Castlevania: Grimoire of Souls marks not only the long-awaited return of vampire-whipping series. Ayami Kojima, the character designer, and Michiru Yamane (composer), who both left Konami in 2008, are also returning to Castlevania: Grimoire of Souls. Yamane worked previously on iconic Castlevania games such as Symphony of the Night or Dawn of Sorrow. She then went freelance and teamed up on Bloodstained with Koji Igarashi, a long-time Castlevania director. She is also known for Skullgirls and a few Suikoden titles, as well as Monster Boy and Cursed Kingdom. However, she considers her work in Castlevania her greatest achievement.
Yamane was launching Grimoire of Souls on Apple Arcade. I had the opportunity to chat with Yamane via email about her career and work.
What does it feel like to return to the franchise?
My masterpiece, the Castlevania series, is from my time as an employee of the company. It is also the series where I have participated in the most titles. I am very pleased to be able, after so many years, to contribute to this project as a free musician and to be able please the fans.
What makes a Castlevania music unique? What elements are inherent to Castlevania?
Its worldview is the best part of it. The medieval European era is known for its pipe organs, choirs and church bells as well as other musical instruments and styles. Particularly, classical and baroque music are points of differentiation. There is also the essence and the science of Western classical music. The desert stage features music that is influenced by Middle Eastern melodies while the water stage employs modal melodies.
[Castlevania]'s worldview is the best thing about it.
What do you think has happened to the series sound over time?
It is possible to say that it has evolved with the changes in performance of game consoles. As time progressed, the PSG sound source for NES, followed closely by the Mega Drive and PlayStation 2. This has allowed for a greater range of expression. The number of simultaneous sounds in the early days was only three. However, technology has increased the data we can process and thus the musical expressions have expanded. The same can be said for graphics. As the music supervisor, I believe that it is possible to express artistic beauty through music.
Did you have any suggestions?
My current life's work is in healing music. This is why I make music in a lower tuning A = 432hz which is more suited for healing.
