AABBA: Aural Assessment By means of Binaural Algorithms

AABBA: An intellectual open group of scientists collaborating on development and applications of models of human spatial hearing

AABBA's goal is to promote exploration and development of binaural and spatial models and their applications.

AABBA members are academic scientists willing to participate in our activities. We meet annually for an open discussion and progress presentation, especially encouraging to bring in students and young scientists associated with members’ projects to our meetings. Our activities consolidate in joint publications and special sessions at international conferences. As a relevant tangible outcome, we provide validated (source) codes for published models of binaural and spatial hearing to our collection of auditory models, known as the Auditory Modeling Toolbox (AMT).

AABBA group picture during the 18th meeting in Vienna, February 2026.
AABBA Group (18th Meeting), Vienna, February 2026. ©ISF/ÖAW

Structure

  • Executive board: Piotr Majdak, Sarah Verhulst, Mathias Dietz, Ville Pulkki
  • Members:
    • Aachen: Janina Fels, HTA, RWTH Aachen
    • Aachen II: Alexander Raake, IENT, RWTH Aachen
    • Antwerp: Herbert Peremans, University of Antwerp
    • Athens: Areti Andreopoulou, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens
    • Berlin: Dorothea Kolossa, Electronic Systems of Medical Engineeringm, TU Berlin
    • Berlin II: Stefan Weinzierl & Fabian Brinkmann, Audio Communication Group, TU Berlin
    • Cardiff: John Culling, Cardiff University
    • Copenhagen: Torsten Dau & Axel Ahrens, DTU, Lyngby
    • Dresden: Ercan Altinsoy, TU Dresden
    • Ghent: Sarah Verhulst, Ghent University
    • Helsinki: Ville Pulkki, Aalto University
    • Ilmenau: Stephan Werner & Karlheinz Brandenburg, Ilmenau University of Technology
    • Kosice: Norbert Kopčo, P. J. Šafárik University in Košice
    • London: Lorenzo Picinali, Imperial College, London
    • Lyon: Mathieu Lavandier, Université de Lyon
    • Malaga: Arcadio Reyes Lecuona, Universidad de Malaga
    • Milan: Federico Avanzini, LIM, University of Milano
    • Mittweida: Annika Neidhardt, University of Applied Sciences Mittweida
    • Munich I: Werner Hemmert, Bio-Inspired Information Processing, TUM, München
    • Munich II: Bernhard Seeber, Audio Information Processing, TUM, München 
    • Oldenburg 0: Steven van de Par, Acoustics, Carl von Ossietzky Universität, Oldenburg
    • Oldenburg I: Bernd Meyer, Communication Acoustics, Carl von Ossietzky Universität, Oldenburg
    • Oldenburg II: Mathias Dietz, Physiology and Modeling of Auditory Perception, Carl von Ossietzky Universität, Oldenburg
    • Padova: Michele Geronazzo, University of Padova
    • Paris I: Brian Katz, Sorbonne Université, Paris
    • Paris II: Léo Varnet, Laboratoire des Systèmes Perceptifs, The ENS, Paris
    • Surrey: Enzo De Sena & Pedro Llado Gonzalez, University of Surrey
    • Tabriz: Masoud Geravanchizadeh, University of Tabriz, Iran
    • Toulouse: Patrick Danès, Université de Toulouse
    • Troy: Jonas Braasch, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, USA
    • Ulm: Claudia Lenk, University of Ulm, Germany
    • Vienna: Bernhard Laback & Robert Baumgartner, Acoustics Research Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Wien
  • Umbrella project: The Auditory Modeling Toolbox (AMT)

Meetings

Annual meetings are held at the beginning of each year:

  • upcoming 19th meeting: 15-16 February 2027, Vienna.
  • 18th meeting: 23-24 February 2026, Vienna. Schedule. Group photo (high quality).
  • 17th meeting: 17-18 February 2025, Vienna. Schedule. Group photo.
  • 16th meeting: 15-16 February 2024, Vienna. Schedule. Group photo.
  • 15th meeting: 19-20 January 2023, Vienna. Schedule. Group photo. 
  • 14th meeting: 3-4 February 2022, Vienna. Schedule. Group photo. 
  • 13th meeting: 18 March 2021, Online. Steering committee meeting only (full meeting cancelled because of pandemic).
  • 12th meeting: 16-17 January 2020, Vienna. Schedule. Group photo. 
  • 11th meeting: 19-20 February 2019, Vienna. Schedule. Group photo. 
  • 10th meeting: 30-31 January 2018, Vienna. Schedule. Group photo. 
  • 9th meeting: 27-28 February 2017, Vienna. Schedule.
  • 8th meeting: 21-22 January 2016, Vienna. Schedule.
  • 7th meeting: 22-23 February 2015, Berlin.
  • 6th meeting: 17-18 February 2014, Berlin.
  • 5th meeting: 24-25 January 2013, Berlin.
  • 4th meeting: 19-20 January 2012, Berlin.
  • 3rd meeting: 13-14 January 2011, Berlin.
  • 2nd meeting: 29-30 September 2009, Bochum.
  • 1st meeting: 23-26 March 2009, Rotterdam.

Publications

  • In production: Special Issue of Acta Acustica: "Spatial and binaural hearing: From neural processes to applications" edited by P. Majdak, N. Kopčo, and M. Lavandier. Call for contribution. 
  • 2022: "Advances in Fundamental and Applied Research on Spatial Audio" edited by B. Katz and P. Majdak (IntechOpen, UK). Download.
  • 2021-23: Special Issue of Acta Acustica: "Auditory models: from binaural processing to multimodal cognition" edited by P. Majdak, R. Baumgartner, and M. Lavandier. Call for contribution.
  • 2021: "The auditory modeling toolbox 1.0", http://amtoolbox.org/
  • 2020: "The Technology of Binaural Understanding" edited by J. Blauert and J. Braasch, 25 chapters, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-00386-9
  • 2013: "The Technology of Binaural Listening" edited by J. Blauert, 18 chapters, Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-642-37762-4

Activities

  • Upcoming Special Session "Jens Blauert Memorial Session: Advancing Research from Spatial Hearing to Understanding" at Acoustics '27, Brussels, Belgien.
  • Upcoming Special Session "Spatial Hearing: Modeling and Applications" at the Forum Acusticum 2026, Graz, Austria.
  • Special Session "Spatial Hearing: Modeling and Applications" at the Forum Acusticum 2025, Malaga, Spain.Special Session "Spatial Hearing: Modeling and Applications" at the Forum Acusticum 2023, Torino, Italy.
  • Workshops "Toolboxes for auditory modeling and psychoacoustic research" within the Summer School of the Forum Acusticum 2023, Torino, Italy.
  • Special Session "Spatial hearing" at the ICA 2022, Gyeongju, South Korea.
  • 2nd AMT Workshop, 17 May 2022, Paris.
  • 1st AMT Workshop, 2 February 2022, Vienna.
  • Structured Session "Binaural models: development and applications" at the DAGA 2021, Vienna.
  • Structured Session "Binaural models: development and applications" at the Forum Acusticum 2020, Lyon.
  • Special Session "Binaural models: development and applications" at the ICA 2019, Aachen.
  • Special Session "Models and reproducible research" at the Acoustics'17 (EAA/ASA) 2017, Boston.
  • Structured Session "Applied Binaural Signal Processing" at the Forum Acusticum 2014, Krakòw.
  • Structured Session "The Technology of Binaural Listening & Understanding" at the ICA 2016, Buenos Aires.

Alumni

  • 2009-2026: Honorary member and founder: Jens Blauert♰, Ruhr University Bochum
  • 2009-2025: Patras: John Mourjopoulos & Yorgos Moiragias, University of Patras
  • 2009-2023: Rostock: Sascha Spors, Universität Rostock
  • 2009-2022: Oldenburg-Eindhoven: Armin Kohlrausch♰, Eindhoven University of Technology, The Netherlands
  • 2014-2021: Sheffield: Guy Brown, The University of Sheffield, UK
  • 2014-2020: Guangzhou: Bosun Xie, The South China University of Technology, China
  • 2017-2019: Berlin: Klaus Obermayer, Technische University, Berlin

Contact person: Piotr Majdak

Hearing

Team