South Africa - The Gearhouse Group, a network of companies, branches and divisions that service the event industries, has recently added Showcom to its ranks. Johannesburg-based Showcom (Pty) Ltd is headed up by Nickolas Chapman and specialises in supplying communication solutions to the events industry, offering a range of wireless, wired or two-way radio communication systems. The company’s official launch was marked on 1 August. Showcom is based at 18 Lang Street, Bezuidenhout Valley. (Jim Evans)
UK - Cambridge-based conference technology provider Brähler ICS UK has rebranded as BUK Solutions. The change comes as the company marks 30 years of trading and enters a new phase that incorporates new distribution partnerships and a more diverse range of suppliers. The company is also offering enhanced complementary event services as part of its rental portfolio including consultancy, interpretation and translation. Launched in the late 1980s, Brähler ICS UK operated alongside German parent company Brähler ICS Konferenztechnik AG until 2012. It then became independent but remained a member of the global Brähler ICS Network until recently. Simon Sainsbury, managing director of BUK Solutions, comments: “The success of our expanded portfolio, which now includes several new non-Brähler products and services, prompted us to redefine our identity in the marketpl
UK - The Hay Festival, an annual festival of literature and the arts, held in Hay-on-Wye in Powys, Wales, has expanded to encompass a broad spectrum of cultural activities. This year’s 10-day event welcomed more than a quarter of a million visitors. The festival site comprises temporary marquee structures of varying size (capacities vary from a few thousand to less than a hundred) connected by covered walkways and is located in a field on the edge of the town. The infrastructure required to meet the needs of the festival audience and the 800 or so events that take place is significant. From lectures, readings, concerts and screenings, to discussions, sales, children’s activities, catering, media centre and more besides, Hay Festival presents logistical challenges that might bring a frown to even the most seasoned events professional. This year, Cardiff-based events
Puerto Rico - As part of his mammoth Love + Dance world tour, Luis Fonsi, the Puerto Rican singer best known for the smash hit Despacito, played on home turf to an ecstatic crowd at the José Miguel Agrelot Coliseum of Puerto Rico in San Juan. Luis may be a fan of taking things slowly but FOH engineer Yamil Martínez has embraced how quickly he could work on a DiGiCo SD10, which was at the heart of the tour's audio system supplied by local provider Wichie Sound Performance. Yamil Martínez is a seasoned pro when it comes to hot Latin performances. Prior to spending the last three years as Luis' FOH engineer, Yamil worked with the likes of Ricky Martin, Enrique Iglesias and Alex Campos, and has been a fan of DiGiCo consoles ever since he first got his hands on one. “I have been using DiGiCo with other artists since 2011,” explains Yamil. “It w
China - When Audi introduced its A8L luxury saloon to the Chinese market, technical service company Redline turned to the BlackTrax real-time motion tracking system to help deliver the wow factor to the launch show. Each of the cars featured in the show was fitted with BTBeacons which transmitted the exact position of the vehicles as they moved around the stage to BTCams, which then relayed the information to the lighting console so that any lighting look could be designed while automatically following the cars on the stage, regardless of speed or direction, with an accuracy that would not have been possible to achieve manually. Another big part of the reveal, was the futuristic graphics projected on the floor and not only accented the beautiful car, it also helped explain some of the A8L’s new built in technology and features. The mapped projection interacted with
Italy - Six dLive systems were chosen to run the show at this year’s spectacular Primo Maggio event in Piazza San Giovanni, Rome. Over the course of the day, over 30 major artists performed in front of a giant crowd and a huge live TV audience, including names such as Gianna Nannini and Fatboy Slim, and a 50-piece orchestra. With 36 acts, short changeover times and a live broadcast to the RAI national TV channel, Primo Maggio featured a spectacular revolving dual-stage setup, with each stage having its own dLive system, each consisting of an S5000 surface and DM48 MixRack at front of house, and an S7000 surface with DM64 MixRack and DX32 I/O expansion for monitors. Both M-Dante and GigaAce cards were selected for audio distribution. Specified by contractor ABC, supported by Arcadia Digital and Exhibo S.p.A, the set-up also included a further two dLive systems compri
Switzerland - A highlight of this year’s FestspieleZürich was the 150th anniversary concert of the city’s famous Tonhalle Orchestra, performed as a thank you to its faithful concertgoers. Swiss event technology company Hyposound AG chose L‑ISA’s Hyperreal Sound technology to deliver “an exceptional experience” for this special occasion which featured guest pianist Yuja Wang. L-ISA is a multidimensional, object-based mixing and sound reinforcement technology and toolchain that achieves clear and natural results with accurate localisation of sound sources. Hyposound owner Christoph Müller has worked with the Tonhalle Orchestra on a regular basis and has been dealing with natural sound reproduction for several years. “Using L‑ISA gave us the chance to take things to a different level,” he says. The concert took place on a specially built stage i
UK - Founded in 1830 in London, the Royal Geographical Society (RGS) is the leading centre for geographers and geographical learning. With over 16,500 members, the venue is home to a collection of more than two million historical items including maps, photographs, books, documents, paintings and artefacts. The Society recently decided to upgrade its 750-seat Ondaatje Theatre. Luciano Figueira, business development manager at the RGS, comments: “When we voted to invest in the theatre revamp, the sound system became our first priority. Most of the events we host are conferences, speeches and lectures, so we needed a solution that would help the speakers deliver their insights and bring the best in audio clarity, regardless of where the audience is seated in the theatre.” The RGS commissioned integrator Plus 4 Audio to tackle the brief and the two organisations
UK - AV technology specialist Peerless-AV has added Kate Butcher as key account manager (southern region) to its UK professional sales team. She will be responsible for maintaining and building on existing relationships with Peerless-AV’s reseller network, promoting new product offerings, and providing support on new tenders and sales enquires. Butcher brings over four years’ AV sales experience, having held key account manager roles at Exertis-Medium, Sahara Presentation Systems and Beta Distribution. She studied International Theatre at the University of East London (UEL) and spent eight months at the University of Colorado Boulder campus in the USA. Keith Dutch, managing director EMEA at Peerless-AV, comments: “Kate’s energy and enthusiasm, combined with her AV distribution experience and good industry connections, make her perfect for the Key Account Manage
UK - The Brewery, the Grade II listed events venue on London’s Chiswell Street, has confirmed Blitz, a GES company, as its new in-house AV partner. The technical event production specialist has been selected with a brief to enhance the venue’s AV capabilities and manage the technology infrastructure. The new partnership, which will start from 1 September, will see Blitz utilise The Brewery’s advanced technology and digital infrastructure, to “create show-stopping AV experiences; from breath-taking projection mapping installations, to top of the range widescreen blending displays and flawless audio performances”. As well as AV services, Blitz will assist clients with digital branding and digital signage opportunities helping event organisers increase exposure while maximising sponsorship revenues and increasing ROI. The partnership also brings a range of new s
USA - Grammy-nominated artist Logic is on the road with The Bobby Tarantino vs. Everybody Tour, a 33-date summer amphitheatre and arena run produced by Live Nation with support from rising hip-hop artists NF and Kyle. The tour began 8 June in Boston and wends its way cross country through major outdoor venues, such as the Ak-Chin Pavilion in Phoenix, Austin360 Amphitheater, and FivePoint Amphitheatre Irvine, as well as arena dates including New York’s Madison Square Garden and The Forum in Los Angeles. Tour sound-reinforcement provider Thunder Audio Inc. assembled a highly flexible L-Acoustics PA system comprising K1 and K2 components that can be configured to fit each and every stop on the tour. For most of the dates, the audio crew is flying up to 18 enclosures per side in the main PA hangs - six K1 over 12 K2 - with eight additional K1 per side flown
The Netherlands - Attracting fans from around the world, the annual North Sea Jazz festival in mid-July inspires a range of surrounding events. Many of the artists stay at The Hague Marriott hotel where, this year for the first time, the Martin Verdonk Master Sessions was hosted in one of the hotel’s large conference rooms, supported by Yamaha. First taking place three years ago, percussionist Martin Verdonk and sound engineer Lex Amrein organise live performances which are broadcast on the internet. Initially Martin and Lex invited musicians to take part but, as the reputation of the sessions has spread, artists have asked to participate. The Martin Verdonk Master Sessions aims to capture the pure essence of live performance. Verdonk says: “We play four songs and are in and out in four hours, raw and uncut, with no overdubs or Autotune.” Normally taking place si
Greece - The inaugural edition of the Athens & Epidaurus Summer Festival (ADD 2018) took place at a warehouse complex and united international acts such as Amelie Lens, Apparat and Red Axes, as well as 22 DJs spread across three stages. The event was hosted at a warehouse complex called Peiraios 260. RM Audio, Martin Audio’s newly appointed Greek distributor, supported the event by providing a WPC sound system on the main stage, with auxiliary systems on stages two and three. On the main stage, RM Audio supplied eight aside WPC elements, Martin Audio’s latest optimised line array, with iKON amplifier racks driving eight new SXH218 subwoofers, which provided thumping bass. The stage was also populated with two XE monitors with W8VDQ as side-fills. Stage B featured eight aside W8LM with eight WSX218 subwoofers, while two Blackline X15 with two Blackline X1
Turkey - Clair Brothers has named Elit Light / Sound Technologies as its distributor in Turkey. The Istanbul company will sell and distribute the kiTCurve and C-Series loudspeakers as well as other Clair Brothers products such as the 1AM and 1.5AM Series stage monitors, the stackable S2 PA System, and more. Elit MD Emre Defne comments: “We’re so proud to now be the Turkish partner of Clair Brothers because they give us a renewed ability to build on our mission to be the best live event brand in Turkey.” Josh Sadd, Clair Brothers chief engineer, adds: “We are happy to have Elit on board with us and look forward to making more contributions to Turkey’s vibrant culture of interesting venues and events. The Elit team brings experience and enthusiasm that will certainly make the future of Clair Brothers in Turkey bright.” Defne continues: “With Cl
China - Top Plot International has landed a trio of nightclub audio installations in China, all featuring the Nexo STM Series modular line array system. The projects use the STM Series modular line array, sets of M46 mains and B112 bass modules together with S118 subs. The STM Series main PA is supplemented by a secondary PS10 and PS15 system, and both are powered by racks of NXAMP4x4 amplifiers. In Guangzhou, in Guangdong Province, The One Club is a large dance club in a warehouse-style setting that blends the appeal of a high-energy nightclub with a modern lounge. Meeting the technical specifications and other requirements to invite top DJs, The One Club has played host to world-class names like DJ Slushii, Adam Trigger, Wolfpack, Diego Miranda, Rehab, JP Candella, Tujamo, Tommy Walker and Timmy, with more slated to come. The main dancefloor system uses thre
USA - New York’s Stony Brook University upgraded the communication system at the school’s Computer Science’s conference room and has also added a video wall to the department’s main lobby. John Schappert of Adwar Video turned to ClearOne, opting for a solution based on the company’s Beamforming Microphone Array 2. Peter Ruland, associate director of operations for Stony Brook’s Department of Computer Science, says: “Academics are not big fans of lapel microphones, as they tend to stand up and move around to talk. One of the challenges in this conference room was that we were having a hard time capturing people’s voices and leveraging the echo cancellation during the video conferencing of our lectures because of the old setup we had.” Schappert explains: “The audio pickup with the Beamforming Microphone Array 2 is super clear. For a large confe
Malaysia - Mahajak Trio recently deployed a complete Harman Professional Solutions audio system at the Grand Zenith Hotel in Malaysia. Grand Zenith decided to update its multi-purpose ballroom with an audio system suitable for a wide range of events and performances. The hotel also used the opportunity to upgrade the audio system in its meeting rooms to allow for more efficient inter-staff communication. To achieve these goals, the hotel hired Mahajak Trio, who suggested a complete Harman Professional audio system. Mahajak Trio outfitted the Grand Zenith ballroom with JBL AC2215/95 loudspeakers and Crown CTs 1200 power amplifiers, as well as new JBL EON610 active loudspeakers for additional coverage. Audio is mixed on a Soundcraft EFX12 mixing console. An AKG GN50E modular gooseneck microphone provides a hands-free solution for speakers, while a WMS470 Vocal Set D5 pr
UK - Event specialists, Light Fantastic Production Services Limited partnered with L'Atelier Five agency on the recent Hublot FIFA World Cup installation and product launch event at Harrods, Knightsbridge. L’Atelier Five turned to LFPS to handle rigging and technical installation on their installation for Hublot watches in the store’s Hans Crescent entrance atrium. At its centre, the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia themed project featured three large open frame ‘footballs’ constructed from aluminium with integrated LED lighting and video displays. Finished in red, white and blue to reflect the Russian national colours, the trio of footballs needed to appear to float effortlessly within the atrium. Limited by extreme load restrictions on the rigging points and severe weight limitations on the sloping floor below which precluded the use of traditional lifting methods
UK - London venue Troxy has completed the first stage in an audio installation which will see the new JBL VTX-A12 line-array system installed for the first time in a UK venue. The art-deco venue will work with Harman and its UK distribution partner Sound Technology to undertake a major investment in its technical infrastructure to service the production requirements of its increasing number of live music events, awards ceremonies, corporate events and private parties. The system has been specified in collaboration with integration partner SSE Audio Group. It will operate on a versatile digital network and offer incoming productions easy access and universal patching into the system for easy load-ins and quick production turn-around for touring shows. Tom Sutton-Roberts, general manager at Troxy explains: “This is a major investment for the Troxy team and we h
Europe - BlackTrax real-time motion tracking system was instrumental in bringing the thrills of the Fast & Furious movie to live events in the UK and Switzerland, with further shows planned for the Czech Republic, Denmark, France and Germany. Fast & Furious Live uses the most advanced technology and fans’ favourite cars from the series to faithfully evoke the most outrageous moments and stunts from the series. Recreating the underground streets of Los Angeles to locations that criss-cross the globe, Fast & Furious Live lets fans relive the most extreme action as precision performance drivers execute pulse-pounding stunts surrounded by blockbuster set design, authentic digital projections and state-of-the-art physical obstacles. Kate Dawkins, already with a pedigree for creating content for spectacular live shows, was responsible for
USA - One Direction member Niall Horan is in the midst of a major US tour, where live engineers Joe Harling and Daniel Kent are using DiGiCo consoles provided by UK rental company Wigwam Hire. Harling and Kent both work from DiGiCo SD10s, running at 48kHz, and sharing stage racks. “I have always favoured front of house mixing,” says FOH engineer Harling. “I don’t have the technical chops, or strength of character, to do monitors. I’d probably end up crying if I did.” “It was agreed with production that this was an acceptable price point and weight allowance for freighting control around the world; and the SD10 does absolutely everything we need,” Harling explains. “I have mainly worked with DiGiCo over the last few years, as I have mostly been mixing pop music, and DiGiCo is pretty ubiquitous in this genre.” Harling is quite hands-on
UK - An AV overhaul has transformed a 400+ seat lecture theatre at the Surrey Business School at the University of Surrey in Guildford. The audio installation, a collaboration between Shure and systems integrator Snelling Business Systems, created a single AV system suitable for lecture theatre / classroom theatre, live events and cinema theatre without the need for prior training or dedicated IT support. Shure’s technical team created a system designed for switchover from one user mode to another at the touch of a button. The team provided technical support and streaming tests across campus between lecture theatres to asses Microflex Wireless capabilities for RF stability and networked control. “The vast capabilities of the system are perfect for the range of uses we have, from lectures to live events and conference, as well as a cinema,” comments Rob Purc
Estonia - Estonia’s oldest theatre - Vanemuine in Tartu - received new audio, lighting, video, and communication equipment supplied by Amptown System Company (ASC) as part of a major conversion project. Berlin-based Ingenieur Gesellschaft Wibbeke & Penders was commissioned with planning and implementing the structural conversion work while Dr. Reiner Chemnitius was responsible for working out the fundamentals for media equipment selection and installation. Working together with ASC project manager Jan Vandrei and his team, theatre planner Dr. Chemnitius developed and customized the complex redundant audio/video fibre optic system based on Optocore and BroaMan components exclusively for the Vanemuine theatre. Two management consoles with the real-time capable media control system by adunas were eventually selected. The larger main console to the right of th
UK - Pro-audio provider The Warehouse supplied an advanced audio solution for Edinburgh International Festival’s opening event. The Aberdeen Standard Investments Opening Event: Five Telegrams celebrated the start of the 2018 International Festival and was attended by 15,000 people. This audio and visual event highlighted contemporary responses to the communication infrastructure of the First World War. The work was a joint commission for the BBC Proms, 14-18 NOW and the International Festival, in association with the Royal Albert Hall. For the event, The Warehouse worked alongside International Festival’s head of sound Tom Zwitserlood, production manager Murray Boyd, and technical director John Robb, together with Olivier Award-winning sound designer Gareth Fry, who recently won the 2018 Tony Award for Best Sound Design of a Play for Harry Potter and the
