New York, NY (November 13, 2023)—The Appel Room inside New York City’s Jazz at Lincoln Center is a gorgeous live performance space. The room, dominated by a towering glass wall that looks out to Columbus Circle and the southwest corner of Central Park, has been featured in countless TV shows and films, but continues to host a broad variety of artists from across the musical spectrum nightly.
Part of what makes that possible is the venue’s Meyer Sound Constellation acoustic system—one of the earliest and most high-profile installations of the technology. Continuing that tradition, the facility recently became the first venue to install Meyer’s new Nadia integrated digital audio platform for Constellation acoustic systems. The update included the core processor and input/output modules, replacing prior-generation D-Mitri units from The Appel Room’s original installation of Constellation in 2013.
To mark the update, The Appel Room hosted a celebration of music and technology with Meyer Sound on October 27, bringing together violinist Joshua Bell with the Academy of St Martin in the Fields Chamber Ensemble, the Mark Morris Dance Group, rock legend Steve Miller, and the Bruce Harris Quintet, the latter introduced by Wynton Marsalis, managing and artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center.
The Fillmore Updates Audio with UltraSound-Installed Panther System
Company co-founders John and Helen Meyer were in attendance, with executive vice president Helen Meyer and Constellation project director John Pellowe making introductions and conversing with the performers. Legendary guitarist and songwriter Steve Miller, who recently joined the Board of Directors of Jazz at Lincoln Center, recounted his relationship with John Meyer extending back to 1967 when Meyer created a custom amplifier for Miller’s appearance at the Monterey Pop Festival. “John is a perfectionist and the sound in this room is an example of that,” said Miller. “I love playing here.” Miller then treated the gathering to an acoustic treatment of his 1977 hit, “Jet Airliner.”
John and Helen Meyer took the occasion to present a gift of financial support for JALC’s education programs, accepted by Marsalis. Under the leadership of vice president for Education Todd Stoll, JALC offers programs tailored for students of all ages, from toddlers to adults, to expand knowledge about, and nurture the performance of, jazz music.
“John and I were amazed by the response from both the artists who performed and the guests who attended this truly special evening,” said Helen Meyer following the festivities. “This was a celebration for Nadia, the new digital platform for Constellation, which we proudly named after our granddaughter. It proved to be the ultimate showcase of how we strive to give artists and audiences the best possible experience at the intersection of technology and art.”
