Devlog #5 - The Silent Swan
In this Devlog #5, we will discuss music with Francisco Arroyo, the Music Composer at Praenaris.
Francisco is responsible for every sound in our games. He infuses personality into our experiences and makes The Silent Swan as immersive as it could be. Therefore, we wanted him to elaborate on what the soundtrack signifies to him, his workflow, and how he manages to create impactful music.
Francisco started to collaborate with Praenaris when The Silent Swan only had one completed song and the game required music to fill gaps in between places.
The Starting Point
A briefing was sent to him with some references such as Blade Runner and a list of locations where songs were missing. Nevertheless, he explored other styles and discovered the current music type that you can hear in our trailers.
A soundtrack of 12 songs forms the music of The Silent Swan.
Each song is tailored to different parts of the game, such as the main menu, the road where you use the bike and every city. However, there is also room for silence, which is an important element of the game. Our music is not looped, and we let players find joy in silence too, particularly in abandoned locations.
Music Purpose
The soundtrack serves a dual purpose, both narratively and atmospherically. It complements the scenes of the game and describes them, yet we intentionally avoid drawing attention away from the gameplay. We don’t include direct references so we believe our music is something unique.
Production
If you are not familiar with composing, we can simplify it into two main parts: the first involves creating the chords and melody, while the second consists of modifying them using EQ, synthesizers, delays, and more.
Francisco created simple melodies with acoustic elements, a string orchestra, and a piano, which he later modified for every song except the last one. The songs in the game feature only a few chords and large notes, but the final song in The Silent Swan is a complete orchestra piece. It is more technically complex at a compositional level and there is almost no production.
You can observe the contrast between songs in these images, the second one represents the final song, Land Beyond the Seas, which has more chords and less production.
Symbology
Here is our favorite aspect of our music!
Francisco uses music to represent things that are happening in the game. He composes songs with the story of The Silent Swan in mind.
For instance, the piano symbolizes Mirov who is alone, he is the only one left in the present.
Also, when Francisco employs a large reverb, mutes the string orchestra or places it in the background, he symbolizes the passage of time. He represents this way the echoes of a civilization that was once full of life.
Only the last song has 37 tracks, Land Beyond the Seas, it captivates another ambient as it is another place. This one is the most traditional song in the game and the favorite one of Francisco who shared with us that it was also the most challenging to compose.
We are glad that you have been able to get to know Francisco better and see first hand all the love we are putting in each section of The Silent Swan.
Regards sailors, see you in the next DevLog!
Praenaris Crew
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1898880/The_Silent_Swan/