SoundTrack_Cologne 23 announces

Video Games Composer Lineup

Music has become a crucial narrative force in modern video games, shaping worlds, deepening emotional impact, and bringing stories to life in increasingly immersive and interactive ways. SoundTrack_Cologne 23 once again spotlights the creative minds behind some of today's most compelling game scores.

This year's lineup features five outstanding artists:

London-based duo Boxed Ape (Alistair Kerley & Frankie Harper), whose work spans major AAA titles and acclaimed indie productions alike Horizon Call of the Mountain · The Casting of Frank Stone · Beyond a Steel Sky;

Maclaine Diemer (Guild Wars 2 · Rock Band · Wildgate), two-time nominee for the Game Music Award at the World Soundtrack Awards and a 2025 nominee for Best Original Score for Interactive Media by the Society of Composers and Lyricists;

and Zanshin, a multifaceted electronic artist whose distinctive approach to sound design and synthesis has informed work across both music and games (Lightfield). In addition to the panel and roundtable, Zanshin will perform live at 674FM Konzertraum on the evening of 15 July.

Joining them is Emmy Award-winning composer Nainita Desai, whose remarkable work spans BAFTA-winning games (Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II), major streaming productions (American Murder - The Family Next Door) and acclaimed feature films and documentaries (For Sama · The Reason I Jump · Nocturnes). 

Together, all five composers will participate in a roundtable discussion, hosted by composer Helge Borgarts, exploring the artistry, challenges, and innovations shaping the world of game composition.

Composing for Video Games

Wednesday 15 July 2026 · COMEDIA Theater, Roter Saal
Moderator: Helge Borgarts

10:30 – 11:30
Boxed Ape
(The Casting of Frank Stone · Horizon Call of the Mountain · Beyond a Steel)
Workshop - Discussion

12:00 – 13:00
Maclaine Diemer
(Guild Wars 2 · Rock Band · Wildgate)
Workshop - Discussion

14:30 – 15:30
Zanshin
(Lightfield)
Workshop - Discussion

16:00 – 17:30
Boxed Ape, Maclaine Diemer, Zanshin and Nainita Desai
Games Roundtable with Helge Borgarts

674FM Konzertraum
19:30 - 21:00
Game Music Composer Concert with Zanshin
Performance
In cooperation with Game Music Composer Concerts

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Boxed Ape

London-based composer duo Boxed Ape (Alistair Kerley & Frankie Harper) specialize in music for video games and moving images, crafting everything from expansive hybrid orchestral scores for major AAA titles to bespoke soundtracks for boutique indie projects. Their work spans the full spectrum of interactive and linear experiences, with deep expertise in production, orchestration, recording, mixing, and implementation.

Notable credits include Horizon Call of the Mountain (2023), the multi-award-winning, BAFTA-nominated PSVR2 launch title from Firesprite and Guerrilla; Beyond a Steel Sky (2020) by Revolution Software; Miasma Chronicles (2023) from The Bearded Ladies; and most recently The Casting of Frank Stone, a narrative horror title from Supermassive Games.

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Maclaine Diemer

After graduating from the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Diemer joined the rock and roll circus and hit the road, climbing speaker towers and playing to sold out crowds across the U.S. and Canada with several bands before entering the game industry. Now, with 18 years of experience in games, he has worked on some of the highest profile titles across PC and multiple game console generations. In 2023 and 2024, Maclaine was nominated for the Game Music Award at the prestigious World Soundtrack Awards, and in 2025 he was nominated for Best Original Score for Interactive Media by the prestigious Society of Composers and Lyricists.

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Zanshin

Zanshin is a multi-faceted electronic artist whose interest in sound sculpting and synthesis — and his wide-angled approach to music — is reflected in releases like his recent albums "In Any Case By Any Chance" and "The Subject Matters" on Affine Records, ranging from powerful techno-infused stompers to meditative, improvised pieces. As a DJ and live performer, he is known for sets that traverse House and Techno from all eras, as well as polyrhythmic excursions into Bass music and Jungle.

Zanshin has been performing live and releasing internationally also as a part of Ogris Debris on labels like Compost Black, Nervous Records and Infiné for many years. His interest in the audiovisual arts has led him to numerous media festivals, presenting immersive and challenging performances and installations as one half of the widely respected artist duo Depart or as a solo artist, showing algorithmically driven sound installations.

He composed the ambient and dynamic soundtrack for the 2017 racing game Lightfield.

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Nainita Desai

Emmy Award-winning composer Nainita Desai is a leading voice in contemporary screen music, known for bold and emotionally immersive scores across film, television and video games. Recent credits include the Disney+/AMC fantasy adventure Nautilus, and BAFTA- and Emmy-nominated Disney+ wildlife series Secrets of the Penguins. Her work in interactive storytelling, includes the BAFTA-winning games Immortality, Telling Lies, Call of Duty and EA Originals’ Tales of Kenzera: Zau as well as upcoming AAA games, landmark wildlife series for BBC1 and premium series and films for Netflix and Nat Geo.

Nainita won an Emmy for The Reason I Jump and has received honours from the RTS, IFMCA, ASCAP, SCL and World Soundtrack Awards, alongside nominations for the Ivors, Critics Choice, G.A.N.G, MPSE and Cinema Eye Honors awards.

Her acclaimed documentary work includes BAFTA- and Cannes-winning For Sama, The Deepest Breath, Sundance-winning Nocturnes and The Reason I Jump, and Netflix’s 14 Peaks: Nothing Is Impossible, while her scripted series credits also include Sky’s comedy drama Funny Woman, ITV crime-drama The Tower, and BBC One thriller Crossfire.

Alongside her screen work, she is an active advocate for composers and serves on committees for organisations including the Ivors Academy, BAFTA and AMPAS.