Little Big Adventure Soundtrack

Little Big Adventure Soundtrack, Philippe Vachey, 1994

Little Big Adventure is probably one of the most fondly remembered PC games of the 1990s. A resounding commercial success, it has maintained a fiercely loyal fan base decades after its release. That has much to do with the sheer charm and personality developer Adeline Software managed to pour into Little Big Adventure. Other innovations, such as the game’s open-ended world and unusual 3D perspective, helped turn this action-adventure title into a genre classic.

The Little Big Adventure soundtrack is remembered just as fondly, and for good reason. In short, after Wing Commander and Ultima: Worlds of Adventure 2 – Martian Dreams, Little Big Adventure marked the next major step forward for Western orchestral game music. It came from a somewhat unexpected source. Self-taught composer Philippe Vachey had worked on only a handful of French game scores before Little Big Adventure. His most notable earlier work was Alone in the Dark, though that score was less effective away from the game itself.

On the Little Big Adventure soundtrack, however, Vachey wastes no time in demonstrating his masterly command of orchestral forces. “Opening for LBA” convinces immediately with its beautifully layered and colourful orchestrations, flawless development, and enchanting melodies and countermelodies. While the cue establishes the sunny, upbeat mood that characterises much of the score, it does not lack drama. Beginning with a lyrical yet majestic oboe melody supported by brass, “Opening for LBA” moves seamlessly through a succession of textures and moods with the confidence and breadth of a grand fantasy score. In doing so, the soundtrack establishes its dual nature: this is a light-hearted, charming fantasy work that still evokes a world and a quest of immense scale.

Vachey described in interviews how deeply the vibrant world of Little Big Adventure inspired him. Indeed, his delight in scoring such a vivid universe can be felt in every cue. It helps that technological advances placed him in a position to use Red Book audio and thus live performers. The greater authenticity of these instrumental sounds, compared with earlier Western orchestral game scores, is a crucial part of Little Big Adventure’s enduring appeal.

Things continue in equally delightful fashion with “The Quest” and “The Rebels”. The former opens with an immediately memorable, shamelessly optimistic trumpet ostinato. An energising double bass figure and rising brass chords all contribute to a marvellous build-up. It is as if the music itself is trembling with the giddy anticipation of setting out on an adventure, unable to wait for the quest to begin. And when a cathartic orchestral flourish finally bursts forth with youthful abandon, it feels like the curtain rising on a gorgeous sunlit landscape. Remarkably, Vachey’s carefully wrought melodies and orchestrations – especially a passage for flute, harp, and pizzicato strings in the second half of “The Quest” – even foreshadow the heroic fantasy style Hitoshi Sakimoto would make his own a few years later.

At only 25 minutes, the Little Big Adventure soundtrack does not necessarily offer much of an album arc. After its relatively uniform opening stretch, it unfolds as a series of vignettes, all realised with the utmost skill. Almost every composition feels like a highlight, led by “Desert”, a strikingly original take on the conventional desert cue. Vachey takes the sound of a harp and electronically thickens its notes, allowing them to fill the soundscape while preserving the sparseness of the solo instrument, all to evoke a vast, empty expanse. At first, “Desert” soothes with its gentle New Age tinge. But after 1:35, its melodies become more chromatic and ambiguous. Seamlessly, the music shifts from calm hospitality to intriguing uncertainty.

“The Temple” is not quite as original, but it is atmospherically just as potent. As expected, its textures and melodies are solemn and static, conveying caution and awe with considerable force. Yet conflict gradually brews and eventually erupts as a struggle breaks out between the solo flute and the orchestral backdrop, underpinned by busy piano writing.

Finally, “Hamalayi” matches the opening trio’s orchestral splendour and serves as another demonstration of Vachey’s mastery. Unsurprisingly, the cue relies heavily on arpeggios and ostinati to evoke its wintry setting. But Vachey clothes these basic materials in shifting orchestral colours, creating two sharply distinct moods: calm wonder and restless agitation, as the music’s constant motion gradually hardens into something more menacing.

In interviews, Vachey spoke about his varied musical background and his debt to both pop and classical composers. Across most of the Little Big Adventure soundtrack, the orchestral side clearly dominates. Yet the closing track, “LBA’s Theme (1994 Version)”, blends orchestral and pop sensibilities to near perfection. Its central woodwind melody is a marvellous creation: cheerful, but tinged with just enough wistfulness to acknowledge that the adventure is over. Vachey interweaves melodies and builds the track towards an immensely satisfying conclusion with the assurance of an expert orchestral composer. At the same time, “LBA’s Theme (1994 Version)” is as immediate and addictive as any great pop song, easily surpassing Vachey’s already promising work on the FM Towns version of Advantage Tennis. There could hardly be a more memorable ending to a score that raised the bar so significantly.