South Africa - DWR Distribution will present its first official MA3 basic training course from 25 to 26 February in Johannesburg. Presented by DWR’s Jannie de Jager, the two-day workshop will focus on familiarising the operator with the basic functions of the grandMA3 software and lighting consoles, as well as the operating philosophy. The content will include patching, presets, phasers and timecode. The course will also touch on networking aspects of the MA3 family. Delegates are requested to bring a MA3 console or MA3onPC Software on a laptop with an additional screen and a valid ID. The course will be held at DWR Distribution, C1 Kimbult Industrial Park, 9 Zeiss Road, Laserpark, Honeydew. The cost is R1,200 and includes a light lunch and refreshments. Bookings will be confirmed once payment has been received. Bookings on-line: http://dwrdistribu
UK - Stage Electrics has been appointed a UK distributor for Prolyte Trussing and Staging which is now part of Area Four Industries. Fons van Teijn, Prolytes CEO, signed the deal with Stage Electrics operations director Adam Blaxill at the company’s Bristol-based offices. “Stage Electrics have been a good ambassador for Prolyte for the past 15 years, we plan to build on that heritage and develop a strong working relationship,” comments Fons. Blaxill adds: “We were a natural partner for this new incarnation of Prolyte in the UK. We are able to hold large stocks of trussing and staging and distribute the Prolyte product range across the UK on a next day service. Our sales team are already familiar with the product range and we now increased our Prolyte product managers to three with the appointment of Rob Foster as Prolyte technical sales consultant.”<
UK - LVR Optical will host a laser safety training for operators, installers and manufacturers of laser products. Taking place on 2 March at Hunton Park Hotel near Watford, the event will cover a range of topics relevant to the light show and entertainment industry, including hazards associated with the use of lasers; how to design safe shows and effects; and how to prepare risk assessments and working with the local authorities. The session will also include coverage of the British Standards Institute’s PD IEC/TR 60825-3 document relating to laser effect safety, and PLASA’s own laser display safety guidance. The laser safety course will be hosted by James Stewart, an expert in the field with 25-year experience gained through working with entertainment venues and show providers. He will offer attendees valuable insights into necessary safety requirements and undert
UK - Video company Universal Pixels has made a significant acquisition of disguise equipment, responding to increasing demand in theatre and an overarching determination to remain at the forefront of designers and production engineers’ needs. Universal Pixels has added multiple disguise gx 2c media servers, as well as SDI VFC and HDMI VFC cards, to its rental stock as it continues its expansion in a range of markets. The company, which prides itself on a flexible and attentive approach to all of its projects, made the investment to meet the evolving creative demands of video designers. UP’s Ollie Luff commented: “We’ve always got a close eye on how the industry is developing and the way in which video is being used. We’re seeing an ever-increasing demand from designers to integrate Notch seamlessly and quickly into their workflows and the gx 2c certainly has
Europe - The Audio Engineering Society has opened registration for the upcoming AES Vienna 148th International Professional Audio Convention, taking place at the Austria Center on 25-28 May. Early registration discounts are available through 29 February for the dedicated European pro audio event that celebrates ‘A World of Audio’. AES Vienna attendees will experience “stellar, leading-edge recordings - including VR productions from the Abbey Road Spatial Audio Forum and examples of immersive music and game audio - presented with production insights from the engineers who brought the projects to life”. Legacy productions will be examined, such as the music of Bruce Springsteen. Core audio topics and the technology of today and tomorrow will be explored, including audio for new distribution platforms like Magic Leap.
USA - Last autumn, Behind the Scenes conducted an online survey of industry members which received an unprecedented response. This was followed by two focus groups in January to delve deeper into some of the issues and concerns raised in the survey responses. One of the most frequent complaints heard was how difficult it is to find a therapist who knows anything about the entertainment industry and who is available to see people on nights and weekends or through teletherapy. Says BTS, “As one of the first programmes of our mental health and suicide prevention initiative, we are partnering with HelpPro to create an online therapist finder specifically for the entertainment industry. This means that we are seeking therapists who either have personal experience in our industry or who have previously seen clients who work in the industry and learned about the unique pressures
South Africa - Nexo is working with the new generation in South Africa’s technical production community, providing free skills training and access to the latest Nexo sound reinforcement equipment in the country’s major cities. With extensive support from the full-service production company Sound Stylists, a long-time Nexo user and dealer, Nexo has collaborated with South Africa’s Academy of Sound Engineering in Cape Town. Together, they hosted a free ETC training course encompassing workshops, hands-on and listening experiences, and an overview of Nexo’s line array evolution, from Geo S and D ranges to the contemporary Geo M and STM Series. Presented by Nexo’s leading training engineer Nicholas Poitrenaud, the three-day seminar was attended by students and teachers from ASE, freelance engineers, house of worship technicians, and audio techs from Sound Stylist
Germany - Lawo launched its 50th anniversary celebrations in January with a Michelin-star studded party for its 300-plus employees in the company’s hometown in Rastatt, close to the Rhine River and the Black Forest region of Germany. The milestone anniversary follows the company’s most successful business year to date, achieving a record revenue result that represented growth of 40 per cent. This performance was generated by an extraordinary uptake of Lawo’s IP media solutions based around core products of video, audio, workflow and monitoring technologies. Founded by Peter Lawo in 1970, Lawo started out as an engineering office providing bespoke technical solutions before focusing on broadcast and media production technology. The creative drive of its founder and his son Philipp, who took over as CEO in 1999, ensured continual innovation helped evolve and grow t
UK - The addition of a scalable, arena-sized system has been confirmed by Adlib director and client manager, Dave Jones, and Joe East, business development Manager of Sound Technology, the UK and Ireland Harman Professional Solutions distributor. The system itself comprises 48 x VTX A12 dual-12” line-array elements; 16 x VTX A8 dual-8” compact line-array elements; 24 x VTX S28 dual-18" subwoofers and 8 x VTX B18 single-18" subwoofers. Powering these will be Harman’s Crown VRack complete touring amp rack solution; ten racks loaded with three Crown I-Tech 4x3500HD amplifiers, and four racks housing three Crown I-Tech12000HD amplifiers. Jones said the re-investment in JBL had been “merely a matter of time; we have always wanted to offer our clients a choice of systems and it is great to have JBL back as an option”. But it had been the substantial upgrade i
Finland - Genelec has opened a new extension to its lakeside factory in Iisalmi, Finland. Utilising the latest technologies, the extension will significantly increase the space, flexibility and efficiency of the company’s warehousing and logistics operations, while ensuring that the entire facility is now powered exclusively by sustainable sources including solar, wind and hydroelectric energy. For over four decades Genelec has consistently followed a path of sustainable development and environmental responsibility, and has made recycled materials, low energy consumption and long product lifespan central to its design philosophy. The current factory by Porovesi Lake in Iisalmi was built in 1985 with an architectural design that complements its natural surroundings, and was designed to significantly reduce energy wastage through its use of heat recovery and generous
The Netherlands - UK-based Polar announced at ISE 2020 the addition of ClearOne, UMA and Utelogy to its portfolio. Polar “sees the provision of cloud-based technologies, which are helping to revolutionise the management and control of resources within a wide variety of workplaces, as essential tools for the future, emphasising the company’s drive to be far more than a simple distributor of products”. US-based ClearOne produces hardware and software for complete collaboration and communication solutions. From ad-hoc workspaces, huddle rooms and mobile conferences to the largest meeting venues and boardrooms, ClearOne has a large range of audio conferencing, visual collaboration and AV networking solutions to address every need, significantly broadening Polar’s offering in the sphere of fast-evolving meeting room trends. UMA is a privacy-first digital ass
The Netherlands - Integrated Systems Europe and global media brand TNW (The Next Web) have announced a multi-year strategic relationship aimed at bringing the best of tech and innovation to ISE 2021 and its new Barcelona home. Formed in 2006 and now one of the world’s largest online media brands, TNW is primarily known for its news outlet thenextweb.com and award-winning tech event TNW Conference. The company also incorporates a co-working label, a global startup database and delivers custom innovation programmes to corporates and governments. The annual TNW conference in Amsterdam attracts senior executives from the world’s leading business and technology brands. As part of ISE’s 2021 edition at Gran Via, Fira de Barcelona, on 2-5 February, TNW will programme three new content tracks focused on technology and its impact on society. This will run in parallel to
The Netherlands - The OCA Alliance has added Adamson Systems Engineering as its latest member company. “Adamson has stepped up as a major advocate in the media networking development and standards arena,” says OCA Alliance marketing chairman Ethan Wetzell, “Their support of the AES70 standard in recent product developments is a significant milestone for the industry. Needless to say, we are extremely pleased to welcome them into the alliance.” Commenting for Adamson Systems Engineering, head of product and technology, Brian Fraser states: “As an audio manufacturer, we recognise the immense benefit open source protocols offer to the industry as a whole. Open Control Architecture is a protocol we've been investing in for a while and we're happy our choice has been validated and standardised by the AES as AES70.” ISE 2020 sees a significant number of new
UK - Audio production company Major Tom has invested in 20 Luminex GigaCore 10 network switches to create one of the largest Milan AVB-compliant Meyer Sound touring PA systems in Europe. With offices in the UK and USA, Major Tom has over 50 years of experience supplying some of the world’s leading international concert tours and events. When it came to investing in network switches to work with its large inventory of Meyer Sound line arrays, it was important for Major Tom to go with a solution which was widely adopted, as well as being compatible with the new Milan AVB standard. The company discussed its requirements with Steve Eaton, senior sales executive in the dedicated audio division of Luminex exclusive UK distributor, A.C. Entertainment Technologies (AC-ET). Major Tom project manager, Andy Banks comments: “With Meyer Sound’s equipment support
UK - Unusual Rigging has achieved a series of compliance standards that will provide its customers with the guarantee that its products and services consistently meet their requirements. The Northampton-based company achieved both ISO 9001 which sets out the criteria for a quality management system, and ISO 14001 which focuses on environmental systems. Unusual is currently working towards securing ISO 45001 for good health and safety practice. At the forefront of steering Unusual towards achieving these new standards are operations manager Lizzie Richmond and technical manager Tom Nightingale. Richmond comments: ““We are extremely proud to have secured these ISO standards, which, though not compulsory, demonstrate to our customers that we are leading the way with our policies and processes. When we tender for work we are increasingly being asked to demonstrat
Italy - Founded in 1992 by Gianni De Masi and Paolo Boscolo in Villorba di Treviso (in north-eastern Italy), Imputlevel Group rapidly became one of Italy's leading audio rental firms. Through the years, its client roster in the live and tour field expanded to include not only top names on the Italian scene, such as Fiorella Mannoia, Franco Battiato, Daniele Silvestri, Niccolò Fabi, Irene Grandi, Vinicio Capossela, Nek and Max Pezzali, but also international stars of the calibre of Lou Reed, Elton John, Duran Duran, Peter Gabriel, Bjork, Massive Attack, Steve Vai, Simple Minds, Carlos Santana, Ben Harper, Rage Against the Machine, Prodigy and many more. In order to be able to meet any request, from the supply of technology for live events, such as theatres, conferences, exhibitions, tourist attractions and television events, to custom designs and system engineering, iM
France - L-Acoustics is rolling out L-ISA Auditoria in strategic locations around the globe. Demonstrations, training or mixing sessions of L-ISA Immersive Hyperreal Sound technology can be accessed in dozens of locations in L-ISA Auditoria designed to stringent L-Acoustics specifications, says the company. “To support the development of L-ISA technology in the professional audio market, we have developed pre-determined systems for either mobile or permanent L-ISA Auditoria, which can be deployed to support existing partners, artists and potential clients,” explains Cédric Montrézor, executive director of applications at L-Acoustics. “The network of L-ISA Auditoria around the globe is designed to exacting standards to guarantee the natural, intimate spatialised experience of L-ISA Immersive Hyperreal Sound technology.” Two versions of the packages are availa
Europe - SixEye has announced that ETC has become a SixEye Connected manufacturer, with its Mosaic range of architectural lighting controllers the first in the company’s product portfolio to benefit from SixEye’s unified remote management platform. SixEye provides a cloud-based SaaS (Software as a Service) solution, enabling remote management of professional control devices. SixEye combines the management and control of products from multiple manufacturers into one portal, easily accessible in a web browser on desktop and mobile. Systems integrators can have their own SixEye portal at their own domain. The portal carries the integrator’s own branding, allows them to invite end users into any project site in the portal, and grant them bespoke access with SixEye's granular permissions. Device management includes firmware and file upload, triggering, real time sta
USA - The Behind the Scenes booth at the recent NAMM Show proved to be a hit once again for fans of Neal Preston’s rock’n’roll photography. The exhibit was made possible by the generosity of the Lightpower Collection. Lightpower, founded in 1978 in Germany, is an internationally established distributor for stage and studio lighting equipment. The Lightpower Collection was born out of a company culture with a passion for collecting rock’n’roll art. The collection features photography and album cover artwork from many of the world’s greatest photographers and designers. Neal Preston’s photography represents the core of this collection and comprises over 70 large-format original fine art prints. At the show, Ralph-Jörg Wezorke, founder of Lightpower and the Collection, continued their ongoing support of Behind the Scenes by presenting a cheque for $11,800
Canada - Three L-Acoustics trainers - Frédéric Blanc-Garin, Marcus Ross and André Pichette - recently came to Solotech’s Montreal offices to offer an intensive three-day training on L-ISA Immersive Hyperreal Sound technology. For two additional days, clients, consultants and industry professionals had the opportunity to try the ecosystem and experience the technology. “Immersive audio is playing an increasingly important role in our various markets. It was therefore with great interest that we held a week-long training session for our specialized technicians and offered personalized demonstrations to several industry players,” said François ‘Frankie’ Desjardins, vice-president, research & development at Solotech. Truly revolutionary, L-ISA technology enables artists to create new multidimensional sound experiences in productions that use live or
UK - Audiologic has signed a new distribution agreement with console manufacturer DiGiCo, to promote and distribute its S-Series and 4REA4 digital mixers to the corporate pro AV market in the UK. The addition of the highly engineered S-Series and 4REA4 digital mixing consoles from DiGiCo will both enhance and complement the already broad range of products available from Audiologic, offering versatility and reliability in equal measure. “As the Audiologic business continues to grow, our long-term strategy is to enhance and transform our offering into providing a world-class solution at every level, accessible to every market. This exciting new distribution agreement continues this process,” comments Andy Lewis, managing director of Audiologic. “DiGiCo is already at the forefront of digital mixing technology and has the same desire to reach out to wider mark
South Africa - Vectorworks trainer Dylan Jones of DWR Distribution, will present Vectorworks Spotlight training from 2-6 March in Johannesburg. The course will be split up into Basic (2 March) at R800 per person, Intermediate (3 - 4 March) at R1,400 per person and Advanced training (5 - 6 March) at R1,400 per person. Subjects include layouts and palettes, basic tools, classes and layers, Spotlight tools, intermediate tools, worksheets and reports, 3D modelling, resource management and file import and export. The training will be hosted at DWR Distribution, C1, Kimbult Industrial Park, 9 Zeiss Road, Laserpark, Honeydew. Bookings online at dwrdistribution.co.za/register/vectorworks-spotlight-training-march-2020.
UK - Independent audio rental providers Total Sound Solutions in Swansea and Pulse PA in Poole have consolidated an informal alliance around their purchases of Nexo’s new Geo M12 mid-size line array system. Both TSS and Pulse PA have taken delivery of near-identical Nexo Geo M12 inventories, with MSUB18 subbass, NXAMP Mk2 amplifiers and flyware which allows them to mix and match their new M12 elements with their smaller Nexo Geo M10 systems. Now the two mid-size rental companies are evolving their business models so as to benefit from co-operation and integrated inventories to bid on larger projects. “We already owned Geo M10,” says Ralph Walsh, MD of Pulse PA, “and have done all our 2019 summer festivals with the system: in fact, in the last two years, it has rarely been in the warehouse and I’d say we’ve made more money out of it than any other Nexo syste
USA - Solotech was recently recognised with the Parnelli Award as Lighting Company of the Year for their work supporting P!nk’s The Beautiful Trauma world tour. This marks the fourth Parnelli Award won by Solotech in recent years. The 19th edition of the Parnelli Awards were held on 17 January in Anaheim during The NAMM Show. In attendance was Martin Tremblay, CEO of Solotech, who commented on the recognition of the company and its team. “I was very pleased to be able to attend the Parnelli Awards and support our team in Live Productions, as well as the many Solotech clients that were nominated. We take a tremendous amount of pride as a company in the Live Production team and the support they provide to clients around the globe.” “We are very honoured to have so many nominations this year and are truly proud of this win for our lighting support on
