Swinford specified a tremendous variety of fixtures including VL 3000s, VL 500s, Martin MAC 2000s, MAC 600s, and a host of other equipment. The show was controlled by two Grand MA and two Grand MA Lite consoles. Board operators were Mark Butts and Ken Hutson and Monica Rose was the gaffer. The production manager for the CMA was Chuck Young, a veteran of many years in this position.
The CMA Music Festival is an event with over 160,000 people in attendance as well as a television audience of millions. The visual presentation created by Mike Swinford and team was the concerted effort of a talented group brought together for this event by the staff at the CMA.
Bandit Lites was also involved in the Bonnaroo outdoor music festival in the world,. Each year over 70,000 people gather on a farm in Manchester, Tennessee in a style reminiscent of Woodstock. This years' musical offering included Tom Petty, Radiohead, Beck, Phil Lesh and Friends, Oysterhead, Cyprus Hill, Buddy Guy, Elvis Costello, Sonic Youth, among the over 100 acts taking part in the event.
The show was overseen by Hadden Hippsley, himself a seasoned road veteran of many years, assisting were Mark Reinke, Leslie Radigan and Anne Denhardt. The basic lighting design was created by Hadden with Andi Watson from Radiohead and Jim Lenahan from Tom Petty both adding elements to suit their individual acts.
Bandit provided a very custom system to suit the event which included the well-known Bonnaroo logo of three circles constructed out of circular truss hanging over centre stage. The moving lights included Martin MAC 500s, 600s and MAC 2000s. Lycain Starlites served as truss spots while Strong 3K Xenon's were the FOH spot of choice for the event. A number of Syncrolites were also on site as several acts carried them in with their own backline. A large number of Par cans were included as a wash. The console was a Whole Hog 2.
The crew chief was Bandit's Eric 'EROC' Shafferman with board ops Chip Perry and Travis Shirley. The Bandit crew worked with Hadden and his staff to supply the event.
(Chris Henry)
