TELL US SOMETHING ABOUT YOUR WORK. YOU ARE THE MUSIC DIRECTOR AND COMPOSER OF GUILD WARS 2. HOW LONG DID YOU WORK ON THIS PROJECT AND HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE ITS MAIN MUSICAL STYLE?

I’ve been working on Guild Wars 2 since 2010. From 2010-2012, I was primarily a sound designer, and I took over the composition for the game in 2012. The musical style for the game is big, lush, fantasy music using a full orchestra.

WHAT DIFFERENCE CAN MUSIC PLAYED BY A LIVE ORCHESTRA MAKE COMPARED TO SAMPLE-BASED PRODUCTIONS?

While orchestral samples these days are very sophisticated, they can take a great deal of work to really bring them to life. A real orchestra, from the very first take, instantly sounds better than even the most polished sample-based track. The musicians impart so much more feeling and emotion than you can ever get out of a computer, and players of the game can always sense that.

HOW IS THE PROCESS OF WRITING MUSIC FOR A LIVE ORCHESTRA DIFFERENT FROM WRITING MUSIC THAT IS NOT BEING PERFORMED LIVE? 

For me, the process always starts with writing with samples. However, as I’ve become more familiar with the orchestras we use, I’ll write parts for the live players that the samples can’t do convincingly. It allows me to stretch my creativity a bit more. Also, since almost all composers are using the same commercial sample libraries, it separates the live music from what anyone else could write using the same libraries.

HOW DID YOU LEARN ABOUT DYNAMEDION AND OUR SERVICES? 

I first heard about Dynamedion’s open orchestra sessions from fellow game composer Howard Mostrom. It seemed too good to be true, but the more I looked into it, the more it seemed to make sense for ArenaNet’s musical needs. Unlike most games, we regularly release small- to medium-sized batches of content that need new music, and having the option to record small batches of music in more frequent intervals is ideal.

HOW WAS THE COLLABORATION WITH OUR TEAM OF ORCHESTRATORS, CONDUCTORS AND PROJECT MANAGERS? 

Working with everyone at Dynamedion is always a pleasure. The planning that goes into each session is always very detailed, and it makes the recording days run very smoothly. Everyone always works hard to make sure I’m happy with the end result, and I always am. and having the option to record small batches of music in more frequent intervals is ideal.

THE WHOLE RECORDING PROCESS ITSELF – WHAT WAS YOUR PART IN IT AND HOW DID THE WHOLE PROCESS WORK FOR YOU? 

The first time we recorded with Dynamedion, I flew to Frankfurt (Oder) to be present for the session. It was a wonderful experience, being in the concert hall as the music came to life, interacting with the conductor, recording engineers, musicians, and David Christiansen from Dynamedion. For every session we’ve done since then, I’ve monitored them remotely either via Skype or Source-Connect. While I’d love to be there in person for all of them, monitoring them remotely has always been smooth. It’s easy to type out feedback during each take, rather than wait until it’s over. The only thing I have trouble with is waking up early enough because of the time difference! I’m definitely not a morning person.

WHERE CAN WE LISTEN TO THE ORCHESTRA RECORDINGS IN THE GAME? (MAIN THEME, IN-GAME, CINEMATICS, MENU BACKGROUND?)

A great deal of the music we’ve recorded over the last couple of years is on the official ArenaNet Soundcloud page: https://soundcloud.com/arenanet

The full soundtrack for the latest expansion, Guild Wars 2: Heart of Thorns, is available on iTunes and Amazon, and on vinyl LP at the iam8bit online store: http://store.iam8bit.com/collections/guildwars2/products/guild-wars-2-heart-of-thorns-vinyl-soundtrack-2xlp

WHERE THERE ANY CHALLENGES WHERE DYNAMEDION COULD HELP YOU?)

Dynamedion has been very flexible when working with our budget requirements. We’ve never had to compromise on our vision for the soundtrack based on money, and I very much appreciate that. Also, in our last session, I wrote a piece that called for a bass clarinet soloist, one that could improvise a solo over the music. Dynamedion found an amazing player, and he delivered multiple takes of a solo that exceeded my expectations when I was writing the music!

DID THE OUTCOME FULFILL YOUR EXPECTATIONS?)

Fulfilled and exceeded. Always

WOULD YOU WORK WITH DYNAMEDION AGAIN FOR FURTHER PROJECTS? WOULD YOU RECOMMEND DYNAMEDION AND – IF YES – WHY?

Yes, I plan to work with Dynamedion many more times in the future. I’ve also recommended them to multiple colleagues already. Going from sample-based to recording a live orchestra is a big change. I had never recorded anything live before working with Dynamedion, and going into it, I was very worried about messing something up along the way. Dynamedion made sure the entire process from start to finish was as stress-free and smooth as possible. I’m very thankful for that.