Case Study: Theater an der Wien

Theater an der Wien, built in 1801, is a historic Viennese opera house that hosted premieres like Beethoven's Fidelio. In 2006, it became Vienna's new opera house and has since set high artistic standards.

For over two hundred years, the Theater an der Wien has presented contemporary and entertaining musical theater, demonstrating a commitment to both tradition and innovation. The theater's diverse program includes old and new works, and even rarely performed pieces from various eras and styles, presented in exciting new productions and virtuoso concert performances.

To preserve the unique history and atmosphere of the Theater an der Wien, the theater's team planned for the venue to undergo extensive renovations starting in March 2022, with the goal of  transforming the historic venue into the premium operatic house in Europe.

the audio solution

After extensive research and with expert guidance from W&W Sales GmbH, the Theater an der Wien team chose to invest in a state-of-the-art immersive sound system. Amadeus Acoustics Acoustics was selected to handle the immersive processing. 

The solution included a bespoke Amadeus Acoustics immersive processing setup, featuring two Amadeus Acoustics Core 128/128 I/O units operating in parallel with their ART::Acoustics, ART::Immersive System, and ART::Care Support & Maintenance packages. 

A vital part of any Amadeus Acoustics system is the choice of microphones and Amadeus Acoustics turned to a variety including DPA, Schoeps and Microtech Gefell installing over 50 microphones across the theater. The immersive system was paired with a complete CODA Audio sound system, consisting of a main PA and 129 CODA D5’s and 68 CODA HOPS5’s. Innosonix devices powered the D5’s and HOPS5’s which handled the immersive duties. This impressive system is capable of delivering the powerful and highly dynamic content expected from operatic and classical performances staged at the theater.

But how to provide power to close to two hundred loudspeakers? Conventional amplification solutions would take up a great deal of space, and wanting to keep the impact to this delicate venue to a minimum, amplification and processing would have to be limited to a small footprint. In addition to space, the team also required an amplification solution that kept latency to a minimum and ensured precise audio clarity. When deploying an immersive system, it's vital that all latency is taken into account to ensure an accurate and all-encompassing immersive experience. 

Having a great deal of experience using Innosonix solutions in past theater projects, W&W Sales GmbH knew exactly where to turn. The team specified 3x MA16/D² and 6x MA32/D² distributed over multiple small technical booths. Because this historical building's structure couldn’t be altered, this solution fit perfectly without requiring any modifications due to the D²'s compact size. Deploying D² made perfect use of their large channel count within the small platform and the minimal additional latency these devices added to the system.

the result

During system deployment, W&W Sales GmbH leveraged Innosonix's unique DSP feature set found within Maxx Remote, including Group and Channel Identity features.  For example, they used comprehensive channel delays to align the delay lines of the numerous CODA D5s installed in each loge to the theater's main PA. Additionally, the team utilized the Remote Mute function for centralized muting of the entire system via their own hardware.

The combination of immersive, loudspeaker and amplification solutions from these three German manufacturers in particular has resulted in a stunning outcome. The ceremonial reopening on October 12, 2024, featured the Vienna Symphony Orchestra under the musical direction of Petr Popelka and the Arnold Schoenberg Choir, showcasing this extraordinary immersive sound system and captivating all in attendance.

Following the renovation the acoustics leave a lasting impression on not only the audiences, but visiting sound engineers delivering a rich, immersive experience that allows music to flow effortlessly and resonate throughout this historic theater with remarkable clarity.