Avid Technology : Dual Avid VENUE | S6L Consoles Help Bring “I Love Musicals” to Gothenburg’s Ullevi Arena

A huge production like this requires a lot of preparation and extensive rehearsing-what was the schedule?

Well, the first rehearsals took place in Stockholm over four days before we went to Gothenburg, aiming to rehearse for another 3 days at the venue. Due to heavy rain on the third day, we ended up only rehearsing on the second day and the show days of which the first day was completely used for setting up the equipment and wiring.

How do you approach mixing such a big ensemble?

I started by counting the musicians and the required mixing channels. Then I decided to completely single mic the orchestra to make sure that we get the best sound we possibly can. Instead of using mic systems for the orchestra sections, we had every single instrument miced up separately.

When the project started in 2012, we had to deal with 96 channels. I was using a VENUE | Profile desk back then that I had been using since 2005, actually. Jonas Reinsjö, the monitor engineer and I had two Profile desks until 2013. In 2015 the show added a 32-piece choir to the performance and so we started using two Profiles for FOH as the channels no longer fit into one desk. The two desks were MIDI-connected enabling me to program both desks in order to get the correct snapshots up at the right time.

When we took the show to Japan in 2016, we were able to trade in one of the desks for an S6L that I gave to Jonas for monitors because of the high number of mix busses and I was stuck to my two Profiles on FOH. It was only when we started to plan for this year's show in Ullevi that we were finally able getting the S6L-32D for monitors and FOH.

Our first estimate was that we would need 128 Input channels, but at that point, we didn't know about the additional singing dancers. And then came additional musicians so, in the end, we ended up using three stage boxes with 140 input channels and around 94 output channels for monitors. I use about 140 plug-ins on the desk. One week before we started the rehearsals in Stockholm I actually bought a second DSP card for the FOH Desk because I use a large amount of plug-ins and ran out of DSP Power. I had eight or nine reverbs and around 60 multiband compressors-I usually use the standard EQ for the channel and multiband compressors for both channels and groups. Together with my snapshots I can create a different sonic character for some instruments and songs.

You can imagine how long this all takes. The entire orchestra gets one setup, and the guys with the solo instruments like saxophone, trumpet, and trombone each get their special plug chain and I programmed the multiband compressors for each of the songs.

How does your workflow look like during the show and how do you handle this many input channels and plug-ins?

The key is getting all the input channels of each section into layers. For example, the four leading Artists/Singers I have via Bank safe available on the faders at all times. I have one layer for the band, one for extra instruments like accordion and things that happen only in a couple of songs. I then have another layer for the strings, one for the brass section, one for the percussion section, one for the woodwinds, and one layer for the choir including the dancers. Another layer is used for some FX returns. The FX returns for the orchestra are included in the orchestral layers because I have separate reverbs on the strings, brass, etc. This way, I do not have to think too much on the spot and have quick access to it. In the last layer, I have all the FX returns from the vocals and also additional signals coming in from video with sound: the show intro for example or the helicopter coming in via video in Miss Saigon. In total, I think I used eight layers for this show.

And then when it comes to maneuvering the show because I have done this show a couple of times now, I always know when a solo is coming and so I can bring up my corresponding layer and grab the fader of the instrument and adjust accordingly. For some of the new material for this show, I had to learn the parts to be prepared and during the rehearsal. Our conductor, Julian Bigg, was very helpful. He often asked me if I would like another run through certain sections of the show to make sure that I had everything I needed. We actually had a talkback open between me and him during the rehearsals at all times. He is aware of all the technical challenges that come with a production like this, so he is always aware of not only the music part but also the sound engineering side of things.

A great advantage of micing the orchestra instruments individually is that you can recall things in various venues much easier because you can place the mics at the same position to the instruments and program all the inputs and basic EQs, compression, and FX. This then works in halls, open air, etc.

Because the song material of the shows is so diverse, at times you deal with orchestral oriented songs and then, for example, the 'Chess' material is pretty much a full-blown pop/rock/symphonic section.