Berlin State Opera

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Photo © Gordon Welters

BERLIN STATE OPERA

BERLIN, GERMANY

EUROPE, MIDDLE EAST & AFRICA

Built between 1741 and 1743, the Berlin State Opera was called the Königliche Oper (Royal Opera) and was the largest opera building in Europe. Located on the central ‘Unter den Linden’ grand boulevard in the Berlin-Mitte district, locals affectionately refer to it as Lindenoper, too. In 2009, renovation began at Berlin State Opera, under the guidance of German architect, hg merz. The work to be done at the venue was considerable, with the roof of the opera building raised, as well as the proscenium prolonged in a bid to improve the acoustics. More renovation and extension work was planned for the director’s building, the below-ground connection building and the depot building, with the latter designed to

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• Above Berlin State Opera’s stage.

house the new rehearsal centre. With the restoration, reconstruction and extension handled by hg merz, the refurbishment focussed on the stage equipment and an upgrade to the audiovisual technology. Although the auditorium was to be left as unchanged as possible, the acoustics were optimised to improve the sound experience, while the audience were also offered a far more comfortable environment, with a much better view of the stage and easier access. To enhance the acoustics, hg merz raised the historic, domed hall ceiling by 4.5-metres, allowing the hall volume to increase by 40% - creating a reverberant gallery above the tiers, which, along with

the increased hall capacity resulted in a prolonged reverberation time from 1.1 to 1.6 seconds. To close this gap visually, hg merz developed an optically closed, but acoustically transparent network - this sound-permeable mesh pattern of the cladding fits stylistically with the historic elements of the hall, too. The contract for the acoustics of the rooms, building and for the planning of the audio-visual equipment went to Peutz Consult Berlin. When it came to the complex job of upgrading the audio-visual technology, Berlin State Opera enlisted the help of both Amptown System Company (ASC) and Salzbrenner Media as a joint venture. ASC, as a leader

of this joint venture, was responsible for the audio-visual systems and IT networks, while Salzbrenner Media took up the role of providing the stage management equipment, audio mixing consoles and signal distribution. For the audio system at Berlin State Opera, d&b audiotechnik loudspeakers, which are controlled by system-specific final stages with an integrated DSP controller, are utilised, along with 40 Meyer Sound MM-10XP subwoofers and 120 Meyer Sound MM-4XP loudspeakers. Also, mounted on mobile tripods, Meyer Sound UPA loudspeakers are used in any number of selected spots to create various additional reinforced

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“Having the utmost reliability and fail-safety were the most important parameters for the new wireless system for us.”

Photo © Marcus Ebener

sound scenarios. Elsewhere, 40 d&b audiotechnik E12 loudspeakers are integrated - virtually out of sight - in the lighting hoists, the hall ceiling, the proscenium bridge and in the reverberant gallery. Four d&b Yi10P loudspeakers and two d&b E8 loudspeakers are used in the proscenium arches, positioned behind the painted sound-permeable fabric cover. The centre cluster includes six d&b T10 loudspeakers. Above the proscenium, the foremost area of the opera stage, 12 d&b T-SUB subwoofers ensure that the bass is heard and felt everywhere in the hall. ASC also installed a Vi7P loudspeaker from d&b with two V-SUB subwoofers to the right and left, which reinforces sound feeds from the backstage area. “For special scenic effects, we installed a 3D audio system from Astro Spatial Audio, which is operated via two SARA II Premium Rendering Engines,” explained Christoph Wegner, Project Manager and Branch Manager of ASC Berlin. “These engines are integrated into the Nexus audio routing system via 128 MADI channels each and are available to all loudspeakers for acoustic playback. “The system is controlled in 128 vertical loudspeaker groups via the so-called surround channels. In this way, the sound engineer can

interactively control additional sound effects in every direction in the opera house, such as staging a choir via the sound system, and using the hall as a third dimension. “The result: the listener is drawn acoustically into the performance. In order to generate an all-encompassing experience, lighting and video systems can also be integrated into the system.” For the rehearsal stages at Berlin State Opera, ASC supplied nine mobile media racks, which are equipped with an IN 1608 Extron audio/ video routing matrix as a AV signal selector switch for Blu-Ray, CD and PC source feeds, and wireless microphones. If the racks are connected to the venue’s own IT network, access to inhouse recordings is possible. For such purposes, the Berlin State Opera was provided with three Extron SMP 351 H.264 streaming media processors which ensure real-time streaming of the camera signals and allow for the production of recordings intended for later use. To ensure complete wireless coverage throughout the different parts of the building, ASC installed a fibre optic-based HF distribution system from The Wireless Works. This open infrastructure allows the connection of various wireless systems, wireless microphones, the wireless intercom and in-ear monitoring. In order to transmit the wireless signals reliably

and fail-safe inside the Berlin State Opera, all while ensuring high-definition sound, a 34-channel Shure Axient Digital System was installed by ASC. Currently using the AD version of flagship wireless system introduced by Shure in 2017, the venue will soon switch to the remotely controllable ADX transmitter platform. This will provide the venue with maximum operational security in the coming years. Based on the previously calculated frequency setup, the integrated Axient Spectrum Manager can automatically send disturbance-free frequencies to the ADX transmitter in real-time. This ensures interference in heavily used HF environments can be avoided without affecting the audio signal. Sound engineer, Christoph Koch, Head of Sound Department at the Berlin State Opera explained further: “Having the utmost reliability and failsafety were the most important parameters for the new wireless system for us. On one hand, that’s guaranteed by the long battery life of the Axient Digital System. But we’re also very impressed how quickly Axient Digital System recognises radio interference, selects a free frequency from the backup list and within a fraction of a second switches over without being audible. Considering the demanding spatial situation, we preferred to have a sustainable and future-proof system for our diverse

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Photo © Gordon Welters

• Above Behind the reverberation gallery of Berlin State Opera, with a view through the unusual diamond construction, consisting of glass fibre reinforced phosphate ceramics (CBPC).

productions.” Along with the Quadversity receiver technology to reduce the risk of signal failures, interference and dropouts, Axient Digital offers a unified switching bandwidth (166 MHz) for receivers and transmitters. The tabletop charging stations for handheld and bodypack transmitters, as well as the digital ADX1M micro-bodypack transmitters with an integrated antenna, are useful features for the venue, too. “The scalability plays an important role for the Berlin State Opera,” said Christoph of ASC. “With just one receiver platform that works with two types of transmitters, Axient Digital provides the sound department with a wide selection of professional features, including reliable HF performance, impressive range and top signal and sound quality. This allows us to approach modern productions

with varying requirements in a flexible fashion.” The opera house now has access to stateof-the-art wireless technology in the form of 34 bodypacks and eight handheld transmitters from the Axient Digital AD series. Christoph Koch’s sound department also relies on Shure in-ear monitoring from the PSM 900/1000 series, with a total of 40 receivers. For the video transmission of the conductor, several Panasonic AW-HE 130 cameras, which are connected with suitable LWL converters via an Extron HD-SDI FOX matrix, are used. The captured video is then displayed on Sony LCD and OLED monitors. Apart from the camera signals from the orchestra pit and the long shot from the hall, scenic players, manufactured by Green Hippo, are connected to the Extron crossbar, too. These distribute the

image, along with the embedded sound, throughout the house via permanent or patchable fibre optic connections. In October 2017, on the anniversary of the German reunification - and after delays due to difficult subsoil, poor building fabric and plans being changed - the Berlin State Opera was officially reopened with a festive ceremony for the residents of the city. The opera house was closed again to allow construction work to be completed before opening for performances on 7 December 2017 - precisely 275 years after it has first been built. The work has been a huge success, with the design able keeping many original features that made it such a striking venue, all while modernising to allow it the Berlin State Opera to hold its own on the international stage once again.

TECHNICAL INFORMATION

AUDIO 40 x Meyer Sound MM-10XP subwoofer; 120 x Meyer Sound MM-4XP loudspeaker; Meyer Sound UPA loudspeakers; 40 x d&b audiotechnik E12 loudspeaker; 4 x d&b audiotechnik Yi10P loudspeaker; 2 x d&b audiotechnik E8 loudspeaker; 6 x d&b audiotechnik T10 loudspeaker; 12 x d&b audiotechnik T-SUB subwoofer; 1 x d&b audiotechnik Vi7P loudspeaker; 2 x d&b audiotechnik V-SUB subwoofer; 1 x Astro Spatial Audio 3D audio system; 2 x Astro Spatial Audio SARA II premium rendering engine; 9 x Extron IN1608 AV signal selector; 3 x Extron SMP 351 media processor; 1 x Shure Axient Digital system; 34 x Axient Digital AD Series bodypack; 8 x Axient Digital AD Series handheld transmitter; 40 x Shure PSM 900/1000 personal monitoring system

VISUAL 1 x Extron HD-SDI FOX matrix; Panasonic AW-HE 130 cameras; Sony LCD and OLED monitors

www.staatsoper-berlin.de