The Visions of Sound Award will be presented for the second time this year. The award recognizes the best immersive mixes of 2024.
Creative sound engineers and sound engineers are honored in various categories from all releases that have been released as regular Blu-rays. Blu-rays that have only been released in limited, high-priced box sets are not eligible. We want to promote the release of immersive mixes on Blu-ray Disc at affordable prices.
The criteria for evaluation include various aspects such as the spatial arrangement of the mix, creativity, and musical interpretation.
WINNER:
Bob Reynolds Group – Live in Munich
Mixing Engineer: Kseniya Kawko (msm studios)
The jury says: A live concert in a jazz club, recorded transparently with authentic acoustics, impressed us more than a very interesting studio recording and mix. Both productions impressed us.
NOMINEES:
Quadro Nuevo – Happy Deluxe (Dolby Atmos)
Mixing Engineer: Kseniya Kawko (msm studios)
WINNER:
Trio Mediæval – YULE
Mixing Engineer: Morten Lindberg (Lindberg Lyd)
The jury says: Morten’s extraordinary gift for capturing music with incomparable dynamism and transparency makes this exceptional production an absolute delight to listen to.
NOMINEES:
Alessandro Quarta – The 5 Elements
Mixing Engineer: Kseniya Kawko (msm studios)
Onyx Klavierduo – Souvenirs
Mixing Engineer: Ephraim Hahn, Kseniya Kawko (msm studios)
WINNER:
Berliner Philharmoniker – Kirill Petrenko dirigiert Sergej Rachmaninow
Mixing Engineer: René Möller
The jury says: René has recorded the Berlin Philharmonic with this great conductor and first-class orchestra. The atmosphere in the Philharmonie comes alive and the orchestra is wonderfully portrayed.
NOMINEES:
John Williams & Saito Kinen Orchestra – John Williams in Tokyo
Mixing Engineer: Akira Fukada
WINNER:
The Pineapple Thief – It Leads To This
Mixing Engineer: Bruce Soord (Soord Studios)
The jury says: Competing against himself and one of the greats of progressive rock, David Gilmour, Bruce impresses with his mix for The Pineapple Thief. With great attention to detail, he gives us a listening experience full of vitality and depth.
NOMINEES:
Big Big Train – The Likes of Us
Mixing Engineer: Bruce Soord (Soord Studios)
David Gilmour – Luck and Strange
Mixing Engineer: David Gilmour, Charlie Andrew, Matt Glasbey.
WINNER:
King Crimson – Red (50th Anniversary Edition)
Mixing Engineer: Steven Wilson (Steven Wilson Studio)
The jury says: Steven Wilson dominates the progressive rock market segment with his mixes for numerous catalog titles. He seems to strike the right note with playful ease and refines an already great recording with Dolby Atmos. This is particularly successful in this King Crimson mix for the 50th anniversary of the album “Red.”
NOMINEES:
Gentle Giant – The Missing Piece (2024 Steven Wilson Remix)
Mixing Engineer: Steven Wilson (Steven Wilson Studio)
Pink Floyd – Animals 2018 Remix
Mixing Engineer: James Guthrie (Das Boot)
WINNER:
Ian Thomas – How We Roll
Mixing Engineer: Vic Florencia
The jury says: Vic Florencia has created a very powerful rock mix for this great recording by Ian Thomas. The sensitive songwriting is wonderfully translated into a transparent, room-filling Atmos mix that leaves nothing to be desired.
NOMINEES:
Pearl Jam – Dark Matter (Deluxe)
Mixing Engineer: Nick Rives, Josh Evans
The Cure – Songs Of A Lost World (Ltd. Edition)
Mixing Engineer: TBC
WINNER:
XTC – Skylarking (Dolby Atmos Edition)
Mixing Engineer: Steven Wilson (Steven Wilson Studio)
The jury says: Steven Wilson has preserved the historical style and sound and breathed new life into it with his extraordinary talent, with the greatest possible transparency and dynamics.
NOMINEES:
David Bowie – The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars (Dolby Atmos)
Mixing Engineer: Emre Ramazanoglu, Ken Scott
Talking Heads – 77
Mixing Engineer: E.T. Thorngreen, Jerry Harrison
The Tragically Hip – Up To Here 2024 (Ltd. Edition)
Mixing Engineer: Mark Vreeken
WINNER:
Opeth – The Last Will and Testament
Mixing Engineer: Stefan Boman
The jury says: Amidst strong and powerful releases, Stefan has given Opeth’s album a magnificent, immersive dynamic and complexity despite the pressure. Listening to it constantly reveals new sound experiences, and the music rises with magnificent transparency.
NOMINEES:
Leprous – Melodies of Atonement (Limited Edition)
Mixing Engineer: Bruce Soord (Soord Studios)
Devin Townsend – PowerNerd
Mixing Engineer: Devin Townsend
WINNER:
Billy Idol – State Line: Live At The Hoover Dam
Mixing Engineer: Kurt Martinez
The jury says: A live recording is always a challenge. Kurt’s mix strikes the right balance between music and audience and impresses with its great dynamics. Set against the spectacular backdrop of the Hoover Dam, this production is a treat for the ears and eyes.
NOMINEES:
Talking Heads – Stop Making Sense
Mixing Engineer: E.T. Thorngreen, Jerry Harrison
Queen Rock Montreal + Live Aid (4K Ultra HD)
Mixing Engineer: Oli Morgan
Within Temptation – Worlds Collide Tour: Live In Amsterdam
Mixing Engineer: Within Temptation
WINNER:
Seal – Seal (Deluxe Edition)
Mixing Engineer: Alex McArthur, Tim Weidner
The jury says: Great care was taken to create an Atmos mix for the Blu-ray release that captures the spirit of the stereo mix and presents us with a spatiality that clearly and precisely radiates a warmth that delights fans and allows them to immerse themselves in the music.
NOMINEES:
Alphaville – Forever Young (40th Anniversary Edition)
Mixing Engineer: Guy Sternberg, Rainer Maillard
Pet Shop Boys – Nonetheless
Mixing Engineer: Stan Kybert
WINNER:
Boris Blank – Resonance
Mixing Engineer: David Merkl, Stefan Bock (msm studios)
The jury says: msm Studios has once again done a great job and created an atmospheric firework display with this mix. Clear and precise with extraordinary dynamics, it creates a soundscape that inspires.
NOMINEES:
Air – Moon Safari (25th Anniversary Edition)
Mixing Engineer: Bruce Keen, Gildas Lointier
Oneohtrix Point Never – Again (Blu-ray Audio Edition)
Mixing Engineer: Luke Argilla
SPECIAL IMMERSIVE AWARD:
John Sinclair – Der Anfang (Dolby Atmos Edition)
Mixing Engineer: Eric Gierich
WINNER:
Morten Lindberg
WINNER:
Patrick Schappert – GROBI.TV (Kaarst, Deutschland)
All nominees for the Visions of Sound Awards 2025 were eligible for the audience award.
WINNER:
Queen Rock Montreal + Live Aid (4K Ultra HD)
Mixing Engineer: Oli Morgan
Ralf Kemper
Owner of River Studios Cologne
Als Grammy-Gewinner, Produzent und Engineer betreibt Ralf die River Studios Cologne. Die Darstellung der Musik auf der neu entstandenen „immersiven Bühne“ begleitet sein Schaffen bei der Umsetzung entsprechender musikalischer Konzepte. Wichtig ist ihm, dass ein Mehrwert für den Konsumenten in dem Erleben dieser Mischungen geschaffen wird.
Fritz Fey
Founder and editor-in-chief of "Studio Magazin"
Fritz is editor of the professional journal Studio Magazin. In addition to his other activities as a sound engineer and operator of a mastering studio, he has been involved in the creation of many production masters. Another focus of his work is studio design as a specialist planner for building and room acoustics.
Sam Donalies
Freelance Audio Engineer
Sam is a sound engineer at River Studios Cologne. He specializes in immersive mixes. Over the past three years, Sam has mixed more than 450 titles that have been released in Dolby Atmos format.
Christoph Diekmann
Founder of Visions of Sound
Trained as a classical guitarist, Christoph has gained experience in all areas of music marketing, from record labels to publishing and artist management, and now focuses on marketing immersive mixes on Blu-ray Disc. As an executive producer, he has also been involved in the creation of numerous mixes.
Archive
Our newsletter regularly informs you about current screening dates, music releases in Dolby Atmos and AURO 3-D, as well as the latest developments around immersive audio.
Our newsletter regularly informs you about current screening dates, music releases in Dolby Atmos and AURO 3-D, as well as the latest developments around immersive audio.