Aaron Walz has known since he was 10 years old what he wanted to do with his life. “I’ve been into music and games my whole life,” he says. It’s no surprise then that he has embedded himself deeply in the audio sector of the gaming industry. With his experience, he was able to provide some tips during Casual Connect USA 2014: “Sometimes, limitations can help you compose things you otherwise wouldn’t.”
Having a unique perspective due to being long-time game player and classical musician with a theory-based music degree, Walz took things a step further in 2007 by creating Walz Music and Sound. He lists his creativity and the fact he is easy to work with as business assets and notes that his time as an HR director well-prepared him for running a business. “I know what developers want, and can create things that gamers want to hear, while staying interesting and cutting edge.”
In the Workplace
When Walz was first getting Walz Music and Sound on its feet, there were several things he had to adjust to. First and foremost was shifting away from the “paycheck mentality” and learn to budget. He also had to buckle down and improve his sound design skills. Most importantly, he had to learn to market himself and charge what he was worth. “I had to learn to have faith, not give up, believe in myself,” he says. “The biggest obstacle was me limiting myself!”
Now that Walz Music and Sound is up and running, Walz can focus on the work of running a business and making music and sound. His schedule is varied, and he finds himself working both in-house and at home. His responsibilities include sound creation, composition, and “lots of communication” — as well as the typical business-related tasks.
Now that Walz Music and Sound is up and running, Walz can focus on the work of running a business and making music and sound.
He works with all sorts of clients, most notably Kabam and John Romero (which Walz considers a couple of his biggest accomplishments), and his projects can vary greatly. He has put together a game in a week, while another game may take a year. One day can include a combination of music, voice over recording and editing, design sound for a marketing video or cutscene, and creating custom sounds. The technical specs of the game’s platform must also be taken into consideration when putting a game together. Music length and smooth looping are just a couple of the things that need to be considered.
Collaboration between the different game teams is also important to Walz, who says that a better game is made with more collaboration. “Even better is if I get to do integration and implementation,” he says. “At the very least, you should always be able to test sound in a game and have access to all art assets and a build.”
While he can take on an excessive amount of work at crunch time, Walz prefers to pace himself in his work. “Through the years, I’ve learned to stay realistic with my daily and weekly goals, focused and productive,” he says. “Some work is tiring emotionally, and some is tiring mentally. In fact, even physically. You have to be careful not to tire your ears out and work through that, or things don’t sound good.”
“Through the years, I’ve learned to stay realistic with my daily and weekly goals, focused and productive.”
Building Alliances and Raising Awareness
One of the things Walz laments about the audio sector is the lack of recognition those in the sector receive relative to the rest of the gaming industry. “Sound is a huge part of the experience in almost any good game,” he says, noting that composers and sound designers should always be credited both online and in-game. He’d also like to see more budget designated for audio and more time and thought devoted towards it.
In an effort to combat these issues, Walz and others in the audio sector have come together to form the Game Audio Alliance. Along with tackling compensation and recognition issues, the Game Audio Alliance hopes to work toward audio standardization and increased audio quality in the game sector as well.
In an effort to combat the issues of audio in the industry, Walz and others in the audio sector have come together to form the Game Audio Alliance.
The group met and came together at a Casual Connect conference years ago. “We decided there were not a lot of big companies for audio, and we had a unique vision and wanted to all work together,” Walz says. “We strive to build a sense of community and connectedness among casual/social/mobile audio folks. This helps us all remember that aside from competing, we can come together to make sure audio is highly valued and of excellent quality.”
The group has published articles and materials advancing their goals and Walz answers questions behind the scenes all year long to encourage those starting out in the sector. Currently, the group also plans to create a more formal association for members to join and receive special perks.
Things Still to Do
Whenever he has free time, Walz hones his tennis and bowling skills.
Walz looks forward to the audio process becoming more streamlined in the future, with more tools for game audio creation and integration available to audio developers. “Hopefully, and probably, we will raise the quality of the bit rates and get out of this 128k world in mobile, especially,” he says. “I’m really excited about that!”
He’d also like to create his own game app at some point, saying that he has some great ideas for some original games. He’d also love to have his music performed by an orchestra someday — and possibly conduct — as well as do the same with choral music, as he’s quite familiar with the genre.
In the meantime though, whenever he has free time, he hones his tennis and bowling skills — and wins gold medals as a part of choral group Golden Gate Men’s Chorus, which just competed in the World Choir Games and came home with two gold medals and a silver medal.
Aaron Walz, Owner, Lead Composer, Sound Designer and Producer of Walz Music and Sound, tells us he is “so proud and honored to be at the helm of the audio track and bring it to my home territory and a new audience for Casual Connect in one of the hearts of mobile and social technology and game creation.”
Inspired by John Romero
Aaron has been a game fan since the age of six; naturally he knew the work of John Romero. So he feels the greatest time in his career was working alongside him to compose the music for the top ranking Facebook adventure, Ravenwood Fair, a game which received 30 million plays each month at the height of its popularity. He insists that many things led up to this, reminding him that he had indeed arrived at his dream.
Audio will always be extremely important for a game, and hopefully will continue getting more and more recognition, appreciation in the industry, as well as budgeted dollars.
For Love of Music
Aaron had been freelancing since 1997 in game audio, but the greatest challenge Aaron has worked through was starting Walz Music and Sound in 2007, his childhood dream and a move which required leaving his career in HR. It took him between two and three years to make his new career sustainable full time. In the process, he had to learn to delegate better, spend better and not underestimate the value of his worth and his time. He also had to say yes a lot, learn new skills and hone the ones he already had.
Aaron loves being involved with all types of music
Aaron describes himself as zesty and full of life. He likes to use Pop-Dance music to keep him moving in the gym and alert while driving. His many free time adventures include bowling, tennis, singing in a chorus, yoga, food, wine and rooftop gardening.
The emerging trend offering new opportunities for Aaron’s company is the development of audio middleware that makes sound programming in casual games more dynamic.
Creating More Dynamic Music
The emerging trend offering new opportunities for Aaron’s company is the development of audio middleware that makes sound programming in casual games more dynamic. He plans to make use of this trend by working with developers more closely to change how audio is implemented, and, as he says, “It won’t be just thrown over the fence.”
Games Need Better Audio
Aaron claims the trend that will most affect the industry as a whole is “The slow possible eventual death, or massive rethinking and restructuring of the console systems and portals as well as the exodus to mobile.” But he believes more unification and standardization of software and hardware, especially with audio, will also be very important. “What I know is that audio will always be extremely important for a game, and hopefully will continue getting more and more recognition, appreciation in the industry, as well as budgeted dollars.”
Creating Another G.A.N.G, Designed for Casual Games
Aaron is very excited about creating and strengthening an audio community for Casual Games, similar to what G.A.N.G. did for consoles back in the day, in order to raise the quality, standardize systems, rates and expectations, and raise developer appreciation and compensation. This organization is Game Audio Alliance. It is their audio design company that is branching out to include membership, networking, education and resources.
The game industry, much like Hollywood, is a wonderful melting pot of influences, creativity and talent. Just like film, inspiration to embark on a career in games typically finds its origin in a passionate appreciation for the work of veteran talent that came before you. Such is the case for Aaron Walz, co-founder, composer and sound designer at Game Audio Alliance. His work now spans close to 100 games – largely centered on the mobile, social and casual games space.
Getting Started Early
Aaron originally embraced composing game music at the tender age of 10, when he combined structured piano lessons with a love for game melodies: notably the work of classic Japanese game composers on the NES and Gameboy. He would meticulously learn the tunes by ear and teach himself the basics of MIDI sequencing in the years ahead. Although passionate and ever-expanding his skills, it wasn’t until college that Aaron truly seized upon the notion of making a living out of game music composition.
“I started composing as a freelancer for games while in college, around 1997-1998. I had made a website where I posted game tunes that I sequenced in MIDI by ear, as well as my own original game songs, and some indie companies started hiring me for work,” Aaron tells Gamesauce.
It’s all about the contacts and reputation you acquire along the way
Regarding his transition into the casual games space, Aaron essentially moved with the industry as it matured through the years – carving out his own niche in the process. “Back then there were no Casual Games or Mobile games, so it was PC and Mac retail, or freeware and shareware. I followed the industry as it became Casual, Downloadable, Social, and Mobile. As far as transitioning, it’s all about the contacts and reputation you acquire along the way, and having constant marketing, web and social media presence, or public speaking and interviews.”
Always strive to better yourself
This spirit of creativity and entrepreneurship has clearly been a driving force for Aaron, but he’s also a firm believer in hard work, industry awareness, and mastering the tools of the trade. For sound design and audio engineering students on the cusp of launching a career in the field, Aaron outlines some very specific “self-help” tips and goals for aspiring pros.
“Knowing how to be a recording engineer, reading lots of industry books and articles, playing with new samples all the time, knowing your music theory, performing music – these are all general and vital. All-around computer chops are also a must. Your role as sound designer won’t involve much programming, though, not these days in this space. Of course Protools, and being familiar with Sonar, Cubase, etcetera, helps, and playing lots of games for all sorts of platforms, keeping up on the game charts, owning lots of devices – and knowing them well.”
As Aaron knows all too well, however, a winning personality is just as crucial to success in this industry as the most rigorous of formal education and training. Thanks to his previous work as a Human Resources Director and the associated expertise in leadership training and business law, Aaron is able to evoke a truly collaborative work ethic and company culture when managing relationships at Walz Music & Sound, and most recently at Game Audio Alliance.
Be creative, but stay true to yourself
Aaron values the versatility of an artist and their ability to remain open, fluid, and flexible in all stages of the development process, yet it’s also essential for a budding sound designer or composer to stay true to themselves when seeking employment opportunities in game audio – especially when pushing their own demo reels.
“You should always be yourself. Don’t submit something that isn’t who you are and what you can do. That being said, don’t limit yourself by thinking you can’t learn how to write in other styles as well. Do the work, practice, and produce something different that is quality. If you can’t do that, then don’t put sub-par stuff on your demo. It won’t pay off, and it isn’t representative of your sound.”
Aaron continues: “Keeping that unique sound that is yours is important, and I wouldn’t put anything non-game style on there. As far as foley and sound design, that’s most useful with images, otherwise don’t waste your audio time with much of it unless it is amazing and very much your strong suit. The same applies to voiceover demos.”
The allure of trendy gear
The better you know gear, software and samplers, the more you can pull out of it, and the more quickly you can create work
Historically, aspiring audio pros have never had as much access to affordable sound production software and gear as one can find now. The occasional pitfall of today’s splendid access to sound design tools is that new audio people sometimes surround themselves with stacks of trendy gear and devices without necessarily mastering any one of them. Would a hopeful audio professional be better off dabbling in a wide spectrum of tools, or isolating and mastering just a select handful?
“Both? The better you know gear, software and samplers, the more you can pull out of it, and the more quickly you can create work,” Aaron contends.
But I would not say to force yourself to learn tools you don’t like. Master the ones you love to use, and play with new ones all the time – don’t get stuck using the same ones over and over again.
“You don’t have to have the most expensive and most trendy gear to make something amazing. But that isn’t a reason not to try it and upgrade from time to time.”
A key topic at this year’s Casual Connect Audio track was the importance of open dialogue and peer feedback.
The importance of open dialogue and peer feedback
At this year’s Casual Connect conference in Seattle, Aaron provided an interesting revelation about the submission process at Game Audio Alliance: Aaron and his team will frequently work with composers who are wonderfully talented from a creative perspective, but may be – comparatively – lacking in proficiency when it comes to the nuts and bolts of polished end production. As opposed to “silently” repairing their work, perhaps avoiding confrontation with the artist, the GAA team is instead all about open dialogue, peer feedback, and helping to improve the all-around skillset of their artists.
Backbone and humility often go hand-in-hand in the games business
“The Game Audio Alliance is always interested in bettering people who work with us, and educating the gaming and music community at large,” says Aaron. “We’d much rather work with people while watching them grow and empowering them, than keeping them down. I’d suggest you always try to work with that kind of person, because I’ve certainly encountered a lot of the opposite, which is why we have structured GAA the way we have!”
Backbone and humility often go hand-in-hand in the games business. “I can’t imagine that anyone should be offended by critique in this industry. If you are, you are not in the right industry. Turn off your ego. Seriously,” says Aaron.
No one wants to work with a big ego, and it will stop you from being as good as you can be.
The Game Audio Alliance produces almost all of its composition and production work internally and is looking to bring a couple more individuals into the fold.
The importance of maintaining a balance between quality and budget
The team at GAA currently produces almost all of its composition and production work internally in the interest of maintaining a high quality level, but Aaron is quick to note that they “always accept resumes and demos.” The intention is to engage in a bit more contract work and eventually “bring a couple more individuals into the fold” going forward. As is par for the course with any game audio shop, Game Audio Alliance also regularly contracts outside voiceover talent and hires skilled instrumentalists and vocalists whenever a project demands it.
A key differentiator in the GAA pipeline is the company’s current focus on the casual and mobile game space. Compared to work in the “core” or “AAA” game space, there are specific development conditions and mandates to consider when entering this region of the industry – and it’s a decidedly smokin’ hot area of growth right now.
“The audio footprint can be a lot smaller here, and keeping the quality high can be a challenge because the budgets are far lower than core games. The development cycle is also much faster, but it’s rewarding and fun to hear your work in a casual mobile game so quickly after starting work on a project, unlike a year later with other traditional cycles,” Aaron describes.
The appeal of casual games
Do not champion one tier of game audio work versus another, but appreciate the nature of your current workflow.
That compression of sound and time, both literal and esoteric, draws a fairly profound line in the sand between the world of large-scale game development, working with teams of dozens or hundreds, and the more intimate universe of sound design for smaller social and mobile titles. Aaron doesn’t necessarily seek to champion one tier of game audio work versus another, but he appreciates the nature of his current workflow.
“For me, I like being a big part of the process. There is more and more red tape and barriers the more people you add to it, yes, but usually the end product is more amazing too. Most casual, social, and mobile games, they don’t really involve that many people, and usually only one or just a couple of audio people,” he notes.
When is work becomes fun and fun becomes work
A career in pro audio within the entertainment industry is a dream for many aspiring musicians, and training for this role inevitably involves critical listening in a wide spectrum of different genres, eras, and styles of music. But is it still possible to listen to music for purely recreational purposes, to separate from one’s professionally-tuned ears and simply enjoy for the sake of enjoyment? For Aaron, it’s a dual-edged blade: inescapable critical analysis often trumps raw listening pleasure.
“When I listen to music, all I do is analyze chords, listen to production, editing, levels, mixing, panning, the quality of the players, etcetera – so it’s hard for me to enjoy music in a removed way,” he laments.
Thus, for enjoyment Aaron tends to seek music outside his realm of expertise. “I love world music because of this: I don’t know it as well, so African, Cuban, Greek, Arabic, Indian, and Brazilian Jazz are often played at my house for enjoyment. I do also like simple music with a nice beat for doing chores or working out. These sorts of pieces – like dance music – are very simple, so analyzing them really doesn’t take a lot away from enjoyment.”
Aaron Walz doesn’t have a great deal of free time these days, period, but it seems like he wouldn’t have it any other way. He’s always available – and often booked – to talk about the industry, give helpful advice to aspiring talent, accept and critique demos, and carefully listen to the opinion of other game industry professionals. He also makes time for a great interview, for which we kindly thank him.
If you’re curious about Aaron’s work or what goes on at Game Audio Alliance, feel free to email him at: aaron@gameaudioalliance.com
