Away from crowded RF space, ÞJÓÐLEIKHÚSIÐ aka the National Theatre of Iceland decided for digital wireless audio provided by Sennheiser. Our team met Kristinn Gauti Einarsson, Head of Sound to tell us more about their shift to digital and future projects.
With only 362,000 inhabitants, the small country Iceland in between Europe and the Americas is winning big time. With more than 10 premieres per year, the national theatre of Iceland is attracting not only a tiny group of customers. Kristinn Gauti Einarsson is the leading sound engineer at the theatre. His main job, together with his three full-time colleagues is the sound design of all shows. That means: refining, rehearsal, refining, rehearsal, show. “Precision is way more important because it is not a onetime show on a festival” explains Einarsson.
The 32-year old graduated at FIH Music College in Reykjavík before joining the playhouse as a production audio technician. Together with his team, Einarsson is now responsible for five locations with the largest theatre accommodating an audience of 500 people.
One system, three different shows per day
The national theatre of Iceland decided for Digital 6000 with 32 channels of SK 6212. With its metal housing it became the perfect tool in their day-to-day business while allowing a higher channel count with digital transmission — and it has been a significant investment for the small country.
It’s the long lasting relationship within the theatre that makes work worthwhile for Einarsson.
He is currently working with the same musical composer, set designer and director for the sixth year, now starting the 13th year for himself within the house. “It’s so amazing to start new, great shows with the same team. Every time we understand ourselves better and better. And we are successful because 90 percent of the job is communication. And good communications makes good shows.”
This trust and relationship extends to the equipment as well. “Our theatre used Sennheiser when I started, other brands appeared from time to time. But when I look back in my career within the theatre and with bands, Sennheiser products have just been rocksolid”, says Einarsson.
The sound engineer, who has been playing drums for several bands since elementary school, also likes the simplicity of the product. “We sometimes have three different shows per day. So ease of use has been very crucial for us. The system we used before was much more time consuming.”
“The small SK 6212 transmitters are a very convenient option for theatres. You can hide them easily and the actors sometimes forget that they are wearing them. But still, the battery life is great.”
Saving waste while getting better performance
On top of that, Einarsson and his team are saving waste with Digital 6000‘s rechargeable batteries, which can be easily recharged and their status monitored within the L 6000 rack charger. “The rack chargers are amazing. We no longer have to worry about batteries because the SK 6212’s last the whole day.”
With Digital 6000, the National Theatre in Reykjavik made a huge decision that will hopefully last as long as the good relationships of Kristinn Einarsson. “Our EM 1046 from the nineties still works perfectly fine even though it is nearly as old as me. This has been the confirmation that Sennheiser has been reliable back then and still is today.”
Kristinn Einarsson’s most recent project is the second edition of the show “Þitt eigið leikrit” (eng: “Your Own Play”) which will debut in spring 2020. In this special show the audience is able to influence the direction of the act via remote control.
