Tetsuya Shibata
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is a Japanese
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 generators (PSG) or FM synthesis chips. These limitations have led t ...
composer and sound director. He is credited for over twenty musical scores produced for Capcom's video game releases including the ''
Monster Hunter is a Japanese media franchise centered on a series of fantasy-themed action role-playing video games that started with the game '' Monster Hunter'' for the PlayStation 2, released in 2004. Titles have been released across a variety of platforms ...
'' and ''
Devil May Cry is a series of action-adventure games created by Hideki Kamiya. It is primarily developed and published by Capcom. The series centers on the demon hunter Dante and his efforts to thwart various demon invasions of Earth. Its gameplay consists o ...
'' series, as well those in the '' Darkstalkers'', '' Power Stone'' and ''
Resident Evil Outbreak ''Resident Evil Outbreak'' is a survival horror video game with online playability for the PlayStation 2. Initially released in 2003, it was developed by Capcom Production Studio 1 and was the first entry in the ''Resident Evil'' video game se ...
'' series. His later works with the company involved organizing
orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...
l recordings for ''
Resident Evil 5 ''Resident Evil 5'' is a third-person shooter video game developed and published by Capcom. It is a major installment in the ''Resident Evil'' series, and was announced in 2005—the same year its predecessor ''Resident Evil 4'' was released. ' ...
'' and '' Monster Hunter Tri''. In 2009, Shibata left Capcom and began his own music studio, known as Unique Note, with colleague Yoshino Aoki.


Biography


Early life

Tetsuya Shibata was born October 24, 1973 in
Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of ...
, Japan. While growing up, his mother was a singer and a music teacher. Shibata began playing classical
piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keybo ...
at a very young age. He taught himself how to play
guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...
,
bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...
, and drums while in junior high school and
high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
. Shibata completed a law degree from
Kansai University , abbreviated as or , is a private non-sectarian and coeducational university with its main campus in Suita, Osaka, Japan and two sub-campuses in Sakai and Takatsuki, Osaka. Founded as Kansai Law School in 1886, It has been recognized as one o ...
in 1996. While at the university, he heavily studied
classic A classic is an outstanding example of a particular style; something of lasting worth or with a timeless quality; of the first or highest quality, class, or rank – something that exemplifies its class. The word can be an adjective (a ''c ...
,
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
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...
genres outside of his major. He eventually bought a synthesizer to compose his own music.


Career

With a high interest in starting a career in the musical field, Shibata began applying for jobs in composition after college. Friends of some of his relatives introduced him to the video game industry. Shibata joined Capcom's Sound Management Section in 1997, where he took on various roles such as manager, director, producer, and composer for over twenty different games in a twelve-year span. His earliest works were many fighting games such as the '' Darkstalkers'' and '' Power Stone'' series. Among other titles, Shibata, alongside Mitsuhiko Takano and frequent collaborator Masato Kouda, created the score for the first game in Capcom's successful ''
Monster Hunter is a Japanese media franchise centered on a series of fantasy-themed action role-playing video games that started with the game '' Monster Hunter'' for the PlayStation 2, released in 2004. Titles have been released across a variety of platforms ...
'' series. Notably, Shibata composed music for the second, third, and fourth installments in Capcom's highly regarded ''Devil May Cry'' series. In later releases he chose to replace electronic music with vocal songs in the games' various battle and ending themes to make the music more recognizable for each game. One of these pieces, "Out of Darkness" from ''
Devil May Cry 4 is a 2008 action-adventure game developed and published by Capcom. It was released for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and Microsoft Windows platforms. It is the fourth installment in the ''Devil May Cry'' series and is written by Bingo Morihashi ...
'', was nominated for a Game Audio Network Guild (G.A.N.G.) Award in 2009. He proclaimed that his favorite project so far has been '' Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening'', on which he did all the sound production. He also personally found this to be the most challenging project in his career. Shibata's role in the soundtrack production of 2006's ''
Dead Rising is a series of action-adventure games created by Keiji Inafune. It was originally developed by Capcom until Capcom Vancouver took over developing the franchise. As of March 31, 2022, the game series has sold 15 million units worldwide and is ...
'' involved bringing in licensed music alongside Capcom's in-house compositions. In late 2008 and early 2009, Shibata worked as senior sound director on two major releases. For ''
Resident Evil 5 ''Resident Evil 5'' is a third-person shooter video game developed and published by Capcom. It is a major installment in the ''Resident Evil'' series, and was announced in 2005—the same year its predecessor ''Resident Evil 4'' was released. ' ...
'', he organized recordings by the
Hollywood Studio Symphony The Hollywood Studio Symphony (sometimes the Hollywood Freelance Studio Symphony) is the credited name of the symphony orchestra behind many major soundtracks, including '' The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe'', ''Suck ...
, and did the same for '' Monster Hunter Tri'' with the FILMharmonic Orchestra in Prague. In addition, he produced the ''Monster Hunter Orchestra Concert'', a concert celebrating the fifth anniversary of the ''Monster Hunter'' franchise. Some of his compositions from the original ''Monster Hunter'' were performed. This would be his last role at Capcom, as he states that he left the company because he wanted to create music for a wide range of companies and genres, including those outside of video games. Torn between his responsibilities as a manager and his desire to compose music more freely, he was reluctant to leave the game developer because he had many ongoing projects at the time. His superior informed him that Capcom would not argue with his decision. In May 2009, he founded and became the president of his own music company known as Unique Note. The company aspires to create music for several types of media like
television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...
, commercials, films, and
film trailer A trailer (also known as a preview, coming attraction or attraction video) is a commercial advertisement, originally for a feature film that is going to be exhibited in the future at a movie theater/cinema. It is a product of creative and techni ...
s, as well as video games. Shibata himself plays guitar, bass guitar, and
keyboard Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...
for his own compositions. Early in the company's establishment, Shibata was joined by another former Capcom composer, Yoshino Aoki, who is now the group's vice president as well as a composer, arranger, and lyricist. Shibata had previously worked with Aoki on several projects at Capcom. He had gained respect for her musical talent over the years, especially for her score of ''
Breath of Fire IV ''Breath of Fire IV'' is a role-playing video game developed by Capcom, and is the fourth game in the ''Breath of Fire'' series. It was originally released for the PlayStation home console in Japan and North America in 2000, and Europe in 2001. T ...
'' which he experienced while he was putting together the ''Breath of Fire Original Soundtrack Special Box'' in 2006. So far Unique Note has worked on musical scores for '' Fullmetal Alchemist: Senka wo Takuseshi Mono'' and ''
Half-Minute Hero ''Half-Minute Hero'' is a hybrid real-time strategy action role-playing shoot 'em up video game developed by Opus. It was initially released as a PlayStation Portable exclusive in Japan on May 28, 2009, later in North America on October 13, and in ...
'' for the PlayStation Portable, as well as two musicals.


Musical style and influences

Shibata lists musical influences from many different genres before joining Capcom. As a child, he was exposed to the classical styles of Frédéric Chopin and
Franz Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. Despite his short lifetime, Schubert left behind a vast ''oeuvre'', including more than 600 secular vocal wo ...
. In middle school he listened to
Britpop Britpop was a mid-1990s British-based music culture movement that emphasised Britishness. It produced brighter, catchier alternative rock, partly in reaction to the popularity of the darker lyrical themes of the US-led grunge music and to the ...
bands
Kajagoogoo Kajagoogoo were a British new wave band, best known for their 1983 hit single "Too Shy", which reached No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart, and the Top 10 in numerous other countries. History Beginnings (1978–1982) Formed in Leighton Buzzar ...
and
Boy George George Alan O'Dowd (born 14 June 1961), known professionally as Boy George, is an English singer, songwriter, DJ, author and mixed media artist. Best known for his soulful voice and his androgynous appearance, Boy George has been the lead singer ...
. In high school, he became interested in rock bands such as Aerosmith, Guns N' Roses, and
Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...
. By college, he began listening to the jazz stylings of
Oscar Peterson Oscar Emmanuel Peterson (August 15, 1925 – December 23, 2007) was a Canadian virtuoso jazz pianist and composer. Considered one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time, Peterson released more than 200 recordings, won seven Grammy Awards ...
,
Makoto Ozone is a Japanese jazz pianist. Career He was born in Kobe, Japan. He began playing organ at two and by seven was an improviser. He appeared on Japanese television with his father from 1968 to 1970. At twelve he switched to piano after being impre ...
, Chick Corea, and Baptiste Trotignon.


Works


Composer/arranger

*'' Vampire Hunter 2: Darkstalkers' Revenge'' (1997) – with Takayuki Iwai *'' Vampire Savior 2: The Lord of Vampire'' (1997) – with Takayuki Iwai *''
Street Fighter Alpha 3 ''Street Fighter Alpha 3'', released as in Japan, Asia, South America, and Oceania, is a 2D fighting game originally released by Capcom for the arcade in 1998. It is the third and final installment in the ''Street Fighter Alpha'' sub-series, wh ...
'' (1998) – with Takayuki Iwai, Yuki Iwai, Isao Abe and Hideki Okugawa *'' Plasma Sword: Nightmare of Bilstein'' (1998) – with Takayuki Iwai *'' Power Stone'' (1999) *'' Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes'' (2000) – with Mitsuhiko Takano *'' Vampire Chronicle for Matching Service'' (2000) – with Yuko Takehara *''
Power Stone 2 ''Power Stone 2'' (パワーストーン 2, ''Pawā Sutōn 2'') is a multiplayer fighting game that built on the innovative gameplay introduced by its predecessor, '' Power Stone''. ''Power Stone 2'' allows up to four players to choose from mul ...
'' (2000) *'' Heavy Metal: Geomatrix'' (2001) *''
Auto Modellista is a racing game developed and published by Capcom, first released on PlayStation 2, later ported to GameCube and Xbox. Description ''Auto Modellista'' marked itself apart from others of the same genre with cel-shaded graphics, which gave a han ...
'' (2002) – with Isao Abe *''
Devil May Cry 2 is a 2003 action-adventure hack and slash game developed and published by Capcom. It was released from January to March, originally for the PlayStation 2. In terms of chronological order, the game's events are set after ''Devil May Cry'' and pri ...
'' (2003) – with Masato Koda and Satoshi Ise *''
Resident Evil Outbreak ''Resident Evil Outbreak'' is a survival horror video game with online playability for the PlayStation 2. Initially released in 2003, it was developed by Capcom Production Studio 1 and was the first entry in the ''Resident Evil'' video game se ...
'' (2004) – with Mitsuhiko Takano, Kento Hasegawa and Etsuko Yoneda *''
Monster Hunter is a Japanese media franchise centered on a series of fantasy-themed action role-playing video games that started with the game '' Monster Hunter'' for the PlayStation 2, released in 2004. Titles have been released across a variety of platforms ...
'' (2004) – with Masato Koda and Mitsuhiko Takano *'' Resident Evil Outbreak File #2'' (2005) – with Mitsuhiko Takano, Kento Hasegawa and Etsuko Yoneda *''
Devil May Cry 3 ''Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening'' is a 2005 action-adventure game developed and published by Capcom. The game is a prequel to the original '' Devil May Cry'', featuring a younger Dante. Set a decade before the events of the first ''Devil ...
'' (2005) – with Kento Hasegawa *'' Street Fighter Alpha 3 Max'' (2006) – with Takayuki Iwai *''
Devil May Cry 4 is a 2008 action-adventure game developed and published by Capcom. It was released for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and Microsoft Windows platforms. It is the fourth installment in the ''Devil May Cry'' series and is written by Bingo Morihashi ...
'' (2008) – with various others *'' Fullmetal Alchemist: Senka wo Takuseshi Mono'' (2009) – with Yoshino Aoki *''
Half-Minute Hero ''Half-Minute Hero'' is a hybrid real-time strategy action role-playing shoot 'em up video game developed by Opus. It was initially released as a PlayStation Portable exclusive in Japan on May 28, 2009, later in North America on October 13, and in ...
'' (2009) – with various others *''
Otomedius Excellent is a scrolling shooter video game, developed and published by Konami for the Xbox 360 video game console. It is the sequel to the 2008 game '' Otomedius G (Gorgeous!)'', a spin-off of the ''Gradius'' series. It was released in 2011 on April 21 ...
'' (2011) – with various others *'' Earth Seeker'' (2011) – with Yoshino Aoki *'' Half-Minute Hero: The Second Coming'' (2011) – with various others *''
Merc Storia is an online free-to-play fantasy role-playing game created by Happy Elements. It was released in Japan in 2014 for Android and iOS devices. An anime television series adaptation by Encourage Films titled aired from October 11 to December ...
'' (2014) – with Yoshino Aoki and Kenichi Tendo *''
Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U and (colloquially and collectively referred to as ''Super Smash Bros. 4'' or ''Smash 4'') is a group of two 2014 crossover fighting video games developed by Bandai Namco Studios and Sora Ltd. and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 3DS ...
'' (2014) – arrangements with many others *'' Transformers: Devastation'' (2015) – with Satoshi Igarashi, Jun Okubo,
Vince DiCola Vincent Louis "Vince" DiCola (born November 11, 1957) is an American composer, keyboardist and arranger. He has composed scores for films such as '' Staying Alive'', ''Rocky IV'', and '' The Transformers: The Movie''. DiCola also pioneered the u ...
, and Kenny Meredith *''Uppers'' (2016) – with Yoshino Aoki, Yuko Komiyama, and Jun Okubo *''Justice Monsters Five'' (2016) – with Unique Note *''
Final Fantasy XV is an action role-playing game developed and published by Square Enix. The fifteenth main installment of the ''Final Fantasy'' series, it was released for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in 2016, Microsoft Windows in 2018, and as a launch title ...
'' (2016) – with
Yoko Shimomura is a Japanese composer and pianist primarily known for her work in video games. She graduated from the Osaka College of Music in 1988 and began working in the video game industry by joining Capcom the same year. She wrote music for several game ...
, Yoshino Aoki, and Yoshitaka Suzuki *''
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate ''Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'' is a 2018 crossover fighting video game developed by Bandai Namco Studios and Sora Ltd. and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Switch. It is the fifth installment in the '' Super Smash Bros.'' series, succeed ...
'' (2018) - Arrangements of "Lost Painting", "Prelude (Ablaze)" and "Wrecking Crew Medley". *'' Gungrave G.O.R.E (2022) - With Yoshino Aoki


Sound director/producer

*''
Monster Hunter Freedom 2 is an action role-playing video game developed and published by Capcom for the PlayStation Portable. It is the second handheld installment in the ''Monster Hunter'' franchise. Marketed as a sequel to '' Monster Hunter Freedom'', ''Freedom 2'' is ...
'' (2007) *''
Monster Hunter Freedom Unite ''Monster Hunter Freedom Unite'' is an action role-playing video game developed and published by Capcom for the PlayStation Portable and iOS. It is an expansion of the original ''Monster Hunter Freedom 2'' and was released on March 27, 2008 in J ...
'' (2008) *''
Resident Evil 5 ''Resident Evil 5'' is a third-person shooter video game developed and published by Capcom. It is a major installment in the ''Resident Evil'' series, and was announced in 2005—the same year its predecessor ''Resident Evil 4'' was released. ' ...
'' (2009) *'' Monster Hunter Tri'' (2009)


Other works

*'' Breath of Fire Original Soundtrack Special Box'' (2006) *''Monster Hunter Orchestra Concert ~Hunting Music Festival~'' (2009) *''Rakuen'' (2009) – with Yoshino Aoki *''Suisei'' (2009) - with Yoshino Aoki


References


External links


Unique Note official website
*
Composer profile
at
OverClocked ReMix OverClocked ReMix, also known as OC ReMix and OCR, is a non-commercial organization dedicated to preserving and paying tribute to video game music through arranging and re-interpreting the songs, both with new technology and software and by vari ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shibata, Tetsuya 1973 births Capcom people Japanese composers Japanese male composers Living people Kansai University alumni Musicians from Osaka Prefecture Video game composers