Spain / The Netherlands - Vieta Pro, the Barcelona-based manufacturer of compact and portable sound reinforcement products, has announced that Ampco and TM Audio are to distribute all of Vieta Pro's loudspeaker and electronic processing products in Belgium and the Netherlands. As a bonus, Vieta also get a distribution presence in Romania, where Ampco's partner Paradigma Production will represent the line. Karel de Piere of Ampco Belgium has spent the past 6 months researching Vieta Pro's corporate credentials and product prospects, to ensure a perfect match with Ampco and TM Audio's extensive distribution portfolio.
"The package from Vieta is really well thought-out," says de Piere, "with all the qualities that you'd expect from a company that has a long and reputable history in the consumer market. The team at Vieta share our philosophy on critical issues such as
UK - Production manager Steve Rebbeck needed an automation system for the many and complicated scene changes in Billy Elliot the Musical, he turned to AVW Controls. Back in 2002, Rebbeck had specified AVW Controls' Impressario system to provide the automation for the intricate flying manoeuvres on Our House and was sure the system would be right for Billy Elliot. Meanwhile, Patrick Molony was looking for set automation that he could rely on for The Far Pavilions. Having previously used the Impressario system on horoughly Modern Millie, he too turned to AVW.
For The Far Pavilions, award winning set designer Lez Brotherston had to create sets which took the action from the snow-capped Himalayas to the hot and dusty deserts of Rajasthan. A raked triple concentric revolve - the three sections of which can move simultaneously, in different direction
Japan - Fresh from its part in making the Queen-inspired musical We Will Rock You such a success in Australia, the Formula Sound Que-18 units which have been supplying foldback mixes for the show's musicians are repeating their success now that the show has moved on to Japan. "We have 11 Que-18's on the show in Australia, and they have performed flawlessly right from the moment they were first commissioned," says Peter Grubb of Victoria-based System Sound Pty which supplies the show's audio equipment. "Like the various other Formula Sound Que series foldback mixers we have these have been absolutely invaluable and a real hit with the musicians."
The Que-18s have been part of the Queen production since it opened in Melbourne in August 2003, and have moved with the show as it played Perth, Brisbane and Sydney. They have now moved on to Japan where the sh
UK - Cambridgeshire based 5 Star Cases Limited have recently invested in 3D modelling software by Solid Edge. The Wisbech company, purchased the software from Cutting Edge Solutions Limited of Witney - Oxfordshire, having evaluated various other systems on the market. 5 Star is one of Europe's leading specialist case manufacturers and supplies some of the biggest names in the Entertainment and Audio Visual sectors as well as many blue chip companies including Alstom Energy, Martin Audio, Lighthouse and Rolls Royce.
CES, UK's leading supplier of the renowned Solid Edge from UGS had previously demonstrated the system at a 'Customer Day' back in 2003. Although 5 Star Cases had been using 2D drafting for a number of years, the move to 3D modelling was considered just prior to the demo at UGS.
Works Director Keith Sykes explained "Although three packages were evaluated, Solid
Greece - PRG Europe was at the heart of one of the highlights of the Greek entertainment calendar when the company supplied lighting design and management expertise to the opening ceremony of the Hellenic Festival in Athens. Running from 20 May to 9 October, this year's events are even higher profile than normal, because the festival is celebrating both its 50th year and the 50th anniversary of the first film to be produced in Greece. Celebrating twin golden jubilees meant that something extra special was required for this year's opening ceremony.
Lighting director Mike Odam's task was to give a spectacular look to the opening ceremony and first performance of the festival, which featured a 60-piece symphony orchestra, 40 piece choir and live 'electric' musicians. Overcoming a range of challenges, Mike and PRG Europe put on a show fit for the high-ranking dignitaries and extensi
UAE - During the PALME exhibition in Dubai, L&SI was invited to visit the premises of Production Technology LLC - better known as Protec. Protec is a world class event production company and the region's largest supplier of sound, lighting, AV, hydraulic and motor control equipment.
The latter elements are a particular area of Protec's strength, as a tour around its facilities reveals. Everywhere are the remnants of large-scale motorized set pieces, waiting to be called upon. There are set pieces purchased from the selling off of the Millennium Dome's contents; there are large, customized, articulated truss sections, huge spheres and steel and aluminium forms of all kinds of construction; it's like a giant's Meccano kit, with lots of bits that you can't get from the shops. There's enormous potential for creativity here.
Protec is owned by Stephen Lakin, the industry veteran wh
UK - The assets of Solid State Logic have been acquired by a joint venture established by musician and technologist, Peter Gabriel, and broadcast industry entrepreneur, David Engelke. The company, which will trade as Solid State Logic, will continue to design and manufacture mixing consoles and related audio technology at its Begbroke, Oxford headquarters. The principal investors bring considerable experience of both the company's main markets: music recording and broadcast.
Peter Gabriel's background as an artist is well known, but he has had a long involvement with technology. Syco Systems, which he co-founded, developed the 'Tablet', one of the world's first purpose-built digital audio workstations. Real World Multi Media, part of Peter's Real World Group, won awards for both technological and creative innovation. More recently, he has had success with OD2 (On Demand Distribu
UK - Production company Flux Events, headed by John Farquhar-Smith, promoted and production managed the recent Cinemaphony performance of Shostakovitch's Seventh Symphony - at the Royal Albert Hall.Shostakovitch's 7th (Leningrad) Symphony in C major was written in 1942, during the terrible siege of Leningrad. The landmark Royal Albert Hall event was staged to commemorate VE Day 1945 and the loss of 26 million Russian Allies in the War. Performed by the 120-piece St Petersburg Academic Symphony Orchestra, conducted by the composer's son, Maxim Shostakovitch, and accompanied by the haunting images of Georgy Paradzhanov's film, it was the brainchild of designer Sergai Davitaya and the Russian Information Agency, Novosti.
Novosti had been impressed by last year's Battleship Potemkin event that Farquhar-Smith produced with the Pet Shop Boys in Trafalgar Square: Flux events was approa
UK - ECT has been appointed by three separate installation companies to provide bespoke projection screens for installations into religious buildings. Each screen has to be large enough for all the audience to benefit, as well as fitting into the unique architecture of the older church. ECT had less than two weeks to technically advise on and manufacture a projection screen, which would fit snugly between two pillars. "Being given the chance to work on a screen suitable for such an atmospheric setting was an interesting challenge!" said Adam Flawn-Thomas, managing director.
One of the solutions used was to suspend the screen on hinges. The whole unit can then be swung into the wall when not required. Project Audio Visual installed another ECT screen into a church, making it the centre backdrop. A remote control unit allowed the screen to be slip quietly out of sight, r
UK - One of the latest compact line array products to hit the market, the X-Line Very Compact (XLVC) from Electro-Voice, has found its first UK home at the historic Café de Paris venue near London's Leicester Square. Following trials of the XLVC (straight off the production line in the US) and other systems during February and March, the Café de Paris' technical manager George 'Blu' Deakin finally opted for the Electro-Voice system, which was supplied via UK distributor Shuttlesound.
The system joins X-Line and XLC (X-Line Compact) systems in EV's line array family, and comes in two sizes - the XLD281 and XLE181. The former is a full-bandwidth 3-way line array cabinet (2 x 8" + 2 x 2"), which measures 9.9" (251mm) high by 28.58" (726mm) wide by 14.52" (369mm) in depth. The latter is a full-bandwidth 2-way version (1 x 8" + 2 x 2") which measu
Italy - Since February, veteran Italian artist Antonello Venditti has been touring Italy with the supergroup he assembled to record his latest album, 'Campus Live'. The show will visit indoor sports arenas on its first leg before moving outdoors for the summer. Rental firm RMS is supplying the production with Meyer Sound FOH and monitor loudspeaker systems.
From behind the show's Cadac R-type console, FOH engineer Piercarlo Penta explained that Venditti's recent tours have been just him on piano, and a sax player, but to tour with this 'supergroup', "we needed a system able to handle the group's energy, and the Meyer Sound set-up chosen [12 MILO high-power curvilinear array loudspeakers per side and 12 M3D-Subs] has proved a winner. As well as being compact, the MILO enclosures have a really beautiful sound and are very efficient."
USA - Sloppy Joe's Bar in Key West, Florida - once the favourite hangout of local resident Ernest Hemingway - recently installed a new main PA and monitor system from Martin Audio, as well as additional Martin Audio loudspeakers in the Backroom saloon located behind the stage and the upstairs Speak Easy bar. The famous club still features the original Cuban tiles floors and hosts festivals throughout the year including the Hemingway look-a-like contest. Named after the original owner Joe Russell, Sloppy Joe's has a reputation for hosting the best bands in the Keys and having the best party in town.
Unfortunately, the club's audio system was outdated and had been pieced together over the course of several years. "The last system install happened about twelve years ago," said Kevin 'Spyder' Wright, entertainment manager for the club. "When we decided to update the a
Australia - The popular Dreamland Karaoke Restaurant in Perth, Australia, recently upgraded both its lighting and audio equipment, which posed a problem; the venue is small and there was not enough room to install the extra power needed to spruce up the venue. The electrician looked at the cost and space required to install a new switchboard, which would also need dimmer circuits, and decided it was not a viable option. Fortunately, Andrew Newnham of Total Production Systems had recently seen the new EKO wall-mount installation dimmer from LSC Lighting and he suggested that this small, single-unit dimmer; with built-in RCD protection was all that would be required.
The EKO incorporates a cleverly designed installation frame that can be fixed in position without the dimmer being present. Load and control screw terminals on the frame allow for building wiring to be terminated in a
UK - Stagecraft has raised £5,000 for The Mayor of Salisbury's Appeal in aid of The Trussell Trust. The Salisbury based live events, lighting and sound company organized two musical comedy shows, More Tea, Vicar? and Pass the Port, starring Sue Flannery and Michael Lunts, which were held in the function room at Salisbury's Guildhall. "We were absolutely delighted with the success of our events and thanks must go to all our supporters. The Trussell Trust is an invaluable resource to Salisbury and the surrounding area and we hope that with the help of the appeal its projects will continue to flourish," said managing director of Stagecraft, David Goodrich.
Money raised at the events will help raise awareness of The Trussell Trust Food Bank, a community-based project which provides emergency food to people in short term crisis. Food given to The Food Bank by
UK - Entec Lighting continues its successful run of theatre productions, supplying lighting equipment for the national tour of Kim Gavin's Love Shack. The show stars Faye Tozer and Jon Lee (ex S-Club 7), Noel Sullivan (ex Hear'Say) and a lively collection of hits from the 1980s. Entec won the contract by offering an excellent package, and was also highly recommended by lighting designer Simon Tutchener to producer Tristan Baker. The show was programmed by Nigel Catmur, and Jeremy Duncan was asked onboard to operate on tour, and to oversee the re-lights.
Love Shack visits all the major receiving houses in the country. The schedule is tight, with a Monday morning get-in to be ready for a show that evening, followed by a full week of shows and a get out after curtain down on the Saturday. Entec's Noreen O'Riordan says: "Theatre is a relatively new discipline to u
Italy - Outline's Butterfly compact line array took part in a show on an impressive scale - the first Red Bull Flugtag - Un giorno con le ali - a competition for hand-made flying machines powered by just the contestants' muscles and creativity. Presented by Andrea Pellizzari of the popular TV show Le Iene, the event was staged in Milan Linate's Idroscalo, an artificial lake 2.6km long and up to 400m wide, located in a huge natural park.
,I>Red Bull Flugtag, the brainchild of Red Bull's owner Dietrich Mateschitz, is famous in many parts of the world as well as in Italy. It's staged in the USA, Germany, Sweden, Greece, Hungary, Israel and Slovakia. 30 teams participated in the Italian event held on 12 June, launching themselves off a 40m long, 6m high ramp and landing in the water of the Idroscalo, all under the watchful eyes of a jury, which assessed their perfo
UK - Vertigo Rigging has supplied the largest InMotion 3D / CyberHoist motion control system yet rigged in the UK, to provide special effects for the 50th anniversary production of the L'Oreal Color Trophy at London's Earls Court 2 arena on 16 May. The L'Oreal Colour Trophy, the most respected awards ceremony in the hair and fashion industry, tours the UK to find regional finalists before culminating in an exhilarating Grand Final in London. To mark its 50th anniversary, the production company that developed the event, Surrey-based CS Media staged a night to remember at Earls Court, with technical production management by MJK Productions.
The event included four hair shows (by hairdressers Charles Worthington, Antoinette Beenders, Trevor Sorbie and Toni & Guy), a three-course dinner, and an after-show party. The action took place on a main stage with an array of mobile and fixed
UK - When Metal Hammer Magazine held its annual Golden Gods Awards at London's Astoria recently, it was imperative that the stage was lit and dressed in the spirit of thrash metal. With so many logostyles on display, production reinforcement specialists PSL devised a clever means of front projection, using three Digital Projection Lightning 10gv 3-chip DLP projectors, fitted with short-throw lens - in conjunction with High End Systems' Catalyst software. The screen destinations comprised two inner and two outer 25ft by 5ft Trevera long rectangular drapes as the main projection surfaces, flanking a conventional 14ft x 10.5ft front projection screen.
PSL's project manager Mark Solomons worked closely alongside lighting designer, 'Luton' (Pete Hosier) to embellish a stage format he had originally developed with the band Killing Joke. Catalyst V3.3 software was running from a G5 Mac
USA - Color Kinetics Inc has announced the broad installation of its intelliWhite technology in a multiple store roll-out for Bostonian, the specialty men's footwear brand owned by Clarks Companies, NA. Bostonian and its sister brand Clarks operate a network of retail stores nationwide, at least 15 of which will apply iW Profile to light their display shelving.
This system was chosen as a low-maintenance and long-lasting alternative to Bostonian's existing fluorescent display lights, which required costly and frequent replacement. The retailer will design custom display fixtures that incorporate iW Profile to downlight each shelf. iW Profile also allows for different Kelvin temperatures to be set according to display location, for example, cooler shades of white for displays near store windows, and warmer shades towards the store's interior.
Germany - Since 1943, when Walter Oehmichen and his wife Rose built a "puppet shrine" with their daughters and developed their first tiny puppet show for family and friends, the Augsburger Puppet Box has been the best-known marionette theatre in Germany. Germans young and old have an attachment to the puppets that is beyond nostalgia. Every year the theatre gives 440 performances, 98% of the time sold out, plus tours, guest appearances, and TV and film productions.
To keep up with this intense production rate, the Puppet Box must be able to depend on its technical systems, and Klaus Marschall, grandchild of the founder and now the owner of the theatre, is playing it safe with his lighting, choosing to install an ETC SmartFade 2496 as a DMX backup control console. The Augsburger puppeteers have long relied on their older Transtechnik T20 desk as their main console, with
Europe / USA - A.C. Lighting supplied a Jands Vista lighting console to Lite Alternative to control the largely Martin Pro rig for Keane's 2005 European and US tour.
Following a successful 2004 UK tour and the critical and commercial success of the band's debut album, Hopes and Fears, Keane extended its tour with a series of European and US dates throughout 2005. With extra production budget available for US shows, which were taking place in venues up to twice the capacity of the European dates, LD Paul Normandale decided to step up the production values for the US leg.
Having read about the Jands Vista lighting console's Generic Fixture Model, Normandale was keen to see if it could provide a solution to the lengthy process of re-plotting shows for varying venue sizes. After a demo from Jands' European and North American distributor A.C. Lighting, Normandale was impressed by t
UK - mm productions has a new owner. Martyn Hunt, who has been with the company for the past four years, and has run the company for the last two, has announced that he has purchased mm productions from the company's founder and owner John Hoskyns. Hunt, who has worked within the sound industry for 16 years, says he will continue to build on mm productions' reputation for quality sound design and hire.
Previous to him joining mm productions in November 2000, Hunt worked on many West End and touring productions; he has commissioned sound for Princess Cruises Los Angeles, worked for the BBC and Ulster Television, and spent time working in Germany and Palm Springs, California. His first full-time job in sound, however, was at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield. And it was whilst at the Crucible that Martyn became addicted to live performance sound.
UK - With the coming summer season looking busier than ever, SDD Sound & Light has just taken delivery of another Midas Venice 320 and Midas 160 desk to cover the increased workload. This takes the company's stock of Venice desks to six, with a further two Venice 320 and another Verona 320/400 planned for the latter part of 2005.
The planned work programme for this year includes not only an increased number of dance and music events but a greater number of touring Shakespeare productions for the summer season. The Venice desks have proved a hit with the artists for their ability to tightly control vocals with warmth and clarity and are now being specified by the touring companies as standard.
"During the past few years it has become clear to us and our clients that the Midas desks have outperformed all of the other brands that we have used," said rental manager Howar
UK / Ireland - Harman Pro UK staged its highly successful Roadshow Presentation in Dublin, Manchester and London - demonstrating the fabulous range of new Harman technology launched at NAMM and Frankfurt. The show featured presentations from JBL Professional, Crown, dbx Professional, AKG, Lexicon, Soundcraft, BSS and Studer - the core of the Harman Group. Highlighting the new technology and audio solutions available from all these brands for a variety of professional applications, including live concert touring, portable PA, mobile disco and studio sound, the Harman Pro Roadshow has toured the US, France and Germany.
JBL's new VRX Series line array concept attracted much attention. Featuring the performance of high end line arrays in a compact, affordable and flexible 12" two-way format, VRX provides outstanding coverage and output coherence. VRX shares components with JBL'