Bars & Lounges

PRIVIUM LOUNGE
Location: Schipol, The Netherlands
Company: CLS
The new Privium Lounge at Schipol is the latest addition to the list of perks enjoyed by the airport’s frequent flier programme. Privium members already benefit from fast track border checks thanks to the latest in iris recognition technology. The new lounge offers an ultra-modern space which, it is hoped, will challenge preconceived notions of what waiting at an airport is all about.
After an international competition, Dutch M + R Interieur Architecten were chosen to design the new space.
Their scheme is based on organic shapes. Inspired by the natural movement of inhaling and exhaling, the architects opted for curved lines which flow effortlessly throughout the lounge. Its design heralds a new era of airport lounges; gone are the stark, functional seating and easy-clean surfaces.  Here, natural shapes and materials break up the space, creating a more inviting and relaxing atmosphere. Lighting too plays an important role - enhancing and emphasising the aesthetics of the whole design. Walls and parts of the ceiling are illuminated by 600m of Colourcove X-bright from CLS LED. The Colourcove X-bright was chosen for its even light dispersion and colour-mixing qualities. The addition of CLS’s LDX 3/05 LED dimmer enables the colour temperature of the room’s lighting throughout the day. A pre-programmed palette of colours includes ‘artic white’ in the morning; ‘freezing blue’ in the afternoon; and ‘warm gold’ for evening. Further options include ‘ice cold special blue’; ‘lounge party purple’ and ‘warm white’. Far from being arbitrary choices, the colour range was selected after much deliberation and careful consideration. Most obviously, white was used to mimic the natural energising properties of daylight; freezing blue refreshes and soothes; warm gold mimics the effects of a relaxing sunset; and purple supposedly enhances creativity, motivation and spirituality.   
www.cls-led.com

O2 BLUE ROOM
Location: Berlin, Germany
Company: Meyer Sound
Berlin-based IT Audio, founded in autumn 2008 by professional audio veterans Til Schwartz and Ivo König, recently installed a Meyer Sound system in the O2 Blueroom, a VIP reception room in Berlin’s newly built O2 World arena.
With more than 40 years combined industry experience, the IT Audio co-founders have been involved with an impressively long list of top-notch productions and installations. These include some of the most prestigious recent Meyer Sound installations in Germany. Now a dealer for Meyer Sound products, IT Audio’s first projects were the O2 Blueroom and O2 World’s two entertainment suites.
Designed by widely acknowledged architects Schmidhuber+Partner, the O2 Blueroom primarily serves O2 World’s main sponsor, Telefónica O2 Germany, which is the German subsidiary of European telecommunications company Telefónica Europe. O2 Blueroom’s Meyer Sound system includes three USW-1P subwoofers, two UPJunior VariO loudspeakers, two UPM loudspeakers, and four MM-4 miniature loudspeakers.
“The Meyer Sound toolbox allows us to realise our plans more easily,” says König, “and delivers the outstanding experience that we and our clients demand.”
König has been a freelance sound designer since 1989 and is a certified operator of Meyer Sound’s SIM audio analyzer. His expertise has been vital to large projects using Meyer Sound equipment, such as the closing ceremony of the 2006 FIFA World Cup football championships in Berlin, the Berlin Philharmonic’s concert at Berlin Arena under Sir Simon Rattle, as well as the installation in Munich’s Gasteig.
Til Schwartz is similarly experienced with SIM, and has managed several landmark productions, including the Meyer Sound installation in the Berlin Philharmonie.
“We have worked very successfully with Meyer Sound products for many years,” says Schwartz. “And when we started our own business, continuing our close relationship with Meyer Sound was vital to our plan.”   
www.meyersound.com

THE IVY BAR
Location:Sydney, Australia
Company: D&B
Opened last year by Australian entrepreneur Justin Hemmes,  ivy  is as diverse a concentration of hedonistic indulgence you could ever wish to encounter. Featuring six bars and four restaurants, each with its own unique and stylishly rendered décor, it already represents a breathtaking introduction to Mr Hemmes’ ambitions for ivy. Quality experience is reflected throughout the facility; even the lowly background music systems are of the highest order, as John Collyer from principal sound contractor Avsound explained.
“ivy is a project that raises the bar when it comes to entertainment in Sydney. We wanted to do the same with the audio system. For us d&b audiotechnik is hi-fi in a pro situation; what I mean by that is it has the quality of a great home hi-fi box, but you can push out pro level SPLs.”
Collyer continues to explain why this type of system is necessary in a bar and restaurant environment. “We’ve installed an eight way stereo background music system; emstream’s PC based MP3 system, plus a number of DJ inputs. Yes, low SPLs are used for lunches during the week, but high SPLs are desirable for Friday and Saturday nights.”
Collyer continues: “The EVAC system is patched directly
into the PA as the client did not want two sets of loudspeakers; we need to get 93dB for EVAC purposes, the background noise floor can be high, but the d&b systems achieve this without any trouble. The acoustic environment is highly variable; rooms range from a marble walled, glass bar with hard floor and just a three metre ceiling height, to what I think is the best sounding room in the complex, which has a four metre ceiling, velvet draped walls and plush carpeting.” Both rooms use d&b Ci80 loudspeakers as
their main element, the marble room has custom Ci subwoofers
to match the décor, while the Velvet room takes the standard Ci subwoofer. Approximately 150 d&b E0 loudspeakers and a number of E12 subwoofers are distributed throughout the other bars and restaurants all driven either by d&b’s E-PAC or D12 amplifiers with system control via the R1 Remote control software. 
www.dbaudio.com

KETTNERS
Location: London, UK
Company: Ateis, K-Array, Tannoy
Kettner’s is a grand old Soho institution, once frequented by Oscar Wilde, the Prince of Wales and Agatha Christie. It has recently been refurbished with new decor, which harks back to its Victorian beginnings, and a cutting edge sound system marking the first UK installation of the Ateis UAP G2 digital audio processor and K-Array loudspeakers.
Background music, both live and pre-recorded, sets the mood in the building’s different areas; the Champagne Bar, Brasserie and Pudding Bar on the ground floor and the Apartment Bar on the first floor. These are fitted with a mixture of Tannoy ceiling loudspeakers and K-Array KT20/KKS50 combinations.
Kettner’s also wanted facilities for three media rooms, which are hired out to corporate clients for presentations and receptions. Each contains a pair of K-Array KT20 speakers accompanied by a KKS50 sub. Through the UAP G2’s switching capability the K-Arrays in the media rooms can relay background music or performances in the Apartment Bar. In return what is heard in the media areas can be broadcast over the rest of the venue. The two systems can work independently or be networked in this way.
The K-Arrays are controlled locally by a Crestron MT000 wireless touch screen processor but can be run on a wider scale from the UAP G2. Robert Knowles of installation company All Options explained that Kettner’s wanted a system that was cost-effective and simple to operate and “the best way was to have easy to operate wall panels, with the matrix hidden away in a rack. The Ateis was the easier way to do this.”
Kettner’s manager Andrew Goddard says: “This is a new and quirky installation that was conceived with ease of use and multi-functionality in mind...and it’s idiot-proof for our non-technical staff to operate it.” www.ateis.com / www.k-array.com

THE LIVING ROOM
Location: Fort Lauderdale, USA
Company: Chauvet
When a lavish club, known for its unique settings and technology, expanded with its second ultra lounge in the US, the lighting designer chose Chauvet products for the job. The Living Room, with clubs in London, Paris, Tokyo, New York and now Fort Lauderdale, is the latest addition to the Las Olas Riverfront club scene.
Jay Krause, owner of Sound & Lighting Solutions Inc., designed and installed the lighting. “Looks were very, important to the client,” Krause said. “We had to hide the lighting because the client didn’t want to see the light sources – they were emphatic about that.”
“We used Chauvet because we wanted the Fat Beam laser technology as we believe it is the biggest bang for the buck and the best value,” said Krause. Fat Beam is an exclusive Chauvet laser technology that allows users of 10mW lasers to legally bypass the need for a variance normally required for operation of high powered lasers in the US, while meeting the IEC safety standards under ClassIIIA. A total of 14 Chauvet Scorpion laser fixtures were installed on the dancefloor and concealed by a 12-foot chandelier.
The venue is unique in that each room has its own feel, but the mood and atmosphere can change depending on the clientele using them, according to Krause. “That’s how they cater to their clients,” he said. From a white-on-white mood changing lounge to a warm and contemporary living loft space to a dancefloor boasting a scintillating menu of sight and sound.
To produce different effects, Krause’s team used a combination of moving head fixtures, strobes, washes and spots to provide varied colours of mood lighting, including the ST-750 mega strobe, several MiN Spots, palm-sized LED moving yoke fixtures, and LEDrain 56s and 64s, powerful and versatile narrow beam fixtures. These fixtures, too, must be hidden from the clients’ view. Ten Chauvet LEDrain fixtures were also sealed inside weatherproof boxes so they could be used outside the club for down lighting overlooking the riverfront, Krause said.
Vaulted ceilings and odd angles proved to be a challenge when it came time to mount the fixtures. “We had to get special mounts for the lasers and around the bar,” he said. “I think overall, the installation speaks for itself; it’s phenomenal,” he concluded.
www.chauvetlighting.com

PIER ONE
Location: Athens, Greece
Company: Electron SA
Electron SA recently contributed to the successful illumination of the bar/restaurant Pier One in Athens, Greece. The lighting scheme included the creation of a floating ceiling, the generation of a colourful atmosphere that would make customers feel relaxed and comfortable, and attract of attention from a distance. To achieve this, different Electron products were used, including the LEDELEC range and Electron DMX-512 LED Power Supplies.
The primary aim was to create an impressive ceiling that seems to be illuminated from within. To achieve this, lines of LEDELEC Ribbon LED Tapes were placed on the wooden constructions that run all over and throughout the bar/restaurant just a few centimeters below the ceiling. The colourful ceiling is perfectly matched with the surrounding illumination on the columns, where LEDELEC RGB MR16 LED lamps were installed together with the Electron architectural MR16 spots.  The intensity and the colour of the RGB LEDs is controlled by the Electron Power Supplies. They have DMX-512 input and output, three channels and a master, as well as auto operation of ten preset programs with adjustable speed rate, fade time and master dimmer output control. They also allow for manual control, thus the user can set the desired colour and intensity level. Finally, they have master operation, which means that the user can have control of any number of power supplies from the master power supply.
The Electron install allows the users total control over brightness, intensity, and colour. The installation is durable, long lasting, environmental friendly and energy efficient.     
www.electron.gr

THE RUTLAND HOTEL
Location: Edinburgh, UK
Company: Audica
The Rutland is a luxury 12 bedroom boutique hotel with restaurant, bar and exclusive nightclub. Located at 1-3 Rutland Street, Edinburgh, the hotel is positioned in one of the best locations in the city.
Situated in the basement is the hotel’s bar/nightclub – The One Below. Inspired by the lounge clubbing style favoured in cities such as New York and Paris, One Below at The Rutland is as ‘luxe’ as it gets. Situated around the perimeter are twelve vaulted booths, each individually designed and decked out in sumptuous jewel colours. The sound system consists of eighteen Audica Professional MICROline loudspeakers, driven by InOut DA-480 amplifiers and reinforced for low frequency by five Audica Professional MICROsubs. The four VIP booths also have their own dedicated Audica Professional MICROseries system for guests to listen to their own choice of music, with a MICROzone amplifier/controller driving two MICROpoint on-wall loudspeakers.
www.audicapro.co.uk

KO SAMUI LOUNGE
Location: Austria
Company: Griven
Drawing inspiration from an oriental atmosphere, the Ko Samui lounge bar pays homage to the ‘heavenly beauty’ of the South Thailand island from which it takes its name. Its a distinctly original after-dinner experience for the Austrian Alps.
An imposing golden Buddha statue acts as a focal point around which a collection of neat design solutions have been woven together, forming a warm, relaxing and, it’s hoped, meditative environment. 
All rooms are purposefully decorated and equipped with high quality chairs, tables and bar stools evoking a new minimalism through their stylish and spacious design.
The emotional lighting in the lounge bar is achieved with 13 Griven Parade D-RGB-12, superbly employed to illuminate walls and furniture and to provide light contrast, enhancing the oriental atmosphere with a skilled use of colour. The colour change fixtures are programmed with a palette of warm pink, violet and blue hues to support the overall colour concept for the area.
The new Griven Parade D-RGB-12 is a colour changing bar fitted with 12 3W full colour chips specifically designed for refined architectural indoor and outdoor decoration. This cutting-edge lighting fixture incorporates state of the art electronic colour mixing and high reliability, meaning powerful and real colour rendering. Superb output with real uniform colour coverage even on close-up installations is provided by the newly conceived elliptical optics that can now capture a greater fraction of light with a higher transmission efficiency.
The advanced LED lighting systems supplied by Griven offers all the advantages of the groundbreaking LED technology: high light emission, durability, low consumption and light efficiency, mixed with the extraordinary creative power of unlimited colour hues. Moreover, all the lighting is dimmable to create mood and atmosphere at night and is regulated by a digital control system, including also stand alone functions and master-slave mode.
www.griven.com