The 2024 Audio Engineering Society (AES) European Convention in Madrid was a landmark event that brought together some of the most prominent figures in audio engineering. This included Grammy Award-winning engineers, educators, researchers, and innovators from around the globe. Held at the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid from June 15 to 17, the convention featured over 160 presentations, covering the latest advancements in audio technology, its implementation, and its applications.

As an integral part of the audio engineering community, Sonimus was proud to participate in this prestigious event. Our long-time collaborator and esteemed speaker, Ezequiel Morfi, delivered an insightful talk titled “Mastering Music — Busting Myths“, during which he showcased our free EQ plugin, SonEQ, as a perfect tool for stereo audio mastering in the box.

Highlights from the Convention

The convention was brimming with dynamic sessions and workshops, highlighting various aspects of audio engineering. The event heavily featured spatial and immersive audio sessions, including listening sessions recorded specially for 7.1.4 speaker systems and strategies for immersive mixing. These sessions were led by industry leaders, who shared their insights and latest research, pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in audio technology.

While only a few talks primarily focused on AI tools for audio, many of the studies presented at the convention used AI for mixing, sonification, audio separation, and audio for gaming, proving the importance these assistance tools can have for audio and music professionals’ workflows.

Two of the most notable workshops at the convention were “Hearing the Unheard: Towards a Blueprint on Filling the Data Gaps in Audio Engineering” and also “The Anatomy of a Recording Session: Where Musical Creativity and Technology Intersect (Part II). The first workshop focused on improving publications and design guidelines to give women and marginalized groups an equitable voice in the audio field. The latter continued the discussions in one of the first papers presented at the convention, where the speakers and audience analyzed the collaborative nature of creativity and the need for effective communication in recording studio sessions.

Sonimus’ Contribution

Sonimus’ long-time collaborator and studio owner, Ezequiel Morfi, also participated in the convention with a very insightful talk. His session, “Mastering Music — Busting Myths,” debunked common misconceptions about mastering music, and highlighted one of our classic plugins, SonEQ. Morfi highlighted SonEQ as a perfect free candidate for stereo audio mastering in the box, showcasing the fact that you don’t need expensive plugins to do the job. His talk focused on the primary purpose of mastering, which is divided into two ideas: Strengthen the emotional impact of the music, and carry out a quality assessment of the final product, resonating well with seasoned professionals and budding audio engineers.

Conclusion

The 2024 AES European Convention in Madrid was a resounding success, fostering knowledge exchange and innovation in the audio engineering community. Sonimus is honored to have contributed to the discourse on cutting-edge audio technologies. We look forward to continuing our collaboration with industry leaders and advancing the field of audio engineering.

For those who missed the event, we encourage you to visit the AES e-library to read the papers presented at the convention. Also, if you haven’t done it yet, check out our free plugin SonEQ. Explore its capabilities and see why it’s a go-to tool for audio professionals worldwide.

Stay tuned to the Sonimus blog for more updates and insights from the world of audio engineering.