Great/Good Sound at live events in India or lack thereof….

[manek]

This issue has always haunted me every Time I have booked tickets or tables for live amplified music shows.

More often than not(90%+ times) I have come back disappointed. This has even happened in large venues like NCPA and similar. Ofcourse all the NCPA auditoriums are fabulous for unamplified/acoustic music and Tata Theatre in particular is quite something. Open air or concerts in stadiums are a disaster. I know its not an ideal environment but have heard good sound in open air venues.

They seem to be doing a good job at one new large venue in Mumbai which is the NMACC. Enjoyed seeing and hearing the stage musical West Side Story there. Cant wait to see Mamma Mia stage musical there as well.

I remember that live sound quality was so much better two decades ago or more. Why are the standards going down when there is better equipment available.

Not sure if this is a Mumbai phenomenon only or happens in other cities.

What are your experiences ?

 

[sandeepmohan]

Depends on the expertise and experience of the sound engineers on the ground.
The equipment is there and so is the technology that can correct a "bad setup' to a degree. However, in the end, there needs to be a really good PA engineer managing the setup over the duration of the event.

The usual practice is to get each member of the band to play their instrument solo and then have all of them on stage play together, before the main event. This is done to calibrate the setup. There's heaps of visual data and stage mics to inform the engineer what instrument is sounding louder than the other or if the vocalist can't be heard. Multiple presets are saved and the engineer simply hits that present if they need to course correct.

Major bands or Artists come in with their own equipment and sound engineers. You need to please the crowd thats paid a high price for your performance on stage and that includes top tier PA. Lower tiered bands may not have the same financial resource to do the same and that can have a impact to sound quality.

 

[Hari Iyer]

The SQ is one of the reason I don't go for live events here. Within a 3km radius I have two famous auditoriums having live orchestra every week/ month, but I too was disappointed by the mixing engineer. I am planning some live concerts at NCPA / Shanmukhananda hall next year to try my luck there.

 

[arj]

The SQ is one of the reason I don't go for live events here. Within a 3km radius I have two famous auditoriums having live orchestra every week/ month, but I too was disappointed by the mixing engineer. I am planning some live concerts at NCPA / Shanmukhananda hall next year to try my luck there.

Are those Unamplified or Amplified ? from the above it looks like amplified which are a completely different ball game from what Manek is talking of..

 

[Hari Iyer]

Are those Unamplified or Amplified ? from the above it looks like amplified which are a completely different ball game from what Manek is talking of..

They are all amplified music. To listen unamplified music, you need to be within the musician circle which is difficult for me as of now.

 

[aeroash]

The recently concluded Jodhpur RIFF was a fantastic open-air event. The amplified performances were scheduled during the day, while the unamplified ones took place post-midnight. Amidst the pin-drop silence of the night, the unamplified acoustic instruments of the Rajasthani folk musicians cut through the venue like a hot knife through butter. It was a mesmerizing experience with moonlit Mehrangarh Fort as the backdrop.

The amplified outdoor performances were pretty well-balanced sound-wise.

 

[manek]

The SQ is one of the reason I don't go for live events here. Within a 3km radius I have two famous auditoriums having live orchestra every week/ month, but I too was disappointed by the mixing engineer. I am planning some live concerts at NCPA / Shanmukhananda hall next year to try my luck there.

The most horrible experience was when I went for the Philharmonic concert at a stadium. I could hear only distortion from multiple loud speakers.
You get stuck in traffic, pay a bomb and what you get is distortion in its full glory !

My senses say quality of sound engineers is going down in general in this city. Very few care about sound at a audio event !

NCPA concerts are always good unamplified as I have mentioned above.

From what I remember of Shanmukhananda hall, at one time decades ago one could hear the local train pass by behind the stage from time to time. I have heard the maggio 120 piece orchestra there with the train as special effects Go figure. Never went there again.

 

[Nitin K]

From what I remember of Shanmukhananda hall, at one time decades ago one could hear the local train pass by behind the stage from time to time. I have heard the maggio 120 piece orchestra there with the train as special effects Go figure. Never went there again.

If you would have heard the plane from top, then the concert would have been complete with Dolby True Atmos.

 

[manek]

If you would have heard the plane from top, then the concert would have been complete with Dolby True Atmos.

Looks like your have had a top-down experience there !

 

[Nitin K]

Looks like your have had a top-down experience there !

Not actually Manek. Have been to NCPA long back but not Shanmukananda Hall. Was trying to visualise the concert along with the ambient surround sound effects which comes for free

 

[ajuvignesh]

As far as I know, sound engineers are underpaid for what they do. Both in studios and live. Only a handful gets good salaries. The rest doesn’t get it. Only a few engineers still follow their heart and those concerts will sound good. Secondly, most of the sound engineers are young and they are not much aware of a good reference to compare their works too and there were only a few to guide them better. They just over process everything.
It’s mainly the salary where talented were underpaid and they switch to a different field. I’m one of them.

 

[manek]

As far as I know, sound engineers are underpaid for what they do. Both in studios and live. Only a handful gets good salaries. The rest doesn’t get it. Only a few engineers still follow their heart and those concerts will sound good. Secondly, most of the sound engineers are young and they are not much aware of a good reference to compare their works too and there were only a few to guide them better. They just over process everything.
It’s mainly the salary where talented were underpaid and they switch to a different field. I’m one of them.

Wow ! Now thats a very different perspective and a real one at that !
So this is an industry issue.
Its also a travesty that when one goes to an event that too one that has to do with sound/audio like a concert, the sound quality itself is like a roll of the dice.

Its not a very encouraging situation.

 

[sachinchavan 15865]

This issue has always haunted me every Time I have booked tickets or tables for live amplified music shows.

More often than not(90%+ times) I have come back disappointed. This has even happened in large venues like NCPA and similar. Ofcourse all the NCPA auditoriums are fabulous for unamplified/acoustic music and Tata Theatre in particular is quite something. Open air or concerts in stadiums are a disaster. I know its not an ideal environment but have heard good sound in open air venues.

They seem to be doing a good job at one new large venue in Mumbai which is the NMACC. Enjoyed seeing and hearing the stage musical West Side Story there. Cant wait to see Mamma Mia stage musical there as well.

I remember that live sound quality was so much better two decades ago or more. Why are the standards going down when there is better equipment available.

Not sure if this is a Mumbai phenomenon only or happens in other cities.

What are your experiences ?

Check out the Royal Opera House. I attended a musical there and was impressed by how natural it sounded.

 

[ajuvignesh]

Wow ! Now thats a very different perspective and a real one at that !
So this is an industry issue.
Its also a travesty that when one goes to an event that too one that has to do with sound/audio like a concert, the sound quality itself is like a roll of the dice.

Its not a very encouraging situation.

Quite frankly, I was offered 8k - 12k as a salary as a sound engineer. I spent nearly 10L, including other expenses like accommodation, food, fuel, etc., to do sound engineering. Salary was one of the reasons to leave the industry.

 

[manek]

Check out the Royal Opera House. I attended a musical there and was impressed by how natural it sounded.

Seriously ? I was told it was very bad. Never been there.

 

[jagmarg]

There's a new indoor auditorium in Bengaluru.... Impressive sound quality for music shows

Prestige Srihari Khoday Centre for Performing Arts - Google Search

 

[sachinchavan 15865]

Seriously ? I was told it was very bad. Never been there.

i find the incredulity in your response amazing, Esp given that you are basing your view on someone else’s hearing. Why don’t you give it a try yourself?

I am speaking from my own experience and taste. I haven’t heard the bass so clear in any other Mumbaj auditorium - no bloat whatsoever. Not for bass heads though. Even the voices in the musical were so natural and clear.

Harnan who fitted the renovated Opera House showcases it as one of its delicately designed works.

Preserving the Art of Sound: HARMAN Helps Revive Mumbai’s Iconic Royal Opera House

During the early 1900s, the city of Mumbai witnessed an unprecedented peak in social, artistic, and cultural activity. At the center of this movement was the Royal Opera House, Mumbai, India’s ‘cultural crown jewel’ and only surviving opera house. Built...

news.harman.com

 

[manek]

i find the incredulity in your response amazing, Esp given that you are basing your view on someone else’s hearing. Why don’t you give it a try yourself?

I am speaking from my own experience and taste. I haven’t heard the bass so clear in any other Mumbaj auditorium - no bloat whatsoever. Not for bass heads though. Even the voices in the musical were so natural and clear.

Harnan who fitted the renovated Opera House showcases it as one of its delicately designed works.

Preserving the Art of Sound: HARMAN Helps Revive Mumbai’s Iconic Royal Opera House

During the early 1900s, the city of Mumbai witnessed an unprecedented peak in social, artistic, and cultural activity. At the center of this movement was the Royal Opera House, Mumbai, India’s ‘cultural crown jewel’ and only surviving opera house. Built...

news.harman.com

Maybe I will.
But that said I was given a not so shining report not once but a few times and by different people who really know what they are hearing.

But then again will sample for myself one of these days.

Manek

 

[manek]

Not actually Manek. Have been to NCPA long back but not Shanmukananda Hall. Was trying to visualise the concert along with the ambient surround sound effects which comes for free

Well, the Jazz Festival at Tata Theatre had good sound this time around. Heard it and happy.