For her 18th birthday, I took DoJ (Daughter of Jay) to Boston to watch symphonic interpretations of Genshin Impact songs, played by the Boston Symphony Orchestra. I played the game for about 20 minutes once. It’s something I would like if I had the time and inclination to get into it, because there seems to be an involved backstory (everyone calls it “lore” these days) to the whole thing. There’s also an extensive and well-written soundtrack which was partially symphonic in the first place.
The inside of Symphony Hall. There were some interesting-looking statues on either balcony, replicas of classical Greek and Roman statues:
Some recordings of the performance. The section that starts at 1:50 (that’s DoJ squeals you hear) to around 3:40 is Jade Moon Upon a Sea of Clouds, which I wish I recorded completely; one of the ushers told us to stop filming before it got to the cinematic scene actually being shown. The song plays during a in-game cinematic scene of a lantern festival: *SPOILER ALERT* Lantern Rite Footage from Genshin Impact: Mingxiao Convergence.
Another highlight that I didn’t capture was the Raiden Shogun character demo song (I don’t think it has another, more proper name). It made heavy use of the koto, which, aside from the shamisen, is probably the most recognizable of traditional Japanese stringed instruments.
Boston Symphony Hall is known for its acoustics. I don’t have an ear for classical music at all, but the stringed instruments sounded much more ethereal, less harsh and piercing, than you might hear on a recording…very smooth and full-bodied. I’m talking like it’s a coffee, but that’s how I perceived it.
On the sidewalk of Mass Ave., St. Stephen Ave., Westland Ave., and probably some other streets. This is catty corner to the Hall:
The sidewalk bordered the grounds of this grandiose building, the First Church of Christ, Scientist. I thought it was an academic building at first; Boston Architectural College is a few blocks away, but this is obviously something separate:
2 Comments
Yes, good acoustics can bless just about any sound. Back when I was at Oklahoma Baptist University, the preacher boys traveled to a lot of churches, and just one or two had good acoustics, almost no need for a sound system. It completely changed the way certain voices sounded.
Interesting stuff. I don’t know anything about architecture, but since everything amplified now, acoustic design probably isn’t thought of as much in modern buildings. But it probably still affects even amplified sound.
One thing I noticed recently is that big stadium acoustics are often terrible, or at least barely passable. I think of not so much open-air sports stadiums, but arena/concert venues. I remember seeing a bunch of concerts at the Worcester Centrum (or whatever it’s called now) and most of the sound was muddy unless you had earplugs in. Greats Woods (called the Xfinity Center now I think) and the Tsongas Area in Massachusetts had better sound I think because of the lower ceiling?
I think in recent times it’s gotten better because of the tech, but I haven’t been to a stadium concert in forever, just smaller venues.