Uplifting music

Famed Hollywood composer John Debney talks about his first experience of composing music for videogames, with PlayStation 3 title Lair.

John Debney, one of Hollywood's leading composers is probably best known as the man behind the soundtracks to blockbusters ranging from Sin City to The Passion of the Christ. Noted for his distinct style, Debney marries grand orchestral themes with strong and unusual vocals and instrumentation. Now he has completed his first work with the games industry, the soundtrack to Lair.

What was it like working with games developers?

One of the first steps was to meet with the Sony creative team and I liked them very much. I was really struck by their desire to create music that was really very cinematic with a beginning, middle and end. The scale of the game also created the opportunity for the development of a number of themes - six or seven in this instance built, for example, around the different characters.

How did you go about the writing?

It was somewhat different to working on a cinematic script. Two things stood out: the smaller team allowed more creative freedom and, without the tight scripting of the film, there was more freedom on the length of each piece of music.   

What are the major differences between composing for films and games?

The most obvious one, and the most significant for me, was to remember that playing a game is a fluid experience - not a linear story. I wrote whole pieces of music whilst accommodating the ability for key moments of change in the game to be mirrored in the music.  We would need to be able to seamlessly change direction at any point in a piece. For example, a four minute piece might accommodate a moment of change at two minutes 30 seconds - but the way the music was constructed it could happen anywhere. Luckily it was Factor 5's challenge to make sure these worked.

Is this different to other gaming soundtracks?

Obviously the soundtrack to games has moved considerably in ten years from electronic pings to fully scored compositions. In this instance the initial conversations we had were about me writing a symphonic work that would have themes and variations but would also have movements. 

Whilst that was a great idea, I really wanted to write something more than just a thematic thread, so we worked together to create the potential for something different. The next step was how Factor 5 incorporated the music to make it truly cohesive with the gameplay.

How would you describe the end result?

I was given free rein to create something that didn't sound like any one thing, but they did want it to have an ethnic feeling as well as an otherworldly feeling to it, so I used a lot of ethnic instruments alongside a standard Western orchestra and choir, and I think the result will be entertaining for the player with great vocal talent, woodwind talent and Chinese instrument talent for starters.

I hear you recorded at Abbey Road Studios?

We were serious about this and it was a huge score with some very serious music. We ended up recording for three days at the Abbey Road Studios in London, which I love, complete with a full 80-piece orchestra, and it is worth it in terms of audio quality - with PlayStation 3 we are talking about true HD capability and outstanding sound. 

Who did the recording and did you have any help?

We used Isabel Griffiths to put together the best team, drawing on some of the finest orchestras in town, like the London Symphony Orchestra and the London Metropolitan. I also worked with Lisbeth Scott, an old friend of mine who worked on The Passion of The Christ as the voice of Mary. She brought together Sanskrit, Latin and ancient Armenian to create some really interesting lyrics, in particular for The Darkness Theme, but then that is what she does and this was perfect for her.

Will you do this again?

Without a doubt, it was a great and very different experience.