is a Japanese composer and sound programmer. He is often regarded as one of the most influential innovators in
chiptune
Chiptune, also known as chip music or 8-bit music, is a style of synthesized electronic music made using the programmable sound generator (PSG) sound chips or synthesizers in vintage arcade machines, computers and video game consoles.
The t ...
and
video game music, producing music in a number of genres including
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
,
jazz,
symphonic, and various
electronic genres such as
house,
electro,
techno,
trance, and
hip hop.
Koshiro and his sister Ayano founded the game development company Ancient in 1990, of which he remains the president.
He has been cited as creating some of the most memorable game music of the 1980s and 1990s contributing for games such as
Nihon Falcom's ''
Dragon Slayer
A dragonslayer is a person or being that slays dragons. Dragonslayers and the creatures they hunt have been popular in traditional stories from around the world: they are a type of story classified as type 300 in the Aarne–Thompson classifica ...
'' and ''
Ys'' series, as well as
Sega's ''
The Revenge of Shinobi'' and
''Streets of Rage'' series.
The
soundtracks
A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of ...
for the latter have been cited by some to be ahead of their time.
Biography
Early life
Koshiro was born in
Tokyo on December 12, 1967. His mother, Tomo Koshiro, was a
pianist
A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...
. She taught him how to play the
piano at the age of three, and by the age of five, he had a strong command of it. In 1975, he began taking music lessons from
Joe Hisaishi
, known professionally as , is a Japanese composer, musical director, conductor and pianist, known for over 100 film scores and solo albums dating back to 1981. He is also known for his piano scores.
Hisaishi's music has been known to explore ...
and studied with him for three years. Everything Koshiro has learned after that has since been self-taught.
While he was still in
high school during the early 1980s, Koshiro began composing music on the
NEC PC-8801
The , commonly shortened to PC-88, are a brand of Zilog Z80-based 8-bit home computers released by Nippon Electric Company (NEC) in 1981 and primarily sold in Japan.
The PC-8800 series sold extremely well and became one of the three major Japan ...
as a hobby, including
mockup
In manufacturing and design, a mockup, or mock-up, is a scale or full-size model of a design or device, used for teaching, demonstration, design evaluation, promotion, and other purposes. A mockup may be a ''prototype'' if it provides at leas ...
s of early
arcade game
An arcade game or coin-op game is a coin-operated entertainment machine typically installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are presented as primarily games of skill and include arcade ...
music from
Namco
was a Japanese multinational video game and entertainment company, headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo. It held several international branches, including Namco America in Santa Clara, California, Namco Europe in London, Namco Taiwan in Kaohsiung ...
,
Konami
, is a Japanese multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Chūō, Tokyo, it also produces and distributes trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, pachinko machines, slot machines, and arcade cabinets. Konami has casin ...
, and
Sega. The
sequencing skills and experience he gained from this would later be utilized in his early video game projects.
The video games that influenced him most were ''
The Tower of Druaga'' (1984), ''
Space Harrier'' (1985), and ''
Gradius
is a series of shooter video games, introduced in 1985, developed and published by Konami for a variety of portable, console and arcade platforms. In many games in the series, the player controls a ship known as the Vic Viper.
Games
*'' Sc ...
'' (1985). The
video game music soundtracks to these games inspired him to become a video game composer.
In a 1992 interview, Koshiro said that his favorite
music genre
A music genre is a conventional category that identifies some pieces of music as belonging to a shared tradition or set of conventions. It is to be distinguished from ''musical form'' and musical style, although in practice these terms are some ...
s are
new wave,
dance music,
technopop
Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a subgenre of new wave music that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s a ...
,
classical, and
hard rock, and that his favorite Western bands are
Van Halen
Van Halen ( ) was an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. Credited with "restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene", Van Halen was known for its energetic live shows and for the virtuosity of its lead guit ...
and
Soul II Soul.
['' GameFan'', volume 1, issue 1 (October 1992), page 8]
Nihon Falcom (1986–1988)
Koshiro's first composing job was with
Nihon Falcom in 1986 at the age of 18. Falcom used compositions from the PC-8801 demo tape he had sent them in their ''
Dragon Slayer
A dragonslayer is a person or being that slays dragons. Dragonslayers and the creatures they hunt have been popular in traditional stories from around the world: they are a type of story classified as type 300 in the Aarne–Thompson classifica ...
''
action role-playing game
An action role-playing game (often abbreviated action RPG or ARPG) is a subgenre of video games that combines core elements from both the action game and role-playing genre.
Definition
The games emphasize real-time combat where the player h ...
''
Xanadu Scenario II
, also known as ''Xanadu: Dragon Slayer II'', is an action role-playing game developed by Nihon Falcom and released in 1985 for the PC-8801, X1, PC-8001, PC-9801, FM-7 and MSX computers. Enhanced remakes were later released for the Sega Saturn ...
'', for its opening theme and several dungeon levels. He also wrote the opening song in ''
Romancia'' that same year. His compositions for these early games were influenced by arcade game music and Japanese bands such as
The Alfee
The Alfee is a Japanese folk rock band who debuted in 1974, and have been recording and touring since then, with 23 studio albums and 63 singles throughout their career. The band marked its 40th anniversary in 2014 with their 64th single.
Histor ...
. He then produced the soundtrack to ''
Dragon Slayer IV / Legacy of the Wizard'' (1987), which was influenced by the sounds of early Konami games. His most well-known Falcom works are his soundtracks for ''
Sorcerian
is a 1987 action role-playing game developed by Nihon Falcom as the fifth installment in the '' Dragon Slayer'' line of games. Originally released for the PC-8801 Personal Computer, it has since been released on a wide variety of platforms.
Gam ...
'' (1987) and the early ''
Ys'' games, ''
Ys I'' (1987) and ''
Ys II
Ys (pronounced ), also spelled Is or Kêr-Is in Breton, and Ville d'Ys in French, is a mythical city on the coast of Brittany that was swallowed up by the ocean. Most versions of the legend place the city in the Baie de Douarnenez.
Etymolog ...
'' (1988). These early music productions mainly featured
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
and
fusion
Fusion, or synthesis, is the process of combining two or more distinct entities into a new whole.
Fusion may also refer to:
Science and technology Physics
*Nuclear fusion, multiple atomic nuclei combining to form one or more different atomic nucl ...
music.
The
TurboGrafx-CD versions of the first three ''Ys'' games (from 1989 to 1991) are notable for their very early use of
Red Book audio in video games. Music from the ''Ys'' games were also employed in the
''Ys'' anime.
All of these early soundtracks were produced using the
FM synthesis
Frequency modulation synthesis (or FM synthesis) is a form of sound synthesis whereby the frequency of a waveform is changed by modulating its frequency with a modulator. The frequency of an oscillator is altered "in accordance with the amplitud ...
sound chip of the PC-8801. Despite later advances in audio technology, Koshiro would continue to use older PC-8801 hardware to produce many of his later video game soundtracks, including the ''
Streets of Rage
''Streets of Rage'' is a series of side-scrolling beat 'em up video games, centering on the efforts of several ex-police vigilantes trying to rid a fictional, large American city from a crime syndicate that has corrupted its local government. ...
'' and ''
Etrian Odyssey'' soundtracks.
[ Reprinted from ] His soundtracks for early
Nihon Falcom games, such as the ''
Dragon Slayer
A dragonslayer is a person or being that slays dragons. Dragonslayers and the creatures they hunt have been popular in traditional stories from around the world: they are a type of story classified as type 300 in the Aarne–Thompson classifica ...
'' and ''
Ys'' series, are widely regarded as some of the most influential
role-playing video game
A role-playing video game (commonly referred to as simply a role-playing game or RPG, as well as a computer role-playing game or CRPG) is a video game genre where the player controls the actions of a character (or several party members) immers ...
scores.
Early freelance work (1988–1990)
Following his separation with Falcom, Koshiro became a freelancer, composing music for many other companies. His early freelance projects included the
Sharp X68000 port of ''
Bosconian
is a multidirectional scrolling shooter arcade game which was developed and released by Namco in Japan in 1981. In North America, it was manufactured and distributed by Midway Games. The goal of the game is to earn as many points as possible b ...
'',
Bothtec's
action role-playing game
An action role-playing game (often abbreviated action RPG or ARPG) is a subgenre of video games that combines core elements from both the action game and role-playing genre.
Definition
The games emphasize real-time combat where the player h ...
''
The Scheme'' (1988) for the PC-8801, and
Enix's
visual novel
A , often abbreviated as VN, is a form of digital semi-interactive fiction. Visual novels are often associated with and used in the medium of video games, but are not always labeled as such themselves. They combine a textual narrative with sta ...
adventure game
An adventure game is a video game genre in which the player assumes the role of a protagonist in an interactive story driven by exploration and/or Puzzle video game, puzzle-solving. The Video game genres, genre's focus on story allows it to draw ...
''
Misty Blue
Misty may refer to:
Music
* ''Misty'' (Ray Stevens album), an album by Ray Stevens featuring the above song
* ''Misty'' (Richard "Groove" Holmes album), an album by Richard "Groove" Holmes featuring the above song
* ''Misty'' (Eddie "Lockjaw" ...
'' for the
PC-9801 in 1990.
The latter two soundtracks featured early
Eurobeat
Eurobeat refers to two styles of dance music that originated in Europe: one is a British variant of Italian Eurodisco-influencedAng, Ien & Morley, David (2005). "Cultural Studies: Volume 3, Issue 2". ''Routledge''. pgs. 171, 173, 170. . "Eurorec ...
music.
His most notable freelance work was for
Sega, where he composed music for the
''Shinobi'' series and the
''Streets of Rage'' series, as well as
Quintet, where he composed the soundtracks to ''
ActRaiser
is a 1990 hybrid platformer, god game, and city-building game with light action RPG elements for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System developed by Quintet and published by Enix, combining traditional side-scrolling platforming with urban pl ...
'' (1990) and ''
ActRaiser 2
''ActRaiser 2'' is a side-scrolling platform game for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System developed by Quintet and published by Enix in 1993.
The game is a sequel to the original '' ActRaiser'', but the storyline is not directly connected to ...
'' (1993).
His first freelance work for Sega was the soundtrack to ''
The Revenge of Shinobi'' (1989), for which he produced
house and "
progressive
Progressive may refer to:
Politics
* Progressivism, a political philosophy in support of social reform
** Progressivism in the United States, the political philosophy in the American context
* Progressive realism, an American foreign policy pa ...
, catchy,
techno-style compositions"
that fused
electronic dance music with traditional
Japanese music. His soundtrack for ''
ActRaiser
is a 1990 hybrid platformer, god game, and city-building game with light action RPG elements for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System developed by Quintet and published by Enix, combining traditional side-scrolling platforming with urban pl ...
'' (1990), on the other hand, was mainly
classical and
orchestral.
While working on ''ActRaiser'', in order to get around the
SNES
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), commonly shortened to Super NES or Super Nintendo, is a 16-bit home video game console developed by Nintendo that was released in 1990 in Japan and South Korea, 1991 in North America, 1992 in Eu ...
's 64
KB memory limitation which limited the number of instruments that can be used and prevented the reloading of
samples, Koshiro developed a sample loading system that worked with the
ROM cartridge
A ROM cartridge, usually referred to in context simply as a cartridge, cart, or card, is a replaceable part designed to be connected to a consumer electronics device such as a home computer, video game console or, to a lesser extent, electro ...
memory, swapping samples from the
ROM
Rom, or ROM may refer to:
Biomechanics and medicine
* Risk of mortality, a medical classification to estimate the likelihood of death for a patient
* Rupture of membranes, a term used during pregnancy to describe a rupture of the amniotic sac
* R ...
data on the fly. This allowed him to "load parts of the music gradually as needed, and also change it quickly between stages or parts of a stage" which the "original system couldn't do it with its restrictions." A similar system was used by other companies for later SNES games such as
Squaresoft's ''
Seiken Densetsu 3
''Trials of Mana'', also known by its Japanese title is a 1995 action role-playing game
An action role-playing game (often abbreviated action RPG or ARPG) is a subgenre of video games that combines core elements from both the action gam ...
'' (1995) and
Namco Tales Studio's ''
Tales of Phantasia'' (1995).
Founding of Ancient Corp. (1990–1994)
In 1990, Koshiro helped found
Ancient Corp., which contributed to the development of a number of games, such as the
8-bit version of ''Sonic the Hedgehog'' and ''
Beyond Oasis''. The company was also founded by his mother, Tomo Koshiro, while his sister Ayano Koshiro works at the company as an art/character/graphic designer and was also the art designer for the ''ActRaiser'' games.
His sister Ayano has designed characters and graphics for several games Koshiro has worked on, including the ''Streets of Rage'' (''Bare Knuckle'' in Japan) series, ''Ys'', and ''ActRaiser''.
While working with Ancient, he composed the soundtrack for the
8-bit version of ''Sonic the Hedgehog'' in 1991. He adapted several pieces of music from the original
16-bit version, while the rest of the soundtrack consisted of his own original music.
His
soundtracks for the
''Streets of Rage'' series (known as ''Bare Knuckle'' in Japan) from 1991 to 1994 were composed using then outdated PC-8801 hardware alongside his own original
audio programming language. According to Koshiro: "For ''Bare Knuckle'' I used the PC88 and an original programming language I developed myself. The original was called MML,
Music Macro Language. It is based on
NEC's
BASIC
BASIC (Beginners' All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code) is a family of general-purpose, high-level programming languages designed for ease of use. The original version was created by John G. Kemeny and Thomas E. Kurtz at Dartmouth College i ...
program, but I modified it heavily. It was more a BASIC-style language at first, but I modified it to be something more like
Assembly
Assembly may refer to:
Organisations and meetings
* Deliberative assembly, a gathering of members who use parliamentary procedure for making decisions
* General assembly, an official meeting of the members of an organization or of their representa ...
. I called it ‘Music Love'. I used it for all the ''Bare Knuckle'' games."
The soundtracks for ''
Streets of Rage
''Streets of Rage'' is a series of side-scrolling beat 'em up video games, centering on the efforts of several ex-police vigilantes trying to rid a fictional, large American city from a crime syndicate that has corrupted its local government. ...
'' (1991) and ''
Streets of Rage 2'' (1992) were influenced by
house,
techno,
hardcore techno,
breakbeat
Breakbeat is a broad type of electronic music that tends to use drum breaks sampled from early recordings of funk, jazz, and R&B. Breakbeats have been used in styles such as hip hop, jungle, drum and bass, big beat, breakbeat hardcore, and UK g ...
,
funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the mid ...
and
ethnic music
Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...
. He also attempted to reproduce the
Roland TR-808 and
TR-909 beats and
Roland TB-303 synths using
FM synthesis
Frequency modulation synthesis (or FM synthesis) is a form of sound synthesis whereby the frequency of a waveform is changed by modulating its frequency with a modulator. The frequency of an oscillator is altered "in accordance with the amplitud ...
. The soundtrack for ''Streets of Rage 2'' in particular is considered "revolutionary" and ahead of its time,
for its "
amazing blend of swaggering house
synths,
dirty
Dirt is an unclean matter, especially when in contact with a person's clothes, skin, or possessions. In such cases, they are said to become dirty.
Common types of dirt include:
* Debris: scattered pieces of waste or remains
* Dust: a genera ...
"
and "
trancey electronic textures that would feel as comfortable in a
nightclub as a video game."
His CD soundtracks became best-sellers in Japan during the early 1990s. In 1993, ''
Electronic Games
An electronic game is a game that uses electronics to create an interactive system with which a player can play. Video games are the most common form today, and for this reason the two terms are often used interchangeably. There are other common ...
'' listed the first two ''Streets of Rage'' games as having some of the best
video game music soundtracks they "ever heard." They described Koshiro as "just about universally acknowledged as the most gifted composer currently working in the video game field."
For the soundtrack to ''
Streets of Rage 3
''Streets of Rage 3'' is a side-scrolling beat 'em up developed and published by Sega in 1994 for the Genesis. It is the third installment of the ''Streets of Rage'' series and the last game in the original trilogy. The game includes several ...
'' (1994), he created a new composition method called the "Automated Composing System" to produce "fast-beat techno like
jungle
A jungle is land covered with dense forest and tangled vegetation, usually in tropical climates. Application of the term has varied greatly during the past recent century.
Etymology
The word ''jungle'' originates from the Sanskrit word ''jaṅ ...
."
It was the most advanced techno technique of the time, incorporating heavily randomized sequences.
This resulted in innovative and
experimental sounds generated automatically that, according to Koshiro, "you ordinarily never could imagine on your own." This method was very rare at the time, but has since become popular among techno and
trance music
Trance is a genre of electronic dance music that emerged from the British new-age music scene and the early 1990s German techno and hardcore scenes.
Trance music is characterized by a tempo generally lying between 135–150 beats per minute ...
producers to get "unexpected and odd sounds."
The soundtrack also had elements of abstract,
experimental
An experiment is a procedure carried out to support or refute a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of something previously untried. Experiments provide insight into cause-and-effect by demonstrating what outcome occurs when a ...
,
gabber,
and
trance music
Trance is a genre of electronic dance music that emerged from the British new-age music scene and the early 1990s German techno and hardcore scenes.
Trance music is characterized by a tempo generally lying between 135–150 beats per minute ...
.
The experimental
electronic music
Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means (electroac ...
was not very well received upon release, but has since been considered to be ahead of its time. According to ''
Mean Machines
''Mean Machines'' was a multi-format video game magazine published between 1990 and 1992 in the United Kingdom.
Origins
In the late 1980s ''Computer and Video Games'' (''CVG'') was largely covering the outgoing generation of 8-bit computers l ...
'', "ironically it pre-dated the 'trance' era that came a short while after release."
Koshiro was one of the first composers credited under his real name in a time when several other Japanese developers were credited under pen names.
Later career (1994–present)
Also in 1994, Koshiro co-composed a well known soundtrack for the
Mega-CD version of ''
Eye of the Beholder'', a
dungeon crawl
A dungeon crawl is a type of scenario in fantasy role-playing games in which heroes navigate a labyrinth environment (a "dungeon"), battling various monsters, avoiding traps, solving puzzles, and looting any treasure they may find. Video games an ...
role-playing video game
A role-playing video game (commonly referred to as simply a role-playing game or RPG, as well as a computer role-playing game or CRPG) is a video game genre where the player controls the actions of a character (or several party members) immers ...
ported over from the original by Japanese developer Opera House and published by Sega.
That same year, his soundtrack for ''
Beyond Oasis'' utilized a
late romantic style of music, which he later also utilized for ''
Legend of Oasis'' (1996), ''
Merregnon ''Merregnon'' is a series of works that blend orchestral music with fantasy fiction. Since its inception in 1999, the project has produced several albums and live concert performances. The third part is ''Merregnon: Land of Silence'', which premiere ...
'' (2000), and ''Warriors of the Lost Empire'' (2007).
He also composed the soundtrack for Sega's ''
Shenmue
is an action-adventure game series created, produced and directed by Yu Suzuki. '' Shenmue'' (1999) and ''Shenmue II'' (2001) were developed by Sega AM2 and published by Sega for Dreamcast. '' Shenmue III,'' developed by Suzuki's company ...
'' (1999) alongside
Takenobu Mitsuyoshi
is a Japanese composer of video game music
Video game music (or VGM) is the soundtrack that accompanies video games. Early video game music was once limited to sounds of early sound chips, such as programmable sound generator, programmabl ...
and a few others, with Koshiro contributing fifteen original compositions to the soundtrack. Three other staff members of Ancient also worked on ''Shenmue''.
He later composed the soundtracks for the ''
Wangan Midnight
is a Japanese racing manga series written and illustrated by Michiharu Kusunoki. It was first serialized in Shogakukan's '' Big Comic Spirits'' in 1990, but was later serialized in Kodansha's '' Weekly Young Magazine'' from 1992 to 2008. ...
'' series (2001 onwards) and ''
Namco × Capcom
(pronounced as "Namco Cross Capcom") is a tactical role-playing (RPG) crossover video game developed by Monolith Soft for the PlayStation 2 and published by Namco in 2005. The gameplay combines tactical RPG and action sequences during battles ...
'' (2005). These were the first projects where he wrote the lyrics along with the music. For the ''Wangan Midnight'' series in particular, his compositions were mostly
trance music
Trance is a genre of electronic dance music that emerged from the British new-age music scene and the early 1990s German techno and hardcore scenes.
Trance music is characterized by a tempo generally lying between 135–150 beats per minute ...
, a style he was previously unfamiliar with.
He composed the main theme of the French TV channel ''
Nolife'', which launched in 2007. The theme was released as part of the album ''Tamiuta'' in 2008. Some of Koshiro's latest work includes music for the ''
Etrian Odyssey'' series,
the ''
Wangan Midnight
is a Japanese racing manga series written and illustrated by Michiharu Kusunoki. It was first serialized in Shogakukan's '' Big Comic Spirits'' in 1990, but was later serialized in Kodansha's '' Weekly Young Magazine'' from 1992 to 2008. ...
'' series, and the ''
7th Dragon
is a role-playing video game for Nintendo DS developed by imageepoch and published by Sega in Japan on March 5, 2009. The game has not been published in other territories. However, an English fan translation was completed in 2014.
Story
''7th ...
'' series. In 2018, Koshiro contributed one song to
Nobuhiko Okamoto
is a Japanese voice actor and singer affiliated with Raccoon Dog. He won the Best New Actor Award at the 3rd Seiyu Awards and Best Supporting Actor Award at the 5th Seiyu Awards.
Voice acting career
In an interview held at the Anime Expo, wh ...
's album ''Braverthday''. He was brought back to compose for ''
Streets of Rage 4'' in 2020, along with Kawashima and several others. In the same year, he composed the theme song "Koroneraiser Inu-More!" for
Hololive
is a virtual YouTuber agency owned by Japanese tech entertainment company Cover Corporation. In addition to acting as a multi-channel network, Hololive Production also handles merchandising especially in music production and concert organizati ...
's
virtual YouTuber
A , or , is an online entertainer who uses a virtual avatar generated using computer graphics. Real-time motion capture software or technology are often—but not always—used to capture movement. The digital trend originated in Japan in the mid- ...
Korone Inugami.
Works
''All works listed below were composed solely by Koshiro unless otherwise noted''
Footnotes
Notes
References
External links
Ancient Corp. website
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Koshiro, Yuzo
1967 births
Anime composers
Electronic composers
Japanese composers
Japanese dance musicians
Japanese electronic musicians
Japanese male composers
Japanese music arrangers
Japanese techno musicians
Japanese trance musicians
Living people
Musicians from Western Tokyo
People from Hino, Tokyo
Video game composers