The São Paulo Composer Discusses Why 'Everything Is a Matter of Naturalness' in His Game Scores

With hair more meticulously groomed than that of all the independent developers I know combined, Antonio Teoli is a departure from the typical game composer we’re used to. His music veers away from synthetic structures, using classical references to describe the modern, instead of the familiar selection of electronic timbres that accompany most games developed in recent decades.

Despite being a video game score author, listening to Teoli’s work makes it clear that the musical concept in his mind is as fundamental as the game itself.

Curious about his creative process, I spoke with the composer—directly from Manaus—about classical references, the Sonic soundtrack, and why it’s not always necessary to have traditional musical training to excel in creating game music.

Red Bull: When did you start working with music and audio production?

Antonio Teoli: I’ve been studying music since I was 7. I started with piano, influenced and encouraged by my parents. At 12, I began studying guitar and classical guitar, and at 15, I joined a local orchestra in São Paulo. In 2002, I began working on a game developed by a group of friends. In 2003, when I started a game design course [at Anhembi Morumbi University], I was hired by one of the largest Brazilian game companies, the now-defunct Devworks. There, I composed for around 380 games, including web, PC, mobile, Master System, and Mega Drive. In 2008, I joined Hoplon to work on the game Taikodom. I stayed at Hoplon until the end of 2012, and my life started getting more hectic. In 2013, I was hired by Samsung in Amazonas to handle the audio for their games. And here I am today.

'Trailer de Horror at the Village' - “A clearly classic mix with elements of Goldsmith but adapted to a modern language.”

What are your biggest inspirations, both inside and outside of games?

Unfortunately, all my inspirations are gone. Bernard Hermann, Jerry Goldsmith, Korngold, Beethoven, Tom Jobim, Frank Zappa. Perhaps the few still alive are, of course, John Williams, Danny Elfman, Hans Zimmer, John Powell, Koji Kondo, Jun Senoue, among others. But really, my main influence, aside from John Williams, comes from these departed heroes.

What is your biggest challenge when creating a soundtrack?

I don’t have the famous “composer’s block,” which allows me to arrange and compose music very incisively and quickly. The biggest challenge is always the first project with a client or developer you’ve never worked with before. When the second project comes, you already know what the director likes in terms of instrument, arrangement, ideas, so you end up feeling more secure.

'Galaxy 11: Alien World' - “There’s an alien invasion on Earth that needs to be stopped by players who run through a frenetic scenario. It’s the classic translated into the modern, with experimental percussion complementing it.”

Do you prefer creating music with or without the game ready in front of you?

Hmm, I prefer the director to give me as much insight into their vision as possible. Whether through a demo build, a concept, a storyboard, a game design document, or a story, it all works. I need the director to tell me where they want me to go in terms of feelings, and then my brain and soul translate that into my musical language. I usually tell them, “The feeling will be there; just don’t ask me what its clothing will be.”

Regarding my process, well… my main allies are a notebook and the voice recorder on my phone. Whenever something comes to mind, I record the melody or idea and start making a preliminary arrangement in the notebook. I even take my phone into the shower because you never know when an idea might come. From there, my traditional composition process begins, which includes sheet music, orchestrations, arrangements, experimental instruments, effects, mixing, musical interactivity in the game, and so on.

'E.G. - Mini Game' - “For this project, simplicity was everything. Nothing more was needed than some guitars, a bass, and a few percussions.”

Your scores tend more towards orchestrated arrangements rather than synthesized beats and riffs. Why do you think you prefer creating something more classical than modern?

Well, this comes from my background and classical inspirations. I simply enjoy creating more classical music with complex arrangements. However, today I’m mixing various elements with classical music. My influences have helped and continue to help with musical resolution, harmonies, arrangements, orchestrations, voice leading, and such, and that’s become part of my natural language. I think everything is a matter of naturalness. I’ve done a lot of chiptune when I composed for Mega Drive and Master System, and it was a nice experience, but I felt it wasn’t my natural fit. So, naturally, I always seek more real instruments because I think that for most of the projects I’ve worked on and still work on, these end up working better according to the proposal.

Despite being able to create complex compositions, many great game composers, like Nobuo Uematsu, don’t have formal musical training. Do you think it’s possible to enter the game market today without formal musical education?

That’s a recurring question. Danny Elfman also isn’t formally trained and composed, in my opinion, one of the most beautiful pieces of the industry in Edward Scissorhands. But from my own experience, I think this gap may not be a problem if you have a team to compensate, as in Danny Elfman’s case, who had Steve Bartek as orchestrator and Kevin Shirley as conductor, who also, by coincidence, didn’t have classical training. That said, having classical training helps, but it’s not crucial. The most important thing in this market is delivering things on time and with quality. Knowledge is just a tool to assist our creativity. The more tools you have, the faster you get the job done, and in the end, your music will speak for itself, whether or not you have musical training.

'Taikodom - Classic Uranus' - “A completely classical line, this is my style in its purest form. The Taikodom soundtrack is one I’m most proud of, and this track is one of my favorites.”

If you could be invited to create the soundtrack for any game, past or future, which one would it be?

Without a doubt, Sonic. It’s the game that got me here today and will always continue to motivate me to work with music and audio for games. Even though the recent Sonic games haven’t been as good as the classics, my love for it is unconditional.

How do you see the growth of the indie scene in the country and where do you think we’re heading?

I think the market as a whole is moving towards being more accessible and easier for everyone. You no longer need to rely on big publishers to get your game released. Of course, the reach of your game depends a bit on that, but there are developers who manage to make fantastic viral [promotions for their games]. Many say Brazil is still crawling in this market. I disagree; the country stopped crawling many years ago and is now moving properly. It’s not moving at the same speed as the countries considered major powerhouses in the market, but it is definitely progressing. I’ve composed for almost 450 games; I can’t say this industry is crawling because that’s a pretty high number to think that way. I see that we have potential, but there’s still a long way to go. But as Frank Zappa told Steve Vai one day: “Never stop and keep moving forward.”