Ask a Composer
The Question: "How do you come up with the strange, other-worldly sounds in games? (example: Torin's Passage's Boogle sounds) Also, what do you use to come up with and/or play around with them?"
Submitted by: Joe Jaquette
Answered by: Ben Houge
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The Question: "Game music has come a loooooong way since the early days of PC speakers and basic MIDI cards. Is this as good as it gets, or is there some other audio and musical advance still on the horizon to impress us?"
Submitted by: Darrell
Answered by: Gary Spinrad
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The Question: "In general, does the composer keep the rights to music he writes for computer games? In other words, does the composer actually sell his music to the gaming company, or does he simply write it to their specifications, and then let them use it for a fee? What kind of copyright clauses are usually contained in a composer's contract?"
Submitted by: Nick Stanton
Answered by: Mark Seibert and Gary Spinrad
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The Question: "Sierra has come up with some beautiful scores that accompany their games. Foremost in mind, are the arrangements of "The Beast Within" (the opera was terrific) and the intro music to "Phantasmagoria". I was spellbound. At what point are the composers included so that they can weave their magic?"
Submitted by: Kim Schell
Answered by: Mark Seibert
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