JOSEPH CHANG

Joseph Chang is a Canadian percussionist, researcher, and artistic director whose work bridges performance, music theory, and digital media. He is currently a Doctor of Music candidate at McGill University supervised by Fabrice Marandola, Philippe Depalle, and Matthew Thompson. His doctoral research investigates percussion orchestration in early 8-bit video game music, particularly the Nintendo Entertainment System (1983-1990). Using signal processing methods, he analyzes how composers creatively manipulated limited hardware parameters to differentiate percussive timbres within severe technological constraints. These analytical findings are then translated into live performance contexts, reimagining synthesized game soundtracks for acoustic percussion ensemble.

As a performer, Joseph maintains an active career. He serves as a percussionist with the 438 Tactical Helicopter Squadron Band of the Royal Canadian Air Force, having performed across Canada including Halifax, Montreal, Ottawa, Quebec City, Toronto, and Winnipeg. From 2025, Joseph founded the ensemble Critical Beats!, a Montreal-based percussion sextet dedicated to new works written in the idiom of video game music. Under the support of the Eleanor Stubley Recording Prize at McGill, Joseph composed and recorded the ensemble's debut album Elements of Adventure. During his master's degree at California State University: Long Beach, Joseph made his solo debut performing John Psathas's Planet Damnation with the university symphony orchestra after co-winning the concerto competition.

Joseph's secondary research encompasses the music of Iannis Xenakis, exploring how the composer's Greek identity and architectural conceptions manifest in his music. His interdisciplinary scholarship intersecting percussion, ludomusicology, and contemporary music has led him to present at both academic and industry venues, including the Society for Music Theory, the Canadian Percussion Network, the North American Conference on Video Game Music, Ludo, GameSoundCon, and Music and Gaming Festival conventions. His research has been published in Music Theory Online and Sciences du Jeu, with a forthcoming article in the Journal of Sound and Music in Games. His doctoral work is supported by the the Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship, from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.

Joseph's experiences span performance, academic research, creative leadership, and collaborative projects in percussion and contemporary digital media.

• 2019-Present | Percussionist | 438 Tactical Helicopter Squadron

  Performing public duties, school and community concerts, in addition to work as arranger and music librarian.

  Performed more than 85 concerts since 2019.

• 2025-Present | Critical Beats! | Montreal

  Founded the ensemble Critical Beats!, a Montreal-based percussion sextet dedicated to new works written in the idiom of video game music.

• 2024-Present | Grant Writing Assistant | Schulich School of Music

  Mentoring and helping external grant applications for master's and doctoral students within SSOM.

• 2024-Present | ResonatorTube Contributor Funding Creative Team Co-Lead | CIRMMT

  Helping researchers create 5-minute videos for the public. Managing production pipelines and day-to-day operations.

• January 2022-May 2023 | Teaching Associate (Lecturer) | California State University: Long Beach

  Instrument Methods: Percussion (MUS 125D)

• September 2021-May 2023 | Teaching Assistant | California State University: Long Beach

  January - May 2023 | Musicianship for Studio Musician (MUS 595)

  September 2021 - May 2023 | Listener's Approach To Music (MUS 190)

For speaking, collaboration, or research inquiries, please use the contact form on the homepage or email directly.

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