Peter Nelson McConnell (born April 19, 1960), also known as Peter Mc, is an American video game composer and musician. He is best known for his work at LucasArts and for composing the soundtracks for every Sly Cooper game since the second installment.

Early life and education McConnell was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He studied music as an undergraduate at Harvard University in the 1980s under Timothy Vincent Clarke, Curt Cacioppo and Ivan Tcherepnin. At Harvard, McConnell befriended the future LucasArts composer Michael Land, who composed many of the company's titles, and worked with him at the audio company Lexicon.

Career While beginning his career in the Sound Department at LucasArts, Land needed someone to compose and implement music into his second project, Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge, and McConnell stepped in.According to interview with Peter McConnell in 22/11/2003 : "Michael Land and I had been working on projects together since we were at Harvard in the 80's. He really started the Sound Department at LucasArts, and was looking for someone who could both compose and design code, and I guess he figured I would fit the job pretty well. He must have been right, since I ended up working there for nearly 10 years." McConnell and Land co-invented iMUSE, LucasArts' patented interactive music system.

During his time at LucasArts, McConnell composed many soundtracks for games such as those in the Monkey Island, Indiana Jones, and Star Wars series. Notable titles from this time include Grim Fandango, scored with unique Mexican-influenced jazz, klezmer and traditional film score style, and Full Throttle, featuring a rock soundtrack, which McConnell scored with rock group The Gone Jackals. While composing music for these two games, McConnell worked closely with Tim Schafer, who later hired him to compose scores for Psychonauts, Brütal Legend, and Costume Quest for his company Double Fine Productions.

McConnell left LucasArts in 2000 but contributed to Escape from Monkey Island and the special edition of The Secret of Monkey Island. Since then, McConnell has composed scores for Psychonauts, Sly 2: Band of Thieves, Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves (about which McConnell says he was influenced by Henry Mancini's works), and Kinectimals.

McConnell is one of the founding members of G.A.N.G., the Game Audio Network Guild. He is also a known live-action music performer, playing the electric violin.

In 2013, McConnell returned to the Sly Cooper franchise to score the fourth game, Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time, released in February of that year. The Nashville Music Scoring Orchestra performed the score. Also, for the first time ever, McConnell's entire score was released on iTunes to accompany the game's release.

McConnell worked on the Double Fine titles Broken Age and the remastered version of Grim Fandango, both of which include performances by the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. He scored the 2021 Psychonauts 2, for which he was nominated for a BAFTA Games Award and a D.I.C.E. Award. He also wrote music for the 2020 film Intersect.

Personal life He married Amy McConnell and they have two children, Eben and Alice.

Works

Video game soundtracks TitleYearNotesMonkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge1991With Michael Land and Clint BajakianIndiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis1992Star Wars: X-Wing1993Sam & Max Hit the RoadDay of the TentacleStar Wars: Rebel AssaultSound advice, with Michael LandStar Wars: TIE Fighter1994Star Wars: Rebel Assault II: The Hidden Empire1995Sound Quality ControlFull ThrottleOrchestral Composer & Music Producer, Additional ProgrammingThe DigiMUSE Music SystemShadows of the Empire1996Music Editor/Sound Quality ControlAfterlifeStar Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II1997Herc's AdventuresMusic ConsultantStar Wars: Masters of Teräs KäsiSpecial thanksStar Wars: Yoda StoriesMusic EditingStar Wars: X-Wing vs. TIE FighterStar Wars: X-Wing - Collector Series1998Star Wars Jedi Knight: Mysteries of the SithGrim FandangoStar Wars: X-Wing Alliance1999iMUSE Music SystemStar Wars Episode I: RacerMusic EditingStar Wars Episode I: The Phantom MenaceStar Wars: Yoda's Challenge - Activity CenterStar Wars: Pit DroidsWith Michael LandStar Wars: Anakin's SpeedwayWith Clint BajakianStar Wars: Force Commander2000Additional Music Composition, Lead Music Production and EditingEscape from Monkey IslandWith Clint Bajakian, Anna Karney, Michael Land, Michael LandeStar Wars: Battlefront2004Music editingThe Bard's TaleWith Tommy Tallarico, Clint Bajakian, Jared Emerson-JohnsonSly 2: Band of ThievesWith Bill WolfordSly 3: Honor Among Thieves2005PsychonautsThrillville2006With Alistair Lindsay, David Collins and Jesse HarlinCalling All Cars!2007The Sims 2: Celebration! StuffStereo Object MusicThe Sims 2: CastawayAdditional musicPainInsecticide2008LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original AdventuresMusic editorTornado Outbreak2009Musician Magician, Composer Extraordinaire and all around "Groovy" GuyThe Secret of Monkey Island: Special EditionViolin, special thanksinFAMOUSBrütal LegendOriginal Music Composer, Orchestrator and ProductionCostume Quest2010KinectimalsMusic Supervisor, with Jared Emerson-JohnsonSports ChampionsAdditional musicMonkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge - Special EditionOriginal music, special thanksKinect Disneyland Adventures2011With Paul Lipson, Laura Karpman, Mark Griskey, Wataru Hokoyama and Lennie MooreStar Wars: The Old RepublicCantina MusicStackingMusic composer, orchestrations, productionIron BrigadeSesame Street: Once Upon a MonsterWith David EarlPlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale2012Sly Cooper musicSly Cooper: Thieves in Time2013With Michael BrickerPlants vs. Zombies 2: It's About TimeWith Laura Shigihara, Guy Whitmore, Korby Sears, Dave Cowen, Christopher Ballew and C. Andrew RohrmannHearthstonePlants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare2014Costume Quest 2Broken AgeWith Karim ElmahmoudiGrim Fandango: Remastered2015Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 22016Day of the Tentacle: RemasteredOriginal music, special thanksPsychonauts in the Rhombus of Ruin2017Full Throttle: RemasteredOrchestral Music RevoicingWorld of Warcraft: Battle for Azeroth2018Additional musicIrony Curtain: From Matryoshka with Love2019With Arkadiusz ReikowskiPlants vs. Zombies: Battle for NeighborvillePsychonauts 22021Goblin Stone 2022Voodoo DetectiveMusic producerReturn to Monkey IslandWith Michael Land and Clint BajakianWorld of Warcraft: The War Within2025Additional music

Film TitleYearDirectorIntersect2020Gus Holwerda

Acting TitleRoleNotesSuper Star Wars: The Empire Strikes BackYodaVoiceStar Wars Rogue Squadron II: Rogue LeaderAdmiral AckbarDouble Fine AdventureSelfDocumentary seriesBeep: A Documentary History of Game SoundDocumentary

Written works

References

External links