The streaming AV market recently had a glimpse into exciting future applications. At the end of February at Deluxe Hollywood studio in Los Angeles, viewers gathered at Stage 5 to experience a unique demonstration showing how a concert can be streamed in real-time in AURO-3D uncompressed immersive audio and full 1080p video.

The demo enlisted an end-to-end streaming ecosystem using KORG, AURO-3D, and Artist Connection streaming platform.

Rare Old Musical Instruments Meet Modern Streaming Tech

Organized by KORG with support from Japanese media company and TV broadcaster WOWOW, distributor Syntax Japan, and Genelec Japan, the live one-hour performance was staged at the Hall of Halls in Kiyosato Moeginomura Museum (Yamanashi, Japan).

The concert, dubbed “The Sound of the Previous Century Into the Future,” featured marimba playing by Tatsushi Omori and Yoko Kamihara. It was accompanied by early 20th century instruments such as the Chickering Ampico Grand Player Piano — the last unit in the world still maintained and playable, according to the event producers — and the Limonaire 1900 organ from the Paris World Exposition in 1900.

The concert showcased recordings made by composers such as Mascagni and Rachmaninoff. The grand piano’s rich sound resonated through the concert space, KORG notes.

2024 Lighting Controls and Fixtures Report

Lightapalooza took place in late February, and the growth of the event has mirrored the rapid ascension lighting fixtures and controls.

Download your copy now!

The Limonaire 1900 automatic organ replicated realistic sounds, including the mechanical noises of the instruments. Despite its size, the organ’s sound seemed to come from directly above, showcasing the strength of AURO-3D’s three-layer height structure in the Hall of Halls, the organizer adds.

Audiences at Deluxe Hollywood and those watching the stream at home could hear enveloping sound from the museum’s rare instruments streamed in 24bit/96kHz AURO-3D immersive audio, paired with high-definition, H.264 1080p 15 Mbps streaming video.

Master of Ceremonies Hideki Matsutake noted the marimba’s large dynamic range, capturing everything from the faintest sounds to the deepest resonances without causing listening fatigue. AURO-3D had also staged an engaging demo for CES attendees in January.

“This demonstration proved that the technology is here now to make premium, immersive streaming a reality,” says Jon Reichbach, founder and CEO, Artist Connection. “It looked and sounded as if it was being recorded live in the next room, not across the world in Japan.”

Technology Behind the KORG & AURO-3D Livestream

The performance centered around KORG’s Live Extreme encoding technology, which eliminates the need for compression and workarounds to deliver a bit-for-bit experience of any AV source, allowing audiences to hear every nuance, the company says.

AURO-3D was chosen for its ability to deliver a lossless reproduction of the acoustic space at 24bit/96kHz high-resolution sound quality across mobile, desktop, and home theater platforms in a single stream.

At Deluxe, the stream was fed to their immersive audio–ready room using the NVIDIA Shield TV Pro. Those who attended the live stream plus others watching at home commented on the realistic quality of the concert audio and video, KORG says.

Korg’s Live Extreme received multichannel audio from the production team using an immersive audio microphone array and hi-res video inputs.

These inputs were encoded to create a stream for distribution on the Artist Connection Platform, which is the only streaming platform that natively supports both KORG Live Extreme and AURO-3D.

Artist Connection used this stream to create three unique viewing experiences:

• For the mobile experience, the Artist Connection Android and iOS apps streamed the event to headphones.
• Mac or PC desktop users had the option of web browser playback through the Artist Connection web portal.
• Those connecting to their supported AV home theater system could use the Artist Connection app on NVIDIA Shield to stream the event over Wi-Fi.

As with any bleeding-edge technology, hiccups are to be expected. Some viewers streaming at home reported being unable to view the video when connecting their computer’s browser to their AV playback device, such as an AV receiver.

KORG, AURO-3D, and Artist Connection state they are working to address those technical issues and are planning a private replay of the event for these attendees.

Aside from that technical snafu, 100 people in the U.S. and 100 in Japan were given the opportunity to watch and view the concert stream live at home, most of them on mobile, with much success. The three manufacturers say they received good feedback, with many streamers expressing that they could ‘feel’ the space of the concert hall on their headphones.

“What a cool concept to stream these historic instruments in technology that we hope to see become mainstream in the future. Outside of the obvious application for the consumer, streaming immersive audio and video has huge implications for the artist and studio approval process,” says Jon Reichbach, Founder and CEO, Artist Connection.

“Instead of having Beyoncé or Martin Scorsese travel to a location to screen their content, they can stream it via Artist Connection and approve it from the comfort of their own homes–whether on mobile or via their immersive media room or home theater setup. In fact, that is where the moniker Artist Connection came from in the first place. The technology also has benefits for venues, which can live stream content and charge for premium streams.”

• Page 1