Iconic Audio Engineer Risto Hemmi’s longtime fusion of art and technology

This episode of Genelec Kinos shines the spotlight on Risto Hemmi, a highly influential figure in Finnish music recording history, whose mark can be heard on countless classic albums and iconic artists' productions. Hemmi has made his life's work at Finland’s legendary Finnvox studios, which celebrates its 60th anniversary in 2025.

Hemmi’s illustrious career has spanned more than four decades. His expertise and listening skills have made him a trusted professional in both music and film sound, where he’s perfected hundreds of published recordings and mixes. One of the turning points in his career was in the early 1980s, when he recorded the album ‘Moottoritie on kuuma’ for then newcomers Pelle Miljoona. The album became a massive success and sealed Hemmi’s new status as a top engineer, convincing him he absolutely belonged in the studio. 

At Genelec, we’ve had the honour of working with Risto Hemmi since the earliest days of our company, which was founded in 1978. Long ago, Hemmi had many discussions with much-loved Genelec Co-Founder Ilpo Martikainen and Acoustician Ari Varla. He would exchange ideas with them about what is needed and expected from studio monitors, and how the technical solutions might look. Their dialogue gave rise to a shared understanding of the importance of sound quality that has borne fruit for decades. Hemmi sees the common set of values as one of the strengths of his longtime collaboration with Genelec. He feels both Genelec and Finnvox are united by a desire to work with rigour and ambition, striving to achieve the best possible results. With reliable, high-quality monitoring equipment, Finnvox can concentrate on what matters most, making art with all their heart.

“We don't listen to monitors here – we listen to music”, Hemmi says, as he notes that the role of studio monitors is to support the right recording and mixing decisions, to blend into the space so that attention can be focused on what ultimately matters, the art of sound.

Hemmi is also an experienced pioneer of immersive sound in Finland. He actively trains and shares his knowledge, and he recognises the power of the format to enhance musical expression. “When done well, it enhances the emotional expression of music significantly”, he adds. 

With this episode, we would like not only to pay tribute to Risto Hemmi’s life's work, but also to congratulate Finnvox on its 60-year history. The studio is an enduring cornerstone of the Finnish audio industry, leading the way decade after decade. 

Metalsmith Eino Paulus' remarkable journey

In our first-ever episode of Genelec Kinos, we’re honoured to present Metalsmith Eino Paulus, a true craftsman whose influence at Genelec will be felt for generations to come.

A skilful and forward-thinking worker, Paulus made himself an integral part of our story, with a crucial role in bringing some of our early technical concepts to life. In the late 80s, as we faced the challenge of manufacturing our own midrange drivers for the large 1035A, requiring high power and low distortion, Paulus rose to the occasion. In the process, he set about teaching himself to cast aluminium and built his own furnace to create the driver frames.

Later, in 1991, we received a challenging request from a faithful customer in Italy, RAI. In meeting their demands, we took just two months to develop our then ground-breaking and now legendary 1031A. Paulus was there every step of the way, helping to expertly construct its midrange driver.

Paulus, a passionate instrumentalist, often spends his time playing violin and mandolin with his musician friends, so in this episode, we also explore how his musicality strengthens his connection with sound.

Herbie The Mouse journeys to sonic excellence

With the production of this very special short film – made for our 40th anniversary – we wanted to celebrate the very essence of Genelec, in terms of both our history and our bold journey forwards.

It stars a brave little mouse called Herbie, who is inspired by a series of beloved Genelec adverts from the past, which feature a carefully listening mouse with pricked-up ears. We named the mouse Herbie as a tribute to Herbie Kastemaa, who designed the now iconic adverts.

“The idea was to bring back the well-known mouse character in a film”, says Genelec CEO Siamäk Naghian. "For us, this story is more than just storytelling, it's introspection through art – the adventure of a little mouse, through which we try to sense and convey things that words cannot fully express. The aim of the film was to create something that would stand the test of time and make the viewer think about deeper questions through art."

In the film, Herbie traverses many challenges, twists and turns. At the end of the tale, an unforgettable experience awaits Herbie, the rich sound of Genelec loudspeakers. The story invites viewers to contemplate Genelec's strong values, love for art and passion for sound.
"There are many ways of telling things, and art, like poetry for example, opens up layers that we might not otherwise be able to get to. When you reach a level where you’re no longer just describing events but conveying emotions and sensory impressions with images and sound, the story starts to become vivid and true," says Naghian.

Jyrki Rahkonen, the film's director and screenwriter, says the film was inspired by conversations with Siamäk Naghian, while late Genelec Co-Founder Ilpo Martikainen also brainstormed with the creators. Rahkonen comments that, "Initially, the plan was to feature the mouse once again in Genelec's media. When Siamäk proposed a short film on the subject, I immediately thought of Finnish nature and Genelec's strong ecological values. The story then quickly began to write itself, and after a few script revisions we got down to making the film."

The spirit of the production and Genelec's strong values also left a mark on the director. "What I particularly remember was the good spirit that prevailed in the production team. I call it the Genelec spirit, the same spirit I experience every time I visit the company’s factory.”