The In Motion – Art & Football exhibition at Dortmund’s German Football Museum celebrates ‘the beautiful game’ through works by 20th-century artists from around the world.
Deploying high-powered projectors, LED displays and an advanced audio system with 25 Genelec Smart IP networked loudspeakers, the exhibition provides a richly immersive visitor experience.
Twenty-three UHD Epson projectors animate dynamic surfaces, complemented by film, photography and sound. Visitors move through three distinct zones, encountering features including the 22m Painter’s Palette floor projection and a 5.1m by 4.2m projected sketchbook.
SIGMA System Audio-Visual was tasked with the AV design and installation. Head of AV integration Christian Backes says: “We’ve worked with the German Football Museum for over 10 years. We provided the original AV and media systems.
“This is a long-term exhibition, but importantly, it’s designed so that when they choose a new theme, only the content needs changing – the core technology remains.”
A multi-layered audio system was essential to support the large space and numerous displays. Berlin-based LEM Studios and PBX Studios were responsible for the sound design and audio content production.
‘The idea was to get the whole place shaking’
LEM Studios’ Markus Hossack served as lead sound designer, mixing audio in both the studio and onsite. Starting from a stereo soundtrack, he worked to adapt it into a rich, immersive soundscape. “The idea was to get the whole place shaking,” he says.
A powerful in-ceiling system provides full-range audio across the venue, but for immersive playback, the sound had to be more intimate. “For the immersive details, the sound needed to get ‘up close and personal’ to the visitors,” says Hossack.
To achieve this, 25 Genelec 4430A Smart IP loudspeakers were installed discreetly beneath two large lateral projection walls each measuring 17.5m by 26.5m. The 4430s play individual audio elements, creating a spatialised mix where different speakers delivered different content depending on where visitors stood.
At one point in the show, classical waltz music fills the room via the ceiling system, while the Genelecs play isolated instrument parts. Subtle sound effects such as footsteps, pencil sketches and raindrops are also localised to match the visuals.
‘A walkable cinema’
“We wanted to create a ‘walkable cinema’,” says Hossack. “We wanted to contain the sound in different zones of audio, giving each visitor a unique listening experience.
“In the studio we mixed in Dolby Atmos and were able to prepare everything in 7.1.4. However, in the venue this had to be scaled up to incorporate all 50 loudspeakers. Managing the timing, routing and synchronisation was a real challenge, and we only had four days to put everything together.”
Genelec’s Smart IP Manager software proved invaluable. “Given the short deadline, it was essential to work quickly, and Smart IP Manager enabled me to handle any filtering I wanted to do, as well as adding latency to each loudspeaker,” says Hossack.
“We took the middle of the show as our zero and worked out from there to maintain the immersive effect, adjusting for latency as we went.”
The Smart IP system’s network connectivity was crucial, with audio, power and management carried on a single CAT cable.
While ultra-precise localisation wasn’t always achievable, Hossack believes the outcome was even more effective. “Visitors were free to explore the exhibition, so getting them in the exact sweet spot for a particular audio moment would have been impossible,” he says.
“With slightly less focused localisation, the listening experience became more accessible while still achieving the immersive effect.”
Plans are under way to tour the exhibition globally, with Genelec’s Smart IP loudspeakers integral to making that possible.
