The 150th anniversary concert of the city’s famous Tonhalle Orchestra
Switzerland - A highlight of this year’s FestspieleZürich was the 150th anniversary concert of the city’s famous Tonhalle Orchestra, performed as a thank you to its faithful concertgoers.
Swiss event technology company Hyposound AG chose L‑ISA’s Hyperreal Sound technology to deliver “an exceptional experience” for this special occasion which featured guest pianist Yuja Wang. L-ISA is a multidimensional, object-based mixing and sound reinforcement technology and toolchain that achieves clear and natural results with accurate localisation of sound sources.
Hyposound owner Christoph Müller has worked with the Tonhalle Orchestra on a regular basis and has been dealing with natural sound reproduction for several years. “Using L‑ISA gave us the chance to take things to a different level,” he says. The concert took place on a specially built stage in the Münsterhof (town square). “We knew it would be well suited to L‑ISA, but the results were incredible.”
Müller designed the system using the French manufacturer’s Soundvision 3D simulation software. Soundvision enabled him to determine the various heights needed for the loudspeaker hangs and give the stage builder exact information for both heights and loads.
“Because L‑ISA is a relatively new system and we were using it for the first time, we worked closely with L‑Acoustics on the design, particularly with touring applications engineer Thomas Mehlhorn,” explains Müller. “It was really valuable to have people with us who have in-depth knowledge of L‑ISA and can work with the stored design parameters.” Additionally, Frédéric Bailly, L-Acoustics application engineer, was on site to provide support for the L-ISA Controller.
The final L-ISA design comprised five hangs of nine L‑Acoustics Kara each, distributed across the stage width and flown heights of 8.5m with 5m between each hang. Four X8 were deployed along stage lip as front-fill and with an ARCS Focus each side as out-fill. A central sub system was flown behind the Kara centre-hang, comprising six SB18 in an end-fire configuration. The entire system was powered by 10 LA8 Amplified Controllers.
“As the concert was open-air, it was important to give the invited audience a spatial impression,” says Müller. “However, as the concert was also open to the public, we knew the whole square would be crowded and we wanted an even sound for the entire audience, not just for those standing or sitting in the middle. L‑ISA’s multi-channel technology gave us the tools to be able to provide the perfect solution, delivering a crystal-clear sound with a great foundation in the low frequencies.”
Lighting designer Markus Güdel, worked in collaboration with Hyposound to ensure that both the L-ISA system and lighting design achieved the desired production outcome.
(Jim Evans)

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