Inon Zur Interview

Game Informer has an editorial-style interview with Inon Zur, composer of the soundtracks of Dragon Age: Origins and Dragon Age II, where he discusses several topics of his craft.

Differences between Dragon Age: Origins and Dragon Age II

The first Dragon Age was really epic. The story was epic. It’s a story of origins and how they came to be in the world of Dragon Age so the music had to describe that. In Dragon Age II, we’re going in a very different direction. It’s all about one person so the story is very personal, intimate, and since this is the way the game goes, the music follows it. I had to make a lot of changes to the style of Dragon Age. It’s still very dark, it’s still orchestral in many parts, however, the elements that were standing out is the use of string quartet playing versus the live orchestra that brings this personal sound, very small and emotional sound. I’m also using the vocals of Aubrey Ashburn, but in a different way. There’s lots of tragedy involved in the story, a lot of struggle. In Dragon Age II I’ve also incorporated a different style. We were looking for a special sound for the city so we went a little bit into Middle Eastern style because it’s a very foreign place and we felt it would be an interesting approach.