Mike Gotshall, owner of Chicago-based wireless provider A Sound Choice, oversaw the audio needs at the festival this year along with IATSE Local 2 FOH engineer Norm Kruger. Gotshall also partnered with New York's Masque Sound to provide self-powered Meyer Sound Mica and M'elodie line array loudspeaker systems for Ravinia's two main venues.
"My relationship with Masque enables me to take on the bigger events, with the confidence that Masque can provide the caliber of equipment those events require, including Meyer Sound systems," says Gotshall.
The festival's 3,200-seat Pavilion was outfitted with a system centered around two hangs of 12 Mica line array loudspeakers, with UPM-1P and MSL-4 loudspeakers providing fill coverage. Eight 650-P subwoofers handled low frequencies, and a Galileo loudspeaker management system covered system processing.
Masque Sound's Paul Klimson says the MICA system was well suited for the Pavilion. "With so many people seated out on the lawn area, the challenge is to maintain that relaxed environment without overpowering it from the stage. The Mica array made a big difference in keeping excess energy from spilling onto the lawn, while dramatically improving the sound inside the venue."
In the 850-seat Martin Theatre, an array of five M'elodie line array loudspeakers was augmented by four UPA-1P and two UPM-1P loudspeakers, along with a pair of USW-1P subwoofers and nine UM-1P stage monitors.
(Jim Evans)
