The panoramic views from the summit, which accommodates a hotel and restaurant, are spectacular and the summer toboggan run offers an alternative, swift and exhilarating descent. At first glance then, Pilatus isn't exactly the kind of location synonymous with a rock concert but on Saturday 28th August this year, that's exactly what took place. What must qualify as the highest gig in Europe featured local heroes Dada Ante Portas, and Henrik Belden as well as Swedish stars Mando Diao, all of whom played storming sets to an audience limited by the nature of the venue to 1000. Taking care of things on the production side was audio specialist and CODA Audio distributor for Switzerland, Schallwerk Audiotechnik GmbH.
The logistics of a mountain-top gig obviously presented unique circumstances but the Schallwerk team have become accustomed to a wide variety of challenges and with a carefully considered plan and CODA Audio PA, they delivered superb sound for an event that received rave reviews.
Stefan Zumstein-Uiting of Schallwerk takes up the story:
Pilatus on the rocks would be a challenge from the very outset. Providing adequate stage equipment for a festival on an alpine mountain top at 2123 metres has to start with transport. This was about as far as you could get from just parking some trucks directly behind a stage, so it was either helicopters, which we dismissed because of unpredictable mountain weather, or a cogwheel railway built in 1899!
The steepest cogwheel railway in the world was thus used to carry the production up the mountain. Taking into account each 50-minute journey and the nature of the site itself, Schallwerk's next challenge would be to design a stage set-up and system that did justice to the acts without any audio-compromise, was solid enough to withstand the weather and as compact as possible to mitigate the transport issue. Ultimately in the midst of the busy tourist season, as well as using space on very early trains, it took 8 extra daytime journeys for the production and 3 for the bands' equipment. The site of the gig, which presented its own logistical challenges, was described by Stefan as less of a concert venue and more a huge, irregularly-shaped balcony.
He continues:
We settled on a combination of AiRAY and ViRAY. Under normal circumstances at an event of this size, 8 x ViRAY per side would easily do the job but at over 2000 metres, the air is thinner and more energy is required to compensate for the loss of sound pressure this causes. That accounted for the choice of the 12 AiRAY driver over the 8 ViRAY the more air you move, the more pressure you sustain. The compact and lightweight nature of the CODA speakers significantly reduced the stresses involved in carrying gear to the top of a mountain but it really showed its class during the performances. The systems headroom was never a problem. We had at least 12 to16dB headroom all over the system at any time during the shows, which is really very impressive in comparison to other systems. (We run 100dB(A)Leq per hour the maximum permitted by Swiss law)
Our customer, Pilatus-Bahnen AG and the bands were delighted with the results and many people in the crowd also took the time to remark on how great the sound was. The system's performance was truly sensational. What was really impressive was the stability of the sound even in an occasionally gusting wind. Again, the size of the cabinets versus the power they deliver was also a huge advantage in relation to the unique nature of the site.
For Pilatus on the Rocks, Schallwerk used:
AiRAY x 12 (6 per side)
ViRAY x 4 (2 per side as downhang)
APS x 4 (2 per side as frontfills)
SC2 x 6 (3 per side below the main hang)
SCP x 6 (sub array in front of the stage)
LINUS RACK40 x 2
LINUS RACK20 x 4
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The panoramic views from the summit, which accommodates a hotel and restaurant, are spectacular and the summer toboggan run offers an alternative, swift and exhilarating descent. At first glance then, Pilatus isn't exactly the kind of location synonymous with a rock concert but on Saturday 28th August this year, that's exactly what took place. What must qualify as the highest gig in Europe featured local heroes Dada Ante Portas, and Henrik Belden as well as Swedish stars Mando Diao, all of whom played storming sets to an audience limited by the nature of the venue to 1000. Taking care of things on the production side was audio specialist and CODA Audio distributor for Switzerland, Schallwerk Audiotechnik GmbH.
