Hosted in in April at the plush open-air ground at the Hyatt Regency hotel in Kathmandu, Nepal, the Kathmandu Music Festival 2024 was a two-day extravaganza marking the new year on the Bikram Sambat calendar. The festival included live performances by the likes of Atif Aslam and Anuv Jain, as well as renowned Nepalese pop bands such as The Edge Band and The VEK Band.
Brought in to handle the festival’s audio requirements was Phoenix Networks, taking on its first gig outside India. The company is the largest Meyer Sound stockist in India, and it transported the entire system for the event from its HQ in Bhopal.
The loudspeaker system included 14 Meyer Sound PANTHER modules on each side of the stage, while four LEOPARD line array boxes provided front fill reinforcement. Six LEOPARD line array modules were deployed as delay on either side of the venue, with seven 1100-LFC subwoofers rigged in a gradient array arrangement on either side of the stage and three ground-stacked 1100-LFC subs deployed on either side of the stage in a cardioid pattern. Three 816 processors ensured flawless signal distribution and comprehensive system management.
For Atif Aslam, Phoenix Networks provided a DiGiCo SD10 at FOH with a Quantum 338 for monitors, while a combination of SD10, Midas M32 Live and Avid VENUE S6L-24D were preferred for the other artists.
Shure PSM 1000 in-ear monitoring was also deployed, along with Axient Digital ADX2 wireless microphones for Atif Aslam and Sennheiser 6000 Digital series systems paired with an HSP4 head mic for Anuv Jain. The microphone selection also included Shure SM58s and SM57s for instruments, Sennheiser e900 and Audix DP7 for drum kits, while wireless guitars were equipped with Shure ADX1 belt packs and SKM6000 bodypacks.
One of the Phoenix Networks team’s biggest challenges was the unexpected arrival of a snow blizzard during setup. “The storm was genuinely unforeseen, and we were completely blindsided by it,” recalled the company’s Founder-Director, Animesh Mishra. “Thankfully, almost all our inventory came equipped with inbuilt weather hoods; the self-armoured PANTHERs sustained the storm without any external support. In fact, we were up and operational within 15 minutes of the storm passing.”
Reflecting on the project, Mishra was delighted with the company international debut. “Our first-ever international venture at the Kathmandu Music Festival 2024 showcased Phoenix Networks’ ability to deliver an exceptional sonic experience to a diverse global audience,” he stated. “Building on this success, I am confident that Phoenix Networks will continue to assert its presence worldwide by consistently raising the bar for world-class live sound reinforcement.”
Photo: Phoenix Networks
