Archive
John Willett elected President of FICS
At the FICS Congress in Cesky Budejovice, Czech Republic, John Willett was elected as the new President of the FICS,
succeeding Milan Haering who had indicated his willingness to step down. Mr. Willett is Chairman of the British Sound
Recording Association and is a member of the Institute of Broadcast Sound. He is also a freelance recording engineer and
a customer support engineer with Sennheiser UK Limited.
Great Britain wins CIMES Grand Prix
Mike Dickins of Kidderminster won the Audio Grand Prix at the 2007 International Amateur Recording Contest with his
entry “Transport of Delight” featuring recordings made at the National Tramway Museum at Crich. The UK entries
also won the prize for the best national selection.
 Paul-Heinz Rütterswörden
Am 30. Dezember 2006 ist nach langer Krankheit der Vorsitzende des Ring der Tonband- und Videofreunde (RdT) Deutschland,
Paul-Heinz Rütterswörden im 72. Lebensjahr verstorben.
Seit 1993 hat Paul-Heinz den RdT mit viel Engagement geleitet und im Jahre 2002 den IWT in Baden-Baden durchgeführt.
Er war selbst ein sehr aktiver Videofreund.
Wir haben einen lieben Freund verloren, der viel für unser Hobby geleistet hat. Unsere Anteilnahme und
Mitgefühl gelten seiner Frau Renate sowie den Familienangehörigen.
We regret to inform you that our dear friend and chairman of the German Soundhunters, Paul-Heinz Rütterswörden
died on 30th December, 2006.
Paul-Heinz was chairman of the German Soundhunters (RdT) since 1993. In 2002 he was in charge of the organisation of our
IARC in Baden-Baden.
We have lost a good friend. Our sympathy is with his wife Renate and his family.
 John Rutter CBE
We are delighted to announce that distinguished composer and Honorary Vice-President of the British Sound Recording
Association, Dr. John Rutter, has been appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the New Year's
Honours List, 2007, for services to music. We send our heartiest congratulations to John on his honour.
55th IARC 2006 in OSSENDRECHT/NL
Once again this was the highlight of the FICS-year. Our Dutch friends have offered us some nice and interesting days
in Ossendrecht. 53 entries from 8 countries showed the work from the European Sound- and Video amateurs.
56th IARC / 51st FICS Congress 2007 in Budweis/CR
This event will take place from 18th-22nd October 2007 at the studios of Radio Cesky Budejovice. The subject for
category G is "My ordinary day" for Audio - Video - Multimedia. Maximum playing time is 8 minutes. Please
strive to get the greatest participation at your national contests. Our contest can only survive if we obtain enough
entries from as many countries as possible.
50 years RdT Germany
56th NWT and FICS Meeting in Rostock/D - 21st-24th June 2007
The German member association is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year under the motto "Three with one
stroke". Everybody is welcome at the meeting on the Mecklenburg Bight (Baltic Sea) in Rostock/Sievershagen. The
national contest will be held on 21st/22nd June 2007. The actual jubilee meeting will be on 23rd/24th June, 2007. It
would be nice to welcome members from other FICS countries at this meeting. The region at the Baltic Sea is also a good
location for a holiday. You can request more details from the general secretary. Registration closes on 30.04.07.
FICS-Mosaic
The New Year's resolution of the FICS General Secretary is the launch of a FICS audio magazine (starting in German).
It will present information from the FICS world and depending on the material available up to four times a year.
The production will be available on MD, CD or cassette.
 Alfred Köhli 1936-2006
Our dear friend Fred Köhli died on Friday, 6th January.
Fred Köhli was the treasurer of the Swiss Soundhunters from 1981 until his death. In 2002 he was elected FICS
Treasurer, but he had to give up due to illness last year. As the Bernese club had problems in filling the committee
he and his wife Ruth were ready to help them out.
His "radiofone" voice could be heard for almost 40 years (from 1961 to 1999) as a news reader for Swiss Radio.
A lot of couples enjoyed the special "wedding news" which he produced in his own studio. He was also a favourite speaker
for film and diaporama shows. For a short time he has been working on a Bernese radio station for elderly people.
We have lost a very good friend. Our sympathy is with his wife Ruth and his family.
Helmut Weber
General Secretary, FICS
Hon. President, Swiss Picture & Soundhunters Association
Am vergangenen Freitag, 6. Januar ist unser geschätzter Fred Köhli nach schwerer Krankheit im 70.
Lebensjahr verstorben.
Fred Köhli betreute beim Schweiz. Bild und Tonjägerverband von 1981 bis heute die Zentralkasse. 2002
übernahm er auch die FICS-Kasse und als vor zwei Jahren Not am Mann war bei den Berner Tonjägern, war er
mit seiner Frau Ruth auch hier zur Stelle. Seine radiofone Stimme war während fast 40 Jahren (von 1961 - 1999)
als Nachrichtensprecher auf Schweizer Radio DRS zu hören. Seine legendären Hochzeitsnachrichten haben das
Fest vieler Paare bereichert. Auch als Sprecher bei Film- und Diavertonungen war er bei vielen Amateuren beliebt.
Leider nur für kurze Zeit konnte er seine Fähigkeiten beim Seniorenradio Silbergrau einbringen.
Wir haben einen äusserst liebenswürdigen Freund verloren. Unsere Anteilnahme und Mitgefühl gelten
seiner Frau Ruth sowie den Familienangehörigen.
Helmut Weber
FICS-Generalsekretär
Ehrenpräsident Schweizer Bild und Tonjägerverband
Notre estimé Fred Köhli est décédé le vendredi 6 janvier dernier dans sa
70ème année, suite à une grave maladie.
Fred Köhli s'est occupé de la caisse centrale de l'Association Suisse des Chasseurs de Sons et d'Images,
de 1981 à aujourd'hui. Depuis 2002 il s'est aussi occupé de la caisse de la FICS et, lors d'une
pénurie de volontaires il y a deux ans, a pris des responsabilités dans la Section de Berne, conjointement
avec sa femme Ruth. Sa voix radiophonique fut audible pendant près de 40 ans (de 1961 à 1999) à
Radio DRS où il présentait les nouvelles. Ses légendaires informations sur les mariages ont enrichi
la fête de beaucoup de couples. Il était aussi très apprécié auprès des amateurs,
comme narrateur lors d'illustrations de films et de dias-shows. Malheureusement il n'a pu apporter son talent que peu de
temps auprès de la radio senior Silbergrau.
Nous avons perdu un ami extrêmement chaleureux. Nous adressons nos condoléances et notre sympathie
à sa femme Ruth et à ses proches.
Helmut Weber
Secrétaire de la FICS
Président d'honneur de l'Association Suisse des Chasseurs de sons et d'images
Take part in a Radio Programme!
Soundscape Productions have been commissioned by BBC Radio 4 to produce an experimental documentary - 'Then-Now'.
The idea behind the programme is to create a 30 minute programme out of a single minute in time! - This Wednesday,
9th November at 18:00. So could you possibly record just one minute of whatever you happen to be doing at that time?
Even if you are recording something - could you send us a copy of that precise minute?
They are seeking a wide variety of recordings which capture the diverse nature of the UK. They also need people who
might have access to audio [and video] recording equipment which is why they are contacting sound recordists.
Details about the project are available the Soundscape Productions web site.
Please contact the company by e-mail if you, or anybody you know,
might be able to contribute.
54th IARC 2005 in LUGANO/CH
57 sound and video amateurs from eight countries met in the Radio studio in Lugano.
33 audio entries from seven countries had to be judged. The AUDIO GRAND PRIX winner is for the first time Markus Mast
of Switzerland with the recording "Der lachende Hahn auf dem Bauernhof". Switzerland also won the national
classification, with the United Kingdom in second place.
The VIDEO GRAND PRIX winner came from Switzerland: it is the team German-Swiss Friendship with the entry
"Blumen für Vater". 16 videos were presented. Great Britain had the best national selection with
Switzerland coming second.
The new MULTIMEIDA Category was won by André W. Hartensveld from the Netherlands with his entry "Inverewe
Gardens".
For the first time France could not take part at the contest. RADIO FRANCE and especially RADIO FRANCE CULTURE have
decided to cancel the program for sound hunters and the support for the CIMES. Dominique Calace de Ferluc is trying to
find another radio platform for the sound hunters.
The detailed results are on the CIMES 2005 page.
49th FICS Congress
Alfred Köhli - FICS treasurer - had to give up his job due to illness. As our accounts are kept in Switzerland,
it was agreed by the congress that the general secretary will take over this task. All other FICS officers were re-elected.
The FICS subscription was reduced to EUR 100.00 from 2006. A Euro bank account will be opened.
55th IARC / 50th FICS-Congress 2006 in Ossendrecht/NL
These events will be held from 26th to 30th October 2006. The theme for Kategory G is "Picture the Future!",
open for Audio, Video and Multimedia. Contactaddress: e-mail.
IARC CDs
The CDs from 1991 to 2003 are still available at the price of EUR 8.00 including postage and packing (from 2 pieces only
EUR 5.00). See CIMES CDs.
DACH-Meeting - Friday, 6th May - Sunday, 8th May, 2005
We regret that this meeting in Pilsen, Czech Republic, had to be cancelled owing to lack of bookings.
This contest and the congress will be held from 20th to 24th October in the southern part of Switzerland.
We shall be guests of RSI - Radio svizzera di lingua italiana. The official invitation will be sent in the
first quarter, 2005. We would be very glad to welcome many sound and video amateurs in Lugano.
The theme for Kategory G is The Magic of the Lake. For the first time also open for VIDEO and MULTIMEDIA.
IARC-CDs
The CDs from 1991 to 2003 are still available at the price of 8 Euro including post and packing (two or more
only EUR 5.-- each). The new edition for 2004 will appear in March 2005.
[HW 20050102]
Canford Summer School
Mike Thomson reports:
BSRA members might like to know that there is a classical sound recording techniques
course at Canford Summer School of Music
this year. The school is located near Wimborne in Dorset, and is in a truly beautiful setting.
The course is a week long, and those who attend will I am sure be able to benefit from the
fact that there is classical music going on all the time as part of the various music courses
taking place during the week. There are usually several concerts every day, some given by the
professionals, others by course members, and the acoustic in the main concert hall is in my view
rather good, with plenty of reverberation to play with.
There are other places where (I presume) music can be recorded. See the website for some
idea of the variety of music being taught and performed. The standard of music-making is excellent,
and the social aspects of the week are likewise to be wholly recommended. Overall, there is a super
atmosphere at Canford, and a very high proportion of those at the summer school have been there
several times before. I've been on the Piano Accompaniment course at least 7 or 8 times, and can
thoroughly recommend Canford for a great week of music.
[MT 2004-02-20]
Soundhunters.com is Back
As visitors may be aware our domain was unavailable between 6th and 20th February 2004.
This was due to a problem between my ISP, Freedom2 Ltd. whom
we paid for two years, and the registrar, Joker.com in Germany,
which claimed it had been paid for one year. This has now been resolved by Freedom2 Ltd., and we
pass on our apologies to all those affected.
[RP 2004-02-20]
DACH Meeting 2004
Thomas Aigner is organizing the traditional meeting in Schlierbach, Austria (approx. 120 km from Salzburg
towards Vienna). An interesting program will cover the days from 21st to 23rd May, 2004.
There will be a visit to Kremsegg Castle with musical instruments and organ concert, an excursion to the
ARS Electronica Center in Linz and a visit to Weinberg Castle which has a sound studio.
more
BSRA AGM Weekend 2004
The British Sound Recording Association will hold it's 2004 weekend get-together from April 23rd to 25th in
Cardiff, based at the Moat House Hotel which was used for the 50th CIMES in 2001. The weekend will feature guest
speakers, social gatherings and an optional boat tour of Cardiff Bay. A very attractive weekend price has been
negotiated with the hotel, and further details will be published here
when available. Soundhunters from overseas will be very welcome to participate.
47th FICS Congress, Paris
The 47th FICS Congress was held at Maison du Radio France in Paris on Saturday 8th November, 2003,
organised by the French Soundhunters with the assistance and sponsorship of Radio France. A brief
summary of the proceedings follows.
Tributes were paid to honorary members Paul Robert (France) who died in March
(see News Archive) and Miroslav Stepanek (Czech Republic) who died in January 2003.
Some members of Paul Robert's family were present.
The FICS officers and directors were re-elected with the following changes:
- Marco Rovara (Italy) resigned as a director and no replacement was nominated.
- Uwe Mehlhaff (Germany) proposed and was appointed to the new post of Delegate for Audio, complementing
the Delegate for Video and Diaporama (Ekkehard Neumann).
The 53rd CIMES/48th FICS Congress will be held in the spa town of
Piestany in Slovakia as previously announced. The event will
take place from 21st to 25th October, 2004 and the theme for Kategory G is "Stand up and Walk" which is
based on the town's Latin motto (more details).
CIMES 2005 will be held Lugano, Switzerland, and the following year it will be held in the Netherlands
to coincide with NVG's 50th anniversary.
A proposal from Ekkehard Neumann to abandon the diaporama section of the contest was discussed and deferred
for a year to allow alternatives to be considered. There could be an additional video category for audio-visual
presentations on DVD or CD-ROM (including PowerPoint?).
FICS subscriptions for member organisations are reduced to CHF250,00 for three years.
Full results of the 2003 International Contest can be found here. The 2003 CD
will be published in March 2004.
[RP 2003-11-14]
Photokina Videofun 2004
Details have been announced for the Photokina Videofun competition for filmmakers.
The closing date is 15th April, 2004. The 30 winning entries will be shown at the
Photokina trade fair in Köln from September 28th to October 3rd.
For more details in German and English see the Prophoto-Online
web site and follow the "Photokina Videofun" link.
New Host for this Site
Because of space limitations at Feeedom2 this site is now hosted at
eUKhost.com. We hope this will not make any difference to visitors.
Paul Robert
Nous avons reçu l'information du décès de notre ami et membre d'honneur de la FICS
PAUL ROBERT.
Paul Robert a été président des chasseurs de sons en France (FFCS) pendant
beaucoup d'années. Il a été fortement actif pour développer l'enregistrement
par des amateurs en France. Il a collaboré intensément avec Jean Thévenot,
créateur de ce violon d'ingrès et co-fondateur de la FICS. Paul Robert a tout fait pour
assurer une position importante des activités des chasseurs de sons en France. Chez RADIO FRANCE,
qui organise les concours annuels pour les travaux des amateurs, Paul Robert a produit pendant beaucoup
d'années l'émission hebdomadaire des chasseurs de sons sur Radio France Culture.
La FICS a perdu une personnalité.
Wir mussten heute leider vernehmen, dass unser Freund und FICS-Ehrenmitglied PAUL ROBERT
am Sonntag, 18. Mai 2003 verstorben ist.
Paul Robert war viele Jahre Präsident der französischen Tonjäger (FFCS).
Er war während Jahrzehnten an den FICS-Kongressen und am IWT dabei. Paul Robert hat sehr viel
getan für unser Hobby und die FICS. Jahrelang hat er intensiv mit dem Förderer der
Tonjägerei in Frankreich und Mitgründer der FICS, Jean Thévenot, zusammengearbeitet.
Paul Robert sorgte dafür, dass das Tonbandhobby in Frankreich eine wichtige Stellung einnimmt.
Bei Radio France, das die jährlichen Tonjägerwettbewerbe in Frankreich durchführt,
betreute Paul Robert während Jahrzehnten die wöchentliche Sendung.
Die FICS trauert um eine ausserordentliche Persönlichkeit.
Today we received the information, that our dear friend and honorary member of the FICS PAUL ROBERT
has died.
Paul Robert was president of the French Sound Hunters for many years and he attended the FICS-congress
and IARC for a very long time. He has done a great work for our hobby and the FICS. For many years he
worked together with the founder of the FICS, Jean Thévenot and produced a large number of the
weekly sound hunter programmes on Radio France.
The FICS has lost a great personality.
Helmut Weber, Sécretaire général de la FICS /
Generalsekretär FICS / FICS General Secretary
Photo: R. Porter, Bern 1999
2003-05-19
BSRA Member of Honour
The British Sound Recording Association has appointed Dennis Goodwin
as a Member of Honour. Dr. Goodwin recently retired as Honorary Treasurer of the FBTRC (now the BSRA)
after serving for 22 years and he was an active member of the North London Tape Club. A special
medallion was presented at the Association's AGM in Torquay on May 10th.
The 52nd IARC will be held from 6th to 10th November, 2003 in PARIS in the studios of RADIO FRANCE.
Everybody is welcome; PARIS is always worth a journey. Please register for further details.
We now have a forum for the discussion of all audio and video recording topics, and
any FICS issues that can be debated in public. Please use it and have a look at it.
DACH Meeting in Cham (D) - 31st May - 1st June 2003
The German sound and videofriends are inviting us to this meeting in the old commercial town CHAM,
in the nature park Oberer Bayerischer Wald. This region is very suitable for some further
days' stay before or after the DACH-meeting. Full details will be available soon.
The 52nd IARC will be held from 6th to 10th November, 2003 in PARIS in the studios of RADIO FRANCE.
Everybody is welcome; PARIS is always worth a journey. Please register for further details.
The editions for 1991 - 2002 are still available at the price of 8 Euros including packing and postage.
By ordering 2 or more CDs the price reduces to 5 Euros each.
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