AES convention in Budapest smallest ever?

With only 10 exhibitors and 805 attendees, the 132nd AES Convention in Budapest last month has been described by AES Executive Director Bob Moses as “the most intimate, yet intensive” event in the organisation’s history. “Budapest exceeded our expectations as a distinctive site for our 2012 European convention. We attracted a number of eastern European audio professionals who had not previously had the opportunity to participate in an AES event. The feedback we received from them as well as from our traditional AES European Convention attendees was extremely positive.”, said Bob.

The AES has received criticism for staging such a small event, despite the quality of the technical papers and other sessions. Will there be a knock-on effect, with even fewer people attending in future? How can the AES attract more exhibitors and return the event to its rightful position as a must-attend fixture on any audio pro’s calendar?

As a sustaining member of the AES, Calrec feels it’s its duty to help kick-start a conversation on this site to try and get some answers to these big questions. Hopefully, this will just be just a small part of a wider debate, and we’ll start to see a resurgence of the European AES convention in future years. So, come on, tell us what you think. Once we have enough of your opinions, we’ll make sure Bob and his senior AES colleagues are encouraged to read your comments and take them onboard.