With a client base spanning classical festivals and historic battle re-enactments, Gdańsk-based Grupa Profit needs to satisfy a wide range of sound reinforcement needs. In response, the company recently bacome the second largest owner and user of Alcons Audio systems in Poland.
Founded 28 years ago as a full-service stage technology provider, Grupa Profit works with many clients which specialise in classical music events, including the annual Mozartiana International Mozart Festival, which is held in Gdańsk every August. Working with classical and jazz artists meant the company needed a system to deliver impeccable sound, accuracy (especially in the upper bands) and consistency of coverage.
‘But as well as systems and services for live music, we also specialise in zoned audio systems for events like battle re-enactments,’ says Grupa Profit founder, Sławomir Ingielewicz. ‘For example, we have been providing sound systems for the recreation of the Battle of Grunwald and other similar events for more than 25 years. So our audio systems need to be very versatile.’
The company was able to give a ‘real world’ test to an Alcons pro-ribbon solution when Alcons’ Polish distributor Aplauz provided an LR18 compact line array system for the 2022 Mozartiana festival, along with technical support. Comprising 18 LR18/90 modules (nine per side), 12 BQ211 compact high-output 21-inch subwoofers and Sentinel10 amplified loudspeaker controllers, the Alcons system impressed artists and audiences alike.
‘The festival featured leading pianist Leszek Możdżer, conductor Agnieszka Duczmal and the Polish Baltic Philharmonic Orchestra,’ Ingielewicz says. ‘We were pleasantly surprised by the very positive reactions to the sound. The festival audiences are music lovers who are not necessarily aware that the sound is amplified, so their response highlighted the sound quality of the pro-ribbon system.’
The system proved sufficiently successful at the Mozartiana festival, Grupa Profit purchased it and put it straight to work at the annual Gdańsk Sports Gala, where the city authorities present awards and distinctions to the best local athletes and coaches. Here the system was configured as 12 LR18/90 (six per side) with four BQ211s in cardioid configuration, plus QRP20 full-range point source columns as out fill and a pair of VR8 compact monitors. The system was used to amplify the official presentations and, afterwards, a range of artistic performances.
‘The gala took place in a hall characterised by a wide stage, while the room itself is relatively wide and shallow, meaning there are not too many audience rows, but there are a lot of seats in each,’ Ingielewicz says. ‘With the closest rows located almost next to the stage, it created quite a challenging area to cover. But the high gain before feedback threshold of the Alcons system and the accuracy with which you can distribute the sound meant that both the speech and music of the event were clearly heard throughout the audience.
‘Alcons pro-ribbon solutions are different because they are, one might say, a Rolls-Royce among sound systems. Purchasing the LR18 system puts us in a very strong position to be the first choice to service many classical concerts, as well as other live events.’
‘Alcons technology is certainly very innovative compared to other systems and we have not experienced anything similar or which produces live sound of such high quality,’ adds Grupa Profit Technical Manager, Konrad Ingielewicz. ‘We believe that Alcons pro-ribbon solutions will be a market leader for many years.’
Recently, Grupa Profit further increased its Alcons inventory with the addition of four LR18/120. These allow the team to add two per side to systems where wider coverage of the first rows of audiences is needed.
