Paul Anthony Romero
Classical Piano Virtuoso Who Shaped the Operatic and Neoclassical Soul of Might and Magic
Born in Pasadena, California, on September 10, 1965, American concert pianist and composer Paul Anthony Romero brought conservatory contrapuntal craft and live operatic vocals to PC fantasy gaming. Partnering with audio director Rob King—and frequent collaborator Steve Baca—from 1995 onward, Romero composed the unmistakable town, terrain, and battle themes of the Heroes of Might and Magic and Might and Magic series.
Conservatory Prodigy and the Serendipitous Meeting with Rob King
A piano prodigy who performed his first orchestral concerto with the Santa Monica Symphony at age 11 and premiered his own Piano Concerto at the United Nations General Assembly at 15, Paul Anthony Romero studied under Jorge Bolet at the Curtis Institute of Music before continuing at London's Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Having never played a computer game, Romero met New World Computing audio director Rob King at a Los Angeles house party in 1994 when King urgently needed Baroque-style harpsichord and chamber miniatures for Jon Van Caneghem's upcoming Heroes of Might and Magic: A Strategic Quest (1995). Working out of King's Green Street Studios in Sherman Oaks, the duo paired Romero's classical improvisations with King's studio engineering and multi-instrumentalist Steve Baca's arrangements to forge a decade-spanning partnership.
Operatic Town Themes, Heroes III Immortality, and Symphonic World Tours
For Heroes of Might and Magic II: The Succession Wars (1996), Romero and King took the audacious step of recording conservatory opera soloists over Red Book CD audio, turning each faction's town screen into a miniature theatrical aria modeled on Handel, Brahms, Puccini, and German Lieder. When Heroes of Might and Magic III: The Restoration of Erathia arrived in 1999 alongside Might and Magic VI and VII, Romero balanced sweeping orchestral grandeur with intimate acoustic chamber colors—crafting indelible leitmotifs for Rampart, Necropolis, Castle, Tower, and overland Dirt and Grass exploration, before pivoting to mist-laden Celtic folk textures on Heroes IV (2002) and full choral-symphonic scale on Ubisoft's Heroes V (2006). Winning the first International Amateur Piano Competition in Paris in 2002, Romero later became a beloved concert headliner across Poland, Ukraine, Russia, and China, performing Heroes suites live with full philharmonic orchestras.