News and Stuff

Christopher awarded MMus degree

Wed, 11 Aug 2010 23:59:12 +0100

Christopher was recently awarded a Master of Music in Composition and Composition for Screen degree from the Royal College of Music. The programme was 2 years long and involved a combination of composition for film and contemporary concert music. During this time Christopher also set up and ran the Royal College of Music Laptop Orchestra which performed twice in 2010 and will continue after he leaves.

(On a personal note) -
“To have completed the masters course is a tremendous honour and above all else I feel a much greater confidence in the music that I write. The excellent performers I’ve met and the huge amount of experience I’ve acquired over the past two years will will hopefully continue to fuel my passion for composing both on and off the screen.”

“To aspiring students:
Getting your place on a course or your first animation job can be stressful. Studying the art of writing music for the stage or screen is not only difficult but incredibly competitive. This is precisely what makes a composition degree at a conservatoire like RCM so intensely rewarding. Challenge others, and more importantly, challenge yourselves.”

-Christopher Chong

Intel i7 Studio Upgrade

Wed, 14 Jul 2010 15:44:47 +0100

Major C Studios is frequently upgrading to the latest hardware and software to stay at the front of the pack in terms of music production. Whether its orchestral string arrangements or heavily processed electronics, our gear is always being updated so we can offer you a product that is truly up to scratch!

Intel’s new range of core i3, i5 and i7 processors allow us to run music heavyweights like Logic Pro, Pro Tools and Avid SIbelius on multi-core chips. This particular upgrade will mostly affect Christopher’s mobile work including scoring music whilst abroad and working on-site when a music session needs to be perfected asap.

Machine: Apple Macbook Pro 2010
Speed: Intel i7 2.66 gHz (overclocks to 3.33 gHz automatically for intensive audio/video work)

What does this mean for music? It means being able to take advantage of bigger sample libraries, upgrading from 16-bit to 24-bit audio quality, faster and cleaner score production and all in a ready-to-be-mobile package.

Major C Studios uses the following software regularly:

Avid Pro Tools 8
Avid Sibelius
Apple Logic Professional 8
Renoise 2.6
Max/MSP 5
Supercollider

Various sample libraries (including East West Quantum Leap Orchestral Libraries)

The ability to work through previous sounds with better quality and speed will likely impact on this website in the coming months. Expect new showreel audio and video!

Videogame Music Thesis Published

Sun, 6 Jun 2010 01:18:31 +0100

It’s a truly exciting and rewarding day for the journey of Christopher’s research in to music, videogames and storytelling. His university research thesis, ‘The Narrative Role of Music in Role-playing Games - Final Fantasy VII’ was picked up by the industry hub, Gamasutra. After exchanging a few drafts, an abridged version of Christopher’s work is now available online at the Game Career Guide homepage under ‘features’.

Plain Sight Launch

Mon, 5 Apr 2010 00:09:40 +0100

Today is the launch of ‘Plain Sight’, a new production by Beatnik games (creators of the much anticipated ‘Ada’) with music provided by Christopher Chong of Major C.

The game is jazzy, multiplayer, online, robot, and ninja all at the same time with a chaotic sound to match! Check out the trailer for one of the most eagerly awaited indie games this year.

Work begins on Starlings Game

Sat, 27 Mar 2010 03:46:55 +0000

I’ve begun working on a new videogame by indie developer Russ Morris and it’s looking to be an absolutely stunning visual/aural feast :)

The game features the player controlling a single bird which can develop into a flock depending on where you fly. The style of the game including quite strongly, the orchestration of the music changes dynamically with the variation in flock size.

More news as it comes, so far the game is pretty much near visual completion and the music is well on its way! Audio samples will go online soon.

Christopher completes Video Game title track

Sun, 21 Feb 2010 15:52:49 +0000

Head on over to http://www.beatnikgames.co.uk/ and you can sample a demo of the title track for their new videogame ‘Plain Sight’ featuring suicidal ninja robots in space duelling it out for jazzy delights! The project is very near completion and Beatnik Games are heading for a March 22nd release date

The task has been and continues to be excellent fun as we’ve passed through many many styles of music in order to the feel just right for a multiplayer experience. Check out the sample below.

MajorC is ‘January Team Pick’

Tue, 26 Jan 2010 20:37:55 +0000

The first round of top-rated music for 2010 is out and we’re happy to announce that Christopher’s track ‘It’s Not Over Yet’ has been included in the January round-up!

Here’s what the reviews are saying -

“Terrific Programming”
- John Llewellyn Rees

“Classical Indian musical elements are mixed with Western contemporary beats and even a piano here to wonderful effect”

”This is a funky, urban, fusion track...high energy and high spirited with attitude”
- Screened Music Network Team

Colossal Sample Library Upgrade

Fri, 8 Jan 2010 21:28:15 +0000

Happy New Year!

This year we pledge to give you not good, not great but the BEST music you can possibly sink your ears into and to make this possible, we’ve just purchased ££££’s on literally the best performance libraries on the planet.

Major C studios is upgrading constantly and we’re kick starting the year with the sample libraries. We have just purchased the East West Complete Composer Suite which includes your favourite high clarity sounds from films and videogames! The package includes:

- East West Quantum Leap Symphonic Orchestra Gold Edition
- East West Quantum Leap Pianos Gold edition
- East West Quantum Leap Symphonic Choirs
- East West Quantum Leap Goliath (includes replacements for the entire GM midi spec)
- East West Quantum Leap Storm Drum 2
- East West Quantum Leap Voices of Passion
- East West Quantum Leap RA ethnic collection

This is among numerous other 2010 upgrades for Major C studios and is a welcome addition to our already huge instrument collection.

For those of you less up to date about sample libraries, they present the director/project leader with the flexibility to ask the composer for a ‘mock-up’ version of anything from solo instrument melodies to full orchestral demos which you can drop straight into your session to test different types of music.

This can make a world of difference to the success of a soundtrack as you no longer need to wait for the day of the recording session to realise that an orchestra was a complete mistake or that solo guitar line causes the story to fall flat on its dramatic face.

For demos, many of which now include upgraded sounds from the EW/QL Complete Composer collection, check out the ‘music’ section. ‘click here’

Recording Session for Documentary

Mon, 7 Dec 2009 20:07:37 +0000

Today we had the recording session for ‘Practical Skills’, a module I am completing at the Royal College of Music. A huge thanks to all the fantastic performers and friends who supported this one-week spot, compose, score and record project!

The film itself was a clip from a documentary about scientists and specifically features Albert Einsten and his discovery of his theory of Relativity.

Christopher appears in Tristram Cary Article and mentioned for recent successes in Film

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 11:45:42 +0000

The newest issue of UpBeat features Christopher including his quote from the Tristram Cary article by David Burnand, and also for his recent success with the musical ‘Death in D Minor’ winning Best Local Film at the Yellow Fever Independent Film Festival.

Max 5 Bootcamp - files and fotos (photos)

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:21:13 +0000

Today was the Max 5 Bootcamp hosted by the RCM Laptop Orchestra. Christopher ran through the basics of routing MIDI, sending messages and simple programming followed by a brief look at how to use MSP signal objects.

The purpose of the one-day session was to introduce RCM students to the near limitless possibilities offered by the Max5 software for both Sound Design and Live Performance.

Patches that were created as demonstration during the session will be available to download on this site below.

Max/MSP 5 Bootcamp with Christopher Chong

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 18:22:27 +0000

Sick and tired of turning on Max/MSP and still having no idea what to do with it? Christopher will be doing a one-day bootcamp at the Royal College of Music for composers and performers who want to learn the basics of patch building on friday Nov. 20th.

Why? Max/MSP is a great way to build your own instruments and adapt existing instruments for creative composition and sound design. Max5 is the perfect springboard for people who plan to go further and use non graphical systems for creating unique sounds.

This event is hosted by the RCM Laptop Orchestra.

When: Friday November 20th, 10am - 3pm
Where: Royal College of Music
SW7 2BS
Outer Parry Room
Admission: Free

External persons and non-RCM students should email first on the above email address or at the ‘contact us’ section of this website.

Before arriving, save time by downloading Max5 or the demo version from http://www.cycling74.com

Christopher featured in INTO magazine

Tue, 3 Nov 2009 20:36:00 +0000

This month’s issue of INTO magazine, published by the Sound And Music organisation (SAM) is particularly special as it features an article by Prof. David Burnand, my tutor at the Royal College of Music, on the legendary Tristram Cary who sadly passed away last year.

The article is a fascinating read and you may discover some of your favourite films have been scored by Tristram Cary. The article features a quote by Christopher Chong saying:

‘Tristram set the foundations for an environment where today, composers like myself can freely move from instrumental to electroacoustic resources and apply them unreservedly, on the concert platform or in screen-based media such as film and video games. A versatile composer and inspiring innovator, Cary’s ability to move effortlessly from pioneering sonic concepts to scoring music for picture is on that I will continue to aspire to’

Furnace Four - MajorC Sound Design for London Premiere

Thu, 1 Oct 2009 12:10:48 +0100

“Rich in allusion...has a spark that sets it apart”
- Andrew Robertson, review for eyeforfilm.com.

Tonight at the Curzon Mayfair 6 films funded by the UK Film Council will have their London debut including Haydn Butler’s dark, dystopian ‘Furnace Four’ based on the screenplay by acclaimed 2008 C4 ‘4-Talent’ award winner Ali Muriel.

Major C Audio provided finishing touches to the sound design for this release, tickets are £12 at

Curzon Mayfair
38 Curzon St
London, W1J 7TY
0871 703 3989

If you’re at the screening I’ll be happy to meet you there :) drop me an email.

2 Animations - National Gallery Screening

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 12:43:05 +0100

Over the summer I have had the great fortune to work with 2 talented animators, Hao Cai and Mark Pilbeam. Their work will be shown tonight at the National Gallery as part of the ‘Transcriptions - Animation’ collaboration between Natastha Freedman and Central St. Martin’s.

Hao Cai’s 3d work ‘Sunflowers’ is a beautifully rendered animation centred around the figure of Van Gogh who paints himself into a dream where his famous artwork comes to life.

New workstation and Dj-Decks

Thu, 10 Sep 2009 15:01:17 +0100

Major C studios finally see a long awaited upgrade to the main composition workstation in addition to the addition of 2 Numark TTX/CDX decks. Expected improvements include greater speed in terms of workflow and for anyone requiring scratch-dj inspired sounds the record deck upgrades should finally allow me to get back into beat-juggling and live-sampling in performance and recording

Mixed Reality Concert - SL'etude

Mon, 7 Sep 2009 11:25:05 +0100

For four days at the beginning of September I was invited back to the Sonic Arts Research Centre (SARC) in Belfast to complete a mixed reality concert piece I wrote with Dr. Franziska Schroeder and Dr. Pedro Rebelo. Franziska is a master of improvisation (see their trio ‘FAINT’) and her task in the piece was to follow sounds around the room whilst responding to aural cues using her saxophone.

Live gigs - Suffolk and RCM

Sun, 28 Jun 2009 22:17:21 +0100

An exciting couple weeks ahead as I prepare for two concerts. The first, ‘Out of Neverland’, is a series of Saturday afternoon live performances bringing contemporary music and dance to the people of Thorpeness, Suffolk. Led by London composer, Cevanne Horrock-Hopayian, I’ve been comissioned to perform a live-coding set. I plan to build a sequencer from scratch and sample sounds and music from the previous Out of Neverland gigs and from audience participation!

Premiere - Furnace Four (June 19th 2009)

Sun, 14 Jun 2009 22:26:23 +0100

For anyone planning to be at the Edinburgh Film Festival I’d be happy to meet with you between June 19th - 20th as I’ll be up in Scotland for the Film Festival. Haydn Butler will be premiering the recently completed ‘Furnace Four’ which was completed with funding from the UK Film Council.

This project was particularly interesting as I was composing music which was designed to ‘not sound like music’ at the start, and to become overtly beautiful at the end. At the screening, look out of sound design at the start using prepared piano sounds and in the middle a great deal of orchestral writing in the accompaniment parts.

Congratulations to Haydn Butler for the recent completion of this very exciting short film.

Drop me an email if you would like to organise a coffee whilst i’m up at the festival!

-Christopher

Second Life Performance

Sat, 16 May 2009 15:54:45 +0100

From May 11th to May 16th I was invited back to SARC in Belfast for a special performance project headed by the legendary Pauline Oliveros and Chris Johnston. The preparations included 2 intensive days of improvising with drama students of the Queen’s University Belfast and Master’s level students from the School of Music and Sonic Arts.

Film Music in Concert

Wed, 29 Apr 2009 16:13:37 +0100

On April 29th the Royal College of Music performed two of my screened music cues. These included the forest scene from ‘Behind the Wall’ and newly composed music for an animation by Monty Oum entitled ‘Dead Fantasy 2’. Special thanks to both filmmakers for allowing me to use their work in this concert. Reactions were great, especially to the totally OTT score to Dead Fantasy 2 featuring the operatic voice of Mio Kobayashi.

The concert was performed by the professional orchestral musicians from the Contemporary Consort resident at the Royal College of Music in the luxurious Britten Theatre.

Many thanks to engineers Ben and Steve for ensuring the incredibly smooth running of this technically immense gig. Also special thanks to Mr. Vasco Hexel for organising the event.

Composition Workshop with school students

Sun, 19 Apr 2009 16:32:48 +0100

For one full day I joined 3 fellow composers to hold a workshop with children involving collaborative composition for a clip from the Fellowship of the Ring. The day was intense and we went through all the basics of film music composition. This included a small introduction to timecode, using a sequencer to demo ideas (Logic Pro 8), and deciding on a tempo appropriate to the cue. A great deal of work was done using piano improvisation, sequencing on the computer and jotting ideas down on manuscript paper.

The workshop, held at the Belle Shenkman Studios in the Royal College of Music was incredibly fun and I tried to ensure that the kids got as many of their raw ideas straight into the finished composition so they could be proud and attached to the final result. However, 3 hours is not enough time to score an 8 minute action-cue from the Lord of the Rings!! The workshop could easily have been done over the course of a week! But the results were nonetheless atonishing :) (astonishingly good!)