Page 56 - Guildhall Coverage Book 2020-21

To do this, 40 Neumann, Rupert Neve Designs, Schoeps, and DBA directional microphones
were placed across the space to capture instrument audio. These feeds were brought into
SSL, Yamaha and Neutrik preamplifiers and translated into Dante-native channels. These
Dante feeds then head to Cisco and Dell switch infrastructure across two buildings, and then
routed to a Solid State Logic System T mixer that allows for broadcast specific processing.
The audio feeds are then delivered out to two locations – to the broadcast mix for live
playout via a live production system, and to the other performers via headphones.

‘With Dante, we were able to deliver the correct mix to the different rooms with an
imperceptible level of latency,’ Hepple says. ‘Our conductor went into rehearsals on day one,
and within 20 bars he said he was ready to go. This is someone who has decades of
experience in the classical performance space, and it was an immediate acceptance of the
new set-up.

‘There was a time when we were worried this could be cancelled,’ Hepple continues.
‘However, with Dante we were able to keep it alive – and that’s a big deal right now because
our rooms, which are normally alive and vibrant, had been silent for six months. Bringing the
music back was important for everyone.’

The set-up will next be used to present an the Guildhall Symphony Orchestra concert
conducted by Jessica Cottis in November.

Dante has also ensured in-person, performance-focused instruction and coursework
continues. By using a similar Dante workflow across its multiple performance spaces, the
School is able to route audio into video conferencing applications that is of high enough
quality to allow collaboration.

The Guildhall School fully embraces the many different technologies and tools used in the
crafting of an audio performance and leverages Dante’s AoIP benefits to feed into an Solid
State Logic Origin analogue console via SSL’s A32 Dante enabled stagebox, which forms
part of a fully analogue recording studio. The studio is primarily used for jazz ensembles,
classical chamber and voiceover radio workshops. However, thanks to the benefits of Dante,
the analogue recording studio can in fact be leveraged for use with any of Guildhall’s
activities, be they performance, broadcast or teaching.

‘For example, we can put three pianists in one large room – or in three separate rooms –
and have their audio output via video conferencing to the instructor of the class,’ says
DataSound Consulting Director Liam Halpin, representing the firm that installed the system.