Home > Home - Featured

10/01/2026

UNDERTALE Brings Its Soundtrack and Its Fans to the Schnitz

By LISA HELFER //

When UNDERTALE: The Determination Symphony comes to Portland’s Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall on Oct. 5, a 25-piece orchestra will perform Toby Fox’s soundtrack while gameplay footage and dialogue unfold on a large screen above the musicians. Jeffrey Smith will conduct the production, and he knew almost nothing about UNDERTALE when he first took on the project.

When UNDERTALE: The Determination Symphony comes to Portland’s Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall on Oct. 5, a 25-piece orchestra will perform Toby Fox’s soundtrack while gameplay footage and dialogue unfold on a large screen above the musicians. Jeffrey Smith will conduct the production, and he knew almost nothing about UNDERTALE when he first took on the project.

He had never played the game and, by his own admission, isn’t much of a gamer.

“I’m not a gamer at all,” Smith says.

That put him in an unusual position with a production built around music that many audience members know almost note for note. Released in 2015, Fox’s indie role-playing game developed a devoted following in part because its music is closely tied to its characters, locations, and story.

Smith brings a more traditional musical background to the production. He is artistic director and conductor of the Philadelphia Boys Choir & Chorale and co-artistic director of Philadelphia Youth Choral Ensembles, and his career has included work with the Philadelphia Orchestra and Philly POPS. More recently, he has also entered the growing world of live video-game music, serving as principal conductor and music supervisor for Stardew Valley: Symphony of Seasons.

That tour introduced Smith to a different kind of orchestral audience. Fans came dressed as favorite characters, reacted to dialogue and images on screen, and cheered when they recognized musical cues. He also enjoyed working with the production team, which helped lead to his involvement with UNDERTALE.

Once he began studying Fox’s score, Smith understood more of what those audiences were responding to.

“It’s really beautiful and driving,” he says.

Fox, who created UNDERTALE and composed its soundtrack, personally curated the concert program. British conductor and orchestrator Adam Hoskins created the orchestral arrangements, which retain the character of the original music while expanding it for a live ensemble. Lambert Jackson Productions and Materia Music developed the production, with SOHO Live producing the current international tour.

One thing that struck Smith was how Fox uses recurring musical ideas throughout the game. Themes become associated with particular characters and moments, then return in different forms and contexts later in the story. For players, hearing even part of a melody can recall a specific encounter or choice.

Smith says Fox was particularly deliberate about matching musical style, tonality, and mode to different characters and actions.

“People definitely associate with it,” Smith says. “The music stands on its own, and the music is enjoyable to listen to.”

That familiarity creates an unusual challenge for the orchestra. Many audience members have listened to the soundtrack hundreds of times and arrive with a clear idea of how it should sound.

Hoskins’ arrangements stay close to Fox’s originals, including some of their intentionally electronic qualities. Smith says the goal isn’t to turn the score into conventional classical music simply because an orchestra is playing it.

“There’s a charm to making it sound digitized because that’s what it is about,” he says.

At the same time, live musicians can bring something different to the material. Phrasing and dynamics can shift in the moment, individual instrumental lines become more distinct, and Smith can shape how a piece builds from the podium.

One of his favorite examples is “Undertale,” the game’s title track. The piece develops over a repeating chord progression as melodies and additional layers gradually enter.

Smith says he doesn’t normally gravitate toward that kind of repetition, but Fox’s writing won him over.

“It builds and builds,” he says. “There are several melodies that sit on top of this. It’s really amazing writing.”

With an orchestra, that layering becomes more apparent as different sections enter and the sound expands across the stage.

The visual component is just as important to production. Gameplay footage and dialogue are projected above the orchestra, carrying the audience through the game’s characters and locations as the score is performed live. For people who have never played UNDERTALE, Smith says the screen provides enough of the story to follow what is happening.

“You’re getting the story by being there,” he says.

Long-time fans experience it differently. They often recognize characters, dialogue, and music immediately, and Smith says their reactions become part of the show's atmosphere.

They laugh. They cheer. Some come in costume. And many, he says, have never attended a traditional orchestra concert before.

“Video-game audiences may be more vocal than a conventional classical crowd, but they also arrive deeply invested in the music and listen closely,” says Smith. “These concerts are an opportunity to introduce orchestral performances to people who might not otherwise seek it out. Some may attend another video-game concert afterward, and others may eventually try a traditional symphony program.”

For the fans who know the game inside and out, Smith says the live production still has a few things they haven’t seen.

“There are surprises for sure,” he says.

And he isn’t giving them away.

UNDERTALE: The Determination Symphony
Monday, Oct. 5, 8 p.m.
Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall
1037 SW Broadway, Portland

Comments