[b]Hello Jojo! [/b] Would you like to introduce yourself? [i]I’m Joakim Nordborg, most commonly called Jojo in the office and I'm the resident sound designer/musician/audio person at Palindrome Interactive. If its got anything to do with sound or music it has most likely passed through my hands at one point or another during development. [/i] [b]The piece of music we’re looking at today is the main theme of the game, and also the Crab Clan’s theme. How did the Crab Clan’s lore, culture and motto inspire the creation of this theme? [/b] [i]So the main theme of the game takes its inspiration from the Crab Clan’s motto. Courage, Duty, Sacrifice. By using the syllables in the motto I created a rhythmic motif that I wanted to put at the base of the musical identity of the clan. Building upon that with Japanese instrumentation and heavy use of the Koto I wanted to craft a track that resonated with the somewhat unpolished nature of the Crab Clan. They don’t have time for courtly games, they don’t have time for the niceties that other clans dabble with due to the duty that lies heavy upon them, the protection of the Empire and holding the Kaiu wall. All of this led me to choose an instrumentation that I hope represents the feeling of the Crab holding the wall against any enemy that might threaten Rokugan. [/i] [b]How did you balance authenticity towards the franchise with creative freedom when you started working on Shadowveil: Legend of the Five Rings? Were there specific instruments or scales you felt were essential to capture the atmosphere?[/b] [i]By working with restrictions and not straying too far from the image of the world. By focusing the instrumentation around mainly two instruments, the Koto and the Shakuhachi. I wanted to firmly set the listener's mind that the core of the music reflects some of the instruments that might be found in Rokugan. However, to tap into that creative freedom I still wanted to use instruments from all across the world, mixing them into something that I hope is reflective of the tone of the franchise. [/i] [b]What emotions or story beats were you most focused on capturing in the music? [/b] [i]The brashness and directness of the Crab Clan contrasted with the deceitfulness and the dangers of the shadowlands.[/i] [b]Were there any technical or conceptual challenges during the creation of the score you'd like to highlight? [/b] [i]Finding a core identity for how we should represent the Shadowlands was probably one of the areas where I had to iterate the most. Stretching the limits of what kind of instruments could be used as trying to find a good way of playing around with the restrictions that existed. I wanted it to feel like there was a clear contrast between the lands of Rokugan and the darkness of the Shadowlands. [/i] [b]Did you have any personal connections to the musical styles or instruments you used in this project? Did this influence how you approached the process of putting the score together?[/b] [i]I’m a guitarist at my core so most of the instruments as well as the musical styles were somewhat new to me but there are similarities in how one can approach the sound and feel of the game. As such most of the Koto themes were first written for guitar and then translated into a more fitting score. [/i] [b]How do you want players to feel while listening to the soundtrack during gameplay?[/b] [i]Immersed, that is probably what i’ve been looking forward the most to hearing if the soundscape and soundtrack connects with the world and the ip, to hear if the players get that feeling of “Ah, this is what Rokugan could sound like”! [/i] Thank you Jojo, for your time and for providing a look (or, a listen) behind the scenes! Listen to the full Main Theme here: [previewyoutube=OirKVUIoqdI;full][/previewyoutube]