Yamaha Rivage PM7 becomes the new star of the Wrocławska Opera

the Wrocławska Opera of Poland has incorporated to its sound systems the console Yamaha Rivage PM7 to facilitate the transmission of the performances.

Streaming performances have become a routine way to bring the performing arts. After the difficulties with the production of technical sound of the first production of Opera Wrocławska, a digital mixing system Yamaha Rivage PM7 everything has changed for your audio department.

Streaming has offered a lifeline to the arts during the pandemic, but the question has been raised as to whether large-scale productions, such as orchestral concerts and great theatrical shows, they can transmit their performances with the necessary artistic effect. An essential part of achieving this is how the production sounds..

in 2020, Poland's Wrocławska Opera adopted live streaming, but encountered two problems: a template of 300 people with a sound department in the room of only three people (Grzegorz Bieńko, Sebastian Jarus and Jakub Krzysiek) who had no experience in streaming productions; and, on the other hand, the mixing capacity was three consoles Yamaha DM2000, that did not adapt to streaming shows.

“The DM2000 is still a great audio console for theatrical use but, due to its age and facilities, we found it difficult to offer the best quality for a live broadcast”, says Grzegorz.

However, when they were commissioned to conduct the sound of the first live concert of the Wrocławska Opera (an orchestral version of the opera Straszny dwór (The Haunted Mansion – The Haunted Manor) by Stanisław Moniuszko) Grzegorz, Sebastian and Jakub lived up to it.

The opera mix is always a challenge, since the orchestra, choir and soloists come together to create a coherent performance. but, in addition to limited technical facilities, each musician and vocalist had to maintain a physical distance of at least one meter from each other. To make things even more difficult, the production was arranged in a 360º circle. Unwanted spills from the various sections into each other's microphones were clearly going to be one of the technical hurdles..

Grzegorz, Sebastian and Jakub filled the six expansion slots of each DM2000 with cards Yamaha mini-YGDAI, which allowed them to network the consoles through Dante, directing the signals to the opera studio where the live mixing was performed. The basic feed for the live mix comprised more than a hundred channels.

The Haunted Mansion proved to be a great success for the Wrocław Opera, but improvements were needed to simplify audio setup and deliver better quality to the online audience.

PogoArt, based in Wrocław, has worked with opera in many productions, especially in large-scale outdoor events, and, on this occasion, also participated, supplying a Yamaha Rivage PM7 digital mixing system. From a production of La Bohème by Puccini, the sound equipment noticed a technological breakthrough.

“They had worked many times with the consoles of the Yamaha CL and QL series, but the ease of use, ergonomics, Technical facilities and sound quality of the Rivage PM7 surprised them”, says the owner of PogoArt, Slawek Pogorzala. “The sound of 96 khz, saturation of individual channels at the preamp level and reverb processing, much wider grouping and flexibility of shipments were just the beginning”.

Pogorzala also highlights tools such as the dynamic equalizer and Rupert Neve Designs plug-ins "that have allowed the audio team to refine the sound that audiences hear., maintaining naturally complex dynamics. Even the very fast jumps sung by the female soloists, which had always been a problem for the DM2000, are easily handled by Rivage PM7″.

Two other features that have made a big difference for the audio equipment are the system's ability to handle direct parallel and multitrack recording for streaming and the way it handles virtual sound checks.. They have been able to devote more time to working on sound and, when rehearsals with interpreters take place, use that time to perfect audio production.

“Taking into account the technical challenges, the audio team made a remarkable production of The Haunted Mansion with the three Yamaha DM2000. but, in comparison, what the Rivage PM7 system has provided has been fantastic”, explains Slawek. “Has provided consistent sound quality, precise and nuanced, that really brings the audio quality of the Wrocławska Opera House to the online audience”.

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