Sennheiser teases ‘next big thing’ at 70th anniversary event

Sennheiser CEOs Daniel (pictured, right) and Dr. Andreas Sennheiser (pictured, left) presented the world with its first glimpse of the manufacturer’s next product at an exclusive event at London’s Central Hall Westminster.

Themed “Reshaping Excellence”, the celebration of sound and innovation marked Sennheiser’s 70th anniversary year and featured a concert performed to an audience of 1,200 guests by the Junge Deutsche Philharmonie orchestra and Grammy Award-winning artist Imogen Heap.

Sennheiser’s selected guests had the opportunity to experience the company’s product range, including technologies never before shown to the public. The evening’s highlight was marked by the first glimpse of Sennheiser’s "next big thing”, unveiled by the company’s CEOs at the end of the concert.

Although not fully revealed, it was announced that the new product will cover a frequency range that ‘exceeds the limits of human perception’, with 2.4 micrometer, platinum-sputtered diaphragms promising ‘absolutely perfect’ sound reproduction. The product also uses Carrara marble – the same kind once used by Michelangelo to create his sculptures. The product’s unveiling will continue on a dedicated website.

“There is much more to come and we are looking forward to revealing more information over the coming weeks,” remarked Daniel Sennheiser.

The concert of works by Philip Glass and György Ligeti was performed by the Junge Deutsche Philharmonie orchestra and conducted by Jonathan Stockhammer. Appearing in her only live show of 2015, artist Imogen Heap debuted a special composition, ’Tiny Human’, written for Sennheiser to celebrate the “Reshaping Excellence” theme.

Sennheisers’ Grammy Award-winning recording engineer Gregor Zielinsky recorded the performance using the manufacturer’s proprietary 9.1 immersive audio technology: “Sennheiser’s 9.1 immersive audio expresses the company’s philosophy, ’the pursuit of perfect sound‘, to create a truly new experience for the listener,” explained Zielinsky. “This technology has been developed for both recording and playback, both on hi-fi systems and as an algorithm for headphones. It is remarkable to experience, and at the same time also very simple to set up and record with compared to other systems.”

Held alongside the concert, a product exhibition showcased Sennheiser’s technical achievements. It was divided into two areas: “Experience” and “View”. “Experience” provided the opportunity to try current and forthcoming products including a first peek at an upcoming addition to Sennheiser’s headphone range as well as the HD 800 headphones and the HDVD 800 amplifier. “View” offered an exclusive look at products exhibited under glass that have never been shown publicly, including the new product and the HD 800 in gold.

Sennheiser also showcased highlights of the Sennheiser and Neumann microphone range, including the Digital 9000 wireless microphone system, the M 149 Tube as well as the KMS 105 studio microphones.

Sennheiser held a second event on 31 August in Germany at Berlin’s Alte Nationalgalerie, where 200 guests experienced a 3D immersive audio performance, private guided tours of the ImEx art exhibition and a further concert featuring the Junge Deutsche Philharmonie. 

http://www.sennheiser.com