Music and Sound in Virtual/Augmented Realities—Questions, Challenges and Approaches

• DOI: 10.1525/jsmg.2021.2.2.63
• Publication Date: 2021-05-06T11:39:47Z
• Authors: Tim Summers; James Cook; Will Famer; Elisa Raffaella F...; Lucy Harrison; Rich Hemming; Andra Ivănescu; Luke Reed; Flossie Roberts; Richard Stevens; Stephen Tatlow; Laryssa Whittaker
• Keywords: 05 social sciences; 0501 psychology and cognitive sciences

The mid-to-late 2010s saw a renewed interest in virtual reality technologies with the release of a wide selection of consumer VR headsets and glasses, and the increased power of smartphones to provide augmented reality experiences. While research on sound and music in these technologies has started to gather pace, practice and research continue to grapple with significant creative and practical questions. In addition, such discussions have tended to be limited within disciplinary or professional silos. The roundtable presented here was an effort to begin conversations across a variety of fields of research and practice. We shared perspectives and exchanged views informed by different disciplinary traditions and experiences. We also sought to identify key questions and issues regarding music and sound in VR/AR. Three main themes are presented here: 1) Spaces and musical performances, 2) Realities and realism, and 3) Movement, orientation, and disorientation.