Berkeley – GRAMMY SoundTables: Perception – What Are You Listening For?

Guest speakers (seated l-r) Keith O. Johnson, Paul Stubblebine, Klaus Heyne, and Bob Hodas

(Photo: Steve Jennings/WireImage.com)

On July 28, 50 San Francisco Chapter P&E Wing Members gathered at Meyer Sound's Pearson Theatre for an interactive presentation and discussion on perception and listening.  Industry experts from a variety of fields shared their diverse perspectives on how perception is key to their work, ranging from designing recording studio acoustics to mastering records, tuning microphones, and recording orchestras.

Paul Stubblebine and Bob Hodas shared stories of how they have developed their sense of perception over time in their lines of work in mastering and acoustic analysis. 

Klaus Heyne, who flew in from Portland for the event, spoke about his approach to tuning microphones, which has brought him clients from all over the world (including The Rolling Stones). “We will know good sound, as long as you limit the variables; one voice, one headphones, one path. It is then so clear what the qualitative difference is with the microphones. One will clearly be better. When I’m tuning microphones, my goal is to hear my voice exactly as it is, without any distortion or variations.”

Keith O. Johnson provided a presentation on perception and brain function.  He used both technical and acoustical examples of how hearing impacts perceived sounds. P&E Wing Chair Michael Romanowksi moderated the discussion and remarked, “What was particularly interesting about what he does is that he’s showing you measurable things and intangible things – and how both effect perception. We hear more than we can measure, and sometimes we measure things we can’t hear.”

The audience experienced GRAMMY SoundTables in a unique listening environment in Meyer Sound’s Pearson Theater – the Constellation System. As the Meyer Sound website describes it, “the Constellation electroacoustic architecture is a system that combines the natural acoustics of a space with powerful technology to create acoustics with natural characteristics, the aural qualities of the world's best rooms, and broad flexibility.” The panelists spoke without microphones and the audience was able to hear them with clarity and natural reverb. 

The panelists’ fields are wildly different, yet they overlap – the commonality is that they are using perception to make their judgment. They are making their living on their perception, and how they use it in the real world to provide the foundation for high-quality recorded music. 

Stay tuned when we post video from the event in early September! Special thanks to Meyer for hosting us and to our panelists and P&E Wing Chair Michael Romanowski for all of their hard work in making this event come together.