Barco

ESONIC³, the world’s first extra-sensory space with 3D sound, has won the Science and Technology Progress award issued by the Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture, Radio, Film & TV. The audiovisual performance project, which took place over the course of ten days in August 2015 at the Shanghai Minsheng Art Museum, relied heavily on Barco’s IOSONO sound technology to ensure the audience’s full immersion.

Tradition and technology ESONIC ³ is an initiative of the Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture, Radio, Film & TV, which is responsible for all cultural undertakings in the city. The event attracted no fewer than 1,500 people with cutting-edge technology in the form of four different, interactive performance pieces. One piece, for example, consisted of dancers controlling a digital water surface with their bodies. In another, a choir controlled the brightness of the lights with their voices.
World-leading 3D sound The biggest star of the show, however, was undoubtedly Barco’s IOSONO 3D sound technology. Consisting of a three-circle layout comprised of 128 speakers, the setup enabled perfect aural positioning. This also meant that there was no “sweet spot” in the listening area: all listeners were able to experience the same high-quality sound, no matter their locations.

By enabling this kind of real-time interaction with an art project, ESONIC ³ and IOSONO contributed significantly to the integration of culture, science and technology in Shanghai. For this, the project received the annual, municipal Award for Science and Technology Progress by the Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture, Radio, Film & TV. The goal of the award is to promote the application of advanced science and technology in cultural activities.