An Interview with Markus Siebold
What were your favourite c64 composers?
Martin Galway (of course) and the Maniacs Of Noise
Which other sids were your favourites?
Some tunes by Rob Hubbard I think and SHADES by Chris Huelsbeck.
What were your likes/dislikes about the sid chip?
It is very easy to program and it has some great filters – but only 3 voices.
What are your fondest memories of the c64?
The time we made demos, the parties, and of course to visit Manfred Trenz in Duesseldorf (while I composed the Turrican musix and he programmed the game).
All in all it was a great time I won't forget.
Probably the most well known piece of music from you on the c64 was the music for Turrican 2. What can you tell our readers about this piece?
Manfred Trenz contacted me (because he saw a demo of our group PLASMA). So I just tried to compose the tunes. But first we needed a better sound routine. Edwin Determann and Dave Hogendorf (SCOOP DESIGNS) programmed a very good one (a very short time using one). Only with their help it was possible to compose the T2 tunes. Also Manfred searched for an opening. Stefan Albes (lives next to me) had the idea for the intro and he programmed it.
What sid tune of yours was your personal favourite?
I think it was the endtune of Turrican II. I think I've to cover it on my synths.
How did you get involved with the music for Turrican 2?
It sounds funny, but after T2 I composed the tunes for ENFORCER and quit composing on C64. But most of the people still remember me…
I never made any other tunes for games after quitting on C64.
Have you composed on any other formats other than the c64?
I've composed musix on Amiga (Soundtracker) and on PC with the Impulse Tracker (see at my homepage). Now I'm still composing songs on my synthesisers (you can order demo tunes 😊).
Why did you start making c64 sid music?
Because I was a really poor programmer and graphics painter. So I decided to start composing songs. REALLY!
Do you miss composing on the c64?
Sometimes I do. But today we've other, better possibilities to compose.
What do you do these days?
I'm still composing music, fixing my homepage and searching for old contacts (some I've met at the last Radwar party (may 2000 in Heinsberg).
Do you think that c64 music can make a commercial impact?
I think, if the musix get recomposed with synthesisers, it's possible (like the BACK IN TIME from Chris Abbott which is really great).
Do you follow the C64 music scene, if so what are your thoughts on it?
I've not followed the scene for a long time. Are there still C64 composers? Then contact me please!
What equipment do you use?
I'm using several synthesisers (Korg 03 R/W, Roland, Kawai…) and of course the PC (an old Pentium I with 200 MHz, 48 MB RAM).
If there was a tune you wish you could claim as your own what would it be, and why?
I only want to produce an audio CD with my own musix – that's my only dream.
What was your last project?
My last project? I finished composing my CD DISCOVER
and some other tunes.
Click at www.siebold-online.de to get more information about my work – or write me an email to get some demo tunes…
What does the future hold for you and your music?
I really don't know. I hope I could produce my music (hey Chris Abbott 😊)
Do you think you’ll ever write music for a computer game again?
If there's a guy who wants to have musix for a game, of course! But only as WAV files then…
What are your thoughts about the state of music in modern day games?
The most of the musix sounds great, I think. But when the game is over, you've forgotten the melody. Nothing compares to the C64 music.
Lastly, an open question. What would you like to say to the scene?
I miss it and I'll never forget the great time we had. But the scene never dies – party on! I hope to meet you all again at another party (maybe RADWAR will start another one soon).
Markus still writes music to this very day, he has reciently finished his latest CD Discover
. Why not check his music out… on this URL: www.siebold-online.de
- Neil
