Now Playing: The Gamer Symphony Orchestra

Videogames Live has championed the majesty of game scores (the musical kind, not the points) around the world, and now it looks like the fever is spreading to college campuses. The University of Maryland Gamer Symphony Orchestra is the first ensemble of college fanboys and girls to take their passion to the recital stage.  Founded in 2005 at the University of Maryland, the GSO has grown from a handful to more than 50 musicians, and their alma mater is finally taking notice.

According to the University of Maryland's daily paper, Diamondback, the gamer orchestra has put on several shows at the college campus but only recently got permission to give a performance in one of its theaters. Robert Garner, the group's president, is ecstatic:

The GSO is two-and-a-half years old, and being able to play in a venue like CSPAC, it gives us visibility and it gives us the quality," Garner, an information studies graduate student, said. "There is no way to compare playing in CSPAC with some of the other venues that we have played in the past. So we're really looking forward to playing in essentially a professional environment.

This is music that you all grew up listening to, but it's being played in an almost entirely different way," he said. "When people get there, they're going to hear so much more than just the melody they might have heard when they were playing their [Super Nintendo] ten years ago.

When not playing their instruments in service of the greater game cultural good, the GSO hold an annual DeathMatch For Charity tournament. This year's contest hosts Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Mario Kart Double Dash and of course, Guitar Hero 3 and Rock Band. Hmmm. Those last two sound a bit unfair.

[via Diamondback]