MANILA, PHILIPPINES — Sound and audio play an integral part in one’s life. Whether it be the morning playlist you listen to on your commute, or the transport app you use to avoid traffic, it has become intertwined with our daily routine that a life without sound almost seems impossible.
Vic Icasas, the President and Managing Partner of the multi-awarded sound studio Hit Productions, took us on a journey on how we perceive audio and sound in our daily lives in his session ‘The Future of Sound Now’ for this year’s adobo Festival of Ideas held at Newport City, Resorts World.
Icasas begins with a history of music consumption throughout the years. Tech obsolescence happened too quickly in audio, with devices constantly changing and shifting to accommodate the new technology being accepted by society. Music then became a personal experience with the invention of the walkman as you could carry music wherever you go, and even made more portable in 2001 as the first iPod was launched and catalyzed the whole revolution of downloaded music more than compact discs did.
He then transitions to sounds of today which he describes as the era of voice assistants. He explains that during massive sale events on 11.11 alone, there were over one million voice orders used with the Tmall Genie by Alibaba. Smart houses are also becoming a trend, with voice-enabled smart speakers like Alexa or Google Home at the helm of the evolution like. Simply plugged into the corners of a home, these devices are ready to assist you with a variety of tasks all but through the command of one’s voice.
With voice assistants getting increasingly popular, it seems like only the beginning for this AI technology — one can expect this to play a more proactive and personalized role in our lives in the future, just like how music is.
Vic Icasas (@vicicasas), President & Managing Partner of HIT Productions, on The Future Sound of Now: the role of audio in our day-to-day where audio is not just personal, it’s personalized. #adoboFOI2019 pic.twitter.com/XPI1VSMTj9
— adobo magazine (@adobomagazine) December 5, 2019
Icasas taps back into how we consume music in a connected world. He reminisces the old days when individuals had to download music or go to Greenhills just to buy a couple hundred songs to stick into their iPods or music player. Now, with the invention of streaming services like Spotify, music can be reached anywhere and musicians can be heard and discovered with just the search bar. Artificial intelligence now also uses an algorithm to suggest music, creating a personalized playlist for you.
“Audio is no longer personal, but personalized,” Icasas states — harking back to the times of the walkman to how the music we listen to today is customized to fit our tastes.
To end his session, talented musician BP Valenzuela to the stage to serenade the audience with her music. BP is the newest addition to the Hit Productions team.
We also have BP Valenzuela (@valenzuelabp) showing us the dynamism of audio with a special performance 🎧🎹 at the #adoboFOI2019 pic.twitter.com/Xi7KbDG1xE
— adobo magazine (@adobomagazine) December 5, 2019
Watch the full session below:
