“From the very start of the live sound boom, Germany has been a driving force of proaudio in Europe” Mick Anderson, Coda Audio
Power player
Wireless microphones and IEM equipment for last year’s Eurovision Song Contest were supplied by Sennheiser
“FROM THE very start of the live sound boom, Germany has been a driving force of proaudio in Europe.” So says Mick Anderson of Coda Audio – the fast-rising Hanover-based loudspeaker manufacturer – in a sentiment that few would seek to contradict. Even in the tumult of a seemingly open-ended global crisis, Germany’s powerhouse reputation is underpinned by a myriad of rock-solid statistics:
largest national economy in Europe; fourth-leading country in the world by GDP (IMF, 2010); world’s second-largest exporter (€1.06 trillion exported in 2011). Bold and technologically innovative, Germany has retained a broadly-based economy founded on a strong manufacturing base – unlike some other Western European nations we could mention, who have allowed theirs to falter
through a chronic over-reliance on financial services. This did not completely prevent
Germany from experiencing the effects of the 2008 slowdown. Perhaps inevitably, the country fell into recession after a decade- plus of growth – but only for a couple of quarters. Consequently, by mid-2009, the comeback was well underway. More recently, in February this year, as two of Europe’s leading economies – Italy and the Netherlands – slid
back into recession, Germany registered its first negative quarter since 2009 with a decline of 0.2%. Although the country’s integral role in resolving the European debt crisis means that nothing can be taken for granted, most observers expect it to avoid recessionary status – generally defined as two successive quarters of negative growth. A root cause of the post-war
German economic miracle is the country’s facility for balancing
large-scale manufacturing – automobiles, machinery and chemicals – with smaller, niche- oriented sectors (not least pro- audio). The innovation and business practices forged in the latter continue to nourish the former in a mutually beneficial co-existence.
The dominant pro-audio
trends – stability of the live industry; continued decline of the studio market; long-term growth in broadcast and post – are
Fuelled by exports and a formidable manufacturing base, Germany has charted a relatively smooth course through the latest economic cycle. But while the country’s importance to Europe’s overall fortunes is beyond question, can the same still be said of pro-audio, wondersDavid Davies?