Mediated Musical Interactions in Virtual Environments

Abstract

Musical interactions performed within virtual spaces are mediated by the rules and realities inherent to each environment itself. Control interactions in physical space driving actor motion and gesture in virtual spaces pass through a layer of influence dictated by the environment—as well as by any additional actors or processes existing within that environment—before being mapped to parameters of sonic and musical creation and control. Such mediation layers are themselves intrinsic attributes of musical works built within game and virtual environments and play fundamental roles in the sonic and musical experiences realized in such spaces. These meditated musical interactions and the interfaces that support them should be considered and approached as a distinct form of musical interaction with their own performance practices, approaches and taxonomies. This paper explores the notion of musical mediation as a composed and designed attribute of real-time virtual musical performance environments and describes three virtual musical performance environments designed to act as mediation layers upon musical performance gesture and intention carried out within.