VIENNA, Austria —Vienna’s Grosser Musikvereinssaal, also known as the Goldene Saal (Golden Hall), uses an assortment of AKG microphones for Vienna’s Philharmonic Orchestra, including AKG C 12 VRs, K 702s and a WMS 400 wireless system. The mics are also now used for the annual New Year’s Day Concert, which has been telecast each year since 1959, and for numerous lectures and public readings.
To serve the variety of public events, the sound system uses four channels of the AKG WMS 400 wireless system. A mobile lectern has been equipped with a CK 33 capsule on a modified GN 50 gooseneck that can also be connected to a bodypack transmitter to minimize the need for microphone cables. All of the microphones are controlled by an AKG AS 8 automatic mixer and monitored by AKG headphones using the K 207 reference.
“The Golden Hall is simply the finest and most beautiful concert hall in the world,” said Alfred Reinprecht, AKG’s vice president of marketing and product management. “The acoustics are impeccable, the sound system is extraordinary, and the venue is designed beautifully. I couldn’t imagine a better musical experience.”
Much of the musical experience at the Golden Hall can be attributed to the design of the building itself. A hollow space under the wooden floor creates a resonant background; the ceiling, which is made of wood, is hung from the rafters and gives the sound in the hall extra dimensions; and the ceilings, balconies, and caryatids provide ideal propagation of sound waves. Since the first concert was held on January 6, 1870, the Golden Hall has represented the finest in acoustics, garnering praise from architects, musicians and concert-goers from around the world.
“The acoustics of the building are already unbeatable,” Reinprecht noted. “But when you add the sound system that is in place, it provides an up-front sound that is simply beyond words.”
The C 414 stereos are selected by AKG’s computer-aided matching method. Other AKG equipment used in this project include the C 414 B XLS/ST, the C 414 B XLII/ST, the SR 400, and the GN 50, among others.
AKG is a unit of Harman International Industries, Inc.
For more information, please visit www.harman.com.
