Trine is an absorbing fantasy action game to be released on PC in July 2009 by Nobilis and Ascaron Entertainment. The games publisher Nobilis recently met up with developer Frozenbyte to offer an insight into the games distinctive and harmonious soundtrack.
Below, Ari Pulkkinen, Sound Designer and Music Composer at Frozenbyte talks to David Costarigot, Project Manager at Nobilis to find out more about the music featured in Trine.
David: Trines music sounds excellent. What instruments are used on the soundtrack? Are they electronic or real instruments?
Ari: Trines soundtrack is purely acoustic meaning that there are no synthesizers involved. It is a mix of real and virtual instruments and played and recorded instruments. These include celesta, piano, harp, guitar, harpsichord, violin, cello, French horn, pizzicato strings and contrabass.
David: Have you composed all the songs on your own? What software do you use and do you play all the instruments yourself?
Ari: I composed and performed all the songs myself and I am using Logic Studio for the compositions. I played all the original instruments on a midi keyboard and some of the other instruments were played by other musicians.
David: How many songs are there in Trine?
Ari: There are 19 tracks including the main theme and the trailer version of it. All in all there is over an hour of original music in Trine and each level has its own unique theme.
David: What are your influences?
Ari: I draw a lot of inspiration from Finnish & Slavic folk music. On the entertainment side, I have recently listened to the Tudors, Conan the Barbarian and Danny Elfmans Corpse Bride original soundtracks.
David: How would you describe the Trine soundtrack?
Ari: The Trine soundtrack captures the offbeat spirit of the magical fantasy adventure that the characters embark on in their quest to save the kingdom from evil. Each score of the soundtrack is like a chapter from a story book, a little piece of the fairy tale. The telling is strengthened by combining folk and chamber music with different orchestral instruments. My objective with the soundtrack was to make something different and unique that would really capture the games story, with its little twisted and humorous turns.
David: Is the soundtrack going to be available for purchase?
Ari: Yes. It will be on sale on my new website
www.aritunes.com as a downloadable album at the same time as the game is released.
David: What does the future hold for you?
Ari: I have set up my own company AriTunes and am working on a couple of very interesting projects. Frozenbyte has got some exciting stuff coming in 2010 and there are also a couple of other Finnish companies working on some really great projects. I cant reveal much yet but stay tuned.
Trine is scheduled for a PC and PlayStation Network release across the UK in July this year.
No on ainakin päässyt uutinen rapakon toisellekin puolelle. 
Kun tulee.
