Composer Code

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Gareth Coker on Composer Code. He’s been on my list for a really long time, and our schedules finally lined up.

It was such an insightful interview, specifically in the realms of orchestral arrangement, which continues to be a challenge for me.

I highly recommend checking out the full conversation wherever you listen to podcasts. But in this post, I want to share 5 things that jumped out at me during our interview.

Since the advent of implementation tools, audio programmers and game developers have created some really amazing and complex dynamic music in games.

A subtle drone can seamlessly ramp up to raucous battle music and back down again all based on the player’s actions. Developers can layer tracks vertically (stacking based on game events) or horizontally (cross-fading between tracks).

These tools, when used tastefully, produce incredible results. However, Gareth cautioned against relying too heavily on the game engine to create an immersive experience.

He explained how in the Ori games, they tried using dynamic music for enemy fights, but it came off “cheesy” and “video-gamey” due to how frequently the player encounters enemies.

The result was this constant oscillation between battle music and exploration music. Gareth recommended another strategy: playing through the game and looking for “triggers.”

He defines triggers as key moments, story beats, or locations that best support a change in the music.

Every game has triggers, it just takes a bit more effort and intentionality to locate and utilize them for musical immersion. It’s a bit like combining elements of film scoring with dynamic music — taking the best of both worlds and creating the most immersive experience.

Of course, none of this can happen if the composer isn’t actually playing the game (leading nicely into my next point).

A lot of the time, composers can feel like “icing on the cake” rather than a chef in the kitchen. Our music is shoehorned in after the game is already done. In the worst-case scenario, we’re kind of an afterthought.

It’s not uncommon for game composers to work entirely off of a few screenshots or some gameplay footage and never actually play a game build.

Gareth stressed that sometimes, that’s all you need. But for him, nothing compares to actually getting your hands on the game as early and often as possible. He stressed this multiple times in our interview, and I’m convinced it’s a huge reason the music of the Ori games is so beloved and well-suited to the games.

Music contextualizes games, but games also contextualize how we as composers produce music.

Gareth gave several examples of how the “feel” of the game informed his music theory, arrangement, and melodic choices. It was stunning to me how it felt like he was actually on the development team (what a novel idea!).

Whether you’re writing game music for yourself or a client, insist on getting a build of the game wherever you can. Your client will not only be impressed at your commitment to the project, but you’ll likely write better music as a result.

One of the biggest temptations of game composers (I think mostly due to our own pride), is that every track (or project) has to have new and fresh material.

Depending on our client’s wishes, that may be true. But there’s something to be said for resurrecting past material at key points.

Gareth talked about how in Ori 2 (Ori and the Will of the Wisps), he brought back Ori’s theme in a familiar way but in a new setting during a key gameplay moment.

The result is this nostalgic “Hey, I remember that!” feeling in the player (even if they don’t express that explicitly, they’re certainly feeling it if they played Ori 1).

After all, Gareth recalled how one of the first things you learn in Composition 101 is theme and variation. If it was good enough for all the classical composers of old (and Koji Kondo in the ‘90s Mario and Zelda games), it’s good enough for us.

Okay, so this tip absolutely blew my mind and I seriously can’t wait to try it.

I expressed to Gareth how orchestral music is still the biggest challenge for me as a composer (I’ve mentioned this so many times on the podcast. Dear podcast listeners are probably so sick of hearing me air my insecurities).

I told him how whenever I write orchestral music, it feels very “gamey” and “loopy.” Meaning, it’s clear that it’s written for a video game. It doesn’t really take the listener on a journey.

Without even a pause, Gareth goes, “I’ll tell you the secret. Pop song structure.”

As that Django Unchained quote goes, “You had my curiosity. Now you have my attention.”

Chris Young (the same professor who taught Jason Graves), taught Gareth in the USC composition program. When it came to orchestral arrangement — actually telling a story with orchestral music — Chris espoused the pop song structure.

Let’s back up. For those of you who don’t know the pop song structure, it’s:

VERSE – CHORUS – VERSE – CHORUS – BRIDGE – CHORUS

Sometimes there’s a VERSE 2 snuck in there before the first chorus, but for the most part, this is the standard formula for all pop music.

Just flip on the radio or listen to the chart-toppers on Spotify if you don’t believe me.

Most pop music is under 4 or 5 minutes, so these sections have to be pretty short. Maybe an 8 bar verse, an 8 bar chorus, and an 8 bar bridge.

However, for orchestral music, Gareth recommended elongating the structure. For example, he might write a 16 bar “verse” section, a 32 bar “chorus” section, etc. The result is a long, evolving, dramatic orchestral piece that provides newness and familiarity in the repetition.

This is so genius and so practical, I cannot wait to try it out for myself.

It’s always been challenging to monetize art. How do you ascribe value to music for clients?

We’ve tried hard to come up with models, but they all have their limitations. Charging by the hour (your time) punishes you for being efficient and rewards you for taking a long time. That’s not cool for you or the client.

Charging by the minute of produced music tends to be the most popular invoicing method, but Gareth pointed out some logical flaws with working this way.

First off, game development cycles are constantly in flux. You might charge for x amount of minutes, but a growing Kickstarter campaign might beef up the number of levels that need music, or offer a budget for a live orchestra.

Once you hit the x minute mark, are you really going to say, “Oops, too bad. You have two more levels but I already reached my minute mark, sorry guys! You can pay me again for more.”

Or if half your music gets cut from the game for some reason, are the devs going to say, “Well, we didn’t really use half your music so we’d like half our money back.”

Think of it this way: if you have a beautiful, 20-minute orchestral piece on sale for $1, and an incredible 3-minute funk tune on sale for $1, do you really care about the minute count? 

No, that’s ridiculous. You’re paying for the feeling the music gives you. In the same way, the developers are paying for the way you’re enhancing and contextualizing their game.

But, that leads us back to the “how to charge” dilemma. Gareth said that it’s better to evaluate the entire project, and simply ask yourself, “how much am I willing to take to work on this?”

“If the minute count went up by 20%, would I still be okay getting this rate? What about less, would I charge less to the client?”

Obviously, the project has to be something you’re excited about, and the more excited you are about it and the more you want it as a credit, the less you’ll be willing to take.

Sometimes, charging by the minute is inevitable, especially for games in early development or a vague scope.

In that case, it’s best to go with a hybrid approach where you charge a lump sum for the actual project as it’s currently scoped, and then if a significant amount of music needs to be written down the line, you invoice again based on the expanded musical requirements.

All in all, it was an incredible conversation. Gareth is a down-to-earth guy with no ego and plenty of practical wisdom.

I highly recommend listening to the entire interview, which you can find on this page or wherever you listen to podcasts.

He freely shares all his industry secrets like a total mensch. In this interview, we discuss:

He’s one of the nicest dudes I’ve talked to in this space and he gave me so much valuable info.

Whatever stage you’re at in your game audio career, I promise you’ll find something insightful and valuable in this interview.

My guest today is Eric Bucholz, an extremely talented and experienced composer, orchestrator, and arranger. 

Eric’s career has taken him to some incredible places such as:

In preparation for our conversation, Eric graciously collected his best pieces of advice for composers looking to write for the orchestra. If you’re a newcomer to the orchestra like myself, this is an excellent place to start.

Eric also walks us through the process of how the Ori score went from raw MIDI data all the way to the music stands of professional players and all the work that goes into that process.

I’m fascinated by folks who have such a command over the orchestra, and Eric certainly didn’t disappoint.

In our conversation, we discussed Sydney’s arrangement process, how she turned her musical passion into a viable business, and practical self-care tips for creatives.

We also discuss the pro’s and con’s of going to music school, and what she’s learned about business along her journey.

In our conversation we discussed the importance of having an R&D period in your mind before you begin composing, what he calls the “sandbox” phase of composing, where he allows himself to just play, incidentally sort of tricking himself into composing (this is a huge pro-tip for composers, you don’t wanna miss this).

He also offers some really practical advice for building meaningful relationships in the game audio space.

As all my guests always do, Tom brought a ton of value to me personally and whether you’re just starting out making music for games, or you’re a seasoned pro, I guarantee you’ll find something helpful in this conversation.

Darren Korb is a game composer working for Supergiant Games. He’s composed the soundtracks to smash indie hits like Transistor, Bastion, Pyre, and Hades. 

His upbringing as a singer/songwriter and bedroom producer laid a foundation for his work in game audio. He boldly challenges the mostly-instrumental world of game audio by infusing narrative lyrics that tell rich stories and expand the lore of each game world.

We talked about how he got started, the art and science of writing non-cheesy songs for video games, and why Logic Pro X is his favorite DAW.

Darren’s soundtracks are incredible, and can be found anywhere music is streamed or sold.

Enjoy the conversation!

Daniel Koestner is a newcomer to the game audio space, but his style draws influences from some unusual places and culminates in a sound unlike anything else.

He composed the soundtrack to the lovable indie game, Donut County. The playful vibe of his music sends up folk artists like Sufjan Stevens and Beirut with the rhythms of lo-fi hip-hop and producers like J. Dilla. 

He shared some really valuable info on how he’s gotten gigs by going above and beyond with clients, the details of his creative process, and his self-imposed constraints (like insisting on making his own samples).

I highly recommend checking out the Donut County OST for some succulent jams. You can find it on Spotify, iTunes, or Youtube. 

Enjoy the conversation!

—

Enter your email below to get future content delivered fresh to your inbox as soon as I release it.

* indicates requiredEmail Address *

Nathan Madsen is a seasoned game audio composer with years of experience in both in-house and freelance roles. We chatted about best practices in landing gigs, the pros and cons of freelance vs. in-house work, and how to balance a family with VGM ambitions.

He’s got a real heart for mentorship and helping other composers succeed, aided no doubt by his previous work as a school teacher.

You can learn more about him and hear some of the fantastic music he’s made at his website here.

Also, check out his vlog on game audio here.

—

Enter your email below to get future content delivered fresh to your inbox as soon as I release it.

* indicates requiredEmail Address *

Chad Seiter is a game composer that I met at the recent VGMCon in Minneapolis, MN. He’s an experienced and really humble dude that shared a lot of his own experiences, both personal and professional.

We talked about some of the lessons he learned from studying under renowned composer Michael Giacchino, how he faced some of his personal demons by making music about them, and his particular process for writing epic, orchestral music.

You can learn more about him and hear some of the fantastic music he’s made at his website here.

—

In other news, Composer Code now has a Patreon!! If you’d like to help support the show or just learn about my goals for the future, check out my Patreon here.

Thanks for listening! Don’t forget to give me a rating in iTunes, if you would be so kind. It helps a lot with visibility.

Enter your email below to get future content delivered fresh to your inbox as soon as I release it.

* indicates requiredEmail Address *