Light Focus
Chroma
architect
Scott Strachan Architect
photo
Kevin Heneghan
Chroma-Q Inspire Leds Provide
Exceptional Light Quality
For Royal Scottish National
Orchestra’s New Home
M
ore than
one
hundred
and thirty of
the awardwinning
Chroma-Q® Inspire™ LED
house light have been
installed in the Royal
Scottish National Orchestra’s
(RSNO) new, purpose-built
facility in Glasgow, to
provide exceptional light
quality for both the orchestra
and the audience.
The new 600-seater home
for Scotland’s symphony
orchestra, constructed in
the centre of Glasgow, is
described as a ‘world-class’
venue which has been
acoustically balanced to very
strict standards. Opened in
late 2015, it was built with
funding from a number of
public and private sector
organisations.
The RSNO approached
professional technology
equipment reseller, A.C.
Entertainment Technologies
(AC-ET) Ltd., to propose a
lighting solution for the new
venue, with quality of light
being a key element of the
requirements.
“We were asked to deliver
a solution that would be
suitable not only for the
audience, but also the
orchestra, with their need
for clean and pure light
with no shadows – ensuring
their sheet music was easy
to read,” says AC-ET’s Ian
Ferguson, who led the design
of the Chroma-Q Inspire
house lights system at the
venue.
He continues: “The lighting
al so needed to be tuneable,
allowing the colour to vary
between cool and warm
white. This reduced any
reflection off the sheet
music, taking away the risk
of eye strain. In addition,
the venue wanted to be
able to add subtle coloured
effects to the unused
concert platform when
small ensembles or soloists
performed.”
Other key requirements
included selecting a
fixture that produced little
or no heat – to ensure
a comfortable physical
environment for the
musicians – and which was
totally silent in operation, to
meet the orchestra’s strict
acoustic requirements.
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Taking all of these criteria
into account, Ian was
convinced that the Inspire
house lighting system
would meet the RSNO’s
very discerning technical
requirements. He then used
the DIALux evo lighting
design software to model
the new auditorium and
calculate the type and
number of fixtures needed.
A 6-month trial was then
undertaken with a number
of fixtures, so all members
of the orchestra could
evaluate the quality and
temperature of light, along
with the reduction in heat –
as well as to ensure that the
original light calculations
were correct. After the trial
proved to be a success,
AC-ET then supplied 134
Chroma-Q Inspire RGBW
narrow lens (32º output)
fixtures, along with Inspire
custom snoot / top hat and