Akira Yamaoka He is the author of music for many Konami video games. Date of Birth: 06.02.1968 Country: Japan

Akira Yamaoka Biography

Akira Yamaoka is a renowned composer known for his work on various video games for Konami. He graduated from the Tokyo College of Arts, where he studied product and interior design. On September 12, 1993, he joined Konami, already having experience as a freelance composer.

Yamaoka is most famous for his music in the Silent Hill game series, where he composed all the music and sound effects for the games (except for "Play Novel - Silent Hill" for Game Boy Advance and "Esperandote" in Silent Hill, written by Rika Muranaka) and a number of popular compositions for the Bemani game series. Starting with Silent Hill 3, he also played a more significant role as a series producer, while continuing his work as a composer.

Yamaoka's music usually contains melancholic undertones, predominantly featuring dark ambient, industrial, trip-hop, and rock genres. Starting with Silent Hill 3, he began collaborating with Mary Elizabeth McGlynn and Joe Romersa for vocal compositions. Some of the music from Silent Hill was included in the soundtrack for the film adaptation of the same name.

In 2005, his music from Silent Hill 2 was performed at the third Symphonic Game Music Concert in Leipzig, Germany. Yamaoka also performed the music from the Silent Hill series on a seven-string electric guitar accompanied by an orchestra at the world premiere of "PLAY! A Video Game Symphony" on May 27, 2006, in Chicago. His first album, "iFUTURELIST," was released in January 2006.

Before becoming a video game composer, Yamaoka aspired to have a career as a designer but instead pursued music after his studies at the Tokyo College of Arts, where he studied product and interior design. In 1993, he joined Konami to work on the game Sparkster: Rocket Knight Adventures 2. When Konami was searching for a composer for Silent Hill, Yamaoka volunteered because he believed he was the only one capable of creating the soundtrack.

The music of Angelo Badalamenti (known for his work on David Lynch films), Metallica, and Depeche Mode had the greatest influence on Yamaoka's music. When asked if his studies at the Tokyo College of Arts helped him in his musical career, he replied:

"At the moment, Mick Karn from Japan, Steve Strange from Visage, and many other musicians have combined the concepts of art and music with their own new style. This has really influenced me. So, every time I write songs, I try to merge art and music."