L-Acoustics L-ISA Immerses Beijing Audience in the Ethereal Sounds of Zhuang Folk Music while Preserving its Authentic Emotional Depth

When renowned Zhuang folk singer Tang Caimei took the stage at Beijing’s Nationality Culture Palace Theatre, the audience was transported into a realm where centuries-old tradition met the power of modern immersive technology. Her solo concert, Folk Songs of Zhuang, offered a deeply emotional journey through the heart of Guangxi’s musical heritage—this time elevated by an L-ISA immersive audio system from L-Acoustics, deployed by L-Acoustics Certified Provider Rightway Audio Consultants (RAC).

Tang Caimei, who began mastering Zhuang folk songs at just six years old and has been a solo performer with the China National Ethnic Song and Dance Ensemble for over two decades, sought to present how traditional ethnic music could evolve while remaining culturally authentic. The Zhuang people’s folk songs, designated as intangible cultural heritage by the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, are characterised by their unique tonalities and piercing vocal expressions—elements that posed both a creative and technical challenge for the production team.

“When performing music with strong ethnic characteristics, the uniqueness of tone, purity of sound quality, and ambience of sound effects are all essential,” notes Yu Tao, Senior System Engineer of RAC. “L-ISA enables the emotional expression in Tang Caimei’s concert to be conveyed with greater subtlety and emotional impact.”

Structured in four thematic segments—Songs on Homesickness, Songs on Love, Songs on Zhuang’s History, and Songs on Gratitude—the concert combined solo and ensemble performances by Tang Caimei alongside guest artists Lei Ying, Chao Kejiletu, Yu Haiyang, He Mengling, and Kuang Xiaoling. With L-ISA, each performer’s voice appeared to emanate naturally from their position on stage, delivering spatial realism far beyond the capabilities of conventional concert sound systems.

RAC utilised L-Acoustics Soundvision 3D modelling software to ensure optimal coverage across the venue. The A Series system’s directional control handled Tang Caimei’s high-pitched vocals with precision and clarity, maintaining the authenticity that defines Zhuang folk music.

The L-ISA Scene System comprised five hangs, each featuring one unit of the A10 Focus over two units of the A10 Wide loudspeakers, complemented by four units of the KS21 subwoofers positioned behind the central hang for low-end support. Six units of the X8 enclosures were used for spatial front-fill coverage, with amplification provided by a single LA7.16 and three units of the LA4X amplified controllers. Connectivity was achieved through four LS10 Milan-AVB switches linking to an L-ISA Processor II.

“The 16 output channels made LA7.16 the natural choice for this L-ISA application,” explains Yu Tao. “Redundant Milan-AVB signals meant we could integrate the entire system with a single dual-core Ethernet cable from the L-ISA Processor II—the intuitive signal matrix simplified our AVB stream configurations considerably.”

“L-ISA multi-dimensional sound breaks the limitation of space,” concludes Yu Tao. “Every note of Tang Caimei’s singing became vivid and vibrant, immersing the audience in the ethnic charms of Zhuang and allowing them to fully experience the emotion conveyed with her voice.”

The concert was conducted by Tan Lihua, featuring the China National Opera and Dance Theatre Symphony Orchestra and Beijing Musicians Association Choir, and was presented by the China National Ethnic Song and Dance Ensemble’s Practice Theatre for Young Artists.