Jesper Kyd The Music Man
Official Xbox Magazine|August 2019

IF YOU’VE PLAYED AN XBOX GAME IN THE LAST DECADE, YOU’LL BE FAMILIAR WITH HIS WORK, AND MAYBE NOT EVEN REALISE IT. OXM TALKS TO THE COMPOSER RESPONSIBLE FOR SOME OF THE BEST VIDEOGAME SOUNDTRACKS OF ALL TIME

Chris Burke
Jesper Kyd The Music Man

As games become ever more cinematic and immersive, it falls to composers like Jesper Kyd to soundtrack our experiences with suitably dynamic and effective scores. a select discography reveals his hand in the hitman franchise, assassin’s creed’s ezio trilogy, borderlands and State of Decay. We asked Jesper about his latest soundtrack for borderlands 3, reinventing Renaissance music and just how he approaches scoring massive open-world games.

What started you composing, and what interested you in musical scores in particular?

The Commodore 64 was the machine that first allowed me to put my arrangements and musical ideas together. Before the C64 I was mostly fiddling on the piano in our house. My uncles and aunts and grandparents all had pianos, and so when spending time with family I often continued playing on them and exploring ideas. By this time I had spent five years playing classical guitar, singing in a choir and studying note reading. Around the time of the C64 I started studying composition on piano. I took all these classes after school.

What was the first videogame score you did?

The Amiga game USS John Young for Magic Bytes and Interactivision in 1989. This naval simulator only needed one track, though. My first full-length score was for Sub-Terrania on the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis.

You were friends with the guys who formed IO, and you ended up scoring Hitman.

Esta historia es de la edición August 2019 de Official Xbox Magazine.

Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.

Esta historia es de la edición August 2019 de Official Xbox Magazine.

Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.

MÁS HISTORIAS DE OFFICIAL XBOX MAGAZINEVer todo
Why I love... Roaming the post-apocalypse
Official Xbox Magazine

Why I love... Roaming the post-apocalypse

How modern releases are continuing to find creativity and beauty within gaming’s most prevalent setting: the end of the world

time-read
3 minutos  |
March 2020
10 Best Multiplayer Games
Official Xbox Magazine

10 Best Multiplayer Games

From shooters to kitchen chaos, these titles are best played with friends

time-read
6 minutos  |
April 2020
Revved up and ready to go
Official Xbox Magazine

Revved up and ready to go

EA hands the wheel of Need For Speed back over to Criterion Games

time-read
2 minutos  |
April 2020
The Elder Scrolls Online: Greymoor
Official Xbox Magazine

The Elder Scrolls Online: Greymoor

Return to Tamriel’s frigid North this summer Chris Burke

time-read
3 minutos  |
April 2020
Remothered: Broken Porcelain
Official Xbox Magazine

Remothered: Broken Porcelain

We’re going potty for this cult classic survival horror sequel

time-read
2 minutos  |
April 2020
Yakuza 0 Yakuza Kiwami Yakuza Kiwami 2
Official Xbox Magazine

Yakuza 0 Yakuza Kiwami Yakuza Kiwami 2

Triple trouble: Sega’s crime drama trio brings glorious thug‑thumping action to Xbox

time-read
3 minutos  |
April 2020
Mosaic
Official Xbox Magazine

Mosaic

ALL AROUND ME ARE FAMILIAR OFFICE SPACES

time-read
4 minutos  |
April 2020
The Falconeer
Official Xbox Magazine

The Falconeer

Savouring the joys of flight with an indie that’s living on a (gigantic) wing and a prayer

time-read
2 minutos  |
April 2020
10 Best Examples Of Great Architecture On Xbox
Official Xbox Magazine

10 Best Examples Of Great Architecture On Xbox

Games are crammed full of gorgeously crafted designs and architecture. From gables to gargoyles, we look at the best building designs on Xbox One

time-read
5 minutos  |
March 2020
THE PROMISED 'LANDS
Official Xbox Magazine

THE PROMISED 'LANDS

With so many great games competing for our time, how do you keep gamers locking and loading? Gearbox’s looter-shooter, Borderlands 3, knows how…

time-read
6 minutos  |
March 2020