He is known simply as すぎやま こういち and single-handedly took music composing for video games to a whole new level of recognition just because he was a successful composer even prior to his first venture into Dragon Quest.
Sugiyama-san is an avid gamer himself and composing for Dragon Quest seems almost like a natural progression in his career, which includes composing for pop stars (of which several became chart hits) and worked on musicals, commercials, tv as well as anime.
I am not an avid gamer and have no idea what Dragon Quest really is about but what really got me in his short interview was the fact that he likened game music to ballet music - both are non lyrical and yet needs to convey the feelings and story of what is shown on screen/stage. As such, he used orchestral music in all his compositions for the game.
What really could be amazing if you didn't know it is the fact that there are people who are fans of his orchestral soundtracks who aren't fans of the game. The soundtracks itself are treasured in its own right, separate from the game. As seen above, complete orchestras play and record his compositions, even for video games!
Just released is its latest Nintendo DSi edition in 2009 - Dragon Quest Wars, and the original composer is still going strong, having said that the music composing remains the same, only that modern technological improvement to games have made it possible for the accompanying music to be much more multi-faceted and layered than the games of old.
For more information on his multiple game soundtracks as well as some cutting observations about some of the Legend's fans, see here.
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