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Italy - Proel SpA has appointed Marco Farello as export manager. Previously, he has worked with with major Italian distributors, developing solid international relationships with MI and pro audio manufacturers worldwide.

Farello will have special responsibility for Proel's sound reinforcement division. He says, "The market is continuously offering new opportunities to expand business. I am very happy to be joining such a forward looking company that has high quality products and a strong reputation for customer service."

(Jim Evans)

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UK - Comedian and actor Eddie Izzard was among the stars performing at the first Secret Policeman's Ball benefit show to be staged for 17 years, the event that raises money for Amnesty International.

For stage lighting, event organisers Flux asked Pete Barnes to design the show. Event Producer, John Farquhar-Smith, wanted someone experienced in both TV and live environments that would create a show that worked in both contexts.

Barnes created a semi circle of 80 PixelLine 1044s at the back of the stage that worked well as background eye-candy both on camera and live. He explains, "The 80 battens were housed in ten customised metal frames, which formed a wrap-around effect that didn't take-up too much stage room. Video content amalgamated with colours and effects were run through the PixelLines."

Izzard shared the stage at the Royal Albert Hall with many comedy favo

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UK - London's Trafalgar Square recently played host to a series of live music events, with sound reinforcement services provided by AdLib Audio Hire of Liverpool. A complete large-scale audio system featuring JBL Professional Vertec line arrays and Soundcraft's new Vi6 digital mixing console was supplied.

The weekend of September 15-17 featured an eclectic variety of events, including a peace rally and a full live musical programme. On September 16, Scissor Sisters performed at the MOTO (RED) benefit event, sponsored by Motorola. Proceeds from the show went towards the global fight against AIDS in Africa. September 17 featured Simcha On The Square, a celebration of Jewish music and culture.

AdLib Audio provided two main left/right arrangements of Vertec VT4889 full-size line array elements, with additional outfill arrays positioned to serve the large audiences in the br

Doughty - Banner - ABTT (27 May - 5 June)

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UK - London School of Sound (LSS) has adopted Allen & Heath's Xone:3D mixer/controller to conduct its modern DJ Skills courses for live performance and studio production, and has devised a course with specialised training on the Xone:3D in conjunction with Ableton and other music software providers.

"We were initially attracted to the Xone:3D because it is the first control surface for Ableton Live designed with the performing DJ in mind. The layout is clear and well organised, the controls are intuitive, and the construction quality make it a reliable choice for our demanding schedule of (ab)use!" explains LSS tutor, Federico Bersano Begey. "Its ability to work as an audio/MIDI interface for both Mac and PC, make it the ideal controller to run almost all of our courses."

He continues, "Modern DJ's, whether pro or bedroom, are interested in much more t

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UK - Visitors to the South Bank of the River Thames over the last few months will have seen a dramatic visual change to the concrete structures of the South Bank arts centre as night fell and a new lighting scheme took over.

Lighting designer Willie Williams - most commonly thought of for his work with U2, but also represented in London's West End and in theatres around the world with the musical We Will Rock You - was asked by the South Bank Centre's creative director Jude Kelly to devise a lighting scheme for the Centre, both to give it its own identity and to ensure that it wasn't overshadowed by the dramatic exterior lighting scheme now in place at its neighbour, the National Theatre.

Working to a tight budget, Williams devised a fixed look for the buildings; White Light supplied a large quantity of MBI floods and ETC Source Fours to implement the design, which Will

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Australia - Australian lighting control manufacturer, LSC Lighting Systems, recently appointed Jaz Harrison to the role of marketing officer. The appointment cements another strategic step in the company's growth plan, enabling it to better service its customer base, says the company.

Harrison goes to LSC with a varied background, having worked for several global companies,including the Fairfax Media Group and The Salvation Army, accumulating many years ofmarketing communications and creative/design experience.

Harrison will provide LSC with improved distributor communications and up to the minuteinformation on new products. Harrison has already been involved in the new LSC corporate logo and identity, revised maXim and EKO brochures, and the popular LSC carabineer torches given away at recent tradeshows.

(Chris Henry)

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USA - "We've had great success integrating the LSC maXim series of lighting consoles in small and large spaces, houses of worship in particular," says Bill Manning of All Pro Sound. "While they have some very sophisticated features, they still maintain a simplicity that's attractive to clients working with limited resources through volunteers.

Pro Sound Installations of the console include Village Baptist Church in Destin, Florida, and the Mendham Hills Chapel in Mendham, NJ. Chad Edwardson.

All Pro Sound's lighting guru, reports that when training customers on the operation of the maXim he has found that the learning curve is rapid. "The layout is very well designed and the graphical display is very intuitive," he said. "Controlling intelligent lights is a breeze and the scene setup is much quicker with the use of the filter function."

(Ji

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With an LED life of 50,000 hours and low power use, the P6 cuts energy costs and supports the EU’s ‘Green Deal’ goals for climate neutrality by 2050. It also meets updated eco-design rules for lighting.

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USA - D.A.S. Audio staged its North American Aero Line Array Training Seminar on October 18 and 19 at the Fitzgerald Hotel in Las Vegas. The seminar was addressed to US Aero line array system users as well as potential clients. At the same time, the new Variant line array and EASE Focus software were presented to the US market.

The main seminar speakers were Ashok Maharaj, independent professional audio consultant from Venezuela; Javier Navarro, D.A.S. Audio sound engineer; Kevin Hill, head of sales for the US; Ramón Franco, sales representative for Colombia and technical adviser for Latin America; and Jack Palacio, international sales director of D.A.S. Audio. Roberto Giner, D.A.S. marketing director, as well as all sales representatives for the US were also present.

Close to ninety people attended the sessions which focused mainly on the line array theory and the dev

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UK - The Showman's Show takes place at the Newbury Showground in Berkshire every October and its outdoor situation makes it an ideal platform for large-scale products to be examined at close quarters. Star Events Group took full advantage of this at the 2006 event to officially launch Morbit.

"The response to our announcement of the concept earlier in the year was excellent," says Jane Russen, director of Star Events Group's mobile division. "The majority of people who came to see the stage at Showman's had already heard of it, although I'm sure there were some who came along to see if it actually existed!"

Star Events Group founder Roger Barrett developed the first modern mobile stage in 1988 and, with the company having acquired Orbit UK in 2004, it rapidly became clear that a mobile version of the popular Orbit stage would appeal to a wide range of event

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USA - Fits & Starts Productions will bring a pair of its How-To Church Sound Workshops to next year's NSCA Expo on March 16 and 17 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, FL. Offering applied, hands-on training for volunteer staff, music ministers, youth members, choir directors, musicians, or anyone seeking to gain a better understanding of sound systems or considering a sound system upgrade, the workshops will focus on both basic and advanced techniques.

The How-To Church Sound Microphone Techniques Workshop will focus on the proper choice and use of microphones in a house of worship environment, the workshop will examine correct microphone placement for musical instruments, choirs, and soloists, as well as the operation and differences between hardwired and wireless microphone systems. Different microphone polar patterns will additionally be evaluated

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USA - The ESTA Foundation raised over $55,000 for Behind the Scenes at the recent LDI show in Las Vegas. Members of the industry supported the charity through the purchase of raffle tickets, bidding on silent auction items, and contributions including a generous donation from Cheryl and John Cox, owners of Sacramento Theatrical Lighting.

A wide range of items were offered at the silent auction sponsored by LDI and Live Design, ranging from an original signed lightplot by Wally Russell Lifetime Achievement Award recipient Allen Branton from this year's MTV Music Video Awards, a copy of Foundation Board member Robert Bell's book Let there be Light signed by all the interviewees, Cirque du Soleil and Disney packages, to a host of equipment and services donated by LDI exhibitors.

The raffle drew a steady stream of contributors all hoping to ride home on

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UK - The Institute of Sound and Communications Engineers held their annual Institute Day on Friday 20th October 2006 in Watford. The event comprised the ever popular Warren Barnett Memorial Lecture which this year was presented by Sam Wise BSc CEng of Arup Acoustics, whose subject was loudspeaker arrays and how they work.

The AGM followed the lecture and the day concluded with a dinner at which presentations were made to individuals who were recognised for giving outstanding service to the Industry. Bryan Robinson of Robbotronic Co, vice president, was made a Fellow of the Institute and Terry Baldwin and David Boxall of Baldwin Boxall were awarded Lifetime Achievement certificates for their contribution, mainly to the voice alarm industry and to export.

In his address, David Hopkins OBE, president of the Institute, thanked the members for their support and in particular the su

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Italy - Clay Paky were chosen for the latest reality show La Pupa e il Secchione, adapted from the format of the American The Beauty and the Geek.

The idea was to mix the American format with the ingredients that work in other Italian programmes, and the result is a sort of comedy show which has gained great attention with the public and press.

In line with modern trends for TV studios, the La Pupa e il Secchione studio is a stage in-the-round with the actors in the centre. This structure offers more than one advantage: it centralises the scene, gives more shooting points and improves audience participation. With respect to the traditional stage, however, this solution presents certain problems during the stage-setting phase. "We had to install all the lighting material on the ceiling since there were no other support structures available, while the s

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UK - RF specialist Trantec has announced the launch of its innovative S.16 UHF wireless radio microphone system. Representing a further expansion of its growing portfolio of WEE compatible products, Trantec's S4.16 system promises "high quality wireless audio links at an affordable price".

The robust 19" rack mountable receiver pack boasts 16 user selectable channels, which includes 4 license free channels. Plus its diversity receiver ensures maximum control and minimises drop -outs. Its flexible audio output level is adjustable on both the jack and XLR outputs. Benefiting from RSSI/Squelch, the user can control the system to minimise external interference.

The Hand-Held system comprises a fully integrated handheld microphone , which features a cardioid dynamic capsule and is perfect for the most challenging vocal applications.

The Beltpack system comprises a

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UK - Summit Steel was called into London's Roundhouse to rig the hugely successful 5-day BBC Electric Proms festival event. Summit was contracted direct to promoters Metropolis Music, who were one of the organisers along with the BBC and the Electric Proms team, all working under festival director Lorna Clarke. Summit rigged various elements for lighting contractors Siyan, video and screen suppliers XL Video and Brit Row who supplied the audio.

The stage was set off to one side of the atmospheric circular venue, configured in an 'end-on' format. Summit put in points and rigging for two semi-spherical trusses used for lighting positions - upstage and mid-stage and a straight lighting truss at the FOH position was rigged on four points and used for key lighting. Two spreaders, each with two points a side were installed off the house beams and below their Cable NET mesh grid, to ha

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UK - Speedy Hire has announced the acquisition, from the Parkinson family, of the entire issued share capital of Lifting Gear Hire Limited, a specialist provider for the hire of lifting equipment and associated services including the repair, maintenance, testing and inspection of lifting equipment.

Lifting Gear Hire also provides a full range of test and inspection, calibration and training services to customers in the industrial and construction sectors. It operates from 34 UK depots employing 309 people, with a further 26 at its head office in the North West of England. The total consideration, subject to completion accounts, is £13.5m - comprising £7.6m in cash, the assumption of an estimated £3.4m of debt on completion, and £2.5m of shares in Speedy Hire.

For the 10 months ended 30 April 2006, Lifting Gear Hire reported audited turnover of £16

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UK - One of the first UK customers for the Soundcraft Vi6 digital console is Simon Kennedy Lights Ltd (SKL) in Edinburgh which has just confirmed an order for a second desk. SKL took delivery of its first Soundcraft Vi6 in July. and immediately despatched the desk to a 5-week rental at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

The Vi6 was stationed in the E4 UdderBELLY, a new comedy venue sponsored by digital TV channel E4. The 322-seat theatre space hosted a wide range of comedy and music comedy performances, including The Sperm Monologues and the juggling extravaganza Tossers: More Balls than Most.

SKL has made a substantial investment in a high-specification PA rental inventory, with the digital desks - supplied through Harman Pro UK - at its heart. Established as a lighting business for some ten years, SKL also provides staging, rigging, trussing and power distribution,

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USA - At this year's LDI Show, Tomcat offered attendees the chance to register to win a scholarship: the winner could choose to attend the 2007 Hoist and Rigging Workshop or the Advanced Truss and Motor Workshop. The winner is Kurt Jaeckel of Quickbeam Systems, Inc. in Albuquerque, New Mexico. QSI is an event production company that covers a wide range of services including video, audio, lighting, roofing and rigging.

The president of Quickbeam is no stranger to the industry and had to take a break from putting the Sandia Casino's roof system "to bed" for the winter to accept the much coveted scholarship. "I'm absolutely thrilled," he said before getting back to the project at hand.

Because Jaeckel has already attended the four day Hoist and Rigging Workshop, he has selected the Advanced Hoist and Truss Workshop.

Tomcat's annual school is February 21 - 24

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UK - In April of this year, John Moss (drums), Mikey Craig (bass), Phil Pickett (songwriter and keyboard player) and Tony Gordon (manager) decided to bend to public pressure for Culture Club to play live and re-enter the touring circuit.

After launching a daunting but successful quest to find 'Sam The Man' - a front man to temporarily replace the inimitable Boy George - they performed their first live gig since 2002 during this summer at London's Too2Much club, where front of house engineer Mark Portlock and monitor engineer Liam Halpin made groundbreaking use of their DiGiCo D1 Live digital mixing console.

"As production manager as well as FOH engineer, sometimes I have to make difficult decisions for the overall benefit of budget and ultimate show delivery," says Portlock. "With DiGiCo I feel that the decisions are now far less difficult."

Playing a sma

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UK - Large format projections specialists E//T//C UK created a 150 metre wide high-impact image across 350 metres of water onto Caernarfon Castle for a massive son et lumière event, Merlin's Magic Quest, a show celebrating Welsh history, heritage and community.

The event follows on from a pilot project staged in 2004, in which E//T//C UK projected onto a portion of the castle walls from the bottom of the hill on the town side of the Seiont River. This time, the projections - fed by five Pigi 6Kw projectors with double rotating scrollers - filled the entire side of the castle including three towers and two curtain walls facing the water - and were beamed from across the far side of the river.

The brown stone surface was a challenging surface on which to project, but the Pigi's cut through spectacularly, despite the long throw distance.

The 35 minute show involved over

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UK - Leicestershire-based Hawthorns recently provided lighting to the Alton Towers Electric Towers firework spectacular. Lighting designer and the park's technical manager Simon Horsley specified City Colours, Alpha Spot and Washes and Martin Atomic Strobes. Hawthorns were using, for the first time, their new TowAir inflatable clear domes to protect the moving lights from the elements.

Thirty of the strobes gave lightning effects to the Towers during the 20-minute spectacle. In addition three 200a three phase lightning strikes were suspended in and around the towers to light up the sky. A row of Alpha 575's along the lakeside raised up on decking allowed Horsley to create some stunning effects bouncing light off the water.

In addition to the lighting, Hawthorns also created two 5m x 5m ground support Prolyte truss boxes to contain two HVFX tesla coils.

(Jim Evans)

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