Hans Zimmer – Live on Tour (2019)

HANS ZIMMER – LIVE ON TOUR
Music composed by Hans Zimmer
Performed by Hans Zimmer & band
Special appearance by Lebo M.
September 28, 2019
KSPO dome, Olympic Park
Seoul, South Korea

PART 1: CONCERT REPORT

(this report was originally written on Sept. 29, 2019 – just after the concert)

To fully understand what it has meant to me to finally see Hans Zimmer live in concert, it’s important to go back to 1996 where my lifelong obsession with soundtracks began thanks to Hans Zimmer.

One day after hockey practice, I caught a matinee screening of THE ROCK at the Jam Factory, South Yarra (Melbourne, Australia) with my high school friend Harinder. As soon as the opening credits started, I was spellbound by the music – it had a strong sense of heroism yet was tragic at the same time. I’d always liked film scores before, but this truly was the first time a piece of film score had really grabbed me by the throat and connected with my emotions.

This very same cue was repeated during the Navy Seal ambush scene and end credits – again, I was just speechless when the music was playing. It spoke volumes about what was and wasn’t happening on the screen. It truly made me understand the emotions of the characters in a way that no words or acting could – this is what a film score should do.

Soon after the movie ended, I immediately went out looking for the soundtrack. In 1996 Melbourne, finding a film score in a record store was close to impossible. It was easy to find popular soundtracks that had songs (e.g. Top Gun, Flashdance, Blues Brothers), but a soundtrack with score only (i.e. no songs) released on a label that is not Sony, Warner or Universal? Forget about it!

Months later I was walking down Bourke street towards Parliament Station when I stumbled upon Gaslight Music store (R.I.P.). Flipping through the soundtrack section, I was surprised to find an assortment of scores that I had never seen before. As I approached the “R” section, something caught my eye: a cover with Sean Connery, Nicolas Cage and Ed Harris. Could it be?! Yes! It was the score to THE ROCK! I was ecstatic and so happy with myself for finding it until I looked at the sticker price: $33.00. In 1996 Melbourne, $33.00 was far above the standard price for a CD. It was also far above what a 15-year-old with no job could afford!

It took the next few weeks to save up some pocket money (thanks mum!), and when I did, I headed straight back to Gaslight Music to buy that CD. Popping it into the family’s Pioneer Hi-Fi system when I got home was, as you can expect, a magical experience that I will never forget. To hear the music away from the visuals, dialogue and sound effects for the first time was really something – I could just focus on the music and be deeply enveloped by the emotions and story it was portraying.

So, THE ROCK was the first film score I ever bought with my own money, and Hans Zimmer’s music was the first I ever loved.

In the following years Hans Zimmer continued to produce masterpiece after masterpiece, all of which I immediately bought. I also started going through his back catalogue until I had everything that he had ever released on CD – bootlegs included (sorry Hans!).

So, that leads me to September 28, 2019 – 23 years after I first discovered Hans Zimmer.

I really would have flown around the world to see Hans Zimmer live in concert, but I didn’t have to – all I needed was a 2-hour flight from Japan to Korea.

The concert was, as you can expect, amazing!

Hearing GLADIATOR live was incredible. Even though Lisa Gerard was not performing the vocals, the singer who did, Czarina Russell, perfectly emulated her sound and raw emotion. I’ll bet you $33.00 I wasn’t the only one with goosebumps!

When Lebo M. came in with his iconic opening African call from THE LION KING, the audience went CRAZY!

The concert ended with INCEPTION – another amazing performance that was slightly different, but better than the original. Adding the wordless female voice to “Time”’was a master stroke – so good!

Unfortunately, THE ROCK was not played but that really doesn’t matter – seeing Hans Zimmer perform the music that has meant so much to me over the years is something I will never forget.

This is how my obsession with film scores began 23 years ago and why seeing Hans Zimmer live in concert will always be a very special moment in my life.

PART 2: CONCERT MERCH

My memories are a bit sketchy about what merch was on offer, but I clearly remember no program being available. Instead, we were given a small slip of paper with a website address to purchase the program that didn’t actually work! I was bummed I couldn’t get a program, but I did get these:

I also picked up the Korean pressing of the Sony Classical release of “The World of Hans Zimmer,” but for some reason both discs skipped and were unburnable, so I ended up trashing them… I did rebuy the album years later when Sony Classical Japan released it with the bonus Alan Walker “Time” remix.

PART 3: OVER TO YOU

Did you also go to this concert? How did you like it?

And what did you think of my report? Feel free to comment below or reach out to me directly in the “Contact Me” section.