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Christopher Larkin (composer)

From Wikipedia - Reading time: 5 min

Christopher Larkin
BornAdelaide, Australia
GenresVideo game music
Occupation(s)Composer, musician
InstrumentPiano
Years active2012–present
Websitecomposerlarkin.com

Christopher James Larkin is an Australian composer for video games, film, and television, best known for his work on Hollow Knight (2017) and its upcoming sequel Hollow Knight: Silksong. Some of his other works include Pac-Man 256, Outfolded, TOHU, and Hacknet.

Early life and education

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Christopher James Larkin[1] was born in Adelaide, South Australia.[citation needed]

Larkin studied composition at Brighton Secondary School, then at the Elder Conservatorium of Music at the University of Adelaide.[2][3]

Larkin began composing music at a young age and collaborated with filmmaking students while he attended the Elder Conservatorium.[citation needed]

In October 2015, he submitted his thesis for an MPhil in music composition, entitled "Orchestrating the wasteland: sample library engineering as an integral process of realising the music for Wastelander Panda".[1]

Career

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Larkin composed the score for the web series Wastelander Panda: Exile, released in 2014 as a second set of three 10-minute episodes.[4]

He knew Ari Gibson, the director of Team Cherry, prior to starting work on their game, Hollow Knight, which was released in 2017. He found out about the project when it was still a Kickstarter and decided to send in a demo for the project.[5][3] He then worked with Team Cherry to produce a full soundtrack for the game, and it was released in 2017 to critical acclaim. As of April 2024 he is continuing his collaboration with Team Cherry on Hollow Knight's upcoming sequel, Hollow Knight: Silksong.[6]

In 2021 Larkin composed the music for the video game TOHU.[7][8]

He works as a professional composer and sound designer for visual media such as film, TV, and video games.

Other activities

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Larkin spoke at the High Score 2023 conference hosted by APRA AMCOS, alongside Yoko Shimomura.[9]

Compositional style

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Larkin integrates elements of his classical training with a diverse range of musical styles. He draws inspiration from classical composers such as Debussy as well as visual-media composers such as James Newton, Joe Hisaishi, and Koji Kondo.[10]

His most notable work, the Hollow Knight soundtrack, is characterised as conveying "dark elegance and melancholy."[10] The soundtrack is largely orchestral and employs recurring leitmotifs throughout different tracks, each often corresponding to a location or character.[11]

For the adventure game TOHU, produced by Fireart Games,[7] Larkin used the digital audio workstation Cubase to create a musical score that reflects the game's whimsical story and visuals. His process involved observing the gameplay sent to him by the developers, and sonically interpreting those visual elements.[8]

List of works

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Larkin has composed music for the following productions:

Year Title Genre
2012 The Adventures of Figaro Pho[12][13] TV series
2013 University of Adelaide: "Seek Light"[14] Commercial
2014 Wastelander Panda: Exile[4] 3-part web series
2015 Pac-Man 256[15] Video game
2015 Expand[16][17] Video game
2015 The New Adventures of Figaro Pho[18][19] TV series
2015 Hacknet Video game
2016 Outfolded[20] Video game
2017 Barbecue[21][22] Documentary
2017 Hollow Knight[23][24] Video game
2021 TOHU[7][8] Video game
TBA Hollow Knight: Silksong[25][26] Video game

Awards

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References

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  1. ^ a b Larkin, Christopher James (2015). Orchestrating the wasteland: sample library engineering as an integral process of realising the music for Wastelander Panda. Adelaide Research & Scholarship (MPhil). University of Adelaide. doi:10.25909/5bd142d9c8d4a. Retrieved 22 October 2024. PDF
  2. ^ "About". Christopher Larkin. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
  3. ^ a b Larkin, Christopher (23 October 2019). "How Hollow Knight composer Christopher Larkin got the gig". Pocket Gamer (Interview). Interviewed by Matthew Forde. Steel Media. Archived from the original on 26 September 2023. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
  4. ^ a b Rogers, Alan (15 April 2016). "WASTELANDER PANDA: EXILE – Christopher Larkin". Reel Music. Retrieved 22 October 2024.
  5. ^ Larkin, Christopher; Valdiva, Angelo (7 February 2017). "Hollow Knight Soundtrack Interview". YouTube. Archived from the original on 13 February 2024. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
  6. ^ "Hollow Knight: Silksong". Hollow Knight: Silksong. Team Cherry. n.d. Archived from the original on 2 April 2024. Retrieved 4 April 2024. Hollow Knight's award-winning composer, Christopher Larkin, brings melancholy melodies, symphonic strings and heart-thumping, soul strumming boss themes to Hornet's adventure.
  7. ^ a b c "TOHU on Steam". store.steampowered.com. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  8. ^ a b c TOHU Music Behind The Scenes Chat, retrieved 6 February 2022
  9. ^ "High Score 2023". APRA AMCOS. n.d. Archived from the original on 4 April 2024. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
  10. ^ a b Goldner, Sam (2 November 2018). "Inside Christopher Larkin's Darkly Elegant "Hollow Knight" Score". Bandcamp Daily. Archived from the original on 9 December 2023. Retrieved 30 January 2022.
  11. ^ THE SOUND TEST 2 - #05 - Hollow Knight (w/Christopher Larkin) [COMPOSER INTERVIEW / PODCAST], retrieved 6 February 2022
  12. ^ The Adventures of Figaro Pho (Animation, Fantasy, Sci-Fi), Ambience Entertainment, Chocolate Liberation Front, 31 October 2012, retrieved 13 February 2022
  13. ^ "Figaro Pho". Christopher Larkin. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  14. ^ The University of Adelaide - Seek Light 60s TV Ad, retrieved 6 February 2022
  15. ^ "PacMan 256". Christopher Larkin. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  16. ^ "Expand". Expand. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
  17. ^ "Expand". Christopher Larkin. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  18. ^ The New Adventures of Figaro Pho (Animation), Chocolate Liberation Front, 31 August 2015, retrieved 13 February 2022
  19. ^ "The New Adventures of Figaro Pho". Christopher Larkin. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  20. ^ "Outfolded". Christopher Larkin. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  21. ^ Salleh, Matthew (11 July 2017), Barbecue (Documentary), Urtext Film Productions, Projector Films, retrieved 13 February 2022
  22. ^ "Barbecue". Christopher Larkin. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  23. ^ "Hollow Knight". Hollow Knight. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
  24. ^ "Hollow Knight". Christopher Larkin. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  25. ^ "Hollow Knight: Silksong". Hollow Knight: Silksong. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
  26. ^ "Hollow Knight: Silksong". Christopher Larkin. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  27. ^ "Best Composition" (PDF). SASA. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 February 2016.
  28. ^ "Best Sound Design" (PDF). SOUTH AUSTRALIAN SCREEN AWARDS WINNERS. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 February 2017.
  29. ^ "The 2017 ASSG Award Winners". Australian Screen Sound Guild. Archived from the original on 14 December 2021. Retrieved 21 February 2020.
  30. ^ "SOUTH AUSTRALIAN SCREEN AWARDS 2021 WINNERS NAMED AT MERCURY CX GALA | Mercury CX". Archived from the original on 23 March 2023. Retrieved 12 February 2022.
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