Bratislava, Slovikia – November 2013
… Completed in 1886, the Slovak National Theatre was designed by Viennese architects Ferdinand Fellner and Hermann Helmer. Since 1920, the ornate, 1,000-seat building has been the seat of the Slovak National Theatre opera and ballet ensembles. The hall has also hosted performances by some of the world’s top opera and ballet talents.
Its acoustics, however, have come under more scrutiny. The room’s very short reverberation time, while acceptable for opera, doesn’t suit orchestral performances. Its narrow stage faces a long auditorium where the rear seats are 75 ft (22 m) away. Uneven sound coverage confronted its numerous balconies.
A subtle sound reinforcement system, effectively invisible to the audience, was needed, and the theater approached MediaTech, Bratislava’s largest pro audio company.
EASE analysis led to them recommending the IC Live digitally steerable system by Renkus-Heinz. Its clear, uncolored musical sound, the ability to steer multiple sound beams into specific areas of the audience offered precisely the solution that was needed. And its slim, low profile design — complete with a custom paint finish – complemented the theatre’s décor perfectly.
The system includes extra reverb for orchestral shows via a TC Electronics M6000, with a Yamaha PM5D console linked directly to the IC Live system via CobraNet. “The audience had to be unaware of sound reinforcement,” says MediaTech’s project manager Miroslav Paciga. “IC Live allowed us to achieve that subtle effect while being visually unnoticeable.”
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Headquartered in Foothill Ranch, California, Renkus-Heinz, Inc. is the worldwide leader in the design and manufacture of audio operations networks, digitally steerable arrays, powered and non-powered loudspeakers, system specific electronics and fully integrated Reference Point Array systems.
