Noel Gabriel

Current project:
DBZ for Game Boy Advance. I was an assistant sound designer on this project and worked with the audio director at ImagineEngine creating sound effects for the game. This was the Game Boy version of a popular card game that originated in Japan. The sound design for this title was fairly basic and was intended to enhance the game play. For example, when a battle card was played, there would be the sound of swords clashing.

Academic Info

College: Southwest Texas State University
Degree: B.A. in Music with an emphasis in Sound Recording Technology

Were there any particular projects or areas of study that you pursued?
In addition to the audio aspect of my degree, I pursued numerous composition classes that were put to good use when I began composing for Human Code.

Did you do any internships?
I interned at Human Code, which turned into my first full time position in my field.

Career Info

Tell us about your first job in the industry. How did you get the job? What was it like? What were your responsibilities?
My first job in the industry was working for a developer in Austin called Human Code. I began there as an audio intern, later became a contractor, and then quickly accepted a full-time audio position in their audio department. Human Code was involved in several lines of interactive work, but I chiefly worked in the interactive entertainment division. Initially most of my work was sound design for games, but I seized whatever composing opportunities became available. My "big break" in that area was when Mattel asked for numerous composers to demo some pieces for their Barbie Riding Club title that was being produced at Human Code. Several composers from both inside and outside of HC submitted pieces including myself. My piece ended up being the closest to what they envisioned for the project, so I wound up doing all the music for that game (which ended up being the best selling game Human Code would make.) From that point forward my duties were split between recording and editing voice over, creating sound effects, and writing and producing music for HC's interactive games. Gradually as more sound designers came into the audio department, I found myself in the position of doing primarily music, which is what I enjoyed most.

What jobs have you held in the games industry thus far? Briefly describe the career path you took to get where you are today.
Well, to add to where I left off, I became an audio specialist for Sapient Corporation when they purchased Human Code around August of 2000. A few months later I was promoted to Senior Audio Specialist and remained in that position until Sapient decided to exit the interactive gaming market. At that point I became an independent contractor. Having complete music and sound production facilities at my house has allowed me to work for clients across the country out of my home.

Advice

What fields of study, specific courses, or life experiences would you recommend to students interested in your field?
If you're interested in getting a formal education, the Sound Recording Technology program at SWT is still your best bet in this part of the country. On the east coast, Berkley has a good program, as does UCLA on the west coast. Regardless if you choose to attend college, the most important thing you can do is to try to get your hands on the tools of the trade and use them every chance you get. Classes and books can provide an important background but you must become very comfortable with the tools. In the audio industry today, that generally means having a computer with a good audio card and audio software. Sound Forge, Vegas, ProTools, and Acid are a few of the commonly used programs in the industry.

Is there anything you wish someone had told you before you got into the games industry? Is there anything you would have done differently?
I was required to take an enormous amount of electronics and high-level math classes in school. Even though at that time, I didn't have a choice about taking these, I would have greatly preferred additional audio classes instead of these classes which ended up being entirely useless in my professional career. Also, from the composing side of things, I wish I had taken piano lessons from a very early age. Excellent piano chops are a great asset to a composer, and, unfortunately I have to struggle with that.

As games increase in complexity, what are the various kinds of jobs that you foresee development companies needing in the next five years?
Hopefully, we will see more dedicated audio programmers who handle interactive audio and music in game play. Only a few companies currently do this and it is becoming increasingly important with the new features available in Microsoft's DirectSound and DirectMusic tools. Even though much of these tools are script based, it's still best to have a dedicated programmer to integrate all the audio programming.

Do you have any other advice or recommendations to share with students who are interested in doing what you do?
If you're looking for work in the audio field, your best bet is to move to the east or west coast. All the other markets currently have more qualified professionals than available jobs at the moment. It's best to go ahead and make the move before you put down roots. Also, you've heard it all your life, but there's a lot of truth in "it's not what you know it's who you know." Having the necessary knowledge and skills will help you keep your job, but if you want to get your foot in the door, you need to know the right people. Being lucky doesn't hurt either.