UK - Between the 15th - 19th August 2017, four very brave employees from Crewsaders will attempt to swim the English Channel to raise funds for Backup. Kieren Stephens, Matt Tector, Jon Selwyn and Will Nutbeen will swim in a relay with each one of them taking one hour long stints in the water. The 21 mile wide channel is the busiest shipping lane in the world, but the team will also have to contend with very cold water, shoals of jellyfish and diesel fumes from the pilot vessel that will accompany them. The team have collectively worked in the events industry for close to 40 years, and decided that it was time to give something back to the industry they love. They are currently undergoing a rigorous training regime to build strength, endurance, long distance swimming techniques and tolerance to the cold. To find out more and to sponsor the team,
UK - An Adamson S10 line array system supplied by pro audio specialists, The Warehouse Sound Services, hit all the right notes during a sell-out run of the 1980s musical, Chess, at Edinburgh's Festival Theatre last month. Students from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (RCS) achieved critical acclaim after staging the West End and Broadway hit show in both Glasgow and Edinburgh. The Warehouse, alongside the RCS’s sound designer, Calum Paterson and lecturer in sound, Gavin Jenkinson, developed a complex sound design for the show. The Edinburgh run was the first time the musical theatre show had transferred from the Conservatoire’s New Athenaeum Theatre to the professional stage. It also allowed music and production students to transfer their skills to the professional stage for the first time. Professor Andrew Panton, artistic director of musica
UK Event design and technical production company Maestra Group has made some substantial new investments at its London branch for lighting, audio and video ahead of a busy summer season. This follows a round of recent purchases by Maestra Dubai. Keeping true to its core values to work with only premium brands in both Europe and the Middle East, the new kit includes; Robe, ETC, Avolites, Prolyte, ChamSys control, d&b audio, Christie, Sony and Analog Way. Maestra London’s MD Justin Hammond expressed, “After an exceptional first year of trading, it was time for new equipment in all departments, particularly lighting due to the demands of both UK based projects as well as lots of international work.” All the new kit has been specified and selected to ensure that Maestra London clients continue to benefit from the latest and most appropriate technologies for
USA - For the past 20 years, Verona, Wisconsin-based Intellasound Productions has been providing comprehensive live event production services for countless artists and corporate clients throughout the Midwest and beyond. Following an expansion project that grew its shop by 50 percent last year, the company has also now grown its audio equipment inventory and stepped up its production levels with a new loudspeaker package from L-Acoustics. Intellasound’s initial investment as a new L-Acoustics rental network member comprises 24 K2 and 12 Kara enclosures, 18 KS28 subs, five LA-RAK II racks loaded with a collective total of 16 LA12X AVB-ready amplified controllers, and an assortment of rigging hardware to allow the systems to be flown and stacked in a variety of setups. Kerry Miller at Clearwing Productions in Milwaukee facilitated the sale of the package. For Intellaso
Korea - API has announced its partnership with Seoul-based distributor Music Metro. Music Metro has been a leading company in the Korean pro audio market since 2005, and specializes in providing hardware and software solutions for pro audio, live sound, recording studios, and broadcasting. The company will now be able to supply API products, including the BOX console, which Music Metro has just purchased. Music Metro will be at the KOBA Show from 16-19 May, held at the InterContinental Seoul Coex (Convention & Exhibition Centre). The KOBA Show brings together key players in Korea's image, sound, lighting, and broadcasting industries. Music Metro will have API gear on display at their booth, A610. API managing director Gordon Smart and director of sales Dan Zimbelman will be attending the show in support of Music Metro; this will mark API's first time at KOBA. "API
Mexico - Robe has announced a new Mexican distributor - Showco - a well-established and connected company headquartered in Mexico City and with sales offices in Monterrey, Guadalajara and Cancun. Guillermo Traverso, regional sales manager for Robe in Latin America comments, “It is my absolute pleasure to be working with these bad hombres!!! I am certain they will have great success in building our brand and taking it forward in this vital and highly strategic market.” Harry von den Stemmen, sales director of Robe s.r.o. adds, “Mexico is a key market both as a gateway between the U.S. and Latin America, and due to its vibrant live music and entertainment scene. It is also highly competitive, and we are confident that Showco will offer us a strong and stable sales and marketing platform to further establish Robe as a primary choice for rental companies and lighting
USA - The Heights Baptist Church in Richardson, Texas has entered a new era of colour rendering with the addition of almost 40 Chauvet Professional LED fixtures. “Our church had a very beautiful video created for its traditional and contemporary services,” said Bobby Dennis, the technical director at the well-known house of worship. “The video featured a father and son talking about the colours they encounter on a daily basis and how they relate to the message of Easter, with red for the cross and white for the resurrection and things of that nature.” With colour playing such a key role in the church’s Easter services, Dennis believed that the time had come to upgrade his lighting rig. “We had a good system in place with fixtures like the Rogue RH1 Hybrid that we used to create a wide variety of looks,” he said. “However, with Easter approaching, we fel
UK - PRG XL Video recently supported lighting designer Richard Howell and production manager Stuart Tucker, for the opening show at the newly renamed and renovated London theatre, The Other Palace. PRG XL Video account manager John Pauls worked closely with Richard, Stuart and production electrician Neil Foster to supply the lighting for The Wild Party during a seven-week run in central London, between February and April. The Wild Party is a musical theatre production adapted from a book by Michael John LaChiusa and George C Wolfe, with music and lyrics by LaChiusa, based on Joseph Moncure March’s 1928 narrative poem of the same name. The show premiered off-Broadway in 2000, before this 2017 revival at London’s newest producing theatre. Richard Howell discussed the initial brief of how to light the show: “It was great to be teamed up with director/c
Poland - Polish heavy metal giant, Hunter, has been touring the country carrying a dLive S Class digital mixing system by Allen & Heath. Formed more than 30 years ago, Hunter is still writing and producing music, and regularly touring. The band’s sound engineer, Marcin ‘Marcel’ Płoński, first tried out dLive last summer, and one of the earliest outings with the system was at the Jarocin rock festival. When the band embarked on a new tour, Marcel decided to carry a Dante-enabled S3000 Surface with DM32 MixRack, supplied by Konsbud Audio. The system has completed over 30 dates since touring commenced last November. “dLive is very easy to manage, and the surface is very clear and logical, allowing you to arrange functions for quick access to suit the individual. The most important feature of the system for me is undoubtedly the parallel compression, of which
USA - Based in Houston, drummer Danny Patterson plays a lot of gigs. Whether he’s playing in a local bar, out on tour, or in church, he depends on his Sensaphonics 3D AARO in-ears with Active Ambient technology. “I just moved up to the 3D recently,” he notes. “In January, I made my first trip to the NAMM Show and stopped by the Sensaphonics booth. They gave me a demo of the 3D AARO, and I could tell immediately how many problems it could solve for me in the different bands I play in. The key for me was the Full Ambient switch, which completely eliminates having to take the in-ears out. I ordered them on the spot.” Like countless other professional musicians, Patterson regularly works on several projects. “Last year, I played drums and percussion in 17 different bands, some regular, some one-offs, and the occasional tour,” he notes. “It forces me to adju
USA - Eataly is a forward-thinking Italian food mega store, where the full lifecycle of food is scrutinized and cherished. It has two locations in New York City, and the Flatiron locations rooftop restaurant recently underwent a sound system rework to replace a failed DSP. New Jersey-based Essential Communications did the work replaced the old DSP with a new Ashly Audio ne24.24M Protea digital matrix network processor, with its modular I/O configured to 4x8 to fit La Birreria’s specific needs, together with three neWR-5 customizable network remote controls for zone source selection and volume control. “They already had amplifiers and loudspeakers that were in great shape, but their DSP simply died,” explained David Schwartz, founder and president of Essential Communications. “It was a mess. When we came to inspect the system, the staff had managed to hook up their iP
USA - Guitarist and mandolinist Andy Wood recently wrapped a special performance at the historic Bijou Theatre with a lighting package provided by Bandit Lites. The special, one night only show was recorded and featured guest performances by fiddler Brian Arrowood, singer-songwriter Kendra Chantelle, bassist Todd Parks, musician Travis Toy and Ben Lacy. While Wood had been playing mandolin since the age of five, winning the World Championship Mandolin championship at the age of 16, Wood picked up an electric guitar as a teenager, only to find himself beating 3400 guitarists at the Guitar Center Guitarmageddon contest at 22. Over a decade later, Wood has performed with Rascal Flatts, Sebastian Bach, and formed his own band, in addition to releasing a double album in 2015, Caught Between the Truth & a Lie. Using Bandit supplied VL 2500s, Martin Atomic Strobes, Bandit
UK - Production design and creative direction firm, Rockart Design celebrated its birthday last week after six successful years in operation. Founded by Nicoline Refsing, previously of Stufish, the company’s impressive client list includes One Direction, Duke of Edinburgh and Eurovision Song Contest. Nicoline’s foundations as part of Stufish, saw her work with Mark Fisher on some of the world’s biggest shows, including The Rolling Stones, U2, Take That, The Brits, Cirque Du Soliel and the Pink Fun House tour. Founded in 2011, Rockart Design has worked worldwide. In 2014, Rockart was responsible for the creative direction and content design for all 37 participating nations for the Eurovision Song Contest, and has continued to develop artists every year since. Last year, Rockart collaborated with Australian contestant Dami Im, whose striking performance saw her fin
Australia - Canberra’s Elite Event Technology has just taken delivery of a pallet of TMB ProCable multicores, adding just under 700 metres to their inventory. So how much TMB cable do they own now? “Around 10 kilometres worth,” said Darren Russell, Elite Event Technology’s managing director. “We’ve invested in a mixture of TMB ProPlex DMX and Ethernet cabling, ProCable multicable assemblies with Socapex connectors, and headers, patch panels, and tails.” Elite Event Technology (formerly Elite Sound and Lighting) is a production juggernaut in the ACT, servicing clients on tour nationally. Like most production houses their size, they’d previously manufactured most cabling in-house. “In the past, we've made all our own Ethernet cabling; EtherCon to EtherCon with Neutrik connectors and Eurocable cable. The TMB purchases were the first time we’d bought Et
USA - Back in the late 19th century, chic women wore hats with huge plumes of feathers. To meet the demand for this fashionable flourish, the enterprising citizens of Chandler, Arizona turned their town into a thriving ostrich farm centre. Eventually, the rise of the open-air automobile blew the lid off the fancy hat business, leading most of those farms to close, but the world’s largest bird lives on in the town, thanks to its annual Ostrich Festival. A crowd of over 250,000 typically turns out for the festival, which has been held every year since 1989, to enjoy games, rides, ostrich races and evening concerts by big name stars. This year’s event, which was produced by Steve LeVine Entertainment for the City of Chandler Chamber of Commerce, was no exception. Acts including Gin Blossoms, Spin Doctors, Los Lobos, Eddie Money and Starship with Mickey Thomas performed on s
UK - Having completed a successful tour at the end of last year, Scottish rock band Biffy Clyro are on their way to the US. Both Front of House engineer Jonny Lucas and Dan Speed on monitors rely on the power of DiGiCo SD10s for their mixing requirements. They deploy three separate rigs around the world, with two duplicate systems which includes, in some instances, the more compact SD10-24. For the 2016 UK tour, all audio requirements were supplied by Skan PA Hire. Jonny has been working with Biffy Clyro for almost a decade. “I did my first show with them supporting The Who at Marlay Park in Dublin in June 2007,” he recalls. “There was no soundcheck and only a 20-minute changeover. It was a baptism of fire.” This intense introduction has, no doubt, prepared him for the band’s continually hectic schedule. His use of DiGiCo consoles has given him the reliabilit
UK - One of Newcastle-upon-Tyne’s best-known buildings, The Palace of Arts, has been equipped with a premium RCF D-Line HDL20-A system by locally based technical providers, Nitelites, for its new occupants, the Wylam Brewery. The Grand Hall at the Palace of Arts - the last building to survive from the North East Exhibition world fair of 1929 - was originally opened by the then Prince of Wales (later Edward VIII) in the newly-redeveloped Exhibition Park. Now, Wylam Brewery has relocated its HQ and converted the Grade-II listed building into a fully operating, working brewery and events space after it had remained almost derelict for nearly a decade. Prior to that it had operated as a Science Museum and Military Vehicle Museum. With the Grand Hall playing host to a wide range of functions, from brewers’ markets, live music, pop-up food events, weddings and corp
Singapore - The first rental and technical production company in Singapore – and indeed south east Asia - to invest in Robe’s new Spiider LED wash beam fixtures is Expo AV-InSync which works locally and internationally throughout the Asia Pacific region. Around 70 per cent of their work is in the conference and MICE sectors and several high profile tech and financial clients and also one of the preferred production equipment supplier to Singapore Expo. Sister company Digital Kitchen Studios creates video content including animations and engages in post-production and video mapping projects. The company designs shows as well as supplying kit and working with independent creative teams. Currently they have upwards of 200 Robe fixtures in the lighting inventory. When the Spiider was launched last year, it was good timing as they were looking for new LED wash lights.
Czech Republic - Milos has released a new video to go along with its three-month spotlight on Milos LED Screen Support Structures (1 April – 30 June). In this video, Area Four Industries R&D director Marc Hendriks provides guidance in the safe and effective use of LED screen support structures. He speaks about the two stages of use, In Service situation and Out of Service situation, and focuses on wind forces, bracing and ballast. Click here to watch the video. (Jim Evans)
UK - The growing UK network of STM users has been boosted by the addition of Production Plus, the full-service event production house that has been a long-time user of Nexo products. Established in 1985, Production Plus underwent a management buyout three years ago and since then, has doubled its turnover. With 40+ employees, the company is one of the leading players servicing corporate AV events and awards shows, at some of London’s most central venues, such as the Park Lane Hilton and Grosvenor House. Its opening order includes M28 ‘omni-purpose’ modules, together with B112 bass and S118 subbass elements, a NUAR amplification rack and a full complement of flying hardware. “We test-drove the system at the Variety Awards, and at the Park Lane Hilton where we are the in-house production company,” recalls Andy Miller, MD of Production Plus. “STM has a v
UK - The Broadsword Production Group has been awarded a contract by Royal Museums Greenwich as a production supplier. Based in the heart of Greenwich, the sites are suitable for large gala dinners and awards ceremonies, inspiring daytime conferencing, epic product launches and intimate private dining. The five historic venues include the National Maritime Museum, the Queen’s House, the Royal Observatory Greenwich, the Peter Harrison Planetarium and Cutty Sark. Broadsword has a flair for the theatrical and are thrilled that their crew are about to learn the ropes and produce live event experiences with “such versatile and luxurious backdrops”. They have an innovative Set Building Department and are excited about how they can put a new slant on event branding within the different spaces, with stage sets, custom theming, props and bespoke items. The in-house
UK - Shure UK has entered into a partnership with the Backstage Academy, the West Yorkshire training facility for students wishing to pursue a career in the touring and live entertainment industry. Under the terms of the deal, Shure will support the Academy with training events, sharing technical knowledge and experience, and providing the Academy's students with access to the hardware used daily by the UK live industry’s most successful practitioners. Founded in 2009, the Backstage Academy is based at the Production Park at South Kirkby, midway between Wakefield, Barnsley, Pontefract and Doncaster, and offers its students experience-based technical live industry training centred around access to the world-class live industry facilities and commercial stage and touring design companies at the same location. The Backstage Academy also has access to five smaller live r
UK - Leading provider of professional AV equipment, Audiologic has been appointed by AED Distribution as a QSC Pro Supplier for the UK. California-based QSC manufactures world-class professional tools, systems and solutions for live sound, including the exceptional K Series of loudspeakers, GXD processing amplifiers and TouchMix Pro professional digital mixers. QSC's recently launched TouchMix-30 Pro compact digital mixer has earned universally outstanding reviews, reflecting the esteem in which its excellent products are held. QSC Pro's presence in the Audiologic portfolio is a highly significant addition for both live and installed sound applications, the company says.
Andy Lewis, Marketing Manager at Audiologic recognises the value of QSC Pro: “QSC has been a leader in the manufacture of professional sound systems for decades and are recognised as such ac
USA / Russia - In response to growing sales in Northern Europe, Meyer Sound has appointed two new distributors in the region. Moscow-based Major Sound is the new distributor for Russia, while Sonus Exsertus, based in Vilnius, Lithuania, will represent Meyer Sound in its home country as well as the other Baltic states of Latvia and Estonia. Headed by industry professionals with more than 25 years of experience, Major Sound was recently formed exclusively to provide sales and technical support of Meyer Sound products in Russia. The company is launching a new education program, translating marketing materials into Russian, representing Meyer Sound at trade shows, creating online events, and backing all sales with certified service technicians and local parts inventory. "Meyer Sound has a unique story and we are proud to become part of their worldwide team," comment
