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| Barry Manilow: Music and Passion Mixed with Yamaha PM1D Digital Mixing Console | ||||||
The show, which premiered in February 2005, is booked for a full year and not only features the music of Manilow’s 30-plus-year career, but also pays tribute to the songs of Vegas legends Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., Dean Martin and Elvis Presley (appropriately enough, Music and Passion occupies the King’s former home, the Las Vegas Hilton Theater). Complete with airborne performers and scenery, plus the latest in lighting and video technology, Music and Passion is a theatrical as well as a musical spectacle, but the visuals are only part of the picture. Audio engineers John Godenzi and Nick Sodano keep the sound in check thanks to a pair of Yamaha PM1D digital consoles at front of house and monitor positions, and multiple Aviom personal mixing systems. According to Aaron Gordon, head of audio at the Las Vegas Hilton, the Manilow show is a perfect fit for the venue. The recently-installed house sound system includes two line arrays of eight EAW 761 cabinets and EAW SB1000 subs, driven by Crown MacroTech amplifiers with the IQ series system interface. System processing via a Lake Contour system has also improved overall clarity. The Lake system runs in conjunction with Godenzi’s Yamaha PM1D at front of house. All signal stays in the digital domain, with AES/EBU from the PM1D going directly to the Lake Contour. The PM1Ds were also upgraded for the Manilow show. “We have 32 digital inputs and outputs,” he explains, “and we’ve upgraded to the new PM5000 preamps. There are 100 preamps in the console, as well as 32 line inputs and 32 digital inputs, and 64 analog outputs and 32 digital outputs.” Even with an arsenal of outboard effects from Lexicon, Joe Meek, t.c. electronic, Apogee and Eventide, the PM1D has enabled Godenzi to streamline his external racks. “The PM1D has a very usable effects processor, and the real heart of its system is the SPX2 software,” he says. “That’s like having eight SPX2000 units. Every channel has internal gates and compressors.” The original monitor system was to mirror Manilow’s touring configuration, with two separate consoles and two engineers. As space- and cost-saving alternatives, Godenzi proposed an Aviom self-monitoring distributed audio network, with A-16R personal mixers and A-16CS remote control surfaces, similar to one he had used on the James Taylor tour. Each member of the band and backing singer now has his or her own 16-track control for their monitors, but because of channel limitations, two Aviom systems are run through the PM1D monitor console. Monitor engineer Nick Sodano sends 16 outputs for band mixes, while another 11 channels go to a separate Aviom rack for the singers’ mixes. A Sennheiser wireless system is the base of the monitor system. All performers are using in-ear monitors except for the guitarist, who has a set of stereo Clair 12AM wedges, and two horn players who share a stereo Aviom mix and have one 12AM behind them as well. With the Aviom system taking care of the band, Sodano can concentrate on Manilow’s mix. “I mix Barry’s ears off the left and right stereo buss of the PM1D, so he’s really getting a front of house mix,” he explains. Manilow uses a Shure E3 in-ear system, and is very specific about his mix. “He prefers not to hear much low end coming through his ears,” says Sodano, “so everything is EQ’d separately for him. He does, however, want to hear a full-range piano.” For more information: www.yamaha.com |
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