(Click
to download full text file in Microsoft Word DOC
format)
•
Recording Academy Press Release Index
THE RECORDING ACADEMY®'S
PRODUCERS & ENGINEERS WING RETURNS AS A KEY SPONSOR AT VIDEO GAMES
LIVE
For the Second Year in a Row, the P&E Wing's Sponsorship of this
High Energy Event Underscores the Importance of Music Recording and
Production to the
$11 Billion Annual Games Industry
SANTA MONICA, Calif. (April 12, 2006) —
For the second consecutive year, the Producers and Engineers Wing (P&E
Wing) of The Recording Academy® was a key sponsor of Video Games
Live, an immersive concert event featuring music from the world's most
popular video games performed by live orchestra and choir combined with
synchronized lighting and video. Video Games Live took place at the
San Jose Civic Center on March 24, 2006, as the cap to the successful
Game Developers Conference held there March 22 – 24. The Game
Developers Conference is the world's largest gathering of game creators,
where more than 12,000 attendees enjoyed more than 300 lectures, panels,
tutorials and roundtable discussions on a comprehensive selection of
game development topics by leading industry experts.
Increasingly, games utilize music in the form of scoring
and songs. In recognition of this, the Producers & Engineers Wing
helped sponsor both the 4th Annual G.A.N.G. (Game Audio Network Guild)
Awards, which honors top achievers in the field of game audio, and Video
Games Live. "The game industry has become an incredible new outlet
for music of all kinds, with tremendous opportunities for composers,
engineers, producers and musicians," observes P&E Wing Executive
Director Maureen Droney. "It’s a really exciting time in
this field, and the P&E Wing is thrilled to help support and acknowledge
the innovation and creativity of the game music community."
The Video Games Live performance included memorable melodies
and songs from hit games old and new including "Myst," "Dragon's
Lair," "Punch Out," "Tetris," "The Legend
Of Zelda," and "Sonic The Hedgehog." Placing the thrill
and emotional power of game music and audio before a live audience,
VGL showcases the extent to which games and music now relate, and how
interactive the experience of gaming and music has become. An especially
powerful moment from the show highlighted the game "Medal Of Honor"
by showing actual World War II footage as music from the game was performed
live.
Executive Producer/CEO of Video Games Live and P&E
Wing member Tommy Tallarico, one of the game industry's leading music
producers, states, "Video game music has really come of age over
the past five years and is just as important and legitimate as any film
or television score. The Recording Academy and the P&E Wing represent
a standard of prestige and quality, not only from within the music industry,
but to the entire world as well. To have them be associated and committed
to what we are doing is an incredible honor that we are very fortunate
and grateful to have."
Tallarico, also President/Founder of the G.A.N.G. and
host, writer and co-producer of "The Electric Playground"
and "Judgment Day" television shows, was the first musician
to release a videogame soundtrack worldwide (TT's Greatest Hits Vol.
1 on Capitol Records) and also helped create and produce the longest
running videogame TV show in history ("The Electric Playground").
Photo File: Tallarico_GANG.JPG
Photo Caption: Tommy Tallarico is pictured at the podium during the
4th Annual G.A.N.G. (Game Audio Network Guild) Awards, sponsored in
part by the P&E Wing of The Recording Academy®.
Photo File: GuitarHero_GANG.JPG
Photo Caption: At the 4th Annual G.A.N.G. (Game Audio Network Guild)
Awards, sponsored in part by the P&E Wing of The Recording Academy®,
Lyle Workman lays down some Clapton licks on "Crossroads"
reprising live his work on the soundtrack for the top-selling game Guitar
Heroes.
Photo File: BeyondGood_VGL.JPG
Photo Caption: Video Games Live, sponsored in part by the P&E Wing
of The Recording Academy®, capped the closing night of the 2006
Game Developers Conference at the San Jose Convention Center as a 39-piece
orchestra performed songs from such hit video games as "Beyond
Good and Evil" in a show that included lasers, special effects,
projected interactive games and a 16-member chorus.
Photos courtesy of The Recording Academy®
Photographed by: Michele Lee Willson/WireImage ©2006
***
Established in 1957, the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences,
Inc., also known as The Recording Academy, is an organization of musicians,
producers, engineers and recording professionals that is dedicated to
improving the cultural condition and quality of life for music and its
makers. Internationally known for the GRAMMY® Awards, The Recording
Academy is responsible for groundbreaking professional development,
cultural enrichment, advocacy, education and human services programs
— including the creation of the national public education campaign
What's The Download® (www.WhatsTheDownload.com).
For more information about The Academy, please visit www.grammy.com.
Currently, 6,000 professionals comprise the Producers
& Engineers Wing, which was established for producers, engineers,
remixers, manufacturers, technologists, and other related creative and
technical professionals in the recording community. This organized voice
for the creative and technical recording community addresses issues
that affect the craft of recorded music, while ensuring its role in
the development of new technologies, recording and mastering recommendations,
and archiving and preservation initiatives. The Wing builds on the existing
regional professional development activities of The Recording Academy,
which include workshops, forums and panel discussions, and other recording
technology-related events, all occurring locally and nationally throughout
the year. For more information, please visit www.grammy.com.
Other company and product names may be trademarks of
the respective companies with which they are associated.
# # #
Media Contacts:
Robert Clyne/Neilson/Clyne, Inc./615.662.1616/rclyne@neilsonclyne.com
Lisa Roy/626.395.0163/lisaroyaudio@mac.com
Barb Dehgan/The Recording Academy/310.392.3777