Jesper Kyd facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Jesper Kyd
Kyd in 2013
Background information
Birth name	Jesper Kyd Jakobson
Born	(1972-02-03) 3 February 1972 (age 53) Hørsholm, Denmark
Genres	Contemporary classical choral electronica ambient minimal techno IDM
Occupation(s)	Composer sound designer
Years active	1986–present
Labels	Sumthing Else La-La Land
Associated acts	Silents DK Budapest Symphony Orchestra Hungarian Radio Choir Melissa Kaplan

Jesper Kyd Jakobson (born 3 February 1972) is a talented Danish composer and sound designer. He creates music for many different projects. These include popular video games, TV shows, and movies. You might know his music from games like the Hitman series or the Assassin's Creed series. He also worked on the Borderlands games, Darksiders II, and State of Decay. His music often mixes orchestra sounds, choirs, and electronic effects.

About Jesper Kyd's Music Journey

His Early Life and Music Start

Jesper Kyd began playing the piano when he was very young. Later, he learned classical guitar and how to read music. He also sang in a choir and studied classical composition for the piano. Even with all this training, he mostly taught himself.

Starting with Computers

When Jesper was 14, he started using computers to make music. He began with a Commodore 64 and later moved to an Amiga. He and his friend Mikael Balle joined a group called Silents DK. These groups, called "demoscenes," made cool computer programs that showed off graphics and music. Later, they worked with coders from Crionics. Together, they made a famous Amiga production called Hardwired. Jesper also created the music for Global Trash 2 with Mikael Balle.

Making Games and Moving On

After his time in the demoscene, Jesper started making music for video games. He helped create a game company called Zyrinx. Their first game was Sub-Terrania for the Sega Genesis. The team then moved to Boston in the USA. Jesper composed music for more Zyrinx games, like Red Zone and Scorcher. He also made music for other games, including Amok and The Adventures of Batman and Robin. Zyrinx closed down when their game publisher went out of business.

Working as a Freelance Composer

Many people from Zyrinx went back to Denmark to start a new company, IO Interactive. But Jesper Kyd moved to New York City. He opened his own sound studio in Manhattan called "Nano studios." From there, he worked as a freelance musician for video games. This meant he could work on many different projects.

Creating Music for Hitman and Assassin's Creed

Jesper's music for Hitman: Codename 47 used city sounds and music from different cultures. For Hitman 2: Silent Assassin, he recorded the music with 110 musicians. These were from the Budapest Symphony Orchestra and the Hungarian Radio Choir. He also recorded music for the action game Freedom Fighters with the Hungarian Radio choir. People said it sounded very powerful. He used modern electronic music and grand orchestra and choir sounds for Hitman: Contracts. He continued this style for Hitman: Blood Money, also with the Budapest Symphony Orchestra and Hungarian Radio Choir.

Jesper then created cinematic music with a Middle Eastern feel for Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed. He went on to write music for several other games in the Assassin's Creed and Borderlands series. He also composed the soundtrack for Darksiders II. This was special because it was his first music score made completely without digital sounds.

New Sounds for Warhammer 40,000

In 2022, Jesper composed the music for Warhammer 40,000: Darktide. He wanted the music to fit a futuristic world with a retro style. He avoided using orchestras and guitars, which are common in other Warhammer games. Instead, his music was inspired by "cyberpunk culture and sci-fi manga." He mainly used drum machines and special electronic instruments called modular synths.

Who Inspired Jesper Kyd?

Jesper Kyd has been influenced by many other artists. These include composers like Ottorino Respighi, Igor Stravinsky, Jean-Michel Jarre, Vangelis, Mike Oldfield, John Williams, and Jerry Goldsmith. He also gets ideas from bands such as Röyksopp, the Knife, Pink Floyd, and Underworld.

His Works

Video Games

Films

Short Films

TV Series

Awards and Recognitions

Awards

Nominations

See also

In Spanish: Jesper Kyd para niños