Lyric Opera 2023-2024 Issue 3 - Daughter of the Regiment

15 | Lyric Opera of Chicago Then there is the equally invisible, though more abstract question: What is music supposed to feel like? “Refining the quality of the experience is critical,” Dunn says. “I actually began my career as a sound engineer, so I can’t think of any word other than ‘mix.’ But instead of mixing the sound output, I’m mixing the amount of intensity to different haptic motors in the shirt. It’s a bunch of pretty boring stuff to many, but we worked extensively with CuteCircuit to add features to their software to help us manage the wide dynamic range of classical music, and to update the frequencies on which the hardware transmits. By the end of Carmen, I actually was very optimistic about the experience of the shirts.” Further testing, especially with people who are deaf or hard of hearing, continued to refine the settings—and the process will be ongoing. The brass sound in Donizetti’s The Daughter of the Regiment is, after all, different from the brass in Wagner’s The Flying Dutchman . “What we’re seeking is an enhancement; we’re not recreating what it’s like to hear music, because you can’t do that for someone who doesn’t have their hearing,” Dunn says. “But you can create an experience that is unique, that is a thing in and of itself, that layers on top of the audience’s experience of seeing a show. It adds some richness.” Increasing access to opera is an ongoing priority across all departments at Lyric. Tickets for SoundShirt seats are currently available for $20, though nearly all other accessibility services are complimentary. The company offers seating for those in wheelchairs, FM and Telecoil loop assisted listening devices, touch tours, audio-described performances, braille and large-print programs, high-powered opera glasses, accessible restrooms, automatic exterior doors, and other bene ts. Even the recent large-scale reseating and house renovation was undertaken with an eye toward accessibility. Like the SoundShirt, many of those improvements started at a modest scale. At present, a small collection of shirts is available, in medium and large, with more sizes on the way. They will be deployed at selected performances of each opera this season, on dates also featuring projected English titles or sign language interpretation. “I don’t think I made the opera house a destination necessarily in the way that I would now,” Arfa noted. “Because the SoundShirt provides a new experience and makes people curious.” For more information on the SoundShirt program, and to purchase tickets for SoundShirt performances, visit lyricopera.org/SoundShirt. A member of the media (at left) tries on one of the shirts. At right,Brad Dunn demonstrates the complex software that controls the garment.