VIDEO-GAME MUSIC TOUR PLANNED.

Byline: - Serena Maria Daniels

After the success of the Hollywood Bowl concert of video-game music on July 6, a nationwide tour is being planned for November.

A Los Angeles date has not yet been set.

``This music is not just for teens anymore,'' said Taffy Miller, a spokeswoman for Mystical Stone Entertainment, the company behind the Video Games Live Tour. ``We've seen a lot of families and even couples come the event. This show is for everyone.''

Over the past few years, video-game music has grown in stature, being compared to film soundtracks by critics and becoming eligible to compete for Grammy awards. The Bowl show, featuring the Los Angeles Philharmonic, was the first of what is expected to be at least 19 shows across the country.

The success of the concert is hardly a surprise to video-game fans.

``To me, video games and music go hand in hand,'' said Claude Woods of Sunland, a self-proclaimed gamer and professional musician. ``Video games are action, and so is music. It's just like the movies. You can't have a good movie without good music.''

In 1999, Video Games Live executive producer Tommy Tallarico helped get the genre into the Grammy Awards, where programmers and composers can compete against scores from movies, television and other media outlets for best soundtrack.

While the genre is not yet a stand-alone Grammy category, the planned tour indicates tremendous popularity of the music since the traditional bleeps of Pac-Man were abandoned for intricate scores written by classical composers.

In addition to the fusion of video games and classical music, hip-hop also has become a presence on many games, with bands like the Beastie Boys recording tunes for them.

``These games have the best music that's out right now,'' said 14-year-old Eddie Santiago of Reseda. ``Now, games have better graphics, they're more interesting, and they have real music instead of the simple beats they used to have.''