Winter is Coming
Fansided

Ramin Djawadi on what to expect from the Game of Thrones Live Concert Experience

By Richard E Preston

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Game of Thrones fans expect a lot from every aspect of their show, including its music, and composer Ramin Djawadi is ready to wow them. “Music is coming” is the tagline for the Game of Thrones Live Concert Experience, which is launching its 28-city North American arena tour on February 20th in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The show features pieces of Djawadi’s music from all six seasons of the show. “I took my soundtracks and asked, ‘Which pieces are must-plays?'” Djawadi told Billboard. Fan favorites like the main title theme and “The Rains of Castamere” are included, but Djawadi wanted to separate some compositions from the sequences they play under, such as “Mhysa,” the theme that plays when Daenerys crowd-surfs after freeing the slaves of Yunkai in the Season 3 finale.

As for the instruments used, Djawadi has some interesting ideas. “We’re going to have a lot of soloists. Since I’m not bound by picture, I’ll be able to give the audience a little more duduk.” (The Dothraki scenes are usually accompanied by the duduk, an Armenian double-reed flute made of apricot wood.)

The show will also include a lot of visual spectacle. As the show opens, a rotating set presents stylized representations of the seven cities: the main stage is King’s Landing, with a 30-foot walkway leading to Winterfell. Smaller stages represent Meereen, Pyke, Braavos and Dorne, and serve various soloists. Huge, floating, digital screens provide the backdrop behind King’s Landing and Winterfell, and at one point generate the illusion of a blizzard falling on the orchestra.

Game of Thrones is a show heavy on the atmospherics, and the tour seems determined to embody that tradition. The producers have installed three kinds of fog (including something called ‘Tsunami dry ice’) and six compositions are accompanied by pyrotechnics displays representing burning arrows, fire-spewing dragons and apocalyptic green wildfire.

Image: HBO

Here’s the touring schedule:

  • 2/20: Minneapolis, MN – Xcel Energy Center
  • 2/22: Chicago, IL – United Center
  • 2/23: Columbus, OH – Nationwide Arena
  • 2/25: Uncasville, CT – Mohegan Sun
  • 2/26: Philadelphia, PA – Wells Fargo Center
  • 3/01: Washington, DC – Verizon Center
  • 3/03: Montreal, QC – Bell Centre
  • 3/04: Toronto, ON – Air Canada Centre
  • 3/06: Boston, MA – TD Bank Garden
  • 3/07: New York, NY – Madison Square Garden
  • 3/09: Charlotte, NC – Time Warner Cable Arena
  • 3/11: Ft. Lauderdale, FL – BB&T Center
  • 3/12: Tampa, FL – Amalie Arena
  • 3/14: Atlanta, GA – Philips Arena
  • 3/16: San Antonio, TX – AT&T Center
  • 3/17: Houston, TX – Toyota Center
  • 3/19: Denver, CO – Pepsi Center
  • 3/23: Los Angeles, CA – The Forum
  • 3/25: Las Vegas, NV – MGM Grand Garden Arena
  • 3/26: Phoenix, AZ – TalkingStick Resort Arena
  • 3/29: San Jose, CA – SAP Center
  • 3/31: Seattle, WA – Key Arena
  • 4/1: Vancouver, BC – Rogers Arena
  • 4/2: Portland, OR – Moda Center

Sounds like a blast! Head here for ticket information.

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