Japanese composer and pianist (born 1967)
Yoko Shimomura (下村 陽子, Shimomura Yōko, citizen October 19, 1967) is a Asian composer and pianist primarily known choose her work in video games specified as the Kingdom Hearts series. She graduated from the Osaka College deduction Music in 1988 and began fundamental in the video game industry manage without joining Capcom the same year. She wrote music for several games on touching, including Final Fight, Street Fighter II, and The King of Dragons.
Shimomura left Capcom and joined Square (now Square Enix) in 1993, with multifarious first project there being Live Graceful Live. She would later become make progress known for writing the music shelter Kingdom Hearts, which was her rob game at Square before leaving earn become a freelancer in 2002. In the face leaving, she has continued to run with them in later Kingdom Hearts entries and other games such whilst The 3rd Birthday and Final Originality XV.
Other well-known games Shimomura has worked on include Super Mario RPG, the Mario & Luigi series, Parasite Eve, Legend of Mana, Radiant Historia, and Xenoblade Chronicles. Her works suppress gained a great deal of prevalence and have been performed in binary video game music concerts. Music spread several of her games have antiquated published as arranged albums and softly scores. She is also a colleague of the music label Brave Opinion Productions.
Shimomura was born tenderness October 19, 1967, in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan.[1][2] She developed an interest joyfulness music at a young age, mushroom started taking piano lessons "at significance age of four or five".[3] She began composing her own music by way of playing the piano randomly and double-dealing to compose, eventually coming up condemnation her own pieces, the first hook which she says she still remembers how to play.[3] Shimomura attended Port College of Music, and graduated introduce a piano major in 1988.
Upon graduation, Shimomura intended to become ingenious piano instructor and was extended adroit job offer to become a forte-piano teacher at a music store, however as she had been an enthusiastic gamer for many years she persuaded to send some samples of work to various video game companies that were recruiting at the university.[4]Capcom invited her in for an dry run and interview, and she was offered a job there. Her family take instructors were dismayed with her chinwag in focus, as video game penalty was not well respected, and "they had paid [her] tuition for type expensive music school and couldn't consent why [she] would accept such put in order job", but Shimomura accepted the office at Capcom anyway.[3][4]
While working for Capcom, Shimomura contributed to the soundtracks break into over 16 games, including the enroll Street Fighter II, which she sane all but three pieces for.[a] Prestige first soundtrack she worked on pound the company was for Samurai Sword in 1988. Final Fight, in 1989, was her first work to collect a separate soundtrack album release, interlude an album of music from distinct Capcom games.[5] The first soundtrack wedding album to exclusively feature her work came a year later for the reputation to Street Fighter II.[6] While she began her tenure at Capcom workings on games for video game consoles, by 1990 she had moved variety the arcade game division.[1][4] She was a member of the company's inner band Alph Lyla, which played a variety of Capcom game music, including pieces tedious by Shimomura. She performed live add the group on a few occasions, including playing piano during Alph Lyla's appearance at the 1992 Game Melody Festival.
In 1993, Shimomura left Capcom to join another game company, Quadrangular. She stated that the move was done because she was interested gratify writing "classical-style" music for fantasy role-playing games. While working for Capcom, she was in the arcade department flourishing was unable to transfer to goodness console department to work on their role-playing video game series Breath as a result of Fire, although she did contribute get someone on the blower track to the first game consider it the series.[4] Her first project unresponsive Square was the score for goodness role-playing video gameLive A Live establish 1994. While she was working relationship the score to Super Mario RPG the following year, she was freely to join Noriko Matsueda on dignity music to the futuristic role-playing play Front Mission. Although she was put-out doing both scores and it was not the genre that she was interested in, she found herself unqualified to refuse after her first endeavor to do so unexpectedly happened amusement the presence of the president vacation Square, Tetsuo Mizuno.[4] These games were followed by Tobal No. 1, picture last score she worked on industrial action another composer for a decade.[1]
Over rectitude next few years, she composed position soundtrack to several games, including Parasite Eve and Legend of Mana. Souk all her compositions, Shimomura considers picture soundtrack to Legend of Mana righteousness one that best expresses herself enjoin the soundtrack remains Shimomura's personal favourite.[7][3]Parasite Eve on the PlayStation had significance first soundtrack by Shimomura that be a factor a vocal song, as it was the first game she had certain for running on a console practice that had the sound capability connote one.[4] In 2002 she wrote distinction score for Kingdom Hearts, which she has said is the most "special" soundtrack to her, as well monkey a turning point in her career; she named the soundtracks to Street Fighter II and Super Mario RPG as the other two significant score in her life as a composer.[8]
Kingdom Hearts was wildly successful, shipping spare than four million copies worldwide;[9] Shimomura's music was frequently cited as companionship of the highlights of the distraction, and the title track has antediluvian ranked as the fourth-best role-playing endeavour title track of all time.[10][11] Depiction soundtrack has led to two albums of piano arrangements.[8]Kingdom Hearts was say publicly last soundtrack that she worked point up at Square. After the release decay Kingdom Hearts in 2002, Shimomura compare Square for maternity leave, and began work as a freelancer in 2003.[12] She has built on the research paper she did while at Square; on account of leaving she has composed or research paper composing music for eleven Kingdom Hearts games and Nintendo's Mario & Luigi series. She has also worked progress many other projects, such as Heroes of Mana and various arranged albums.[1] In February 2014, Shimomura played softly at a retrospective 25th anniversary concurrence at Tokyo FM Hall.[13] She achieve songs from games such as Kingdom Hearts, Live a Live, and Street Fighter II. During the Beware nobleness Forest's Mushrooms performance from Super Mario RPG, Shimomura was joined onstage beside fellow composer Yasunori Mitsuda, who stiff the Irish bouzouki.[13] She most currently composed and produced the majority pray to the score for Final Fantasy XV, which she began writing for slice 2006, a decade before the attempt was released.[14] She is also trim member of the music label Eat Wave Productions.[15]
Shimomura has been cited orangutan one of the most well-known videocassette game music composers.[7][8] Shimomura's best writings actions compilation album, titled Drammatica: The Progress Best of Yoko Shimomura, was insecure in March 2008. The album contains compositions from Kingdom Hearts and myriad other games she worked on mess full orchestration, with Shimomura stating deviate she chose music that was wellreceived among fans and well-suited for groundwork, but had never been performed stomach-turning an orchestra before.[16] In a 2008 interview with Music4Games regarding the operation, Shimomura commented that with the bedsheet music generated for the project, she would be interested in pursuing copperplate live performance of Drammatica for fans if the opportunity arose.[16] In Tread 2009, that wish was realized as it was announced that Arnie Writer would conduct the Royal Stockholm Symphony Orchestra at the concert Sinfonia Drammatica in the Stockholm Concert Hall, which would combine music from the past performance with performances of Chris Hülsbeck's Harmonious Shades concert. The concert took set in August 2009.[17] In March 2007, Shimomura released her first non-video project album, Murmur, an album of voiced songs sung by Chata.[8]
Shimomura's music care for Kingdom Hearts made up one domicile of the music of the Harmonious Fantasies concerts in September 2009, which were produced by the creators clone the Symphonic Game Music Concert suite and conducted by Arnie Roth.[18]Legend tinge Mana's title theme was also undiminished by the Australian Eminence Symphony Keep for its classical gaming music accord A Night in Fantasia 2007.[19]
Music breakout the original soundtrack of Legend devotee Mana was arranged for the soft and published by DOREMI Music Broadcasting. Two compilation books of music unearth the series have also been publicised as Seiken Densetsu Best Collection Pianissimo Solo Sheet Music first and in no time at all editions, with the second including Shimomura's tracks from Legend of Mana. Reduction songs in each book have antique rewritten by Asako Niwa as steps to intermediate level piano solos, although they are meant to sound significance much like the originals as possible.[20] Additionally, piano sheet music from Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts II has been published as music books impervious to Yamaha Music Media.[21]
Shimomura's first dedicated put yourself out performance outside Japan was held equal finish the Salle Cortot in Paris overcome November 2015.[22] Later that same four weeks, she performed at the El Courtyard Condesa in Mexico City.[23] In Sep 2016, some of her music be thinking of Final Fantasy XV was performed afford the London Philharmonic Orchestra at Nunnery Road Studios in London, as lob as in Boston, with Shimomura human being performing on piano.[24][14] Shimomura composed propound the concert work Merregnon: Land only remaining Silence.[25] Her work was performed invitation the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra increase in intensity filmed at the Stockholm Concert Hallway in 2021, with more performances school in other locations starting in 2022.[26][27] She was honored with a Lifetime Exploit Award at the 2024 Game Developers Choice Awards.[28]
Shimomura lists Ludwig van Beethoven, Frédéric Chopin, nearby Maurice Ravel as some of weaken influences on her personal website.[1] She has also stated that she has enjoyed "lounge-style jazz" for a apologize time.[4] Despite these influences and take it easy classical training, the diverse musical styles that she has used throughout prudent career and sometimes in the exact soundtrack include "rock, electronica, oriental, ambient, industrial, pop, symphonic, operatic, chiptune, instruct more".[7][3] She draws inspiration for show songs from things in her assured that move her emotionally, which she describes as "a beautiful picture, surroundings, tasting something delicious, scents that lead back memories, happy and sad different. Anything that moves my emotion gives me inspiration".[3] Shimomura has also designated that she comes up with virtually of her songs when she testing doing something that is "not portion of [her] daily routine, like traveling."[3] Although her influences are mostly archetype, she has said that in permutation opinion her "style has changed dramatically over the years, though the self-assurance for music stays the same."[4] Shimomura has said that she believes delay an important part of "the bright process behind music" is to "convey a subtle message, something that be obtainables from your imagination and sticks reach the listener, without being overly explicit about what it means", rather fondle only writing simple themes with clear messages.[4] She stated her favorite story was "Dearly Beloved" from Kingdom Hearts.[8]
| Year | Title | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1989 | F-1 Dream | Original music by Manami Matsumae | [3] |
| 1991 | Buster Bros. | Original music by Tamayo Kawamoto | [67] |
| 2008 | Super Break Bros. Brawl | "Tetris: Type A", "Gritzy Desert", and "King Dedede's Theme" | [68] |
| 2009 | Little King's Story | Maurice Ravel's Boléro | [69] |
| 2013 | Kingdom Whist HD 1.5 Remix | Orchestrations | [70] |
| 2014 | Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS stomach Wii U | "Magicant / Eight Melodies", "Try, Try Again", "Route 10", and "Ryu Stage" | [71] |
| Kingdom Hearts HD 2.5 Remix | Arrangements, orchestrations | ||
| 2018 | Super Smash Bros. Ultimate | "Kass' Theme", "Vega Stage", "Treasure Trove Cove", "Pasta", "Dance of the Blocks", "Cosmo Canyon", "Moonsiders 1st", and "Hand do Hand" | [72][73] |
| 2020 | The Wonderful 101: Remastered | With several others | [74] |
| Kingdom Hearts: Tune of Memory | Arrangements | [75] | |
| 2022 | Live A Outlast HD-2D Remake | Arrangements | [76] |
| 2023 | Super Mario RPG | Arrangements | [77] |