Hi all.  I received my copy of The Legend of Zelda 30th Anniversary concert yesterday and listened to it today.  I didn't realize that when I preordered that it was a recording of one of the live concerts, not a deal breaker, but does anybody know if there is a way in iTunes to have the song end before the audience starts clapping?

Tracklist with my thoughts (Please note I have only played Zelda 1, 2, A Link to the Past, and Twilight Princess a very long time ago)

Disc One

1) Hyrule Castle - Good although I'm not sure which game this comes from. 

2) Princess Zelda's theme - Beautiful.

3) Wind Waker Melody - I think it is the same arrangement from the 25th anniversary album.  I liked it a lot.

4) Ocarina of Time Melody - I was very disappointed.  I have heard that it has a great soundtrack and was really looking forward to this one as I have never heard it before.  I don't speak japanese so forgive me if I am wrong in interpreting it, but it had a very Peter and the Wolf vibe (bits of music broken up by dialogue) but never coalesced into a solid  piece of music like the other melodies.

5) Boss Battle Melody - Okay.  Nice ending.

6) A Link Between Worlds & Triforce Heroes Melody - Wonderful use of the chorus, very heroic sounding.  Nice violin work in the middle that serves as a transition to amazing horn (trumpet ??) work that gives way to a bouncy tune with castanets and choir.

7) Skyward Sword Staff Roll - Rounds off Disc One.  Includes the now classic over world theme with great horn work mixed with other themes (Ballad of the Goddess) and choir.  The only thing I can compare it to is how the John Williams takes themes from the Star Wars movie and weaves it into an awesome credits roll. 

Disc Two

1) 30th Anniversary Symphony Theme - One hell of a way to open the second disc.  Strong horn work transitions into the Darkworld Theme from A link to the Past (Perhaps my favourite theme after the classic over world theme)  The horn work at 4:30 onward reminds me very strongly of the horn work from the Good, the Bad and the Ugly.  This is a very good thing.

2) Minor Themes Melody - The original dungeon music plus others I can identify.  Brilliant horn work.  I wish it was longer than 4:20 minutes.

3) Gerudo Valley - I think it is the same arrangement from the 25th anniversary album.

4) Hyrule Theme (Ocarina of Time) - I really liked it.  Makes me wish the Ocarina of Time Melody was better.

5) Great Fairy Theme - I think it is the same arrangement from the 25th anniversary album.

6) Twilight Princess Melody - Hi all.  I received my copy of The Legend of Zelda 30th Anniversary concert yesterday and listened to it today.  I didn't realize that when I preordered that it was a recording of one of the live concerts, not a deal breaker, but does anybody know if there is a way in iTunes to have the song end before the audience starts clapping?

Tracklist with my thoughts (Please note I have only played Zelda 1, 2, A Link to the Past, and Twilight Princess a very long time ago)

Disc One

1) Hyrule Castle - Good although I'm not sure which game this comes from. 

2) Princess Zelda's theme - Beautiful.

3) Wind Waker Melody - I think it is the same arrangement from the 25th anniversary album.  I liked it a lot.

4) Ocarina of Time Melody - I was very disappointed.  I have heard that it has a great soundtrack and was really looking forward to this one as I have never heard it before.  I don't speak japanese so forgive me if I am wrong in interpreting it, but it had a very Peter and the Wolf vibe (bits of music broken up by dialogue) but never coalesced into a solid  piece of music like the other melodies.

5) Boss Battle Melody - Okay.  Nice ending.

6) A Link Between Worlds & Triforce Heroes Melody - Wonderful use of the chorus, very heroic sounding.  Nice violin work in the middle that serves as a transition to amazing horn (trumpet ??) work that gives way to a bouncy tune with castanets and choir.

7) Skyward Sword Staff Roll - Rounds off Disc One.  Includes the now classic over world theme with great horn work mixed with other themes (Ballad of the Goddess) and choir.  The only thing I can compare it to is how the John Williams takes themes from the Star Wars movie and weaves it into an awesome credits roll. 

Disc Two

1) 30th Anniversary Symphony Theme - One hell of a way to open the second disc.  Strong horn work transitions into the Darkworld Theme from A link to the Past (Perhaps my favourite theme after the classic over world theme)  The horn work at 4:30 onward reminds me very strongly of the horn work from the Good, the Bad and the Ugly.  This is a very good thing.

2) Minor Themes Melody - The original dungeon music plus others I can identify.  Brilliant horn work.  I wish it was longer than 4:20 minutes.

3) Gerudo Valley - I think it is the same arrangement from the 25th anniversary album.

4) Hyrule Theme (Ocarina of Time) - I really liked it.  Makes me wish the Ocarina of Time Melody was better.

5) Great Fairy Theme - I think it is the same arrangement from the 25th anniversary album.

6) Twilight Princess Melody - I think it is the same arrangement from the 25th anniversary album, but, I feel that it is the worst track on the album.  Not that I don't like it, just that it feels like the chorus is being overshadowed by parts of the orchestra and that everything is too loud in places which makes it sound garbled.

7) The Legend of Zelda Main Theme - We all know it and there is good use of horns and choir.

Overall I loved the album.  Especially the new arrangements.  I would have like something from Majora's Mask as the little I have heard sounded very interesting.  I am also disappointed that there was no melody for either A Link to the Past, or Zelda II: The Adventures of Link.  I'm also very disappointed that there was nothing from Breath of the Wild.  I think it would have been a nice surprise to have a suite from the forthcoming game.

As a side note I got the track titles from the VGMDB forums.

Cheers,

David

Go to the song/file info within iTunes, and then click on the "Options" tab. In there will be "start" and "stop" checkboxes where you can have the song end early (or begin late) to avoid some of the clapping. I'm using a Mac, but believe the PC info tabs are the same.

Mine's coming in end of day today. I went for the Special Edition with the DVD and trinkets, hoping I won't be disappointed there.

I listened to the samples yesterday and it's straight-forward of what I was expecting. One track had Japanese dialogue. Not sure why they couldn't cut this altogether but it worried me how it made it in the sample.  When I had initially seen the tracklist, I was a tad underwhelmed at how many classic trilogy were underrepresented but I get it, they need to be all encompassing as well as promote their current day properties.

Thanks Zane.  I have iTunes on a mac and your instructions worked perfectly

Disappointing.

First off, the Tokyo Philharmonic played the material masterfully. Masterfully.

Now, this concert was, at best, an unreal event to attend. This release is an example of how that's just not well translated as a release or outside listening experience.

I went into this release knowing that, yes, Nintendo is a software company hoping to use this event to sell its current market games since classic properties kind of sell themselves and/or serve as nostalgia tools for many of us who played these games as kids. But when you sell a concert that celebrates the life of Zelda, it's baffling to me that you would exclude and reduce so much early material.

Be prepared to only be tickled with nostalgia.

Here's the major flaws about these discs: its snubbing of the very classic series it's built upon. Namely, LttP. Even the original and II, most of which are mostly dumbed down to 15 to, if lucky, 30 second musical cameos within various medleys.

Promising long nostalgic reunion in 30 years of missed opportunity in giving fans a proper Zelda orchestral album in its opening with LttP's Hyrule Castle ...but then lies short to damn near absent for the rest. Here's a rundown of what you'll be missing:

No LttP Time of the Falling Rain.
No Zelda II opening.
No LttP Triforce Appears.
Hardly any Majora's Mask.
And just no Link's Awakening (unless I missed something?).

We get a Dark World theme crammed in there somewhere and even a Light World Dungeon (one of the few times I got chills with this listening). The apex of Zelda music is Zelda III. Instead, Z30th vastly underrepresented the classics to themes of latter Zelda games that haven't earned the right to be called out for a 30th Anniversary concert in turn for a promotional tool for more modern properties.

One of the biggest missed opportunities of absences, if not aforementioned, was the absence of a dungeon omnibus, some of which you'll find scattered and compressed to more 15-20 second cameos, some in the oddly titled "Essay" track 2 on DIsc 2 -- which is a total mess, a kitchen sink smattering of themes the track's arranger had no idea what to do with.

We do get a lot of Ocarina of Time rep'd here but, again, no dungeons. No Forest Temple, and sadly, no Fire Temple even though there's a chorus ready to chant.

Still, Hyrule Field was exactly as expected and Gerudo Valley seemed a tad lethargic and soulless in capturing the latin flavor.

The most awkward track of the OOT bunch is the Ocarina Themes Medley, which is a glaring example of how this played well in concert -- but not so much on disc. The orchestra would cleverly play the theme, typically on a solo instrument then, with a limited orchestra echoing the theme in a call-response theme, very similar to the game. I suppose they thought this might be a swell idea for the disc: to be interrupted before each piece for the MC to announce what the listener is about to hear (in Japanese, respectfully, this was a Japan event, but this isn't even the issue) makes for an overall constipated listening experience.

Then we get the entire release's most failed execution: the 30th Anniversary track to open the second disc, a completely daunting track that dredges on for 9 minutes, teasing listeners with variations on the Zelda theme (I imagine were used in other, later Zelda games). Arranger Tomomichi Takeoka was not skilled enough to know these properties well enough to really understand how to encompass 30 years of Zelda into one, albeit, very challenging feat.

Even the Limited Edition fell short, the (albeit nicely packaged) box release gives those a few pins, a (dubious) plastic stand for the package and a DVD -- mostly just reseller fodder and fluff. And it's not what you're expecting at all: just a reprise of the first disc with game clips set to the background of the music. Multi-angled shots of the orchestra performing? video interviews? Nope.

I'll be selling my copy soon enough.

I've been giving this album several listens lately and find Xismzero's analysis excessively harsh. I think The Legend of Zelda 30th Anniversary Concert is a perfectly enjoyable orchestral album and will likely be one of the strongest arranged releases of the year.

Xismzero's problem with the album I think comes from overly lofty expectations leading to a glass-half-empty perspective. I can relate as I've felt similarly before about arranged albums for my own favorite series or titles. After a few disappointments I've learned that expectations for dream arrangements are rarely met - best to judge an arranged album by what it offers over what it doesn't.

From the 14 track 90 minute album I've got 9 tracks for 65 minutes' worth of music marked as favorites, which is a pretty good ratio for any album. The orchestral arrangements stay true to the source material without being simplistic, the medleys move between themes smoothly, the performance is solid with no noticeable misses, and though the recording isn't of the highest quality it's good enough to enjoy what's here. As an only casual Zelda fan I won't comment on what's missing, but hearing well done orchestral versions of the themes that are here - from older classics like "Dark World" to recent favorites like "Ballad of the Goddess" - is enough to make me a happy listener.

Just watch this instead: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrpWBgB6oz8

Yeah that suite by the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra is nicely done. What they've done with the original Legend of Zelda dungeon theme in particular is impressive. That said I find myself enjoying several of the 30th Anniversary Concert pieces as much if not more. I recommend checking out both