Bluecoats Indoor Bring New Sonic Dimension to Color Guard Performances with RCF
(Edison, New Jersey)
“We wanted to do something where the sound, staging and choreography are all in sync,” says Vanderkolff. “As our performances are generally in arenas, we took the theater-in-the-round concept and looked for a way to integrate the system allowing for the ability to pan, zone and direct sound toward the audience.” The concept stems from creative ideas injected by former drum corps member Aaron Beck. Beck, currently Head of Audio for Michael Jackson One at Mandalay Bay and Audio Designer for Bluecoats and others, has been integral in the evolution of the Bluecoats which dates back to 2015. He watched as drum corps were adding electronics to their performances, but felt those systems were very lacking from a quality standpoint. Beck led the Bluecoats to become the first corps to actually bring the professional audio sound system to the marching arts. An evolutionary step in the creation of a concept used in all of DCI today.
With their professional backgrounds of performance art in the theater environment, Vanderkolff and Beck knew there was going to be a need to take their sound reinforcement equipment to the next level. In steps Brian Belcher. A touring veteran, Belcher was working as a Sales Engineer with Roland, and discussions began about upgrading their audio. First, the integration of a Roland M-5000 mixing console that enabled the ability to upgrade audio output and create opportunities for discreet audio separation while performing.
Then the speakers. Belcher was familiar with the RCF HDL family of line array products from a tour he worked on with George Thorogood. “The size, output and power of the RCF products made them a perfect solution,” says Belcher. For the Bluecoats drum and bugle corps, he first designed a portable system stacking RCF HDL20-A line array cabinets on a custom cart with a SUB8004-AS subwoofer. “The HDL20’s provide even coverage with portability with minimal power consumption,” notes Belcher commenting on the extended reach and higher output the system offers. They’ve since added a system with HDL6-A for smaller format needs.
Now it was time to bring the Bluecoats indoor. The design for their 2018 included four rolling platforms as part of the choreographed performance. With a soundtrack embodying the music of the band Propellerhead, the program incorporated a modern twist on music, costuming and set design from the Mod era. “We are the only corps that uses a point source front amplification setup to try and create a natural sound across for the audience,” says Beck. Most groups just take the left/right approach. We used seven matrix outputs to feed the system,” allowing for various panning and surround sound effects based on positioning of the platforms.
Integrated into each platform were three RCF HDL6-A small format line array cabinets which provided the ability to create the special effects and focus specific sound on the guard performers on each platform. “We are really the only corps that uses field speakers for effects and amplification,” says Beck. “This allows us to have the sound match the location performer.” While having the HDL6-A’s mobile in the four moving carts, there were also three static stacks of HDL20-A’s in the rear for a total of seven discreet audio feeds.
This design for the Bluecoats Indoor created two hurdles to overcome - how to transmit the sound and how to power the speaker system to four rolling platforms that were part of the performance. “Finding the lithium batteries was definitely a big key,” says Beck. Beck found a solution in the Goal Zero Yeti 1000 lithium portable power station that was mounted on each of the movable platforms. And for sound transmission, they integrated a Shure PSM-300 personal monitor wireless system. The system takes the Bluecoats entire organization to a more professional level. “Their performance is so unique, so entertaining,” says Beck. “The level of achievement the Bluecoats Indoor has reached in their first year is astounding, and strengthens the overall brand of the Bluecoats organization.”
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