Listen to Prince Of Persia Score on Tom Salta Website:

http://www.tomsalta.com/behindPrinceOfPersia.html

 

 

Mister Salta, have you already played the new Prince of Persia game? Could you tell us something about the gameplay and the story?

 I worked on the Wii version of the game and although I can’t disclose too much ahead of the release, I can tell you that the Prince has three special sand powers: the Sand Ring, the Sand Pillar and the Sand Sphere.  It becomes particularly fun when you have to figure out how to use multiple powers to get through a level.

  

Many fans didn’t like the last one («Prince of Persia», published 2008),  because the prince lost his style, his character, his morbid and gloomy outlook. And it isn’t as evil and brutal as the other titles. Also, the graphics changed. Do you think that Ubisoft is now going a step back to the original games and returning to the successful formula of «Prince of Persia – The Sands of Time», «Prince of Persia – The Two Thrones» and «Prince of Persia - Warrior Within»?  

I can’t really speak for Ubisoft, but I can tell you for sure that all the team members I spoke to in Quebec knew very well how popular The Sands of Time was and made a conscious effort to preserve and build upon many of the elements that made that game so popular.

  

What has changed for the music? What kind of instruments are you using for scoring this sequel to the Prince of Persia The Sands of Time series? Are you employing choir and orchestra? Maybe some oriental or Persian style? Are you using any of the early themes and spiritual essences from The Sands of Time games? How would you describe your music style for this Prince of Persia game in general?

We wanted to do something very unique and special with the music. We consciously avoided many of the typical instruments you might expect like orchestra, choir, electric guitar, or anything that sounded electronic. Instead we wanted to create an artistically woven, authentic and dream-like score using a myriad of live instruments, vocalists and my own personal library of sounds.

How do you know which instrument is the right instrument for the corresponding game scene? What gives you this assurance? We read on the internet that you recorded some special instruments especially built and constructed. Is this a way to find new sounds and how do you chose them? Did you perform these instruments as well?

Ubisoft provided me with captures of the entire game played through.  Even though it was rough, it still gave me a good indication of the mood and feel of the various levels.  There were so many incredible locations, it was easy and fun for me to conjure up different soundscapes and moods to fit the levels. Sometimes, I had a clear idea ahead of time of what kinds of sounds I wanted to use for various levels.  For example, in the cue called “Water Bearer“, many of the sounds were based on water samples.  Michael Masley had an instrument he created which had water in it and you can hear the water swishing around… it was very cool.

 

What kind of information, requirements or advice did you receive before you started writing for «Prince of Persia – The Forgotten Sands»? Did you receive any storyboards or artwork to get some ideas? Were you playing the game beforehand? Is this procedure always the same for every game you have composed?

This project offered me the rare opportunity to be able to sit down with the Ubisoft team ahead of time and actually play the game.  It was invaluable to have extensive discussions with them and talk about the creative vision and direction.  It also allowed me to come up with suggestions on how we could best use the audio engine for the Nintendo Wii. I wish this was the case with all the projects I work on, but unfortunately it’s not always possible.

Azam Ali     Judith Bérard

Could you tell us about working with Judith Bérard, Bashiri Johnson and Azam Ali? Is it the first time that you have worked with those vocalists/musicians? If not, where did you first meet them or which project was the first one together? What were the roles of Bashiri, Bérard and Azam in your score? Who sings and performs on which tracks?

I recorded a lot of very talented performers for this score. Each of them added to the richly detailed and eclectic textures of the score. I’ve known Judith and Bashiri for years going back to my days in the record business working on albums.  I discovered Azam while doing research for this project.  As soon as I heard her voice, I knew she would be ideal for the style I was planning on creating.

 I called upon several other performers as well including Daniel Berkman.  He was incredible on the Kora and Khangira. Michael Masley was another invaluable addition to the project. He plays one-of-a-kind instruments that he has modified or created from scratch. And there were several other talented musicians involved including Mohamed Chaoua, Scott Wilson, Leni Wilson and Sandro Friedrich.  It was really a dream project having all these wonderful musicians contributing to the score.

 

In which kinds of game scenes are you using the percussion of Bashiri Johnson? For dramatic moments and actions scenes or more for atmosphere and easy background music or emotions?  

Bashiri’s performances are sprinkled throughout the entire score.  I recorded him early on so I didn’t know exactly which scenes they would be used for; I was just focussing on creating some strong ideas we could use in the score.  You can easily hear a lot of his unique sounds on the tracks “Sacred Ascent" and “The Peri (Zahra's Theme)“.  Those were two of the first cues I wrote.

 

Are you performing on the recording sessions or are you only composing and writing the soundtrack for the orchestra and musicians? How many musicians are involved in a score of this level? Are you conducting too?

Other than the various soloists I hired, I wrote and performed the entire soundtrack in my studio.  I use a keyboard to play in all my parts, including the sampled percussion.  There was no orchestra whatsoever on this score.

 

Do you write your music on computer or by hand on paper? What kind of software are you using to write the score?

 I’m more comfortable creating my music on a computer rather than pencil and paper.  I use Logic Pro on Mac.

       

Will there be a CD release available for «Prince of Persia – The Forgotten Sands»? If yes, when does it come and which label is releasing it?

 I hope there will be a CD release but there’s no official word yet.  More likely is a digital release, but that hasn’t been confirmed yet. Stay tuned to my website www.tomsalta.com and Facebook for the latest news on that.

 

Are you a gamer too? If yes, what kind of videogames are you playing (action, adventure, racing, sport…)? 

Oh yeah, I’m an avid gamer for sure. I’ve been gaming since the pre-Atari 2600 days.  I usually prefer the action/adventure games but I love variety and games that break the mould.  For example, one of the most unique games I recently played was Flower on PS3.  I found the experience both fun and relaxing at the same time, almost like playing a poem.

 

If you play video games, which platforms do you play?

I have an Xbox 360, Sony PS3, Nintendo Wii, DS and an iPod Touch.  But I have so little time to play games these days that I have to focus on the must-play titles. But I find it valuable to have all the consoles which allow me to keep up-to-date with the most important releases out there, regardless of platform.

 

Disney/Pixar recently licensed one of your Atlas Plug album tracks for their latest  «Toy Story 3» online trailer. How did that happen? 

My publisher handles those kinds of licensing deals for all my Atlas Plug music.  The most surprising thing is that I never would have expected a franchise like Toy Story to use music as edgey and modern sounding as Atlas Plug. But I think that was the point.  Apparently, they wanted to appeal the original fans of the first two movies who are now entering their teens.

                    

Tell us more about Atlas Plug?

 Atlas Plug is a very personal and important part of my career.  It was the first time I decided to create a solo project. I think the best way to describe the style is high octane electronica mixed with a touch of orchestral music. I decided to create this second identity for myself (Atlas is Salta spelled backwards) and release an album as my introduction into the video game industry.  Most of the tracks are designed to be compatible for licensing into video games, television and film trailers.  To date, every track on the album has been licensed, which was a really gratifying accomplishment. One of the most wild coincidences was shortly after I scored Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter and I attended a demo of it at E3.  I was sitting in the audience and they started the presentation with an Atlas Plug song I never even knew they requested a license to use it and the people licensing the track didn’t even know the composer of the game was actually Atlas Plug!

 

What about your next projects...? What is going to come after «Prince of Persia – The Forgotten Sands»? What are you composing right now? What else would you like to compose or be a part of (your dreams and wishes)?

 I’m currently working on a sequel to a game I’ve already scored, but I’m not allowed to discuss anything specific.  As far as other games I’d like to work on, there are just too many possibilities to imagine, which is I why I love games so much.  But I would definitely love to score another Prince of Persia and perhaps a cool Sci-Fi project.

 

What do you do in your free time? What kind of music do you listen to, if it isn’t a soundtrack or score?

 Free time?  What is that? {laughs}  When I’m not in the studio, I try to spend as much time with my family as possible.  I have two boys who are growing up too fast.  I’ll never have these days back again and I don’t want to miss it.  As far as music goes, I definitely try to avoid listening to anything work-related, and that includes soundtracks. I’m a very active listener so when music is playing I’m always analyzing it.  That’s why I enjoy music that is very different than what I’m working on.  It can be anything like classic rock, pop, classical, jazz, etc. as long as it's good quality music.

 

Anything else you would like to add for our readers?

 Thanks for reading this and please stop by my website and visit me on Facebook.  I love interacting with fans of the music.

  

Thank you very much for your time and all the best from Switzerland and France.

My pleasure.