A+U: Dream hiss: World-building in Game Audio w/ Ancestral Vision & Oliver Torr

In this three-hour workshop, Ancestral Vision and Oliver Torr will guide participants through the fundamentals of soundtracking interactive worlds. The first half will be theoretical: they will listen to and discuss examples from games, film and experimental audio, looking at how music, ambience, silence, UI sounds, foley and sound effects shape emotion, orientation, rhythm, narrative and player attention.

The second half will be practical: participants will use supplied soundpacks to rescore or build the sonic atmosphere of a short game-related scene, exploring layering, timing, texture, contrast, simple editing and the relationship between image, action and sound.

No prior knowledge is required, but participants are encouraged to arrive with a demo version of Ableton Live installed and the workshop soundpacks downloaded in advance.

Jan Macháček aka Ancestral Vision is a Prague-based musician, producer, sound artist, DJ and co-founder of the Unizone label, with a practice moving between experimental sound design, intimate melodic forms and contemporary club music; alongside his artistic work, he is a game designer for ČT Déčko, where he works with interactive formats, children’s games, sound and audiovisual storytelling. Oliver Torr is a multidisciplinary artist, composer and sound designer working across experimental music, film, performance, custom instruments, immersive audio systems and narrative sound environments. 

For the past four years, Ancestral Vision and Oliver Torr have also been collaborating on the sound of Netspectre, an upcoming cyberpunk hacker roguelike developed from the mind of Martin Ziegler of Warhorse Studio, using the project as a long-term laboratory for atmosphere, procedural tension, adaptive audio and sonic storytelling.