Author: Mark Sweeney

New Book Series: Studies in Game Sound & Music

Studies in Game Sound and Music, Intellect Academic Publishing

Series Editors: Michiel Kamp, Tim Summers and Mark Sweeney

We’re delighted to announce the launch of a new book series for academic peer-reviewed books presenting high-quality research on video game music and sound.

The series includes both monographs and edited collections. It does not seal game audio into a scholarly suburb, but instead seeks to engage game audio practitioners and researchers from a range of disciplines, including anthropology, computer science, media studies, psychology, sociology, sound studies, as well as musicology.

The books present new research, such as analysis, historical studies, practical investigations and conceptual/theoretical issues. However, they are also designed to support the growing number of graduates and undergraduates who study in this field.

Book types that are suitable for this series include, but are not limited to, books about

  • Particular games or game series (e.g. a book on Final Fantasy games)
  • Specific types of games (e.g. a collection on sound in horror games)
  • Distinct sonic phenomena in games (e.g. a volume on audio in MMORPGs)
  • Cultures surrounding games (e.g. a study of fan cultures about video game music)
  • Histories and interactions with other media (e.g. histories of game audio, projects comparing game and film sound)
  • Conceptual issues and approaches (e.g. investigations into immersion and audio in games, perspectives on alterity and music in games)
  • Particular practices of game audio (e.g. explorations of voices and dialogue recording in games)

The books include conceptual, technical and sonic detail, but remain accessible to those with less formal education. Similarly, the authors are asked to ensure that those less familiar with the game medium are able to follow the arguments. Technological discussions are necessary, but they are explained in plain English and in such a way that the sonic implications are clear. The books are easily readable by advanced undergraduate students.

For further information, refer to the proposal guidelines here, or contact us at ludomusicology@gmail.com.

Registration Open for #Ludo2017

We’re delighted to announce that registration for Ludo2017 is now open!

Details on registration, travel, accommodation and the preliminary programme are on this page here. To go straight to registration, please click the button below!

Register

We look forward to joining you in Bath for what promises to be a really exciting event!

Melanie, Michiel, Tim, Mark

Official Launch of The Society for the Study of Sound and Music in Games (SSSMG)!

We are very excited to announce the official launch of The Society for the Study of Sound and Music in Games (SSSMG)!

The SSSMG is a network that’s been developed by the Ludomusicology Research Group, the North American Conference on Video Game Music, Audio Mostly, and an extensive advisory board of leading academics and practitioners. The aim is to provide a hub to connect together people working on game audio and to support advances in the understanding of sound and music in games.

The SSSMG helps anyone who investigates game sound and music, whether in an academic or professional setting, to discuss the topic together, exchange ideas and information, and keep up-to-date with new research. Anyone can join, and the members are always looking for new approaches to the subject.

SSSMG will make publicly available:

  • General news
  • General Society contact info
  • Links to other affiliated societies/groups
  • Events Calendar (view only)
  • Newly revised, keyworded and searchable Bibliography

Registered members will have additional access to:

  • Network with searchable, keyworded members’ directory
  • Submit events for publication on the Calendar
  • Share conference presentations and Green OA publications in a subject repository
  • Compose and submit news posts
  • Contribute to Bibliography Project

Further member benefits and services will be added in the future. Visit www.sssmg.org to find out more!

banner1

Ludo 2017 Call for Papers

We’re delighted to announce that Ludo2017, the Sixth Easter Conference on Video Game Music and Sound, will take place April 20th – 22nd at Bath Spa University, UK.

 

Please share our Call for Papers poster online and around your institutions.

The organizers of Ludo2017 are accepting proposals for research presentations at the sixth annual Easter conference. While we welcome all proposals on sound and music in games, we are particularly interested in papers that support the theme of ‘Performance’, understood in the broadest sense. Possible topics on this theme include:

  • Chips and sonic outputs,
  • Playing with, and within, technological audio constructs,
  • Sound and ludic interaction,
  • Histories of developing techniques and tools,
  • Game audio aesthetics and approaches,
  • Composition with game technologies (chips, engines, etc.).

Presentations should last twenty minutes, to be followed by questions. Please submit your paper proposal (c.250 words) by email to ludomusicology@gmail.com by January 31st 2017.

Composers and practitioners may also submit a proposal to present work at the conference.

bath_spa_university_logo-svgWe also welcome session proposals from organizers representing two to four individuals; the organizer should submit an introduction to the theme and c.200 word proposals for each paper.

The conference will feature a keynote address by Kenneth McAlpine (Abertay University), author of Bits and Pieces: A History of Chiptunes (OUP, 2017), with further keynote speakers and guests to be announced shortly.

www.ludomusicology.org | #ludo2017
Hosted by Professor James Newman, Bath Spa University.
Organized by Melanie Fritsch, Michiel Kamp, Tim Summers, Mark Sweeney.

%d bloggers like this: