Nexo helps tell the story of major Paris landmark
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Built during the reign of Louis XIV in the 17th century, the stunning architecture of this building with its six chapels is brought to life in the Aura Invalides night-time experience in which visitors are immersed in orchestral music as the walls become a canvas for dynamic video projections and lighting effects.
The experience was designed by Moment Factory at the request of cultural operator Cultival and produced through a partnership with Musée de l’Armée, France’s national military museum. An all-Nexo sound system finished in a custom RAL colour to match the stone walls of Les Invalides was designed and installed by French AV technology and events production specialists Novelty Group, with assistance from the engineering support team at Nexo.
Eight clusters of four Nexo Geo M6 compact line array elements are wall-mounted close to the pillars at the entrances of the four corner chapels, with each cluster facing the opposing pillar. L18 subs are mounted above each of the four corner arches, with a single GEO M620 at each corner firing into the dome to create a virtual source.
Compact Nexo ID24s above each arch face the floor, with additional pairs of ID24s mounted above the Turenne and Vauban monuments in the two side chapels, and pairs of ID24s supplemented by an IDS110 sub in each of the four corner chapels.
Sound is central to the experience which has been described by visitors as magical and sublime, as spoken word, music and soundscapes are used in a 3-movement journey that covers the design and construction of the building, its history and that of the characters connected with it, and its role in the present day.
“It’s a major achievement to install a powerful, discreet and coherent sound system in this extraordinary space with an enormous 14 second TR,” comments Christophe Girres from Nexo engineering support. “Both the GEO M6 and ID24 achieve high SPL with precise coverage from relatively small cabinets, and the facility to supply custom RAL colours certainly helped the system to ‘disappear’ in the historic setting of the Dôme des Invalides.”
