(*EDIT - repaired broken links)I have a lot of hobbies -- maybe too many, even -- but the one that brings me the most entertainment value is composing.
Let me preface by saying I will always consider myself an amateur-slash-hobbyist. I have no formal musical training. I don't know how to play an instrument. I can't even sight-read sheet music. All I have is my ears, years of experience, and an ever-increasing expectation of my own work. I enjoy listening to the pieces I finish -- which is all you really want from a hobby, I suppose.
So, one day, I start playing with a new melody. I had just finished writing a huge AE arc -- involving an Indiana Jones-type hero and an automaton army from Cimerora -- so the tune struck me as vaguely Roman-sounding. The piece grew longer, a heroic theme was woven in, and
the Atlas Park theme was added for good measure, as it will always be iconic of the game to me. And voila -- the
overture to "Rise of the Copper Legion" was finished.
Of course I was proud of it; at the time, it was the top of my skill level. The cue was quickly posted on my MArc's forum page for all the world to see. Er, hear. The response was light, but favorable. It was just a small corner of the internet, so I was glad to get any feedback at all. And then someone suggested something interesting: write a full soundtrack for the arc. It would've been a first for me, and it was so tempting to try. And so:
Rise of the Copper LegionTotal length: 23:41 The end result was exhausting, but well worth it. The entire soundtrack is permanently on my favorite playlist. And while I'm always tempted to go back and "fix" a few things, I like the idea of finally having a complete project.
After the "Copper Legion" arc was published, I left AE for a while to try other things. Eventually, I made my way back to re-write an arc I started when AE was in beta. The new result was some of my best storytelling, if I do say so myself. With plot twists, subtle humor, tragedy, and an emotionally-satisfying conclusion, "The Fractured Dreamer" was definitely my top-rated arc. Naturally, I didn't want to let the story die. So I did what I do when I have nothing else to work on:
"Fractured Suite" 6:35In a way, this single cue was more tiring than the whole "Copper Legion" score -- I experimented with several new techniques, and to this day it remains my single longest orchestral piece. But as of this November, I can no longer say it's my favorite.
I remember very clearly seeing the CoH closure announcement on Facebook. It sounded like a bad joke at first, but the official site confirmed the worst. I resolved that very weekend to write something in tribute to the community that's I've been a part of for the last six years. Unfotunately, writer's block picks the worst times to settle in. It wasn't until early November that my last City of Heroes project finally picked up steam. With the Atlas Park theme once again, I dug up every trick I knew to leave something fitting for the end of CoH:
"Now Leaving: Paragon City" 4:51I hoped to capture everything that City of Heroes means to mean -- the grandeur, the adventure, the action -- as well as express my own feelings about the very end. After the servers finally shut down, I was left feeling that the finale I wrote was much more upbeat than it ought to be. Shouldn't it be more like me -- dark, depressed, and emotionally dead inside? But I've come around again to the mindset I was in when the last notes were laid down: optimistic. The shutdown of CoH isn't the end of all things. While I can accept being mournful, I will not accept losing hope. And while it's always dark after a sunset, eventually the sun comes up again, and a new day begins. Whatever it is and whenever it happens, I'll be waiting for that sunrise.
And until then, I'll still have the music in my head.
