Chicago area called the"},{"startTime":631.416,"endTime":636.306,"body":"Chicagoland Pops Orchestra for a while,"},{"startTime":631.416,"endTime":636.306,"body":"based at the Rosemont Theater in Chicago."},{"startTime":636.806,"endTime":638.83,"body":"And we would bring in..."},{"startTime":638.83,"endTime":640.9,"body":"all kinds of different concerts."},{"startTime":640.9,"endTime":643.35,"body":"We had a regular subscription series."},{"startTime":644.17,"endTime":649.42,"body":"And a colleague of mine that I had worked"},{"startTime":644.17,"endTime":649.42,"body":"with on other projects, and he introduced"},{"startTime":649.42,"endTime":656.03,"body":"me to the fact that Japan had been doing"},{"startTime":649.42,"endTime":656.03,"body":"video game concerts way back since the"},{"startTime":656.03,"endTime":661.41,"body":"1990s, late 90s, and that I might look"},{"startTime":656.03,"endTime":661.41,"body":"into that."},{"startTime":661.47,"endTime":666.054,"body":"There had never been a public concert of"},{"startTime":661.47,"endTime":666.054,"body":"video game music."},{"startTime":666.574,"endTime":671.614,"body":"in at that point in the United States, in"},{"startTime":666.574,"endTime":671.614,"body":"North America or in Europe actually."},{"startTime":671.614,"endTime":677.864,"body":"Although a friend of mine, a colleague was"},{"startTime":671.614,"endTime":677.864,"body":"working on trying to put that together in"},{"startTime":677.864,"endTime":678.554,"body":"Europe."},{"startTime":678.554,"endTime":683.704,"body":"Anyhow, the short story is that as music"},{"startTime":678.554,"endTime":683.704,"body":"director, I decided, okay, let's take a"},{"startTime":683.704,"endTime":684.014,"body":"chance."},{"startTime":684.014,"endTime":690.274,"body":"And the item that we took a chance on was"},{"startTime":684.014,"endTime":690.274,"body":"Dear Friends, Music from Final Fantasy,"},{"startTime":690.494,"endTime":694.542,"body":"which is the preceding tour to..."},{"startTime":694.542,"endTime":697.302,"body":"our current Distant Worlds series."},{"startTime":697.602,"endTime":701.462,"body":"This was in 2004, 2005."},{"startTime":702.162,"endTime":707.112,"body":"And that was the first time I met Nobuo"},{"startTime":702.162,"endTime":707.112,"body":"Uematsu, the primary composer of Final"},{"startTime":707.112,"endTime":711.602,"body":"Fantasy and worked with him extensively on"},{"startTime":707.112,"endTime":711.602,"body":"that concert."},{"startTime":711.642,"endTime":717.022,"body":"The concert was at the Rosemont in"},{"startTime":711.642,"endTime":717.022,"body":"February of 2005."},{"startTime":717.242,"endTime":721.952,"body":"It was the first truly public concert of"},{"startTime":717.242,"endTime":721.952,"body":"Final Fantasy music."},{"startTime":722.03,"endTime":725.25,"body":"or any video game music in the United"},{"startTime":722.03,"endTime":725.25,"body":"States."},{"startTime":726.03,"endTime":728.69,"body":"And it sold out very quickly."},{"startTime":728.71,"endTime":735.75,"body":"Nobuo Matsu was there attending and we"},{"startTime":728.71,"endTime":735.75,"body":"became close friends and colleagues and"},{"startTime":735.75,"endTime":741.8,"body":"they asked me, Square Enix and Nobuo asked"},{"startTime":735.75,"endTime":741.8,"body":"me to conduct the rest of the Dear Friends"},{"startTime":741.8,"endTime":746.65,"body":"concerts, which were a short -lived tour."},{"startTime":746.65,"endTime":748.462,"body":"I think it was maybe..."},{"startTime":748.462,"endTime":754.112,"body":"three or four or maybe five other concerts"},{"startTime":748.462,"endTime":754.112,"body":"in the United States after the Chicago"},{"startTime":754.112,"endTime":755.262,"body":"concert."},{"startTime":755.502,"endTime":765.212,"body":"I did those and then they invited me to"},{"startTime":755.502,"endTime":765.212,"body":"conduct a series of concerts they did in"},{"startTime":765.212,"endTime":769.202,"body":"Japan called Voices, music from Final"},{"startTime":765.212,"endTime":769.202,"body":"Fantasy."},{"startTime":769.202,"endTime":775.872,"body":"And I was asked to conduct that by"},{"startTime":769.202,"endTime":775.872,"body":"invitation from Nobuo Matsu, who at that"},{"startTime":775.872,"endTime":778.282,"body":"time was still an employee of Square Enix."},{"startTime":778.542,"endTime":786.162,"body":"And this was the first time that a non"},{"startTime":778.542,"endTime":786.162,"body":"-Japanese conductor had ever conducted the"},{"startTime":786.162,"endTime":788.282,"body":"music of Final Fantasy in Japan."},{"startTime":788.442,"endTime":790.702,"body":"So it was quite an honor at the time."},{"startTime":790.702,"endTime":798.832,"body":"I did that and then Nobu and I and Square"},{"startTime":790.702,"endTime":798.832,"body":"Enix worked on the concept of a global"},{"startTime":798.832,"endTime":804.542,"body":"touring production that could bring the"},{"startTime":798.832,"endTime":804.542,"body":"music of Final Fantasy around the world to"},{"startTime":804.542,"endTime":806.072,"body":"major capitals around the world."},{"startTime":806.072,"endTime":807.982,"body":"And that was..."},{"startTime":807.982,"endTime":813.082,"body":"the launch of Distant Worlds music from"},{"startTime":807.982,"endTime":813.082,"body":"Final Fantasy in 2007."},{"startTime":813.522,"endTime":816.942,"body":"And here we are, 16 plus years later."},{"startTime":816.942,"endTime":822.822,"body":"We celebrated our 15th anniversary of"},{"startTime":816.942,"endTime":822.822,"body":"Distant Worlds, and along with the 35th"},{"startTime":822.822,"endTime":830.892,"body":"anniversary of Final Fantasy, we continue"},{"startTime":822.822,"endTime":830.892,"body":"to have these coordinated anniversaries"},{"startTime":830.892,"endTime":832.422,"body":"every five years."},{"startTime":832.842,"endTime":835.602,"body":"It's very nice, easier to remember."},{"startTime":836.342,"endTime":837.562,"body":"Absolutely."},{"startTime":837.678,"endTime":839.348,"body":"So that was really the start."},{"startTime":839.348,"endTime":845.318,"body":"And it was only simply because I made the,"},{"startTime":839.348,"endTime":845.318,"body":"you might say arbitrary or educated"},{"startTime":845.318,"endTime":850.638,"body":"decision as a music director and conductor"},{"startTime":845.318,"endTime":850.638,"body":"to say, yes, I want to try this."},{"startTime":850.638,"endTime":853.078,"body":"It's never been done in North America."},{"startTime":853.078,"endTime":857.128,"body":"And one thing led to another from that"},{"startTime":853.078,"endTime":857.128,"body":"point."},{"startTime":857.128,"endTime":857.818,"body":"That's excellent."},{"startTime":857.818,"endTime":862.078,"body":"And that's, I really, that speaks to a"},{"startTime":857.818,"endTime":862.078,"body":"real leap of faith too, because you were"},{"startTime":862.078,"endTime":866.094,"body":"trying something that had not been tried"},{"startTime":862.078,"endTime":866.094,"body":"before in North America."},{"startTime":866.094,"endTime":868.464,"body":"Successful in Japan, of course, but not"},{"startTime":866.094,"endTime":868.464,"body":"here."},{"startTime":868.464,"endTime":869.714,"body":"For sure, yeah."},{"startTime":869.714,"endTime":872.334,"body":"I mean, was there any concern?"},{"startTime":872.334,"endTime":876.074,"body":"I mean, obviously, your first Dear Friends"},{"startTime":872.334,"endTime":876.074,"body":"was a smaller run, like you said, but was"},{"startTime":876.074,"endTime":877.614,"body":"there any concern?"},{"startTime":877.614,"endTime":879.754,"body":"Was there a nervousness about it?"},{"startTime":879.754,"endTime":886.544,"body":"And honestly, what about the video game"},{"startTime":879.754,"endTime":886.544,"body":"music just inspired you to say yes to"},{"startTime":886.544,"endTime":886.634,"body":"that?"},{"startTime":886.634,"endTime":893.134,"body":"Yeah, no question that in the early days,"},{"startTime":886.634,"endTime":893.134,"body":"a lot of people didn't believe."},{"startTime":893.134,"endTime":896.046,"body":"Here was the main thinking back then."},{"startTime":896.046,"endTime":901.386,"body":"they, from a lot of orchestras and"},{"startTime":896.046,"endTime":901.386,"body":"presenters in North America and around the"},{"startTime":901.386,"endTime":909.226,"body":"world, they felt that it hadn't been"},{"startTime":901.386,"endTime":909.226,"body":"proven that a concert of video game music"},{"startTime":909.226,"endTime":916.766,"body":"could stand on its own as a ticket to be"},{"startTime":909.226,"endTime":916.766,"body":"bought for entertainment independent of,"},{"startTime":916.766,"endTime":921.766,"body":"let's say, a convention or some other"},{"startTime":916.766,"endTime":921.766,"body":"driving force."},{"startTime":922.326,"endTime":925.446,"body":"And that was really the concern by most"},{"startTime":922.326,"endTime":925.446,"body":"of..."},{"startTime":925.55,"endTime":930.67,"body":"the orchestras and presenters that we ran"},{"startTime":925.55,"endTime":930.67,"body":"up against or were talking to."},{"startTime":931.99,"endTime":933.91,"body":"We had to get past that."},{"startTime":933.91,"endTime":938.35,"body":"In the early days of Distant Worlds, there"},{"startTime":933.91,"endTime":938.35,"body":"certainly was reticence."},{"startTime":939.23,"endTime":945.79,"body":"And you could look at the number of"},{"startTime":939.23,"endTime":945.79,"body":"concerts that we do each year, starting at"},{"startTime":945.79,"endTime":954.22,"body":"2007 and all the way through today, and"},{"startTime":945.79,"endTime":954.22,"body":"see this tremendous increase in number of"},{"startTime":954.22,"endTime":955.154,"body":"concerts."},{"startTime":955.294,"endTime":959.314,"body":"just from distant worlds, but of course"},{"startTime":955.294,"endTime":959.314,"body":"we're involved with many other productions"},{"startTime":959.314,"endTime":960.674,"body":"as well."},{"startTime":960.934,"endTime":972.014,"body":"But it's when one sees and when we saw the"},{"startTime":960.934,"endTime":972.014,"body":"reaction of the audience, first of all,"},{"startTime":972.014,"endTime":976.164,"body":"the quick sellout, of course, but the"},{"startTime":972.014,"endTime":976.164,"body":"reaction of the audience in the concerts"},{"startTime":976.164,"endTime":979.594,"body":"themselves was absolutely amazing."},{"startTime":980.014,"endTime":985.114,"body":"Here you have an audience that is uber"},{"startTime":980.014,"endTime":985.114,"body":"respectful."},{"startTime":985.39,"endTime":986.94,"body":"to the actual live performance."},{"startTime":986.94,"endTime":989.77,"body":"They want to hear every note that's being"},{"startTime":986.94,"endTime":989.77,"body":"performed."},{"startTime":989.83,"endTime":994.64,"body":"So you can hear a pin drop and you're"},{"startTime":989.83,"endTime":994.64,"body":"talking about four or 5 ,000 people at"},{"startTime":994.64,"endTime":995.99,"body":"many of these concerts."},{"startTime":995.99,"endTime":999.01,"body":"But the reverse is true too."},{"startTime":999.01,"endTime":1004.95,"body":"They're the best of a rock audience or a"},{"startTime":999.01,"endTime":1004.95,"body":"pop audience."},{"startTime":1004.95,"endTime":1008.38,"body":"You know, those audiences tend to be very,"},{"startTime":1004.95,"endTime":1008.38,"body":"a bit more raucous."},{"startTime":1008.38,"endTime":1011.21,"body":"They're singing along with their artists."},{"startTime":1011.21,"endTime":1014.606,"body":"They're walking up and down the aisles,"},{"startTime":1011.21,"endTime":1014.606,"body":"dancing and buying."},{"startTime":1014.606,"endTime":1017.626,"body":"a hot dog or a beer or whatever during the"},{"startTime":1014.606,"endTime":1017.626,"body":"concert."},{"startTime":1018.286,"endTime":1021.646,"body":"None of that happens in a Final Fantasy"},{"startTime":1018.286,"endTime":1021.646,"body":"concert."},{"startTime":1022.006,"endTime":1025.326,"body":"Everyone gets into their seats and they"},{"startTime":1022.006,"endTime":1025.326,"body":"listen very intently."},{"startTime":1025.526,"endTime":1030.976,"body":"But they react like a rock or a pop"},{"startTime":1025.526,"endTime":1030.976,"body":"audience to every one of the scores that"},{"startTime":1030.976,"endTime":1036.066,"body":"we play, this huge standing ovations and"},{"startTime":1030.976,"endTime":1036.066,"body":"over the top applause."},{"startTime":1036.066,"endTime":1041.596,"body":"So it's like the best classical audience"},{"startTime":1036.066,"endTime":1041.596,"body":"in terms of the respect and listening and"},{"startTime":1041.596,"endTime":1043.828,"body":"the best of the rock and pop."},{"startTime":1043.828,"endTime":1048.958,"body":"audience aspects of the honest reaction to"},{"startTime":1043.828,"endTime":1048.958,"body":"this."},{"startTime":1048.978,"endTime":1052.738,"body":"And part of the reason is that you're"},{"startTime":1048.978,"endTime":1052.738,"body":"talking about a wonderful kind of"},{"startTime":1052.738,"endTime":1053.578,"body":"community."},{"startTime":1053.578,"endTime":1057.218,"body":"This is a community where they're all"},{"startTime":1053.578,"endTime":1057.218,"body":"there for the same reason."},{"startTime":1057.218,"endTime":1060.538,"body":"They want to hear the music of Final"},{"startTime":1057.218,"endTime":1060.538,"body":"Fantasy."},{"startTime":1060.538,"endTime":1066.998,"body":"Not every video game falls into that"},{"startTime":1060.538,"endTime":1066.998,"body":"category where there's as much reverence,"},{"startTime":1066.998,"endTime":1071.838,"body":"not just for the gameplay, but for the"},{"startTime":1066.998,"endTime":1071.838,"body":"actual music compositions."},{"startTime":1071.858,"endTime":1073.166,"body":"Certainly that's..."},{"startTime":1073.166,"endTime":1078.506,"body":"been a hallmark of Final Fantasy from the"},{"startTime":1073.166,"endTime":1078.506,"body":"very beginning, from 1987 onward."},{"startTime":1078.506,"endTime":1085.346,"body":"So it's a rather unique IP, let's put it"},{"startTime":1078.506,"endTime":1085.346,"body":"that way."},{"startTime":1085.746,"endTime":1086.066,"body":"Yeah."},{"startTime":1086.066,"endTime":1086.446,"body":"Yeah."},{"startTime":1086.446,"endTime":1087.386,"body":"No, absolutely."},{"startTime":1087.386,"endTime":1090.086,"body":"And that sound, I've never seen one"},{"startTime":1087.386,"endTime":1090.086,"body":"personally."},{"startTime":1090.086,"endTime":1091.306,"body":"I've always wanted to."},{"startTime":1091.306,"endTime":1093.806,"body":"Next time you come around Austin."},{"startTime":1093.806,"endTime":1094.326,"body":"We were there."},{"startTime":1094.326,"endTime":1095.486,"body":"If you were to get through down the Austin"},{"startTime":1094.326,"endTime":1095.486,"body":"area."},{"startTime":1095.486,"endTime":1095.816,"body":"were there."},{"startTime":1095.816,"endTime":1097.326,"body":"Why weren't you there?"},{"startTime":1097.686,"endTime":1099.726,"body":"I know you were there."},{"startTime":1099.726,"endTime":1100.686,"body":"I know."},{"startTime":1100.686,"endTime":1101.746,"body":"There was conflicts."},{"startTime":1101.746,"endTime":1102.886,"body":"I have two children."},{"startTime":1102.886,"endTime":1108.226,"body":"I blame all things on the two kids, but"},{"startTime":1102.886,"endTime":1108.226,"body":"I'm desperate to see it."},{"startTime":1108.226,"endTime":1112.226,"body":"Final Fantasy to me personally is a very"},{"startTime":1108.226,"endTime":1112.226,"body":"near and dear franchise to my heart."},{"startTime":1112.226,"endTime":1116.446,"body":"And it's funny how you say the community"},{"startTime":1112.226,"endTime":1116.446,"body":"really embraces it because I am doing"},{"startTime":1116.446,"endTime":1120.726,"body":"dozens and dozens of interviews for this"},{"startTime":1116.446,"endTime":1120.726,"body":"podcast series and I'm about to embark on"},{"startTime":1120.726,"endTime":1121.406,"body":"in March."},{"startTime":1121.406,"endTime":1125.266,"body":"I cannot get through one conversation"},{"startTime":1121.406,"endTime":1125.266,"body":"without bringing up music."},{"startTime":1125.266,"endTime":1128.426,"body":"My guests, and they just bring it up"},{"startTime":1125.266,"endTime":1128.426,"body":"themselves to the point where I already"},{"startTime":1128.426,"endTime":1128.91,"body":"know."},{"startTime":1128.91,"endTime":1131.09,"body":"There will be a music episode."},{"startTime":1131.09,"endTime":1133.82,"body":"It's so integral to the experience."},{"startTime":1133.82,"endTime":1135.7,"body":"It depends on the game, obviously."},{"startTime":1135.7,"endTime":1142.15,"body":"There's a lot of the single shooter kind"},{"startTime":1135.7,"endTime":1142.15,"body":"of games where they have a wonderful"},{"startTime":1142.15,"endTime":1148.54,"body":"anthem or main theme, but a lot of the"},{"startTime":1142.15,"endTime":1148.54,"body":"gameplay music is not all that"},{"startTime":1148.54,"endTime":1149.17,"body":"interesting."},{"startTime":1149.17,"endTime":1151.21,"body":"Let's put it that way."},{"startTime":1151.53,"endTime":1153.81,"body":"Percussion loops, various other things."},{"startTime":1154.43,"endTime":1156.04,"body":"Final Fantasy is different that way."},{"startTime":1156.04,"endTime":1158.126,"body":"It's a role -playing game, first of all."},{"startTime":1158.126,"endTime":1160.686,"body":"Every character gets its own theme."},{"startTime":1160.686,"endTime":1166.856,"body":"You know, Nobuo Uematsu, right from the"},{"startTime":1160.686,"endTime":1166.856,"body":"very beginning, employed a thing that we"},{"startTime":1166.856,"endTime":1171.266,"body":"like to refer to as a Peter and the Wolf"},{"startTime":1166.856,"endTime":1171.266,"body":"style of composition."},{"startTime":1171.266,"endTime":1175.026,"body":"Every character got its own main theme."},{"startTime":1175.146,"endTime":1182.466,"body":"And every battle and every environment,"},{"startTime":1175.146,"endTime":1182.466,"body":"you know, city or land or world, every"},{"startTime":1182.466,"endTime":1184.646,"body":"romantic relationship."},{"startTime":1185.466,"endTime":1188.006,"body":"And so when you have..."},{"startTime":1188.194,"endTime":1192.864,"body":"the development of the plot in the game,"},{"startTime":1188.194,"endTime":1192.864,"body":"these musical themes are still weaving"},{"startTime":1192.864,"endTime":1196.194,"body":"themselves along with the plot."},{"startTime":1197.314,"endTime":1204.754,"body":"Another example of this I like to use is"},{"startTime":1197.314,"endTime":1204.754,"body":"Nobuo Uematsu was called by Time Magazine"},{"startTime":1204.754,"endTime":1212.494,"body":"as the, he was called the John Williams of"},{"startTime":1204.754,"endTime":1212.494,"body":"video game music, and with good reason,"},{"startTime":1212.494,"endTime":1214.714,"body":"music composition."},{"startTime":1215.094,"endTime":1216.214,"body":"He,"},{"startTime":1217.166,"endTime":1223.056,"body":"His primary goal in writing, it seems to"},{"startTime":1217.166,"endTime":1223.056,"body":"me, and he's told me as much, it's all"},{"startTime":1223.056,"endTime":1227.366,"body":"about melody first and structure."},{"startTime":1228.246,"endTime":1232.346,"body":"Not everyone uses that as a first step."},{"startTime":1232.606,"endTime":1239.426,"body":"Many composers are building an environment"},{"startTime":1232.606,"endTime":1239.426,"body":"or an atmosphere or a mood, but with Nobu,"},{"startTime":1239.426,"endTime":1244.654,"body":"he's very kind of, I hesitate to use the"},{"startTime":1239.426,"endTime":1244.654,"body":"word old school, but, but."},{"startTime":1244.654,"endTime":1250.494,"body":"very traditional in that he really"},{"startTime":1244.654,"endTime":1250.494,"body":"respects the sanctity of the melody first."},{"startTime":1250.494,"endTime":1257.094,"body":"And he has this weird knack for coming up"},{"startTime":1250.494,"endTime":1257.094,"body":"with unbelievably memorable melodies that"},{"startTime":1257.094,"endTime":1260.274,"body":"just will not go away over many, many"},{"startTime":1257.094,"endTime":1260.274,"body":"years."},{"startTime":1260.274,"endTime":1264.164,"body":"And then, of course, the series brings"},{"startTime":1260.274,"endTime":1264.164,"body":"these melodies back in with new"},{"startTime":1264.164,"endTime":1266.194,"body":"arrangements later in the series."},{"startTime":1266.194,"endTime":1271.504,"body":"So you're talking about players getting so"},{"startTime":1266.194,"endTime":1271.504,"body":"ingrained with these certain melodies over"},{"startTime":1271.504,"endTime":1273.454,"body":"not just one game, but..."},{"startTime":1273.454,"endTime":1275.934,"body":"over 10 years, 20 years."},{"startTime":1276.574,"endTime":1282.494,"body":"So, you know, it's really, it's that"},{"startTime":1276.574,"endTime":1282.494,"body":"combination of an RPG game and this style"},{"startTime":1282.494,"endTime":1289.994,"body":"of composition that has made the music so"},{"startTime":1282.494,"endTime":1289.994,"body":"important and actually stands on its own"},{"startTime":1289.994,"endTime":1291.314,"body":"from the game."},{"startTime":1291.974,"endTime":1295.354,"body":"You know, a lot of orchestras and"},{"startTime":1291.974,"endTime":1295.354,"body":"presenters would say, well, does this"},{"startTime":1295.354,"endTime":1298.294,"body":"music belong on the concert stage?"},{"startTime":1298.314,"endTime":1302.638,"body":"And certain video games, maybe the answer"},{"startTime":1298.314,"endTime":1302.638,"body":"might be, well, maybe not."},{"startTime":1302.638,"endTime":1305.038,"body":"but certainly the music of Final Fantasy."},{"startTime":1305.038,"endTime":1310.048,"body":"And there are many others as well that"},{"startTime":1305.038,"endTime":1310.048,"body":"certainly belong on the concert stage."},{"startTime":1310.048,"endTime":1314.668,"body":"And we have done it in all the famous"},{"startTime":1310.048,"endTime":1314.668,"body":"stages in the world, Carnegie Hall, Royal"},{"startTime":1314.668,"endTime":1321.758,"body":"Albert Hall, Davies Hall in San Francisco,"},{"startTime":1314.668,"endTime":1321.758,"body":"you know, Chicago Symphony Center, you"},{"startTime":1321.758,"endTime":1322.978,"body":"name it."},{"startTime":1323.258,"endTime":1327.678,"body":"It's been in all the basic, not basic, the"},{"startTime":1323.258,"endTime":1327.678,"body":"most famous."},{"startTime":1328.206,"endTime":1330.786,"body":"concert halls and it certainly deserves to"},{"startTime":1328.206,"endTime":1330.786,"body":"be there."},{"startTime":1330.786,"endTime":1337.986,"body":"The way this music is crafted and a lot of"},{"startTime":1330.786,"endTime":1337.986,"body":"it starts with the template that Nobuo"},{"startTime":1337.986,"endTime":1339.446,"body":"Matsu created."},{"startTime":1339.486,"endTime":1340.006,"body":"Absolutely."},{"startTime":1340.006,"endTime":1345.786,"body":"And I think the music of Final Fantasy is,"},{"startTime":1340.006,"endTime":1345.786,"body":"especially the early days, in the early"},{"startTime":1345.786,"endTime":1351.426,"body":"days of the 8 -bit and the 16 -bit games,"},{"startTime":1345.786,"endTime":1351.426,"body":"those early days, the music carried so"},{"startTime":1351.426,"endTime":1353.686,"body":"much weight because it had to do so much."},{"startTime":1353.686,"endTime":1357.806,"body":"You didn't have the graphics, you didn't"},{"startTime":1353.686,"endTime":1357.806,"body":"have the animations."},{"startTime":1357.806,"endTime":1362.486,"body":"you know, when two characters are"},{"startTime":1357.806,"endTime":1362.486,"body":"conversing via dialogue boxes, that music"},{"startTime":1362.486,"endTime":1365.966,"body":"is telling the player how they are"},{"startTime":1362.486,"endTime":1365.966,"body":"feeling."},{"startTime":1365.966,"endTime":1369.606,"body":"And it's such a load -bearing aspect of"},{"startTime":1365.966,"endTime":1369.606,"body":"Final Fantasy."},{"startTime":1369.606,"endTime":1370.386,"body":"So it's..."},{"startTime":1370.386,"endTime":1372.326,"body":"was going to say, yeah, that's your..."},{"startTime":1372.326,"endTime":1374.426,"body":"You're hitting a very important point."},{"startTime":1374.486,"endTime":1381.606,"body":"And he had to do this with just 8 -bit"},{"startTime":1374.486,"endTime":1381.606,"body":"data capability, which means that all..."},{"startTime":1381.606,"endTime":1385.71,"body":"They weren't recording orchestras or"},{"startTime":1381.606,"endTime":1385.71,"body":"vocals or anything."},{"startTime":1385.71,"endTime":1390.74,"body":"The most remarkable, some of the most"},{"startTime":1385.71,"endTime":1390.74,"body":"remarkable stuff in Final Fantasy 6, which"},{"startTime":1390.74,"endTime":1395.87,"body":"is still before they were able to, they"},{"startTime":1390.74,"endTime":1395.87,"body":"were still using 8 -bit data."},{"startTime":1395.87,"endTime":1400.79,"body":"He had 40 something minutes of opera in"},{"startTime":1395.87,"endTime":1400.79,"body":"Final Fantasy 6."},{"startTime":1401.49,"endTime":1408.92,"body":"I mean, you know, you have Celis on the"},{"startTime":1401.49,"endTime":1408.92,"body":"parapet of a castle looking up at the"},{"startTime":1408.92,"endTime":1411.09,"body":"stars and the moon and singing."},{"startTime":1411.09,"endTime":1415.714,"body":"And you have a dialogue bubble that comes"},{"startTime":1411.09,"endTime":1415.714,"body":"up with a little musical note next to it."},{"startTime":1415.714,"endTime":1417.974,"body":"and it has the lyrics of what she's"},{"startTime":1415.714,"endTime":1417.974,"body":"singing."},{"startTime":1417.974,"endTime":1421.594,"body":"And what you hear is this kind of, you"},{"startTime":1417.974,"endTime":1421.594,"body":"know, computer chip."},{"startTime":1422.734,"endTime":1430.454,"body":"You know, you're hearing the aria that"},{"startTime":1422.734,"endTime":1430.454,"body":"she's singing with the bones of the"},{"startTime":1430.454,"endTime":1432.014,"body":"harmony underneath it."},{"startTime":1432.014,"endTime":1438.004,"body":"Now we play the opera as a full symphonic"},{"startTime":1432.014,"endTime":1438.004,"body":"piece with three soloists, you know,"},{"startTime":1438.004,"endTime":1441.334,"body":"Prince Rouse and Draco and Maria."},{"startTime":1441.334,"endTime":1445.038,"body":"And it's just an amazing thing how well."},{"startTime":1445.038,"endTime":1450.838,"body":"that early stuff translated itself into"},{"startTime":1445.038,"endTime":1450.838,"body":"full orchestra scores and what he was able"},{"startTime":1450.838,"endTime":1452.538,"body":"to do, you know, back then."},{"startTime":1452.538,"endTime":1456.798,"body":"I've said it a number of times with other"},{"startTime":1452.538,"endTime":1456.798,"body":"guests, it's literally a miracle."},{"startTime":1456.798,"endTime":1461.708,"body":"Like it feels like something that"},{"startTime":1456.798,"endTime":1461.708,"body":"shouldn't be possible but obviously was."},{"startTime":1465.358,"endTime":1469.938,"body":"Do you know what's better than an"},{"startTime":1465.358,"endTime":1469.938,"body":"orchestra seat at a distant world concert?"},{"startTime":1469.958,"endTime":1472.998,"body":"Being one of my fantastic patrons!"},{"startTime":1473.278,"endTime":1476.758,"body":"Okay, not that good, let's not get crazy"},{"startTime":1473.278,"endTime":1476.758,"body":"here."},{"startTime":1476.758,"endTime":1478.258,"body":"Still pretty neat."},{"startTime":1478.258,"endTime":1483.208,"body":"And I want to thank those wonderful people"},{"startTime":1478.258,"endTime":1483.208,"body":"who support the show financially with our"},{"startTime":1483.208,"endTime":1484.618,"body":"quick patron break."},{"startTime":1484.618,"endTime":1489.948,"body":"Starting with Terry Knair, Games with"},{"startTime":1484.618,"endTime":1489.948,"body":"Coffee, BT Gobbles, Julian of the Stage"},{"startTime":1489.948,"endTime":1492.558,"body":"Select Podcast, Seth Sergel,"},{"startTime":1492.558,"endTime":1498.098,"body":"Tim Knowles, the Let's Play Princess, Greg"},{"startTime":1492.558,"endTime":1498.098,"body":"Seward of the Player One Podcast and"},{"startTime":1498.098,"endTime":1503.808,"body":"Generation 16 series of videos, and the"},{"startTime":1498.098,"endTime":1503.808,"body":"one and only, fabulous debonair and always"},{"startTime":1503.808,"endTime":1505.898,"body":"charming, Pete Harney."},{"startTime":1505.898,"endTime":1509.788,"body":"If you would like to join these wonderful"},{"startTime":1505.898,"endTime":1509.788,"body":"people in your financial support of the"},{"startTime":1509.788,"endTime":1514.978,"body":"show, go to patreon .com forward slash a"},{"startTime":1509.788,"endTime":1514.978,"body":"gamer looks at 40 -4 -0."},{"startTime":1514.978,"endTime":1519.932,"body":"Check out the tiers, and if anything at"},{"startTime":1514.978,"endTime":1519.932,"body":"all strikes your fancy, sign up today."},{"startTime":1523.63,"endTime":1528.2,"body":"When you were selecting the pieces for"},{"startTime":1523.63,"endTime":1528.2,"body":"Distant Worlds, what was the process for"},{"startTime":1528.2,"endTime":1528.4,"body":"that?"},{"startTime":1528.4,"endTime":1531.39,"body":"Because again, there's so much music in"},{"startTime":1528.4,"endTime":1531.39,"body":"Final Fantasy."},{"startTime":1531.75,"endTime":1536.59,"body":"Do the different performances have"},{"startTime":1531.75,"endTime":1536.59,"body":"different set lists or is it usually the"},{"startTime":1536.59,"endTime":1537.94,"body":"consistent across the whole thing?"},{"startTime":1537.94,"endTime":1540.03,"body":"How do you guys do that part?"},{"startTime":1540.41,"endTime":1548.21,"body":"No, the most joyous part about this is"},{"startTime":1540.41,"endTime":1548.21,"body":"that we have over 165 scores in our"},{"startTime":1548.21,"endTime":1550.63,"body":"Distant Worlds Final Fantasy Library."},{"startTime":1551.11,"endTime":1551.406,"body":"And..."},{"startTime":1551.406,"endTime":1554.646,"body":"We are changing things all the time."},{"startTime":1555.386,"endTime":1561.096,"body":"It's one of the great joys that I have as"},{"startTime":1555.386,"endTime":1561.096,"body":"producer and music director of Distant"},{"startTime":1561.096,"endTime":1565.206,"body":"Worlds that I get to look at all of the"},{"startTime":1561.096,"endTime":1565.206,"body":"factors."},{"startTime":1565.206,"endTime":1569.966,"body":"I mean, every city that we go to, I"},{"startTime":1565.206,"endTime":1569.966,"body":"consider, have we played there before?"},{"startTime":1569.966,"endTime":1571.926,"body":"What did we play last time?"},{"startTime":1572.526,"endTime":1575.546,"body":"What are the new releases that have come"},{"startTime":1572.526,"endTime":1575.546,"body":"out?"},{"startTime":1575.546,"endTime":1579.042,"body":"What are the, how many?"},{"startTime":1579.062,"endTime":1582.042,"body":"rehearsals do we have with the orchestra"},{"startTime":1579.062,"endTime":1582.042,"body":"and chorus?"},{"startTime":1582.042,"endTime":1584.502,"body":"Do we have any soloists coming out?"},{"startTime":1584.562,"endTime":1591.042,"body":"All of these things and more go into each"},{"startTime":1584.562,"endTime":1591.042,"body":"of the decisions about what we're going to"},{"startTime":1591.042,"endTime":1592.762,"body":"perform at every concert."},{"startTime":1592.942,"endTime":1597.872,"body":"I have a lot of latitude from Square Enix"},{"startTime":1592.942,"endTime":1597.872,"body":"for a lot of the Distant Worlds concerts"},{"startTime":1597.872,"endTime":1602.542,"body":"for choosing the repertoire, but we also"},{"startTime":1597.872,"endTime":1602.542,"body":"confer with them."},{"startTime":1602.542,"endTime":1608.406,"body":"I mean, I'm literally, you know, working"},{"startTime":1602.542,"endTime":1608.406,"body":"with Square Enix specific divisions."},{"startTime":1608.406,"endTime":1611.486,"body":"Square Enix every week of the year."},{"startTime":1611.486,"endTime":1616.026,"body":"You know, we either have conference calls,"},{"startTime":1611.486,"endTime":1616.026,"body":"certainly emails every day, but I'm"},{"startTime":1616.026,"endTime":1621.286,"body":"working with them all the time and with"},{"startTime":1616.026,"endTime":1621.286,"body":"the individual composers of the series."},{"startTime":1621.286,"endTime":1629.126,"body":"For instance, we just announced and we're"},{"startTime":1621.286,"endTime":1629.126,"body":"going to do a series of concerts with"},{"startTime":1629.126,"endTime":1636.106,"body":"Masayoshi Soken, the composer of 14, of"},{"startTime":1629.126,"endTime":1636.106,"body":"course, and of the new Final Fantasy 16."},{"startTime":1637.166,"endTime":1637.614,"body":"We..."},{"startTime":1637.614,"endTime":1644.114,"body":"He's been very difficult to be available"},{"startTime":1637.614,"endTime":1644.114,"body":"to come out to our Distant Worlds concerts"},{"startTime":1644.114,"endTime":1645.214,"body":"as a guest."},{"startTime":1645.214,"endTime":1649.724,"body":"Finally, we have a couple of dates that"},{"startTime":1645.214,"endTime":1649.724,"body":"he's coming out to in Carnegie Hall, June"},{"startTime":1649.724,"endTime":1655.674,"body":"22nd, and in Seattle, Ben Arroyo Concert"},{"startTime":1649.724,"endTime":1655.674,"body":"Hall, July 6th and 7th."},{"startTime":1655.674,"endTime":1658.454,"body":"And that's going to be a very different"},{"startTime":1655.674,"endTime":1658.454,"body":"concert."},{"startTime":1658.734,"endTime":1663.784,"body":"We're actually going to premiere scores"},{"startTime":1658.734,"endTime":1663.784,"body":"from Final Fantasy 16 for the first time."},{"startTime":1663.784,"endTime":1664.734,"body":"Wow."},{"startTime":1665.134,"endTime":1666.158,"body":"And..."},{"startTime":1666.158,"endTime":1669.138,"body":"a lot of scores from 14 of his as well."},{"startTime":1669.138,"endTime":1675.968,"body":"So it's going to be a very unique Distant"},{"startTime":1669.138,"endTime":1675.968,"body":"Worlds concert with four scores from 16"},{"startTime":1675.968,"endTime":1678.158,"body":"and four scores from 14."},{"startTime":1679.058,"endTime":1684.508,"body":"And Masayoshi Shokun attending, Amanda"},{"startTime":1679.058,"endTime":1684.508,"body":"Aken, one of the singers that he has used"},{"startTime":1684.508,"endTime":1689.618,"body":"quite a bit in Final Fantasy XIV and XVI,"},{"startTime":1684.508,"endTime":1689.618,"body":"will be singing live with us as well."},{"startTime":1689.618,"endTime":1691.118,"body":"That sounds sensational."},{"startTime":1691.118,"endTime":1694.018,"body":"Yeah, it's going to be a very special"},{"startTime":1691.118,"endTime":1694.018,"body":"concert."},{"startTime":1694.018,"endTime":1694.35,"body":"But..."},{"startTime":1694.35,"endTime":1701.09,"body":"What we're trying to do as we go on in our"},{"startTime":1694.35,"endTime":1701.09,"body":"years with Distant Worlds is developing"},{"startTime":1701.09,"endTime":1709.37,"body":"some of the Distant Worlds concerts to be"},{"startTime":1701.09,"endTime":1709.37,"body":"a little bit more thematically shaped."},{"startTime":1709.45,"endTime":1716.97,"body":"So the programs, our original calling was"},{"startTime":1709.45,"endTime":1716.97,"body":"to present as much of the entire series,"},{"startTime":1716.97,"endTime":1722.07,"body":"Final Fantasy series, as possible given"},{"startTime":1716.97,"endTime":1722.07,"body":"the number of minutes that we're limited"},{"startTime":1722.07,"endTime":1723.726,"body":"to in the concerts."},{"startTime":1723.726,"endTime":1730.636,"body":"So we tried to represent something from"},{"startTime":1723.726,"endTime":1730.636,"body":"the entire series of the major Roman"},{"startTime":1730.636,"endTime":1731.446,"body":"numerals."},{"startTime":1731.446,"endTime":1736.286,"body":"We really don't have time to do the"},{"startTime":1731.446,"endTime":1736.286,"body":"offshoot games as much as we'd love to,"},{"startTime":1736.286,"endTime":1737.826,"body":"but there's just no time."},{"startTime":1737.826,"endTime":1738.086,"body":"Right."},{"startTime":1738.086,"endTime":1739.026,"body":"Yeah."},{"startTime":1740.026,"endTime":1744.946,"body":"But in alternative to that, trying to do"},{"startTime":1740.026,"endTime":1744.946,"body":"things that are a little bit more"},{"startTime":1744.946,"endTime":1746.086,"body":"thematic."},{"startTime":1746.086,"endTime":1751.086,"body":"So we may favor one or two of the games a"},{"startTime":1746.086,"endTime":1751.086,"body":"little more heavily."},{"startTime":1751.274,"endTime":1754.374,"body":"Square Enix is allowing us to do that a"},{"startTime":1751.274,"endTime":1754.374,"body":"little bit more often."},{"startTime":1754.374,"endTime":1758.994,"body":"And these concerts coming up in June and"},{"startTime":1754.374,"endTime":1758.994,"body":"July are a good example of that."},{"startTime":1759.454,"endTime":1764.774,"body":"There will be many others and we're"},{"startTime":1759.454,"endTime":1764.774,"body":"developing them as we speak."},{"startTime":1765.134,"endTime":1770.694,"body":"Again, I love the fact that you have this"},{"startTime":1765.134,"endTime":1770.694,"body":"tapestry of music to pick from."},{"startTime":1770.694,"endTime":1776.644,"body":"That has to be so exciting to be able to"},{"startTime":1770.694,"endTime":1776.644,"body":"just select, to have just this 165 pieces."},{"startTime":1776.644,"endTime":1778.936,"body":"That is absolutely incredible."},{"startTime":1778.936,"endTime":1787.006,"body":"Yeah, it's really gratifying to be able to"},{"startTime":1778.936,"endTime":1787.006,"body":"have this huge, breath -large library."},{"startTime":1787.006,"endTime":1790.466,"body":"And it's increasing literally every month."},{"startTime":1790.486,"endTime":1794.576,"body":"We're getting new arrangements all the"},{"startTime":1790.486,"endTime":1794.576,"body":"time with the release of 16, with the"},{"startTime":1794.576,"endTime":1796.686,"body":"release of new versions of 14."},{"startTime":1797.446,"endTime":1801.986,"body":"And then if we bring out a particular"},{"startTime":1797.446,"endTime":1801.986,"body":"composer, sometimes we'll ask for some new"},{"startTime":1801.986,"endTime":1803.766,"body":"scores as well."},{"startTime":1803.766,"endTime":1804.766,"body":"So it's great."},{"startTime":1804.766,"endTime":1807.666,"body":"It's really, really remarkable."},{"startTime":1807.666,"endTime":1808.942,"body":"And..."},{"startTime":1808.942,"endTime":1814.692,"body":"Sometimes it's driven by the anniversary"},{"startTime":1808.942,"endTime":1814.692,"body":"concerts, you know, where those are a"},{"startTime":1814.692,"endTime":1816.122,"body":"little bit more unique."},{"startTime":1816.462,"endTime":1826.282,"body":"We did a whole series of new scores really"},{"startTime":1816.462,"endTime":1826.282,"body":"arranged and led by Nobuo Uematsu himself."},{"startTime":1826.282,"endTime":1833.112,"body":"The entire first half of the 35th"},{"startTime":1826.282,"endTime":1833.112,"body":"anniversary concert series were new scores"},{"startTime":1833.112,"endTime":1835.562,"body":"from Final Fantasy I through VI."},{"startTime":1836.582,"endTime":1837.134,"body":"And..."},{"startTime":1837.134,"endTime":1842.194,"body":"a new medley, battle medley from one"},{"startTime":1837.134,"endTime":1842.194,"body":"through six that he, again, he oversaw all"},{"startTime":1842.194,"endTime":1843.674,"body":"those new arrangements."},{"startTime":1843.894,"endTime":1846.914,"body":"So those are all brand new."},{"startTime":1847.434,"endTime":1853.614,"body":"So you can imagine we just finished that"},{"startTime":1847.434,"endTime":1853.614,"body":"series and immediately launched into more"},{"startTime":1853.614,"endTime":1854.814,"body":"distant worlds."},{"startTime":1854.814,"endTime":1857.794,"body":"And we have other video game series going"},{"startTime":1854.814,"endTime":1857.794,"body":"on."},{"startTime":1857.794,"endTime":1862.264,"body":"I mean, Nier is one of the games that is"},{"startTime":1857.794,"endTime":1862.264,"body":"going on right now as we speak, as a"},{"startTime":1862.264,"endTime":1863.394,"body":"matter of fact."},{"startTime":1864.814,"endTime":1873.494,"body":"I conducted last week Vancouver Symphony,"},{"startTime":1864.814,"endTime":1873.494,"body":"we did near and Eric is doing just did"},{"startTime":1873.494,"endTime":1875.004,"body":"near two concerts in Berlin."},{"startTime":1875.004,"endTime":1881.274,"body":"He's about to do London this week and"},{"startTime":1875.004,"endTime":1881.274,"body":"Barcelona and then next week, Paris."},{"startTime":1881.894,"endTime":1887.534,"body":"And we have more near concerts coming up"},{"startTime":1881.894,"endTime":1887.534,"body":"in Atlanta or Orlando."},{"startTime":1887.534,"endTime":1891.914,"body":"So there's a huge following for that game"},{"startTime":1887.534,"endTime":1891.914,"body":"as well, which is really fun and"},{"startTime":1891.914,"endTime":1893.654,"body":"gratifying to work on."},{"startTime":1894.478,"endTime":1902.798,"body":"with Yoko Taro and Keiichi Okabe, the"},{"startTime":1894.478,"endTime":1902.798,"body":"composer and director of those games."},{"startTime":1903.618,"endTime":1905.338,"body":"And we have more."},{"startTime":1905.338,"endTime":1910.038,"body":"We did Final Fantasy VII Remake, of"},{"startTime":1905.338,"endTime":1910.038,"body":"course, the first chapter of the remake of"},{"startTime":1910.038,"endTime":1910.998,"body":"VII."},{"startTime":1911.478,"endTime":1917.538,"body":"And we're looking forward to Final Fantasy"},{"startTime":1911.478,"endTime":1917.538,"body":"VII Rebirth, which should be, it's coming"},{"startTime":1917.538,"endTime":1919.378,"body":"out February 29th."},{"startTime":1919.518,"endTime":1924.654,"body":"And you can count on concerts based on"},{"startTime":1919.518,"endTime":1924.654,"body":"that as well."},{"startTime":1924.654,"endTime":1925.574,"body":"So exciting."},{"startTime":1925.574,"endTime":1928.074,"body":"Again, like you said, every month it"},{"startTime":1925.574,"endTime":1928.074,"body":"sounds like there's something new and"},{"startTime":1928.074,"endTime":1929.534,"body":"that's that's how exciting."},{"startTime":1929.534,"endTime":1930.184,"body":"How was it?"},{"startTime":1930.184,"endTime":1936.174,"body":"How is it working with Umatsu and a legend"},{"startTime":1930.184,"endTime":1936.174,"body":"in the video game world and really"},{"startTime":1936.174,"endTime":1937.384,"body":"musically as well?"},{"startTime":1937.384,"endTime":1937.864,"body":"How was it?"},{"startTime":1937.864,"endTime":1940.454,"body":"How is it working with him as a"},{"startTime":1937.864,"endTime":1940.454,"body":"partnership?"},{"startTime":1940.454,"endTime":1941.894,"body":"Oh, it's been fabulous."},{"startTime":1941.894,"endTime":1942.534,"body":"Really great."},{"startTime":1942.534,"endTime":1948.874,"body":"He's one of the most humble people that"},{"startTime":1942.534,"endTime":1948.874,"body":"you'll ever meet as well."},{"startTime":1948.874,"endTime":1950.874,"body":"He has very strong ideas."},{"startTime":1950.874,"endTime":1951.63,"body":"Let's see."},{"startTime":1951.63,"endTime":1957.6,"body":"maybe ideas is not the right, he has very"},{"startTime":1951.63,"endTime":1957.6,"body":"strong style templates that he uses for"},{"startTime":1957.6,"endTime":1958.57,"body":"himself."},{"startTime":1958.57,"endTime":1962.97,"body":"And those are baked in for many, many"},{"startTime":1958.57,"endTime":1962.97,"body":"years."},{"startTime":1963.21,"endTime":1967.71,"body":"He and I share a lot of influences,"},{"startTime":1963.21,"endTime":1967.71,"body":"musical influences."},{"startTime":1967.71,"endTime":1971.33,"body":"It was really shocking the very first time"},{"startTime":1967.71,"endTime":1971.33,"body":"I met him."},{"startTime":1971.61,"endTime":1976.39,"body":"He knew way more about me than I did about"},{"startTime":1971.61,"endTime":1976.39,"body":"him."},{"startTime":1976.39,"endTime":1978.05,"body":"It was really shocking."},{"startTime":1978.07,"endTime":1981.55,"body":"I mean, he turned to me the first time I"},{"startTime":1978.07,"endTime":1981.55,"body":"met him and he said,"},{"startTime":1981.55,"endTime":1986.01,"body":"Oh yeah, I know, you worked with the Irish"},{"startTime":1981.55,"endTime":1986.01,"body":"tenors, you worked with Manheim"},{"startTime":1986.01,"endTime":1993.27,"body":"Stiemiller, you worked with Mattel movies,"},{"startTime":1986.01,"endTime":1993.27,"body":"he knew my entire background prior to my"},{"startTime":1993.27,"endTime":1995.93,"body":"even conducting one rehearsal."},{"startTime":1995.93,"endTime":2000.32,"body":"But what's key for that is that he shares"},{"startTime":1995.93,"endTime":2000.32,"body":"a lot of that."},{"startTime":2000.32,"endTime":2002.77,"body":"He has a fascination for Celtic music."},{"startTime":2002.77,"endTime":2008.85,"body":"His heroes in terms of classical music are"},{"startTime":2002.77,"endTime":2008.85,"body":"very much about melody and structure."},{"startTime":2008.85,"endTime":2011.374,"body":"Tchaikovsky, Brahms."},{"startTime":2011.374,"endTime":2018.734,"body":"Prokofiev, you know, very, very"},{"startTime":2011.374,"endTime":2018.734,"body":"traditional kinds of composition."},{"startTime":2019.674,"endTime":2021.954,"body":"And he writes this way."},{"startTime":2022.154,"endTime":2026.534,"body":"And so he and I were, I'll never forget"},{"startTime":2022.154,"endTime":2026.534,"body":"one of the first dear friends that I was"},{"startTime":2026.534,"endTime":2029.054,"body":"doing with him in San Francisco."},{"startTime":2029.374,"endTime":2037.064,"body":"We were coming back from a rehearsal and I"},{"startTime":2029.374,"endTime":2037.064,"body":"was sitting in the seat behind him and I"},{"startTime":2037.064,"endTime":2041.036,"body":"said to him, you know, we just had"},{"startTime":2037.064,"endTime":2041.036,"body":"rehearsed all kinds of..."},{"startTime":2041.036,"endTime":2046.226,"body":"Classics like one -winged angel and I said"},{"startTime":2041.036,"endTime":2046.226,"body":"every no Busan every time I hear one"},{"startTime":2046.226,"endTime":2052.666,"body":"-winged angel What I hear is Jimi Hendrix"},{"startTime":2046.226,"endTime":2052.666,"body":"purple haze You know the beginning bomb"},{"startTime":2052.666,"endTime":2057.416,"body":"bomb bomb bomb, you know, and and he"},{"startTime":2052.666,"endTime":2057.416,"body":"turned around he looked and he says that's"},{"startTime":2057.416,"endTime":2065.276,"body":"it You know that was one of his influences"},{"startTime":2057.416,"endTime":2065.276,"body":"All this classic rock, you know, he loves"},{"startTime":2065.276,"endTime":2067.086,"body":"Elton John he loves it."},{"startTime":2067.086,"endTime":2069.722,"body":"I he and I used to have these"},{"startTime":2069.934,"endTime":2077.384,"body":"these debates of trying to stump each"},{"startTime":2069.934,"endTime":2077.384,"body":"other about little known rock groups that"},{"startTime":2077.384,"endTime":2080.394,"body":"you would never think he would have heard"},{"startTime":2077.384,"endTime":2080.394,"body":"of."},{"startTime":2080.394,"endTime":2085.474,"body":"Crazy things like Moby Grape and"},{"startTime":2080.394,"endTime":2085.474,"body":"Quicksilver Messenger Service and all"},{"startTime":2085.474,"endTime":2089.364,"body":"kinds of things that I knew and he knew"},{"startTime":2085.474,"endTime":2089.364,"body":"about every single one of them."},{"startTime":2089.364,"endTime":2095.914,"body":"He could even name all of their important"},{"startTime":2089.364,"endTime":2095.914,"body":"songs that were so popular."},{"startTime":2096.394,"endTime":2099.304,"body":"So I mean, he's a big listener of music."},{"startTime":2099.478,"endTime":2101.818,"body":"which is key for anyone."},{"startTime":2101.818,"endTime":2108.578,"body":"My advice to anyone is make sure that you"},{"startTime":2101.818,"endTime":2108.578,"body":"know every genre of music that you can"},{"startTime":2108.578,"endTime":2110.658,"body":"swallow and listen to."},{"startTime":2110.838,"endTime":2115.458,"body":"Get well versed in the background of all"},{"startTime":2110.838,"endTime":2115.458,"body":"these things and the music theory and"},{"startTime":2115.458,"endTime":2117.398,"body":"composition involved in those."},{"startTime":2117.398,"endTime":2122.268,"body":"Because if you want to be a composer of"},{"startTime":2117.398,"endTime":2122.268,"body":"any of these things, of video games,"},{"startTime":2122.268,"endTime":2126.108,"body":"movies, you're going to be called on to"},{"startTime":2122.268,"endTime":2126.108,"body":"write things in all these different"},{"startTime":2126.108,"endTime":2127.168,"body":"styles."},{"startTime":2127.278,"endTime":2130.728,"body":"and you really have to get very familiar"},{"startTime":2127.278,"endTime":2130.728,"body":"with all of them, whether you love them or"},{"startTime":2130.728,"endTime":2138.578,"body":"hate them, you really have to be well"},{"startTime":2130.728,"endTime":2138.578,"body":"-versed in how to translate all of that."},{"startTime":2138.578,"endTime":2140.398,"body":"That makes perfect sense, absolutely."},{"startTime":2140.398,"endTime":2140.898,"body":"Yeah?"},{"startTime":2140.898,"endTime":2141.618,"body":"Yeah, absolutely."},{"startTime":2141.618,"endTime":2144.368,"body":"With our last couple of minutes, and"},{"startTime":2141.618,"endTime":2144.368,"body":"again, thank you so much for taking the"},{"startTime":2144.368,"endTime":2144.568,"body":"time."},{"startTime":2144.568,"endTime":2145.408,"body":"I do want to make sure..."},{"startTime":2145.408,"endTime":2145.708,"body":"Sure."},{"startTime":2145.708,"endTime":2148.158,"body":"I know you're incredibly busy, so again,"},{"startTime":2145.708,"endTime":2148.158,"body":"thanks again."},{"startTime":2148.158,"endTime":2149.688,"body":"I just want share with you a quick"},{"startTime":2148.158,"endTime":2149.688,"body":"anecdote."},{"startTime":2149.688,"endTime":2151.938,"body":"One of my guests, he goes by Mustin."},{"startTime":2151.938,"endTime":2155.95,"body":"He's a video game, he creates video game"},{"startTime":2151.938,"endTime":2155.95,"body":"remixes and such."},{"startTime":2155.95,"endTime":2161.99,"body":"He was first in line at the very first"},{"startTime":2155.95,"endTime":2161.99,"body":"Distant Worlds performance in the US."},{"startTime":2161.99,"endTime":2163.05,"body":"I believe it was in LA."},{"startTime":2163.05,"endTime":2164.25,"body":"Is that correct?"},{"startTime":2164.25,"endTime":2170.59,"body":"Well, there was one in LA in 2004, which"},{"startTime":2164.25,"endTime":2170.59,"body":"was also Dear Friends."},{"startTime":2170.59,"endTime":2175.9,"body":"And that one was, it was right around E3,"},{"startTime":2170.59,"endTime":2175.9,"body":"which was still going, obviously, at that"},{"startTime":2175.9,"endTime":2176.67,"body":"point."},{"startTime":2176.69,"endTime":2180.94,"body":"And one of the problems with that one is"},{"startTime":2176.69,"endTime":2180.94,"body":"it was just one performance at Walt"},{"startTime":2180.94,"endTime":2181.79,"body":"Disney."},{"startTime":2181.79,"endTime":2186.032,"body":"So more than half of the audience were"},{"startTime":2186.19,"endTime":2188.89,"body":"you know, industry people from E3."},{"startTime":2188.91,"endTime":2192.69,"body":"So it wasn't, you know, in terms of it"},{"startTime":2188.91,"endTime":2192.69,"body":"being public, it wasn't that public"},{"startTime":2192.69,"endTime":2195.63,"body":"really, but yes, that did happen."},{"startTime":2195.63,"endTime":2200.82,"body":"Yeah, so he was first in line and he was"},{"startTime":2195.63,"endTime":2200.82,"body":"standing and he told me the story and he's"},{"startTime":2200.82,"endTime":2205.05,"body":"like, and he remembered you were"},{"startTime":2200.82,"endTime":2205.05,"body":"conducting it and he still has the ticket"},{"startTime":2205.05,"endTime":2207.71,"body":"and he still has this ticket stub."},{"startTime":2207.71,"endTime":2213.21,"body":"So when you hear something like that and"},{"startTime":2207.71,"endTime":2213.21,"body":"this series has heavily influenced him as"},{"startTime":2213.21,"endTime":2213.998,"body":"an artist."},{"startTime":2213.998,"endTime":2217.648,"body":"So when you hear stories like that of"},{"startTime":2213.998,"endTime":2217.648,"body":"people who have been affected by distant"},{"startTime":2217.648,"endTime":2221.768,"body":"worlds and by the work you've been doing"},{"startTime":2217.648,"endTime":2221.768,"body":"with Umatsu and just bringing this amazing"},{"startTime":2221.768,"endTime":2225.748,"body":"music to a wider audience, how does that"},{"startTime":2221.768,"endTime":2225.748,"body":"make you feel when you kind of think about"},{"startTime":2225.748,"endTime":2226.618,"body":"that?"},{"startTime":2226.658,"endTime":2229.158,"body":"Oh yeah, it's tremendously gratifying."},{"startTime":2229.158,"endTime":2235.198,"body":"I mean, it's, I think it's, first of all,"},{"startTime":2229.158,"endTime":2235.198,"body":"I think you need to attend as an audience"},{"startTime":2235.198,"endTime":2239.938,"body":"member, some of these concerts to see the"},{"startTime":2235.198,"endTime":2239.938,"body":"sense of community that's there."},{"startTime":2239.938,"endTime":2243.182,"body":"The most amazing thing is that I can"},{"startTime":2239.938,"endTime":2243.182,"body":"conduct this music."},{"startTime":2243.182,"endTime":2251.602,"body":"In Austin, I can conduct it in Singapore,"},{"startTime":2243.182,"endTime":2251.602,"body":"in Sydney, Australia, in London, in Tokyo,"},{"startTime":2251.722,"endTime":2253.712,"body":"or in New York, Carnegie Hall."},{"startTime":2253.712,"endTime":2259.182,"body":"And it's the same community reaction to"},{"startTime":2253.712,"endTime":2259.182,"body":"each one of these compositions."},{"startTime":2259.322,"endTime":2265.342,"body":"The most beloved scores are pretty"},{"startTime":2259.322,"endTime":2265.342,"body":"unanimous around the world."},{"startTime":2265.342,"endTime":2272.142,"body":"And to see this kind of embracing"},{"startTime":2265.342,"endTime":2272.142,"body":"community is..."},{"startTime":2272.142,"endTime":2278.432,"body":"really rewarding and all the comments that"},{"startTime":2272.142,"endTime":2278.432,"body":"we get from VIP meet and greet lines and"},{"startTime":2278.432,"endTime":2279.502,"body":"things like that."},{"startTime":2279.502,"endTime":2285.112,"body":"And we're constantly getting input from"},{"startTime":2279.502,"endTime":2285.112,"body":"people that, you know, the music has been"},{"startTime":2285.112,"endTime":2286.902,"body":"such an important part of their life."},{"startTime":2286.902,"endTime":2290.402,"body":"It's gotten them through some very"},{"startTime":2286.902,"endTime":2290.402,"body":"difficult times."},{"startTime":2290.982,"endTime":2296.182,"body":"And hearing the music live, of course,"},{"startTime":2290.982,"endTime":2296.182,"body":"brings this to another dimension."},{"startTime":2296.182,"endTime":2300.142,"body":"You know, just very quickly, I would point"},{"startTime":2296.182,"endTime":2300.142,"body":"out that when they're listening and when"},{"startTime":2300.142,"endTime":2301.262,"body":"they're playing the game,"},{"startTime":2301.262,"endTime":2306.892,"body":"They're hearing the same recording of the"},{"startTime":2301.262,"endTime":2306.892,"body":"music over and over again using the same"},{"startTime":2306.892,"endTime":2311.242,"body":"compression, the same tempo, the same"},{"startTime":2306.892,"endTime":2311.242,"body":"performance looped, right?"},{"startTime":2311.242,"endTime":2314.202,"body":"So they're hearing that over and over"},{"startTime":2311.242,"endTime":2314.202,"body":"again."},{"startTime":2314.242,"endTime":2317.942,"body":"Now put it on the concert hall stage in a"},{"startTime":2314.242,"endTime":2317.942,"body":"concert setting."},{"startTime":2317.982,"endTime":2323.202,"body":"Now the music can actually breathe the way"},{"startTime":2317.982,"endTime":2323.202,"body":"the composer is really intended."},{"startTime":2323.542,"endTime":2327.772,"body":"So you really can get without any"},{"startTime":2323.542,"endTime":2327.772,"body":"compression, you get a pianissimo very"},{"startTime":2327.772,"endTime":2330.466,"body":"quiet and oh, you know,"},{"startTime":2330.466,"endTime":2337.256,"body":"overwhelming fortissimo from the"},{"startTime":2330.466,"endTime":2337.256,"body":"orchestra, loud crashes and cadences, and"},{"startTime":2337.256,"endTime":2343.746,"body":"you're able to let the music speed up and"},{"startTime":2337.256,"endTime":2343.746,"body":"slow down in a more organic, natural"},{"startTime":2343.746,"endTime":2347.206,"body":"fashion, the way the composers designed"},{"startTime":2343.746,"endTime":2347.206,"body":"it."},{"startTime":2347.206,"endTime":2353.686,"body":"And it brings the hearing of these and the"},{"startTime":2347.206,"endTime":2353.686,"body":"enjoyment of these themes to yet another"},{"startTime":2353.686,"endTime":2354.306,"body":"level."},{"startTime":2354.306,"endTime":2359.182,"body":"So the live music experience is very"},{"startTime":2354.306,"endTime":2359.182,"body":"different in many ways from the..."},{"startTime":2359.182,"endTime":2359.842,"body":"from the game."},{"startTime":2359.842,"endTime":2363.842,"body":"They have to compress these things so that"},{"startTime":2359.842,"endTime":2363.842,"body":"you're not reaching for the volume every"},{"startTime":2363.842,"endTime":2365.182,"body":"time while you're playing the game."},{"startTime":2365.182,"endTime":2365.862,"body":"Right."},{"startTime":2365.862,"endTime":2366.422,"body":"Exactly."},{"startTime":2366.422,"endTime":2370.002,"body":"So in a real pragmatic way."},{"startTime":2370.042,"endTime":2374.342,"body":"So it makes the live performances all that"},{"startTime":2370.042,"endTime":2374.342,"body":"much more magical."},{"startTime":2374.482,"endTime":2376.302,"body":"So yeah, it's very rewarding."},{"startTime":2376.302,"endTime":2383.232,"body":"And look, as a conductor, composer, as a"},{"startTime":2376.302,"endTime":2383.232,"body":"producer, if somebody comes to you and"},{"startTime":2383.232,"endTime":2386.574,"body":"says, you're going to be able to conduct."},{"startTime":2386.574,"endTime":2391.284,"body":"the music in all the major capitals in the"},{"startTime":2386.574,"endTime":2391.284,"body":"world, Royal Albert Hall, Carnegie Hall,"},{"startTime":2391.284,"endTime":2395.934,"body":"with the greatest orchestras, greatest"},{"startTime":2391.284,"endTime":2395.934,"body":"choruses, and the greatest audience in the"},{"startTime":2395.934,"endTime":2403.234,"body":"world, as a musician, there is nothing"},{"startTime":2395.934,"endTime":2403.234,"body":"higher that I can aspire to than that."},{"startTime":2403.234,"endTime":2406.074,"body":"So I'm riding high right now."},{"startTime":2406.074,"endTime":2406.974,"body":"I love it."},{"startTime":2406.974,"endTime":2413.966,"body":"It's a wonderful, wonderful peak to a long"},{"startTime":2406.974,"endTime":2413.966,"body":"career and -"},{"startTime":2413.966,"endTime":2418.608,"body":"We're planning more and more over the next"},{"startTime":2413.966,"endTime":2418.608,"body":"five years, so it's really very rewarding."},{"startTime":2426.926,"endTime":2428.766,"body":"Once again I'd like to thank Mr."},{"startTime":2428.766,"endTime":2434.316,"body":"Roth and his entire team at Distant Worlds"},{"startTime":2428.766,"endTime":2434.316,"body":"for helping set up the interview and have"},{"startTime":2434.316,"endTime":2440.526,"body":"a chat with me about this amazing series"},{"startTime":2434.316,"endTime":2440.526,"body":"of orchestral music that's frankly really"},{"startTime":2440.526,"endTime":2445.346,"body":"important to me and important to"},{"startTime":2440.526,"endTime":2445.346,"body":"generations of Final Fantasy fans."},{"startTime":2445.346,"endTime":2449.346,"body":"I cannot wait for this to roll back"},{"startTime":2445.346,"endTime":2449.346,"body":"through Austin or who knows maybe I'll"},{"startTime":2449.346,"endTime":2452.836,"body":"take a trip to New York and see something"},{"startTime":2449.346,"endTime":2452.836,"body":"at Carnegie Hall."},{"startTime":2452.836,"endTime":2455.374,"body":"That would be an absolute treat."},{"startTime":2455.374,"endTime":2458.634,"body":"But this is going to happen sooner than"},{"startTime":2455.374,"endTime":2458.634,"body":"later."},{"startTime":2458.634,"endTime":2462.754,"body":"And thank you for checking out this"},{"startTime":2458.634,"endTime":2462.754,"body":"edition of A Gamer Looks at 40."},{"startTime":2462.754,"endTime":2467.804,"body":"We are at the very beginning of our"},{"startTime":2462.754,"endTime":2467.804,"body":"exploration of the Final Fantasy series."},{"startTime":2467.804,"endTime":2470.194,"body":"This is going to go on for at least a few"},{"startTime":2467.804,"endTime":2470.194,"body":"months."},{"startTime":2470.194,"endTime":2473.444,"body":"So if you dig Final Fantasy, this is where"},{"startTime":2470.194,"endTime":2473.444,"body":"you need to be."},{"startTime":2473.444,"endTime":2478.024,"body":"And if you don't like Final Fantasy, there"},{"startTime":2473.444,"endTime":2478.024,"body":"are 90 something other episodes dedicated"},{"startTime":2478.024,"endTime":2483.182,"body":"to series and franchises and games of"},{"startTime":2478.024,"endTime":2483.182,"body":"every type and stripe."},{"startTime":2483.182,"endTime":2490.532,"body":"Go to a GamerLooks at 4040 .com for a full"},{"startTime":2483.182,"endTime":2490.532,"body":"list of episodes as well as full series"},{"startTime":2490.532,"endTime":2494.782,"body":"lists including our Tales from the Bargain"},{"startTime":2490.532,"endTime":2494.782,"body":"Bin series, the Earthbound series from"},{"startTime":2494.782,"endTime":2500.282,"body":"last year, and the two years ago Legend of"},{"startTime":2494.782,"endTime":2500.282,"body":"Zelda series, a one -stop shop for a"},{"startTime":2500.282,"endTime":2504.732,"body":"playlist of all of those old episodes so"},{"startTime":2500.282,"endTime":2504.732,"body":"you can just binge them like you would do"},{"startTime":2504.732,"endTime":2508.222,"body":"so on Netflix or your streaming platform"},{"startTime":2504.732,"endTime":2508.222,"body":"of choice."},{"startTime":2508.222,"endTime":2512.462,"body":"Thanks again for checking out the show and"},{"startTime":2508.222,"endTime":2512.462,"body":"until next time please be kind to"},{"startTime":2512.462,"endTime":2513.23,"body":"yourselves."},{"startTime":2513.23,"endTime":2514.662,"body":"and each other."}]}