Why is music important for the future of virtual and mixed reality?

Virtual reality has been around for quite some time now, but how will developers push the envelope even further? Music might just be the answer to their questions.

Virtual reality is still in the early stage of incorporating itself into a daily activity for everyone. As a matter of fact, significant progress has been made over the years, with Apple, most notably, entering the race with the release of their inaugural augmented reality device: Apple Vision Pro. Alongside Apple, Meta has been in the market for a decade now, trying to find the most efficient way to enact virtual reality into the mainstream world.

Now that the core technology has been perfected, developers will need to find a way to immerse the users even further into artificial reality. Immersive experiences are a way to break boundaries once again, and music is one of the main aspects of such experiences. How does music come into the equation and what does it bring to the table? It certainly evokes various feelings in the user, ranging from serenity all the way to sheer tension. Yes, the sound design of most activities while using virtual reality can surely help, but the inclusion of music is the essential key that grounds the users in those moments.

However, that is not an easy task as creative executive and wellness expert Frank Fitzpatrick explained:

“One ongoing issue for the past iterations of the VR/AR product and the companies that have developed them has been the lack of sufficient attention and investment into creating the optimal audio experiences to accompany immersive visual environments.”

Music nowadays is really hard to build into applications, as companies have to enter tense and lengthy discussions and negotiations, spend large sums of money for advances, and give up a percentage of app revenue. After the hassle, companies still have to store, stream, monitor, and report on all the songs played. So, how do the social media giants cope with such problem? They create their own licensing platforms that pay artists and labels, and at the same time enable users to put the music they want into their content. That’s a massive opportunity for both record labels and artists. Labels can open up new revenue streams, and artists have the opportunity to present their music to millions around the world.

At the recent Augmented Reality Expo in Silicon Valley, integration of music into virtual and augmented reality has been a constant topic among visitors. An entire ecosystem has been made to help developers push their code into production, and mixed reality app makers need the same to create personal connections for users every time they use virtual reality. Music elevates the mood in its own way and creates connections like nothing else.

Image credit: Jan Vašek from Pixabay