Inon Zur is the experienced and extremely talented composer working on the soundtrack for Crysis. All of the songs you have heard in the various Crysis trailers and tech demonstrations have been created by Inon. In the Q&A below, you\'ll get an insight into what it\'s like to compose for a AAA game like Crysis. I\'d like to thank Inon Zur for his time and great answers, as well as Inon\'s press manager Greg O\'Connor-Real for his assistance in organizing this.


The Q&A

1) Tell us a bit about yourself Inon?

I was born in Israel, and got into music from a very early age. I started playing piano and French horn, and began studying composition at the age of 10. Later in 1990, I came to the US and studied at the Grove School of Music and UCLA. Following that, I composed a lot of music for TV and some movies. Then in 1997, I was approached to compose music for a video game. I loved the concept and as I enjoyed gaming very much, I started composing for some AAA titles.


2): How many films, television shows and games have you worked on??

I have composed hundreds of TV shows and more than 40 video games. I enjoy composing for these different kinds of media.


3) Is composing for film, television and games hard to get into?

TV and film are very competitive fields; as you move higher up in the ranks, the higher the competition. I would say that the gaming industry is a little more open and less conservative than both the film and TV industry.


4) How did you get the job of creating the soundtrack for Crysis?

Like lots of other projects, I pitched my music. I knew the audio director at Crytek, Joe Zanjonc, since we already had a working relationship.


5) Have you played Crysis at all, and do you play any pc games in your spare time?

I have not played Crysis yet, but I saw many videos of the gameplay, enough to get the feel of it. I think this is a really ground-breaking game from all perspectives: visually, technically and sonically. I usually play console platform games more than PC games but I think that Crysis is going to change that.


6) Where do you begin when you\'re asked to compose a song of a certain tempo and mood?

There are many ways to describe an emotion, and this is what it is all about when it comes to the music. A good musical score, in my opinion, is the one that manages to capture the real emotions in the scene, and not trying to describe the actual picture. When you actually hit a moment of drama in the game, it should capture the player�s feeling and reaction to it and not the event itself. You compose from this point of view, and then you let your feelings and instincts as a composer lead you. For example, if it�s a chase, I would try to capture the actual heart beats and the stress that comes from it, with a music interpretation.


7) What software do you use?

For composing I use Cubase, and Giga studio, and Contact for sound libraries.


8) What sound equipment/hardware do you use?

Today most of the mixing and sounds are computer-generated. For main monitors [speakers] I�m using Genelec, secondary monitors are Event, my mixer is the Mackie D8B, some other effects and a secondary Mackie mixer.


9) Do you ever find it difficult to think of a good tune? What do you do when you can\'t get any inspiration?

It really depends. Some mornings I wake up and will have a tune ready to go, and other times I�m just scrambling and having a hard time finding what I�m looking for. I sometimes turn to classical composers like Prokofiev or Stravinsky to get inspired.


10) Many fans have fallen in love with the song used in the first Crysis trailer. Can you share with us where you got your inspiration for that song?

When I started to work on Crysis, I was looking for a simple but powerful motif that would be the body and soul of the Crysis soundtrack. I came up with this melody and together with Crytek�s development team I finessed it to its final shape. The trailer music is being carried by this motif.


11) Where did you work from when creating the music for Crysis? Did you have to visit Crytek in Germany much, if at all?

No. I actually never went to Germany for Crysis, I worked from my project studio in LA.


12) When did you commence and complete work on Crysis?

At the time of writing this interview it�s not fully completed yet. I have more cinematics to score, and maybe some more in-game cues to write before I can say that I am done with this score.


13) On a scale of 1 through to 10, how much did you enjoy working on Crysis in comparison to other projects?

I can definitely give it a comfortable nine. It was relatively smooth and I received very good support from the team. They knew what they were looking for and I didn�t have to go through a lot of hit and miss ideas that happen from time to time when working on a game.


For more information, please visit the following two websites:

www.inonzur.com
www.myspace.com/inonzur