Wonderfruit Music and Arts Festival

Context

The Team

Wonderfruit Music and Arts Festival in Thailand Enjoys Immersive Sound

What is Wonderfruit Festival? It’s an annual art and music festival held at The Fields of Siam Country Club, near Pattaya in Thailand’s Chonburi Province. A massive event featuring an extensive lineup of musical performances, art installations, fashion, workshops, and banquets by renowned chefs, it emphasizes participation, inclusion, sustainability, and social responsibility. The first event was launched in December 2014, produced by Thai-based production company Scratch First.

The Challenge

Hugo Heathcote, one of three directors of Polygon Live, and his Polygon co-visionaries, Archie Keswick and Nico Elliot, entered into discussions about a new immersive audio concept for the festival. The vision for Wonderfruit was that it would allow festival-goers to experience a fully immersive event, one that brings together futuristic, sensory technology that synchronizes touch, holographic visuals, light, and spatialized sound. The Polygon trio searched for the right audio and technical partners to bring their 360° vision to life. The goal was to give DJs and producers the ability to spatialize their content when playing live, encompassing the audience with surround sound and overhead layers.

The Solution

Polygon discovered that L-Acoustics L-ISA technology had everything required to bring their concept to life. The team deployed 12 hangs of three Kara with an SB18 atop each hang, placed in a dodecahedron configuration facing the center of the structure, with 115XT HiQ below each hang to allow for nearfield coverage. The height elevation consisted of eight 115XT HiQ in a ring, all facing directly downwards. Sub enhancement was delivered through 16 SB28 as a central configuration, comprising two rows of eight in a horizontal orientation. System control was via a DiGiCo SD824 Core 2, which sent a MADI stream of 64 sources to the L-ISA Controller. System calibration was carried out by system engineer Matt Gush, with direction from Williamson.

With this setup, L-ISA technology was utilized by some of the world’s leading underground House and Techno DJs. Polygon worked with performing acts to prepare their object-based stems and mixes in advance and on-site in real-time, ensuring their comfort and success in performing with the new technology.

System pictures

The Result

Hugo Heathcote voiced his enthusiasm for the finished install, “The results exceeded all expectations. The sound was the best we had ever heard – the system was a joy to work with and performed beautifully. Huge thanks to Christian Heil, Sherif El Barbari, and the entire L-ISA team for entrusting us with their flagship technology.”   

Project photos