The Tarisland team has a new behind the scenes video featuring award-winning composer, Russell Brower, who was announced as part of the project last fall, detailing the process of composing for Tarisland, how tailoring the music to the story matters, and creating a cohesive musical identity for the game.
The new video, “Reviving Rhythms of a World Beyond Classics”, sees Brower at the final recording session held in Washington, discussing his process and approach for Tarisland. “I think the first step is always decide exactly what story you want to tell”, he says. For an MMO with a new IP and a fully fleshed out world, this is just one of those additional elements of character that can make a big impact. So you should know your story, “figure out where it’s going to go, physically, in which zone, and you don’t want to overplay your hand”.
What he means by this is to have different approaches, and not just throw everything at your music, “gigantic 50 strings, six horns, and everything playing at once”, and nor the opposite, going too bare, but to tailor the compositions in a meaningful way. Fact he talks about having the music to ebb and flow so that it's always Dynamic and it's not just settling into the background but instead, becomes a valuable part of the world.
Brower dives into the process behind some of the themes he used to bridge zones and to make the world feel like one world, but to give each place its own character. The video offers some insight into some of the influences, and how a melody can work on one or few instruments but also something more sweeping.
See more over at Tarisland.