Dr Mariana Lopez

University of York

Dr Mariana Lopez is a researcher in the field of sound design.  She works on two main fields: accessibility and heritage.

Her work on accessibility focuses on how sound design can be used to create accessible experiences for film and television audiences with sight loss, providing an alternative to traditional Audio Description practices.  She was the Principal Investigator of the project Enhancing Audio Description funded by the AHRC.

In the field of heritage, she focuses on acoustical heritage, by exploring how acoustic measurement techniques, computer modelling and the recreation of soundscapes can help us understand the sonic experiences of our ancestors.  She was the Principal Investigator of the British Academy-funded project – The Soundscapes of the York Mystery Plays.

Related to these fields she is supervising and has supervised projects in the field of mental health in connection to the creative arts; interactive installations; serious gaming and its impact on sustainability; accessibility and gaming; and sound design in participatory theatre, among others.

Research themes:

• Game Audio and Music

• Games with a Purpose

• Sound and accessibility

• Equality and social justice

• Acoustical heritage

• Sound installations