Latin Grammy nominee Sebastian Yatra recently performed at South America’s best-known festival. We asked his audio team why they chose Waves eMotion LV1 to mix FOH and monitors and to broadcast the show to 100 million viewers.
Singer-songwriter Sebastián Yatra is one of the most successful up-and-coming artists in Latin America today, having been nominated for three Latin Grammy awards to date. For his recent performance at the 60th Vina del Mar International Song Festival in Chile, which is broadcast every year to over 100 million viewers, the principal audio team—front-of-house mixer Will Madera, monitor mixer Andres Guerrero Ruiz, and broadcast mixer John Buitrago—chose to employ the Waves eMotion LV1 live mixer.
Yatra's team has been using a complete Waves SoundGrid® and eMotion LV1 setup since the beginning of his tours. Subsequently, Yatra's team chose to deploy an integrated SoundGrid solution at FOH, monitors and broadcast for this prestigious and technically demanding live performance and television event. Due to the live TV recording, the Vina Del Mar festival uses primary and backup solutions in all positions, as well as integration with their house setup. Thanks to the ease of cross-platform integration using Waves SoundGrid solutions, Yatra's team was able to deploy their standard tour package of Waves eMotion LV1 consoles (plus the broadcast console), and still integrate seamlessly with the festival's DiGiCo SD Racks for PA output feeds.
Will Madera and John Buitrago’s FOH and broadcast setups: the Waves eMotion LV1 Live Mixer (v10), two Dell 24 Touch Monitors, a SoundGrid Extreme Server, a DiGiGrid MGB interface for the MADI IO, an Icon Platform M and Icon Platform X fader controllers and a DiGiGrid IOC audio interface as local IO.
On using plugins, Madera comments, “As the FOH engineer for this show, it was a great challenge because we had to maintain an audio level where we did not interfere with the show’s broadcast. Having said that, the LV1 was a great help, since it gave me the necessary tools required to mix the show. For example, I used the Waves F6 Floating-Band Dynamic EQ in my matrix to fine-tune the PA. This really helped me control certain frequencies to maintain an adequate level that would not affect the broadcast, and at the same time, without losing FOH power for the audience.”
Madera adds, “When I mix live instruments, my must-have plugins are the Waves SSL G-Channel, the CLA Classic Compressors and PuigTec EQs. Another tool that was key was the Waves Tune Real-Time as it enabled us to maintain tuning perfection for the vocals, and using the scenes menu in the LV1 to change keys and tempos was a big plus for this show. For my verbs, I have been using the Abbey Road Chambers plugin for the vocals and to space out some of my instruments in the mix. To finalize, I used the Abbey Road TG Mastering Chain on my mix bus, giving me texture and color which are crucial factors to have on my final mix.”
Buitrago comments, “When mixing broadcast at the Vina del Mar festival, the LV1 was very helpful because it had all the necessary tools to make a successful broadcast mix. I used the valuable Waves Paz Analyzer and VU Meter plugins to watch my mix as it was sent to TV, in order to make sure that there were no issues with phasing and the stereo image. I also used the TG Abbey Road Mastering Chain to tighten my mix and to push the harmonics and limiting to keep the mix level, while often using the stereo and mono switch to compare my mix, since occasionally some of the broadcast is needed in mono. I took advantage of different presets to set up long and short verbs for the ballads and reggaeton songs, using the Abbey Road Reverb Plates and the H-Reverb Hybrid Reverb plugins. Another great tool was the Waves SSL G-Master Buss Compressor, which I placed before my TG Abbey Road Mastering Chain plugin, to glue the mix before it hit the TG.”
Andres Guerrero Ruiz’s monitor setup includes the Waves eMotion LV1 Live Mixer (v10), a Mac mini, two Dell 24 Touch Monitors, a DiGiGrid MGB interface for the MADI IO, a Waves Extreme Server, and two DiGiGrid IOX’s.
Guerrero’s comments, “All the Waves plugins that I use are important in my mix chain. For example, in my auxiliaries, I use the Waves L3 Multimaximizer to control the dynamics by a frequency group, which gives a better mix-balance in the in-ears. The NLS Non-Linear Summer preamp provides all my channels with the texture that I want in the final mix. Another indispensable plugin is the Waves Primary Source Expander, which I use on Sebastián’s vocal. It filters out unwanted artifacts that are a result of the stage environment, as well as when the microphone is close to the PA. An additional plugin tool that was extremely helpful was the Waves Tune Real-Time, in that it gives confidence to the artist and myself when it comes to the performance changing keys from the original recording. Yatra’s musical director, Andres Munera Eastman, is very involved in the programming of the show and the scene recalls, with selective scope, allow for plugins like Waves Tune Real-Time or H-Delay Hybrid Delay to be recalled with specific settings for each song, which satisfies both the needs of the sound engineers and the vision of the musical director. Also, the plugin that is responsible for controlling the dynamics of Yatra's voice is the Waves CLA-76 set in bluey mode, as it gives his voice a certain presence. The feeling that comes out of the mix with the 76 is something that Sebastian likes to hear and feel in his voice. Without a doubt, the LV1 has some features that make my show very consistent, and I can deliver that consistency to my artist and his musicians as well.”