for Bradley Rainey
Tom SALTA Biography
BAFTA-nominated and ASCAP award-winning composer Tom Salta is one of the most versatile and prolific music artists/producers working in film, television, advertising, and video games. Renowned for crafting emotionally engaging soundtracks for multimedia, Salta has received widespread industry acclaim for his world-class produced hybrid scores featured in film, television, and video games such as Arkane Studios’ DEATHLOOP, Machine Games’ WOLFENSTEIN: Youngblood & Cyberpilot, Microsoft’s iconic HALO series (Best Original Soundtrack Award at Game Developers Conference), Ubisoft’s PRINCE OF PERSIA: The Forgotten Sands and RED STEEL (IGN Award for Best Original Score), Tom Clancy’s GHOST RECON and H.A.W.X series, as well as the epic theme music for the record-breaking online multiplayer game PLAYERUNKNOWN’s BATTLEGROUNDS & PUBG Mobile, which has accumulated over 1.3 BILLION Downloads.
Most recently, Tom was the lead composer for the smash hit video game of the year contender DEATHLOOP from Arkane Studios and Bethesda Softworks. Described as “An absolute banger of a soundtrack that amplifies action and accentuates the tension” (GameSpot) and “A fantastic soundtrack that keeps the vibe electric” (Shacknews), the music plays a foundational role in transporting the player into this richly artistic world and supports the wide range of action with a late ‘60s inspired hybrid score, ranging from mysterious ambiances to psychedelic and progressive rock, to swing band and cinematic orchestral music. As Arkane Studios’ audio director Michel Trémouiller describes, “Moving from a hazy, mysterious atmosphere to palpable tension to the most exhilarating fights, Tom’s original score carries Deathloop‘s gameplay with great dynamism and vivacity. From the ground up, Blackreef Island owes much of its identity to Tom’s themes and original compositions created with a unique vision and distinctive flair.”
Prior to his composing career, Salta toured with and worked on releases by a diverse array of popular recording artists. After several years of touring, Salta became increasingly immersed in studio work, producing, remixing, and songwriting. Recording under the artist name “Atlas Plug,” Salta released the critically acclaimed electronic/orchestral music album “2 Days or Die,” which quickly caught the attention of leading music supervisors. His album introduced a new hybrid sound to the visual entertainment industry at large, garnering high-profile placements on numerous television shows, international commercials, and movie trailers, simultaneously launching his music career in video games, which he continues to embrace as a cutting-edge and powerful musical voice in modern scoring.
Salta’s other notable collaborations include 343 Industries and Microsoft Studios’ re-imagined soundtracks to HALO: Combat Evolved Anniversary and HALO 2: Anniversary, as well as composing the original scores for HALO: Spartan Assault and HALO: Spartan Strike (the first HALO video game to be released on Apple devices). Additionally, Salta returned to the beloved sci-fi franchise to score the animated series HALO: The Fall of Reach adapted from the best-selling novel and produced by the award-winning animation studio Sequence.
Salta is a TEDx presenter and has spoken internationally at industry conferences, universities, and schools about the art, craft, and business of music for games and interactive entertainment. He has spoken in Washington D.C. and continues to champion and educate through mentoring Grammy Advocacy and his “Tom Salta Masterclass Series.”
In 2023, Salta released the software application “Auto-Bounce,” which saves composers, producers, and songwriters countless hours by automating the process of exporting stems, multi-tracks, and mixes. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to MusiCares to support mental health initiatives and services for musicians. It is part of Salta’s continuing efforts to educate and advocate for mental health and wellness, giving music creators more freedom to spend less time in the studio.
"Endless"
Inspired by the "30-year plan,", one of my artist-driven passion projects I am calling "Endless." I envision an album and live tour designed to create a mesmerizing and inspiring experience that takes the audience on a musical journey of sight, sound, and pure joy. I am imagining an array of orchestra, featured soloists, and a full band.
Compare it in some ways to Ludovico Einaudi and a touch of Yanni.
Performed live at Nottingham’s Royal Concert Hall. This kind of mesmerizing music and performance is a good example what I have in mind.
This concert from 2013 is a great example to get a sense of the mass appeal of this style and how Ludovico Einaudi does his concerts.
PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds Theme- Live at Twitchcon 2019
Tom Salta performs the theme to PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds live at Twitch-con in San Diego Sept 28, 2019 (attendance 28,000) in front of a live audience and an online audience of over 20,000. He was joined by fellow panelists/performers Philip Sheppard, Doseone and Raquel Lily.
PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (Main Theme) Live full orchestral performance!
PUBG Original Theme Composed by Tom Salta.
This video was released by PUBG Mobile to promote the PUBG Mobile Theme Music Cover Contest.
Tom Salta speaks about his upcoming score to "The Outlast Trials".
The Outlast Trials is an upcoming first-person psychological horror survival video game developed and published by Red Barrels. It is the third installment in the Outlast series, serving as a prequel to the first two games and features test subjects in a mysterious Cold War experiment.
Select Credits
Hunters - (Amazon Series Official Trailer)
Toy Story 3 (Web Trailer) (Disney Pixar)
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Film Trailer) (Warner Bros.)
Apocalypse Now Final Cut - Official IMAX Trailer
The Longest Ride (20th Century Fox)
Draft Day
Astro Boy (Film Trailer) (Summit Entertainment)
Coraline (Film Trailer) (Focus Features)
The Last Mimzy (Film Trailer) (New Line Cinema)
Arthur and the Invisibles (TV & Movie Trailers) (Weinstein Co.)
Traitor (Film Trailer) (Overture Films)
Derailed (Movie Trailer) (Miramax)
DOA (Film Trailer) (Constantin Film)
Open Water Trailer (TV) (Lion’s Gate)
Magic the Gathering - War of the Spark
Forza Horizon 3 - Official E3 Trailer
Warface - Anubis Trailer
Halo: Master Chief Collection (Microsoft Studios)
Rainbow Six Vegas (Ubisoft)
Crackdown 3 (Microsoft Studios)
Warface (Crytek)
Assassins Creed (Ubisoft)
Mass Effect Trilogy (Bioware)
Prince of Persia (Ubisoft)
Ghost Recon Future Soldier - Live Action Trailer (Ubisoft)
Raving Rabbids (Ubisoft)
Red Steel (Ubisoft)
Red Steel 2 (Ubisoft)
RUSE (Ubisoft)
Hunters - Official Teaser Trailer I Prime Video
TOY STORY 3 - "You're Not a Kid Anymore"
Music - "Halfway till Bliss" - Tom Salta (aka Atlas Plug)
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - Original 2007 Theatrical Trailer
The Outlast Trials is an upcoming first-person psychological horror survival video game developed and published by Red Barrels. It is the third installment in the Outlast series, serving as a prequel to the first two games and features test subjects in a mysterious Cold War experiment.
The Longest Ride TV SPOT - Love Is (2015)
Rubbermaid (Featuring "From the Heart")
Speaking Engagements
Channel info
Gaming, Nonprofits & Activism
Video Game Music, Music (performance), Business, Humanities, TEDxTalks, English, Technology, Playerunkown's Battlegrounds
Speaking Engagements
My golden ticket for breaking into and staying in the game | Tom Salta | TEDxFergusonLibrary
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Tom (a.k.a. Atlas Plug) will discuss his path through the ever-changing trends of a tumultuous music industry, starting in 1990 and how technological innovations in 2001 led him to reinvent his entire career and become one of the leading music creators and innovators in the interactive entertainment industry. ASCAP winning and MTV VMA nominated composer Tom Salta is one of the most versatile and prolific music artists/producers working in film, television, advertising and video games. Renowned for crafting emotionally engaging soundtracks for multimedia, Salta has received widespread industry acclaim for his world-class produced scores featured in film, television and video games such as the Halo series the world’s #1 dance game series, Just Dance. In addition to these scoring assignments, Salta has created music for numerous national commercials and advertising campaigns for companies like Coca-Cola and the U.S. Marines, as well as music for Hollywood film trailers. Prior to his composing career, Salta toured with and worked on releases by a diverse array of popular artists such as Peter Gabriel, Everything But The Girl, Deep Forest, Junior Vasquez, Mary J. Blige and Sinead O’Connor. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedxNonprofits & Activism
TEDxTalks, English, Humanities, Business, Music (performance), Technology
Tom Salta interviewed on CNN - Grammy Video Game Soundtrack Category
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2022-KEF-Tom Salta Feature
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Mentally Surving the Long Game
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Playerunkown's Battlegrounds Theme- Live at Twitchcon 2019
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Tom Salta performs the theme to Playerunkown's Battlegrounds live at Twitchcon 2019 in San Diego Sept 28, 2019. He was joined by fellow panelists/performers Philip Sheppard, Doseone and Raquel Lily.Gaming
Video Game Music, Playerunkown's Battlegrounds