Know-how

With ideas developed by the enthusiastic staff, the Hessian State Theatre in Wiesbaden provided themselves with a new audio system designed entirely In house

Ute Schatz is manager of the audio-department of the State Theatre in Wiesbaden. She and her highly competent colleagues Christian Peters and Walter Giebel planned and implemented the new audio system. ” We had had a look at other theatres and found that there were not too many alternatives to CANTUS and NEXUS. A key factor was the integration of all functions into the NEXUS network. Today, physical connections need no longer be made, although there is an emergency routing system. Normally, all system parameters are controlled via NEXUS; this includes the power-amplifier settings and parameters of the speaker-line delay functions.”

DIY Audio System

As the old audio system of the Hessian State Theatre in Wiesbaden was becoming more and more unreliable, the operators were faced with two alternatives. Temporarily close the theatre or install a new system to a very tight schedule. This was a real dilemma since public authority purchasing decisions invariably take time. The money was authorised only three months before the proposed installation of the audio systems into the first of the three houses. Obviously this was too late to begin the usual process of externally commissioning the planning.
Due to this anticipated time pressure, as a last resort, the three members of the sound department started work on the conceptual planning before the finance was in place. The result is amazing! A perfectly tailored installation with a multitude of extras.

Separated and Yet United

In 2001, during the summer break, the Large Hall, where operas and ballets are performed, was the first subject of a technical overhaul. The Large Hall control room is now home to a CANTUS console plus a NEXUS network. Similar changes were made to both drama stages, the Small Hall and the Studio Stage (which were renovated a year later). The Large Hall control room is now home to a CANTUS console and NEXUS network. For sound-reinforcement purposes a mobile NEXUS base device and a slave console can be freely deployed anywhere in the three halls.
The three NEXUS networks were deliberately kept separate, so servicing and updates can be undertaken independently. This network architecture also prevents rehearsals and shows on the various stages interfering with one another. Notwithstanding this separation, signals can still be exchanged between the halls. A fourth NEXUS system in the PA plant room integrates the three halls, the rehearsal room and PA distribution systems in a star topology.
During performances, signals outside the three hall networks, are transmitted via this central NEXUS network. For example, live performances in the orchestra rehearsal room or monitoring signals for the stage-management system.
To make this work the central NEXUS must be remotely controlled from each of the three control rooms. This is accomplished using an Ethernet network to integrate the three CANTUS consoles and the central NEXUS system.

Fixed Sequence

The Hessian State Theatre places heavy demands on the sound department. The institution stages a multitude of events ranging from operas, plays, and ballets to children’s plays. Even back in the seventies with the old sound system, it was one of the best-equipped theatres in Europe. Therefore, the members of the sound department are highly motivated and interested in technological as well as artistic aspects of their work. They use the three CANTUS consoles extensively, pushing system capabilities to the limits. This is especially true of sequence automation where virtually all elements are recorded, even including replay machines started via MIDI. For this application, the automation snapshot is adapted to suit. Snapshots are edited until, at the end of rehearsals, the entire automated sequence is stored in the CANTUS systems. This significantly reduces lead times for individual performances and also ensures all performances are largely identical — at least so far as the sound is concerned.
This high degree of automation, combined with the superior audio quality and surround-sound features of the CANTUS consoles, enables the introduction of new creative elements. Meanwhile, the directors have started enjoying the modern multi-channel sound and have made it an integral part of their productions!

What Wiesbaden Wants

However, this automated operation gave rise to new requirements. Even a product as sophisticated as the CANTUS can still be enhanced with extra functions. An extended version of the sequence automation was developed at the sound team’s request. The genesis of sequence automation itself came out of a customer suggestion.
The Wiesbaden crew wanted easier editing of snapshots. An understandable desire considering the complex ways in which they utilise the automation features. STAGETEC not only fulfilled this wish but also considerably enlarged the number of storable snapshots. At the same time a function was implemented which allows only selected function groups, such as the filter section parameters, to be copied into the snapshot-list. A Reverse Routing indicator, suggested by various parties, was also added.
It is an element of STAGETEC’s product philosophy to avoid individually customised software solutions. Therefore, all these new features were integrated into the standard CANTUS III software (see also page 5) and are thus available for all other CANTUS users as well.

Hand in Hand

During this project, manufacturer and customer were closely co-operating not only with regard to product development but also during the outline planning phase. The SALZBRENNER STAGETEC MEDIAGROUP, as general contractor, took up the basic overall system concept elaborated by the State Theatre Wiesbaden. This allowed a customised high-performance tool for theatre operation to be made to a very tight schedule. A result of the rare combination of competent users and precise planning and implementation. Simply the optimum solution in all houses!

The Hessian State Theatre in Wiesbaden is a multi-purpose venue staging five different types of performance; opera, drama, ballet, concerts and children’s theatre, with approximately 600 employees. During each season, more than 20 new opera, play, and ballet productions and many repertoire performances provide a broad cultural variety that includes classical works as well as modern musical theatre and dramas by contemporary German writers. Sometimes, four events are performed in a day as all three State Theatre stages can be used in parallel.