Peter Scheiber was a classically trained

musician A musician is someone who Composer, composes, Conducting, conducts, or Performing arts#Performers, performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general Terminology, term used to designate a person who fol ...

and

audio engineer An audio engineer (also known as a sound engineer or recording engineer) helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization, dynamics processing and audio effects, mixing, reproduc ...

. He was considered to be the originator of multichannel ''matrix'' audio formats, a mathematical formula used to convert four audio channels into two and back again. Scheiber was also the inventor of the 360-degree spatial decoder. Like Lou Dorren, Scheiber was an early pioneer of multi-channel sound. It has been written that Scheiber pioneered the surround sound technology that is used in theaters today and referred to as Dolby Surround. In matrix

quadraphonic Quadraphonic (or quadrophonic, also called quadrasonic or by the neologism quadio ortmanteau, formed by analogy with "stereo" sound – equivalent to what is now called 4.0 surround sound – uses four audio channels in which speakers are po ...

systems four channels are converted (encoded) down to two channels. These two matrixed channels are recorded onto tape or

vinyl record A phonograph record (also known as a gramophone record, especially in British English) or a vinyl record (for later varieties only) is an analog signal, analog sound Recording medium, storage medium in the form of a flat disc with an inscribed, ...

. Reproduction occurs via a two-channel stereo transmission medium - in most cases a vinyl record - these are decoded back to four channels and reproduced via four loudspeakers.

Musician

Scheiber, an

Oberlin College Oberlin College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college and conservatory of music in Oberlin, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1833, it is the oldest Mixed-sex education, coeducational lib ...

music graduate, obtained a full scholarship to study with the first-chair players of the Boston Symphony at Tanglewood. He was 22 years of age when he got to study with Chicago Symphony's first bassoonist. He also played first-chair in the Chicago Chamber Orchestra. During his professional career, he played with the Ottawa Philharmonic and Dallas Symphony orchestras. Around 1977 his bassoon was stolen from the trunk of his car and according to the May 2007 article in '' Indianapolis Monthly'' and he never replaced it. Also later being called on to play there would be reasons not to play such as a missing reed or music.

Audio career

Peter Scheiber was born in Croton-on-Hudson in New York in 1935. He grew up in Peekskill. From an early age, passionate about music and technology, he had a workbench in his bedroom for experimenting with his gadgets. He later earned a scholarship at Tanglewood Music Center and played with the Chicago Symphony. Later, as a professional, he was a member of orchestras in Ottawa and Texas. In 1967 Scheiber, then a 32-year-old

bassoon The bassoon is a musical instrument in the woodwind family, which plays in the tenor and bass ranges. It is composed of six pieces, and is usually made of wood. It is known for its distinctive tone color, wide range, versatility, and virtuosity ...

ist, came up with the idea of encoding four channels of sound in two channels and decoding them back to four. He sold a

patent license A license (American English) or licence (Commonwealth English) is an official permission or permit to do, use, or own something (as well as the document of that permission or permit). A license is granted by a party (licensor) to another part ...

to CBS. Peter Scheiber would eventually take legal action against

Dolby Laboratories Dolby Laboratories, Inc. (Dolby Labs or simply Dolby) is a British-American technology corporation specializing in audio noise reduction, audio data compression, audio encoding/compression, spatial audio, and high-dynamic-range television (H ...

and Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corp for infringement of his patents. During his career he worked with Jim Fosgate of Fosgate Electronics and

Tate Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the UK ...

surround technology.

Legal battle

As of October 2003, the 68-year-old Sheiber had more or less become a recluse for eight years due to his legal battle with Dolby Laboratories. This was over Dolby's development of a surround sound system for motion picture industry which was based on his invention. After some difficulties, he was able to secure some royalty payments from Dolby and Harman International which lasted from 1983 to late 1994. He received over a million dollars. The companies eventually stopped paying Scheiber as they claimed that the patents had expired and he wasn't due any more money. In June 2002, Seventh Circuit Appeals Judge Richard Posner ruled against him, which was his biggest defeat. Scheiber was upset that Dolby and others were making millions from the technology he pioneered.''The Herald Times'', 12 Oct 2003
Sounding off by Brian Werth
/ref>

Musician

Audio career

Legal battle

Further reading