It sounds like Brian Tyler got his dream job when Illumination and Nintendo were asked to create the iconic soundtrack for the recently released Super Mario Bros. movie. Tyler spoke to Variety about growing up playing Super Mario World and Super Mario Kart, etc. and how he loved not just the games, but the catchy soundtracks. He also recalls reading classic gaming magazines as a youth and reading articles dedicated to Nintendo designer Shigeru Miyamoto. Tyler told Variety that 98% of the soundtrack for Super Mario Bros. original music written for the film and that he was absolutely honored to have the opportunity to work closely with the classic Mario game composer, Which Kendo.
“I knew this music,” says Tyler. “It was a part of my childhood in the same way that I grew up listening to film scores. I had gaming magazines and I remember articles about Nintendo’s video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto.”
“I wanted to have a built-in nostalgia where I instantly feel like Mario,” he says of writing new Mario music. “The idea was that the result would be Mario themed. All of them are interwoven with references to those topics which [original series composer] Which Kondo developed.” Tyler worked closely with Konda throughout the process, sending him ideas to get his input on the signs and motifs he put together.
“I remember the music while you’re in the waiting room to choose your character and the kart you want to use. There’s my main Mario theme. I’m referring to the Toad’s House theme from 1988’s Super Mario Bros. There’s a hint of the underwater theme from 1985’s Super Mario Bros. and the bomb battlefields from 1996’s Super Mario 64.” That’s just the beginning. According to Tyler, 98% of the film features original music: “It’s a tribute to the past while creating a new nostalgia,”
