A National Gathering Exploring the Sound of Gaming

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) will host the 13th North American Conference on Video Game Music (NACVGM) on May 1 and 2 at the Curtis R. Priem Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center (EMPAC). This conference, which will also be available virtually, brings together scholars from across the world to explore the latest research on the role of music and sound in video games. 

Research, Performance, and Play

Video games shape entertainment, storytelling, and popular culture, and this event centers on one of the medium’s most powerful elements: audio. Over two days, attendees will explore how music and sound influence gameplay, emotion, identity, memory, and world-building. NACVGM will feature immersive programming including research presentations, game demonstrations, poster sessions, and a live concert. 

Dr. Melanie Fritsch, Junior Professor for Media and Cultural Studies at Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, will deliver the conference's keynote address. An internationally recognized scholar, Fritsch is a co-founder of the Society for the Study of Sound and Music in Games and a co-editor of the Cambridge Companion to Video Game Music.  

RPI: Shaping the Future of Gaming

The conference also highlights RPI's leadership at the intersection of technology, creativity, and game design. RPI is home to the Department of Games and Experiential Media, a flagship program known for cutting-edge work in gaming research and education. 

Will Gibbons, Ph.D., Dean of RPI's School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences (HASS), is a leading scholar of video game music, authoring and editing several books including The Oxford Handbook of Video Game Music and Sound and Unlimited Replays: Video Games and Classical Music.

"We are proud and honored to host NACVGM at RPI," said Gibbons. "The study of video game music blends artistic creativity, humanistic inquiry, and technological innovation. This work explores play as a fundamental part of the human experience. There simply is no better place for these conversations than RPI.”

For more information and to register, visit nacvgm.org.