How Video Game Music Feels ALIVE

A look at what brings music to life, featuring Gareth Coker's score to Ori and the Blind Forest.
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Chapters:
00:00 - 00:48 Intro
00:48 - 04:06 Movement
04:06 - 06:04 Breath
06:04 - 09:20 Warmth
09:20 - 09:46 Outro

[@RyanLeach]

👉 How to Turn C Major into Anime Harmony kzbin.info/www/bejne/epS1Xn6XndR6l8k

[@gavinleepermusic]

Hey! I'm in that!

[@absolutelyincognito6719]

Okay but now I really wanna hear those techniques to bring warmth to my Musescore midi instruments.

[@yuyiya]

Did you hear Ryan talk about hiring a live musician? Could be the best shortcut to sounding good 👍

[@mazely]

@@yuyiya musescore doesn't accept live musicians.

[@Pheonix8877]

You can emulate everything he showed here with midi, but midi is inherently limited in terms of sounding organic. You can mess with the rhythm, offset notes very slightly for a more human touch, but real instrument samples and libraries are really what you’ll need

[@RaptorT1V]

Haha LMAO

[@EchostyleStudios]

@@Pheonix8877 personally recommend the Cinematic Studio series. amazing stuff they do.

[@ArsyF]

it's amazing how everything in this game, every piece of visual to every note is pure art made with as much care as possible. I love Ori games.

[@farrela3620]

Oh I wished you do one for Ori and The Will of the Wisps. Especially all the four "biomes" (winter, water, dark, and desert levels). I think it's interesting to look at

[@rodterrell304]

Amazing how you are able to come up with relevant , entertaining and informative videos so consistently Ryan. Thank you so much

[@RyanLeach]

Thanks for watching them!

[@FrostudioChambersonic]

I made Ori and the blind forest cover some weeks ago, if only i knew this! I mean i should really attempt another try. This really mind blowing and helpful knowledge, i might try another ori theme and apply this knowledge to my music, thank you so much for these!

[@RyanLeach]

It's such an amazing soundtrack!

[@ashfur3453]

@@RyanLeach My favourite tracks from both games are probably Luma pools, up the spirit cavern walls and the escape sequenses. It’s such a great game!

[@silvereken1]

As a film and game composer, this is probably the most imortant lesson you'll ever have! Great job Ryan!

[@Violetea.Dances]

You have no idea how thankful I am for all your videos. I feel like whenever you explain things I can finally understand it? Teachers always tell you to look at scores and all but you are actually teaching us what to look out for and the why. Really breaking things down to make it make sense. I wish I could just show my teachers and be like this is what I mean when I ask for more explanation T-T I often just felt like being thrown to the sharks or ended up feeling like I just totally suck. I did get some helpful remarks from teachers but often it is just very confusing and I end up struggling filled with self hate thinking I just can't seem to do anything right... I think you could totally be a professor if you wanted to! I don't know but whenever I feel worthless just watching your videos make me feel I can try again, so thank you!

[@maestrospolzino]

Your channel and your course have been the two best tutors in my music career, Ryan! Thank you so much for making this knowledge accessible! Especially for those who didn't have the privilege of studying film/game score in the USA! 🎺🎷🎻🥁🎹

[@RyanLeach]

Thanks, glad to hear you've been getting something out of them

[@tobbebergman7583]

@@RyanLeach Really great channel ! Sentence and period form was a gamechanger for me ! Thanks Ryan ! I owe you a MILLION !

[@quantumexilemusic]

I'm more than happy that I found your channel. Can't wait for the next few weeks of studying your videos. You're super authentic and the way you explain everything is simple yet in depth. Thank you for the great content.

[@Doty6String]

This score is abnormally good Cooker is amazing. So much texture throughout.

[@1RYTY1]

Ori really changed how I look at music in my life, it's more of a journey than a time passer, I loved how it was done in the game, cooker has some amazing talent.

[@harvesterman5210]

YES one of the fav soundtracks ever

[@0877adri]

I never activated the bell for any channel, but i definetly had to do it here now. I don't wanna miss a single one of these videos ! Great video again !

[@RyanLeach]

I appreciate that!

[@stevie_k03]

I would also recommend Jesper Kyd's work in Assassin's Creed and War Hammer. His music is pretty simple yet so impressive and attractive.

[@J-MLindeMusic]

I love the writing for woodwinds in Ori. Just beautiful.

[@liquid-slick]

I have self-taught myself a small handful of instruments - I have "an ear" and can pick things up relatively easily. I've attempted creating some form of music for most of my life from early childhood to now...I have never learned how to read music, outside of sight-reading in madrigals in high school. I've been trying to learn, as I want to delve into theory. It's weird learning backwards, as I both have bad habits but also am finding it's easy to understand a lot of the ideas and principles behind (actual) songwriting. I just want to say "thank you" for making these videos and putting them on youtube. They're inspiring, have rekindled my passion for music, and I love how educational they are and don't rely on clickbait-y or gimmicky tactics. I also like that you make them interesting, like with the elemental concept in this video, and that you appeal to the video game nerd in me lol. I plan on one day pledging on patreon and supporting financially, though it's not viable for me currently. Thanks again for all the great content :)

[@emmaskegg]

So glad that you looked at this beautiful score!!

[@gavinleepermusic]

Great video as always, Ryan! I really loved the advocation for hiring live musicians. For the front and center soloists, I always find I get better results with a live person than from editing the living daylights out of midi for VSTs.

[@A145]

This video introduced me this game, it's an amazing game, thank you so much

[@Cameron_Norby]

Your videos always seem to address very specific problems that I have, and they always come through with helping me overcome them! Once again, everything in this video is greatly helpful, and I'll be sure to use it for the competition!

[@julianromero6381]

Great video as always Ryan! Thanks for sharing this knowledge with us.

[@gabrielpedrao8056]

I love your channel, Your work helps me a lot, thank you!

[@amiezwag]

Your channel is just amazing. Thank you so much!

[@musiclore]

One of my favorite videos so far, Love the format/editing/ very entertaining and easy to follow. Not enough people are breaking down music like this on KZbin! Very appreciated.

[@juliagallen9985]

Thank you sooo much for sharing your videos, they're so incredibly analytical, I'm learning a lot from you! I was hooked from the first one I saw, it was on John Williams' themes. Hope you continue making them!

[@OliverSchlecter]

I love your videos dude!! So educational and entertaining at the same time :)

[@johnmcallistermusic]

I literally stopped what I was doing to take notes on this video. I really like how you present the concepts, explain, and show. Essentially things I already know and have studied. Just presented so well and gives me new ideas for composing. Cheers to you Ryan!

[@cristiangamesgames]

Your videos are seriously amazing and informative. I hope you reach 500k subs in the next year or so, you deserve it

[@Icedonot]

This popped up in my feed not even 2 hours after I finished ori and the blind forest, sometimes its creepy how the world works

[@cactusowo1835]

This is exactly what I needed, a good music analysis about how gareth coker made it for the music to feel like it carries LIFE, I'm pointing all up on a music notebook, you earned a subscription, thanks a lot for this.

[@1hotday1]

Another awesome video! Thanks Ryan and team.

[@RyanLeach]

Thanks!

[@DygresywnyWilk]

Holy moly, one of my favourite games being analyzed by one of my favourite channels! Many thanks

[@the10polgb]

The video has been released 2 months ago but I liked it, but I wanted to comment that Gareth Coker has also worked on Ark's music and created very good works like "The Overseer" or "Journey's End". I really recommend to listen to them

[@Tsharkeye]

Such a great video! Might be biased because I'm the biggest Ori/Gareth Coker fan 😅

[@JesseNorellMusic]

This is so so good. Keep up the great work!

[@ulfsvensson9710]

Interesting and useful, as always. Thank you.

[@ishagshafeeg]

Thank you Ryan. Very useful

[@amnesiophilia]

Love the point about phrasing.

[@berpmorph2946]

Mi mejor descubrimiento en lo que va del 2023

[@ferdmusic8]

I haven't seen it yet but I know it's going to be a great video

[@mihailmilev9909]

Exactly

[@mihailmilev9909]

Same

[@mihailmilev9909]

And it was, after watching it now

[@mihailmilev9909]

What did u think?

[@mbaldwinlobue]

Sorry, I can't always comment immediately, but the early morning hours are full of meetings for me so often I have to wait till afternoon to chime in. Here is a comment though to help you with those cold, cold algorithms 🙂I don't think you said but that award you showed...I'm assuming that was the Maverick Movie Award that you got for Devil's Racecourse? You make a really compelling argument for incorporating live musicians in the mix wherever possible but what is more, you actually gave examples of where/how to find/engage with them on a project. Much appreciated. Working right now on the Hooktheory books and using your course to try and write something for the current competition 🙂

[@bobmuller3859]

such a great video, keep up the good work

[@bradoreman2510]

Love your videos!

[@yophosy5419]

Another goodie - thank you.

[@wschenke9999]

Your best video, thanks have learned so much from your video.

[@cactusowo1835]

Ori! Thanks for making this video, it's a big contribution to musicians learning music!

[@HeavenestStCyr]

1 Movement through rhythmic pulse serves as a steady foundation in the background (obstinatos, agitation like tremolos, coupling with runs, meter)

[@anatomicallymodernhuman5175]

Great teaching!

[@vaclavmichalekmusic]

I can't express the excitement of watching the examples in Ori soundtrack

[@pietroriccardotarateo]

"... and one thing that does not have warmth is the KZbin algorithm" I wasn't expecting that 😂. Anyway, loved the video! Interesting analysis and examples.

[@mihailmilev9909]

Awesome video thank u for the great content. Inspiring to me for more theoretical ideas and I think really what I was missing clicked while watching the breath part. Not neccesarily that I didn't know abt the breath but didn't know how to call it and also for some reason your run in sentence analogy just clicked for me that I need to "keep my sentences in topic" and elaborate on it in a way, cuz my brain usually before just kept jumping from one musical idea to another.

[@GizzyDillespee]

I don't know about specifically in OST work, but in general, you can emphasize "breath" using a grabby compressor slowly (as in, slow attack and release, timed to match the breath pulse of that track). It helps if there's a little noise and/or low level pad that the compressor can make breathe in the act of reacting to louder musical elements. I first heard this in newage and ambient music. Someone had taken it to extremes, and made the background hiss breathe, and I was like, "Oh, cool!" I think most people reading this are using pristine noise-reduced samples and digital synths, so there might not be enough background hiss... you might have to have a very low strings or brass pad, or whatever as long as it's below the threshold that triggers the compressor. Nothing mind-blowing, just something to experiment with, if bored and out of ideas for how to breathe life into a particular track. Like a footnote in the appendix of the video, not to distract from the big picture.

[@uffevonlauterbach]

This may be the video I needed for inspiration. Thanks for sharing this. I've learned something. C:

[@ramblinwriter4987]

I see a video about Ori, I watch and like. That simple.

[@user-uy7zw4gk2e]

超级棒的课程，支持。

[@thetonycooper]

Great. Vid!

[@clog9608]

I pressed Like the video the second I saw you were about to talk about Ori's music.

[@djroscurro9859]

Awesome vid. Now I’m curious to see what you’d have to say on the Will of the Wisps.

[@rwlab1253]

Yes! A sudden influx of ORI related content

[@eosborne6495]

This game and Abzu (Austin Wintory) are two game soundtracks that I played to death before I had ever tried the game. Huge Gareth Coker fan.

[@tvolz9749]

I hope you played ori by now because this game is as amazing as its soundtrack :O

[@RyanLeach]

The sequel is good too!

[@eosborne6495]

@@tvolz9749 I have! I hadn’t heard of it, but Gareth Coker came up on a “related artists” list while I was binging Austin Wintory soundtracks and that led me to the Ori games which I have now played and loved.

[@barditheweird6062]

Genius intro

[@yuyiya]

Not Into playing video games, but this video shows how much beautiful music I'm missing! Hoping I can get the soundtrack without having to become an expert gamer ...

[@Zaknafein541]

You can buy the soundtrack separately on Steam, though strangely it costs more than the game (which is only $5). Honestly if you ever try a single game, Ori and The Blind Forest would be a great place to start.

[@MichaelJFroelich]

Ryan. Do you have any videos/courses on music production with DAWs? I'm currently stuck between transferring music from a note scorer to a DAW and I'm not sure which part of the process most of this stuff in this video would fit. Unless I could sync my notescorer and my DAW...

[@RyanLeach]

I don’t have a lot on that, what’s your DAW? Usually I will export a MIDI file out of Dorico and drop that into the DAW and start from there

[@MichaelJFroelich]

@@RyanLeach DAW is Reaper. I'll either export midi or use jack since musescore only other connection to other stuff is jack. I'm more concerned about how this interruption into a completely different thing effects the creative process. Do I go back to musescore if I feel like changing the music's song structure or build up?

[@RyanLeach]

@@MichaelJFroelich nah there’s no reason to go back to Musescore unless you’re going to actually need the written score for something

[@matthewbenedict5923]

beat the robots! :) iNCREDIBLE ESSAY

[@TrueNohaynicks]

ORIIIIIIIIIIIIII :D

[@OrisStories]

You saying my nickname so often confused me a lot, haha!

[@sobreaver]

Deconstructing the magic of music that flows in our ears that spawns universes, weird how we easily get tricked when things are done 'right' :) PS : And by weird, I'm rather pointing out LIMITS, at which point things are or not. To be or not to be (real, right, and how it all matters and come together) PS PS : 5:00 I heard what you did there ;) PS PS PS : The vocals in this game music was the cherry on top, it killed it all >.> yikes :P

[@mihailmilev9909]

Hi Ryan. Hru wyd doing these days?

[@RyanLeach]

Doing well, how about you?

[@WizardOfArc]

the winner of one of the challenges used live musicians from Fiverr yes?

[@RyanLeach]

Yes Jacob mentioned Fiverr as a great resource

[@ptah23]

i would call it "expressiveness" rather than "imperfections"

[@neroldeer]

you mention Fiver then you say you paid for a random one hour session with Sandro Fredrich.... what did that cost you??