Might as well wait until March when all the new Civs have been released to create a ranking of the New Frontier Civ themes. The next two Civ might have epic sounding themes.
I hope so. Even then, the lowest ranking themes will still be pretty good. I noticed that nobody seems to complain about Civ 6 music. It's like we can all agree that music is the best part of Civ 6.
Ok, I asked Geoff Knorr about the origins of Babylon's themes a week ago, and here is his reply:
As with some of the other ancient civs in the game, there was no concrete melodic material or musical tradition to work from for Babylon. It is not a variation of the Hurrian Hymn, which is only used for Phoenicia in the game. It is worth mentioning that there are many interpretations of what the Hurrian Hymn may actually have sounded like, and all are very different and basically are a result of scholarly guesses. The notation of the Hurrian Hymns is in a very different category than the Seikilos Epitaph and other ancient Greek musical notation, which we can very confidently transcribe accurately. Both Sumeria and Babylon use original melodies I composed for their main theme. Much of the research related to modes or scales overlaps for these ancient Mesopotamian civs, and that puts them generally in the same sonic world.
One very unique archaeological find that we do have from ancient Mesopotamia is the amazing golden lyre of Ur. There are a few modern reproductions of this ancient instrument, and I was very fortunate to work with Andy Lowings to record a very accurate reproduction that he helped bring about. You can read more about his project here. You'll hear Andy playing the golden lyre, and a few other lyre reproductions in the ancient era music of Babylon.
All the best,
Geoff
I keep seeing people claiming Sumeria's themes is based on a Hurrian Hymn, but Knorr says it's original. Same goes for Babylon's themes.
I think more specifically what people have been saying, or at least what I've been saying, is that Sumeria's and Babylon's themes riff on the Hurrian hymn, which is still compatible with what Geoff Knorr is saying.
Ok, I asked Geoff Knorr about the origins of Babylon's themes a week ago, and here is his reply:
As with some of the other ancient civs in the game, there was no concrete melodic material or musical tradition to work from for Babylon. It is not a variation of the Hurrian Hymn, which is only used for Phoenicia in the game. It is worth mentioning that there are many interpretations of what the Hurrian Hymn may actually have sounded like, and all are very different and basically are a result of scholarly guesses. The notation of the Hurrian Hymns is in a very different category than the Seikilos Epitaph and other ancient Greek musical notation, which we can very confidently transcribe accurately. Both Sumeria and Babylon use original melodies I composed for their main theme. Much of the research related to modes or scales overlaps for these ancient Mesopotamian civs, and that puts them generally in the same sonic world.
One very unique archaeological find that we do have from ancient Mesopotamia is the amazing golden lyre of Ur. There are a few modern reproductions of this ancient instrument, and I was very fortunate to work with Andy Lowings to record a very accurate reproduction that he helped bring about. You can read more about his project here. You'll hear Andy playing the golden lyre, and a few other lyre reproductions in the ancient era music of Babylon.
All the best,
Geoff
I keep seeing people claiming Sumeria's themes is based on a Hurrian Hymn, but Knorr says it's original. Same goes for Babylon's themes.
It’s a really good interview, covering a bit of Geoff’s background before taking detailed looks at the composition of the Mongolian and Cree themes from Civ 6, England’s theme from Civ 5, and then of course the Māori themes.
I was particularly struck by the Mongolian throat singing, having not listened to it in isolation before. It’s really beautiful, and I was sorry to hear that the performer, Nature Ganganbaigal, has died.
I was particularly struck by the Mongolian throat singing, having not listened to it in isolation before. It’s really beautiful, and I was sorry to hear that the performer, Nature Ganganbaigal, has died.
It’s a really good interview, covering a bit of Geoff’s background before taking detailed looks at the composition of the Mongolian and Cree themes from Civ 6, England’s theme from Civ 5, and then of course the Māori themes.
I was particularly struck by the Mongolian throat singing, having not listened to it in isolation before. It’s really beautiful, and I was sorry to hear that the performer, Nature Ganganbaigal, has died.
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