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You give the game your all...you stay up latenights...you've hunted around on the web...and still
you just can't get past that point in the game. Not all is lost!
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> Volume 3 ALL THE WORLD’S A STAGE FOR TOMMY TALLARICO AND VIDEO GAMES LIVE
Tallarico made his foray into music at the end of his tween years as the keyboardist/ songwriter for short-lived ’80s hair band Diamondz in the Rough. The aspiring composer fled to Los Angeles in 1991, enduring harsh days that found him penniless and sleeping under the pier in Huntington Beach. Tallarico’s homeless days ended when he landed a job selling keyboards at music instrument retail giant Guitar Center. Almost immediately, Tallarico hooked up with Seth Mendelsohn from then-fledgling company Virgin Interactive, and secured a position as the head of their music and video games division. Armed with a tireless work ethic and a sense of forward thinking that went beyond the simplistic bleeps and bloops that accompanied most game titles of the time, Tallarico quickly earned a name for himself in the burgeoning field of video game music. “I probably did the first magazine interview with Tommy back when he’d just started with Virgin Interactive and I loved the way he promoted himself,” recalls TIPS & TRICKS Editor in Chief Bill Kunkel, who was then at the helm of Electronic Games. “He really had chops. It took guts for this little Italian kid to walk around CES and E3 in a gold lamé suit with a string tie handing out metal business cards that were heavy enough to serve as paperweights. But other than the Fat Man and Russ Lieblich, Tommy was one of very few developers/composers who had the smarts to market himself. And look at the difference it made.” In 1994, after three years at Virgin, Tallarico quit to form the production studio that bears his name. Touted as “the multimedia industry’s largest audio production house,” Tommy Tallarico Studios landed its music everywhere— video games, films, television, toys— even on Rose Parade floats. Tallarico’s good fortune accumulated, netting the composer over 25 industry awards for his work on more than 300 game titles. Not bad for a selftaught musician who didn’t read music. With a staggering list of achievements under his belt, Tallarico ventured into what would become his biggest challenge. In 2002, Tallarico teamed up with fellow video game music composer Jack Wall to pursue their vision of a bold interactive concert event. The idea was to successfully bring the best of video game music to life via world class orchestras and choirs, and to put it on the road in an ongoing concert format complete with lasers, lights, video backdrops and live action. It would take three years to complete their goal. On July 6th 2005, the duo launched Video Games Live, a trailblazing event that premiered at L.A.’s oldest live music venue, the Hollywood Bowl. The events preceding the concert were noteworthy enough, and included a meet-and-greet featuring such video game luminaries as Hideo “Metal Gear Solid” Kojima, a costume contest, a performance by video game pianist Martin Leung and Videotopia, an exhibit chronicling the history of video games.
The kick-off concert drew over 10,000 people and was greeted enthusiastically by fans and critics alike. Video Games Live was born. The logistics proved overwhelming, however, and plans for a greater North American tour were postponed. Video Games Live refunded ticket money, and limited its concerts for the remainder of 2005 to a pair of October dates in Seattle and Vancouver; both shows sold out. Video Games Live kicked into high gear in 2006, starting off with eight North American dates, two shows in Brazil and one in London. Video Game Live 2007This year is proving to be Video Games Live’s best, with seven North American shows and a New Zealand tour already under their belt. Just as this issue was going to press, 14 new North American shows were announced for 2007 and 2008: March 9, 2007—Masonic Center, San Francisco, CA (Game Developers Conference) In addition to these and other North American dates in the works, are approximately 20 European, Asian and South American dates are planned. Additional tour dates and ticket info can be found online at videogameslive.com.
DO THEY PLAY BENJIMADDEN FOOTBALL?
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When your cousin is the frontman for one
of the biggest rock bands in the world, it makes sense that
your destiny lies in music. But unlike his world-famous kin,
Steven Tyler of Aerosmith, Tommy Tallarico opted to keep the family name and
pursue his musical dreams in an arena other than rock n’ roll.
Xbox Live began bringing the worlds of music and
video games together on August 22, 2004 when fans
were given the opportunity to challenge Maroon 5 to
Top Spin and Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six 3: Black Arrow
as part of the gaming system’s ongoing Game with
Fame campaign. The campaign has pulled in a host of
celebrities over the years, particularly those in the
music biz. In 2005 alone, Game with Fame gave fans a
chance to race Simple Plan in Need For Speed Most
Wanted, to outfrag Avenged Sevenfold, Shinedown
and Green Day in Halo 2 and to hit the greens of Tiger
Woods 2005 with alt-metallers Staind.
