Behind the music of Medal of Honor – free sample tracks inside

Medal of Honor's score reaches across borders.

A cross-cultural sound

Any project with such a distinct sense of place requires some study to come up with a style, though Djawadi says he avoids listening to movie scores in such situations in order to keep from being influenced. “I did do a lot of research about what instruments I could fit into the palette,” he notes, however. “This game was a great opportunity to experiment with different styles and instruments. My mixed ethnic background was a big help as I’m half Iranian, half German.”

Eventually incorporating quite an array of regional instruments including saz and oud, as well as Western staples like electric guitar, the resulting score also mixes in a 20-piece string orchestra recorded at East West Studios in Los Angeles, electronic elements, occasional vocals, and of course plenty of percussion – ethnic and otherwise. “The score really has a wide range,” acknowledges Djawadi. “We have some very emotional thematic music with a small string section and then we have gritty action music with heavy percussion. The music has lots of ethnic and western elements combined.”

Play Music Track: “Enemy Down”:

Like previous Medal of Honor games, the score is used in a fairly linear manner rather than reacting obsessively to gameplay, which allows the music to build a stronger narrative of its own. But rather than focus on the players in the drama this time, the music tends to describe the environments and events that are encountered. “The music is more location and situation based,” Djawadi explains. “The themes are telling the story rather than being tied to a character. It’s an overall emotional arc that we were looking for. Depending what situation the player is in, the music will enhance what you are supposed to feel.”

That emotional arc is perhaps best stated in the game’s main theme. “The main theme was written fairly early in the process,” Djawadi recalls. “[Medal of Honor audio director] Erik Kraber and I knew that we wanted a strong emotional theme and decided that this theme in its biggest arrangement could be used somewhere towards the end of the game. Then we used this theme and placed it throughout the game by just hinting to it.”

The main theme gradually emerges over the course of the campaign.

“A lot of emotion”

With over 100 minutes of music in the game it can be difficult to single out the highlights, but Djawadi still feels particular fondness for a couple of the cues. “My two favorites are probably ‘Heroes Abroad’ because it is the most emotional and lush piece of the score,” he says. “It really plays against the cruelty of war and serves as a remembrance to all victims of war. The other is ‘Enemy Down’ which is probably the most aggressive piece of the score. This one is almost like a song and is used during the helicopter attack.”

So far there’s no word on a physical release of the game’s soundtrack, but roughly an hour of the game’s music is already available digitally on Amazon and iTunes in advance of the game’s release. And though Djawadi has since moved on to upcoming projects including the film remake of Red Dawn, he can’t help but still enthuse over Medal of Honor.

“I like that Medal of Honor is based on a lot of emotion,” he says. “Besides the exciting gameplay, the game is based on a great story. It is stunning visually, too – I was blown away when I saw what actual gameplay looked like!”

Alex Van Zelfden is a freelance journalist who specialises in videogame music. He has also written for 1UP, IGN and GameInformer.