The AES Celebrates 75 Years of Audio Innovation in 2023
The Society is being honoured by the Recording Academy with a 2023 Technical GRAMMY Award acknowledging its “contributions of outstanding technical significance to the recording field.”
The Audio Engineering Society (AES) is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year. In March of 1948, a group of engineers committed to improving audio quality held the first meeting of the AES in New York City. The AES has since grown from a charter membership of 37 to a global community of more than 10,000 members affiliated with hundreds of local sections worldwide.The goal of those pioneering members, to share knowledge and advance the science of audio and its application, has been realized in a thriving organization that facilitates communication and collaboration, and unites audio engineers, researchers, content creators and students, according to the Society.
The AES’s landmark year begins with the announcement that the Society is being honoured by the Recording Academy with a 2023 Technical GRAMMY Award acknowledging its “contributions of outstanding technical significance to the recording field.”
“The Audio Engineering Society is the only professional society devoted exclusively to advancing audio science, technology and its application,” says AES President Bruce Olson. “The AES has created an amazing community of like-minded, industry-leading professionals along with partner firms and organizations who share their knowledge and experience to improve audio quality. That community has come together and grown across 153 International Conventions since the first took place in 1949, alongside an impressive slate of single-topic-focused international conferences and application-oriented academies, as well as the events held by our local sections. Our community has an ongoing and incalculably positive impact on not only professional audio production but wherever audio is created and heard.”
From the introduction of the large-hole 45 rpm seven-inch record at its first convention, through the debut of surround sound in 1953,“Sel-Sync” overdubbing, tape-based noise reduction, the MIDI standard, and the CD and MP3, to evolving digital interconnectivity protocols such as AES10 (MADI), audio distribution by broadcast and physical media and file based distribution, and then digital streaming, the AES has long seen professionals join together to push boundaries.
In 2023, the AES will continue its mission with events planned around the world throughout the year, culminating in the 155th AES International Convention in New York in October. More on the many resources available to AES members, how to join the Society, and a list of upcoming AES events is available at AES.org.
