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Composer Code

by Matt Kenyon

It's dangerous to go alone! Take this: namely, the knowledge, expertise, and best practices of established VGM composers, arrangers, and content creators. Join Matt Kenyon, VGM geek extraordinaire, as he interviews some of the most creative creators and dives deep into their thought processes — and how we can all make better music!

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Episodes

  1. 5 Things I Learned from Gareth Coker

    What the composer of Ori and the Blind Forest and Halo Infinite taught me about making music for games.

  2. Oozing into Game Audio with Jason Graves

    Jason Graves is a game audio veteran with numerous AAA titles under his belt including Dead Space and Tomb Raider (2013)

  3. The Principles of Orchestration with Eric Buchholz

    Eric Buchholz is a talented composer and orchestrator who offered a glimpse into his illustratious career as well as valuable orchestration principles.

  4. Monetizing Your Passion with Sydney Kjerstad (Smart Game Piano)

    Sydney Kjerstad is a talented pianist, arranger, entrepreneur and VGM geek with tons of arrangement and business wisdom. Listen to our conversation now.

  5. Ep 24: Tapping into Your Playful Side and Embracing Relationships (Tom Salta)

    Tom is an ASCAP winning and MTV VMA-nominated composer who’s been in the biz for a long time and has an impressive list of both TV and game credits including PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, Red Steel 1 and 2, Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon, Prince of Persia, Wolfenstein Youngblood, and the Halo...

  6. Ep 23: Infusing Songwriting with Game Audio (Darren Korb)

    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...

  7. Ep 22: Ukuleles, Dank Beats, and Composing Under Constraints (Daniel Koestner)

    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…

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  8. Ep 21: Landing Game Audio Gigs with Class (Nathan Madsen)

    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…

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  9. Ep 20: Harnessing Creative Anxiety Through Music (Chad Seiter)

    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...

  10. Ep 19: Succeeding as a Family-First Composer (Steven Melin)

    Steven Melin is no stranger to the podcast. He's a good friend and a great composer, and he's been quite busy for the past several months... writing a book! In this episode, we chat about the "why" behind Steven's new book, Family-First Composer. He shares some practical tips for building a…

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  11. Ep 18: Starting with a Soundscape (Cajsa Larsson)

    We talk about Cajsa's unique approach to starting a song, how she founded a game company with friends from her university (Forgotten Key), and how she uses a very cool sound-stretching plugin to create banjo soundscapes.

  12. 8 Things I Learned from Grant Kirkhope

    Grant Kirkhope is a man who needs no introduction. He’s the talented composer behind some of the most beloved classics on the N64 like Banjo Kazooie, Banjo Tooie, Goldeneye 007, and Perfect Dark.

  13. Ep 17: Cool People Attract Cool People (Matthew Carl Earl)

    I talk with Matthew about some of the benefits of full-time employment vs. freelancing, but also some really organic, practical ways to build relationships and ultimately get paying work as a composer.

  14. Ep 15: Connecting with your Instrument and Crushing Writer’s Block (Chase Bethea)

    I talked with Chase about how he got into video game music, how he practices "connecting" with his instrument, and he shared some incredible techniques for beating writer's block. Seriously, every creative person needs to hear this.

  15. Ep 14: Contrapuntal Chiptune, Orchestration, and the Power of Notation (Tony Manfredonia)

    I chatted with Tony about his origin story, the indelible impact of games like Majora's Mask, and how he approaches orchestrating a piano sketch.

  16. Ep 13: Analyzing Video Game Music with 8-bit Music Theory

    This episode is a little special, as we actually analyze a few video game pieces in real time (download the transcriptions below to follow along) and talk more about the value of transcription.

  17. Ep 12: Strategies for Getting Gigs and Playing the Long Game (Emmanuel Lagumbay)

    We talk through Emmanuel's composing process, his personal experience networking with game developers, and he shares some practical tips for building your career as a video game music composer.

  18. Ep 11: How to Build Worlds with the Orchestra (Garry Schyman)

    We talked about mastering the orchestra, breaking into the video game music industry, and he imparted valuable lessons about the difference between film and game composition.

  19. Ep 10: Scoring A Galaxy Far, Far Away (Gordy Haab)

    Gordy Haab is a multi-award-winning film, video game and television composer who has written music for many well-known titles, including most recently: Microsoft’s “Halo Wars 2, and EA’s “Star Wars: Battlefront II”, and “Star Wars Battlefront I."

  20. Ep 9: Where VGM and EDM Collide (James Landino)

    We chatted about James' current freelance journey, the intersection of game music and electronic music, and the power of being really good at one single thing. He shared his perspective on how to break into the industry and habits that hold beginners back from success.

  21. Ep 8: Music Theory is Math That Makes Art (12tone)

    12tone is one of the leading content creators in the music theory space, consistently delivering value with his signature top-down hand-written style of teaching.

  22. Ep 7: Practical Advice on Getting Gigs and Creative Constraints (Taylor Ambrosio Wood)

    I had the pleasure of speaking with Taylor Ambrosio Wood, a Berklee grad, marimbist, and talented video game composer.

  23. How to get paid as a VGM artist with Sebastian Wolff

    In this dense episode of Composer Code, I chat with the guru of music business knowledge: Sebastian Wolff.

  24. Putting a deadline on creativity with Carlos Eiene (insaneintherainmusic)

    Success = consistency over perfection. That's the biggest takeaway I took from my value-packed interview with Carlos Eiene, aka, insaneintherainmusic.

  25. Composing for Cuphead with Kris Maddigan

    I had the privilege of interviewing Cuphead composer Kris Maddigan.

  26. Ep 3: Dealing with Creative Burnout (Steven Melin)

    I sat down with my good buddy and fellow composer Steven Melin to chat about creative burnout. This recorded conversation was recently featured on his podcast, Sonic Storytellers.

  27. Ep 2: Stealing – the Only Path to Originality (8-bit Music Theory)

    I had the awesome privilege of interviewing my favorite YouTube content creator, 8-bit Music Theory.

  28. Ep 1: How to Become a Video Game Composer (Steven Melin)

    Steven Melin is a multi-talented video game composer out of Atlanta. I discovered his YouTube channel through poking around for some video game music theory resources.

  29. Ep 0: 21 Ways to Compose Better Video Game Music (Super Marcato Bros)

    The Super Marcato Bros are Karl and Will Brueggemann. They are prolific video game music composers, podcasters, performers, enthusiasts, and all-around nice guys. Their Bandcamp boasts a catalog of over 30(!) albums, each demonstrating reverence for the formative melodies of their youth. The…

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ABOUT THIS SHOW

It's dangerous to go alone! Take this: namely, the knowledge, expertise, and best practices of established VGM composers, arrangers, and content creators. Join Matt Kenyon, VGM geek extraordinaire, as he interviews some of the most creative creators and dives deep into their thought processes — and how we can all make better music!

HOSTED BY

Matt Kenyon

Frequently Asked Questions

How many episodes does Composer Code have?

Composer Code currently has 29 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.

What is Composer Code about?

It's dangerous to go alone! Take this: namely, the knowledge, expertise, and best practices of established VGM composers, arrangers, and content creators. Join Matt Kenyon, VGM geek extraordinaire, as he interviews some of the most creative creators and dives deep into their thought processes — and...

How often does Composer Code release new episodes?

Composer Code has 29 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.

Where can I listen to Composer Code?

You can listen to Composer Code on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.

Who hosts Composer Code?

Composer Code is created and hosted by Matt Kenyon.
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