Kenji Yamamoto (composer born 1964)
| Kenji Yamamoto | |
|---|---|
| Native name | 山本 健誌 |
| Born |
April 25, 1964 Japan |
| Genres | Video game music |
| Occupation(s) |
|
| Instruments | Piano |
| Years active | 1987–present |
| Associated acts | Minako Hamano |
Kenji Yamamoto (山本 健誌 Yamamoto Kenji, born April 25, 1964) is a Japanese video game musician working for Nintendo, where he is notable for composing music in many titles of the Metroid series, mainly Super Metroid and the Prime trilogy. Yamamoto also plays a role as a music director at Nintendo, overseeing the audio for several of their games. He frequently collaborates with fellow composers Minako Hamano and Masaru Tajima.
In development of Super Metroid, Yamamoto came up with some of the game's themes by humming them to himself while riding his motorcycle to work. He was asked to compose the music for Metroid Prime to reinforce the series' continuity.[1] Metroid Prime's Dolby Pro Logic II surround sound was mixed by a member of Dolby Digital.[2] Developers from Retro Studios noted how the process of fitting all the sound effects for a world in Metroid Prime into 6 MB of space was crucial in producing a quality aural experience, as each sound had to be of very high quality to be included.[1] Yamamoto utilizes heavy drums, piano, voiced chants, clangs of pipes, and electric guitar.[2] Metroid Prime 3 took advantage of the increase in the amount of RAM that took place when the series switched from the GameCube to the Wii; this allowed for higher quality audio samples to be used and thus a better overall audio quality.[1]
The music from Metroid and other games have been played by ensembles and concerts. An orchestral arrangement of his music is included in PLAY! A Video Game Symphony that toured the United States and Europe and made its Asian debut at the 2007 Singapore Arts Festival.[3]
In an interview with Music4Games, Yamamoto detailed his experience working on the Metroid Prime trilogy. He described his thoughts on the inclusion of themes from Super Metroid as well as his composition process and sources of inspiration. He intends to continue working on the Metroid series into the future.[4]
Works
| Video games | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Title | Role | Co-worker(s) |
| 1987 | Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! | Composition | Yukio Kaneoka and Akito Nakatsuka |
| 1988 | Famicom Wars | Composition | Hirokazu Tanaka |
| Famicom Tantei Club: Kieta Kōkeisha | Sound director/composition | Hirokazu Tanaka | |
| 1989 | Famicom Tantei Club Part II: Ushiro ni Tatsu Shōjo | Composition/arrangement | |
| 1990 | Radar Mission | Composition[5] | |
| 1994 | Super Metroid | Composition/sound effects | Minako Hamano |
| 1995 | Galactic Pinball | Director/composition | Masaru Tajima |
| 1999 | Famicom Bunko: Hajimari no Mori | Composition | Kozue Ishikawa |
| 2001 | Mobile Golf | Supervisor | Kenji Miki, Shigeru Miyamoto, Takashi Tezuka, and Koji Kondo |
| Mario Kart: Super Circuit | Sound support | ||
| 2002 | Metroid Prime | Composition/arrangement | Kouichi Kyuma |
| Metroid Fusion | Sound director | ||
| 2004 | Metroid: Zero Mission | Composition/arrangement | Minako Hamano |
| Metroid Prime 2: Echoes | Composition/arrangement | ||
| 2005 | Metroid Prime Pinball | Composition/arrangement | Masaru Tajima |
| Brain Age 2: More Training in Minutes a Day! | Sound director | ||
| 2006 | English Training: Have Fun Improving Your Skills! | Sound director | |
| Metroid Prime Hunters | Sound supervisor | ||
| Excite Truck | Composition/arrangement | Masaru Tajima | |
| 2007 | Metroid Prime 3: Corruption | Composition/arrangement | Minako Hamano and Masaru Tajima |
| 2008 | Super Smash Bros. Brawl | Arrangement | Various others |
| 2009 | Excitebots: Trick Racing | Composition/arrangement | Masaru Tajima and Shinji Ushiroda |
| 2010 | Photo Dojo | Sound supervisor | |
| Donkey Kong Country Returns[6] | Composition/arrangement | Minako Hamano, Masaru Tajima, Shinji Ushiroda, and Daisuke Matsuoka | |
| 2011 | Rhythm Heaven Fever | Sound support | Shinnosuke Kobayashi, Akito Nakatsuka, and Lawrence Schwedler |
| Pilotwings Resort | Music supervisor | ||
| Sakura Samurai: Art of the Sword | Music director | ||
| 2012 | Kiki Trick | Sound supervisor | |
| Brain Age: Concentration Training | Sound supervisor | ||
| 2013 | Monster Manor | Sound director | |
| Mii Force | Sound director | ||
| Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D | Sound supervisor | ||
| 2014 | Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze[7] | Music supervisor | |
| Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U | Arrangement | Various others | |
| 2015 | Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash | Sound supervisor | Ryoji Yoshitomi and Minako Hamano |
References
- 1 2 3 M4G Staff (2007-10-05). "Interview with Metroid Prime 3: Corruption Sound Team at Retro Studios and Composer Kenji Yamamoto". Music4Games. Archived from the original on 2009-02-28. Retrieved 2008-03-19.
- 1 2 Fran Mirabella III (2002-11-11). "Metroid Prime". IGN. Retrieved 2008-02-27.
- ↑ "GameAxis Unwired, No. 46" (Digitized online by Google Books). July 2007.
- ↑ A Blast From The Past: Metroid Prime 3 With Kenji Yamamoto and Retro Studios Original Sound Version
- ↑ Portable Music History: Radar Mission Game Credits
- ↑ E3 2010: Kensuke Tanabe and the Metroid Palm Tree IGN June 17, 2010
- ↑ Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze Credit Information GameFAQs
External links
- Interview with Music4Games
- Composer profile at OverClocked ReMix
- Kenji Yamamoto discography at MusicBrainz