Many advancements in audio may simply be judged on how far it sounds as though
we have come. How the audience may become “Fooled by Audio’ and the audio
technologies used to help create these illusions will be the topic at hand for the Audio
Engineering Society New York 2017 Convention Keynote Speech, to be given by Prof.
Edgar Choueiri of Princeton University. The 143rd Audio Engineering Society
International Convention will take place at the Jacob Javits Center in Manhattan,
October 18 – 21.

In his keynote address, Choueiri will address major questions regarding the future of
spatial audio and perception. “How far are we from having reproduced or synthesised
sound that is truly indistinguishable from reality? Is this laudable goal still the
receding mirage it has been since the birth of audio, or are we on the cusp of a
technical revolution – the VR/AR audio revolution?’ asks Choueiri. “Advances in virtual
and augmented reality audio research from around the world focus on critical areas in
spatial audio, synthesised acoustics, and sound field navigation, and recent
breakthroughs are bringing us quicker and closer to being truly fooled by audio.’

Professor Edgar Choueiri is the director of Princeton University’s Program in
Engineering Physics, and the director of Princeton’s Electric Propulsion and Plasma
Dynamics Laboratory (EPPDyL). He is tenured Full Professor in the Applied Physics
Group at the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department and associated
faculty at the Astrophysical Sciences Department/Program in Plasma Physics at
Princeton University. He holds a PhD in Aerospace Engineering/Plasma Science (1991)
from Princeton University.

In 2009, Professor Choueiri invented a technique for
producing tonally pure 3D sound from two loudspeakers. The technique allows a
listener to hear sounds located in 3D space as they would be heard in real life. The
technology, called BACCH 3D Sound, is currently being licensed by Princeton
University, finding use in consumer audio products and professional audio.

The Opening Ceremonies Keynote speech and Awards presentations are all part of this
year’s AES New York Convention, taking place on 18 – 21 October.