Penka Kouneva has composed soundtracks for films, exhibitions and VR experiences
Penka Kouneva has worked as a composer on blockbuster movies and video games that have grossed some $15bn worldwide. Millions will have heard her music without ever realising it.
Kouneva, who was one of the first female lead orchestrators in Hollywood, has recently been branching out into the world of attractions. She wrote the score for the $30m immersive exhibit Heroes and Legends, which opened in late 2016 at the Kennedy Space Center, near Orlando, Florida, composing music for the 3D films, installations and multimedia.
“The NASA exhibit, Heroes and Legends, was the most unique composing job I’ve had,” Kouneva says. “It tells the stories of the space missions Mercury, Gemini and Apollo. I wrote music that celebrates the American heroes and heartswelling orchestral themes with arrangements to express our fascination with space.”
Kouneva worked closely with experience designers Falcon’s Creative, especially senior sound designer Rick Morris and media editor Jesse James Allen, but reveals hurdles arose when composing for an exhibit environment for the first time.
“The main 3D film is viewed in a spherical space and the acoustics were very challenging,” she says. “The music itself had to create a variety of emotions – heroic; noble; danger, for a malfunctioning rocket; awe, for the Earth seen from space; regret, for a failed mission; hope.
“The objective is similar when composing for an attraction or a film or a video game: to create deeply emotional, engaging, memorable music that helps us remember viscerally the entire experience. The differences are in technology – how the music is implemented, how long the pieces need to be, the arrangements, and so on.”
Road to success Growing up in Bulgaria, Kouneva’s father, an engineer, gave her books about science, space and astronauts, so working on the Kennedy Space Center project was a special experience.
“Space symbolised freedom for me. Science fiction was huge in Eastern Bloc countries because it’s about longing for a more just future, or offering a critical view of society packaged as a futuristic story.”
When she arrived in Los Angeles, California, almost 20 years ago, Kouneva invested most of her time in developing a strong and individual musical style before she started to gradually pick up work.
“I came to LA with almost no money, so I had to work a lot, but that meant many credits, relationships and experience. Although I didn’t have a business plan, I’ve always been intuitive and felt that my greatest capital was my music, my friendships, my people skills and my health. When opportunities fell on my lap, I jumped and made the best out of them.”
Kouneva built her reputation and is now one of the field’s great talents, but working as a freelancer still poses difficulties.
“Getting a substantial job that propels me forward takes much hustling and patience. Understanding the tastes and expectations of my collaborators is not easy, but with experience it gets easier. Also, the balance between being in a creative zone, with running the business, is challenging. I run a tight ship,” she says.
New frontiers In the realm of attractions, Kouneva scored the soundtrack for Universal’s location-based VR shooter game, The Mummy: Prodigium Strike. “My objective in scoring VR was for the music to blend with the sound design and voiceover. Since VR is such a new frontier, it takes a thoughtful, innovative approach.”
Among many others, Kouneva has composed for the Prince of Persia: Forgotten Sands, Transformers and World of Warcraft: Legion video games and worked on movies including Elysium, Matrix Reloaded, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows and Devil’s Whisper.
These projects are reflective of her music, “orchestral mixed with electronics – dramatic and haunting” and suits genres like action, horror, fantasy and sci-fi.
She has also penned three solo award-winning concept albums, including The Rebirth of Id and The Woman Astronaut.
Read more from this issue of Attractions Management magazine
View contents of Attractions Management 2018 issue 2
People profile: Damien Hirst
Turner Prize-winning artist Damien Hirst exhibits a series of spot paintings and huge sculptures at a Norfolk stately home
People profile: Penka Kouneva
Movie and video game composer Penka Kouneva moves into the world of attractions with the Heroes and Legends exhibit and VR installations
Industry Opinion: Zoos & Aquariums
WAZA’s Sabrina Brando on providing animals with opportunities for choices, stimulating environments and enriching activities
Interview: Sultan Al Dhaheri
With the launch of Warner Bros World and
the Louvre in Abu Dhabi, the Department
of Culture and Tourism’s Sultan Al Dhaheri
explains how investing in attractions is
helping the emirate meet its tourism goals
Animal sanctuaries: Paws for Thought
The UK’s Big Cat Sanctuary is the subject
of a recent BBC documentary. Managing
director Giles Clark explains how the
facility works – and introduces Maya
the jaguar and Willow the cheetah
Science Centres: Getting Engaged
Researchers Dr Amy Seakins and
Dr Heather King explain how science
capital empowers science centres
to engage wider audiences in STEM,
plus European initiatives in action
Digital art: Light Fantastic
Tokyo-based digital art collective teamLab is
on a mission to change the way we interact
with and experience art. Magali Robathan
reports on the group’s installation work
and their upcoming museum launch
Penka Kouneva has composed soundtracks for films, exhibitions and VR experiences
Penka Kouneva has worked as a composer on blockbuster movies and video games that have grossed some $15bn worldwide. Millions will have heard her music without ever realising it.
Kouneva, who was one of the first female lead orchestrators in Hollywood, has recently been branching out into the world of attractions. She wrote the score for the $30m immersive exhibit Heroes and Legends, which opened in late 2016 at the Kennedy Space Center, near Orlando, Florida, composing music for the 3D films, installations and multimedia.
“The NASA exhibit, Heroes and Legends, was the most unique composing job I’ve had,” Kouneva says. “It tells the stories of the space missions Mercury, Gemini and Apollo. I wrote music that celebrates the American heroes and heartswelling orchestral themes with arrangements to express our fascination with space.”
Kouneva worked closely with experience designers Falcon’s Creative, especially senior sound designer Rick Morris and media editor Jesse James Allen, but reveals hurdles arose when composing for an exhibit environment for the first time.
“The main 3D film is viewed in a spherical space and the acoustics were very challenging,” she says. “The music itself had to create a variety of emotions – heroic; noble; danger, for a malfunctioning rocket; awe, for the Earth seen from space; regret, for a failed mission; hope.
“The objective is similar when composing for an attraction or a film or a video game: to create deeply emotional, engaging, memorable music that helps us remember viscerally the entire experience. The differences are in technology – how the music is implemented, how long the pieces need to be, the arrangements, and so on.”
Road to success Growing up in Bulgaria, Kouneva’s father, an engineer, gave her books about science, space and astronauts, so working on the Kennedy Space Center project was a special experience.
“Space symbolised freedom for me. Science fiction was huge in Eastern Bloc countries because it’s about longing for a more just future, or offering a critical view of society packaged as a futuristic story.”
When she arrived in Los Angeles, California, almost 20 years ago, Kouneva invested most of her time in developing a strong and individual musical style before she started to gradually pick up work.
“I came to LA with almost no money, so I had to work a lot, but that meant many credits, relationships and experience. Although I didn’t have a business plan, I’ve always been intuitive and felt that my greatest capital was my music, my friendships, my people skills and my health. When opportunities fell on my lap, I jumped and made the best out of them.”
Kouneva built her reputation and is now one of the field’s great talents, but working as a freelancer still poses difficulties.
“Getting a substantial job that propels me forward takes much hustling and patience. Understanding the tastes and expectations of my collaborators is not easy, but with experience it gets easier. Also, the balance between being in a creative zone, with running the business, is challenging. I run a tight ship,” she says.
New frontiers In the realm of attractions, Kouneva scored the soundtrack for Universal’s location-based VR shooter game, The Mummy: Prodigium Strike. “My objective in scoring VR was for the music to blend with the sound design and voiceover. Since VR is such a new frontier, it takes a thoughtful, innovative approach.”
Among many others, Kouneva has composed for the Prince of Persia: Forgotten Sands, Transformers and World of Warcraft: Legion video games and worked on movies including Elysium, Matrix Reloaded, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows and Devil’s Whisper.
These projects are reflective of her music, “orchestral mixed with electronics – dramatic and haunting” and suits genres like action, horror, fantasy and sci-fi.
She has also penned three solo award-winning concept albums, including The Rebirth of Id and The Woman Astronaut.
Read more from this issue of Attractions Management magazine
View contents of Attractions Management 2018 issue 2
People profile: Damien Hirst
Turner Prize-winning artist Damien Hirst exhibits a series of spot paintings and huge sculptures at a Norfolk stately home
People profile: Penka Kouneva
Movie and video game composer Penka Kouneva moves into the world of attractions with the Heroes and Legends exhibit and VR installations
Industry Opinion: Zoos & Aquariums
WAZA’s Sabrina Brando on providing animals with opportunities for choices, stimulating environments and enriching activities
Interview: Sultan Al Dhaheri
With the launch of Warner Bros World and
the Louvre in Abu Dhabi, the Department
of Culture and Tourism’s Sultan Al Dhaheri
explains how investing in attractions is
helping the emirate meet its tourism goals
Animal sanctuaries: Paws for Thought
The UK’s Big Cat Sanctuary is the subject
of a recent BBC documentary. Managing
director Giles Clark explains how the
facility works – and introduces Maya
the jaguar and Willow the cheetah
Science Centres: Getting Engaged
Researchers Dr Amy Seakins and
Dr Heather King explain how science
capital empowers science centres
to engage wider audiences in STEM,
plus European initiatives in action
Digital art: Light Fantastic
Tokyo-based digital art collective teamLab is
on a mission to change the way we interact
with and experience art. Magali Robathan
reports on the group’s installation work
and their upcoming museum launch
A US$50 million (£44.2 million, €51.2 million) transformation of Chicago's historic McCormick
Mansion has created a new destination that combines live magic, immersive theatre, dining and
private membership under one roof.
The Montana Historical Society has officially celebrated the opening of its new Montana
Heritage
Center, a US$107 million (£79 million, €92 million) destination that combines immersive
storytelling with cutting-edge audiovisual technology to bring the sta
San Antonio Zoo has reported a US$283 million economic impact for 2025, following a decade-
long transformation programme that has seen almost US$200 million invested into the Texas
attraction.
Plans for the AU$180 million redevelopment of Reef HQ Aquarium in Townsville, Australia, are
progressing, with the project set to transform the attraction into a global centre for reef
education and conservation.
Abu Dhabi-based investment firm Mubadala Capital has made a binding, fully financed
€1 billion
offer to acquire Pierre and Vacances SA, the European holiday resort operator behind the
continental European Center Parcs business.
Disney has reaffirmed its commitment to investing US$30 billion in its US parks and cruise
business by 2033, using new America250 celebrations to underline the role its attractions play
in supporting jobs, tourism and economic growth.
Expo 2030 Riyadh is being planned as a permanent visitor destination, with organisers
confirming the six-million-square-metre site will become a Global Village after the event closes.
The owner of one of Australia's best-known waterparks has acquired a major competitor,
creating a new attractions business spanning two of the country's largest visitor destinations.
The Toverland theme park in the Netherlands has announced a €98m expansion programme
that will add a resort, new attractions and staff facilities as it pursues plans to become a multi-
day destination.
Hotel de France, located on the British Isle of Jersey, has created a wellness retreat package
that includes a hot yoga session that will take place in Jersey Zoo’s butterfly sanctuary.
+ More news
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