Starlight Express powers ahead with d&b Soundscape.
In one of d&b Soundscape’s biggest deployments to date, Sound designer Gareth Owen is using four DS100 signal engines and over 350 d&b loudspeakers to deliver a thrilling, enveloping sound experience for the 40th anniversary production of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Starlight Express in London.
Celebrated sound designer Gareth Owen deployed the powerful d&b Soundscape system to achieve what he describes as one of his ‘biggest and most ambitious sound design yet’ for the London production of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Starlight Express. Marking its 40th anniversary in 2024, the famed musical is currently running at the Troubador Theatre in London’s Wembley Park.
Sound designer Gareth Owen uses the power of d&b Soundscape to fulfil his most ambitious musical theatre sound experience to date.
With an impressive installation of four DS100 processors driving the Soundscape system through more than 350 d&b loudspeakers, this project stands as one of Owen’s most intricate sound designs to date. The system was supplied by Cardiff-based rental provider Stage Sound Services, which made an additional investment with d&b in order to fulfil the specification.
Owen first used Soundscape back in 2019 for the high-profile rejuvenation of Starlight Express in Bochum, Germany. Since then, he has become a key exponent of this exciting immersive sound technology, which delivers extraordinary auditory experiences to audiences, as well as unprecedented creative possibilities to designers.
Having employed d&b Soundscape on more than a dozen musical theatre sound designs (collecting numerous nominations and awards along the way), Owen has been integral to Soundscape’s development. En-Snap, the cue automation software which provides significant show control workflow features for Soundscape, is the result of a collaboration between Gareth Owen Sound and d&b. Now in V3, one of En-Snap’s latest advances is the integration and support of advanced tracking systems. It’s a feature used to great effect here to enable the accurate movement of vocal reinforcement – a unique challenge for this fast-paced show.
In this arena-style configuration, with performer action and audience listening zones in all directions, the challenges for coverage and coherence were considerable. However, the power and resolution of the Soundscape system was up to the task. In fact, the practicalities of time and budget seem to be the only limiting factors to Soundscape’s creative possibilities. Owen says, “I’m not sure I could tell you what the creative limits are for this show. Even on a show with a budget and a design remit like Starlight Express, at a certain point common sense has to come into play – I’m really happy with the results.”
He adds, “In what is a complicated room, with a complicated seating arrangement and performance area, we’ve achieved everything we could possibly achieve.”
The extensive loudspeaker setup includes Y-Series line arrays across the front plus some V-Series point source cabinets and a number of smaller additional speakers. The production also sees Owen’s first ever use of d&b’s XSL-SUB, the small / medium format flyable cardioid subwoofer from d&b’s SL-Series (which he calls “a massive step forward”).
Of course, no such complex undertaking is achieved alone, and Owen gives special mention to his team from Gareth Owen Sound: his design team of Matt Peploe, Andy Green, Rob Jones, Ramon van Stee and Joe Green; the production engineering team of Dom Bell and Dan Mac, plus Hannah and Ollie Reymes-Clemmerson (jointly sound no. 1), Ollie Dudman (sound no. 2), Antoinne Lynne-Belmas (sound no. 3), Steph Siraut (sound no. 4) and Bethany Yao (sound no. 5)
Owen praises the “exceptional” support from d&b, with Application Support specialist Steve Jones singled out in particular. He also highlights the contribution from Phil Hurley and Stage Sound Services. “He just makes it work,” says Owen. “I’m pretty sure we couldn’t achieve half of what we do without his support.”
Summing up, Owen says, “I think we achieved exactly what we wanted to do. You know, it’s hugely important with all shows – and even more so with an Andrew Lloyd Webber show – to not screw it up. We don’t want anyone to say ‘it could have sounded better’. Luckily, no-one did, and I’m very pleased with that.”
