Music has the power to transport us to specific moments and even different worlds. In the case of video games, this is even more true, since emblematic soundtracks like that of the saga Super Mario They marked the collective memory. Other impacts are more subtle, and even go unnoticed by some, like those who last summer, during the Olympic Games, did not recognize the beats of NieR: Automata performing in the Japanese artistic swimming team’s routine. The relevance of compositions in this medium is undeniable, and even the Grammy Awards have begun to promote them with their own category, but how to obtain an unforgettable melody?
“A good soundtrack is one that accompanies, enhances and improves the gaming experience, whatever it may be,” explains Carlos Viola, composer of the Sevillian studio The Game Kitchen. For fellow composer Beatriz Ruiz-Castillo “Beícoli,” of Brainwash Gang, the key is for the music to fulfill its function: “I think a simple soundtrack that doesn’t particularly stand out is just as valid as a great protagonist, so much because that’s what you’re trying to achieve. “They must be an active part of the story and the narrative instead of being simply decorative,” adds Sara Lopez Productions, for whom “a good composer must always ‘manipulate’ from the shadows.”
Audio designer Eduardo de la Iglesia agrees that music and sound “should reinforce whatever you’re playing, but without playing a bigger role than the game itself.” The veteran composer states, although “in quotes,” that “a video game soundtrack is like the classical music of our time.” It thus establishes direct links with cinema, since there are also famous Hollywood authors who have worked in the video game sector and vice versa, such as Hans Zimmer or Michael Giacchino.
De la Iglesia adds that although video game music has often been the ugly duckling of the industry, there is real interest in it. He notices it especially now that he is producing a program dedicated to these creations on RNE, The musical life of video games. “People want to know a lot more. There are people who, upon hearing a subject in the show, go looking for information on video games, and that, whether we like it or not, creates a culture,” he explains.
How to compose for video games
The link between cinema and video games also goes through the way of composing, even if De La Iglesia highlights certain particularities: “In films, we compose for a scene that begins at point A and ends at point B, but video games can last up to 40 minutes. . hours, you therefore have to make a soundtrack that combines well, which is not very repetitive and which also makes you want to listen to it separately. He emphasizes that in the creative process it is necessary to be in contact with the designers and the director, who share references and information about the title and indicate how much music is needed and where.
When composing, each professional has their own methods. Lopez first developed a sound universe based on “the idea of the video game, the color palette and the first glimpses of animation”. Beícoli meets with his studio partner Edu Verz to receive direction and descriptions on the environment they want to create, while drawing inspiration from the artistic and narrative team. Then he “tests different sounds and makes let’s give until something clicks. Viola, for her part, considers that “unless the musical approach is very clear from the start, each project is a ‘creature’ that must mature until it corresponds to the desired playing experience.”
In his case, he starts by testing ideas and, once they work, he considers “extending a song if it becomes repetitive or thinking about how the music should behave based on the actions of the musician or what is happening at a given moment. This need to create adaptive or dynamic music is precisely what Lopez considers the most fun of his profession, because it functions like a “sudoku of compositions”. Among the negative aspects, the Brainwash Gang member “has difficulty with certain productions lasting for years” because “you end up listening to the same music hundreds of times” and you lose perspective.
The luxury of devoting yourself to music
Budget is often another issue in the business, as the only way to avoid repetitive soundtracks is to pay for more music. De la Iglesia remembers that on top of that, previously songs were assigned to the end, making composition difficult. What everyone agrees on is that making a living from this is complicated. “I’m very lucky because I’m part of my own studio, but the bad thing is that I don’t just do music but also many other tasks that take time and are quite stressful,” admits Beícoli. Viola finds herself in a similar situation, since being part of The Game Kitchen offers her stability, but she maintains that “it’s not the most common thing to work in these conditions.”
“It’s a job that you have to love to be able to dedicate all the effort you need”, especially since “normally you have to invest a lot of time in small or personal projects to be considered in the sector as a a qualified professional,” explains Viola. De la Iglesia’s long career, with more than 65 soundtracks behind him, means that he is called instead of having to look for projects, but he guarantees that to get to this point he needed the support first of his parents then of his wife.
On the other side of the scale is a newcomer like Lopez, who says that for her “composing for video games is literally a luxury.” Although music is his passion and he has made it clear that he wants to dedicate himself to it, he emphasizes that it is difficult, in addition to being a very masculinized sector in which everyone knows each other. However, he specifies that “little by little there are more shuttles and inclusive spaces” and “that the most difficult thing is to enter and grow, then things progress little by little”.
From the screen to the church
The individual plc rebound Pong It is the first sound in the history of the medium and marks an era where technical limitations conditioned what was heard. Many people still associate electronics with video games, but, while it is true that technology continues to play an essential role in compositions, Eduardo de la Iglesia assures that he still prefers to record with real instruments, because ” whoever understands will immediately notice the difference, because noon does not have the human factor in interpretation. He recorded for the first time with a real orchestra the soundtrack of the Spanish video game The call of the seafrom the Out of the Blue Games studio, an experience as enriching as it is complex.
His partner Carlos Viola experienced something similar with Blasphemous 2where he took on the challenge of bringing his scores to professional studios. “At first you think it’s going to be extremely complicated, and in reality it is, if you plan to do it alone, but the best way to approach this type of production is to look for a professional team made up of an orchestrator. , orchestra director, studio and professional musicians, people who are used to making this type of recording and who allow themselves to be advised”, he specifies. The work of this saga anchored in Andalusian folklore has makes his creations leap from the console to unexpected places.
Thus, some of his songs were even played in the church of San Miguel in Valladolid, performed by the orchestra of the Spanish Lutes. “The line that separated video game music from popular or directly folk music is blurring. There will always be video games that want to look like video games, the difference is that in the past they could only look like that due to technical limitations. With this change, what happens like with movies is that certain soundtracks transcend the movie itself to the point of being very popular among people who have never seen it,” he told about the barriers broken down by his music.
Claim the talent of the medium
In the popularization of the soundtrack outside of the medium, musical mixes also carried weight. low-fi focus found on platforms like YouTube, as they often adapt video game themes. Lopez believes that, although it is true that “nostalgia is an important factor in this genre”, this phenomenon rather gives a second life to the compositions instead of introducing them to a new audience. Despite this, he believes that soundtracks are experiencing a surge in popularity, whereas before they had a bad reputation, in part because of the “limited nature of the sound”. chiptune which characterized them.
Of course, he points out that perpetrators are still not vindicated to the same extent as male perpetrators. “It is true that as a percentage, we are fewer in number than our peers, but that does not mean that there are examples available,” she continues, before encouraging readers to ask themselves how many female composers they know , with “the hope of encouraging them to investigate. She recommends the work of Yoko Shimomura, Manaka Kataoka, Sarah Schachner and Eímear Noone. Beatriz Ruiz-Castillo ‘Beícoli’ opts for the national talent of Paula Ruiz ‘Fingerspit’ and Bibiki, names to which Carlos Viola and De la Iglesia add those of David García, Damián Sánchez, Mateo Pascual or César Astudillo.
“In Spain we have great composers, the problem is that if the video game is not triple A, it does not appear in the media and does not have an impact”, concludes Eduardo de la Iglesia, in a plea in favor of these local talents. capable of giving the titles of an entity that jumps scores to the hearts of the players.
