Rome Calling – The Audio and Loudness Seminar of 2011

Keynote speakers and attendees gathered outside the venue Bob Katz speaks about loudness in mastering In June 2011, some of the most respected audio authorities – including George Massenburg, Bob Katz, Florian Camerer and Thomas Lund – gathered in Rome, Italy, to share their thoughts and experiences on loudness measurement in connection with recording, mixing, mastering and broadcasting. For ages, sound was a natural phenomenon, only existing while being produced, but audio recording technology changed that once and for all. Now, beautiful audible moments can be captured and reproduced to enjoy at any time. However, technology can also be abused, which is rarely beneficial to the music and film-loving listener. In some cases, technology can be used in unintended and creative ways with great results, but in other cases, e.g. excessive use of compression, audio tends to suffer considerably. Our seminar in Rome touched both of these topics. We have been part of the audio technology industry for decades and are determined to serve audio first – whether it being music, sound for film, broadcast, etc. One way to reach this goal has been to contribute massively to the on-going development and definition of international broadcasting standards such as ITU and EBU in collaboration with several independent research institutes and organizations. Another way is to host knowledge-boosting seminars large enough to gather some of the industry's most influential speakers, yet personal enough to exchange information and experience with them first-hand. The speakers at the seminar in Rome included such capacities as George Massenburg, Simone Corelli, Florian Camerer, Alessandro Travaglini, Richard van Everdingen, Bob Katz and Thomas Lund. The first day of the seminar focused on post-production, while the second day concentrated on professional broadcasting and particularly the radical changes happening in production and distribution of broadcast, film and music as a consequence of new ITU and EBU standards. For example, the groundbreaking and comprehensive EBU R128 loudness recommendation was investigated from a multitude of angles, as was the just updated ITU-R BS.1770-2 broadcast standard. All presentations 4h19m Watch the Rome Calling Playlist for hours of loudness authority. EBU R128 Introduction - Florian Camerer 58m05s Florian Camerer gives an introduction to the European Broadcasting Union's R128 Broadcast Standard and speaks in general about perceived loudness, peak normalization, loudness normalization, etc. Loudness Wars - Thomas Lund 41m04s Thomas Lund points out the pitfalls of data reduction, digital audio processing and sample peak metering in contemporary music production, distribution and playback - often exemplified by so-called hyperpop productions, a controversial trend characterized by obnoxious loudness and extremely narrow dynamics. Conversely, Lund also demonstrates the advantages of adopting loudness metering standards like EBU R128 to counteract such symptoms and deliver lively dynamics and consistent loudness levels regardless of genre, production method and distribution formats. EBU R128 in Transmission and Production - Thomas Lund 50m25s The EBU R128 Loudness Recommendation provides a robust and versatile framework for assessing the loudness of a wide range of different sources. In this talk, Thomas Lund demonstrates its deployment in a variety of production and transmission scenarios, explains terms like LU and LUFS and compares it with previous loudness standards and recommendations, e.g. BS. 1770-2 and A/85. Audio Workflow and Signalflow in Broadcasting - Alessandro Travaglini 23m57s Sound designer and audio engineer Alessandro Travaglini explains the challenges of maintaining consistent loudness levels in television broadcasting when faced with a wide variety of content - from cinema productions to live feeds - and proposes workflow solutions to dealing with various formats and avoiding pitfalls like excessive compression. EBU R128 in Distribution - Richard van Everdingen 49m21s Richard van Everdingen talks about loudness normalization in connection with distribution, taking into consideration the broadcasted signals as well as the end-users' reception devices and how it affects overall loudness. Legislating the Level of Commercials - Dr. Mauro Falcone 35m17s Since the advent of television advertising, excessively loud commercials have been symptomatic of the absence of technical and legislative approaches to ensuring consistent loudness levels in broadcast media. Holding up recent viewer surveys and loudness measurements against various existing legislation, Dr. Mauro Falcone identifies the shortcomings of the latter and suggests methods for more reliable and consistent monitoring of broadcast channels. Images from the event Rome Calling Aftermath The seminar was a huge success! The Eternal City created a perfect frame for the event, and the keynote speakers willingly shared all of their expertise on recording, mixing, mastering and broadcasting with the participants. Stay tuned as the last few presentations – by George Massenburg, Bob Katz and Florian Camerer – will be available soon. If you would like to be notified when new videos are added, just sign up for receiving our Studio & Post Production Newsletter.