The future of Audio production technology and Audio engineering

Tom, Tooooom I could hear my friend shouting from across the hall.Tom It was about seven o'clock in the evening, and the school was empty save for a couple of us band members who had stayed behind to prepare for a game. I was tempted to answer with an elongated yes, but I decided against it because high school students are supposed to act maturely. So I just peered out of my locker and asked him, "Aren't we getting too old to be calling each other too loudly?" Whatever, he said, shrugging his shoulders. I want to show you something cool he said while putting his arm across my shoulder. As he pulled me into some dark room used by the photography students, I could see a video was going on and it was about the history of audio production technology and its engineering.
For some reason, I have never thought about audio production technology and the way it has evolved over the years. I knew that the concept had already gone through so many changes but I did not know how laborious and intricate some of these processes were. As I watched the video, I thought to myself, can I find a way of compiling all this information in a research paper so that my friends and I can appreciate the evolution of audio production technology.
I began a research process that took a little over three weeks. I was not allowed into the dark room again and so I had to rely on the library. So I began by using the encyclopedias which contained a lot of information but they were limited since the ones we have in school are not the latest. However, the information piqued my interest and I went further by targeting scholarly articles. I used the phrase "audio technology production" to find the relevant articles on Google Scholar and other journals such as JSTOR, Ebsco, PubMed and others.
Considering that there was a lot of information online, I focused on both old and recent research articles in order to find the necessary information. By the end of the three weeks search, I was so sure that I had sufficient information to tackle the research. I was in a position to understand the main aspects that involve the evolution of audio production engineering. I narrowed my topic to answer the research question; what aspects surround the future of audio engineering and audio production technology.
When was it Started?
Most of the researches found on the internet opined that the evolution of audio production technology was largely dependent on the growth of the technology sector. Thus audio production engineering and technology is multi-disciplinary in nature encompassing fields such as technology, computing, mathematics, music and even psychology. For this reason, it becomes considerably difficult to engage only one aspect in explaining such an evolution. The evolution of audio production technology and engineering is a complex field that covers aspects from various fields which have to be analyzed for accuracy in historical periods.
The engineering and technology used in the production of audio products initially involved a lot of dynamics. As I read the article by Vacher I found out that the first recording took place in the late 1890's, and this fact was confirmed by the encyclopaedia (148). Vacher makes it very clear that recording of sound improved in the 1930's where vacuum tubes were used together with electric cutter heads as well as condenser mics (148). The report by the AES Technical Council attributes this development to the vast use of technology and the introduction of computing. From the two researches I could see that the evolution of audio recording was clearly reliant on the development of other fields thus the complexity in explaining its history.
A further analysis of existing literature written by AES Technical Council led me to understand that most of the development took place during the 1900's when the industrial and technology period was at its epitome. The AES Technical Council uses the example of sound in computers and how the programs have the ability to identify audio recorded aspects (91). This research confirms the information written by Vacher who shows that sound recording has improved significantly from gramophone to vinyl (147). The AES Technical Council further says that today computers have taken over almost every aspect of audio production such as in games and the recognition of voices.
Annotation
Vacher, Michel. Development of audio sensing technology for ambient assisted living: Applications and challenges. Digital Advances in Medicine, E-Health, and Communication Technologies, (2013), 148.
Michel Vacher has over nine publications under the topics of audio visual and their development. He works at Grenoble in France as a professional in the field of audio technology. The Digital Advances in Medicine, E-Health, and Communication Technologies is a peer reviewed journal meant for those with an interest in the advances of audio technology in the field of medicine. The language is slightly complex meant for those who understand some aspects of medicine as well as technological advancement. There are no illustrations in the journal as it is mostly text.
The author claims that sound experts have been on the forefront in finding ways of reducing any challenges that may prevent the development of audio technology. The problem is that the researchers do not provide sufficient information regarding the same. The paper was published in the year 2013 which was after most of the current developments had taken place. The article thus provides me with an opportunity to understand the real evolution of audio technology in the area of medicine. By the year 2013, a lot of information and technological advancements had already taken place thus making ity possible to comprehend the current development.
This source plays a significant role in this research because it provides information regarding the history and future of audio technology. Using the source, it is possible to confirm that audio technology has undergone significant improvements and this is bound to become better in the future. The research is important in this I Search paper as it provides information that may be used to confirm that music has undergone a number of improvements over the years. It also gives me a starting point for understanding the way evolution comes into being.
Dynamic Range System in Audio Technology
There is a range of dynamics that are involves in audio production technology and engineering. According to Vacher, the most common dynamics used in the 1890's was 15dB or 3bits (148). By the 1930's, the sound recording dynamics improved greatly to about 6 bits or 35 dB. Later on, the magnetic tape was introduced and it has a wide range of dynamics from about 60-70 dB. The range today is quite high from 110-115 or 19 bits (Vacher 149). This range is particularly common in high definition systems such as those used in digital audio production such as internet radio.
Improvement of Level Audio Technology
One of the major improvements in the audio technology is through the use of computers where systems have moved from hardware to software. The AES Technical Council makes it evident that audio DSP is no longer being performed in hardware (97). Instead, sound engineers install software in programmable DSP processors or CPU's in some instances. Such improvements make it possible for one to save the memory of certain range of recording. There is also the possibility of playback which the AES Technical Council cites as one of the major improvements.
Annotation
AES Technical Council. Technology Trends in Audio Engineering. Journal of Audio Engineering and Sociology, 60.1 (2012), 90-108.
The AES Technical Council is a body responsible for funding and research in audio engineering technology. The council was formed in the year 1979 by the Audio Engineering Society, and it is made up of a number of reputable individuals in the field of technology. The members include; Chairmen of the Technical Committees, Editor of the Journal of Audio Engineering, Technical Council and other Officers. The public global membership allows the council to involve itself in the publication and distribution of creative material including various researches.
The source - Journal of Audio Engineering and Sociology is peer reviewed and it is written for audio engineers and researchers in the same field. The article provides an in-depth analysis of the trends in audio engineering and how certain aspects have improved over time. With over 18 pages, the text is mainly without images but divided into sections that contain explanation of various concepts. The article targets audio production in various departments including libraries, telecommunication and fiber optics among others. even though there is no bibliography, the authors made sure that they provided an in-depth analysis that cover all concepts of production.
The authors have a technical view of concepts and they do not consider any other existing literature. As a result, it is possible that some of the information is outdated or inapplicable. For example, the Council insists that DVB-T2 is the main terrestrial TV broadcasting audio system used today. However, many countries do not rely on the system alone. The article was published in the year 2012 when a lot of development in the audio engineering technology had taken place. Thus, it is possible to compare the information written in it with existing researches. The article provides relevant information for this research as it helps in the comprehension of audio engineering improvement over the years.

Plans for Audio Technology Improvement
Since the introduction of the internet, peer to peer file sharing was made possible. According to the research done by the AES Technical Council, services such as Limewire, Napster, and Kazaa have evolved as a result of the development of the internet (93). The problem with this is that it has encouraged piracy and a lot of people thought that this was supposed to be the end of the music industry. However, it appears there is hope according to the work done by Bell and his colleagues. The researchers make it clear that the future holds not just a complex recording system but an even better security system than the existing Apple iTunes (Bell et al., web).
When it comes to the side of recording, Bell and his colleagues makes it clear that software design will no longer depend on skewmorphs but hardware will be modeled on software (web). Apparently, the wave has already started and there is a possibility of making the system even more complex. Furthermore, a musician may not be required to perform or record on DAW due to the development of interface. Considering that a computer can sound like any instrument, the virtuousity brought about by acoustic instruments may be developed to fill the current gap in digital music. Computers may also be developed to meet most audio centric tasks thus studios may become easy to operate as long as one is equipped with knowledge on computing and technology.
Annotation
Bell, Adam., Ethan Hein, and Jarrod Ratclife. Beyond Skeuomorphism: The Evolution of Music Production Software User Interface Metaphors. Journal on the Art of Record Production, 9 (2015), web.
Adam Bell is a faculty member at the University of Calgary at the School of Creative and Performing Arts. He teaches music at the university where he also helps in the research section. Jarrod Ratcliffe is a former director of the Instructional Administrative and Music Technology at The Juilliard School. He is also a member of the music faculty at the York College, a constituent of the City University of New York. Ethan Hein works at the New York University's school of performing arts. He has referred several books and journal articles as well as peer review a number of students taking their doctorate.
The Journal on the Art of Record Production is peer reviewed and has been in existence for over several years. The article provides an in-depth discussion of the evolution of audio technology while targeting the music industry. The over ten pages in the article gives a chronological account of what takes place in the process of understanding the evolution of technology in the field of music. The language is slightly technical referring to some engineering concepts that explain the evolution of audio visual aspects. The article contains a lot of quotes and literature references. The bibliography contains over ten literature references from peer reviewed journals together with a text book.
The fact that the researchers use a lot of quotes and references means that there is minimal possibility of bias. However, the researchers make it clear that a musician's eyes have to be stuck on the screen during the recording to digital music. However, this may not always be true in all settings. The article was published in 2015 which is quite recent. It is possible to confirm the existing information using existing data on the same topic. By the year 2015, there were numerous evolutions thus the information contained in the article is quite recent. Using this research, it is possible to trace the evolution of music technology just as I have shown in my paper. The source gives me an opportunity to study other aspects related to the evolution of audio visual technology.
After performing this research, I am now confident that audio recording production and engineering is indeed a complex and multi-faceted field. I am now aware that I can easily use the information for future research. For example, I would love to see the work of music producers and writers protected through the cancellation of piracy. Even though I need some information on computing and mathematics, I am fully aware that one of the most important things I can do for the field of audio engineering and production is to develop a system that will prevent piracy.


Works Cited
AES Technical Council. Technology Trends in Audio Engineering. Journal of Audio Engineering and Sociology, 60.1 (2012), 90-108.
Bell, Adam., Ethan Hein, and Jarrod Ratclife. Beyond Skeuomorphism: The Evolution of Music Production Software User Interface Metaphors. Journal on the Art of Record Production, 9 (2015), web.
Vacher, Michel. Development of audio sensing technology for ambient assisted living: Applications and challenges. Digital Advances in Medicine, E-Health, and Communication Technologies, (2013), 148.