Borislav Slavov shares unheard version of Song of Balduran & his pitch for Down By the River | BAFTA

[@TheClassyGamesman]

My 4-year-old daughter loves smacking drums, strumming guitars, playing ocarinas... any instrument that happens to be around. Last Fall I was playing BG3 for the first time, maybe half an hour into the character creator, when she suddenly dashed to the piano. She bounced around notes for fun like she usually does, but eventually worked out, "Down, down, down, by the river." It was the first time she'd taught herself a melody. It was a magical moment I'll never forget.

[@ana_shep]

Wish Borislav could see this

[@kukundrela]

This is lovely :)

[@Xenbjorn]

My 4yo daughter did the same thing!!! It's her favorite song, she hums it all the time and has taught herself to play it on her little toddler piano.

[@crispinbaconator]

I would’ve cried tears of joy. What a proud parent moment. Magic is real.

[@wiewioragaming5726]

you have a talented daughter! Cherish her.

[@greyroo]

There is not one single person I have seen in videos who have been in any way involved in Baldurs Gate 3, who have not made me shed a tear of joy listening to them explain their passion for this game.

[@YeOldeGoblin]

I feel this.

[@foxbiscuit]

You can feel every ounce of passion that was poured into this game. It never ceases to amaze me.

[@shimomiaizo]

Applauding BAFTA for doing this piece. Cannot even begin to tell you how much I love every, single, piece, of music, or should I say "blends" of music, uplifted and magicalized the game for me. Borislav Slavov is a legendary composer; he talked about his craft and his way of crafting with such power, humbleness, passion and love. His skill is different from musicians who made their own albums or directed a concert; to me it felt like Larian gave him a rough, rough pencil-on-paper storyboard sketch, and he somehow made a 10-meter tall, 100-meter long oil painting mural out of it. Sir, incredible job. Salutations.

[@doloresabernathy9809]

Bravo!! For me the music is half of the amazing magic of the game. The game itself is a symphony played by hundreds (or more?) creators. Boris’ music binds it all together.

[@_Alex_F]

Borislav Slavov is such a gem, this dude is FOR REAL. He must be protected at all costs.

[@WaterGuuru]

he even looks like a bard

[@TBHJR]

Just one of the best scores of all-time in any medium. Just a genius piece of music in general.

[@marky.9554]

I was at this event and lucky enough to meet him afterwards. He was as lovely and humble as you would expect.

[@sub-jec-tiv]

The kind of person you'd love to sit next to at a dinner party.

[@jussikout1n]

Yes, emotion. The bare bones guitar version of "Down by the River" hit me right into the feels. No... You're crying!

[@guardian-X]

Borislav's music has really touched me deep, and creates a multitude of feelings. I think that is the best kind of music, the music that let's you feel. Thank you for all your work!

[@SereglothIV]

Baldur's Gate 3 and Divinity Original Sin 2 are without question my two favourite video game soundtracks. Many other games have amazing and epic main themes, but these two really stand out by having most of the scores be so memorable. It was great to hear some behind the scenes details of how this music came to be and how it was evolving. And Bobby not only is an incredible composer, but such a wholesome person as well. Thank you, sir, for everything you're doing, you're a treasure!

[@e.s.r5809]

DOS2 has a fantastic soundtrack! I played it after BG3 because I was so impressed, I wanted to check out Larian's other work. That tavern music got stuck in my head for days! Very underrated game, I'm glad it's getting its own little renaissance.

[@corazonzzz]

both were good, however Divinity 2 for me is the one that gets me going!

[@Doomlike7]

Baldurs Gate 3 soundtrack will accompany me for life...This is how a music masterpiece can impact your life and be a constant "food for the soul".. Thank you from the bottom of my heart mister Borislav Slavov for your art

[@BlueCat369]

I loved hearing the creative process behind this OST. Borislav is incredible.🌟

[@feloniousbutterfly]

Was so excited he won a BAFTA for this wonderful score. He deserved this. This game has some of the best sound design of any. The music is perfect, the atmospheric sounds immerse you.

[@danih.5675]

I think one of the greastest strengths of the music of bg3 is the use of lietmotifs. In the beginning of the game, i wasnt particularly struck by the music, however the more the themes kept popping up the more i fell in love with them. By the end, during the ending credits i was crying as i played my piano along with it. Beautiful work and it added such a needed aspect of the story to bring it together. Side note, i love the decision to be able to play along with any of the bards in the game. Being able to pull out a flute while the lyre player is playing and having them join you while playing was one of my favorite things in the game

[@sub-jec-tiv]

Yeah, I'm replaying it now (I always play as a bard) :) and one of my other characters also ended up with music skills. So now it's so much fun during battles, to have them play together in combat. What a great game, so many cool little detail touches like that.

[@Pyroific]

I'm so glad to actually be able to hear him talk about the music!! i felt so bad when he was rushed off the stage during that award ceremony and he seemed very overwhelmed at the time, this was a real treat to sit and relax with. his music in this game truly made it so special for me and gets stuck in my head all the time still!

[@viscolex]

What an absolute genius. Baldur's Gate 3 is certainly among the best games I have ever played, and the music that invoked the incredible feeling through-out the experience was the Cherry on top.

[@pitchysadistic]

Love this guy he seems such a sweet soul

[@Elchinodiabolero]

Just chills throughout my whole body, such a powerful masterpiece the OST of this game is

[@yanadnadya]

His singing js so.. raw.. that its just 🥺🥺 hits different ig

[@Lindscaldwell1]

Yeah, just one of the best game soundtracks I've ever experienced. I've played through the game way too many times and the music still gives me the feels. Probably even more now, as the songs take on deeper meanings to me as time goes on. Thank you Borislav, for this gorgeous music that I will never forget.

[@maximnewman2483]

I love BAFTA and what they do to bring attention to everyone involved in the making of video games. It’s always my highlight of the gaming awards season.

[@sezkay1283]

Very educational, I feel like he is a great teacher and communicator. I loved being able to hear that original version of the theme too. What a treat.

[@kukundrela]

Borislav inspired me through emotion for my own creation (based on the book Mamnik by the Bulgarian author Vasil Popov). You can see it in my profile if you are curious. But in any case, I am just so glad that I get to experience this talk and learn so much from him. We are all lucky to bear witness to such inspiration

[@kms199x2]

I remember going to a certain spot at the camp entering act 3, cause I wanted to see the city... and the singed version started playing; at that moment I had to just stay there until the end of the song... it felt like such a special detail.

[@Northernsolstice]

Literally brought to tears by the sample of the first draft of the theme. Is it because of the journey I've been on with these characters? The emotions I felt as we transformed from the lilting, simple guitar to the grand and cinematic blaring of the horns? I don't know. But when I hear that first recording I feel the echoes of everything I've come to associate with that tune. I haven't felt this love of fantasy in a very long time.

[@Sleepingdruid37]

So much passion seeping from every person involved in this masterpiece of a game . The music will stick with ne forever.

[@Zom21]

This man is extremely beautiful soul....

[@greenwithenvy0184]

Years ago, I remember watching a behind the scenes documentary about the making of Doctor Zhivago. Maurice Jarre, who wrote the score and the iconic Lara's Theme, talked about bringing his first attempt to David Lean, sure it was technically "right." The director told him to go home, take his girlfriend out for dinner, spend some time, and write a song for her. Jarre did exactly that and wrote one of the best romantic themes in cinema. Borislav Slavov wrote from his feelings (as he says right at the beginning of this video) and created one of the best romantic themes in any game ever with Down by the River. Also anyone who objects to the comparison between Maurice Jarre and Borislav Slavov can get directly in the bin.

[@JohnAion]

Borislav Slavov is such a humble artist with profound talent. I love your music deeply. Thank you.

[@Fantomas24ARM]

This man is a genius. BG3's OST is easily one of the best in gaming history.

[@bar_bar9315]

The moment you begin to create your character and the music starts playing, it's just magical. I'm absolutely not the target of this genre. And I was just chilling, reading everything for more than an hour. I'm sure that, to many of us, Borislav's composition had a huge impact on the first impressions of the game.

[@argyrispouggouras3378]

6:00-10:00 just goosebumps and tears.

[@Rebecca-gz7ln]

This man is a genius. Two runs and didn't notice about the Song of Balduran thing but I did hear the Down By The River circus-version well... At the circus. So he really did it and it's amazing, even more after learning about all of this!

[@fatwhiteduke7417]

It's hard to convey how much this game has meant to me and I know I am just a drop in the ocean of people so deeply touched by it but the music especially is engraved in my soul, I really struggle to think of any other body of work that can so easily evoke emotion from me. Thank you so much for this masterpiece Borislav.

[@computer_toucher]

The part when you said that not only did people compliment you on a good job, they actually hummed and sang the theme: Yeah. You made a REAL good earworm. Beautiful melody, and the way you use that leidmotiv throughout is EXPERT composition. Like, I think of John Williams in the way you developed it. I hum it in my brain whenever I have to wait for the bus or whatever (as my brain works to keep me occupied, I play songs in my head). Now I want to hear more from you, and I wanna get the D:OS 1 and 2 soundtracks just for listening! And I love your comments on gaining confidence from people's reactions.

[@DimiKaye]

This was fantastic! Always inspiring to hear about the creative process and the mindset of a composer, and here mr. Slavov gives his heart and soul. Thank you!

[@r-d-v]

As someone who has recently lost their love of making music, this has helped me take a step in the right direction towards rediscovering that love. Surrounded by people who care only about technical feats in music and not just trying to explore emotions has dulled all my feelings of music and made me overly analytical. Now I know to focus on the emotion, the feeling, first and foremost. I hope I can get back to my love of writing melodies and scores, and remove the feelings of stress regarding making the music ‘right’ for others to say yes to. Thank you Borislav, your music has been so inspiring since I played D:OS2

[@moenesca]

I absolutely love this man. He also composed for Crysis 2 and 3, and those soundtracks are masterpieces in their own right.

[@mophead165]

Has anyone found a full version of the Orchestral Balduran theme online? I hope it gets released officially one day.

[@Brockxz]

I think it's on his yt channel Baldur's Gate 3 OST - Hymn Of Balduran

[@almasy87-sayuri]

@@Brockxz omg!

[@UteHempel]

I want to put the orchestral piece of Song of Balduran on full blast while driving my car. Please Bobby, release that version if you're able to!

[@adhd_and_d]

I want to hear the circus version of down by the river! 😂

[@that_annoying_alto]

Check out Dribbles the Clown track :)

[@adhd_and_d]

@@that_annoying_alto omg! It is!!!! So sneaky!

[@gwyndlin]

This soundtrack is a lot of things, but the most important part of the main theme to me is how mysterious it is. He touches on this when he says it needs to be a "hook" and when he talks about "Down by the River" transitioning into the darker orchestral theme. It makes you curious: What's *really* going on here?

[@IvanovaMaytin]

This man is absolutely amazing, we have a lot to learn from him!!!

[@rcheung135]

My first vinyl set that I've ever bought. Thank you Borislav!

[@Shamal.De-Sykes]

Raphael's final act is fantastic! I love when the pipe organ kicks in, it's so so good

[@simolukas]

This is so interesting! It's a testament to Borislav's incredible talent! So interesting , thank you very much!

[@AlmightyRawks]

Thank you Borislav for making all this music and taking some time to let all of us understand the process! I've always been fascinated by scalability of music where essentially the same song can give us such completely different emotions and experiences. You've communicated all of that to us beautifully!

[@356z]

This was such a cool panel. I hope he attempts more conventions. It also just makes me have more respect for John Williams. There are some legendary people that would be priceless to meet.

[@dudea3378]

The Song of Balduran playing in the Inn foreshadowing the reveal was an masterful decision

[@hexkink]

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for this soundtrack. Truly brings this world to life in a tangible way. This music is timeless and voices the passion of the its creator. One of a kind truly ❤❤❤❤

[@Cordis2Die]

This was really great, thank you! I love the process of creating such a strong piece of music, and I'm not a musician. I think that many things, that Borislav have said, can be applied to other forms of art, not just main themes or music in general. Emotion is a key part of art of any form.

[@TBoding]

Fantastic session! Bobby is as much a genius as he is humble. Would love to have a jam, a beer and chat with this guy - seems like a guy that is nice to hang with.

[@readingchameleon]

Wow, that's so cool! And really interesting to hear about your process - you've made it really accessible - thank you! And the raw vocals are so cool too :D

[@karebear5634]

Sometimes I'll be doing something and sing it to the tune of Down by the River. "I've ... got ... to ... let the dogs out". That song just pops in my head at random times. When I'm playing BG3 and take a break, I'm in Act 3 so I'll go to my Elfsong camp just so I can have Song of Balduran playing while I get my snack or whatever. The soundtrack is so good. I appreciate BAFTA and Borislav putting this show together!

[@Fourside__]

what a precious human beeing

[@undertonebg]

Absolute genius, I love how the main theme has been scaled and this template seems to fit for most of the pieces. It was clearly noticeable for me particularly with ''Last Shelter'' and ''Gather your Allies''. Amazing work Borislav and crew. I would love to see any events in Bulgaria - either musical or you showcasing your creative process.

[@Alithea_Ancunin]

Major spoiler ahead: 28:18 I only noticed on my second playthrough that a version of The Song of Balduran played when we learned that our dream visitor is illithid. It was such an amazing moment. Truly a gift.

[@anthonymorris1360]

Such a lovely, warm and talented person, I appreicated every minute of this.

[@caclea]

Thanks for reminding me how much I love music

[@cameronpearce5943]

Such a glorious piece

[@tchulinomu]

BORIS IS SUCH A LEGEND, SUCH A GENIOUS

[@iMusli]

Borislav did amazing work with Divinity and made something even better with Baldurs Gate. Huge respects to him.

[@RageReaver187]

Bobbi is an amazing composer and a gamer at heart. No wonder you can feel his heart and soul in his works. Loved his music in DOS2 and loving his music in BG3. Looking forward for his next steps and here's hoping that he stays with Larian longer!

[@hackbod]

DOS1's was actually Larian's original long time composer, Kirill Pokrovsky, who was also an incredible composer and greatly missed. :( (If you like the DOS1 music, listen to the music from their earlier games especially Divine Divinity and Divinity 2, which Kirill also did. Actually DOS1 has a lot of the older music in it as well, because Kirill's health was declining at that point; they had hit the Kickstarter goal to have a fully orchestrated soundtrack, but Kirill wasn't well enough to do it, and instead they pulled in a bunch of his existing music to create a really expanded score.)

[@RageReaver187]

@@hackbod oh my bad. Thank you for the clarification!

[@hackbod]

@@RageReaver187 I am happy to be able to promote Kirill's music. :)

[@vialomur__vialomur5682]

Amazing, thanks for this!

[@Allucards]

protect this man with all costs

[@imkycarsten]

Great talk from a great creator 👍

[@twistedtxb]

the world of BG3 is so diverse. sometimes goofy, sometimes grim, sometimes epic. yet this guy nailed it perfectly

[@ryouyuuichi823]

I need to hear more of that epic version of balduran 😢

[@Temptfree]

Bg3...the music and songs are what hit the right notes with our emotions and that itself is addictive.

[@thx1138tab]

Streets and faces: the absolute jewel for me ❤

[@theobrominator]

I can hear just a bar or two and identify that song! 😂 Love that soundtrack

[@markmatthews9102]

This guy is a genius. Love his work.

[@moona_ttv]

Bg3, ark survival evolved, and skyrim are the only games i can leave the music turned up ❤ such great creators of the songs

[@nightcat2076]

A true Legend MVP of music industry especially gaming music industry!

[@D3athlyV1sag3]

My dude made bangers. What a legend.

[@broshmosh]

Loved this, what an insight.

[@LaughingBearGames]

I love that they made him a Bard in the epilogue camp scene.

[@computer_toucher]

OMG love the slapback on the entering BG theme

[@AmySorrellMusic]

I absolutely adore this man. He is a global treasure. Music is the only real magic that exists and he wields it so well. ❤

[@slick3d392]

Just fantastic.

[@wiewioragaming5726]

I'm so grateful that this genius mind was walking by the river so this amazing song could be created!

[@raluca9077]

the music in BG3 is amazing. Since I started to play the game, I started to listen to the songs daily. They are just so wonderful

[@ZephyrusAsmodeus]

Absolutely killed it in both games, i cannot express how happy i was when i discovered you could play a couple songs from Divinity OS2 in BG3

[@_Lowbird]

I fucking love Borislav Slavov

[@thomas_ct]

The video ended too early! I want more of the orchestral version!

[@Cookieforevah]

He should release it on his youtube channel.

[@reganCZ]

Pure love.

[@e.s.r5809]

I was so surprised to hear a game soundtrack with lyrics in a real language! Since Skyrim, it seems every soundtrack for years has used a conlang, dead language, or vocalise. Like our immersion would be ruined if we knew what they're singing about. Borislav Slavov and his team used lyrics as another storytelling tool, and it really works.

[@JussiMustola90]

This man is a focking genious. I was already thinking it while playing DoS2 but man what a dude.

[@rubdulbah3201]

this man is 51 years old and looks like a young 21 year old. Her has a computer science degree and is a composer. Talk about winning the genetic lottery.

[@sub-jec-tiv]

Beautiful game made by beautiful people.

[@brandyscrow]

even today after playing for over 2000 hours and watching ALL BG3 content this theme makes me tear up

[@wanderer8038]

i bet he could convince all the enemy to end themsleves❤ what a grear musician and composer

[@LightsabersTuneStash]

The GOAT!

[@zlorfik2428]

I was playing my first BG3 session with my wife. Obviously we spent about 2h in character creation. You can imagine how quickly my wife got upset with me making jokes about Down by the River when i kept singing along the theme for 2h xD

[@ChestofGold]

He has the vibe of a lvl 20 DnD Bard.

[@cropro4019]

BAFTA is better than game of the year

[@zeralf]

9:14 chills

[@its.Lora.]

💜

[@spellsnare]

he will be one of the greatest composer of all time along with nobuo uetmasu and gareth cooker

[@AmelliaKyusei]

Fk... i would pay money for the full version of Baldurans Orchestra version!