The three-storey venue offers background music in the ground floor restaurant (and terrace overlooking the river) where acoustic artists and DJs often appear.
The 225-capacity Cellar Bar and the small stage accommodates a Martin Audio Blackline+ PA system, comprising four Martin Audio Blackline F15+, four Martin Audio S218+ subs and LE1200S floor monitors.
Upstairs, the 400-capacity Kerubi-Sali main stage and the highly specified room boast a Martin Audio W8LM Mini line array (four elements a side), plus a W8LMD down-fill box at the bottom of each hang, a pair of Blackline F10+ providing centre cluster imaging and six Martin Audio WMX subwoofers recessed across the front, under the stage extension.
On the stage, a further eight Martin Audio LE1200S stage monitors have been specified.
The main venue is mainly used for rock concerts but occasionally folk singers perform both here and in the restaurant area.
The installation was carried out by Guru Entertainment & Security, who had been brought in to supply sound and lighting - they in turn contacted EM Nordic Finland, Martin Audio's territorial distributors. According to Tuomas Lyly, from EM Nordic Finland, the entire venue is dedicated to music. "There are rehearsal rooms for classical music training and the main venue is used by the local music technology students in order to learn live mixing," he says.
The Karjalantalo is owned by the Karelian Association, and their tenants, Töminä OY, also run a summer festival called Ilosaari-rock where well known international artists such as Kate Nash and The Exploited will appear this year along with various Finnish bands.
(Jim Evans)
