Held at the Blue Hill Bank Pavilion outdoor amphitheatre adjacent to Rowes Wharf, the 38-song set concert offered the audience everything it could hope for on a beautiful summer evening, from a warm ocean breeze to the band's famous tight three- and four-part harmonies, to some evocative summertime images displayed on a video wall made of MVP Ta8 Curve LED panels from Chauvet Professional.
Image Productions Services used 60 of the 8.33mm pixel pitch modular LED panels to create a 20ft by 12ft flat video wall that was flown just behind the drum riser upstage on a 20ft by 12ft by 12ft truss structure. Controlled by a Roland V800 video mixer and the Chauvet Professional VIP Driver, the wall was used to display video content provided by the Beach Boys. The video images on the MVP Ta8 wall provided a transformative visual accompaniment to the group's varied set list, which covered early surfing hits as well as the later rock symphonic pieces like the Pet Sounds album's Sloop John B and God Only Knows.
Prior to the evening concert, the versatile video panels were used to display power point presentations by the convention's key speakers. "Whatever we asked the Chauvet panels to do they did - and did flawlessly," said Darren Lussier, designer and president at Image Production Services. "We've used these products very often at events because they are super easy to install and program -- and they are very bright, which makes them good for outdoor use before the sun goes down."
In fact, the panels were so bright that Lussier ran them at only 60 percent. "Even then they could overpower lights," he said. "The intense (4,800 nits) output of the MVP Ta8 panels is impressive by any standards, so we have no hesitation using them outdoors at a fairly large amphitheatre like the Blue Hill Bank Pavilion."
Lussier also praised the RGB SMD panels for the quality of their colours. "We were really able to get excellent matches between colours from the video panels to the lighting rig," he said. "This gave us a nice balanced look on stage, which fit the mood of the evening. We were very happy to do such a good job for Lee Watkins, production manager at the pavilion, and of course we were happy to work with a group that's as legendary as the Beach Boys."
(Jim Evans)
