Polygon recently hosted a captivating Live Spatial Audio Demo at the Amsterdam Dance Event to demonstrate the future of sound. This wasn’t just a tech showcase for audiophiles; it was an invitation for artists, promoters, venues, brands and music lovers to learn more about the immersive world of spatial audio, including how it works and why it matters.
Hosted together with The Other Side and L-Acoustics, the demo featured fascinating insights from Polygon’s Adam Nicholas and Davey Williamson, The Other Side’s Doeshka Vrede, L-Acoustics’ Guillaume Le Nost, Alter Music’s Tom van Wijk, and DJ and producer O/Y.
In his introduction, Polygon Director Adam Nicholas played one of the most famous songs in the history of music, Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody”, in mono, stereo and spatial audio. The contrast each time was astounding — it was as if the song grew in depth, complexity and expansiveness with each playing. Hearing it in spatial, you had the distinct impression that this was how it was always meant to be played.
Adam also drew parallels between the long journey stereo took to gain traction and today’s struggle for spatial audio adoption. It took 20 years of public scepticism before stereo became the norm, and record labels used to host listening sessions to invite people to experience it first-hand. Ironically, we find ourselves in a similar position today.
The demo highlighted how spatial audio transforms the listening experience. Polygon spatial audio engineer Davey Williamson offered a practical demonstration of how he spatialised “OPIUM”, a composition by the French art collective Visual System, who were responsible for the design and programming of the lighting used for Polygon’s Full Cycle concert series.
Davey’s talk showed that, while the technology is certainly complex, with the right expertise and equipment, it’s becoming increasingly accessible. L-Acoustics’ Guillaume Le Nost agreed: “The starting point today if you want to dive into spatial audio is very simple — you just need a laptop and a pair of headphones.”
This presents a golden opportunity for artists and venues, said Alter Music Founder Tom van Wijk. The technology is available, he emphasised, “if you want to stand out, you can make a difference with the audio”. DJ and producer O/Y echoed this sentiment, sharing his vision of using spatial audio as a true artistic medium, not just a technical tool. “With my next album,” he said, “I want to dive into the software and use the spatialisation of sound as an artistic expression rather than just a technical feat.”
What does the future hold? Will spatial audio become as commonplace as stereo? Will audiences and artists ultimately expect venues and events to produce sound this way? Whatever the trajectory of live sound holds, we’re certain that spatial audio will be part of it. And we look forward to sharing this journey with you.
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