Gastvorträge 2009

In the last few decades, the development of audio reproduction and spatialization techniques greatly benefits from composers whose pioneering work constantly inspires researchers to refine spatial audio (e.g. Stockhausen, Chowning, Boulez). However, novel spatialization tools developed by engineers and researchers hardly find their way from the developers' labs into the composition studios. To make future developments more applicable, researchers have to understand this current lack of coherence between development and artistic use. In this talk, first, results of a quantitative study are presented and shows how composers use spatialization, what spatial aspects are essential and what functionalities spatial audio systems should strive to include or improve. Secondly, ViMiC (Virtual Microphone Control), a novel spatial rendering software is shown. ViMiC provides a computer-generated virtual environment for the purpose of creating spatial sounds scenes. Apart from positioning sound sources, other spatial aspects, such as source width, distance, and room impression, can be created in real-time, particularly for concert situations and site-specific immersive installations. It will be demonstrated how ViMiC can be used to spatially enrich sound scenes.

Nils Peters is a PhD Candidate in Music Technology at McGill University and affiliated with the Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Music Media and Technology (CIRMMT). His research focuses on the Perception and Modeling of spatialized sounds. He studied electrical and audio engineering at the University for Music and Dramatic Arts and the University of Technology (Graz, Austria) and graduated with distinction. He has worked as an audio engineer in the fields of recording, postproduction and live electronics in Germany, Austria, France and Canada.

Georg Essl, georg.essl(AT)telekom.de [2]