Blogs - RonnieScholtes

0 comments by RonnieScholtes on May 15th, 2013

Hi guys,

I decided to write part 2 of my list of best game OST's. This is not a top 10 or whatever, more a list of soundtracks that have touched and inspired me as a composer.

I noticed I had only listed current gen games the last time, so it's time to retro things up a bit.

Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty
Harry Gregson Williams is originally a filmscore composer. He was asked because of this. Kojima wanted the game to sound like a movie. Nowadays this is a common thing, but back then, this was groundbreaking stuff. An actual Hollywood composer scoring a game. I love what he did to the main theme, but the entire soundtrack is great.

Final Fantasy X
I love FF soundtracks. Nobuo's work is magical. He writes very recognizable melodies. VII, VIII are great as well, but X holds the most special place in my heart as a game. I also love the piano collections albums. They're in part why I started playing the piano. I'm proud to admit that I mastered 3 of these brilliant reworks of popular FF themes. I really like how subtly the Suteki Da Ne theme has been used over and over in the soundtrack. A friend of mine never noticed this before, probably because there's so much difference in the ways that it has been reused. The theme never gets old.
I like the entire FFX OST, but one of my favorites has to be this one:
 
Alone in the Dark
This has to be one of my all time favorites. The game has been received poorly, which I thought was pretty harsh. Yeah, the game's mechanics don't always work the way you want them to, it gets bugged to the point of frustration, but it had some cool ideas. But what really made this game stand out for me, and made me finish this, is the OST. Epic. Just epic. A Bulgarian choir was used for the choirs, but other than that, I read that this was all electronic. So all of the symphonic sounds were sampled. When I first read that that was possible, it inspired me to start composing that kind of soundtrack too. I always loved the epic sound of an orchestra, but it never occurred to me that MIDI information and a few sample libraries could produce the same kind of sound.

0 comments by RonnieScholtes on Apr 30th, 2013

Hi guys,

So I thought I'd list a few of my biggest inspirations in terms of soundtracks. I'm 23 years old now and have been gaming throughout my entire life, so I've played quite a few games. What I can conclude is that the Soundtrack of a game can make a game more than what it is. If it's really good, it can even make a technically flawed game playable and memorable.

I don't wanna do a top 10 or whatever. I don't think lists like these do the products justice, neither can I rank them. I just know what I like. :D

Bioshock: Infinite
So the most recent is Bioshock: Infinite. I like how Schyman had used conventional instruments in a very unconventional way. Some of the rhythms are particularly strange and add to the sense of estrangement that's part of the game's world. I also like the drums a lot. ''Songbird'' is a personal favorite of mine.
 
DMC: Devil May Cry
Next up is DMC: Devil May Cry. I love Noisia's work on this one, but I especially like the developers choice to have him compose the entire soundtrack. It's really smart. He manages to not only put together the dubstep/ drumnbass kind of music that he's known for, but he masterfully incorporates filmic elements to actually make it sound like a soundtrack. Not only that, but it fits DMC. Finally they leave behind the repetitive rock guitars and go along with the times. Mark my words, more games will follow in DMC's footsteps on this one.

Ghost Recon: Future Soldier
This OST is quite standard, with some high moments. The ambient pieces don't really stand out, but I just had to mention this soundtrack, if only just for one piece: Tom Salta - Bolivia Streets. This is pure art. Extremely well composed. It's complex, it build perfectly, it uses Spanish rhythms and harmonies. I just love it. LOVE it. :)

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Just magical. The amount of music that has been composed for this game is epic in itself. There's so much in this game, all tailored to fit the players experience. And I know that a lot of developers use these terms, but they actually pulled it off. The music shifts seamlessly from one piece to another. The overall style is magical. I could just listen to most of it, without even playing the game. The amount of effort that has been put into this pays off.

So I've got 4 so far. I'll continue this at another time. Maybe make a weekly thing out of it.

Leave your thoughts in the comments below.

Much love,

Ronnie Scholtes

0 comments by RonnieScholtes on Apr 28th, 2013

So I've been asked to compose the soundtrack for Mafia Times: Traces of Red. It will be a FPS game. There's a dedicated team working hard to create something special. For more info on the game, visit the official website.

I composed the first piece of music for the opening level. As the title implies, it will take place in a train station. It will be a heavy shootout. I've been asked to compose something orchestral. It had to be adrenaline filled and contain a ''big'' sound. You can listen to the final result below.

Please let me know what you think in the comments :)

Much love,

Ronnie Scholtes

2 comments by RonnieScholtes on Apr 8th, 2013

Hi guys!

So I've created a Bandcamp account. The complete EP 'O.U.T.' can be downloaded there, including Friday's Club Remix. So for all of you interested, please head there. All of your support is really appreciated! :)

Work for Mafia Titanic is also almost done. I'm currently composing the theme for the final battle. For me, it's almost as if it's the grand finale for me as well. I've worked on this mod's soundtrack for almost a year now. I'm using previous themes and combining them to create the ultimate epic battle theme. It's great to do. I'll miss the project, but there's also a new title on the horizon. A new game called: Mafia Times. But more on that later. ;)

In the meantime, please enjoy my music on Bandcamp. :)

Much love,

Ronnie Scholtes 

Mafia Titanic Mod - Soundtrack Preview - Mod DB

0 comments by RonnieScholtes on Mar 19th, 2013

Hi guys!

Omg, I'm soooo busy!!!

I've finished a new track for Samurai Legends' OST. It'll be the theme you hear when you explore. I got to use a lot of new samples for this one. Especially Spirit Flute has been great to me, but the Water Percussion samples have helped me create a kind of unconventional drumloop. Hear it for yourself.

My Soundcloud has become more and more visited the last few weeks, with even a few collaboration requests. I'm really too busy to be doing any of that stuff, but I'll take what I can take on.

Jeron and I also just released a brand new remix of Friday. It's a dance track, a little out of our comfort zone, but a lot of fun nonetheless. I hope you like it.

Greetz,

Ronnie Scholtes

0 comments by RonnieScholtes on Mar 4th, 2013

Hi guys!

O.U.T. has received a lot of praise. We're happy with the way things are going right now, and we're far from done making music. Two new tracks are on their way, including a dance remix of Friday.

On another note, I'm still working on my mods and game OST's. I've even been asked to do a loading screen theme for a small game. It will be a Mafia FPS game. More info will come as soon as I have something solid.

Meanwhile, please check out Jeron - Who We Are.

0 comments by RonnieScholtes on Feb 17th, 2013

Hi guys!

Today was another good day! I made a great start remixing Jeron - Friday! It’s going to be a banger people! It will be electro house/ dance. It will hopefully release within two weeks so stay tuned!

Jeron and I got our first fan today. He’s from Germany and he’s been really enthusiastic about our songs on Soundcloud. It feels great to have people worldwide appreciate what we do. We love doing it and being recognized for it makes it that much more special.So check out my Soundcloud page if you want to remain updated with the latest songs!

Ronnie Scholtes

0 comments by RonnieScholtes on Feb 11th, 2013

Hi guys!

Thanks for all the support I received!
My EP is finally out. Months of hard work have been put into it.
Soundcloud.com

You might notice the new artwork. It's been pimped up a bit, since last Friday.
LIsten, enjoy, follow, share and like!
Follow Jeron Official on Soundcloud:

Ronnie Scholtes

0 comments by RonnieScholtes on Feb 8th, 2013

Hi guys!

Jeron and I had a photoshoot yesterday and we proudly present the cover art for O.U.T. :

We're extremely proud of the visual style we managed to capture. We can say with certainty that this is exactly what we envisioned. The music will be released next Monday so stay tuned!
I still have a lot of mixing and mastering to do, so I'll leave you with a link to the official Jeron soundcloud page  and a sneak peak of the studio recordings below.
Thanks again for reading and watching! :)
Ronnie Scholtes 

0 comments by RonnieScholtes on Feb 4th, 2013

Hi guys!

I just started an extremely busy week today. Jeron and I are wrapping up the release of our demo. The title will be O.U.T. which stands for: Our Unique Thoughts. ''Friday'' (which can be heard in my videos) is one of the 3 songs that will be on it. We'll be recording next Wednesday and we have a photoshoot coming up next Thursday. The shoot will be for the cover art of the demo. We've taken the concept of OUT and it should look like Jeron's breaking through the cover image with pieces of broken glass. It will be online next week. When it's out, you'll be updated of course!
You can also follow me on Soundcloud or Facebook

Here's a preview of ''Breakdown'':