Did you know that soundtrack concerts are among the most popular for touring orchestras? A full third of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra's first-time audience members are coming to the concert hall via their favourite series and movies – and video games. It is a huge cultural growth area, and one that may have gone unrecognised by the general public. "It is impossible to ignore video game music now," says Tommy Pearson, founder and artistic director of the inaugural London Soundtrack festival. "The sheer creativity and artistry in games is incredible, and it's been fascinating to see so many composers blossom in the genre."

I would love to tell you that I was first introduced to dance music in underground Berlin clubs, where mysterious resident DJs blew my teenage mind performing indescribable magic with beats and synth lines. But that would be a lie. My first introduction to dance music came in the form of a futuristic 90s racing game called WipEout. Playing obsessively at a friend's house, I was introduced to the Chemical Brothers and Orbital, who both graced the soundtrack; not long after, the admirably chaotic sim Crazy Taxi introduced me to the Offspring, and Tony Hawk's Pro Skater had me grinding around to Bad Religion. I first heard Garbage on the soundtrack of an obscure PlayStation 2 DJ game, 2003's Amplitude, made by a Boston developer called Harmonix – the same developer that would later go on to create the insanely popular Guitar Hero series.

Caroline Grace has always enjoyed vintage technology. An IT tech in the Mid-Ohio Valley, they collect retro games, laser discs and cassette tapes, but mostly, vinyl records. Their collection is in the thousands, and hundreds of those are video game soundtracks. "I've been a big fan of games all my life," says Grace. "Some of my earliest memories are playing games like Wonder Boy III: The Dragon's Trap and Goof Troop with my dad and brother. I get positive feelings from listening to the Wonder Boy III music now. I have a lot of pleasant memories of playing it with my family back in the day."

After 10 years working from home, I've noticed some strange correlations in my productivity. In particular, I am far more sluggish and unmotivated when I forget to put on some music (and when I forget to open my windows). It seems small, but some good background jams can really make a difference in the work you get done. This isn't just anecdotal, either--plenty of research actually suggests music can help you get into that "flow state" required for more productive work, particularly fast-paced instrumental music that doesn't distract you with lyrics. It turns out, there's a genre of music that fits this bill perfectly: video game soundtracks.

Radio 3 is launching a new weekly programme dedicated to video game soundtracks. Running from Saturday 26 October, the hour-long show will be presented by composer Jessica Curry, who won a Bafta for her work with UK studio The Chinese Room and created and presented Classic FM's video game music programme, High Score. "[BBC presenter and journalist] Tom Service and his producer Brian Jackson came to interview me for Radio 3 at Chinese Room a couple of years ago, and we all really hit it off," said Curry. "Tom's an avid gamer and there was a definite feeling of excitement about the gaming scene and the music that's being composed for games. "Lots of people think that it's all battle music and aggression.