France - Known for its sandy beaches and warm climate, on the north-eastern Brittany coast, Dinard welcomed the fourth edition of Dinard Opening, a festival that celebrates English and Irish music. Held between 4-10 August, the festival featured artists such as Emilie Rose Bry, Izo Fitzroy, Rum Buffalo, Mick Flannery & Susan O'Neill and The Stranglers.
Dinard’s history with the UK dates back to the 19th century when the seaside commune was the favourite destination for British aristocrats. Now dubbed as the “most British of French towns”, Dinard was a fitting location for a festival dedicated to British music and culture.
Festival goers enjoyed music in various locations around the city, including a public park, Anglican Church, theatre, auditorium, as well as forecourt of the Port-Brenton manor. Behind the scenes, an APG sound system, designed by Paulin Bonijoly from Koroll Sonorisation, provided the audio experience.
Bonijoly, who has been working with the French loudspeaker manufacturer for two years, opted for the APG Uniline Compact (UC) modular line array to cover the festival’s main stage and outdoor area, which was split between standing and seated sections. “The Uniline Compact was a perfect fit for this festival,” said Bonijoly, who also worked as FOH at Dinard Opening. “Once calibrated, the system enabled us to get through the entire festival with complete peace of mind and I was able to fully concentrate on the artists’ mixes.”
At the main stage, half of the audience was standing on a flat area while others were in the seated section on a sloped terrain, making equal sound distribution the main challenge for the team as the loudspeakers needed to properly optimise the audio in these two areas. Bonijoly chose 10 APG UC206N (narrow coverage) and two UC206W (wide coverage) per side, as well as two UC206W to cover the central area in front of the stage.
To deliver a balanced, yet powerful low-end sound for the audience without overwhelming the stage, six APG UC115B Uniline Compact bass speakers were installed per side in a front-back-front cardioid configuration behind the UC206s. The bass speakers reinforced the main system, while the cardioid configuration allowed Bonijoly and his team to control the volume on the soundstage. This was particularly useful on the first day when a jazz ensemble used various condenser microphones, along with 10 APG DX15, DX8 and DX5 monitor speakers.
Eight APG TB218S high-power subwoofers, designed to complement high-power sound systems, were installed in an arc configuration, enabling the team to project the low end evenly across the audience while limiting audio rejection at the stage sides. “Using the Uniline Compact system, reinforced by UC115s and TB218s enabled me to cover the entire audience area while achieving spectral coherence across the entire spectrum,” adds Bonijoly.
The whole system was powered by APG SA30:2 two-channel amplifiers while digital loudspeaker and system control was done by APG DMS48F digital processor via Dante.
For Bonijoly and his team the sound quality was not the only reason he chose APG loudspeakers: “We needed a compact and lightweight system due to the weight and attachment point constraints of the stage, as well as the venue layout,” he explained, adding that the Uniline Compact loudspeakers gave them the versatility to adapt to the festival’s challenging environment.
