EA’S STAR WARS JEDI: SURVIVOR KNOWS THE SCORE

The first video game with a continuous background soundtrack was 1978’s Space Invaders—and by “soundtrack,” we’re talking about four bass notes bleating in an abrasive, ear-numbing loop. Four decades later, the soundtrack to EA’s 2023 video game STAR WARS JEDI: SURVIVOR is an immersive four-hour 3D soundtrack.

On 9/19 the Recording Academy hosted a panel at Walt Disney Studios, "A Spotlight on the Music From Electronic Arts," during which folks got a chance to sit in while EA Worldwide Executive and President of Music Steve Schnur (who knows several Jedi mind tricks) went deep with the creators of the soundtrack, including composers Gordy Haab and Stephen Barton, audio director Nick Laviers and audio mixer Alan Meyerson. Somehow HITS was permitted to attend (provided we sat in the back and didn't make those irritating light-saber noises).

So what's it like to set up camp in Studio 2 at Abbey Road (that Abbey Road) with a 100-piece orchestra, 120-member choir, a handful of pianos, some harps, the occasional alpine horn and the complete creative freedom to push production techniques well beyond what was possible when John Williams' enduring scores were first captured? By all accounts, it’s just as awesome as you might imagine, and the resulting JEDI soundtrack is literally a game changer, with sounds and aspects triggered by in-game events and a POV that changes with every player.

When the panel was asked about adding their musical stamp to a property arguably boasting the most recognizable musical canon of all time, Barton responded, “It’s everything."

The evolution of video-game music from abrasive honks to exquisite, innovative soundscapes finally got the attention of the Grammys last year when the Recording Academy announced the addition of the category Best Score Soundtrack for Video Games and Other Interactive Media. “It was a welcome first step in validating our medium and those who create music for it,” said Schnur.

You can listen to STAR WARS JEDI: SURVIVOR (Original Video Game Soundtrack) on Spotify here. Meanwhile, we're going to belly up to the bar at the Star Wars Cantina for a double-shot of Milk of Magnesia—we had one too many Fuzzy Tauntauns at this thing.