From Rochester, NY—the birthplace of film music and photography—the Eastman School of Music at the University of Rochester is proud to announce the inaugural Soundtrax Film Music Festival and conference from October 16-18, 2025. Held in the school’s historic performance spaces as well as several venues throughout the city, the event brings together composers, industry professionals, thought leaders, and fans to celebrate and explore how music and sound shape visual media, from film and TV to video games and beyond.
A Billboard Top Music Business School and Hollywood Reporter Top Music School for Film Composition, Eastman School of Music continues to honor the cinematic legacy of George Eastman, who founded the school as well as the Eastman Kodak Company and is the father of motion picture film. Among its distinguished alumni are composers for Star Trek, PBS NewsHour, and The Miracle Worker, among other major productions. One such alumnus, five-time Emmy Award-winning composer Jeff Beal (House of Cards, Blackfish) and his wife, vocalist Joan Beal, founded Beal Institute for Film Music and Contemporary Media in 2016. The institute is directed by six-time Emmy Award-winner Mark Watters, who also serves as co-director of Soundtrax.
Because Soundtrax explores the intersection of music and technology, the conference and festival were collaboratively organized by faculty of Eastman and the University of Rochester’s Hajim School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. Mark Bocko, a distinguished professor of electrical and computer engineering and director of Rochester’s audio and music engineering program, serves as co-director of Soundtrax.
“This isn’t just a festival or conference — it’s a celebration for film lovers,” says Watters, who was also music director for two Olympics and conductor for artists from Beyoncé to Barry Manilow. “It’s a multi-sensory experience to inspire, connect, and elevate those passionate about the power of music and sound in visual media.”
Soundtrax Concert Programs:
Five film-music concerts will grandly play out over three days.
- John Williams Reimagined: A live performance of John Williams’ iconic film score classics “reimagined” for cello, flute, and piano, featuring musicians who played on many of John Williams’ original recordings: Sara Andon, flute; Cecilia Tsan, cello; Simone Pedroni, piano.
- “Interstellar” in Concert: The film’s original organist Roger Sayer shares his experience of working with director Christopher Nolan and composer Hans Zimmer before playing his original Interstellar arrangement on the historic Sanctuary Organ of Rochester’s Third Presbyterian Church.
- “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2″ — In Concert: A live-to-picture performance by the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, showing the epic finale to the Harry Potter Film Concert Series.
- Film Scores Live! — “The Movie Music of Terence Blanchard”: GRAMMY-winning, Oscar-nominated composer and esteemed jazz trumpeter Terence Blanchard will appear in person and perform highlights from his iconic film scores, such as Spike Lee’s 25th Hour, Malcolm X and BlacKkKlansman. Performed by Gateways Festival Orchestra and Blanchard’s quintet, The E-Collective.
- “The Red Violin” in Concert: A rare performance of Academy Award-winning composer John Corigliano’s The Red Violin, featuring award-winning violinist and Eastman professor YooJin Jang and the Eastman Philharmonia, with special guest conductor Jeff Beal.
Soundtrax conference sessions include:
- AI in Music Production: Pioneering the Future: Innovators, developers, and manufacturers explore how artificial intelligence is revolutionizing music production.
- The Sounds of Music: A Sonic Revolution: The latest advances in sound synthesis technologies are unleashed with cutting-edge interactive tools designed for scoring, sound design, and media production.
- Immersed in Sound: New Dimensions, New Experiences: From the cinematic splendor of Dolby Atmos to the revolutionary realms of spatial computing and personal media interfaces, explore how to craft compelling auditory landscapes.
With a significant matching grant from the New York State Division of Tourism, Soundtrax brings together professionals in audio, music and media, as well as those who simply love the magic of music in movies and media.
“Rochester has the perfect combination of cultural significance and technological innovation to host a unique experience like Soundtrax,” remarks Bocko. “This event presents a fun and fascinating way to explore how the artistry, science, and technology of sound and music shape visual media.”
“The festival brings together the University of Rochester’s signature strengths in music performance and production with our leadership in optics, acoustics, visual science, and engineering,” says University of Rochester President Sarah C. Mangelsdorf. “This is an extraordinary way to share our incredible story as leaders in music and visual media.”
Soundtrax presenting and lead sponsors:
For more information on the Soundtrax Film Music Festival contact:
National Media:
Shore Fire Media
eastmanmusicpr@shorefire.com | 718-522-7171
Rochester / Upstate NY Media:
Lauren Sageer | Eastman | Assistant Director of PR & Digital Content
lsageer@esm.rochester.edu | 585-451-8492
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About the Eastman School of Music:
The Eastman School of Music was founded in 1921 by industrialist and philanthropist George Eastman (1854-1932), founder of Eastman Kodak Company. It was the first professional school of the University of Rochester. Mr. Eastman dreamed that his school would provide a broad education in the liberal arts as well as superb musical training.
More than 900 students are enrolled in the Collegiate Division of the Eastman School of Music — about 500 undergraduates and 400 graduate students. They come from almost every state, and approximately 23 percent are from other countries. They are taught by a faculty of more than 170 highly regarded performers, composers, conductors, scholars, and educators. They are Pulitzer Prize winners, GRAMMY winners, Emmy winners, Guggenheim fellows, ASCAP Award recipients, published authors, recording artists, and acclaimed musicians who have performed in the world’s greatest concert halls. Each year, Eastman’s students, faculty members, and guest artists present more than 900 concerts to the Rochester community. Additionally, more than 1,700 members of the Rochester community, from young children through senior citizens, are enrolled in the Eastman Community Music School.
About the Hajim School of Engineering and Applied Sciences:
The mission of the Edmund A. Hajim School of Engineering and Applied Sciences is to promote and support the highest quality research that advances solutions to pressing societal problems and to advance education in engineering and applied science through engaging experiences and environments that promote critical thinking, creativity, equity, ethics, and leadership, creating lifelong learners. The Hajim School was founded in 1958, and in 2009, it was renamed after one of its most distinguished alumni, Edmund A. Hajim ’58. Today, the Hajim School encompasses six academic departments and enrolls more than 1,400 undergraduate students and more than 600 graduate students, taught by more than 140 tenure-track, non-tenure-track, instructional, and research faculty. It includes the Institute of Optics—the first optics education program in the nation—as well as departments of biomedical engineering, chemical engineering, computer science, electrical and computer engineering, and mechanical engineering.
About the University of Rochester:
The University of Rochester is one of the nation’s leading private research universities, one of only 62-member institutions in the Association of American Universities. Located in Rochester, NY, the University gives undergraduates exceptional opportunities for interdisciplinary study and close collaboration with faculty through its unique cluster-based curriculum. Its College, School of Arts and Sciences, and Hajim School of Engineering and Applied Sciences are complemented by the Eastman School of Music, Simon School of Business, Warner School of Education, Laboratory for Laser Energetics, School of Medicine and Dentistry, School of Nursing, Eastman Institute for Oral Health, and the Memorial Art Gallery.