The distinguished acoustic engineer Gunnar Rasmussen, who founded G.R.A.S. Sound & Vibration, celebrated his 90th birthday. Gunnar Rasmussen founded G.R.A.S. Sound & Vibration in 1994, at the age of 67, and continues to inspire with his extraordinary vision and guiding principles for the Danish measurement microphones specialist.
Already as an engineering student Gunnar Rasmussen showed great promise, and shortly after his graduation he was hired by the Danish audio pioneers Brüel & Kjær. In the 1950s the company sent Gunnar Rasmussen to the United States to promote products and manage the after-sales service. The inquisitive microphone specialist also took the opportunity to get acquainted with America’s futuristic technologies and to forge ties with a wide range of industries.
The fast growing American automotive, aerospace and consumer industries in the 1950s had a continuous demand for more and better acoustic measurement microphones. Through his intense involvement in all kinds of acoustical measurement projects, Gunnar realized that the microphones available at that time needed some serious improvements. After returning to Denmark, he set out to develop a new generation of microphones using the most advanced materials and assembly techniques. The outcome was a new, revolutionary and simple design, which for the past 60 years has been preferred for all types of professional acoustic measurements and has been internationally standardized.At the age of 67 where most people are heading for retirement, Gunnar Rasmussen left Brüel & Kjær and founded G.R.A.S. Sound & Vibration in 1994. Starting out as a small family business, run by Gunnar Rasmussen and his wife Hanna Hertz, the new company quickly grew into a respected and leading manufacturer of measurement microphones, turning many of its founder’s so-far unexploited ideas and inventions into commercial successes. Today, the company offers more than 100 different microphones types, employs 90 people, and has offices or affiliates in approximately 40 countries worldwide.
Gunnar Rasmussen’s and Hanna Hertz’ sons, Per Rasmussen and Peter Wulf-Andersen now play key R&D roles at G.R.A.S. Sound & Vibration, while Lars Kjærgaard, who joined the company in 2011, has been serving as CEO since 2014. As Chairman, Gunnar Rasmussen continues to inspire with his extraordinary vision and guiding principles for the company.
He was appointed to chair of the ISO committee, made a Fellow of the Acoustical Society of America and he received the Danish Design Awards for his design of measurement microphones and sound level meters. The famous conductor Leonard Bernstein turned to Gunnar Rasmussen for help producing a better recording microphone for classical music. Gunnar Rasmussen earned a CETIM award and the IEC Award. In 2008 he was presented with the prestigious Lifetime Achievements in Acoustics award by the European Acoustics Association. However, Gunnar Rasmussen does not dwell much on accolades. On the contrary, he seems to be looking ahead to solve the next problem.
The truth is he doesn’t want a lot of ado on his 90th birthday. But G.R.A.S. Sound & Vibration decided to share their heartfelt congratulations and invite the rest of the acoustic world in celebrating one more milestone for a remarkable personality. Congratulations to Gunnar from Voice Coil and audioXpress!
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