PHOTO : DAVID GARDNER
PHOTO : DAVID GARDNER
THE D & B J SERIES HOUSE PA
get the sign-off on where PRG wanted to put their points and where the loads were in the ceiling ,” Gardner adds . “ And again , because the space was built from the ground up we were able to reinforce a lot of different areas knowing during the design process that certain beams were going to be taking certain loads .”
When it comes to customizing the event to the specific needs of an artist or client : “ We have multiple zones , and full control over them ,” Halliwell continues . “ There are two Lake LM44s at FOH for system control , and two more on-stage . Then we have the d & b R1 remote control software for the amplifiers , so you have complete system control to do whatever you want to . And we came up with a really good system tuning , a somewhat neutral tuning so whoever comes in there has a good starting point .”
History fills a void in the market in a way that a repurposed space couldn ’ t . “ The live music industry in Toronto has been pretty vibrant with Massey Hall , the Danforth Music Hall being 100 years old last year ,” Biasutti says . “ Live Nation saw that .”
Sleek , simple , but flexible , History ’ s video system enhances incoming artists ’/ clients ’ ability to customize the venue . “ We ’ ve got TVs all around the venue and a 28 x 16-foot Barco c5 LED wall comprised of 5.50mm Barco C5 tiles , also purchased from PRG ,” Gardner says . “ We also have two cameras in the venue , controlled in our video room , one directly behind FOH on a pole and one just off to the side on a pillar , and all of that can be sent anywhere ; dressing rooms , green room common space , the production office . So , we can essentially send content – cable TV , camera feeds , ads , and signage – anywhere .”
“ The concept was to have a large venue , arena experience for a club-sized band ,” Biasutti says . “ The green rooms are designed to have all
AVID PROFILE CONSOLE AT FOH
the high-end touches you ’ d see in a large arena and we have it in a small Toronto club .” It ’ s a value for the bands , but also audiences – seeing a mid-scale band with all the bells and whistles , in a relatively intimate venue . “ I always tell people when we ’ re giving tours and we ’ re standing on stage , ‘ you can see the facial expression of the furthest fan at the back of the room .’ Because of the design , the curved layout , it really lends itself to the fan experience , too .”
Overall , “ There weren ’ t any huge challenges when it came to the design ,” Halliwell concludes : “ The room is so well-designed , which is kind of rare . Most concert venues are old theatres or warehouses or something that ’ s been repurposed . With History , there was a plan for how the room was to be engineered and designed ahead of time , so that made it fairly easy . It ’ s all been well thought out . From that perspective , it was pretty straightforward . I think the challenge on this was definitely the stop-and-start nature of it over four years .”
Halliwell has been involved with the project for some time , he adds : “ As you probably know , the project had a slow start . It was 2017 when we did our first sound design but we got tied up with zoning and neighbourhood meetings and when we did get going again , the pandemic shut us down , so it ’ s been a long process .”
Now , however , with venues opening up and pandemic restrictions lifting , that ’ s , well , all history . And that ’ s music to everyone ’ s ears , even History ’ s neighbours , Biasutti notes . “ Initially they had concerns , but with the venue opening and people seeing how we ’ re running the business and controlling the area with our security team , they see Live Nation takes being part of the community very seriously .”
Kevin Young is a Toronto-based musician and freelance writer .
HISTORY ’ S AUDIO EQUIPMENT LIST
Main System 16x d & b J Series line array loudspeaker
( 8 per side ) 10x d & b J-Sub cardioid subwoofer 2x d & b Q7 ( front fill ) 4x d & b E12 ( under-balcony delays ) 1x Avid Profile 48-channel console 1x FOH drive rack with Lake LM44 digital processing , tour sound rackmount PC , with Smaart 7 and tablet control
Monitors 1x Avid Profile 48-channel console 12x d & b M4 monitor wedges 1x d & b , Q sub drum monitor 4x d & b , Q Series side fill ( ground stacked ) 4x d & b , Q Series side fill subwoofer ( ground stacked ) 1x d & b , D12 amplification package ( 12 wedge mixes , drum sub & stereo side fills )
Microphones 2x Audio-Technica 4050 1x Shure Beta 52 2x Shure Beta 57 8x Shure Beta 58 1x Shure Beta 91A 4x Shure Beta 98A 2x Shure KSM32 2x Shure KSM137 8x Shure SM57 9x Shure SM58 6x Shure SM81 2x Sennheiser MD421 1x Sennheiser e 901 1x Sennheiser e 902 8x Sennheiser e 904 4x Sennheiser e 906
PROFESSIONAL SOUND 37