Ramin Djawadi, a talented composer from Remote Control Production composed many scores of many genres (for example Iron Man, Clash of the Titans, Prison Break, Fly Me to the Moon), and with all of these experiences he entered a new and unknown area, the world of video game music, where he has a chance to join one of the most video game franchise, the Medal of Honor by EA Games. After a 11-year-old legendary serie about the WWII, this episode brings us to the conflict of Afghanistan, and a lot of missions with great music of Djawadi. In our interview we asked him about this work.




First of all, please tell to us how you first got started in film scoring?

Film Scoring is something I always wanted to end up doing since I was a little child. I was exposed to all kinds of styles of music, but it is film music that intrigued me the most. Even though I played in a lot of bands as a teenager and in my early twenties, I knew that I always wanted to score music for films eventually. The music I wrote was always instrumental and always enjoyed writing for orchestra.


Would you tell us how you became a member of Remote Control Production?

It was pure coincidence. I was visiting my family in Germany over Christmas and was having dinner with a good friend of mine, an owner of a music shop. I had bought my first guitar from him when I was 13 years old. I mentioned that I was looking to get into film scoring. He happened to know somebody that knew somebody at Remote Control and that's how the connection was made. I had lived in Boston at the time. I packed my bags and moved to LA and joined the team.


Your latest work is EA's new Medal of Honor. How did you get this project?

I was at a friend's birthday party and ran into one of the music supervisors from EA. We started talking and I mentioned that I had never scored a game before, but that I'm actually a big fan of video games. So from there the ball got rolling and it turned out that the new Medal of Honor game EA was developing seemed like a good match.


Video game music has gone through a great evolution in the last few years, and it's structure is very different from movie scores. In what way is the process of composing different in video games when compared to movies?

Most of the music is not written to picture. It can actually be very liberating when you can just let the music flow. The idea is to capture a certain mood for a scene.

Sometimes you might be asked to write a separate ending to a piece, so that it can be attached at any moment during the piece to force it to end.


How much music did you write and which was the procedure of the recording sessions?

I wrote a little over a 100 minutes of music. The fact that it is modern day with various locations asked for a completely different approach both stylistically and thematically. The great story of the game allowed us to have a wide range of music from very emotional to hard action. Western and ethnic instruments are used to represent the different cultures. Designing a score that defines both the scalpel-like quiet professionals that are the Tier 1 Operators and the bold execution of the sledge hammer big military, has been truly unlike any project I've had the opportunity to work on.

I recorded solo instruments throughout the year as I was writing the score. Once we had the whole score completed, we recorded with a small 20 piece string orchestra. 


What's your favorite moment of the birth of the music and why?

I think the hardest part about the process of writing music is to find your themes and palette for your project. When you experiment and you finally come up with something that you feel good about, that's a fulfilling moment.


You've already written music for animation, action, tv series, and video games. Which was your favorite genre of these, the one in which you felt most confident?

I’m not sure if I have a favorite. The thing I love about film music is the variety. You never know what style the next project might demand. It's an ongoing challenge that's very exciting. That's why I try to change it up if I can.


In what production(s) will you participate in the near future? When can we listen to your next work?

I just finished Red Dawn a remake of the 80's classic. I don’t think a release date has been set.


To know more about Ramin Djawadi's work, please visit the composer's official website.

Külön köszönet Sarah Grace-nek a közreműködésért.
2010. október 21.