UK - Purple Audio has been chosen to supply full production for The 1-2-3-4 Shoreditch Festival in July this year. The festival includes acts including The Rakes and Patrick Wolf.

Purple Audio's Funktion-one Resolution 5 system will be used for the main stage and its Funktion-one Resolution 4 systems for the second stages together with the new Funktion-one RM18 stage monitors.

Purple Audio has also been booked for Offset Festival in September where they will be supplying sound and light for the main stage along with two others.

Davis Roberts managing director of Purple Audio reports that he is very pleased with the ongoing progress the company is making. "Bookings into 2010 are very strong and it promises to be a very exciting year with at least 50% growth," he says.

(Jim Evans)

UK - For many years now HK Audio Portable Sound products from a small Lucas to full stack Projector system could be found on various stages and performance areas at Glastonbury, and this year was no exception. For the second consecutive year, HK Audio has been part of the action at the John Peel Stage (third largest stage of the festival) providing the on-stage monitoring.

18 HK Audio CT 115 15"/1.4" cabinets in biamp-mode and powered by DSM 2060 controllers and Labgruppen FP 10000 power amps were used for monitors. A ConTour Array was used as a side-fill and for drum-fills, a combination of active CTA 118 subwoofers and CT 115 mid/high units.

Mike Taylor, production manager for the John Peel Stage remarks: "Last year we used all HK Audio gear for this stage, and the results were outstanding. Rarely have I ever experienced such stress-free monitoring at a festiv

Italy - The Proel Group was selected to provide PA systems and screens for the Pescara Stadium during the recent 2009 Mediterranean Games which ended at the beginning of July.

Inaugurated in 1955 as a multipurpose facility, the Stadio Adriatico has hosted several matches of the Italian National Football Team and is the main stadium of Pescara. It is currently a CONI (Italian National Olympic Committee) sports centre.

Renovation works, which ended last May, were carried out in order to enlarge, restyle and modernise the facility in preparation for the 16th edition of the Mediterranean Games.

After completion of the works, which included a 15m euro allocation to ensure standards compliance, the stadium has now an all-seater capacity of 25.000. The Majella Stand is now covered and an air-conditioned VIP lounge, a new press stand and an area reserved for the Stadium Security Coo

UK - Prism Sound and SADiE have now confirmed the UK dates for their next series of free educational seminars. Universities around the country will be taking part in the programme, with each participating venue hosting two evening seminars - one covering music recording and the other covering either mastering or radio broadcast.

For the music recording fraternity, Prism Sound's Mic To Monitor tour makes a welcome return. This series aims to dispel many of the myths surrounding the recording process. Each seminar will feature short presentations from Prism Sound staff and from guest speakers, including recording professionals who can answer audience questions on recording techniques.

The mastering and radio broadcast seminars will focus on how SADiE digital audio workstations can be used in these specific environments. Guest speakers, along with staff from Prism Sound an

UK - Communications company drpgroup has purchased the first Midas PRO6 live audio system to be sold into the British corporate events market.

Established almost 30 years ago, drpgroup has grown into one of Europe's largest and most experienced fully integrated communication and presentation organisations. Until four years ago all equipment was dry-hired, but the company has undertaken a concerted investment programme, building up a state-of-the-art inventory to which the PRO6 is the latest addition.

drpgroup took the decision to purchase the PRO6 having outgrown its previous digital console within a year of buying it. "After having a PRO6 on demo, we took the decision that we needed one immediately," says Ian Ruhback, drpgroup's head of sound. "Everything is instantly accessible and nothing is menu-based. A lot of the other digital consoles we have encountered

The Netherlands - Europe's biggest Christian youth event, EO Youth Day, has celebrated its 35th anniversary at the Gelredome Stadium in the Netherlands before a crowd of more than 30,000. An L-Acoustics Kudo line source system was provided by local Rental Network agent Rider Audio and Media, with L-Acoustics trainer and system tech Paul Van Baasbank taking care of design and system engineering duties.

The event, aimed at young people between 15 and 25 years of age, featured guest speakers, choirs, Christian bands and worship, and was broadcast live on Dutch national TV.

Van Baasbank's system design incorporated 72 Kudo cabinets powered by 30 LA8 amplified controllers. The system was deployed in two right and two left hangs of 18 cabinets each, with 24 SB218 subwoofers powered by 12 LA48s under the stage in cardioid mode. 16 Kiva ultra compact line source cabinets powere

UK - Stage Electrics recently supplied Transmitta with a new L'Acoustics dv-Dosc sound system. Delivered to Transmitta one month ago, the system was immediately put into service. It has already enhanced a number of events including award ceremonies, the Kiddstock Hard Dance Festival, a James Morrison acoustic concert and is about to service the VIP arena at Oasis' home-coming shows at Heaton Park, Manchester. Stage Electrics' business development Manager Ed Gamble says: "it sounds awesome."

The client's criteria included that any system chosen had good longevity. It was therefore essential that Stage Electrics' Ed Gamble specified one that was both future-proof and best for purpose. The subsequent investment included 12 dv-Dosc full range WST enclosures, four dv-SUB compact high power subs, four SB118 high power subs, LA8 amplified controllers and all associated

USA - As President Barack Obama made his marks with the graduates of 2009 at the Arizona State University Sun Devil Stadium - a venue plagued by a resonance problem common in large sports venues - a suitable solution was found in Meyer Sound's SB-2 parabolic wide-range sound beams.

The task of providing intelligible audio for the historic event was handled by Phoenix-based Clearwing Productions, using two SB-2 sound beams. Clearwing's general Manager David Temby explains that the SB-2 worked well with the house PA and achieved adequate coverage without obstructing the sightlines of attendees or multiple network cameras. "Without the SB-2s, it would simply not have been possible to reach the upper corners of the seating areas," he says. "Any other solution would have called for additional delay stacks, adding significant expense and creating issues with both line-o

South Africa - Gearhouse South Africa supplied lighting, sound and video production plus crew for singer/songwriter R Kelly's first visit to South Africa.

The five days of production rehearsals at Sun City Superbowl was followed by one show there and another at Cape Town's Grand West Casino. The project was managed for Gearhouse by Michael Lewis, and their teams worked very closely with R Kelly's lighting designer Nook Schoenfeld and FOH sound engineer Rob 'Cubby' Colby.

Llewellyn Reinecke, Gearhouse Audio's systems engineer also looked after FOH. Colby specified a V-Dosc system, which was flown in Sun City as 12 elements a side for the main left and right hangs, complete with three dv-Doscs underneath for front down-fills. He also specified a 1:1 ratio for subs and V-Dosc, so the 24 subs were ground stacked three high and four wide on the floor of the Superbowl. Additional ha

UK - With very important issues due to be resolved in the coming months, and some impending questions needing to be answered, especially with regards to potential funding for the industry vacating channel 69 and the remainder of the 800MHz band, the BEIRG Steering Group have launched an information Group on the popular business network site Linkedin.

To access the BEIRG Group on Linkedin all you have to do is go to www.linkedin.com and sign up for free. After you have completed a very quick and easy sign-up, just search under groups for BEIRG and apply to join.

Commenting on the new Linkedin initiative, BEIRG Steering Group member Alan March said: "With the increasing amount of decisions that are starting to be made it's very important that as many people as possible come forward and give us their input. In the coming weeks

UK - Eurohire Sound and Light recently decided to bolster its arsenal of stage monitors and processors. After considering the options, Eurohire selected a complement of products from EAW. Included in the sale were over 20 EAW MicroWedge Series MW15 Stage Monitors, a pair of MicroSub Stage Monitors/Subwoofers and four UX8800 Digital Signal Processors. With the purchase, Eurohire now holds the largest European rental stock of EAW MicroWedges, a line of products developed by EAW in close partnership with Rat Sound Systems.

Eurohire has, in recent years, provided equipment and services for such varied events as rock and pop concerts by UB40, Steve Winwood, Dionne Warwick and the Kooks, classical showcases by the likes of the Royal Philharmonic, and a number of festivals, plays/musicals and corporate events.

"With our busy and varied itinerary, we needed versatile products tha

USA - Shure Incorporated has announced that James Ahlborn has joined Shure as vice president of finance and chief financial officer (CFO). In this position, he will lead the company's finance division and have full responsibility for all of its functions, including internal auditing, financial planning and analysis, treasury, payroll, financial reporting, cost accounting, customs, accounts payable and receivable, tax analysis, and credit. He will also provide strategic counsel as a member of the executive staff.

"Jim brings a broad financial management background to Shure," said Sandy LaMantia, Shure's president and CEO. "His experience with global manufacturing operations, mergers and acquisitions, and strategic planning will be especially important in helping the company to continue our long history of growth and profitability."

Before joining Shure, Ahlb

India - Based in Bangalore, Infosys Technologies is one of the world's leading software technology companies. Chief mentor (and one of the founders), N. R. Narayana Murthy remains passionate in his quest to match and exceed the standards set by many world class organisations in their chosen fields of expertise.

With this in mind he decided to build a world class convention centre on the Infosys campus in Bangalore, which would also be capable of hosting live dance and music events (including a 60-piece symphony orchestra), theatre and international conferences. The ability to telecast and webcast these events live to all their campuses and offices worldwide was a further pre-requisite.

In addition to live performances, the 1,400 seater auditorium also had to be able to play back movies on a giant screen in both the latest 2K digital format as well as in regular 35mm, with 7.1

UK - Sennheiser UK was once again at the heart of the production at this year's Glastonbury Festival, as high profile performers and three major stages used Sennheiser microphones, in-ear monitors and wireless systems at the core of their audio set-ups.

All three headline acts on The Other Stage, The Prodigy, Franz Ferdinand and Bloc Party, used a range of Sennheiser equipment, while Lily Allen, N*E*R*D and the Black Eyed Peas all shone through a weekend of changeable weather with Sennheiser's help. In addition, Sennheiser's G3 products were given their UK festival debuts when Dizzee Rascal took to the Pyramid Stage with an SKM 935 G3 and Mike Skinner of The Streets used an SKM 945 G3.

The John Peel Stage is Glastonbury's major showcase stage for emerging musical talent. The production team there employed e 935 wired mics and SKM 935 mics and EM 550 receivers for lead vocals,

USA - Community Professional has announced the appointment of Ouzunoff and Associates as the company's new sales representatives for upstate New York. Based in Granite Springs, the staff of Greg and Carla Ouzunoff, Mike Gross and Faye Grazioso will represent Community in the state of New York, excluding New York City and the NYC metropolitan area of Westchester, Rockland, Nassau and Suffolk counties.

"We're pleased to welcome Ouzunoff and Associates to the Community family," says Mike Marr, Community's eastern regional sales manager. "Their proven track record makes them an excellent choice in a region that has traditionally been very strong for Community, and we look forward to a long and mutually successful relationship."

"Community is one of the audio industry's most respected and sought-after manufacturers, with more than 40 years of quality, value

Sweden - Lab.gruppen reports that its recently redesigned website www.labgruppen.com has been honoured with an Outstanding Achievement Interactive Media Award from the Interactive Media Council (IMC). IMC is a non-profit organisation of web designers, developers, programmers, advertisers and other web-related professionals. Their annual competition rewards excellence in website design and development, providing winners with a boost in marketing and exposure.

Stephen Lewis of Experience Internet who designed, built and continues to maintain the site, comments: "The Lab.gruppen site had been live for nearly a year by the time the IMA judges paid it a visit, and as anyone who has developed a large content-managed website knows, a lot can go wrong in a year - especially on a site with thousands of members, and multiple administrators. The fact that Labgruppen.com still s

Italy - Tracy Chapman's performance at Piazza della Loggia was reinforced via an Outline Butterfly system comprising just 14+14 Hi-Pack units per side, each equipped with four 8" woofers and a 3" compression driver.

The bottom end was reproduced by 7+7 Outline Victor Live subs and LAB 21 infra-subs (just two units positioned in the centre). All the cabinets were laid out in a cardioid configuration, to keep the stage clear of excessive low frequencies. Four Outline Micra II enclosures, installed on the edge of the stage, were used as front-fill systems, for the benefit of the front rows of the audience.

The amplification of the signals - fed from a Digidesign console - was entrusted to Outline T7 units.

Cipiesse Produzioni per lo Spettacolo, the owner of the Outline array system, was the Brescia rental firm handling the entire operation. Marco Riva, head of Cipiess

Stage Tragedy - Prosecutors have apparently opened a manslaughter investigation after a stage being built for a Madonna concert collapsed killing two people, a French official has said. Eight other people were seriously injured in last Thursday's accident at the Velodrome stadium in Marseille. Assistant prosecutor Marc Cimamonti said an investigation for manslaughter and involuntary injuries in a work-related accident has been opened. Madonna has said she is "devastated" by the news of the deaths.

Charles Criscenzo, a 53-year-old French worker, was killed outright in the accident and Charles Prow, a 23-year-old from Headingley in Leeds, died in hospital. Technicians had been setting up the stage at the city's Velodrome stadium when the partially-built roof fell in on Thursday, bringing down a crane.

Madonna paid tribute to the technicians at her concert in Italy on T

France - The French racecourse group, France Galop, has selected an Allen & Heath iLive digital system to manage audio distribution in its Deauville Touques venue in Normandy. The company owns several famous racecourses across the country, including Longchamp, Auteuil, Chantilly, Deauville, Maisons-Laffitte and Saint-Cloud.

Installed by EV Corporate, the iLive system comprises an iDR10 MixRack and iLive-112 Control Surface, and manages the live PA during races, VIP events, broadcast feeds, and horse auctions. France Galop also needed a system that can provide high quality sound to the OB van, as sometimes the broadcast feeds last for more than nine hours for live TV shows.

"The racecourse team, managed by Thierry Migeon, chose iLive because of its rapid, easy and flexible design, which enable the system to adapt to the venue's many different activities," says Yann Ma

USA - Shure Incorporated has announced that Audio Biz Michigan is the company's Representative of the Year for fiscal year 2008/2009. President Randy Stenson, vice-president Rick Brown, and Steve Meyers, sales representative, received the award at the recent InfoComm Show in Orlando, Florida.

"We are very excited to present Audio Biz Michigan with our 2009 Rep of the Year award," said Jim Schanz, Shure's director of US and Canada field sales. "One cannot talk about the state of Michigan without acknowledging the tough economy the state has faced for years. The fact that Audio Biz Michigan has been able to grow our business in this region and continue to offer great support to our customers during these challenging economic times, is a testament to the tenacity of this organisation."

Representing Shure throughout the state of Michigan, Audio Biz Michi

UK - An interactive music experience has opened in London featuring instruments and professional video and audio technology from across the group of Roland companies, the first time that Roland's consumer and professional subsidiaries have collaborated on a single project in the UK.

Research commissioned by the charity Youth Music found that up to 2.5m young people in the UK - or 1m aged between 12 and 18 - have been inspired to progress into 'real' music-making because they have played music-based console games. In response to these findings, the Youth Music charity, which celebrates its 10th birthday this year, has launched Youth Music Box at London's Southbank Centre.

A free interactive music experience, the Youth Music Box is a cubed structure that visitors can enter, providing an easily accessible musical experience through a mix of real instruments and a 'w

UK - Capital Sound Hire, Take That's long-serving audio production company, had some unlikely obstacles to contend with when designing their set for the recent Circus stadium tour. The band bounced onto stage like circus clowns and brought the whole circus to town including the Big Top.

An estimated £10m had been lavished on this tour, again production managed by Chris Vaughan, but for Capital's technical director Ian Colville and system technician, Al Woods, the presence of trapeze artists, contortionists, high-wire walkers and clowns streaming on to the main stage (with the B stage festooned in balloons and mammoth-sized human 'elephants') was not about to compromise their carefully-worked Martin Audio sound reinforcement system.

In collaboration with the band's long-time FOH engineer Gary Bradshaw, they knew that given the configuration of the stage structure (

UK - Building on the success of last year's presence at the festival, Stage Electrics' dedicated 'Edinburgh Support Team' will be based in Edinburgh from 28 July until 4 September, on hand to provide a rapid response to all technical needs.

There will be a dedicated 24-hour helpline available seven days a week on 0131 522 2251, where Stage Electrics technicians will be available to assist with equipment requests. A dedicated support vehicle will also be available to ensure any spare equipment needed reaches the customer immediately. Stage Electrics will be taking a host of consumables as part of their Edinburgh involvement, including gaffer tape, lamps, colour filters, paint and plugs, available for immediate dispatch.

Stage Electrics is one of the biggest suppliers of technical equipment to the Edinburgh Festival, and for over 20 years has had a strong presence at both the Ed

USA - QSC has launched 24/7 technical support to stand behind its new Q-Sys networked audio system. Spanning the globe in its scope, the service can be accessed online (www.qscaudio.com) or by phoning dedicated numbers for markets including the USA and Americas, Asia and India, and Europe and the Middle East.

With online service offered via email and through forums providing both peer-to-peer assistance as well as the collective wisdom of QSC's own knowledgeable staff, queries can additionally be sent using Skype. As further complement to the comprehensive nature of the programme, calls received after hours are guaranteed a 30-minute response time when not directly answered by a QSC support engineer, says the company.

"Q-Sys is indeed an exciting new technology we're all very proud of," says Q-Sys product manager Dale Sandberg. "But more importantly, the product

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