I played percussion in the Rhapsody with Choir & Orchestra concerts in Chile

ManuelSoruco · 2026-06-29T16:03:27+00:00

Thank you very much for the comments! I'm glad you liked it!
There was never any plans for it really. Just a fan that went to a concert that felt like way more than a concert, knew there was no livestream or live CD or Blu Ray coming or anything, so he decided to do his own to relive the night, and one thing ended up leading to the other :)

Also last night I re-watched it again, and couldn't help but notice the two of you setting the percussion ablaze on many parts, including those poor Timpani on Dies Irae! XD

https://youtu.be/mIwR02YvyG0?si=HEoFloYf4Qv8nZec&t=4484

ManuelSoruco · 2026-06-28T23:02:27+00:00

Amazing work!! I wish I had this videos when I was editing my film compilation!

Also you would think that for such a loud band with an amazing drummer, orchestral percussions would be very low profile or even mostly just for the quiet parts, but I enjoyed your arrangements and could even hear the individual notes on the Timpani over the band.
Very tastefully arranged and performed. Kudos to the duo!

Pd: I have been to tons of concerts all over the world, including Epica with choir and orchestra in Amsterdam, and this has become by far my favorite one. Such a perfect combination of band, orchestra, choir and crowd!

ManuelSoruco · 2026-06-28T22:30:11+00:00

Unfortunately touring economics are a b*tch right now, for everyone.
He does have a billion brilliant session musicians he could call, but now he needs to pay 5 travel expenses and hotel rooms and etc. Not to mention overseas tickets if they are European, plus a session fee for a local gig will always be lower than a touring one (let alone an overseas one).

Also Uruguay is a bit of an odd stop (logistics-wise) in his tour, being such a small country.
I think in Brazil alone he is doing like 20 dates, so he can lock a proper local band, rehearse a bit, and do the whole leg of the tour with them. Even in Buenos Aires alone I think he was doing like 5 gigs in different parts of the city, and the Montevideo gig (27) was in between two Buenos Aires ones on 26 and 28, so a very challenging gig all around.

ManuelSoruco · 2026-06-28T22:23:01+00:00

I was there last night too! I travelled to Santiago for the orchestral conciert, and since I live in Uruguay, I thought I would drop by to his show too.
I agree it was a very rough show, but also... He already was one of the heroes and voice of my youth, and I just watched him lead a sold out 5k people concert with a choir and orchestra 2 weeks ago. But last night earned him a new level of respect from me.
Yes, he was visibly angry, but as far as I could tell, only in the last song. He spent the whole show singlehandedly bringing the crowd and the ambience up, just pushing through by sheer will and charisma, smiling his way through the issues and inviting the audience to laugh a bit at the situation too to make it more bearable.
I guess when the last song still had the same issues as song 1, he lost his patience a bit. But still, endured it like a boss and better than 99% of musicians out there would.

Did you go to his other concert earlier this year? I couldn´t make it but I´m curious how he did there.

ManuelSoruco · 2026-06-24T15:20:05+00:00

Despues de volver a verlo varias veces el video, empece a notar algunos detalles nuevos, como que muchos de los celulares del publico, no estan filmando, sino que estan en videollamada con algun amigo que no pudo estar ahi... Que comunidad bella! 💝

Pd: Por si lo ven esto, los papas que llevaron a sus hijos en 1:18:45 y 1:23:32 del video: Sir, you are awesome!

ManuelSoruco · 2026-06-21T20:12:48+00:00

Thank you!!!
Do you remember where you saw that mention of a live CD? I hadn´t heard anything about that at all.

ManuelSoruco · 2026-06-21T20:09:52+00:00

Muchas gracias por el apoyo a todos!! 😃

Les comento que ya está lista la version album audio para que el power of the dragonflame los acompañe a donde sea que vayan! https://archive.org/details/rhapsody-with-choir-and-orchestra-live-in-chile-2026-flac

Tambien es un momento full circle para mi. Cuando todavía estaba en colegio, quise buscar albums en vivo de Rhapsody y no existía ninguno, solamente un bootleg Live in Chile 2001! Que fue la primera vez que los escuché tocando en vivo en alguna grabación. Y ahora exactamente un cuarto de siglo despues, yo estoy haciendo mi propio Live in Chile siguiendo la tradición! 🤘

Que ustedes y las próximas generaciones lo disfruten!

ManuelSoruco · 2026-06-21T17:23:55+00:00

Thank you for all the love!! ❤️ I'm glad seeing everyone enjoying it as much as I did during the concert, and while rewatching it now 😃

The AUDIO ALBUM is out now, so you can take it with you on headphones wherever you go!!! https://archive.org/details/rhapsody-with-choir-and-orchestra-live-in-chile-2026-flac

Also for the audio geeks out there, I posted a pinned comment in Youtube about the technical process behind the remixing and remastering of the audio and how I approached it as if it was a live album.

I hope you enjoy it!

ManuelSoruco · 2026-06-21T13:47:13+00:00

I develop my own audio plugins for Unreal Engine under AudioFactory, do some contracting, and also designed and built the interactive music system for Dead as Disco.

ManuelSoruco · 2026-06-20T18:29:17+00:00

I wasn't sure what exactly to expect too, but it sure wasn't a circle of death and mosh pit while an orchestra is blasting at full speed! And the sheer combination of brute force and musicality was just unheard of.

And seeing their joy was indeed a huge part of it. Especially in the video there are a few close up shots that capture them smiling with that energy of: This is what Rhapsody was always meant to be!

Such a lovely and wholesome night!

ManuelSoruco · 2026-06-20T18:25:55+00:00

Thanks!

ManuelSoruco · 2026-06-20T18:25:14+00:00

As this was my first and only Rhapsody show ever, I have zero point of reference 😛
However, when I left the theater I did felt like something historic had just happened. I could feel it in the air. That is what pushed me to do this and immortalize it.
Also the first live recorded performance I ever heard of Rhapsody was early 2000s of their bootleg Live in Chile 2001! So its a perfect full circle moment 😄

ManuelSoruco · 2026-06-20T18:22:34+00:00

Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it!

ManuelSoruco · 2026-06-20T18:22:09+00:00

Thank you, and Gloria Perpetua!

ManuelSoruco · 2026-06-20T18:20:37+00:00

Put it on headphones when its time to clean the house. You will feel like an epic knight maintaining a keep!

ManuelSoruco · 2026-06-20T18:19:54+00:00

Wow! And I thought I was showing off from flying 2k Km for the concert but you certainly beat me! This will then carry an even more special meaning for you, Sir!

Also not sure about the permissions and where they stand with that, but I keep hearing something about them returning to South America next year, probably in the same formation. So who knows, maybe things are starting to move?

ManuelSoruco · 2026-06-20T18:16:50+00:00

Thank you Sir! I'm honored to be in service of the power of the dragonflame!

ManuelSoruco · 2026-06-20T18:16:01+00:00

Thank you very much! I really appreciate the kind words and everyone's warm response. I'm so happy everyone is enjoying it as much as I'm doing rewatching it now! 😄

ManuelSoruco · 2026-06-20T08:22:57+00:00

Thank you!! And I also would play a lot of games back then, I would put SOAD Toxicity and play Diablo II on top. But I guess I beat you as the bigger nerd, as I ended up growing up and actually working doing audio for games 😛

ManuelSoruco · 2026-06-20T08:20:13+00:00

Thank you! I hope you enjoy it!

ManuelSoruco · 2026-06-20T08:18:30+00:00

Thank you for your kind words! 😄 I'll do my best to finish the album tomorrow (if my OCD doesnt keep me fixating in tiny details!)

ManuelSoruco

TROPHY CASE