is a Japanese

video game composer Video game music (VGM) is the soundtrack that accompanies video games. Early video game music was once limited to sounds of early sound chips, such as programmable sound generators (PSG) or FM synthesis chips. These limitations have led to the s ...

best known for her works in the ''

Suikoden is a series of role-playing video games developed and published by Konami. Created by Yoshitaka Murayama, the games are loosely based on the classical Chinese novel '' Water Margin'', whose title is rendered as in Japanese. Each individual g ...

'' series.

Biography

Miki Higashino first began composing video game music as a student employed by

Konami , commonly known as Konami, , is a Japanese multinational entertainment company and video game developer and video game publisher, publisher headquartered in Chūō, Tokyo, Chūō, Tokyo. The company also produces and distributes trading card ...

and contributed to various minor products, often uncredited or under the alias MIKI-CHAN or MIKI-CHANG. Her substantial early works include the ''

Gradius is a series of shooter ( shoot'em up) video games, introduced in 1985, developed and published by Konami for a variety of portable, console and arcade platforms. In many games in the series, the player controls a ship known as the Vic Viper. ...

'' soundtrack in collaboration with the

Konami Kukeiha Club is Konami's sound team. It is often confused with 矩形波倶楽部 ( Kukeiha Club), Konami's in-house band that has released albums consisting of their studio performances. They are primarily responsible for the sound and music in the majority ...

in 1985. Higashino has since been involved in over a dozen projects and compilations. Aside from being the primary composer for the original ''

'' soundtrack, she also worked on the ''

Suikoden II is a role-playing video game developed and published by Konami for the PlayStation video game console and the second installment of the '' Suikoden'' video game series. It was released on December 17, 1998, in Japan; on September 29, 1999, in No ...

'' soundtrack, a 105 track effort which she composed in its entirety save 7 songs by Keiko Fukami and 1 song by Tappy Iwase. In 2001 Higashino left Konami on maternity leave but later collaborated with videogame composer

Yasunori Mitsuda is a Japanese composer and musician. He is best known for his work in video games, primarily for the '' Chrono'', '' Xeno'', '' Shadow Hearts'', and '' Inazuma Eleven'' franchises, among various others. Mitsuda began composing music for his own ...

in 2005 on the '' Tsukiyo ni Saraba (Moonlit Shadow)'' soundtrack. Arranged versions of her original music appear on the ''

Suikoden IV is a role-playing video game developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo and published by Konami exclusively for the PlayStation 2 video game console and is the fourth installment of the ''Suikoden'' video game series. It was released in Au ...

'', ''

Suikoden V is a role-playing video game developed by Konami and Hudson Soft and published by Konami for the Sony PlayStation 2 video game console and the fifth and final main installment of the ''Suikoden'' video game series. It was released in 2006, and ...

'', and ''

Suikoden Tactics ''Suikoden Tactics'', originally released in Japan as , is a tactical role-playing video game developed and published by Konami for the PlayStation 2 console as part of their ''Suikoden'' series. Initially released in Japan and North America in ...

'' soundtracks.

Musical style and influences

Higashino cites

Maurice Ravel Joseph Maurice Ravel (7 March 1875 – 28 December 1937) was a French composer, pianist and conductor. He is often associated with Impressionism in music, Impressionism along with his elder contemporary Claude Debussy, although both composer ...

Gabriel Fauré Gabriel Urbain Fauré (12 May 1845 – 4 November 1924) was a French composer, organist, pianist and teacher. He was one of the foremost French composers of his generation, and his musical style influenced many 20th-century composers. ...

Lúnasa Lughnasadh, Lughnasa or Lúnasa ( , ) is a Gaelic festival marking the beginning of the harvest season. Historically, it was widely observed throughout Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man. Traditionally, it is held on 1 August, or about hal ...

, and

Hevia José Ángel Hevia Velasco, known professionally as Hevia (born October 11, 1967 in Villaviciosa, Asturias), is an Asturian bagpiper – specifically, an Asturian gaita player. He commonly performs with his sister, María José, on drums ...

as musical influences.

Discography

Composer *''

'' (1985) *''

Yie Ar Kung-Fu () is an arcade fighting game developed and published by Konami. It first had a limited Japanese release in October 1984, before having a wide release nationwide in January 1985 and then internationally in March. Along with '' Karate Champ'' (1 ...

'' (1985) *''

Salamander Salamanders are a group of amphibians typically characterized by their lizard-like appearance, with slender bodies, blunt snouts, short limbs projecting at right angles to the body, and the presence of a tail in both larvae and adults. All t ...

'' (1986) *'' Life Force'' (1986) *'' Knightmare'' (1986) *'' Salamander (MSX)'' (1987) – with Motoaki Furukawa and Masahiro Ikariko *''

Gradius III ''Gradius III'' is a 1989 scrolling shooter video game developed and published by Konami, originally released for the arcades in Japan and other parts of Asia on December 11, 1989. It is the third game in the ''Gradius'' series. The game was po ...

'' (1989) – with Seiichi Fukami, Keizo Nakamura, Mutsuhiko Izumi, and Junichiro Kaneda *''

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' (''TMNT'') is an American media franchise created by comic book artists Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. It follows Leonardo (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), Leonardo, Donatello (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), D ...

'' (1989) – with Mutsuhiko Izumi *''Surprise Attack'' (1990) – with Hidenori Maezawa and Keizo Nakamura *'' Contra III: The Alien Wars'' (1992) – with Masanori Adachi and

Tappi Iwase , sometimes credited professionally as TAPPY, is a Japanese musical composer. He is best known for his contributions to the ''Metal Gear is a Media franchise, franchise of stealth games created by Hideo Kojima. Developed and published by Kon ...

*''Premier Soccer'' (1993) *''Mōryō Senki MADARA 2'' (1993) – with Masanori Adachi and

*'' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Tournament Fighters'' (

Mega Drive/Genesis The Sega Genesis, known as the outside North America, is a 16-bit Fourth generation of video game consoles, fourth generation home video game console developed and sold by Sega. It was Sega's third console and the successor to the Master Sys ...

version) (1993) *'' Double Dribble: The Playoff Edition'' (1994) *''

Tokimeki Memorial is a dating simulation series by Konami. It consists of eight main games in addition to many spin-offs. The games are notable in the dating sim genre for being highly nonlinear. Their nickname amongst their fans is the contraction ''TokiMemo'' ...

'' (1994) – with Mikio Saito, Seiya Murai, and Hiroe Noguchi *''

'' (1995) – with

, Hiroshi Tamawari, Setsu Taniguchi, Mayuko Kagesita *'' Gradius Deluxe Pack'' (1996) (Staff roll music) – with

Akira Yamaoka is a Japanese composer, musician, producer, and sound designer who composed for Konami's ''Silent Hill'' video game series from 1999 to 2009, and 2024 onwards. He also produced many of its installments, and composed for its three film adaptatio ...

, Kiyohiko Yamane, and Motoaki Furukawa *''

Vandal Hearts Vandal Hearts, known in Japan as is a turn-based tactical role-playing video game developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Tokyo for the PlayStation and later ported to the Sega Saturn by Konami Computer Entertainment Nagoya. The PlayStation ...

: Ancient Lost Civilization'' (1996) – with Hiroshi Tamawari, Kosuke Soeda, Masahiro Yamauchi *''

'' (1998) – with Keiko Fukami *'' Gensō Suikogaiden Vol. 1'' (2000) – with Keiko Fukami *'' Gensō Suikogaiden Vol. 2'' (2001) – with Keiko Fukami *''

10,000 Bullets ''10,000 Bullets'', known in Japan as , is a third-person shooter video game developed by Blue Moon Studio with Metro Corporation and published by Taito for the PlayStation 2 console. It was released in Japan in 2005, and distributed in Europe ...

'' (2005) – with

*'' Pop'n Music: Adventure'' (2007)

References

External links

VGMdb - Miki HigashinoArtist: Miki Higashino - Composer - OverClocked ReMix
the Official Website of

Interview with Miki Higashino at Game Music Online
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Higashino, Miki 1968 births 21st-century Japanese composers 21st-century Japanese pianists 21st-century jazz composers 21st-century Japanese women composers 21st-century Japanese women pianists Freelance musicians Japanese jazz composers Japanese jazz pianists Japanese video game composers Konami people Living people Recruit (company) Japanese women jazz composers Japanese women jazz pianists