On April 10 and 11, 2009, London’s O2 Arena staged the world premiere of “Star Wars: A Musical Journey,” with John Williams’s famed score performed by an 86-piece Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and an 80-voice choir. A Lucasfilm re-edit of all six movies was shown on a 100-foot LED screen, while a Meyer Sound MILO and MICA line array loudspeaker system provided the powerful, pristine sound quality to captivate the audience as they relived the iconic scenes of the movies, with narration by C-3PO actor Anthony Daniels. An electronic shell created using the Constellation electroacoustic architecture allowed the musicians to hear themselves in an ensemble environment, despite the large arena setting.
The audience and press, including The Times, gave positive reviews on the superlative cinema and aural extravaganza, while Royal Philharmonic Orchestra Conductor Dirk Brossé commented, “the sound was the best I’ve ever heard.”
Sound design and front-of-house duties for the event were assigned to Fred Vogler, renowned recording, broadcast, and live sound engineer. Vogler recently won GRAMMY’s Best Classical Album and Best Opera Recording for his role as producer of Rise And Fall Of The City Of Mahagonny.
“The goal was for the music to have a big impact, which of course required lots of volume,” says Vogler. “Typically, getting lots of gain out of acoustic instruments comes at the expense of timber and fidelity; the strings become harsh and the sound becomes rather one-dimensional. Add to that the challenge of achieving a sense of dimension throughout the entire arena, which is difficult in a venue with such high walls.”
Consistency between the music and a wide range of dialog was also an issue. “It wasn’t like a scoring session environment, but there was the challenge of getting the orchestra to come across big and loud, and then accommodate bits of dialog here and there,” Vogler says. “The dialog came from six different movies, made over a 30 year span, so the levels and sound quality were pretty varied.”
The audio for “Star Wars: A Musical Journey” was supplied by Capital Sound, using a massive Meyer Sound system easily on a par with any major rock tour’s. Main left-right arrays of 18 MILO line array loudspeakers each were augmented by center hangs of nine MICA and six M’elodie line array loudspeakers, along with additional MILO and MICA stacks for outfill. Low end was amply covered by more than 24 700-HP subwoofers, and an assortment of MSL-4, UPQ-1P and CQ-2 loudspeakers completed the system. A Galileo with four Galileo 616 processors provided system DSP. Meyer Sound’s European tech support team provided technical assistance onsite.
Meyer Sound’s Constellation system played an important role for the performers, providing an electronic version of the traditional orchestra shell to allow the musicians to hear themselves in a familiar ensemble performance environment, without the need for any physical construction. The Constellation system at the event deployed a combination of 30 submixes by Meyer Sound’s Constellation team, using CueStation software and a selection of UPJ and UPA loudspeakers and USW subwoofers.
“The biggest complaint from orchestral players, particularly in large halls, is not being able to hear each other onstage,” says Vogler. “I didn’t want them to have to rely on wedges; I wanted them to hear each other with a true ensemble feel. The Constellation technology really accomplished that, with very minimal impact on my mix.”
The subtle effect of Constellation left an impression on the performers, most of whom were experiencing the technology for the first time. “All the members of the RPO were amazed by the difference Constellation made,” says Ian Maclay, managing director of Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. “We do lots of concerts of this kind and our players usually find it hard to find the right balance. It was apparent from the beginning that this would not be a problem using Constellation.”
Violinist Clio Gould concurs: “Performing the Star Wars concerts at the O2 Arena was transformed by using the Constellation system. We could hear ourselves play as well as the other sections of the orchestra, which is unusual in concerts of this kind.” Gould also holds the positions of leader of the London Sinfonietta.
“The Meyer Sound system more than lived up to my expectations,” adds Vogler. “We achieved a big sound with plenty of dimensionality. It was loud and impactful, but nicely defined, from the lightest flute and oboe passages to full orchestra. Meyer Sound proved to have not only the right equipment, but a team of people with the right mindset and skills to realize the producers’ vision.”
A standing ovation from the arena crowd and approvals from Vogler and Brossé reaffirm Capital Sound’s decision to use Meyer Sound. “The music of Star Wars is a part of modern culture, and we knew it was important to provide an audio experience that would meet the standards of the most discriminating fans,” says Capital Sound’s Paul Timmins. “Capital Sound has long relied on Meyer Sound gear to deliver unparalleled performance, and for an epic production like this one, there was simply no other alternative.”
Leave a Reply