133rd AES Convention Workshops: Raising the Bar for Attendee Edification

iPhone Apps, Digital Cinema, Loudness Standards, “Up-Sampling…” & More

SAN FRANCISCO:  Paramount on the ‘not to miss,’ lists of AES Convention regulars,  the Workshops Program epitomize pro audio’s extraordinary diversity.   Thanks to Workshops Co-Chairs David Bowles and Jeffrey McKnight, 133rd  Convention attendees will benefit from a particularly  robust program.  “Dozens of worthwhile proposals are submitted each  year,” says Committee Co-Chair Valerie Tyler. “Our Workshops Co-Chairs  final picks will challenge visitors to budget their time in order to  maximize their opportunities to expand their knowledge.”   The 133rd AES Convention will be held in SF’s Moscone Center, Oct.  26-29.

Highlights  of the 133rd AES Convention Workshop Program include ‘mini-tracks’ on  Digital and 3D Cinema Sound, Loudness and on Height Channel (an AES  1st):

Cinema Sound in 3D: Chair, Christof Faller, author/co-principal IIusonic, Switzerland - Enlisting many key players currently involved with 3D cinema  sound, this panel will outline their 3D Sound strategies, including  impact on production and compatibility with legacy equipment, content,  and signal format/coding. The workshop will include  a discussion on MPEG's efforts on 3D Sound compatible formats.

Reconsidering Standards for Cinema Sound – Alternatives to ISO 2969:  Chair, Brian McCarty, Coral Seas Studios, Australia - ISO 2969 (aka, SMPTE S202), has been a cornerstone of the audio  reproduction 'B-Chain' for many years.  Like the RIAA curve, it was  originally implemented to compensate for delivery defects. What are the  implications for these standards and the B-Chain,  as film shifts to Digital Cinema delivery, with full bandwidth  soundtracks?

Post  Production Audio Techniques for Digital Cinema and Ancillary Markets:   Chair, Brian McCarty, head of the AES Technical Committee on Sound for  Digital Cinema & TV - With the film industry’s rapid move to audio distribution in  full-bandwidth, multi-channel, discrete format, post-production  techniques to provide high-quality audio continue to evolve. This  workshop will feature four leading sound post mixers (music,  dubbing, and DVD-Audio) discussing changes being implemented.

Loudness Wars – The Wrong Drug?  Presenter, Thomas Lund, HD Development Mgr. TC Electronics - Newly produced music rarely sounds good on fine speakers. Could  the wrong mastering ‘drug’ have been used for decades, affecting Dynamic  Range (DR) instead of Loudness Range (LRA)? Addressing the grim side  effects of this question, the panel, will provide  a unique perspective on the difference between DN and LRA from a  technical, perceptual & practical POV.

Broadcasters Experiences In The Use of Loudness Standards: Lars Jonsson Swedish Radio – With the recent U.S. adoption of the CALM Act, Loudness Standards  have reached the tipping point in audience awareness.  This Workshop  will bring together a group of leading international broadcasters to  address the use of new EBU and ATSC standards  on loudness.

Acoustics & Audio iPhone Aps: Peter Mapp, Acoustic Consultant, PMA - has designed this Workshop to survey the range of audio and  acoustic measurement, calculation and related apps currently available  for the iPhone, iPad and other smart phones. A member of the AES  Technical Committee on Acoustics & Sound Reinforcement (TCASR), Mapp will review current apps, their uses and limitations

Mastering for Specific Music Genres: Andres Mayo Vice Chairman TC Arms - Mastering projects occasionally require an expert in a music  style which has very specific parameters (dynamics, color, warmth, S/N  ratio, etc.). Examples include, classical and regional music e.g. Tango,  and powerful ‘bassy’ tunes created for clubs.  This workshop will review those unique features, and also address  mastering for vinyl and iTunes.

The Controversy over ‘Up-sampling,’ Boon or Scam?  Vicki Melchior Audio DSP Tech Consultant, Boston - Many ‘high resolution’ Blu-ray, DVD releases, and HD download  files are created by ‘up-sampling’ Redbook or 48kHz data.  A practice  that frequently draws vehement outcries of ‘fraud.’  And yet,  ‘up-samplers,’ both hardware and software, are commonly  marketed to consumers and professionals with the promise of boosting  Redbook Sonics to near-equality with high resolution. What's going on?  A  panel of top mastering engineers, DAC and DSP designers will discuss in  depth.

Other 133rd Convention Workshop Program Highlights Include:

·     *Sound   Design Tools for Multichannel Audio With Height:  Wieslaw Woszczyk  McGill U. Center For Interdisciplinary Research In Music Media.

·     *Recording  Music In 9.1 Height Surround: Presenter, Morten Lindberg, Engineer/Producer Lindberg, Lyd.

·     *3D Audio Formats (Multichannel  Sound With Height) Channel or Object Based? Presenter, Bert Van Daele

·     *Height Channel – Adding The Vertical Dimension  To Surround Sound:  Chair, Paul Geluso, Teacher, Chief Recording Engineer NYU Steinhardt

·     Multi-Microphone  Applications & Testing In Telecommunications Systems: Bob Zurek Motorola

·     Spatial  Audio Evaluation: Sean Olive, Director, Acoustic Research Harman Intl.

·     What Does an Object Sound Like?  Towards a Common Definition Of A Spatial Audio Object: Frank Melchior, BBC R&D

·     MUSHA Reloaded: Presenter, Judith Liebetrau,  Fraunhofer IDMT

·     What Every Sound Engineer Should Know About  The Voice:  Eddy Brixen EBB Consultant

·     New Delivery Mediums & How To Get There Safely… Or, Jumping On The New Media Express: Jim Kaiser Educator, Belmont U/Engineer, MasterMix, Nashville 

·     Forensic  Authentication of Digital Audio: Jeffrey M. Smith

*The Height Channel ‘Mini-Track’ will be held at Pyramind  Media & Music Production School/Studio in the Bay Area’s trendy SoMa neighborhood.

In-depth descriptions of all the 133rd AES Conventions are posted on the Preliminary Calendar of Events http://www.aes.org/events/133/calendar/calendar.cfm