The Lexus LS 460 makes its extraordinary 'performance' debut at two prestigious summer classical music concerts this August. In a highly innovative and technologically advanced performance, twelve LS 460s will 'perform' a number of orchestral pieces including two new works written and produced especially for Lexus. The twelve vehicles will be arranged onstage to emulate a typical orchestral layout of individual instruments, with strings, brass, woodwind, basses and percussion being performed by each section. In essence each LS 460 will be carefully positioned with their doors open so that the full effect and quality of the Mark Levinson Reference Surround Sound audio system can be fully appreciated by the audience. Every vehicle is a perfectly standard LS 460 SE-L and the only sound the audience will hear will be coming from the car's standard audio systems, there will be no other PA system in operation during the performances.
THE MUSIC
Lexus have specially commissioned and created two original works for the concerts. The first is an exciting, uplifting and lively piece called 'Summon The Hero' which demonstrates the more dynamic and upbeat capabilities of the LS 460's audio system. The second piece 'Karma Nirvana' is a gentler, more harmonious and emotive piece produced to show the Mark Levinson audio's softer side.
Both pieces were composed, orchestrated and produced by Chesney Hawkes (of 'The One And Only' fame), Chris Nicolaides and Alaister King whose previous credits include work that has featured in a number of film and television productions, amongst them 'Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix', 'Shrek' and 'Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest'. The new pieces were performed and recorded by the London Symphony Orchestra and the 20-piece Bach Choir during a day-long session at Air Studios in Hampstead, North London.
The LS 460s will also perform a number of specially recorded classical arrangements including Ravel's 'Pavane Pour Une Infante Défunte', and Satie's 'Gymnopédie No. 1'. Each piece lasts approximately five minutes and will be performed during the intervals of the live (human) orchestra performances at the classical music events themselves. There will also be an opportunity for audience members to experience the sound and comfort of the LS 460 for themselves up-close using the audio rig on stage after the performances.
THE PRODUCTION PROCESS
Once the specially commissioned recordings were completed Hawkes and Nicolaides then oversaw the transfer of the music from the editing suite onto the stage. The process entailed some fairly complex splitting of the instruments and voices into several parts which were then re-composited and piped directly into each LS 460's audio system via a specially designed computer-controlled audio rig. The location and profile of the way each vehicle will be positioned for the events themselves were painstakingly defined during the course of a number of days in a vast aircraft hangar at Dunsfold Park, Surrey. The whole process meant simply experimenting with how best to arrange the vehicles to take advantage of each car's audio system to maximum collective effect. To explain the process Nicolaides said, 'We're going to be performing somewhere that will not reflect sound like an enclosed space would, so we have to create this environment artificially.' Records of each vehicle's position, audio settings and volume levels were kept for future reference during set build and set up at the forthcoming events.
The 'performers' are now patiently awaiting their debut in cosseted surroundings. When the time comes they will be loaded onto car transporters for the journey north to Castle Howard for the weekend of 18-19 August, then back south to Crystal Palace for their performance the following weekend.
SEE THE LEXUS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
The LS 460s take their first bow at the 'Proms Spectacular' at Castle Howard near York on 18 and 19 August 2007. The cars will then be appearing at the 'Last Night Of The Summer Proms' - Pops In The Park concerts being held at Crystal Palace Bowl, South London on 25 and 26 August. The whole recording and rehearsal process has been recorded by ITV's 'Pulling Power' programme which is due to be broadcast later this year. But to see these very special events live for yourself use the links below for more information and tickets:
http://www.castlehowardestate.co.uk
http://www.popsinthepark.co.uk