AR Rahman tribute concerts tour India with SoundCom
Published: ASIA
INDIA: Rental company Sound.Com recently toured India alongside Germany’s Babelsberg symphonic orchestra for a series of five concerts celebrating the work of renowned film composer AR Rahman. Included within the range of equipment used was a DiGiCo SD10 digital console, JBL sound reinforcement and Optocore networking.
Named the Classic Incantations concerts, the events saw Sound.Com working alongside Core Networks and Rapport Global Events for the unique tour, which marked the first time that a Western orchestra has paid tribute to an Indian composer.
Matt Dunkley conducted the Babelsberg, performing original scores and film music by Mr Rahman, accompanied by the choir and soloists from Mr Dunkley’s own KM Music Conservatory in Chennai. Operating the SD10 at front of house was Holger Schwark, while Sound.Com’s Sunil Karanjikar and Joel Dcruz worked on each date. The company’s managing director Warren Dsouza also acted as stand-in systems engineer for the Delhi and Kolkata leg of the tour.
The key to the touring system was the Optocore solution that Sound.Com implemented, using it where input sources from the stage exceeded the 48 mic pre amps available as standard on a Digi Rack. An additional 14 channels were picked up by an Optocore X6R-FX 16MI and transported to the SD10, interfaced coaxially to Optocore by means of a DD4MR-FX.
According to Mr Karanjikar, the DD4MR-FX and a DD2FR-FX also simplified the task of multi-tracking each concert on two computers (one of which was used as a backup). Both computers used RME MADIface interface units to the multi-track and all inputs on the SD10 were MADI mirrored on the Optocore DD4MR-FX and DD2FR-FX.
‘This facility allowed us to multi-track a full 56-channel system using just one fibre and one coax pair each for the two redundant systems,’ Mr Karanjikar explained.
A highlight of the tour, meanwhile, was the Bangalore concert, for which a sound system was deployed comprising four main hangs of JBL VerTec, 36 delay clusters of paired VRX932LA enclosures and a final row of SRX712M cabinets.
According to Mr Dsouza, the design was ‘something of an audio milestone in India. The fact that it was successfully executed was down to the Optocore node racks and Harman HiQnet System Architect, which managed the Crown I-Tech HD12000 power amplifiers.’
For the Bangalore date, the Optocore DD4MR-FX also collected outputs from the SD10 to be routed to four Sound.Com OptoRacks, each equipped with a DD32R-FX and a X6R-FX 16MI. AES outs from the DD32R-FX fed the Crown ITech HD amplifiers, which were driving the PA and delay clusters, while the LAN and SANE ports were used to transport Ethernet data from the master computer to the Crown ITech HD racks, allowing for full system control (including delay and EQ) for each cluster. Optical isolation allowed Sound.Com the freedom to use multiple power sources in the venue, keeping cable runs to a minimum.
‘The tour was personally very gratifying as we exploited technology to its maximum potential,’ enthused Mr Karanjikar. ‘This was especially true of the Optocore fibre optics, Cat-5, AES and analogue, which handled all the audio transport, and the combination of optical and electrical MADI for the multi-track recording and replay. This was all due to the solid platforms Optocore and RME provided us with.’
Holger Schwark added: ‘I think we had five very good shows, all totally different in circumstances, and I am extremely grateful for all the support we received, especially from Sound.Com’s audio crew.’