Speaking Engagement: PAX Dev – Aug 26-27, 2015

July 19th, 2015 | By Lance Hayes

UPDATE: The PAX Dev schedule is live and our panel “Demystifying Audio” is slated for Thursday (the 27th) at 2:15 pm.

PAX Prime 2015 is almost upon us, and as always I look forward to taking in the sights and sounds of the amazing games that will be visiting Seattle this year. Last year I had an fantastic time speaking at PAX Dev, which immediately precedes PAX Prime, and it looks like history is going to repeat itself this year as I’ll be teaming up with fellow luminaries Marty O’Donnell and Akash Thakkar for what promises to be a fun, informative session about game audio. More details soon, and don’t forget to check out my Twitter and Facebook pages for up the day, or week, updates!

Cheers

Speaking Engagement: The Annual DigiPen Audio Symposium

April 9th, 2015 | By Lance Hayes

Update: I’ve re-posted the original Keyboard Magazine article retitled “A Career In Audio” LinkedIn.

I’m looking forward to joining the stellar line up of speakers for DigiPen’s annual Audio Symposium held on Saturday May 9th on the DigiPen Redmond campus.

From the site, here’s more about the event:

DigiPen is pleased to host the third annual Audio Symposium, which is being jointly sponsored by the Game Audio Network Guild (G.A.N.G.). Talks will cover a mix of topics related to sound engineering research, interactive music, and game audio.

This event is free and open to the public. Please register online if you plan to attend.

Come join Marty O’Donnell, Prof. Edgar Choueiri, Greg Dixon, Christopher Mael and myself as we talk about the business, technologies, techniques and the future of audio.

Here’s more about my talk:

Lance Hayes: A Career in Audio
“Taking his cue from a popular blog he wrote for Keyboard Magazine in 2011 featuring career advice from various composers, Lance digs in and shares what it takes to work professionally in sound. Looking back over his two decades in audio, Lance shares insights and lessons learned from his experiences working as a composer, studio owner, studio manager, game audio blogger, sound designer, educator and more.”

What Can We Do For You?

January 27th, 2015 | By Lance Hayes

Over the years I’ve had the good fortune to work on projects of all sizes for developers and publishers such as Microsoft, Activision and Nintendo. To assist me I’ve assembled a crack team of audio professionals and contractors. I’ve worked with the best on projects ranging from composing 8bit to orchestral soundtracks, creating original sound design and field recordings to implementation and more.

As an independent contractor I’ve spent years crafting audio that fits perfectly into titles so my team and I are focused on delivering great audio experiences. With award winning talent from projects that span next gen consoles, handheld and PC titles our skills range across the entire spectrum of audio disciplines, (a list of some of the titles we’ve worked can be found here). We specialize in bringing the sound of the games we work on to life.

We’re available for new projects, no game is too big or too small, Indie to Fortune 500. Please contact djdm at djdm.com for more information to make your project’s audio stand out!

For the latest updates about the studio please see our Twitter and Facebook pages.

Complete Video of AES Lecture Available Online

January 12th, 2015 | By Lance Hayes

Lance Hayes Speaking at Microsoft Research

Update: The PNW AES Section report featuring notes about my Forza 5 presentation is live on the national AES site.

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My session from last weeks PNW AES section January meeting at Microsoft Research was a lot of fun with great questions from the audience. The meeting was well attended by AES members, game audio pros and students. Thanks to everyone that came out!

The video of the talk billed as, “a detailed look at how the soundtrack to the one of the first next gen video game soundtracks for the Xbox One was conceived and executed” is now online here. And, thanks to Microsoft Research, it’s free to view.

This session was lively as well as a little bittersweet as its likely my last public Forza 5 talk. I discuss my work as the lead composer on on the launch title for the Xbox One as well as the cross country recording process so there are audio and video examples and a live demo of the game. I cover composing, adaptive audio, how the soundtrack was prototyped and wrap up by taking questions from the audience.

So if you have an interest in my work on the Forza franchise, next gen game scores and or game audio this talk is for you. Enjoy!

(Special thanks to Gary Louie, Rick Chinn and Ivan Tashev from PNW AES for hosting and coordinating this special event)

Microsoft Research recently reorganized their lecture library, moving all of the talks to YouTube. Here is the new link to the video:

Lance talking about FM5 at the PNW AES meeting

Speaking Engagement: PNW AES Section

November 18th, 2014 | By Lance Hayes

Following the score for Forza Motorsport 5 Original Soundtrack at Skywalker Ranch

UPDATE 01/03/14: Click here for the Facebook event

I’m looking forward discussing and dissecting my work on the Forza Motorsport 5 Soundtrack for the Pacific Northwest chapter of the Audio Engineering Society over at Microsoft Research on Thursday, January 8th, 2015 at 7:30pm.

If you want to know more about scoring, adaptive concepts and music for AAA video games then this session is for you. There’s more information from the AES site below. Hope to see you there!

From the AES site:

Steve Malott
AES PNW 2014-2015 Section Chair

Speaking at GameSoundCon 2014

July 7th, 2014 | By Lance Hayes

I’m excited to be part of this year’s GameSoundCon in downtown LA, Oct 7-8 at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel. I’ll be discussing composing for AAA games, my work on the Forza series as well as participating in roundtable events. I’m looking forward to catching up with fellow lecturers and game audio maestros of music, sound and VO including the legendary Marty O’Donnell, Guy Whitmore, Paul Lipson, Austin Wintory, Penka Kouneva, Brian Schmidt and Austin Wintory, to name but a few. Anyone identifying as a sound designer or composer should attend GameSoundCon and, as luck would have it, early bird registration is still available. See you in LA!

Speaking Engagement: PAX Dev 2014

June 18th, 2014 | By Lance Hayes

07/23/14 Update: Our panel has been scheduled in the Fifth Avenue Room on Thursday, August 28th at 11:30am and the description has been posted here.

Now back to the original post:

I’m looking forward to speaking at this years PAX Dev. Our session titled “Game Audio Pipeline: Core Concepts and Roles” will focus on audio team roles, best practices, vetting suggestions and practical tips to help ensure that you get the best audio for your project.

Speaking with me are fellow game audio specialists, industry vets and all around nice guys Jason Poss, Akash Thakkar, Mathew Steele and Mark Shoemaker. If you’re attending, expect a fun session that will leave you better informed on the roles that the various audio team members play as well as how to find them and what to look for in a candidate. Not to be missed and there will be more details soon.

PAX Dev 2014 (Developer) runs for the two day before PAX Prime in Seattle on August 27th and 28th.

You can also check my Facebook and Twitter feeds for more timely updates.

Photo Op, Flash Forward from GDC 2014

March 26th, 2014 | By Lance Hayes

Photo of Lance Hayes and Chase Combs taken last week at the Game Developer’s Conference during Flash Forward, the opening event that kicks off the Game Developers Conference. Select talks are given 45 seconds each to pitch their session to a live audience of about a thousand game industry peers.

Photo credit Kathryn Amyotte

A Year of Highlights and Updates

March 3rd, 2014 | By Lance Hayes

Doing a little website housecleaning and since I’ve been having a busy year, I wanted to consolidate some related posts into one place.

• Audio Media Looks at Forza Motorsport 5
• Speaking Engagement at Game Developer’s Conference 2014
• McDonald’s Forza Xbox One Ad Campaign Featuring Music by Lance Hayes
• Game Audio Network Guild Award Nomination
• Forza Motorsport 5 Soundtrack and Game Now Available
• Forza Motorsport 4 Soundtrack Release Announced
• The Forza Motorsport 5 Soundtrack: An Insider’s View
• Music for Xbox Fitness
• Nominations and specifics on FM5’s Game Developer’s Choice “Best Audio” award nomination
• BJ Shea’s Geek Nation Interview
• Game Music Articles for Andertons Music UK

In related news my Game Developer’s Conference 2014 updates are here.

Other site updates include new content on the Media and Music Page (If you want to skip the videos scroll to the bottom for music links). Also check out the newly revised Articles/Awards page as well as an updated Bio/Credits.

And finally, you may also want to check out Twitter and Facebook for more info as I’ll post breaking news and asides there regularly.

Cheers!

Game Audio Network Guild Award Nomination

February 19th, 2014 | By Lance Hayes

My “Next Level” series over at Andertons Music UK is designed to help newcomers to the game audio field find information that will be of service as they navigate their way though the beginning of their careers.

I’m humbled and honored that one of the articles from this series has been singled out; “How to Write Compelling Music for Games“, has been nominated for a Game Audio Network Guild Award for “Best Game Audio Article/Podcast/Publication”. Thank you to the Board at GANG, I look forward to the awards in San Francisco at this year’s Game Developer’s Conference!

Cheers!