Europe/USA - Mark Knopfler is on the road once again, supporting the release of his new Down the Road Wherever album with an epic show presented in L-ISA Hyperreal Sound technology by L-Acoustics. Having hit venues throughout Europe and headed to North America, Knopfler has once again raised the rock bar with a 10-piece band, and a 7.1 L-ISA configuration provided by SSE Hire, part of the SSE Audio Group. Front of house engineer Dave Dixon and systems engineer Ulf Oeckel specified L-ISA technology, with Maxime Menelec – an experienced L-ISA operator - joining during production rehearsals to take over systems engineering duties from the beginning of the tour, setting up the initial design with creativity and audience impact in mind. "The idea of moving to L-ISA technology is a direct result of a request made by Mark during the last tour," Dixon recalls. "He as
UK - Music for Dementia 2020 and Live Music Now have launched a new Musical Care taskforce with the aim to make music an essential element of dementia care. The taskforce, which brings together more than 60 leading representatives from across the music, dementia, health and social care sectors, will look at ways to bring music to people living with dementia who are not able to access music otherwise. A wide body of research has demonstrated significant benefits of music for people living with dementia, including reducing anxiety, depression and agitation, providing an alternative channel of communication and connecting people with those around them through shared musical moments. Music for Dementia 2020 is a campaign to make music available for everyone living with dementia by the end of 2020. To create this taskforce, Music for Dementia 2020 has partnered with L
South Africa - MGG is the first rental technical company in South Africa to invest in Braceworks, an add-on module for Vectorworks Spotlight, which helps ensure safety and compliance and is an easy way to assess a temporary structure under load. Gone are the days when a truck would arrive on-site and the technician would quickly chat to the client and only then decide where the stage and gear would be positioned. “Now everything is so well planned, right to the point of where the motors need to go,” explains Kevin Rieck, head of drafting at MGG. “Everyone can see what the final product is going to look like before the truck is even loaded, but with events getting bigger, we had to ensure safety first and this is where Braceworks comes in.” MGG recently took ownership of Braceworks, purchased from DWR Distribution, and have used it on shows such as Miss SA, Clas
USA - At the turn of the year, Lady Gaga kicked off two multi-year Las Vegas residencies at Park Theatre at Park MGM, both of which are presented in L-ISA Immersive Hyperreal Sound technology from L-Acoustics. Lady Gaga’s first show, Enigma, which has now completed 18 sold-out performances is a nonstop, eye-popping spectacle taking its 5,200 audience members on a full-throttle, futuristic odyssey through two hours of her club classics. Her second show, Jazz & Piano, is a glitzy return to classic Las Vegas style with the artist accompanied by a full big band complete with string section. Alternating between stripped down solo piano and vocal arrangements of her pop numbers and swinging orchestral versions of Great American Songbook staples. Although the two productions could hardly be more different in terms of design and execution, the sound tec
Italy - The Milan Latin Festival is a 10-week celebration of Latin American artists. They converge on the external area of the Assago Forum in Milan for 66 days of celebration from mid-June to mid-August, to deliver a varied programme of concerts to enthusiastic crowds. Artists such as the king of Reggaeton, Daddy Yankee and fellow Puerto Rican, Ozuna, lit up the stage for sold-out shows. At outdoor events such as this, where the hazards of dispersion are more pronounced, the true qualities of an audio system are laid bare and event technology provider Suono e Luci, chose Coda Audio to ensure that every artist performing during the two-month duration of the festival was heard loud and clear. Claudio Saoncella, head of audio at Suono e Luci, customers of Coda Audio’s Italian distributor Decima 1948, opted for a ViRAY solution configured in Bi-Amp. The system was install
Germany - Active Blue, a Bremen-based service provider for lighting, sound and event technology, recently acquired several components of the Vio system, dBTechnologies' most powerful PA system. The Bremen-based company is using equipment from the Italian PA manufacturer dBTechnologies for the first time. The purchase includes 20 VIO L212, 20 S218 SUB and 20 L208 modules. Active Blue has been in operation for 30 years and since and is active Europe-wide. The company is increasingly active with corporate events and conferences, concerts, parties or cultural events. The aim of purchasing Vio components was to expand the stock of large PA systems and to respond even more flexibly to customer wishes. All equipment has to meet the highest standards. After extensive market research, they decided to take a closer look at the Vio system at the dBTechnologies stand during Prolig
UK - Showcasing the latest and greatest music, Hertfordshire festival Standon Calling was the biggest yet, welcoming a record 15,000 people. This year’s headliners across the three-day July festival included Nile Rodgers & CHIC, and Rag’n’Bone Man. Other acts included Friendly Fires, Echo & The Bunnymen, Róisín Murphy, IDLES, Lewis Capaldi, Mahalia, Kate Nash, The Big Moon, Steam Down, The Japanese House, Band Of Skulls, The Joy Formidable and Sea Girls. The festival hosts a range of acts across multiple stages. Adamson’s UK distributor The Warehouse Sound Services designed an Adamson sound reinforcement system for the festival’s main stage. The system consisted of a full complement of Adamson E15 line array loudspeakers and E119 Subwoofers with additional ground-stacked S10 line array loudspeakers on the sides, all powered by Lab Gruppen PL
Europe - Radio Active Designs UV-1G wireless analogue intercom system has passed the EU’s Low Voltage, RoHS, Radio Equipment and EMC directives, the company has announced. The six-channel intercom system that operates primarily in VHF is now available across Europe. “We are extremely pleased to have crossed this hurdle,” explains James Stoffo, CTO, Radio Active Designs. “We have been actively working with European distributors who are excited to bring our product to their countries. We think the European production community will embrace the UV-1G as the true problem solver it is for a crowded RF market.” The RAD UV-1G base station utilises Enhanced Narrow Band technology, which enables the unit to occupy a mere 25kHz of bandwidth in the UHF range, thus minimizing its UHF footprint. The body packs operate in VHF, which has more open bandwidth in Europ
Germany - The new Sprung.Raum trampoline and amusement park in the German city of Kiel features Martin Audio’s CDD speaker series as its featured sound system. The 4,000 sq.m park is the largest trampoline venue in Northern Germany - but in addition to its primary function as a sports venue, it also hosts kids and youth discos and other events. It was therefore essential that the sound system could create a homogeneous background ambience while at the same time having the characteristics of a club PA for special events. The lighting and sound system was designed and equipped by Hamburg-based PM White, who met this challenge with the installation of 21 CDD10W white loudspeakers and two CSX118 subwoofers. The trampoline area is equipped with 19 of the CCD10W, run in pairs off a single amplifier channel, while the remaining two CDD10W were installed in the instruction
Italy - Each summer since 2013, Milan’s Teatro alla Scala has transformed Piazza Duomo, the Italian city’s central square, into an open-air concert hall where the Orchestra Filarmonica della Scala give a free classical performance for residents and tourists. An L-Acoustics K Series system was supplied by Italy’s premier rental company, Agorà, which has provided audio and lighting to this event since it first started. Under the baton of maestro Riccardo Chailly, this year’s set list included Dvořák’s Symphony from the New World No. 9 in E minor and works from Italian composer, pianist and conductor Nino Rota, best known for his Federico Fellini and Luchino Visconti film scores. With 25,000 concert goers packing the 17,000m2 piazza and the evening broadcast live on RAI 5 in HD, Front of House engineer Fabio Venturi was tasked with designing a system that wo
Germany - A large PA system comprising elements of four different Nexo line arrays has entertained audiences of 60-75,000 per night at the Klassik Open-Air Music Festival in Nuremberg. In Phase Event, one of the primary rental suppliers of Nexo systems in Germany, designed and supplied the system for the event, which is Europe’s biggest classical music open air event. This success story started in 2000, on the occasion of the City of Nuremberg’s 950th anniversary. Three free open air concerts performed by the city’s two major orchestras were intended to be a great party in the Luitpoldhain park. The event was modelled on similar concerts in New York’s Central Park and particularly on the Proms in the Park in London’s Hyde Park. The idea was that even people who normally do not listen to classical music could get together in a relaxed atmosphere, free of charge, to
Bahrain - Event design, technical and scenic production specialist Maestra Group has opened a base in Bahrain and announced a new partnership with the Ritz-Carlton resort and its 43,000sq.ft conference and exhibition facility. As the resort’s exclusive event partner, Maestra will oversee all technical aspects of the new Arena facility, which offers a full set-up and capacity for large banquet receptions and global conferences. Maestra’s Tom Clements comments: “We are extremely excited about this new venture and to be involved in such a high profile and incredibly well-designed event space. For Maestra Group, this is a logical expansion of our work in Dubai, and it will also be the first step in some strategic expansion plans for Maestra Group in the Middle East.” “As Bahrain becomes a global destination for premiere conferences and events in the region
Mexico - Adamson Systems Engineering has appointed Pro Audio Comercializadora, a division of Hermes Music, as its exclusive distributor for the Mexican market. “Pro Audio Comercializadora has been in the professional market for several decades, and in that time, we’ve watched Adamson become a market leader in terms of innovation, product performance, and brand profile,” comments Raul Carlos Uriegas, director of Pro Audio Comercializadora. “The development of their various patented and proprietary technologies over the years makes it clear Adamson is proud and passionate about the audio industry, and that’s exactly the kind of company we want to partner with.” Based in Mexico City, Pro Audio Comercializadora will work in close collaboration with Adamson’s Canadian headquarters to develop educational programming, provide client support, and propel further g
Europe - Belgian audio manufacturer Audac has introduced MK2 versions of the popular ATEO4 and ATEO6 wall mount installation loudspeakers. Externally the product retains the same design that has made it so popular with designers, architects and installers including the CleverMount bracket system, however a number of internal improvements have been made. The most significant upgrade is a new crossover which delivers an ultra-flat frequency response for exceptional audio fidelity. The ATEO range has also been expanded with the addition of 16 Ohm versions of the ATEO4 and ATEO6 without the integral 100V transformer found on the standard 8 Ohm model. These “D” versions of the ATEO loudspeakers offer an even more cost-effective solution for integrators working on small installations where a 100V system is undesirable or not required, allowing up to four speakers to be connect
USA - In the two short years since he released his debut album, This One’s for You, Luke Combs has soared in popularity. Recently honoured as the newest member of the Grand Ole Opry, the North Carolina native is now taking a breather between the first and second North American legs of his Beer Never Broke My Heart Tour, which is being reinforced via Special Event Services’ (SES) L-Acoustics K1/K2 loudspeaker rig. The first stretch of Combs’ arena headlining trek initially ran from March through July and quickly sold out every venue, prompting the musician to add a 29-date fall leg running from late September through early December. “When putting together my production budgets for the 2019 tour, Michael Brammer from SES and I discussed the PA options in their inventory,” notes production manager Jerry Slone. “When I found out that K1/K2 would fit wit
USA - Passaic County Technical Institute is a large vocational, public high school that serves over 3,300 students in northern New Jersey. Its sizable campus is well-appointed, and its programmes are well-supported. Two full-time professional sound technicians number among its staff and oversee operations in its performing arts department and at its sporting events. Until recently however, the PCTI Bulldogs football team played for 1,500-plus crowds using only a portable sound reinforcement system that was underpowered and frequently unintelligible. JD Sound and Video of Voorhees, New Jersey, remedied that for the Bulldogs’ most recent season with the installation of Danley OS80 loudspeakers and OS115 subwoofers. Because they’re designed and built to be fully weatherised, the Danley OS-Series boxes will serve PCTI for a long time. “The Passaic football stadium ha
South Africa - Joburg Theatre’s longstanding technical crew, headed by Enos Ramoroko, have taken delivery of new equipment to complement their busy theatre situated on Braamfontein Hill. DWR Distribution delivered 20 Vari-Lite VL2600 Spots and four Robert Juliat Cyrano followspots to be used in the Mandela Theatre, while the audio in the Lesedi Theatre has been upgraded to an L-Acoustics ARCS Wide and Focus (WiFo) system. “The Vari-Lite VL 2600 Spots met our needs for an LED spot,” says Enos Ramoroko, head of technical at Joburg Theatre. “The full blade shutters will be very useful for theatre applications.” The crew are planning to use the new fixtures on productions like Sarafina, and this year’s annual pantomime, Jack and the Beanstalk. “The Mandela Theatre’s followspots, which have probably stood the test of time for aro
Italy - Prase Media Technologies is one of the leading Italian AV distributors for audio, video, digital signal processing and professional control systems. Davide Buonasorte, Prase’s sales manager of the rental, retail and broadcast division, has overseen progress at the company, which has recently been rewarded for its hard work with the recruitment of two fast-growing companies, Franz AVL Rent and Tecnostruttura; both now utilise Clair Brothers products at their high-level events. For more than 10 years, Franz AVL Rent, based in Senigallia, has been dedicated to servicing the touring industry, concentrating its scope on the central and northern areas of the country. The need to reach ever higher led them directly to a new monitor system from Clair Brothers - the road-tested 1AM stage monitors. Sixteen C12-M enclosures with 90º horizontal dispersion and 12 CS218-M subwo
USA - With five floors and four stages, Kid Rock’s Big Ass Honky Tonk and Rock ’n’ Roll Steakhouse is the largest and most advanced entertainment venue on Nashville’s always-crowded Broadway. Thanks to a comprehensive audio installation from QSC, the sound from multiple live acts on different floors is audiophile-grade. “The entire venue holds about 2,000 guests, with up to 600 in the main room and mezzanine,” says lead sound engineer Josh Hastick. “During busy seasons, all four stages are going at once, and we host as many as 16 bands, each with a four-hour set, in a business day.” That kind of turnover requires equal measures of flexibility and predictability from a P.A. system, which Hastick says that “QSC delivers in spades”. The stage in their main room is flanked by three KLA12 active line array cabinets per side, complemented by four KW181 ac
UK - For the fourth year running, The Pride Pleasure Gardens on Brighton’s Old Steine recreated its own experience during Brighton & Hove Pride Festival Weekend. The Old Steine Gardens were transformed around two 1,000-capacity big tops for three days, with entertainment ranging from camp bingo and cheesy pop to cabaret, vibrant live performances, DJs and hot clubbing. Working for Ian Baird’s production company, Whiskey Bravo Productions, were Brighton based sound and light company Penguin Media Hire, enjoying their first year at the festival. Headed by technical project manager Dylan Thompson, the company was tasked with creating a technical infrastructure, including sound (in the shape of Martin Audio PAs), lighting and temporary power for the site; and although this provided a real challenge, it was one they came through with flying colours. “We narrowly m
Taiwan - When you are giving an acceptance speech at a major awards ceremony, there are two things you want to be sure of - that everyone can see you and that everyone can hear what you have to say. Achieving both these aims was key to the sound team at the recent Golden Melody Awards in Taipei, and the reason why they chose DPA’s d:sign 4098 Supercardoid Gooseneck microphones as their speech microphones. Andy Chen, president of Winly Production Services International Corp and production manager for this event, says: “DPA’s 4098 Supercardioid microphones offer much clearer and more transparent sound than the microphones we were previously using, plus the miniature capsule is so slim and so amazingly small that is doesn’t block the faces of the speakers. This is really important, especially for the female artists.” The Golden Melody Awards (GMA) take p
UK - The Warehouse Sound Services provided an advanced audio solution for Edinburgh International Festival’s spectacular opening event. Aberdeen Standard Investments Opening Event: LA Phil at Tynecastle celebrated the start of the 2019 International Festival and was attended by a capacity crowd of 15,000 people. The 2019 International Festival opened in style with a spectacular concert from the Los Angeles Philharmonic and conductor Gustavo Dudamel, celebrating Hollywood film music. A stage replicating the Hollywood Bowl, where the LA Phil famously perform every summer, was recreated in Tynecastle Park, the home of Hearts football club. The LA Phil brought authentic gleam and glamour to the grandeur of Hollywood film scores in this year’s Opening Event, featuring classic movie music from the Golden Age of Hollywood by Korngold, Herrmann, Waxman and a
UK - Shure has announced the launch of the VPH - a long microphone handle for on camera interviews and reporting that features the flexible Shure RPW interchangeable cartridge interface and convenient XLR connectivity, for easy connection to broadcast mixers and recorders. On-camera reporting changes drastically from situation to situation and the broadcast industry expressed a need for a cardioid microphone with a longer handle for live interviews in noisy environments, says the company. Loud, side-line sports interviews call for one type of microphone while capturing superstar sound bites amidst a dozen other reporters at a chaotic awards show, might call for another. With VPH, you get to choose from a wide variety of Shure wireless interchangeable capsules that offer different polar patterns and sonic characteristics to match your situational needs. Polar patterns
USA - Bose Professional is now shipping new ControlSpace EX processors - two designed specifically for conference rooms (EX-440C and EX-12AEC) and one dedicated for general purpose applications (EX-1280). With an open-architecture, all-in-one design, the ControlSpace EX-440C conferencing processor facilitates high-quality microphone integration and audio processing for small-to-medium size conference rooms. Various inputs and outputs allow for flexible configuration: four mic/line analog inputs, four analog outputs, onboard VoIP, PSTN, USB, Bose AmpLink output, eight-channel acoustic echo cancelling (AEC) and 16 x 16 Dante connectivity. With an open-architecture design, twelve acoustic echo cancellers (AEC) and 16 x 16 Dante connectivity, the ControlSpace EX-12AEC conferencing processor provides a cost-effective, robust expansion for conference rooms using ControlSpac
