AES News

The aisles were bustling, the booths packed, the energy and enthusiasm high as the attendees of AES New York 2019 surged into the Convention’s Exhibition Hall in October. Leading members of the professional audio community and exhibitors at the 147^th AES Convention shared their thoughts on the event’s success. 

“AES was a tremendous event to be a part of as it has expanded its reach to a very diversified audience,” stated Antoine Ibrahim, communications manager for professional audio software developer iZotope. “During the show, we were able to connect with our valued customers as well as engage with professionals in all aspects of programming that have never gotten a first-hand look at our products. We were happy to be able to contribute and feel its success will only continue.”

Like iZotope, iconic microphone-maker Shure participated in providing technical content during the AES Convention along with its exhibition hall presence. “The AES Show proved again to be incredibly valuable for sharing ideas and best practices in audio,” commented Celino Ullegue, Shure Pro Audio’s senior marketing specialist. “From first-time student attendees to veteran engineers, we’re excited to support the audio community and look forward to AES New York 2020.” 

The Audio Engineering Society’s 2019 New York Convention’s registration exceeded 14,000, with a similar registration count for the co-located NAB Show New York 2019. The open access of registrants of either show to both exhibitions allowed content creation and media production professionals and future professionals to intermingle while exploring the latest offerings from hundreds of audio and visual media gear brands and service providers.

AES New York 2019 evidenced fruit of the Society’s ongoing outreach initiatives into underrepresented industry segments and genres. Focusrite Novation director of marketing Hanna Bliss expounds that “AES was a real success for Focusrite and Focusrite Pro because we were talking both to our existing customers about advancing their journey with us into new upgraded products or solutions, and to new customers by way of more women, more students, more non-traditional audio professionals. The crowd was more diverse and inclusive, and the shift towards a new wave of acceptance in the audio industry was visible, palpable, and encouraged.”

“Not only was traffic up, but there seemed to be a great deal of optimism. The students that came through were very inquisitive and interested, which alone made the AES show a worthwhile investment,” stated Gary Boss, Audio-Technica Marketing Director, Professional Markets.

Professional audio manufacturers choose the annual AES Convention to launch new products and make corporate announcements, as with Solid State Logic, which announced a new all-analog console, new U.S. operational management via distributor Group One Limited and the return of an industry veteran to work with the Group One team. “This year’s AES Show was significant for two reasons,” says Phil Wagner, now SSL’s North American-based senior vice president. “First, I’m pleased to return to my alma mater, SSL. Second, we specifically chose AES to introduce the new Origin Analog inline audio console because we knew it would be the perfect audience. This was truly the most exciting show ever; we had crowds around our booth from open to close.” 

Avid, who exhibited its hardware and production tools during AES New York, also welcomed over two dozen collaborators into the Avid Partner Pavilion in the Exhibition Hall. “This show enables us to engage with our customers, helping them better understand our portfolio, grow our business, launch new products, and showcase our developer partners,” stated Avid audio product evangelist Greg “Stryke” Chin. “Avid is proud to be an exhibitor and partner with AES and look forward to what’s to come!”

The 149^th AES International Pro Audio Convention – AES New York 2020 – will return to the Javits Center October 21 to 24, 2020 (Exhibition October 21 – 23).

For more information on the Audio Engineering Society, visit www.aes.org.