Ultimate Chicken Horse - Symphonic Dances from Ultimate Chicken Horse, Performed by NJGSO

Premiered at NJGSO's Fall 2023 Concert
Composed by Vibe Avenue (François-Xavier Dupas and Mathieu Lavoie)
Arranged by Peter Tom-Wolverton
Video Editor: Jon Rosario of Elementality Studios
https://www.elementalitystudios.com
Audio Engineer: Bill Rouse
https://billrouseaudio.com

Featuring Gordon Rowan on Tin Whistle

That strangely human-sounding horse whinny can mean only one thing: you’ve just fired up Ultimate Chicken Horse, the 2016 party platformer where the party builds the platforms! That’s right, you and your friends build the stage out of whatever wacky items you can get. Then, after each building round, race your cute critter avatars through whatever monstrosity you’ve created to the goal. But if it’s too easy and everyone makes it, no one gets any points…which means you must do just enough to trip up your opponents but not yourself. You’ll brave dastardly traps such as barbed wire, crossbows, flaming tennis balls, and more in the quest to claim the title of ULTIMATE [Chicken / Horse / Raccoon / Axolotl / whatever].

The “Main Titles” start us off with the purest statement of the game’s theme, led by brass and saxophones atop some seriously funky syncopation from the drumset. From there, we slow it down for a trip out to “The Farm”, with ad-libs from a solo harmonica and the strings joining in to establish the folksy mood. Next, we head to “The Pier”, featuring our strings, flutes, and percussion in an Irish reel that creates the perfect mood for some seafaring adventures. Finally, the brasses return with a vengeance to inject some Cold War-era dread and anticipation in “Nuclear Plant.” Things eventually break down into disjointed stabs and a soulful saxophone, all over a relentless beat, before building again to the drum solo that takes us into the finale.

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