Gamers and classical-music connoisseurs should be rubbing elbows at the event in Mershon Auditorium at Ohio State University, according to the producer.
"You don't have to know anything about video games to come to the show and be really blown away," Tommy Tallarico said.
"It's definitely a twofold thing, getting all the nongamers in the world to appreciate games and getting all the gamers in the world to appreciate live symphonic music. We're ushering in a whole new generation of people to see a symphony."
The 2 1/2 -hour spectacle will feature scenes from video games projected on a giant screen as the symphony and the Otterbein Vocal Ensemble, from the Westerville college, perform music from the games.
Jack Wall, a video-game composer whose credits include Myst, will conduct.
"It's really like having the power and emotion of a symphony orchestra combined with the energy and excitement of a rock concert mixed with the interactivity and cutting-edge visual technology that video games provide," Tallarico said.
"Video Games Live" was to make its Ohio debut in 2005 as part of a nationwide tour, but it was canceled because of low ticket sales.
This time, Tallarico said, organizers are taking more time to promote the shows and, instead of hiring freelance musicians, joining forces with orchestras such as the Columbus group.
"A lot of people are finding out about the show from their parents who go to the symphony all the time," he said. "After the show, all of the e-mails and letters that we get are normally from the parents going: 'Wow!
I never knew video-game music was so emotional and powerful, and that the characters and story lines were so deep. And I get it now; I understand why my kid is so much into this stuff.' "
The soundtracks of recent games have advanced greatly from the "bleeps and bloops" of the past, said Tallarico, who has composed for more than 300 games during the past 17 years.
Listeners will hear "hints of" Samuel Barber's Adagio for Strings, Carl Orff's Carmina Burana, Howard Shore's The Lord of the Rings and themes by Beethoven and Wagner.
Yet the musicians will also play the Super Mario Bros. theme.
"It's so great because they're reaching a younger generation of people who would generally never come to see them," Tallarico said. "And to have those people there and so excited and cheering and chanting during the whole show, it's really a special moment for the symphony."
• The Columbus Symphony Orchestra will present "Video Games Live" at 7:30 tonight in Mershon Auditorium, 1871 N.
High St., at Ohio State University. Pre-concert activities will start at 6:30.
Tickets cost $35 to $65. Call 614-228-8600.
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