The leadership organizing the 140th International Convention of the Audio Engineering Society invited University of Massachusetts Lowell Sound Recording Technology Associate Professor Alex U. Case to deliver the keynote address at the event’s Opening Ceremonies. He created and delivered the following presentation, rich with audio illustrations, to a packed theatre:
Intuition, Rebellion, Courage, and Chance – Historic Moments of Creative Signal Processing That Resonate to This Day
by Alex U. Case
Artists learn, in part, by imitating those who came before them, but they succeed by finding their own voice. Audio artistry is no different. Recording engineers are influenced by the recordings they admire. Keeping up with advances in audio is a full time job. A glance at the rich schedule of events that fill the Technical Program at the 140th AES International Convention confirms: we always have so much to learn, to discover, and to master. Technology and craft are always in flux, presenting audio engineers with opportunities for newer, faster, and better. Some advances are fleeting—doomed to fade—but others become industry touchstones. Learning from the ear-grabbing sonic inventions that came before us, we can be better prepared should audio fate drop-in on our recording session. Let your search for better recording and mixing techniques be informed by these key moments in sound recording history.
