From his days with the Grateful Dead to his globetrotting studies in musicology, Mickey Hart has lived and breathed percussion. The choice of wood as a musical instrument was hardly a new concept for Hart. "The wood is old growth, hundreds of years old, and very sonorous," says Hart in a report in Marin Independent Journal. "It has these extremities that make different sounds. They're beautiful instruments. Over the years I've started to play on them and I've actually performed on a couple of them in concerts."
Hart considers Meyer Sound loudspeakers an integral part of his sonic palette. He recently collaborated with Hussain to create a high-impact original score for the new Mirage Volcano spectacular, delivered through a Meyer Sound system featuring the Milo line array loudspeaker.
For this exhibit reception, Meyer Sound technical consultant Dave Dennison designed a surround system comprising five MM-4XP self-powered loudspeakers, along with a pair of UMS-1P subwoofers. "We placed about 10 mics at various resonant points on the piece, and used a Galileo loudspeaker management system to create the delays and placement," says Dennison. Two UPJ-1P VariO loudspeakers added sound reinforcement in the larger part of the gallery space.
At the Dennis Rae Fine Art gallery, the Meyer Sound surround system also helped to showcase Hart's latest recording, also titled The TAO of Wood. The recording features Ramrod and numerous other exotic instruments.
(Jim Evans)
