DEAN KOPRI
MUSICAL TRIBUTE
Welcome to Dean Kopri's musical tribute to Tomb Raider's 25th anniversary
To celebrate, Dean has composed two unique tracks, both specially requested and inspired by Murti's work. The first is a theme for Morgau Vasiley – the rogue character created by Murti who was intended to feature prominently in the sequels to The Angel of Darkness, but who sadly, like so much material, was cut from the final game. The second is an epic composition tribute to Lara's time in the desert – Tomb Raider: Into the Desert.
Dean Kopri on composing Morgau Vasiley's theme
I was asked by a dear friend Murti Schofield, writer of Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness (among other things) to make a theme for a character who sadly didn't have her moment to shine in the Tomb Raider games. You may know that AoD was supposed to have a continuation of the story, and Morgau would have been an important part of the plot. I was thrilled and agreed to compose her theme in a blink of an eye for several reasons; Murti has so many ideas in his brilliant mind and this was an opportunity to look into it... them... (the ideas, not his mind xD), plus the fact he's been such friendly support and a great guy overall. Another reason is the opportunity to compose something that is not directly a part of the Tomb Raider world; this gave me more freedom during the creative process and let me go a bit darker then with my previous themes. There are several key words which acted as my guidelines: damaged soul, fractured life/childhood, constant battle within herself, Lux Veritatis, Cabal... With this theme I wanted to ask that one question: is she a hero or a villain? So I included lots of mixed emotions within the music. She is the calm before the storm, and yet also the storm itself.
Hope you enjoy it!
– Dean Kopri, 2021 –
Morgau Vasiley theme
Dean Kopri on composing Lara's desert theme
To help promoting the page, I have composed two different themes. One is AoD related – Morgau Vasiley's theme, and this one, which is inspired by Lara's time spent in the desert after The Last Revelation. At first, this so called "Desert Lara" theme was series of short snippets that eventually became so long that it became clear that I had to do something with them. That's when Inna Vjuzhanina shared with our team her promotional artwork for Murti's page – and it fit perfectly. I have tried to maintain the Egyptian mood and not include familiar Tomb Raider motifs, representing Lara's journey and her disconnection from her past life. Lara spent some time in the desert with the tribe while recovering, both physically and mentally, after the events in TLR. She gradually became one with the tribe and transformed into a mythical figure of the desert – El Hawa.
Hope you'll like this one as well.
– Dean Kopri, 2021 –
Tomb Raider: Into the Desert
Dean Kopri - The Desert Wind (extended credits theme)
A couple of months ago I have decided to make an extended version of the credits theme from the animated short TOMB RAIDER The Myth of El Hawa. I wanted to make a soft part for the beginning and then a loud, Egyptian-flavored epic finale with lots of different beats and percussion.
– Dean Kopri, 2023 –