For the fifth annual conference of MaM, we fruitfully joined forces with the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences of Carleton University, Ottawa (Canada). After the previous conferences in Amsterdam, Berlin, Lisbon and Turin, it was the StG’s first gathering in North America.

The focus of the international three day conference (11-13 July) was on “Music on Small Screens.” Over the course of the last two decades, the dominance of the large cinematic screen has gradually eroded in favor of smaller formats for the consumption of screen media. In recognition of this development, therefore the 2013 MaM gathering focused on the theme of music on small screens.

The subthemes of the conference were (Popular) Television Music; Music in Children’s Television; Television Musicals; Video Game Music; YouTube Music; Classical Music in Screen Media; Video Games and Opera; Theories of Television Music; Performance in Video; Creating Digital Media; Music for Television Series; Small-Screen Musical Paratexts.

The program committee consisted of James Deaville (Carleton University), Claudia Gorbman (University of Washington Tacoma), Anahid Kassabian (University of Liverpool), Michael Saffle (Virginia Tech), Paul Théberge (Carleton University), Emile Wennekes (Utrecht University).

 More than thirty papers were eventually selected following an internationally distributed Call for Papers. The scholars assembled originated mainly from North America and Europe. Karen Collins (University of Waterloo) gave a keynote talk, entitled ‘To Fidelity and Beyond: Consuming Media in a Mobile World.’

 As a result of the conference, Ashgate is planning to publish a book with selected papers on the conference theme in its Music on Screens series.

 The MaM VI conference will most likely take place in early summer, 2014 at the Université de Bourgogne (Dijon, France).