Matt Levine

Matt Levine headshot

Contact

Departments

Technology and Applied Composition
Professional Development

Courses Taught

Applied Lessons

Production Techniques: Pro Tools

Composition Workshop

Education

BFA, California Institute of the Arts, 1992

Ensembles

The Pickpocket Ensemble

Awards and Distinctions

Gang Award for Best Handheld Audio, Uncharted: Golden Abyss

Q&A

What is your hometown?

Mill Valley, CA

What is your favorite recording?

Thomas Dolby: Budapest by Blimp.

What are you passionate about outside of music?

Technology, sound healing, drawing/painting, writing, and creative recovery.

Who were your major teachers?

Silvia Nakkach, Ed Mann, and Frederic Rzewski.

What is a favorite quote that you repeatedly tell students?

“The music should not sound like combat, it should remind you what you're fighting for.”

—Dylan Jobe, Game Director for Starhawk

What question do you wish students would ask sooner rather than later?

“What does it take to become a happy, successful artist?”

What was the defining moment when you decided to pursue music as a career?

When I started playing guitar at 10 years old, I realized I wanted to have a career in music. It wasn't a moment as much as a persistent desire to learn more about music, and how to make it.

What was a turning point in your career?

In 1994, I got a job working for composer Ed Bogas in his recording studio. That is where I first saw a professional composer at work.

If you weren't a musician or teacher, what do you think you would be doing now?

I think I'd be operating heavy equipment like a crane or a fork lift. I like gear and building stuff.

What is your daily practice routine?

Yoga, three pages of journaling, 10 minutes of chanting, and then I sit at the piano and write out a melody.

If you could play only three composers for the rest of your life, who would they be?

Frank Zappa, Led Zeppelin, and Martin Denny.

From a music history perspective, what year and city are most important to you?

San Francisco, right now. This is where the next wave is happening.

What are your most important collaborations?

Beatnik Emix Development, The Last of Us Score Contributor, Starhawk Score Producer.

Who are three students you have had the privilege of teaching?

Daria Novoliantceva, Molly Monahan, and Kris Grant.

What recordings can we hear you on?

Matt Levine: Circadian

Pepper Greenwald Presents: Lounge Music for Spies

What is your unrealized project?

A devotional album that incorporates music from around the world.

Biography

Matt Levine is an accomplished composer and producer of music for games, film, television, and other pictured media. His unique ability to compose memorable themes across a wide range of genres, his cutting edge technical skills, and his resourceful and collaborative approach have earned him a stellar reputation among producers and directors. Matt’s career started in 1995 as a producer and engineer in a commercial production studio in San Francisco. In 1998, Matt created his own production company: Uncle Vector’s Audio Lab LLC, which is still going strong today. Over the years, he has composed and produced music for a wide range of artists, developers and corporate clients. In 2005, Matt joined the Music Department at Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) and worked there for over a decade. During that time, he directly contributed to 37 titles published by SCEA. As a senior member of an award-winning team he composed and remixed music for many games, including The Last of Us, Uncharted 3, and Infamous: First Light. In 2015, Matt joined the faculty of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music (SFCM), where he teaches composition and production for video games and film, including collaborations with Sony Interactive Entertainment and with SFFilm. In 2017, Matt earned a certificate in Sound, Voice, and Music in the Healing Arts from the California Institute for Integral Studies. He is currently developing an app that integrates sound healing methodologies into the latest technology being used for wellness.