Peter Connelly

Peter Connelly
Connelly in September 2016
Connelly in September 2016
Background information
Born (1972-09-08) September 8, 1972[1]
South Shields, Tyne and Wear, England[1][2]
Genres
Occupations
  • Music composer
  • sound designer
Instruments
Years active1995–present
Labels
Websitepeterconnelly.com

Peter Connelly is a British video game composer and sound designer known for his work on the action-adventure Tomb Raider series. He has been part of several video game releases working mainly with Core Design, Eutechnyx and Ubisoft.[3]

Career

In September 1998, Connelly joined Derby-based studio Core Design, a subsidiary of UK video game publisher Eidos Interactive. As part of Core Design, Connelly worked in sound design on Tomb Raider III: Adventures of Lara Croft and later as a leading composer for Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation and Tomb Raider: Chronicles. Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness, which Connelly co-wrote with Martin Iveson, featured the London Symphony Orchestra.[4]

Connelly has scored other commercial games at Core Design such as Herdy Gerdy, Smart Bomb, and Free Running. At Ubisoft Reflections, developers of the Driver series, Connelly worked as senior sound designer on Driver: San Francisco. After completion of Driver, Connelly was contracted as Audio Lead and Composer on both Watch Dogs and The Crew. Connelly is currently a contractor with Slightly Mad Studios, working as Senior Sound Designer.[5] Connelly also runs Peter Connelly Limited, a sound production studio.[6]

According to Tomb Raider Chronicles, Connelly has cited John Williams and Danny Elfman as “exceptional” soundtrack composers who have influenced his own work.[4] Another influence is Burt Bacharach.[7]

Connelly's experience with the London Symphony Orchestra while working on Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness was a significant milestone in his career. The recording sessions took place at Abbey Road Studios in 2002. Working with the LSO was an unexpected dream come true for Connelly, especially given the time constraints for recording. The orchestra's ability to sight-read and precisely execute the music with minimal takes was highly impressive. Connelly described the live performance of the Angel of Darkness theme by the LSO as incomparable to any recording.[8]

Fraud conviction

On 17 July 2025, Peter Connelly was jailed for 16 months for fraudulently applying for a COVID loan. Connelly overstated his company’s turnover and obtained a second Bounce Back Loan of £37,500 in 2020 when businesses were only entitled to a single loan.[9] Connelly told investigators he had taken out the loans to fund a project to reimagine the Tomb Raider soundtrack, which he thought would be potentially lucrative.[10] The project never came to fruition, his company went into liquidation in August 2021 without repaying either loan, while Connelly himself entered into an individual voluntary arrangement (IVA) to avoid personal bankruptcy in June 2022.[10]

Works

Music and sound design

Audio director and sound design

Sound design

Additional sound design

Orchestral arrangement

Recent work

Peter is currently engaged producing Tomb Raider: The Dark Angel Symphony.[13]

Working alongside Peter on The Dark Angel Symphony are, among others, Dr Richard Niles[14] (arranger, conductor); virtuoso cellist Tina Guo,[15] known for her work in Wonder Woman[15] and alongside Hans Zimmer on his live shows; and vocalist Julie Elven[16] whose previous work includes League of Legends[16] and Horizon: Zero Dawn.[16] The album's executive producer and communications lead is Ash Kapriélov, declared "Lara's Biggest Fan" in Retro Gamer (Issue 163) for his dedicated work for the Tomb Raider video game franchise.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 ArtistInfo – Peter Connelly Profile, Metason.net. "Born September 8, 1972 in South Shields, GB."
  2. ↑ MR Peter Connelly – Company Director Check, CheckCompany.co.uk. "Date of birth: September 1972. Address: Newcastle Upon Tyne."
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Peter Connelly Interview". Game Music Online. Retrieved 2014-09-22.
  4. 1 2 "LSO to Score Angel of Darkness Music". tombraiderchronicles.com. 2002-07-23. Retrieved 2011-06-01.
  5. ↑ "#AOD15 Special: An Interview with Peter Connelly". Retrieved 27 June 2018.
  6. ↑ "Peter Connelly Ltd". misterwhat.co.uk. 2009-11-03. Retrieved 2014-04-17.
  7. ↑ "Peter Connelly profile on Loft Music". Retrieved 27 June 2018.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  8. ↑ "The Iconic Game Composer Peter Connelly: A Look into His Career and Music". Retrieved 27 June 2018.
  9. ↑ Robinson, Jon (2025-07-18). "Tomb Raider video game composer jailed for Covid loan fraud". City AM. Retrieved 2025-07-18.
  10. 1 2 Tomb Raider video game composer jailed for Covid loan fraud Insolvency Service, GOV.UK – 18 July 2025
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Peter Connelly's profile on Game OST". game-ost.com. Retrieved 2011-06-01.
  12. ↑ "PopStar Guitar Credits10)". squareenixmusic.com. Archived from the original on 2014-11-15. Retrieved 2011-06-02.
  13. ↑ "Tomb Raider - The Dark Angel Symphony". Tomb Raider - The Dark Angel Symphony. Retrieved 2019-07-26.
  14. ↑ "Dr Richard Niles". Tomb Raider - The Dark Angel Symphony. Retrieved 2019-07-26.
  15. 1 2 "Tina Guo". Tomb Raider - The Dark Angel Symphony. Retrieved 2019-07-26.
  16. 1 2 3 "Credits". julie elven. Retrieved 2019-07-26.
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