He made a difference.
I will miss him.
To all my friends at Bose Corporation, my heart is with you.
Sincerely,
ST
To ST and to all our brothers and sisters on the forum,
Life has ended for the most extraordinary human being I have ever known, one to whom all of us on this forum owe a great debt. That debt is simple and profound. I will try to recall the words that passed between Amar Bose and Alan Steinberger in the Bose auditorium, in the presence of so many who write here. Forgive my weakened memory.
Alan: Sir, do you … truly realize what you have done for us?
Dr. Bose: I … doubt that I fully understand it. I hope you’ll tell me.
Alan: you have given us back our lives as musicians.
All: [murmurs of assent]
The inventions that have so fundamentally restored to us the gift of deep musical expression were not always his direct handiwork. Yet nothing in life so delighted Dr. Bose as to witness the fruits of his students going beyond his imagining, fruits created and matured in the company culture he created and nurtured. The L1, and indeed this forum, would not have been possible in any other place.
Those of us who work for his company also owe him a debt of enormous value. It is expected that every company founder would say, in effect, “this company exists to fulfill MY dreams, NOT yours”. Amar Bose rose far, far above that. He wrote, “My vision is for each and every one of us to be able to work in a climate that allows individuals to reach their fullest human potential.” Think of that – “their fullest human potential”. HIS dream was of creating a place where OUR OWN dreams can come true. As in so many things, he succeeded in this. Our products are the proof.
It is a heavy gift for us to carry. We can only pay it forward, bring the gift to others. We can only do our best to continue his dream and to earn our way as we always have: to fulfill our promise to you of …
Better Sound Through Research.
I thank you, my professor, my founder, my leader, my boss, my mentor.
Chris Ickler
Distinguished Engineer
Research Division
Bose Corporation
Although I never met Dr. Bose, I had the good fortune of interfacing with several Bose employees. They were truly a marvelous reflection of his Ideals and principles.
Using their products and enjoying the warm, friendly and professional relationship of these people have left a lasting and memorable impression of not just purchasing a product, but of being a part of the experience we have all come to know as “Bose”.
ST,
Thanks for sharing this info on the forum. You are right. He will be missed. We’ll not forget the inspiring hours with him at the Corporate center auditorium. Absolutely amazing, it was.
Chris,
Thank you for that beautiful heartfelt tribute. I can only imagine the loss that you and Ken must feel. Our thoughts and prayers are with you. We will enjoy the shade of trees that this man planted for years to come.
Rick
Joel, we are a part of the family, aren’t we?
Every person I’ve met from BOSE has had that spirit of being a part of something very special.
My deepest sympathy to the whole BOSE organization, I know that he will be sadly missed by all of us. I have been a BOSE believer for many years. His contributions will live on forever as they have changed the world we live in.
Rest in peace dear sir.
What a sad day. What vision Dr. Bose had. He understood so much more about how experience mattered more than specs and measurements. He also sought to be a better person every day by consciously looking back over each day and making adjustments and resolutions to do better and be better. That has had a profound effect on me. He had so much insight into human nature and such a belief that the world can be a better place. I am truly inspired, and I hope his words and spirit can live on in the hearts of those who knew him.
My deepest sympathies to those I know and love at Bose and those who were influenced by Dr. Bose.
Tom
ST: thank you for beginning this topic. You are the perfect person to do so.
Chris: what a beautiful mind.
L1 forum family members: you are the reason I choose to write here first.
A few months ago I spent a long time talking to Dr. Bose at his home. I’d taken a crack at writing down what I think the philosophy of Bose is using only words from lectures Dr. Bose has given over almost a 50-year period. (The tenets are remarkably stable over that period.)
As I laid out my analysis and conclusions, I could tell there was something he was uncomfortable with – something that wasn’t part of the work I’d presented – and we had the luxury of time (funny, when you think about it now) to work out what was wrong.
Dr. Bose is about YOU. Unlocking YOU. Yes, he practiced the principles he believed in so deeply. And his personal productivity using these principles speaks for itself.
Ultimately, though, I believe he knew that the true power of these ideas was to inspire others to use them. Today, there are literally thousands of people who do, including, I believe, some of you.
He wanted me to keep the focus of the work I was presenting on YOU, not himself. Got it.
The L1 is as pure an expression of his belief in US as anything I can think of. WE (including the folks who made and make this community) knowingly or not used Dr. Bose’s timeless philosophy to bring something truly radical, and I would argue radically better, to life.
The evidence of the power of Dr. Bose’s philosophy is overwhelming.
Let us now add to it.
With best regards,
Ken
I bought my first Bose product over 30 years ago and my most recent purchase a year ago. The entire Bose “team” has always given me outstanding product and service with a smile. If I where to sum up Bose Corporation and IT’S people it would probably say:
BOSE
WHERE QUALITY IS OUR ONLY ALTERNATIVE
Aj
Class Entertainment
"music is neither new or old …it just “is”