Alum

Simone Scazzocchio

Position
Associate Professor

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Career Highlights
  • Instruments played include piano and bodhran
  • Music director, composer, and developer at ROTU Entertainment (2010–present), leading music creation, interactive implementation, and production for VR titles including Ionia (PSVR, Meta Quest, Vive, SteamVR – 2021), Eolia (Meta Quest exclusive, 2022), and Healer (Meta Quest 3 exclusive, 2025)
  • Composer for the rhythm game Cytus, contributing four original tracks for the “Million Downloads” update (Chapter "Timeline"), and collaborating with the Video Game Orchestra for orchestral recordings
  • Mixing engineer for selected tracks from Seasons 1 and 2 of the Netflix series "Yeh Kaali Kaali Ankhein" soundtrack
  • Music director and conductor for large-scale performances at major venues including Boston Symphony Hall, Carnegie Hall, and the Hatch Memorial Shell, leading ensembles of up to 180 musicians
  • Curator of the RISE Music Series at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, programming four seasons of concerts and presenting artists such as Jacob Collier, Esperanza Spalding, and Yuna
  • Producer, arranger, and collaborator across a wide range of genres and formats, working with artists including Dr. Ysaÿe Barnwell, Valerio Lundini, Nanowar of Steel, Stormlord, Shea Rose, and Silvio Amato on albums, live productions, and recordings
In Their Own Words

"My wish for my students is to feel inspired by the power of the language of music. Writers and producers are like translators, translating real-life emotions and situations into music and sound, and vice versa. One of my goals is to raise their awareness: Every musical choice, every change they apply to melody, harmony, effects, production, or mix will ultimately shape the emotional delivery of the music. There is rarely a right or wrong choice in music, but rather choices that are more or less consistent with the artistic, emotional, or functional goal of a project. As students develop this awareness, they naturally seek a deeper musical and technical vocabulary. That expanded vocabulary, in turn, sharpens their awareness even further. It’s a beautiful feedback loop."

"Maybe most importantly, I want to share sustainable and enriching approaches to creativity and production: methods that are mindful, balanced, and oriented toward long-term personal and artistic growth."

"My background is extremely diverse, ranging from classical music to heavy metal, from musicology to film scoring. I have worked as a composer, producer, arranger, music director, conductor, and interactive media developer, moving fluidly through different fields and roles. Because of this breadth, I’m able to ground abstract musical concepts in practical, real-life scenarios students are likely to encounter. I can address questions not only from a theoretical standpoint, but also from the perspective of how music functions in professional environments: deadlines, collaboration, constraints, communication, and audience experience."

"More personally, I’m a lifelong learner, and I thrive on personal growth. I believe there is no artistic growth without personal growth, and that perspective deeply informs how I teach and mentor students."