Acoustic duo receives K-array reinforcement
Published: ASIA
JAPAN: Acoustic guitar duo Gontiti recently accompanied the likes of Jin Oki, Naoto, Takefumi Haketa and Miyamoto Emiri for the 16th edition of the Live Image Seize tour, which sought to raise money for the Kumamoto earthquake disaster relief fund setup by the Japanese Red Cross. For this acoustic tour, that started at Toyota’s Suntory Hall, stopped off at the Aichi Arts Center in Nagoya and finished at Osaka’s Symphony Hall, Gontiti members Gonzalez Mikami and TiTi Matsumura decided to add sound reinforcement, using a K-array KR102 portable loudspeaker system following a recommendation from the duo’s representative.
‘The first time I heard this sound, my gut told me this is it! Even when I played the guitar myself, the sound felt nice,’ explained Sweet Boon Music sound consultant, Shozo Sawaki. ‘When I made the proposal to Gontiti, I was able to talk to them about K-array’s speakers with confidence.’
The system was setup onstage behind the duo, in front of the piano and orchestra. It reportedly provided natural sounding audio, reinforcing the acoustic guitars well. ‘The acoustic guitar sound was delivered to all the audience exactly the way it was and blended perfectly with the sound of the orchestra,’ added Mr Swaki.
‘We managed to perform as we wanted thanks to this sound, which was like an extension of our instruments,’ enthused Mr Matsumura. ‘Those speakers made a huge difference,’ furthered Mr Mikami.
Suntory Hall’s audio director had mixed feelings to begin with, but was impressed by the loudspeakers. ‘My thought first was, “Are we really using electric instruments for an acoustic music event?”’, he said. ‘We had the ability to control the sound from those speakers as if they were a part of the instruments to deliver the musicians’ feelings to the audience.’