[UK] Hands Off 2007 - Facilities

This thread is to discuss requirements for the event in terms of sound reinforcement, recording, equipment, etc.

A brief look at PA hire firms suggests that we could potentially be looking to pay an additional couple of hundred pounds for equipment to amplify the sweet sounds of our performers, demonstrators and workshop participants.

I have a small mixing desk and multitrack digital recording rig which I use for live sound (a 6 piece rock band), and which I could bring and operate for the event. The band also have their own fairly new 1.2kW PA system which has proved to be more than capable of filling venues of 100+ with plenty of volume - I'm sure they would be willing to lend us it for a small consideration (i.e. much less than pro-hire companies).

On the other hand, the benefit of a rented PA is that it could be sourced locally (instead of travelling down from Scotland) and replaced quickly in the event of failure.

An alternative solution might be to pester Sound Control or Turnkey for PA loan as part of a sponsorship deal.

Any other suggestions?

Do you think we need dedicated lighting?
Any special equipment required for particular performers?

I shall ask the venue about lighting when I visit them at half-term. My first thought is that as it will be a daytime gig in a school assembly hall there should be a fair amount of natural light.

For the big "as many theremins as we can muster" finale I envisage having players ranged around the perimeter of the hall for a "music in the round" experience. For the solo spots I imagine having our players on the stage, so probably a few lights would be good - chances are the school have sufficient already for productions.

What I don't want is to plunge the audience into darkness. The raison d'être for the symposium is to promote a feeling of community amongst thereminists in the UK, and ending on an "us and them" motif wouldn't be entirely consistent with that.

Getting Turnkey and/or Sound Control involved sounds like an idea. I'm wondering if they could have their arm twisted for an etherwave as a raffle prize. ;-)

I will defer to those with more experience with regards to sound requirements.

And the time has come to get the sound figured out...

I'm not an expert - I just know what I have picked up here and there - so I would like to call upon your expertise (and that of levnet - I'm cross-posting this) to fill in the gaps and correct the errors in my understanding. Thank you.

Preamble - things I know...

It takes a fair amount of power to fill a room full of people with sound because bodies absorb sound. The school performance hall is rated to accommodate 150 people. Balanced against this, the theremin has a tone that carries a long way. (Personal experience - playing quietly in a wooded valley in the early morning attracted people camping half a mile away.) Theremins need foldback. Lev Termen arranged multiple theremin performances without the benefit of big PA systems. The modern best equivalent of the diamond-on-a-stick behind Clara's head would appear to be the Bose PAS Single Bass Package (http://www.bose.com/controller?event=VIEW_PRODUCT_PAGE_EVENT&product=l1_single_live_music) - as used by Kip Rosser (and probably others too.)

Requirements.

The performance hall will be host to a small concert at the end of the symposium, consisting of solo performances (and possibly duets) from the stage, followed by an ensemble performance for multiple theremins spread around the perimeter of the hall to minimise interference problems. During the symposium there will be masterclasses and demonstrations requiring one or two theremins on the stage of the hall, private tuition and small group practices in side rooms. During the evenings there will be open theremin sessions in the main hall and a small group playing ambient theremin between sessions. (The idea of this being that there will be about four people playing at any one time and a rota set up to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to be one of the players for a time.)

An enquiry to people who deal in sound systems has resulted in the expected response - a sharp intake of breath and "ooh, big job that" type comments. I think they are unwarranted.

My idea is that a couple of PAS's (or similar) would fulfil the on-stage requirements, and for everything else we ask attendees to bring small amps along with their theremins.

Comments please.

Whatever you do, do not rely on the house PA.

Chances are it will be total crap.

With a central PA you will solve that problem but you will alos run into monitoring issues. Players may have trouble hearing their own instruments.

The PAS is good but costly. Individual amps will probably be the solution, especially for when the players are scattered around the room.

The drawback of each person running through their own amps is that some peopel do not have the common sense to maintain an appropriate volume level.

I would advise the players that you (or somebody) will be available to help with the sound. Let them know that you may ask them to turn down or up, whichever is appropriate.

This is a great topic. For nearly 35 years, I have worked professionally playing pipe organs (and currently a digitally emulated pipe organ) and church folks are extremely sensitive to the volume issue. I have learned through the school of hard knocks what people want/expect from an organist.

My experience is that "sound people" tend to run levels too loud. When I am playing at a whisper... I want it so soft that the audience is afraid to breath. At such times one does not want a sound person to ride the levels and destroy the effect.

If I was in a situation where I'm working with a "sound person", I would request that we set the "max levels" at sound check time and then don't touch them!

[i]"My idea is that a couple of PAS's (or similar) would fulfil the on-stage requirements, and for everything else we ask attendees to bring small amps along with their theremins." [/i]

Gordon, from what you've described, this arrangement would work.

You will want to request proposals from people who are playing. They may either bring their own PA systems or let you know what their requirements are.

[i]"Whatever you do, do not rely on the house PA."[/i]

Excellent advice. House PA's are usually set up for voice, not music.

[i]"With a central PA you will solve that problem but you will also run into monitoring issues. Players may have trouble hearing their own instruments."[/i]

A central PA wouldn't solve a lot -- the individual players would still need their own monitors. You would have to cable all the Theremins (spread out around the room) to the central PA. You would likely need hum eliminators to isolate the individual amps from the main board. You will likely have your hands full dealing with interference issues from the individual Theremins.

[i]"The PAS is good but costly. Individual amps will probably be the solution, especially for when the players are scattered around the room."[/i]

The PAS is excellent. Bear in mind that it is an mono system (unless you have two PAS towers).

[i]"The drawback of each person running through their own amps is that some people do not have the common sense to maintain an appropriate volume level."[/i]

Fair enough -- however DJ's and sound board folks are not immune to turning things up too loud.

[i]"Let them know that you may ask them to turn down or up, whichever is appropriate."[/i]

I think there needs to be an understanding that that you and the performer(s) will set the peak levels at sound-check time prior to the performance. Thus, the performer can focus on making great music without the nagging concern that someone will interrupt the music with a "turn it down!": the equivalent of being "gonged".