German service provider satis&fy relied on an L-Acoustics configuration including K1 and K2 system along with Kara and Kiva as supplementary sidefill and near fill loudspeakers to boost Ludovico Einaudi’s latest German tour.
Pianist Einaudi brought various musicians on stage for the current tour in order to bring his compositions to life in an approach combining both conventional and unusual instruments.
“Ludovico’s music forms a homogeneous sonic body that must remain intact at every point in the hall,” explained Lucien Götz, the Systems Engineer responsible for commissioning the L-Acoustics configuration. “In comparison to rock and pop productions, in which you primarily want to have the lead vocals still present far back, the stage sound should be reproduced here as naturally as possible.”
For the main PA Götz used 12 L-Acoustics K1 and 4 L-Acoustics K2 as downfill per side, with 2 arrays of 16 L-Acoustics Kara each used as side PA. At close range, 12 L-Acoustics Kiva placed on the edge of the stage as well as on tripods provided lipfill. Outfills were provided by 2 arrays of 3 L-Acoustics ARCS II.
“When it comes to transparency, L-Acoustics is unmatched for me,” confirmed Milo Benericetti, who is responsible for mixing the various sound sources at FOH into a homogenous body of sound. “Ludovico’s compositions are actually designed for classical concert halls. With the L-Acoustics system, however, I am also able to work out all sound details in large halls.”
Benericetti has accompanied the tour on close to 250 shows worldwide, often relying on the house PA. He expressed: “Most of the time I find L-Acoustics and of course it’s my first choice.”
In addition to Ludovico Einaudi’s piano positioned centrally on the stage and various strings, guitars and percussion instruments, a Moog synthesizer provided powerful pressure in the low frequency range.
“The SB28 subwoofers were primarily used as effect systems for individual instruments and were only used in specific concert phases. The K1 therefore provided the bulk of the full-range sound reinforcement for almost 70 percent of the hall area,” said Lucien Götz. The L-Acoustics SB28 were set up in a tooth gap pattern and were laid flat on the floor centrally in order to achieve even coverage and the lowest possible load on the stage. “As a special feature, I turned a double stack on each side of the stage 70 degrees outwards to cover the side ranks – so it’s not a classic tooth gap.”
“We had all the audio material including PA in a single trailer on the road,” said Götz. “Moreover, the handling is simply outstanding. From unloading to assembly to system check, it took our team of four people just under 90 minutes. This makes not only the technician happy, but also the customer.”