At the third annual Surround Music Awards, jazz legend Herbie Hancock, pop auteur Beck, electronica sensation BT, and audio pioneer Tomlinson Holman will receive awards for their work in propelling the surround sound format to prominence. The 2004 Surround Music Awards is a production of CMP Information and sponsored by Dolby. A portion of the profits from the SMAs will be donated to We Are The Future (wearethefuture.com).
Herbie Hancock is the recipient of the 2004 Surround Pioneer Award, presented by the Consumer Electronics Association, for his long-time devotion to the format. Hancock was an early adopter of surround music, even coining his own phrase to describe it immersive mixing. Back in 2001, Hancock took his Future 2 Future tour to the next dimension by treating crowds to a live surround sound experience. Always pushing the envelope, his Future 2 Future Live DVD, release in November, 2002, featured a multi-angle surround sound feature that let the viewer split the screen into quadrants, then choose a single quadrant to focus on, which would change the mix he was listening to.
At the SMA gala, taking place August 31, 2004 at The Highlands in Hollywood, an all-star tribute band including George Duke and Wah Wah Wallace will take the stage to honor Hancock with a live performance of his songs.
Beck, the 2004 Surround Artist of the Year award recipient, has had his hit album Sea Change released first as an SACD, then later as a DVD-Audio release. As a high-profile artist, his acceptance of surround sound for music raises the profile of the format, and gives the industry a powerful voice to reach consumers.
Also getting the industry some much-needed attention is BTs soundtrack to the film Monster. Released in surround sound, Monster features unusual instruments and an unusual mix, done by BT himself, that brings out the flavor of the movie far from any theater screen. As a result of this work, BT is the 2004 Surround Maverick Award recipient.
Fitting for the man who started THX and who has been called the Father of 5.1, Tomlinson Holman has been named the 2004 Surround Trailblazer. And like any good trailblazer, Holman continues to push the envelope no sooner had he helped the world get a handle on 5.1 surround sound, when he started work on 10.2 next-generation systems.
As it has in previous years, the SMAs will be held during the annual Surround Conference, which has joined the Entertainment Media Expo (EMX) along with the DVD Conference, Media-Tech Conference, Entertainment Packaging Summit, Entertainment Asset Management, and IDDA.
Presented by CMP Information, Inc., the annual Surround Conference is the premier, international networking and education opportunity for engineers and producers on the leading edge of the surround sound revolution. Professionals attend Surround 2004 to share ideas and techniques, and to immerse themselves in the latest technologies presented by showcase exhibitors.
Dolby Labs, the originator of surround technologies used in broadcast, film, games and music further exemplifies their commitment to the surround arts with and overall sponsorship of the third annual Surround Music Awards.
For more information on how to exhibit, please contact Margaret Sekelsky at 212-378-0491 or by e-mail at [email protected].
For more information on the Entertainment Media Expo, visit www.entertainmentmediaexpo.com.
