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Hear 'Comfortably Numb' like never before as Pink Floyd, Sennheiser partner on exhibit


Fans of Pink Floyd will soon get a special opportunity to hear one of the band’s most famous live performances like never before, as part of a special exhibition on the band at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum.

The museum has partnered with Sennheiser to present a 360-degree recording of Comfortably Numb from Pink Floyd’s famed Live 8 performance in 2005, the last time that the band’s classic lineup — guitarist David Gilmour, drummer Nick Mason, keyboardist Richard Wright and bassist Roger Waters — ever shared a stage together.

The demonstration of the latest 3D audio technology seems particularly well-suited to the famed classic rock outfit, who helped pioneer the use of surround sound in the music industry decades ago.

“We have been using Sennheiser equipment ever since Pink Floyd started out as a live band,” said Mason of the collaboration, “It is only fitting that they provide the audio experience at our exhibition.”

To achieve the feeling of being at the concert in person, the team from Sennheiser will employ 25 speakers and its Ambeo 3D technology, which places sound both around and above the listener for a fully immersive audio experience.

This isn’t the first time that fans of Floyd have been able to hear this technology applied to their music. The company premiered the mix to an exclusive audience at Abbey Road Studios, where the band recorded iconic records like Dark Side of the Moon, earlier this month.

Pink Floyd engineer Andy Jackson worked closely with the audio wizards at Sennheiser and producers like Simon Roads (Spectre, Avatar) at Abbey Road to make sure the mix was up to snuff.

The exhibition will be called Pink Floyd: Their Mortal Remains, and will open at the museum on May 13. Tickets for the exhibition have already been made available at a special website.

Parker Hall
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Parker Hall is a writer and musician from Portland, OR. He is a graduate of the Oberlin Conservatory of Music in Oberlin…
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