Following recent renovations to Frederick P. Rose Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center (JALC) now features Meyer Sound systems in every performance space within the venue.
This includes a LEOPARD linear sound reinforcement system in the Rose Theater, a Constellation acoustic system in the Appel Room, and an ULTRA Series loudspeaker system in Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola. Visitors can also experience Meyer Sound technology throughout JALC’s redesigned public spaces, including the Mica & Ahmet Ertegun Atrium and the Ertegun Hall of Fame.
Sound Associates of New York led the coordination of all Meyer Sound systems throughout the venue, working collaboratively on design with the JALC staff and Bob McCarthy, director of system optimisation at Meyer Sound. The overall renovations of the JALC public spaces were designed by Richard Olcott of Ennead Architects in conjunction with Mrs. Ertegun.
In the 500-capacity Appel Room, which includes floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Central Park and Columbus Circle, has the only Constellation acoustic system in a venue dedicated to jazz. “Now, the optimal listening environment can be tailor-made for each venue and each aural situation through the groundbreaking technology of Constellation,” commented Wynton Marsalis, managing and artistic director of JALC.
Constellation optimises the room’s acoustics for both the audience and onstage artists, who rely on a virtual “shell” above the stage to enfold them in their performance. “Acoustics set the playing field for all performances,” said Marsalis. “In jazz and almost every form of music, extraordinary concerts can only happen when musicians hear each other clearly, and audiences hear and feel exactly what is happening on stage.”
LEOPARD, was selected for the 1,233-capacity Rose Theater to provide controlled, even coverage throughout the irregularly shaped room while meeting the needs of the JALC Orchestra. “This is a big band with trumpets, trombones and saxophones, and that creates a considerable amount of un-amplified acoustic energy coming off the stage,” explained Doug Hosney, chief officer at Frederick P. Rose Hall. “What we needed to be able to do, as transparently as possible, was to lift instruments like bass and piano into that acoustic energy for balance, but not have it sound like those instruments were artificially amplified.
“The line arrays we had before were considerably larger and not particularly linear in response,” continued Hosney. “You had to drive them pretty hard before they would open up, so we wanted to replace them with arrays that operated cleanly at lower levels as well. That’s where LEOPARD stepped up to the table and just blew away the competition. It’s a sweet-sounding speaker and delivers a full-frequency, well-rounded sound even at lower levels. It’s exactly what we had been looking for.”
