Mezzanine floor – all-round cinema

Not only the picture, but also the sound characterizes the quality of a television. Now the latest entertainment technology activates more senses – with effects suitable for the stage.

It rumbles quietly under the sofa, increases to the bass, which pushes itself up into the stomach. Water shoots into the room from the left and softly splashes its way. The rapid solo of a violin reaches the right ear, stopping abruptly and faintly reverberating. What is acoustically reminiscent of an open-air concert, but sounds more differentiated and richer, can be found in the Zurich’s traditional hotel Dolder Grand instead – on a television. In 2022, the hotel management had all presidential suites equipped with new devices from the Danish company Bang & Olufsen.

The <Beovision Harmony› Simply calling it a TV, however, does not go far enough. “We want to appeal to the senses of the guests,” says Randy Hitti, Director of Rooms Division at the Dolder Grand. “We do this on the one hand through the acoustics, where our partner company is the front runner, but also through an element of surprise”. Anyone who switches on the device experiences an effect that the engineers in Denmark have been working on for a long time. As the screen slowly slides up, the flat loudspeakers are divided into two halvesto slide under the screen in a smooth twisting motion.

At the same time they open external stereo speakers, which stand in the room as slender columns. “It’s like in the cinema, when the velvet curtain gradually reveals the view of the screen: it sharpens the audience’s senses,” says Oliver Dross, Member of the Board of Directors of Bosshard HomeLink AG, the local B&O partner. If you are too impatient for the magic of the moment, you can always leave the ‘Beovision’ open. Only: “The joke is then of course gone”.

The size dilemma
Linking the functionality of the device to movement offers the possibility of reconciling two contradictory needs: a generous screen that is not noticeable when it is not running – despite the considerable format of the black area. “The trend today is that TV sets have to look good even when they are switched off,” says Dross. “We could hide them for that, but we don’t want that. We prefer to design them in such a way that they become design objects.»

This is matched by the wide range of materials offered by Bang & Olufsen. Walnut and oak nuances are used for the wooden elements, and the color of the aluminum can be coordinated to match. In the one inspired by Alberto Giacometti ‹Carezza›-Suite ‹Light Oak› blends perfectly into the interior, which is dominated by light wood, organic lines and caramel-colored leather. “That’s one of the reasons why we decided on this product,” explains Hitti, “our house thrives on art and carefully selected furniture. We wanted a TV that would organically blend into its surroundings.» Each of the suites has its own theme. The dark ‹Suite 100›, a tribute to the Sixties and the legendary Londoner Club 100, including a hand-signed electric guitar by the Rolling Stones. Here a dark acoustic fabric from the Danish textile producer covers the room Square the loudspeakers – who can imagine Mick Jagger surrounded by delicate wood nuances.

While many industries have been working for years to make their production more sustainable, this has hardly been the case in consumer electronics. His industry is probably a latecomer, says Dross, who at the same time emphasizes that B&O is leading the way: The company uses wood from sustainable cultivation, processed by a long-standing partner company in Denmark, where the devices are also assembled. All materials are as durable as possible. Plastic substitutes that imitate surfaces made of wood, metal or glass are deliberately avoided. This is also reflected in the screen, which is made of anti-reflective safety glass and weighs a respectable amount. Thanks to Oled technology, the contrast value is particularly high and the film night is pitch black.

For the Dolder Grand, the Danes have once again simplified the already reduced remote control in order to offer maximum user-friendliness. It is correspondingly easy to connect your own devices to the screen. Nowadays, feeling at home starts with the streaming service – who wants to spend hours zapping through film tips that are not related to one’s profile. And those who prefer analog entertainment despite the cinema feeling can enjoy the panorama behind the screen: Albiskette, Lake Zurich and the wide sky above.

Die Workplace section is a cooperation between Hochparterre and selected companies and institutions in Switzerland.