Hey everyone,

This week's (early - SURPRISE!) update is coming to you straight from the composer of the Aveyond series. Many of you have chatted with me on the Amaranth or Walz Music forums and Facebook. If not, nice to meet you, I'm Aaron Walz! I live and operate Walz Music in San Francisco, California and I'm in my 20's. I have a degree in music composition and have played video games since I was about 8. My favorite music and inspiration? Japanese game composers, of course... but I also love jazz, classical, choral, world and dance music. My team and I at Walz Music have been very busy putting together a better-than-ever soundtrack for this new installment.

There are over 30 fantastic tunes and, as always, plenty of live orchestral instruments abound! Eva has polished up her flute and played her heart out for this game. Krisha has broken several hairs of her violin bow, all for you guys! In fact we are still in the process of recording some of these tunes acoustically and I'm still writing the very last piece, so we'll be working hard to get everything done in time.

There are some new great surprises in store for you in regards to audio and sound effects this time around... ooh, you will love it! I wish I could spoil it for you... so tempting! I tell you what, if you haven't already, make sure to subscribe to the Walz Music newsletter. You may find some Aveyond 3 sound samples weekly on www.walzmusic.com but you'll get some exclusive ones by signing up. And I may just reveal a secret or two... You can find the link on our site or just email: subscribe@walzmusic.com.

Are you curious about the music making process? When we get a project, the Walz Music Team and I sit down and look through the story and art. We brainstorm and plan, then create a spreadsheet to document each area, sound ideas and progress. Although we have several composers on our team, the Aveyond series is my responsibility so I compose all the music. Each song usually takes a day to write and sometimes several days. Sometimes ideas come unexpectedly during sleep or at the gym, so I always make sure to have a recording device or notepad nearby. Before proceeding, I sent this sketch to the game developer for approval. After a piece is programmed and/or played into the computer by my trusty keyboard, it has to be carefully mixed and played with to sound really great. Then I print out the music scores and schedule sessions with our musicians. Each piece can easily take over an hour to record. Mondays are studio days at Walz Music. We have a great time at our own "Palmer Studio" and make sure to take an extra long lunch and have lots of fun. Recording is way more relaxing this way and that spirit goes into the music. After the session, we must again mix the new recordings into the track and make sure it's perfect before sending it along to the developer.

Hope you enjoyed my post. Feel free to drop by the Walz Music site, My Forum, Blog, or Facebook Page and say hello! Enjoy Aveyond 3 and thanks very much for supporting Amaranth Games and Walz Music!