Opened in 1957 with a design by the founding architects of the State of Israel, Dov Karmi and Ze'ev Rechter, Lowy Hall immediately became a cultural landmark that would shape Israel’s musical landscape for generations.
As the home of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, the wood-lined concert hall within the Charles Bronfman Auditorium has hosted some of the world’s most celebrated performers, from Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand and Leonard Bernstein to leading international orchestras.
Following a 2013 acoustic renovation by Yasuhisa Toyota, whose work includes Walt Disney Concert Hall, the amphitheatre-style venue with 2,479 seats now combines exceptional acoustics with clear sightlines from every position.
In 2025, the hall commissioned an extensive audio upgrade to match its architectural significance and acoustic pedigree: an immersive L-Acoustics L-ISA configuration, designed to meet its demanding programme of classical, jazz and pop concerts, as well as choirs, conferences and ceremonies.
To design and oversee the upgrade, Lowy Concert Hall engaged award-winning AV consultant Harel Tabibi, who wrote a detailed tender in which three leading global manufacturers participated. The process of selecting both the loudspeaker manufacturer and the integration company was critical, as this was the first permanent installation of an immersive system in Israel.
Tabibi prioritised the following criteria in his evaluation: sound quality, compliance with top-tier artist requirements, user-friendly and accessible software that any visiting technician could learn quickly and easily and, most importantly, how well the size of the loudspeakers would integrate into Lowy Concert Hall, a historic and protected building. At the end of this process, L-Acoustics Certified Partner Sincopa 2002 Ltd won the tender and signed the contract, sub-contracting Charmer Group to carry out the integration. Together with Assa Efrat and the L-Acoustics team, they delivered Israel’s first large-scale L-ISA installation in the country’s largest and busiest concert hall.
Strategic planning in a working venue
The project began in 2024, when Sincopa and Harel started developing the design in collaboration with the L-Acoustics Applications team. The one-year development timeline reflected the complexity of integrating cutting-edge immersive technology into a historically significant space that maintains a demanding performance schedule.
The Israel Philharmonic Orchestra not only performs in the hall, but rehearses there daily. We coordinated around their schedule and maximised the month-long closure during summer 2025, which allowed us to focus on the installation without interruptions, explains Assa Efrat, sound engineer at Sincopa.
The technical challenge focused on achieving precise loudspeaker positioning while preserving the existing infrastructure. Lighting trusses, fly bars and motorised acoustic panels remained in place, requiring careful coordination. “We had to replace the ceiling infrastructure and the lighting to accommodate the stage-wide L-ISA configuration”, notes Omri (BaBu) Levy from Charmer Group. “The key was integrating the new technology without compromising the venue’s historic aesthetic or its acoustic performance”.
Precision design with the L Series
As part of the preparatory work, Sincopa brought the venue’s technical team to L-Acoustics’ Marcoussis facility to experience the newly released L2 line source firsthand. L2 met two critical requirements: its elegant design complemented the hall’s historic character, while delivering the technical sophistication required for a fully immersive sound solution.
Sincopa used Soundvision to model and refine the design before deployment. “Soundvision was the key tool on this project”, says Efrat. “It allowed me to assess how different approaches would perform and then finalise and implement the optimal solution”.
The final configuration includes five hangs of one L2 over an L2D, with two extension hangs of four A10 clusters on each side to ensure consistent coverage across the venue’s wider seating areas, and a centre-hung array of six KS28 in cardioid mode, all integrated into the ceiling structure. The ceiling’s net-like construction allows low frequencies to pass through unobstructed, delivering powerful bass response throughout the hall without compromising sightlines or visual integrity. Ten Kiva II provide spatial front-fill coverage. The hall’s distinctive side balconies receive focused treatment from four X6i per side, delivering precise coverage to these challenging areas without spilling into the main seating bowl. Two KS21 subwoofers on a chariot system, together with A15 Wide and A15 Focus, are available as a mobile system that can be repositioned as side fills or to provide additional reinforcement for specific productions.
The processing architecture includes 12 LA7.16i amplified controllers—10 dedicated to the L2 arrays, and one handling both the A10 clusters and the X6i balcony fills—with LA12X amplified controllers driving the subwoofer array. On-stage racks include LA7.16i for the Kiva front-fill system, and LA12X amplified controllers for a mobile backup configuration.
Since the venue does not maintain a house console, Sincopa designed the system with the flexibility required to accommodate the variety of mixing desks that arrive with different productions. A technical room beside FOH houses the necessary electronics, including multiple computers running different applications, a master clock and two LS10 Milan-AVB switches.
The audio infrastructure follows a clear signal flow from FOH to an isolated, air-conditioned amplifier room, with additional stage connectivity, all linked via fibre optics. L-Acoustics P1 processors at FOH and on stage convert analogue and AES3 input points into Milan-AVB streams, which travel over the redundant LS10 network to the L-ISA Controller and the amplified controllers. The L-Acoustics Milan-AVB ecosystem—LS10 switches, AVB-capable amplifiers and P1 processors—forms the system backbone in a redundant configuration.
Exceptional support and performance
The project’s success was the result of outstanding coordination between the technical teams.
We received exceptional support from L-Acoustics throughout the process. They connected with us remotely whenever needed, helping us troubleshoot, fine-tune the system and resolve outstanding issues. Their responsiveness and willingness to go into the details gave us the support we needed for a project of this scale, adds Levy.
Engineers who have worked with the new system report significant improvements. Renowned mix engineer Eran Pereldik has worked with the system twice: once with Ishai Ribo and the Israel Philharmonic, and once with Rami Kleinstein and the Israel Philharmonic. “Lowy Concert Hall sounds different with L2”, he says. “The image is clear and crisp, and you can work at a low level while still getting an intelligible image in every seat. L-ISA adds width and, especially with classical music, if the level is correct, the image is so transparent that you might sometimes wonder if the mics are working”.
Mix engineer Lior Tevet agrees: “L-Acoustics L-ISA technology has transformed both the mixing experience and the audience’s listening experience. Beyond the system’s capabilities for creating an interesting and unique sonic image, the fact that every listener receives the same result regardless of where they sit is extraordinary”.
My experience with the L-ISA installation was excellent. The system allowed me to work effectively in a hall that is acoustically challenging due to its reverberation time and sound distribution. The level of detail I achieved was something I had never heard before, and I didn’t need to push the system to get there. The audience response was incredible: coverage and clarity remained consistent throughout the hall, from the front rows to the back, says Yossi Lugassi, FOH engineer for several Israeli acts.
Related images:
- LA_Lowy Hall_1 - Home of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, Lowy Concert Hall underwent a major audio upgrade with L-ISA
- LA_Lowy Hall_2 - A fully immersive L-ISA configuration serves Lowy Hall’s demanding mix of classical, jazz and pop concerts, choirs, conferences and ceremonies.
- LA_Lowy Hall_3 – Sincopa and Charmer Group delivered Israel’s first large-scale L-ISA installation in its largest and busiest concert hall.
- LA_Lowy Hall_4 - The final configuration includes five hangs of one L2 over an L2D, two extension hangs of four A10 clusters on each side and a centre-hung array of six KS28 in cardioid mode, all integrated into the ceiling structure.
- LA_Lowy Hall_5 - L-Acoustics technology has transformed both the mixing experience and the audience’s listening experience.
- LA_Lowy Hall_6 - The processing architecture includes 12 L-Acoustics LA7.16i amplified controllers
