Early bird tickets on sale for High Score conference, Saturday 1 October - Sunday 2 October, part of Melbourne International Games Week
If you're not in Melbourne you can join this conference via live stream. Register below.
Composer Jeff van Dyck, audio designer Neha Patel, Narayana Johnson (River Boy) and more announced
Connect with top composers, sound designers and music & games industry pros
Limited early bird discounted tickets for in-person attendance to High Score: Composition and Sound Art for Games are on sale now. The popular music-in-games conference will be presented in a hybrid format for the first time, with standard price live stream tickets also on sale and available worldwide.
High Score is where music creators, game developers and industry professionals connect and explore the important role that music and audio play in game design and experience.
The conference takes place Saturday 1 October-Sunday 2 October at LCI Melbourne in Collingwood and online, and is presented by music rights organisation APRA AMCOS, in partnership with Creative Victoria, and part of Melbourne International Games Week.
Returning as host and moderator is ABC’s Good Game Spawn Point and Double J radio presenter Angharad 'Rad' Yeo.
From emerging to established, grass root indies to AAA, High Score connects the music and games communities through a wide range of programming and networking opportunities.
Brisbane-based, three-time BAFTA award winning composer, sound designer and audio director Jeff van Dyck is the first of two keynote speakers to be announced. His career has spanned EA's FIFA and NHL, the Total War franchise and independent hits Paint the Town Red, Hand of Fate II and Unpacking.
"I'm super excited and honoured to be asked to give the closing keynote at this year's High Score. High Score's focus on fostering connections, opportunities and knowledge shows its commitment to the community it represents. I'm very happy to be part of this event and look forward to exploring and celebrating the world of video game audio," said van Dyck.
L-R: Jeff van Dyck, Neha Patel, Narayana Johnson aka River Boy
Panels and industry talks will focus on aesthetics, technical skills and creative management, as well as copyright and licensing, breaking into the industry and pitching your music.
Creators share the story behind the music in games for the highly anticipated Cult of the Lamb (Victorian composer Narayana Johnson aka River Boy and developer Julian Wilton), Germany's global hit Revita (composer Christoph Jakob and developer BenStar), Brisbane-created massive asynchronous multiplayer game Phantom Abyss (sound designer Cedar Jones), Wayward Strand (Melbourne audio specialist Maize Wallin and developer Jason Bakker) and Sounds, Hidden to be Found (Allison Walker and Rebecca Dilella).
Top audio and sound designers including Canadian Neha Patel (Mini Makers), Rich Vreeland aka Disasterpeace (Fez, Mini Metro, Hyperlight Drifter) and Brisbane's Anne-Marie Weber (Thirsty Suitors) will deliver in-depth technical talks.
High Score's previous in-person events 2017-2019 sold out and the past two live streamed events went global with participants from Australia and 55 countries logging on.
With support from Creative Victoria, High Score is expanding its programming beyond the flagship conference to include a SongHubs intensive residency, two Co-Op composing workshops and the SoundCheck video interview series.
Minister for Creative Industries Steve Dimopoulos said: “Victoria’s reputation as a powerhouse of digital games development and our nation’s music capital makes it the perfect home for High Score. This event will create great opportunities for our musicians, sound artists and composers and showcase the best the industry has to offer.”
Peak industry body IGEA reported that income generated by Australian game development studios totaled $226.5m in 2020/2021 and that studios will need to hire more skilled professionals to meet demand and growth.
In-person and live stream tickets on sale now.
More information on the full program and booking.
High Score: Composition and Sound Art for Games
When: Saturday 1 October, 9:30am-5:30pm AEST and Sunday 2 October, 9:30am-5:30pm AEDT
Where: LCI Melbourne, 150 Oxford Street, Collingwood VIC 3066
Early bird in-person ticket: $120 APRA AMCOS member / $150 non-member
Live stream only: $40
Full price tickets from 1 September, unless exhausted prior.
APRA AMCOS member $150 / $180 non-member