Kirby Air Riders: Unveiling the Orchestral Sound - An Interview on Music Development

This interview delves into the creative process behind the music for Kirby Air Riders, featuring insights from Director Masahiro Sakurai and Composers Noriyuki Iwadare and Shogo Sakai.

Composer Dynamics and Prior Collaborations

Sakurai and Sakai share a history, having collaborated at HAL Laboratory on titles such as Super Smash Bros. Melee and the original Kirby Air Ride. Iwadare's professional relationship with Sakurai began during the development of Super Smash Bros. Brawl and continued with Kid Icarus: Uprising.

A pivotal moment in Sakurai's musical appreciation came in 1995 when Sakai invited him to a Game Music Concert, sparking his interest in orchestral game music. Iwadare and Sakai later met in 2008 at PRESS START.

The Vision: Orchestral Sound for Air Riders

Sakurai's selection of Iwadare and Sakai was deliberate, based on their proficiency in orchestral music, their ability to compose and conduct, and their skill in crafting uplifting orchestrations.

While racing games typically feature Eurobeat or fusion music, Sakurai envisioned an orchestral score for Kirby Air Riders.

The main musical concept centered on creating melodies that were singable by children and memorable, even after a single playthrough. This approach aimed to produce standout music rather than ambient background tunes.

Commissioning and Project Secrecy

Initially, the game's title, Kirby Air Riders, was kept confidential from both composers. Sakai shrewdly deduced the title from an email contact method, while Iwadare expressed excitement upon learning it. Sakurai maintained high security around the project, even blurring the title during meetings to prevent leaks.

The Song Commissioning Process

For Air Ride mode courses, Sakurai provided composers with comprehensive materials: course outlines, concept videos, and various sample songs for each track. Composers were tasked with identifying commonalities in these samples and creating similar pieces, critically, without direct copying.

Sakurai clarified that he provides samples not for imitation, but to establish clear direction. Composers generally referred to the tempo, atmosphere, and instrumentation from these samples, often listening only once to avoid direct influence.

Track-Specific Development and Revisions

Waveflow Waters

Sakai composed a Latin-sounding track, which diverged from Sakurai's request to avoid that style. This was despite Sakurai having sent a hard rock tempo sample. Sakai admitted to not listening to the samples for this particular track.

Cavernous Corners

Sakurai requested tribal music featuring primitive drum loops. Sakai produced a more refined track. For its second half, an improvised flute recording was used, with Sakurai specifically selecting a less polished take to convey a more spontaneous, less modern feel, aligning with the course's indigenous-inspired characters.

Airtopia Ruins

Iwadare submitted three potential candidates for this track. Sakurai chose the piece that best depicted a fallen kingdom with a Middle Ages orchestral style, rejecting lighter options that didn't fit the narrative of a king's hubris and ruin. Sakurai noted that music is considerably easier to revise compared to the multi-year course development process.

Cyberion Highway

Initially conceived in a techno style, Sakurai requested the addition of a singable, signature melody. Iwadare had proposed lyrics like "Air Rider! Air Rider!", but Sakurai decided against using specific English words to maintain the integrity of the Kirby game world and prevent vocals from overwhelming other in-game sounds.

Galactic Nova

Sakai's track proved to be the most demanding, requiring eleven revisions, partly due to its length and dual-part structure. This piece also incorporated arrangements of "VS. Marx" from Kirby Super Star, where Sakurai emphasized the importance of meeting player expectations for existing themes.

Sakurai's Directing Style and Collaborative Environment

Sakurai's directing style was consistently described as concise, fast, decisive, and flexible. He provided remarkably quick feedback, sometimes responding to emails early in the morning.

A direct mailing list involving both composers and Sakurai fostered transparent communication, allowing composers to observe feedback on each other's work.

Interestingly, Iwadare made a conscious effort to avoid listening to Sakai's tracks until the final recording, aiming to prevent any unintentional influence on his own compositions.