UK - Eaton’s Zero 88 lighting control brand is ramping up its free training opportunities in 2019 - open for all those utilising lighting consoles running ZerOS architecture - as part of a wider comprehensive product support programme. This is as a direct result of an increase in the number of active ZerOS users in the UK, which has doubled in the last 12 months. The trend reflects the success of the FLX series of powerful, flexible and affordable lighting consoles – the FLX and FLX S24 and S48 - which have enjoyed popularity especially for small-to-medium applications running rigs with some moving lights and a quantity of LED fixtures together with conventionals. Zero 88 has always been known for its commitment for training. In 2018, well over 500 individuals benefitted from this which including regular dedicated sessions at Eaton’s bases in Cwmbran, Wales
Israel - KLANG, 3D in-ear mixing technologies specialist, has reported the partnership with its recently-appointed Israeli distributor AEM of Tel Aviv has already reaping rewards. AEM, which was appointed by KLANG earlier this year, has been promoting the brand through a series of seminars and product demonstrations, including discussions on best-practice for in-ear monitor mixing. This autumn, Shalom Hanoch and Matti Caspi took their show The Main Thing is The Songs on a tour of the country, with a KLANG system. Shalom Hanoch sums up his feelings: “The KLANG system is a new era in hearing the stage. Everything feels so precise and deep that I can hear every note without disturbing my vocal - how on earth have we worked without it for so long?” The tour was sold out and high demand has seen further performances added for later in the year.
China - Clockenflap is one of Asia's largest multi-genre music festivals held annually in Hong Kong. Now 10 years old, the festival is a firm favourite in the region, with its extensive programme of music, art, film and other activities. In addition to a line-up of internationally renowned artistes - which this year included Erykah Badu, David Byrne, Khalid, Roni Size, Interpol, Caribou, Anpu and The Vaccines - the festival also offers a platform to local talent, helping them reach a wider audience. For the 2018 edition of the festival (9-11 November), the main (Harbourflap) stage and second stage were managed by Alto Stage Management, who called in Davide Linzi of Mister X Service as audio system designer for both and FOH engineer for the main stage (assisting productions with their own sound engineer). Linzi explains why he took Outline’s Newton multi-sour
Europe - Having recently completed a major tour of the US, platinum recording artist Hozier has just hit European shores to continue his run of successful sold-out shows in support of his Nina Cried Power EP, with FOH engineer Steve Pattison behind an Allen & Heath dLive mixing system. Supplied by Adlib, the set-up includes a dLive S7000 surface fitted with both Waves and Dante cards for virtual soundcheck and live multitrack recording. Additionally, a dLive DM64 MixRack fitted with a superMADI card is placed at FOH, which is used to feed broadcast multitrack during festival shows. “dLive was chosen primarily for its sound quality but also for its reliability and flexibility. Pretty much anything you’ll ever need is on there and the FX and processing are ever expanding with each firmware release,” comments Pattison. Pattison continues: “FX and
USA - Sitting in the heart of downtown Minneapolis, Target Field is home to Major League Baseball's Minnesota Twins, and accommodates more than 39,000 eager spectators ready to cheer on their team. Though designed as a baseball venue, it also hosts football, soccer, and a wide range of outdoor concerts and various non-sports-based corporate events. Target Field is a large venue with multiple areas around the facility that require high-quality audio support. This includes distributing audio out to various areas as well as pulling signals back to the control room for mixing and processing. For example, live bands perform before ball games and during breaks, and stadium managers must be sure the audio is pleasantly experienced throughout the stadium. Technicians needed a way to easily and inexpensively expand the number of inputs and outputs to the stadium's main console
UK - Xerocon London 2018 brought together accountants, bookkeepers, ecosystem partners and industry leaders. Hawthorn was chosen by agency Taylor Bennett Partners to deliver the full technical production for the two-day event held at ExCel London on 14- 15 November. Over 3,300 delegates gathered to find out the latest news and updates from Xero, a cloud-based accounting software company. Led by group creative director Pete Harding, Hawthorn was tasked to bring Taylor Bennett’s impressive vision to life, delivering full technical production for the main conference plenary, exhibition space, break-out sessions and evening party. Featuring three technical installations including a mammoth custom-made LED sculpture and an indoor zip wire, Xerocon London 2018 proved it wasn’t a typical accounting conference. The Xerocon main stage cut an impressive figure. Measuring 57m
USA - As both the co-founder of the rock band Linkin Park and a solo artist in his own right, Mike Shinoda is one very busy performer. He’s currently approaching the end of the current leg of his Post Traumatic Tour, which will resume in early 2019 when it picks up in Europe. Shinoda’s night after night tour schedule demands equipment that maintains sonic consistency and reliability throughout - and to ensure the best audio performance at monitor world, Shinoda and monitor engineer Kevin ‘Tater’ McCarthy rely on the performance of DAS Audio Event-121A powered subwoofers and Road 12A powered stage monitors. Based in Detroit, MI, McCarthy delivers audio to Shinoda and the other band members on stage via a combination of in-ear monitors and conventional loudspeakers. McCarthy recently began using DAS Audio loudspeakers and has been very impressed. He shared
USA - Garth Brooks headlined at the Notre Dame stadium in South Bend, Indiana in front of 84,000 fans at the sold-out, first ever concert at the venue. Dan Heins, FOH engineer for Garth since 1989, reports: “By four o’clock in the afternoon, just hours before the show, because of the bad weather conditions, we still didn’t know if the concert would go on. We ended up doing soundcheck with the PA on the ground. The wind finally let up, so we were able to raise the speakers. Sound reinforcement was through Brooks’ custom-designed Clair Brothers PA. Part of the show’s magic was the star-shaped stage with a 360° rotating centre-stage on which Brooks and his band performed - a theatre-in-the-round concept where Garth moves freestyle around the periphery playing to each side of the stadium. According to Heins, “The Clair Brothers PA consistently sounds gr
Mexico - Located in Purísima del Rincón, Guanajuato, the Auditorio de la plaza Purísima is a new performing arts centre built for the benefit of the more than 200,000 citizens in the Rincón municipalities. Created as part of the Plaza Purísima complex, the new facility was backed by the Public Works Secretariat and envisioned to be a shining example of modern architecture. With an expectation to implement the latest in lighting technology into the design, Interlight Mexico worked with the design team at Genesist and installed Chalice LED downlights, PHX LED ellipsoidals, and Spectra Cyc LED cyclorama luminaires from Altman Lighting. “We’ve had the opportunity to work with the client and specifier on the project on a couple of past occasions, so they know our company well and trust our experienced design team,” says Jose Zedillo, general director, Genesist.
Czech Republic - Czech sound engineer Jiri Jehlar was one of the first front of house engineers in the country to use digital mixers. He was so impressed with the Yamaha Rivage PM7 digital mixing system that he has invested in one. Jiri is a long-term user of the Yamaha CL5 digital mixing console and Nexo loudspeaker systems, highlighting his commitment to delivering the best FOH mixes. When local Yamaha dealer and Nexo distributor MusicData demonstrated the Rivage PM7 digital mixing system earlier this year, the well-respected engineer chose to purchase a PM7 console and an RPio622 I/O rack. “I really liked the quality of the A/D converters, the Rupert Neve Sound Designs SILK processing, the effects and the high capacity of the system, thanks to the innovative TWINLANe network,” he says. “As soon as I heard the system in action, I did not hesitate to invest.”
Austria - Lawo reports that its new Lawo mc²96 console was installed in Bregenz, to support sound reinforcement and directional listening systems for a sold-out run of Georges Bizet’s Carmen at the annual summer Bregenz Festival, taking place on the floating stage at Lake Constance. The previously installed Lawo systems simplified an upgrade of the production console, which plays an important part in the production’s remarkable use of sound as a complement of the on-stage performance. Sound designer Alwin Bösch and sound engineer Gernot Gögele shifted from the Lawo mc²66 production console they had used at the Bregenz Festival since 2005 to a new IP-based Lawo mc²96 grand production console, which was installed just prior to this year’s live opera performances. Although memorizing the new operating sequences took a few days, Bösch and Gögele were up
USA - Playing three-hour shows with 30-plus songs and setlists that change with each performance, Pearl Jam is well known for giving audiences their money’s worth. But on the band’s most recent stadium run, there was another group that received an even more tangible financial benefit: Seattle’s homeless population. Following Pearl Jam’s two sold-out Safeco Field Home Shows - the band’s first hometown Emerald City concerts in five years - the band donated $868,189 from ticket and merch sales to a variety of King County homeless-related organisations and service providers. Furthermore, this outpouring of generosity helped prompt philanthropic donations from other organisations ultimately totalling $10.8m, according to The Seattle Times. Pearl Jam’s pair of Seattle shows followed tour legs in South America and Europe this spring and summer, and s
USA - Audio-Technica supplied nearly 100 vocal and instrument microphones for the 52nd Annual Country Music Association (CMA) Awards, presented Wednesday, November 14, 2018, at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville. Broadcast live in 5.1-channel surround sound on the ABC Television Network, the awards show featured an extensive selection of Audio-Technica hard-wired microphones, plus Artist Elite 5000 Series UHF Wireless Systems with ATW-C6100 Hypercardioid Dynamic Microphone Capsule. Audio-Technica microphones were chosen for their ability to provide clear and consistent audio quality for live broadcast. The team of industry veterans responsible for the audio at this year’s CMA’s again included a who’s-who of broadcast audio. Tom Davis served as audio producer; Kevin Sanford served as audio coordinator; ATK/Audiotek provided the sound system with FOH mixers Patrick Ba
UK - In 2012, Sound Space Vision beat all competition to become the theatre design and acoustics consultant for David Chipperfield Architects’ master plan to unite the Royal Academy of Arts’ 18th century Burlington House with its neighbour, Burlington Gardens, and transform the interiors throughout. SSV’s brief was to modernise and equip Burlington Gardens’ 19th-century lecture theatre for 21st century presentation and performance, and this was later expanded to include acoustics advice on the new gallery spaces and the learning centre, as well as mechanical systems. In collaboration with the architectural teams, SSV facilitated a design with minimal impact on the heritage features of the Grade II* listed building, yet provides a future-proofed technical design for the Academy’s planned lectures, debates, panel discussions, conferences, recitals, and hires. <
Italy - The Teatro Galli is a stunning architectural masterpiece in Rimini, Italy. Constructed between 1843 and 1857, the original theatre was designed by the illustrious architect Luigi Poletti of Modena and when completed, was one of the biggest theatres in Italy. Until an earthquake forced its closure from 1916-1923, it enjoyed great success. Following a first restoration, the theatre flourished until it was bombed in 1943 during World War 2. Badly damaged, the theatre, by this time dedicated to the nationally famous musician, composer and critic Amintore Galli, lay derelict until 1975 when it was partly restored and the City Council moved into its refurbished foyer. In more recent times, a long and intense culture-based debate took place about how to best reconstruct the entire theatre. Following these discussions and with regional and EU support, a full restoratio
UK - Experiment Intrinsic provides ambient all-night adventures in electronic music, exploring the spaces created with sound. They formulate alcohol-free, limited capacity events in intimate and spiritual spaces where all the senses are catered to. The quality of sound is of utmost importance, and for this reason a TiMax SoundHub spatial processor is always at the heart of the immersive sound system. Experiment Intrinsic’s sound system is curated by George Yankov of Sova Audio. Though every event’s immersive audio setup in terms of speaker and electronics configurations is dependent on the venue layout, budget and application, Yankov explains, “TiMax is central for spatial audio control.” Before using TiMax, Yankov claims nothing “ticked all the boxes for reliability, supreme audio quality, ease of use, Dante plus a combination of analogue and digital inputs
USA - Rising contemporary R&B star Allen Stone and his band have toured internationally and have opened for Stevie Wonder, Al Green, Hall & Oates, and the Dave Matthews Band. Stone has also appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and was recently a celebrity mentor on American Idol. Although his music draws on the rich tradition of R&B, it also offers a fresh new sound. Stone’s powerful connection to the past and his contemporary take on R&B are evident on his current 48-city North American tour, not only through his music, but also the evocative lighting design. Blending retro and high-tech looks, the design features a versatile set piece made up of Chauvet Professional Nexus 4x4 fixtures, supplied by 4Wall Entertainment Lighting. Designed by Sam Paine (Filament Design) and programmed/operated by lighting director Carter Adams, the design
UK - Rick Astley, who retired from the music industry in 1993 aged 27 with a string of successful tunes to his name – is back on the road with a new album, Beautiful Life. With many people unsure of what to expect, Astley delivered a diverse show, action-packed with the dynamics of soul, rock, R ‘n’ B, dance and more than a few hints of disco, backed by a talented band and a stage design by Andy Hurst. HSL delivered the lighting equipment for this high-profile tour. The Blackburn based company was once again working with renowned production manager Tony Gittins, with Jordan Hanson project managing. He commented, “It was fantastic to be on the road with Tony and his excellent team again, and we were all very impressed with the look and style that Andy’s design bought to the show”. To emphasise the architectural parameters of the design, An
France - Six performers from Streb Extreme Action performed a real aerial feat at the Musée d'Orsay in Paris this Autumn, with a little help from Unusual Rigging. The event, which took place on 13-14 October, was part of a festive family weekend hosted by Theatre du Châtelet and the Musée d'Orsay, exploring Picasso's passion for the circus which is expressed in the blue and pink period of his work. Unusual's Robin Elias has worked with Elizabeth Streb on several of her other projects over the years including performances on the London Eye and on the front of Bergdorf Goodman's New York department store as it revealed its Christmas holiday window display. He explained. "This was a fantastic project to be involved with. Our task was to help the phenomenal acrobats perform safely in the nave of the Orsay on the faces of two towers...all the while making sure that the
Austria - Modern metal/electronic band CueStack recently released their third effort in a series of debut music videos that features a sophisticated industrial stage design packed with 170 high tech lighting units from Elation Professional. Beyond the Veil shows a dystopian vision of the new digital age and uses the intricate set-up as both performance lighting and impactful visual accompaniment. "Big production is essential to this project and the lighting design plays an essential role,” states Martin Kames, owner of Austrian-based production company MartinKames.com and vocalist/synth player in the two-man project. “Beyond the Veil deals with modern day issues but it’s also a huge lighting-themed visual experience.” The video can be viewed at https://youtu.be/cgDFJ6P35Ec. Kames works double duty on the video shoots, operating behind the camera on ligh
UK - Over the past few years, Studiotech has collaborated on numerous projects alongside Wakefield based architectural practice, The Harris Partnership. The practice was responsible for the design of the new retail and leisure destination The Springs at Thorpe Park in Leeds. Their concept included a full feature lighting scheme to the exterior of the buildings and throughout the public realm. After recently providing a full turnkey lighting solution at their White Rose leisure extension project, The Harris Partnership was confident that Studiotech were capable of delivering their concept at Thorpe Park to the highest of standards. Studiotech designed a deliverable and achievable scheme within budget. There were a number of areas that Studiotech took responsibility for, the most obvious and eye-catching being the bespoke catenary lighting suspended above the public re
UAE - Earlier this month, golf fans came together to watch the duel between the two Ryder Cup teammates Francesco Molinari and Tommy Fleetwood as they raced to become Europe’s No 1 at the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai.The four-day event, held at Jumeirah Golf Estates marked the 10th anniversary and the final stop of the tournament. Creative Technology (CT delivered all video aspects for the event for the 10th year running on behalf of European Tour Productions. CT supplied four ROE CB5 outdoor screens to ensure spectators could follow the event no matter where they were. CT’s Dubai project manager, Barry Collins explains, “The ROE CB5 is a great product, the high refresh rate and high NIT levels makes it ideal for outdoor viewing, even in daylight. The custom detachable touring frames are specifically designed with outdoor applications in mind and has bee
UK - Autograph Sales & Installations has recently supplied a number of EM Acoustics EMS-61 loudspeakers and mounting hardware along with a DiGiCo SD9T digital mixing system to Theatre Royal Stratford East. The Grade II listed Victorian theatre’s beautiful crimson and gold interior is redolent of the era in which it was built, while much of the handsome exterior stands out amid the modern outlines of an area which has been under redevelopment (including massive investment for the 2012 Olympics) since the late 1960s. The theatre is now an acclaimed contemporary producing house with a capacity of 460 on three levels and focused on new writing and community engagement. “n a producing venue like Stratford East, the quality and fidelity of the audio system that we’re able to offer to designers is key,” says Jeremy George, head of sound at Theatre Royal Stratford
USA - Opportunity knocks in different ways. Eric Price was enjoying his summer last year when he got a call from his old friend David “Suge” Jun, whom he had worked with on tours in the past. The guitar tech for Taking Back Sunday, Jun told his friend that the band was looking for a lighting designer and encouraged him to contact them. Price jumped at the chance. Price’s enthusiasm wasn’t fuelled only by his appreciation of the iconic band’s sound, but also by the creative opportunity their versatile music offers a lighting designer. Price’s design flowed with their far-ranging music on their tour with Coheed and Cambria this summer. Helping him achieve this feat was a versatile lighting rig supplied by JR Lighting Design that featured Chauvet Professional Rogue R2 Wash fixtures. “I’ve been working with the band since summer 2017, and it’s an amazing
