The Historic Salt Lake Tabernacle of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter

Home , Salt Lake Tabernacle, Tabernacle (LDS Church)

ARCHITECTURE Copyright Lighting &Sound America October 2007 http://www.lightingandsoundamerica.com/LSA.html

58 • October 2007 • Lighting &Sound America UNDER the Dom e

The historic Salt Lake Tabernacle is equipped with latter-day technology

By: Judith Rubin

hen it came time to implement pillars interfering with the congrega - W a seismic upgrade to the his - tion’s view. The capacious attic space toric Salt Lake Tabernacle of the within that roof turned out to be a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day handy area for the support infrastruc - Saints (LDS), a remarkable building ture for much of the Tabernacle’s new that has weathered nearly a century lighting, sound, and audio equipment. and a half, it was decided to overhaul The technical consultants became and upgrade the theatrical systems as well acquainted with the dome in the well. The house of worship stands in course of their work. Salt Lake City’s Temple Square and is “The trusses live between the the home of the Mormon Tabernacle domed ceiling and roof, and are quite Choir. It is also Utah’s most popular amazing,” says S. Leonard Auerbach, tourist destination, used daily for a whose company, Auerbach Pollock variety of live events, including religious Friedlander, worked on the renovation meetings and musical performances, as theatre consultant. “They’re most of which are also broadcast and designed as bridge trusses and are recorded. Therefore, any new theatrical all pegged together, and have been systems had to work for both the live holding up since the beginning.” The . d e audience and broadcast community. Auerbach Pollock Friedlander team v r e s e The building’s standout architec - included Grace Gavin on lighting sys - r s t h tural feature is the 150'-wide, elon - tems, Dan Mei on video systems, and g i r l l A

gated dome roof, engineered by Tom Neville on a network of custom . c n I

, bridge builder Henry Grow and con - hoisting mechanisms and lifts. e v r e structed in a lattice-truss arch sys - Most of the extensive, new state- s e R l tem. As the story goes, Brigham of-the-art installation remains out of a u t c

e Young, the famed Mormon leader, sight of the people in the pews. “The l l e t n I

didn’t want a large number of support complex extends far beyond what the 7 0 0 2

: s o t o h P

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visitor sees when they come to mount their equipment. One chal - The acoustician also had to deal Temple Square,” notes acoustician Ed lenge to the entire team was to with decades of plaster repairs. ward Mc Cue, principal consultant and ensure there was never a fire during “There were perhaps 30 coats of project manager for Kirkegaard construction. This meant that no one stuff, all different materials and Associates, provider of audio and could weld in the space and it also paints,” says McCue. “The longevity acoustical consulting to the renova - meant that the sprinkler system was of a plaster ceiling depends on its tion. “Underground, there is a fantas - continually active. The new sprinkler ability to breathe—for water vapor to tic complex of not only dressing system was completely installed and pass through in both directions—and rooms and support areas for the choir, operational before the old system these multiple coatings were counter - but also rehearsal rooms and media could be removed. One difficulty is productive to that.” In addition, the rooms for broadcast and production.” th e sprinkler system was never off— restored plasterwork had to preserve The Kirkegaard team included senior for safety reasons, we couldn’t turn the space’s sound reflectivity. A tip consultants Richard Laidman (audio the old system off until the new one from the other side of the Atlantic, system design), Tim Gulsrud was in, so no welding could be done where similar situations crop up in (acoustics), and consultant Ben Willt (noise and vibration control). FFKR were the architects in charge of the Jackson: “The ultimate goal was to project. The audio, video, and produc - strengthen and fortify the building while tion communication systems installer still keeping the old, original Tabernacle. was Diversified Systems Inc. Lighting ” equipment was supplied by Barbizon. The technical design consultants and anywhere in the space. Up in the buildings older than the Tabernacle, led contractors worked with LDS techni - roof, there is now the electrical sys - to the choice to use Keim silicate paint, cal staff, in particular Lorin Morse tem, the new ice reduction system, a plaster refinishing material that pro - (lighting) and Sean McFarland (AV). all the winches for the light trusses vided the necessary qualities. The interior space of the domed and chandeliers, the sprinkler sys - In order to accommodate the vari - attic, having been structurally tem, and some sound stuff. It is fairly ous events held in the Tabernacle, the strengthened, helped the team to ful - accessible by wooden ladders and rostrum was fitted out with modules fill the client’s mandate to install 21st- work platforms.” and lifts that enable it to assume century theatrical systems while leav - A considerable patchwork had three different configurations: ing the historic architecture visually built up inside the Tabernacle. “Over “orchestra,” “stake conference.” and undisturbed. “There is about 10' of years of use and changing technolo - “general authority.” Each mode has space between the ceiling and the gies, things were just attached here different parts and pieces that are roof,” observed Auerbach Pollock and there—lighting positions on bal - moved from the underground storage Friedlander’s Tom Neville. “We used cony fronts, on the organ, behind the area and up a large stage lift to the that space for mounting the equip - organ,” says Gavin. “It wasn’t inte - floor of the tabernacle where they are ment. Using the attic space, we were grated; it looked like it was just hang - positioned. Auerbach Pollock able to put 10lbs. in a five-pound ing off random supports, and every - Friedlander developed the lift system bag. I have to hand it to Jacobsen thing was black and taped, as if the to accommodate the various uses. Construction, the contractor; their backstage had been brought into the The transformations can be effected team did a great job defining the audience—but a lot closer to the in 24 hours or fewer, depending upon zones in which everybody could audience than if it were in a theatre.” the configuration. “It’s essentially a

Above and following pages: The renovation of the Tabernacle is seen at various stages.

60 • October 2007 • Lighting &Sound America very flexible concert hall,” says untested at the time they were speci - The overall control package, in Auerbach. In “general authority” fied. First was sinewave dimming, addition to the two racks of ETC mode, about 100 people are seated provided by ETC. “They are quieter Sensor+ sinewave dimming for the on the rostrum. For other modes, the and also more expensive than stan - architectural lighting, consists of six seating platform modules and dard rise-time dimmers,” says Gavin. racks of ETC Sensor dimmers for the - nonessential AV elements are lowered The system was implemented for the atrical usage, one additional rack to into the storage area. house lighting dimmers, where the handle the annual outdoor Nativity Auerbach Pollock Friedlander facil - new technology would eliminate the scene at Christmas time, plus an itated the design of the presentation most lamp noise. “The theatrical additional rack for UPS emergency and broadcast lighting system, and lamps chosen for this project are very broadcast. There are over 100 distri - created a custom hoist system for the small-filament and less of a concern bution receptacle devices located new lighting positions within the cavi - than the ‘noisier’ house chandelier throughout the room, which also has ty of the dome, which was strength - fixtures,” Gavin adds. “ The acoustics an ETCnet Ethernet data distribution ened with a new steel framework. consultant was very keen on the use system, with 34 Ethernet tap loca - “All winches are at the spring point of this product for the decorative tions. An ETC Unison system pro - of the dome,” says Auerbach. “The dimmed loads.” vides architectural lighting control, cables go up within the cavity to the “We were very happy about the “One of the most arduous jobs we points from which they can make their sinewave dimmers,” concurs McCue. had was understanding what existing drop. This being an archway, there’s a “That technology was maturing while circuitry had already been distributed complex deployment of cables that we were specifying the equipment for to locations along the organ, and fig - required plotting pathways in 3-D this project. For the Tabernacle, it uring out how we were going to CAD so that the cables wouldn’t inter - gives such tremendous flexibility. The rework and integrate additional distri - fere with anything else.” All the over - chances for incompatibility between bution to improve the cyclorama light - head rigging controls are automated. the dimmer and lighting instrument ing.” says Gavin. “Because there was The rigging package includes a are dramatically reduced, so the no existing documentation, and the Nomad control desk from Stage threat of filament noise is rendered organ was closed off and protected Technologies handling 14 Stage almost inconsequential.” on the site, we spent a lot of time Technologies Big Tow 1,000lb. BT2- The ETC Eos lighting console was working on this with the head lighting 390 winches (for trusses, speaker another new piece of gear in develop - technician, Lorin Morse. Lighting clusters, and future use), seven 750lb. ment during the design process. “It devices were located behind the larg - BTS-290 winches (chandeliers), and was a whole new platform for ETC,” er facade pipes, low on the organ three 500lb. BTS-200 winches (for says Gavin, “and LDS lighting person - front, and in the structural area clearing the organ). Other key ele - nel were comfortable in the role of Beta behind the organ. LDS had been ments include five custom trusses testing. ETC was still in the phase of using conventional striplights at the and two tension wire grids. fine-tuning the software for it, and LDS rear of the organ to light rear wall and was willing to go through this develop - dome but the fixtures were not as Reimagining the lighting ment process, because it put them in a effective as they wanted. Part of this “LDS techs set the lighting design cri - good position to have the exact fea - renovation was redesigning the organ teria per se,” Gavin says. “They knew tures they wanted incorporated.” The locations and fixtur es, so the cyclo - what they wanted. They did the plots Eos chosen for the Tabernacle is an rama was lit as evenly as possible. and we wrote the specs.” Two prod - 8K console with a Smartfade 2496 Ultimately, we worked with the LED ucts the client wanted were relatively backup for theatrical lighting control. light fixture manufacturer and did a

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mockup. The covered spaces and visible to the congregation. Auerbach For this reason, it was paramount irregular shape of the organ added to Pollock Friedlander assisted the effort to minimize any mechanical and elec - the challenges.” with specification writing and working trical noise. In addition to sinewave “The dome is basically an ellipse,” closely with LDS to pull together the dimming, the team segregated the continues Gavin, “but, since the ceil - fixture package.” video projectors behind glass in the ing curves, your throws are getting The total lighting package for the attic. “The Church and the acousti - shorter, but the tippy-top is longer. space includes ETC Source Fours, cians didn’t want the projectors hang - While some fixtures graze surfaces, Source Four PAR MCMs, Vari*Lite ing within the space,” says Mei, who others hit straight on. In our mock-up, VL3000 and City Theatrical AutoYoke designed the video systems. “We we brought fixtures onto the choral automated units, High End Systems created two acoustically isolated, area and looked at different lensing Color Command and Wybron Nexera climate-controlled rooms to hold each configurations to see what would color-changing units, and Ocean projector, and cut projection ports in work best for the dome geometries. It Optics Seachangers, which can be the s ide walls of the ceiling dome.” was mostly a matter of experimenta - attached to the Source Fours to pro - Two motorized front projection screens, tion and a good deal of trial and error. vide silent dichroic color mixing. located on either side of the organ We put fixtures in some very weird pipes, rise up vertically from custom- alcoves, and in locations on the back The audio-video factor designed millwork cases installed of the organ to fill out the patchy Edward McCue and Richard Laidman behind the last row of choir seats. spots. Now, there are three sections were responsible for upgrading the With the audio system, the client of LED striplights per vertical swath sound environment, with McCue on continued its practice of opting for and three fixtures at every location as acoustics and Laidman on audio. new technologies. “The very knowl - you move around the cyclorama por - “Control over reinforced sound is edgeable staff there makes its own tion of the dome. The LED manufac - necessarily very tight in this room,” decisions as you go along,” observes turer had a four-cell, a 2x2 box that was very useful in these positions.” McCue: The Tabernacle is one of the The LED fixture used here is the “ Selador X7 Series, which incorporates best places in the U.S. to become aware 32 high-brightness 1W Luxeon LEDs of the impact of architecture on the ability in each foot-length of fixture; the to hear. You literally can hear a pin drop. product is billed as producing intense ” colors across the spectrum while ren - dering natural-looking pastels and notes McCue. “The marvelous but Laidman. “There were some deci - white light and beautifully colored relentless geometry means that you sions that came later in the project for objects and skin tones; this digitally can’t afford to just send energy in all which we provided infrastructure and controlled lighting array yields over directions, or the sound images will they decided on products to fill in the 60,000 color variations. become unintelligible. I’ve never blanks later. LDS always wants to be “LDS technicians developed the encountered a room so sensitive to at forefront of what’s happening.” lighting fixture plot and design for sound. The Tabernacle is one of the The main sound reinforcement sys - services, events and broadcast,” best places in the U.S. to become te m isn’t in use during daily organ con - Gavin says. “They knew exactly what aware of the impact of architecture on certs or other acoustical events, so it they wanted, down to the custom the ability to hear. You literally can was made demountable. “They don’t white on all fixtures and accessories hear a pin drop.” want the arrays hanging there when

62 • October 2007 • Lighting &Sound America not in use,” says Laidman. “That’s not speech, four Renkus-Heinz PNX81/9s line array specifically for speech rein - too unusual for a modern concert hall, for the choir, two JBL VRX932LAs, forcement, using Duran digital direc - and that’s what this is in some sense. providing additional front fill for the tivity synthesis loudspeakers. But they do need the new system to music system, plus four JBL “They’re unit enclosures—not a lot of support popular music or orches - SRX728S deployable subwoofers. “I tiny boxes, but long, skinny boxes tral/jazz ‘pops’ music that may be think of this as a very egalitarian anywhere between six and 16' tall,” played on its own or accompany the process,” says Laidman. “A person says Laidman. Four of these are choir.” A cable and winch system in the way off to the side, up in the balcony, located on columns: Two closer to attic lowers the clusters to the rostrum or under the balcony will have pretty the rostrum, and two more are about for assembly and later hoists them much the same listening experience two-thirds of the way back in the back up. as someone center front. I would try room. Another two sets, attached to There are 10 JBL VT4888 speakers for the same in a theatre or concert the sides of the organ console, serve in line arrays each side of the rostrum. hall, where a cheap ticket may pro - the balcony. “We used [Duran] “We made a custom rigging bar and vide a poor view but not poor sound.” DS280s and DS180s; they’re little 4" harness so we could fly and hang Also part of the main sound rein - loudspeakers that are placed right another little cluster of three JBL forcement system are 72 Electro- next to each other, or more spread VT4887s in line arrays behind to pro - Voice 405s, making up the stage-lip out, becoming farther apart as you vide coverage to the side balconies,” line array built into the movable ros - get higher up in the unit. Each loud - says Laidman. He depends on line trum platform to provide infill sound speaker within these enclosures has arrays for precise delivery and tight to the first five or six rows. “It’s a its own power amp and own digital control of the sound pattern. “It con - horizontal version of a line array, with signal processing to steer the sound forms to the seating area you are try - the same characteristics of a vertical lobe according to the specific shape ing to cover. You don’t want to create array: Not having to play as loud, of the area being covered. Duran DDS a lot of reflections or echoes. They and being able to go farther,” says software and signal processing make work together and you get less falloff Laidman. “The strength and energy it possible to shape the front of the over distance.” of the main clusters also serves soundwave to approximately follow In addition to the JBL VerTec those front rows, but the intelligibility the line of a sloping floor, or wrap 4888s and 4887s suspended in the and clarity come from the infill line around a balcony face, and under clusters, the sound rig includes 12 array. If you point the main cluster at and above the balcony as well.” Renkus-Heinz TRX/61s for underbal - the front row, it will feed back—and Amplifiers include Crown I-T and CT cony coverage, two Duran Intellivox if you don’t have the infill—the first Series units, plus a pair from QSC’s DS500s for balcony speech reinforce - few rows have to get their sound CX Series. A Yamaha PM5D-RH con - ment, two Duran Intellivox DS280s from 30' over their heads.” trols the system. and two DS180s for main-floor Laidman set up another kind of Other key pieces of sound gear include 12 Shure UHF-R wireless mics, two Lake Contour 26 DSPs and MediaMatrix Nion 8 DSP systems, a BSS OPAL FCS 966 graphic EQ, Furman PL-8 power conditioning, and Middle Atlantic racks. Kirkegaard also provided an Atlas Soundolier back-of- house monitor and paging system with fundamental ceiling loudspeakers, operated by the intercom system, which was designed by Auerbach. The latter is a flexible and expand - able digital matrix intercom system, and provides necessary full duplex communication throughout the facility through the use of master base sta - tions, remote belt-pack units, and wireless headsets. The system also

The old and new Tabernacles, and the Temple’s foundations, in the 1870s

www.lightingandsoundamerica.com • October 2007 • 63 ARCHITECTURE

The above photo of the Tabernacle under construction in the 19th century reveals the shape of the dome.

provides back-of-house paging, per - pylons, located on the left and right “The church wanted one point of formance audio feed, and a cue-light sides near the main cross aisle, rise contact for all the wiring,” says Mei. signal system fully integrated and out of the floor about 12' on cylindri - “Kirkegaard gave us their require - actuated by the digital matrix. cal lifts when summoned. The side ments and we integrated those with Communication to production per - balconies have two manned camera our panels. That worked out well. Of sonnel is also provided by a closed- positions utilizing a camera trolley course, everybody has changes at circuit television system, allowing dis - that clips onto a specialty balcony one point or another, and we had to tribution and control of pan/tilt/zoom railing for live tracking shots. keep track of all the those changes, cameras to the various technical The five cameras are all controlled so there was a lot of infrastructure operation positions within the facility. remotely, via fiber-optic cable, from coordination back and forth between The communication system is by the control room in the LDS confer - the two firms.” A secondary set of Clear-Com. The cue-light system ence center several blocks away. “All pan/tilt/zoom cameras for technical includes a Clear-Com RLY-6 relay that specialty hybrid camera cabling and production uses can be remotely control module, Futurelec opto-isolat - was run by LDS staff themselves,” controlled from various positions ed relay boards, and custom-fabricat - notes Mei. Integrating connections in within the Tabernacle. The video con - ed and portable cue light panels with the rostrum itself took a lot of design trol racks are located in a technical amber and green indicator LEDs. coordination because of the movable operations center in the basement, The video and communications sections. “We had to come up with where there are also rehearsal rooms system design, including broadcast clever ways to hide connection panels and a teleprompter control room. cameras, switchers, projection equip - under the fixed structure to connect ment, and Clear-Com communica - removable video screens built into the Reconfiguring the space tions systems, had to be, for the most fronts of the seating modules and “The Tabernacle is active almost 300 part, invisible and retractable. “There other temporary services,” notes Mei. nights a year,” says Neville. LDS had is one camera that is fixed on the Because the audio and video a clear concept of the new modular centerline of the Tabernacle, to the responsibilities were divided between rostrum and rigging functions, he balcony face, on a robotic pan/tilt the two companies, Auerbach Pollock adds: “We were all facilitators more head, and that’s the only one fixed in Friedlander and Kirkegaard worked than anything else, executing their public view all the time,” says Dan closely to coordinate the AV wiring vision in a construction environment. Mei. Two cameras, on motorized infrastructure and connection panels. The lift systems and rigging were

64 • October 2007 • Lighting &Sound America designed to facilitate moving from small air compressor, open a false The control systems for the lighting event type to event type as seamlessly panel on the railing, plug in the com - and the rigging are wireless. “In the as possible. Whatever the configura - pressor, turn it on, and it pushes the case of the rigging automation sys - tion, it must look as if the event casters up 2" so they can roll tem, there are several fixed perma - belongs in that space. The corollary around.” The “inflatable” casters are nent positions where the Nomad con - goal was for the technology to be as known as tri-casters or zero-throw sole can be positioned,” says Neville, unobtrusive as possible.” casters. “They go exactly where you “but to provide additional flexibility Several large existing light trusses need them to go,” says Neville. the devices can also be run from a were relocated to serve the latter “When you push the unit into its belt pack. When somebody wants to goal. “The entire design team decided place squat and set it down, it stays work on a light truss, they just sum - not to try to hide them, but to move right where you put it.” mon it and then send it back. We them out of the picture as much as The existing wooden roof trusses tried to provide as many tools as pos - possible,” says Neville. Trusses were relied on to rig the chandeliers sible to reduce manpower. You can located directly over the rostrum and light trusses. “The roof is a barrel turn on the lights with one remote were moved to the back of the house. shape and at each end a quarter of a after you bring in the truss with Stage right and left trusses were sphere,” says Neville. “The ‘king’ another remote—meaning that a sin - gle technician can do it in sequence.” All this technical work was being Neville: “The Tabernacle is active almost 300 done in tandem with significant struc - nights a year. Whatever the configuration, it tural work. “The major scope of the must look as if the event belongs in that project for us,” says Roger Jackson AIA, of FFKR Architects, “was to seis - space. The corollary goal was for the tech - mically upgrade the building, which nology to be as unobtrusive as possible. ” consisted of strengthening the foun - dations, stone piers, roof trusses, roof diaphragm, and choir bowl, moved as close to the wall as possi - trusses supporting the ends were making structural connections ble and painted to match the colors reinforced—that was really the only between the foundation, walls, and of the wall and ceiling. steel they put up into the attic, along piers, and connecting the floor to the Two custom lifts, activated by with some blocking plates, with spe - walls and the trusses to the piers, Gala Spiralifts, provide the base cial adhesives to make sure every - strengthening the connection structure for the various rostrum con - thing stayed tied together. They left between the roof and plaster ceiling figurations. “It’s a lift-within-a-lift the rest alone. A structural engineer - to the trusses, and stabilizing the setup,” says Neville. “The main lift ing team analyzed the original struc - existing ‘king trusses,’ the plaster can travel from the storage level all ture and said it was very good.” ceiling system, and organ structure.” the way to the red carpet level. The All the winches are positioned on The Tabernacle’s north and south smaller lift, contained within the larger the tops of the sandstone piers that underground structures comprises lift, follows a shorter path and is pri - support the roof trusses, with rigging approximately 97,412 sq. ft. The marily for orchestra mode. When the lines muled to their various locations. mechanical, electrical, fire sprinkler, choir and orchestra perform together The curved surface bedeviled life safety, and audiovisual systems the orchestra is positioned nearest Neville’s job, as well as Gavin’s. “The were removed and new, code-compli - the audience and the choir is directly whole roof is half of a barrel,” he ant systems installed. All the finishes in front of the organ; this configura - says. “All the winches are at the bot - were touched up or repainted in tion echoes how the space was used tom of that—the lines go up, and they some way. Any new building elements prior to the renovation and was only curve. You cannot tell what is vertical were given particular attention to slightly restructured.” and what is horizontal or what is match the historical character and On top of the lifts are platforms straight and what is curved when you design found throughout the building. created by Stage Right, and stage are in the roof—you lose track. You “The ultimate goal was to strength - wagons created by Pook Diemont & lose your orientation, so we had to do en and fortify the building while still Ohl (PDO). “The wagons are great,” due diligence. The company that keeping the old, original Tabernacle,” says Neville. “Internal to each is a mounted the [Big Tow] winches, adds Jackson. Today, the renovated small hydraulic caster lift system. Stage Technologies, did a phenome - Tabernacle looks more like its old self People moving the wagons take a nal job, working closely with PDO.” than it has for some 40 years.