A Chat with Austin Wintory, composer and Arnie Jorgensen, Stoic Studios
Austin Wintory is a chameleon. Not the reptilian form, but the musical kind, a composer able to change styles and approaches with every project. A partial list of his video game scores would make your head spin with its breath and variety: Journey, Assassin’s Creed Syndicate, Abzu, Aliens: Fireteam Elite, Erica and Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical. Add to that impressive resume dozens of scores for film and other media. What’s most impressive is that Wintory brings incredible inventiveness, craft and musical integrity to every project. His scores unfailingly engage the listener while supporting the narrative, visuals or game play. This includes the upcoming action-adventure, Towerborne.
One of Wintory’s most successful and rewarding partnerships has been with Stoic Studios and their trilogy of Banner Saga games. Wintory has teamed up with Stoic again for the studio’s upcoming action game, Towerborne.
A Partnership of Music and Game Play
I had the chance to speak — all too briefly — with Wintory and Arnie Jorgensen, Chief Creative Officer at Stoic. Towerborne is a much different beast than the Banner Saga games. It’s upbeat and colorful. While the premise is a bit dark, it’s ultimately about hope and your team of adventurers saving the citizens of the land from a monster horde. The art style is storybook-come-to-life, and there are touches of humor and whimsy in the visuals, too.
The game’s main hub area is called The Belfry, an imposing tower arising in the middle of the landscape. The cue Wintory crafted for this important landmark is characteristic of the entire Towerborne score (or at least as much as I’ve been able to hear). It’s a bit archaic sounding, with a mix of lush diatonic and modal harmony and an expressive melodic motif that will stay with you. Like all of Wintory’s music, it fits perfectly with the game’s aesthetic.
In our conversation, Austin Wintory noted that he set himself a particular challenge in writing the score: no percussion except timpani. A casual listener might not care, but if you play just about any game with action sequences, you’ll be bombarded by percussion, from pounding taiko drums to thundering snares and bass drums. In the hands of skilled composer like Wintory, a range of percussion adds color and excitement. But sometimes, all that percussive energy devolves into something like a musical cliche.
Back to an Earlier Age
So, if Towerborne’s action combat isn’t underscored by drums, what generates excitement? Nineteenth century composers like Beethoven and Brahms wrote a lot of music that was full of energy, and they did it with only timpani in the percussion section. They used complex harmony, counterpoint (i.e. simultaneous melodic lines weaving together) and development to generate momentum. These were the musical techniques Wintory brought to Towerborne.
It works. I got to preview a few action-focused cues and the absence of drums was an irrelevant aside. Instead, the music was a whirl of changing textures, rhythms and colors. But of course, in any media, the music is usually not the star. It’s there to add emotional support or to drive home the energy of the action. In a game, where the player often repeats a section multiple times, the music has to stand up to repeated listening. I suspect that won’t be an issue in Towerborne.
Wintory also explained that the soundtrack was recorded by a live orchestra — obviously — but without overdubs. In practical terms, this means that the musical gestures have to be played in real time by the orchestra. There’s no layering after the fact. This further stress-tests the composer’s technical chops.
True Partnership
In addition to taking a deep dive into the music, Wintory and Jorgensen spoke at length about their longtime working relationship. It stretches as far back as the first Banner Saga game a decade ago. Even then, Jorgensen and Stoic trusted Wintory to bring his specific vision to the project. Interestingly, that first Banner Saga game used only wind instruments. The absence of strings brought a bit of Nordic ice to the Viking-themed game.
It’s clear that Stoic and Wintory closely collaborate at a much more fundamental level than simply writing music after the fact. Ideas are exchanged as the game develops. It seems like an obvious way of working, but it’s probably more the exception.
Towerborne’s real time, cooperative action is a departure from the Banner Saga template. Wintory’s musical toolkit is likewise unique. But that’s the way he approaches every project, with fresh ears and open to whatever creative vision best supports the game.
Thanks to Arnie Jorgensen, Austin Wintory and Stoic Studios. Towerborne releases into Early Access on September 10. Austin Wintory’s music can be found on Bandcamp.