Opened in 1979 on the site of a former gas works, Copenhagen’s Østre Gasværk sits within an old gas tank shoes cylindrical shape provides a dramatic settings for musicals and theatrical events. The recent installation of a DiGiCo Quantum 7T mixing desk has revolutionised the venue’s programming and rehearsal process.
‘Having the Theatre software for our Quantum 7T has really helped,’ says Morten Frank, Head of Sound and mix engineer for its latest musical, UrineTown. ‘It gives us a great overview of the cues in the show, and quickly being able to change members of Control Groups during rehearsals has been a massive improvement to our workflow.’
The DiGiCo Theatre (T) software is optimised for theatre use, allowing greater flexibility and tracking of cast members with features such as Live Update, which allows engineers to accommodate understudies, and dance and singing tracks rippling changes through the cue-stack. It retains all effects that apply for a particular channel until Live Update is removed.
The Quantum 7T’s has a huge channel count, internal effects, Nodal Processing, and DiGiCo’s Mustard and Spice processing racks. ‘We needed a desk that could handle the processing and channel count of the shows we are doing at the theatre,’ Frank says. ‘The greatest add-on to that was the Theatre software, it’s been a real game-changer and makes it a lot easier to work with the new Theatre Max system.’
TheatreMax is an integrated immersive system that allows sound, video and lighting designers to use the entire space as a blank canvas. Loudspeakers are placed throughout the venue, completely surrounding the audience. Acoustic treatment is used beyond the lighting rigs to tame the cavernous roof space.
‘The new desk is a great add-on to the system,’ Frank continues. ‘With the possibility of much more processing channels, it makes it a lot easier to work with the new system.’
Upgrading any equipment in the theatre just before a large musical opens can be a testing time, but being head of sound at Østre Gasværk since 2017 meant that Frank was sure the Quantum 7T would fit in.
‘The joy of the DiGiCo mixing desks is that the interfaces are largely similar,’ he reports. ‘It is very intuitive to go from one desk to the next, so I wasn’t worried about the change. The main benefit has been the T software. It has made my life as a board operator much easier. It really is a game-changer when working in a theatre environment.’
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