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Published on August 5th, 2024 | by Adrian Gunning

High Score returns with world-leading names in games music – Richard Lapington and the team from the Grammy-nominated Stray Gods

Australia’s leading composition and sound art for games conference, High Score, returns to the LCI Melbourne/Naarm on Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 October as part of Melbourne International Games Week 2024. 

This year’s event, which will have the theme of Connection Is Key, will be curated by musician, broadcaster and composer, Tim Shiel, and creative director, composer and sound designer, Amy McNickle.  

McNickle explains: “We have an amazing line-up of world-class local and international talent participating in this year’s program. In addition to the sessions we have planned that celebrate music and sound design, I’m extremely excited about the opportunities we’re creating to talk about audio production pipelines, business development, networking and sustainable creative practice for our audio developers to assist them at any career stage.“

They’ll be joined by keynote speakers Richard Lapington, Montaigne and Yon Hall. 

Richard Lapington is the audio director at acclaimed Finnish game studio, Remedy Entertainment, known for cinematic story-driven games like Max Payne, Control and Alan Wake.  His opening keynote will break down the BAFTA award-winning sound of Alan Wake 2, showing how his team’s rich vision for audio deeply informed the game’s haunting tone.

Lapington says: “Attending conferences like High Score is crucial for advancing the evolution of audio in games. This year, I’m excited to share my experiences directing the audio for the multi-award-winning Alan Wake 2. I look forward to exchanging stories and insights with all the attendees.”

Australian composers and lyricists Montaigne and Yon Hall (Tripod) will wrap up the event with the closing keynote, discussing how they worked together to create cohesive songs with branching narratives in the musical roleplaying game, Stray Gods, which was nominated for best score soundtrack for video games and other interactive media at the 2024 Grammy Awards. 

Jess Cerro, aka Montaigne, explains: “As a relative newcomer to the games industry, I’m so excited to meet new people active and engaged with their craft and community.”

“The combination of choice speakers and organised shmoozing opportunities makes High Score a no-brainer for people who make music for games in Australia,” adds Hall.

Presented by music rights organisation, APRA AMCOS, in partnership with the Victorian Government through Creative Victoria, and sponsored by Music Australia and FMOD, High Score’s two-day program is available to attend in-person or online. Limited early bird tickets are now on sale for just $70 (a discount of $50 off the full price $120 in-person pass), with livestream-only passes just $25.

High Score is where Australia’s game audio community gathers to learn, network and celebrate the use of music and sound in video games. It’s open to music and sound creators of all levels, as well as games industry who want to explore the important role that music and audio play in game design and experience.

The full program will be unveiled in the coming weeks and will include something for all areas of the industry, from testing out new recording or music gear to feedback from industry pros, masterclasses in software, getting legal advice around contracts and much more.There will also be scholarships up for grabs for creators living outside of Melbourne, with more on that to be announced soon.

The event debuted in 2017 and has been part Melbourne International Games Week since 2018, welcoming attendees from across Australia and the world. Games composers including River Boy, Belinda Coomes, Hew Wagner and more credit High Score with boosting their careers and making new connections in the industry.

APRA AMCOS CEO, Dean Ormston, says: “High Score continues to be an integral hub of the burgeoning games industry in Australia. A place where local composers and audio designers can get together to collaborate on the next big award-winning game and continue to contribute to the ever-growing share of locally composed music in digital games worldwide. I can’t wait to be in attendance this year.”

With support from Creative Victoria, High Score’s programming beyond the flagship conference includes a SongHubs intensive residency, a series of High Score Co-op composing workshops and the SoundCheck video interview series.

Event info:
High Score: Composition and Sound Art for Games
Saturday 5 – Sunday 6 October
LCI Melbourne, Collingwood VIC

Early bird in-person ticket: $70 (limited quantity)
Full price: $120
Includes full program, catered lunch, morning and afternoon tea and networking event.
Live stream only: $25
High Score stream will be available on demand for all ticket buyers for a limited time.

For more information and to book: apraamcos.com.au/HighScore


About the Author

agun@impulsegamer.com'

Adrian lives in Melbourne Australia and has a huge passion for gaming, technology and pop culture. He recently finished his a Bachelor of Journalism and is currently focusing on games journalism. When not writing and playing video games, Adrian can be found in Comics 'R' Us debating the pros of the DC Universe and cons of the Marvel Universe.


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