     I started my own little musical gang of one and called it “Meran Cape.” I made it up for no reason one day, but as it went on I came to realize that I lived in another world in my head. A cheerful place on some occasions, and on others a terrifying nightmare. It seemed fitting I named my inner reality Meran Cape after so many years of having that random name. 

     It began, like most other aspiring artists, with my family. Growing up, my sister played piano and my dad owned a video store. I’d watch movies and, in attempt to mimic that feeling I’d get watching those adventures, I’d come home and find the desire to form those feelings into another medium. For a while – and even today sometimes – it was writing, or acting, sometimes even cooking (my attempt to make “dynamic” food has been an ongoing trial). I found, as a child, playing it on the piano my sister practiced on worked just as well. I would plunk out theme songs, and once in a while I’d venture into my own original works. As the desire to play what I heard grew, so did my necessity to learn how to play. Teachers never worked for me – why should someone else need to show me what I wanted to discover myself? So from early childhood onward, I taught myself the piano by ear, and thanks to my supportive parents I was nudged along with an occasional keyboard and a little familial audience.

     The real booster came when our family got a Playstation. You may think, what does THAT have to do with anything? Well, we weren’t always up with the times, and while most households had heard of this doohickey for about a year now, me and my siblings were thrilled. The first game I ever owned was Final Fantasy VII. It was a breakthrough in everything I was familiar with; being a part of a compelling story that’s original and interactive blew my mind. What I will always remember, however, was the music.
     
For a game to have midi loops going on and on and on for a particular scene, you would think it would grow tiring and boorish. Final Fantasy opened new avenues in my creative mind, and allowed me to see the story in music and its genius in the way it made me feel each scene without even having to play it. No matter how many times that song ran around, it would fascinate me how often I could discover something new about the song. That’s when I knew I wanted to compose music for video games. Film, sure, maybe. But while film was a smorgasbord of stories and action, it wasn’t as interactive, and the music didn’t have to be a focal point. Don’t get me wrong, John Williams will always be one of my favorite composers, but Nobuo Uematsu, composer of the first ten Final Fantasies, became my role model.

Since then, I’ve taught myself techniques working with programs like Reason, Fruity Loops, and other live recording studios, and have been slowly teaching myself other instruments in case I need a live recording (I like working with myself) such as violin, flute, the guitar, and other miscellaneous things. My self-teaching has done wonders except in one case: reading sheet music. I’ve never read a note in my life, and it’s hard for me to do but hopefully I can reach that stage. Until then, my heart has taken the brunt of the work, and my mind slaps it into reality.

     I’ve dabbled in singing lately, and have found that to be satisfying even if other people may think me terrible at it. It’s always been a personal pillow-hidden dream of mine to sing for a band, but we’ll see where that goes. At the very least, I have done some covers of other artists using my voice, live instruments, and synths.

     As a listener, I ask you to spread my name if you can. If you know someone who needs music for an independent video game (or even a professional one) please refer me if you like my music. I have studied this field of music for years and I believe I am ready to get out there. Time will tell. Thank you for reading.

Contact: merancape@gmail.com

Professionally curious about music & fan of humanity. Composer for games (Journey, Abzu, AC Syndicate, Absolver, The Banner Saga), films, and concert music.

Professional Composer for Motion Media, Music Mentor & Official FL Studio Power User.
Trailer Credits:
- Avengers: Endgame
- John Wick: Chapter 2
- BEN-HUR (2016)
- Edge Of Tomorrow
www.alexmoukala.com

Freelance music composer and sound designer for games, I am available for commissions.

Chipzel is the alias of Niamh Houston, an independent Northern Irish chip-musician who indulges in the use of Gameboys to create energetic, melodic dance tracks. Through taking the original 8bit sound and manipulating it into something frantically hard-hitting, Chipzel has seen crowds of all ages turn to “raving loons”, taken right back to their days of retro gaming.

For Official Releases go to http://chipzelmusic.bandcamp.com/

Scythuz | Sound Designer is following