Composing musical experiences for virtual reality (VR) is a daunting task - one that draws techniques from a variety of studio-based practices, yet also adds new layers of complexity, new aesthetic and technical considerations and medium-specific methods of presentation.  Given these varied demands upon sonic artists working in VR, the necessity to develop a robust compositional language seems self-evident.

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As a step toward this development, this paper provides a definition of this studio practice, and the terminology virtual music is proposed to describe works that fit with this definition. The Virtual Music Trace model (VMT) is proposed to describe: the essential elements the form virtual music works; the nature of the medium itself; and four perceptual modes that form a continuum spanning the most basic of virtual music works, the observational, to more complex participatory works.

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The intention behind the development of this model and its four perceptual modes is to provide the sonic artists with some foundational methods of engagement in virtual music, and to provoke a dialogue that may build upon and refine this model.