What music inspires YOU to create?

What music inspires YOU to create? Do you listen to only one genre? Do you try to find genres that fit the game you're working on? Or... Are you a wildcard? Will almost anything inspire you to create? Share with me?

For those who don't know, listen to the links the others inspire.   Believe it or not, I don't just listen to video game music other musicians (Here or otherwise) come up with.  Some of my favorite music is concert band (Symphonic band) music!

Take this little gem for instance.

Your turn!

Castlevania :




and

Final Fantasy : 

this to : 

Dont forget this : 

I do a lot of listening to classical music. A LOT of listening to classical music. It is the source for all great music of today, and composers the world over will still continue to go back to the concepts developed by these long-dead composers, whether they know it or not...forever.

That being said, Chopin is, by far, my favorite composer, and I find practically all of his work to be brilliant. One of my favorite pieces is his Ballad in G minor. And Maurizio Pollini's rendition of the piece is certainly one of my favorites~!




But yes...classical music does a lot of inspiring for me. I also get randomly inspired while listening to various video game music. but I'll post up some of those at a later time. =P

Ah, I also should mention...the reason I love and listen to Chopin is because he composes so much music that is generally sad and/or unhappy. Not entirely sure why, but I absolutely ADORE tragic-sounding music. And Chopin, I feel, is a master at it...

Was re-watching episodes of Code Geass, and I stumbled upon this little piece, which I didn't ENTIRELY forget about, but I never actively went looking for it. This time, I did. It's so tragic...indeed, I do love it. XD

I listen to a lot of classical music. Saint-Saens is my all time favorite composer. Dvorak is also among my favorites. I listen to a lot of game music, too. Mostly the stuff I grew up with. It takes me to that pure childish excitement, which is a great mood to create in. Of course, I write a lot of music, which makes listening to music at the same time difficult.

I tend to listen to classical and jazz when I'm working.  I also listen to music from older video games... and some newer ones as well.  Consider it a guilty pleasure of sorts.  Even the 8-bit chiptunes of ages long past have a certain charm to them.  

I love Camille Saint-Saens!  Le Danse is one of my favorite pieces by him.... despite how dark it is it's still so full of life :D

Danse Macabre is the song that has inspired the entire presentation and atmosphere of my main project's bad guys and villainy. It is the song that inspired my major protagonist's theme song. Dark, demented, unstable, but playful, comical, and nonchalant about death and despair. The gruesome in a strange and childish package. And as concert mistress I'm very happy to have had the privilege to preform the song many times.

But I also have to give a shout out to Saint-Saens's cello concertos.

A friend of mine was playing a part of this the other day, but on piano.  The music is creepy but serene and enjoyable all at the same time.  Actually... it would be cool to see this in a video game.  Horror survival comes to mind, but I could see it used during a dark moment in an RPG as well.

Well, I really like a lot of genres (except rap and heavy metal *cough, cough*), so a lot of stuff can inspire me. But, I really love orchestrated work because you sort of apply your own words to the feel of it. Nothing tells you how to feel. It's just the connection with the music.





I may be a little bias, since it was made for my game, but I really like to listen to this piece whenever I'm working through an exciting part in the plot.

Bach inspires me and is one of my favorite composers.  Here's a piece I like:

The cello is one of the most expressive and amazing instruments. I can't get enough of it.

I have to agree on that.  The sound made by the cello is beautiful, and yet it seems to be one of the least talked about instruments.  My best friend plays cello, byt she hasn't practiced much lately due to life issues.  She's trying to get back into it and join some sort of music project.

While the violin is my main instrument, my viola would like to have a word with you. :p

Lately I haven't been able to stop listening to Suzanne Vega while I work. In fact my whole IGMC entry is littered with references to her lyrics and song titles. Even the games title itself is owed to her song "Ironbound / Fancy Poultry". Not so much the message of the song or anything [Which is about how easy it is especially for women to become trapped by circumstance, culture, geography and fate.], but the word Ironbound just fascinated me and conjured up all these images and feelings that eventually became the story of The Ironbound Heart.

Not only is she a fantastic lyricist, her music has always had an experimental, modern feel that manages to sound fresh even today, for the most part. I mean... Industrial folk? Come on, that's pretty genius.

Other than that I listen to a lot of videogame, movie and anime soundtracks while working - especially the works of Hitoshi Sakimoto, Kumi Tanioka, Shoji Meguro and Yoko Kanno.

Another guilty pleasure of mine while working is "Letters to Cleo", who hardly anyone in the UK has ever heard of but who I absolutely love.

I inherited my grandpa's viola but I haven't touched it.  It hasn't been played in decades so I'm sure it needs some restoration.  I remember him playing it for us when I was little though.  I play fiddle (I tend to say that over violin because I never learned classical), guitar and piano myself.

Oh, cool! Another fiddle player. I do Irish for the most part but used to play fiddle and mandolin in a Bluegrass band.

I listen to a lot of Irish folk music as well. Altan and Solas are two of my favorite bands.

It depends on the situation.

If i want to continue my project, i usually listen to OOR or Linkin Park. Don't know why but it make mapping and eventing a lot more easier.

If i stuck and don't have any idea at all, then i just randomly search for jazz in soundcloud or youtube. It make writing stories easier for me.