Ever wondered what it takes to score original music for blockbuster video games? Learn from six of the industry’s most accomplished composers with diverse musical backgrounds as they share their experiences and discuss the craft of scoring music for some of the biggest franchises in interactive entertainment.
Featuring multiple award-winning composers Jason Graves (Tomb Raider, Dead Space), Garry Schyman (BioShock Infinite, BioShock), Jack Wall (Call of Duty: Black Ops II, Mass Effect), Kevin Riepl (Gears of War, Aliens), Inon Zur (Fallout, Prince of Persia), and Greg Edmonson (Uncharted).
Moderated by Emily Reese, Host and Producer of MPR’s Top Score podcast. Plus giveaways!
The panel will be followed by a Meet and Greet / Signing Session outside the Naga Theatre.
For more information:
http://east.paxsite.com/schedule/panel/behind-the-music-of-blockbuster-video-games
JASON GRAVES www.jasongraves.com
Jason Graves is a British Academy (BAFTA) Award-winning composer who has brought his passion for music to franchises such as Tomb Raider and Dead Space. Crystal Dynamics entrusted Graves with their innovative reboot of the iconic Tomb Raider franchise, giving him creative freedom to infuse atmosphere, emotion and authenticity to Lara’s origins story through his score. The end result combines found sounds, authentic percussion and a truly unique custom instrument interwoven with orchestral themes and textures. Jason was also responsible for creating a unique soundtrack for Dead Space, hailed by critics as “truly original” and “the best score of the year.” It was recognized with a myriad of worldwide nominations and won two BAFTA awards – one for Original Score and one for Use of Audio. For the latter, the Academy stated, “It’s the music soundtrack that boasts horror and tension.” Jason’s music from the original Dead Space has been performed at the Royal Albert Hall in London and his concerto for string quartet from Dead Space 2, “Lacrimosa”, was recently premiered to a live audience at the SCORE symphony concert in Sweden. Most recently he conducted Tomb Raider at the Spike TV Awards. Graves has also conducted and recorded his live orchestral scores at Abbey Road Studios, Air Studios London, Capitol Records, FOX, Paramount Pictures and Skywalker Sound.
GARRY SCHYMAN www.garryschyman.com
Film, television and video game composer Garry Schyman is one of the interactive medium’s foremost composers, renowned for his multiple award-winning score for the original BioShock – winner of Best Original Score from the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences, Spike TV’s Video Game Award for Best Original Score, G4 TV’s Soundtrack of the Year and four awards from the Game Audio Network Guild (G.A.N.G) including Music of the Year, Best Interactive Score, Best Original Instrumental and Audio of the Year. Garry’s scores are recorded in the world’s preeminent studios giving him the opportunity to conduct some of the best musicians in the world: BioShock was tracked with a live orchestra at the legendary Capitol Studios in Hollywood, and for Dante’s Inferno, he traveled to London to record with the Philharmonia Orchestra at Abbey Road Studios. For the highly anticipated BioShock Infinite, Garry recorded with solo string instruments, intimate string ensembles, and experimental percussion to create a raw and intensely emotional score set in the alternate early Twentieth Century city in the clouds, Columbia.
JACK WALL www.jackwall.net
Jack Wall’s distinguished musical career includes producing and engineering album recordings, film soundtracks, original scores for blockbuster franchises and live concert performances, while working with the world’s top orchestras. He is best known for his rich, cinematic scores for popular franchises such as Call of Duty, Mass Effect, Myst, Splinter Cell and Jade Empire. His repertoire encompasses a diverse range of musical styles and influences; from ethereal ambience, choral crescendos and heavy tribal orchestra to traditional Asian, Middle-Eastern, Eastern European instrumentation and futuristic electronic soundscapes. Widely regarded as one of the most iconic scores for the medium, Jack created the distinctive musical signature for BioWare’s sci-fi epic series Mass Effect, combining ’80s electronica, synthetic instrumentation and futuristic atmospheres, garnering numerous best music accolades and achieving international popularity with fans. He also received British Academy (BAFTA) and Spike TV VGA nominations for his work on Mass Effect 2. His latest projects include the best-selling Call of Duty: Black Ops II recorded with full symphony orchestra at Abbey Road Studios. Reflecting the story set in the year 2025, Wall’s epic score features hybrid orchestral music blended with contemporary and futuristic electronic sounds as well as his thematic flamenco arrangement of the re-imagined Nicaraguan lullaby “Nino Precioso”. Wall recently completed his self-described ‘alien twang’ original soundtrack for the upcoming sci-fi reboot Lost Planet 3.
KEVIN RIEPL www.kevinriepl.com
Kevin Riepl is an award-winning composer writing for film, television and video games. His scores range from energetic and rhythmic to emotive to macabre and otherworldly. Renowned for composing epic signature scores for blockbuster sci-fi action video games such as Microsoft’s best-selling Gears of War and the Unreal series, Kevin’s other video game credits include the upcoming fantasy action title Ascend: New Gods and the critically acclaimed original music scores for Aliens: Colonial Marines and Resistance: Burning Skies, nominated for “Best Original Score for a Video Game or Interactive Media” in the (IFMCA) International Film Music Critics Association Awards. His engaging and atmospheric scores have also enhanced numerous indie films such as ABCs of Death, Clemency, The Aggression Scale, the holiday season horror feature Silent Night, as well as film festival winners and genre cult films including the emotional sci-fi short Henri starring Keir Dullea (2001: A Space Odyssey) and Oddball Animation Studios’ stunning concept film, Ruin. Kevin is currently scoring the Kaare Andrews directed prequel, Cabin Fever: Patient Zero.
INON ZUR www.inonzur.com
Inon composes emotionally dynamic music for film, television and interactive media. Zur’s flair for powerful, melodic writing and energetic action scoring is renowned in the world of music-to-picture and video games. He has composed cinematic orchestral music for blockbuster franchises such as Fallout, Prince of Persia, EverQuest, Crysis, SOCOM and Dragon Age. Inon also penned the original music score for The Lord of the Rings: War In The North video game, conducting and recording with the London Philharmonia Orchestra and the Pinewood Singers Choir at Abbey Road Studios. Inon’s music has received international acclaim including nominations from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), Classical MPR, Forbes and Spike TV as well as top honors at the Game Audio Network Guild Awards and Hollywood Music in Media Awards. Variety named Inon one of the top music talents in interactive entertainment.
GREG EDMONSON www.gregedmonson.com
Greg’s talent on the guitar first brought him to Los Angeles, where his work as a session player led to composing. He landed his first scoring gigs for the hallowed TV animation company Hanna Barbera. His work for the medium caught the attention of one of its most in-demand composers, and soon Greg was working alongside Emmy-winner Mike Post on hit series such as L.A. Law, Quantum Leap, and Cop Rock. Greg’s success led him to composing for other popular television shows including King of the Hill and Firefly, culminating in his transition to video games with his most epic projects yet: three acclaimed scores for Sony/Naughty Dog’s blockbuster Uncharted video game series. Greg created the symphonically action-packed, but distinctly humane sound of treasure hunter Nathan Drake – following this iconic hero through the world’s most exotic musical locations. In order to bring a multi-dimensional, cinematic sound to this franchise, Greg introduced a broad spectrum of moods and themes, including indigenous ethnic instrumentals, nail-biting suspense, eerie ambience, and powerful action cues. The striking originality of his scores for Uncharted has won Greg the recognition of his peers, culminating in a variety of industry honors that include prestigious awards from the British Academy of Film & Television Arts (BAFTA) and the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences (AIAS).