Robe - LEADERBOARD - Feb 2025
Doughty - Banner - ABTT (27 May - 5 June)

Business

Details
France - In an exceptional collaborative move, several of the leading PA companies in France have joined forces, with one another and with leading loudspeaker manufacturer Nexo S.A., to create a new shared-inventory scheme - Nexstep.

Amongst those already signed up to the agreement are ATech, Blue Squares, C.S.E., Euroson, Even On, Novascene, Melpomen, Twin Audio Live and Z Professionel, many of whom have been long-time customers of Nexo loudspeaker products. Negotiations are still underway and the list is expected to grow.

The basic concept of the Nexstep community is to share resources when and where necessary. All members of the group have purchased inventory of the new Geo D Series loudspeakers, Nexo's third-generation tangent-array system comprising D10 high-output array modules and Geo SUB cardioid subwoofers. To complete the package, they have added Nexo's NX242 digital

Details
Dubai - Formed in August of last year, SGMedia's Live Events division has immediately made an impact on the UAE's events market, the company reports. Started by UAE-based businessman Steve Graham and production manager Nick Groves, the business stemmed from a need in the market place for a more personal touch within the live events market. "Our clients expect and require more than just a crew and equipment; they like to know that we are on the end of the phone 24/7 and are willing and able to assist them with all of their production needs," states Nick Groves, the managing partner of the events and special projects division.

"I think that the recent success lies in the personal touch. We take on the brief and follow it through from concept to completion. We then sit down with the client post-event and do a thorough 'post mortem'. It enables us to constantly improv

Doughty - Banner - ABTT (27 May - 5 June)

Details
UK - ChamSys held extensive training courses in the range of MagicQ products which they report, proved to be extremely popular. Held in Southampton, the courses attracted attendees from as far as Korea, Spain, Belgium and Luxemburg, as well as those closer to home.

The course covered the use of all MagicQ products, including the range of PC Wings and MagicQ consoles. This included programming generic, intelligent and LED fixtures and interfacing to media servers. The course was aimed at all skill levels, as it worked from no knowledge to advanced programming.

The two days saw the meeting of users ranging from novices to experienced LD's, allowing them to share their knowledge, swap experiences and network with peers while learning new skills.

(Chris Henry)

Details
USA - After LG Action Sports World Championships lit up the Dallas Reunion Arena by day, Clay Paky's new Alpha Spot HPE 1200s illuminated the space by night when the Deftones kicked off a series of evening concerts.

LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company, the fastest growing manufacturer of mobile phones worldwide, sponsored the Championships. The culmination of the 2006 LG Action Sports World Tour, the event brought together more than 200 of the world's biggest names in skateboarding, BMX riding, and aggressive inline skating who competed for action sports' biggest purse and most coveted title. Ticket holders were also treated to nightly concerts by five top-name bands who performed live on the main stage.

"The Championships occupied a full arena floor: On one side was a large half pipe, in the middle was the street course, and at the other end was a concert stage,

Details
The Netherlands - The Muziektheater in Amsterdam has replaced its analogue wired intercom infrastructure with a fully digital intercom solution from Clear-Com, including wireless beltpacks and matrix frames. The Netherlands Opera and Dutch National ballet both create and produce their own operas and ballets which involves a large amount of rehearsal time on stage where clear communications are vital. The Clear-Com FreeSpeak beltpacks provide a reliable, wireless system for Muziektheater stage, lighting, sound, and technical teams.

"Intercoms are the lifeline between the artistic staff and technicians," said Hans-Willem de Haan, head of sound and video department at Muziektheater. "We have a long-standing relationship with Clear-Com, so when we decided to move to a digital intercom system, we chose the Clear-Com 4000 matrix in combination with the FreeSpeak beltpac

Details
Russia - ChainMaster, the German manufacturer of chain hoists and chain-hoist controllers for stage and show use, has designed a VarioLift chain-hoist system for the Chekhov Theatre in Moscow capable of being used either as a mobile system or a fixed installation.

It is built around twelve of ChainMaster's new 250 kg VarioLifts, which are capable of speeds up to 35 metres per minute. For the project, ChainMaster is working in concert with the Rock Stage Agency, its local distribution partner.

The VarioLift from ChainMaster came onto the market in 1998 after an 18-month development and test phase. It offers maximum precision and reproducibility in the positioning of chain hoists, the company reports. The lift is based on an integrated, vector-controlled frequency converter, supplied by a high-impulse incremental encoder and operates with a positional accuracy of 0.2 millimetres

Details
USA - If you watched this year's Super Bowl on 4 February then you saw Tait Towers outwit the elements. Tait Towers built and installed a deployable roof and grid structure for the broadcast booth on field at Super Bowl XLI in Miami. Since the weather decided not to cooperate-it rained long and hard throughout the game-the structure kept the crew, cameras and lights dry. The structure also incorporated a rain gutter to channel the water off to the sides and away from the camera shots.

The Tait structure was a 4,000lb, 48'x32' unit that rose up 25' holding the lighting grid and a roof to keep everybody dry. It was used during the pre-game broadcast, half-time, and post-game coverage and had to deploy and retract in minutes. "From the time the game clock goes to zero at the end of the half, we then had the first commercials to deploy everything for a thirty seconds spot that

Details
Colombia - Alex Campos, arguably the most prominent gospel artist in Colombia today, and one of the best selling Hispanic gospel artists in America, recently recorded a live DVD named El Sonido Del Silencio-Acoustic/Unplugged-2007. The concert took place at the Iglesia Filadelfia Puente Largo in Bogota, Colombia in front of a 1000 strong live audience. Campos was joined by special guest stars including Marcos Witt, a Grammy winning, Latin Christian artist, Lilly Goodman; a female vocalist from the Dominican Republic and Dr.P, a Hip-Hop revelation artist, hailing from Puerto Rico.

Alvaro Llano, Campos' FOH sound engineer, also runs an Audio Consulting/Contracting Company in Bogota, whose main market is Houses of Worship. He recommends Adamson as a premiere choice, and wanted Adamson for the show.

He chose to use the Adamson SpekTrix line, a more compact line array system

Details
UK - When late last year KISS-FM and MOBO Award winning DJ Shortee Blitz announced a mixing competition on his Saturday night Power Mixradio show, with a pair of Denon's flagship DN-S3500 CD/MP3 players as the prize, the response was overwhelming.

One of the DJ's who had long been a fan of Shortee's innovative approach to hip hop and R&B, and was a regular listener to his show, was American DJ Josh Hodge (known professionally as DJ@War).

"To me Shortee is one of the few DJ's I have heard over here who carries a particular swagger and never misses a beat," he said. "He's one of the guys I'd be proud to say represents the best of what's going on in the UK."

This month DJ@War emerged as winner of the competition, having been judged to have produced the most creative 25-minute mix. He arrived at KISS-FM's London studios to be congratulated by Shortee B

Details
UK - Havering College in Hornchurch, Essex, has undergone more than a year of extensive refurbishment, with up to date technology being supplied and installed in its drama studio, music studio, dance studio, TV studio, photographic darkroom and cinema. Trafalgar Lighting have supplied, stage lighting, control equipment and curtains to the college.

The latest and most innovative part of the refurbishment process is the Havering Cube, a multipurpose performance and exhibition space. Here, Trafalgar Lighting supplied a 10m x 11m Litec Trussing structure over the space, supported on six Lodestar motors, enabling the structure to be brought down to floor level for rigging; 15 Andolite internally-wired lighting bars and socket boxes (giving a total of 96 socket outlets for lighting); 96 ways of Zero 88 Chilli dimming; 116 lanterns including ETC Source Four Zooms and fixed Profiles, CC

Details
UK - Digital lighting and video specialists Projected Image Digital (PID) delivered the first in a new concept of hands-on experiential technical workshops - the Digital Video Workshop (DVW).

Staged at The Questors Theatre in Ealing, west London, two identical sessions were run morning and afternoon, with a large turnout for both even though it was the day after the 2007 Total Production Awards.

The workshops examined what constitutes 'digital video' and 'digital lighting', highlighted its creative and technical advantages and looked at new and creative ways in which it is being applied to various market sectors. "The aim is to offer an insight into the world of digital video and lighting" explained PID's David March.

The one day event featured overviews of the genre as well as discussion about specific applications, and attendees were able to get hands-on w

Details
UK - Dialight Lumidrives, the UK-based LED technology provider, has expanded into new 30,000sq.ft premises in York. The premises provide purpose designed facilities for Dialight Lumidrives' research and development laboratory together with expanded production and storage capabilities. It also includes an LED applications centre to demonstrate the full potential of LED technology in a range of uses, the company says.

Founded in 2001, Dialight Lumidrives was one of the first companies to realise the potential of high-powered LED technology in illumination applications. It specialises in the development of components to enable applications in solid state lighting, including power drivers, LED arrays and optics. The company also offers design services for LED based illumination systems. The company's technology is used in a wide cross section of architectural applications ranging fr

Details
UK - When specifying a new public address system, Southend United turned to locally-based Essex Sound & Light to for its 12,500 all-seater Roots Hall stadium. Although the football club is nicknamed 'The Blues', the 22 Turbosound TCS Compact speakers, supplied and installed, were all in black.

Although during the next 18 months the Coca-Cola Championship team look set to vacate the ground which has been home for the past 50 years, the upgrade nevertheless became essential, according to ESL's Mike Glover.

"When Southend United were promoted to the Championship attendances increased, and the club started to present entertainment such as dancing girls - both pre-match and during the interval. But all the club had was an ancient 100v horn system - completely inadequate for the purpose or for music playback."

During the close season the club decided it was no longer eco

Details
UK - This year at the 49th Annual GRAMMYs, held 11 February, 2007, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, Audio-Technica supplied 270 of its microphones, including an array of hard-wired mics and Artist Elite 5000 Series UHF Wireless Systems. This year Audio-Technica celebrated its tenth year supplying the event.

The sound system was provided by ATK AudioTek with FOH engineers Ron Reaves and Mikael Stewart, while the broadcast audio was supervised by Phil Ramone and Hank Neuberger, leading members of the Producers & Engineers Wing of The Recording Academy. New York-based XM Productions/Effanel Music were onsite with their L7 remote truck to create the music mix, facilitated by Music Mixers John Harris and Eric Schilling, along with Orchestra Music Mixer and XM Productions/Effanel Music Lead Engineer Joel Singer.

For the home audience, CBS once again delivered the most advanced

Details
UK - Lift Turn Move (LTM) has staged its first CM Lodestar Motor School of 2007. This was attended by 16 people from the UK and Europe, representing numerous industry sectors, and including leading hire companies PRG, DBN, A-Tech and Skan PA, plus representatives from fabric and draping specialists, J&C Joel.

The course was presented by LTM's Dave Ward and John Jones, and follows on from the first one staged by LTM at the end of 2006. The intention is to hold two more UK-based Motor Schools at LTM's Wirral HQ in 2007 - on March 21-22 and October 2-3.

John Jones says: "There's a stronger demand than ever for Motor Schools, and we're responding to that. Others who have presented them in the past are no longer doing so, and there's a definite need for these courses." He adds: "All our clients want their staff and regular crews to be comprehensively clued up on the

Details
UK - Despite snow and traffic chaos across South Wales, Stage Electrics' Strand Light Palette training on the 9 of February received a very good level of interest, the company reports.

The free training was conducted by Strand's Ken Berreen and Bill Richards assisted by Alan Martello from Strand US. The two and a half hour sessions, which were open to all, covered basic theatrical control and moving light control. A total of 30 people attended the sessions. This customer training day followed an in depth session for key Stage Electrics technical staff which was held in January.

Pete Magor from the Western Playhouse who attended the training together with two colleagues, said: "I've been using Strand desks since 1962, the training on the Palette was brilliant, the only problem is now I'll have to buy the desk!"

Sara Alarabi Stage Electrics' training manager who faci

Details
UK - The Stagemaker Division of leading French manufacturer, Verlinde, has announced a new distributor in the UK - Hoist UK, based on The Wirral. Hoist UK is a new company founded by ex-Tomcat general manager Tony Dickson, and ex-Tomcat technical manager Paul Jordan. Tony and Paul have in excess of 30 years' experience in the design and installation of specialist lifting equipment for the entertainment and industrial sectors.

This latest deal to extend the Verlinde network in the UK was negotiated by Verlinde's UK sales and marketing manager, Simon Rothechild, who said: "Tony and Paul have a wealth of experience in specialist lifting, particularly in the entertainment industry where their expertise and overall offering is second to none. We are delighted to welcome Hoist UK as a Verlinde distributor in the UK and wish Hoist UK every success with its UK launch."

Hoist

Details
UK - HRH The Earl of Wessex will visit the Wakefield offices of Litestructures GB Ltd. on Thursday 1 March to officially open the Litestructures Studios rehearsal arena and film studio.

Litestructures Studios is a purpose-built, music tour rehearsal and film and television production facility in Wakefield, West Yorkshire. With over 17,500sq ft of floor space and a height of 54ft the studio is able to accommodate even the largest music tours and film productions. For the live music sector it sets a new standard of excellence for rehearsal space while for film and television production it is a significant addition to the UK's facilities and is a viable option for major film production in the North.

"We are honoured to welcome The Earl of Wessex to open The Litestructures Studio," says Litestructures managing director Adrian Brooks. "Since we built the Studio in 20

Details
USA - XTA Electronics, a leader in sound reinforcement, digital signal processing, and speaker controller systems for the past 15 years, announces that two XTA DP6i Audio Installation Controllers were chosen and installed by system designers/installers the FBP Group for the fabulous Tao Nightclub inside the renowned Venetian Hotel on the Las Vegas Strip.

The installation took advantage of the power and flexibility of the DP6i to upgrade the club's existing sound system, simultaneously enhancing the experience for club-goers at Tao and offering significant cost savings to the club's owners. The installation was completed in January.

The Tao Nightclub is part of the 42,000-square-foot Tao entertainment and dining complex in the Venetian Hotel. Designed to look like an opulent Asian temple, the $22 million club features some of the world's leading DJs, high-tech visual effects an

Details
USA - "For me, light is music," says Swedish lighting designer Emma Westerberg,who recently finished a three-week North American preview tour with an alternative-rock band from Ireland that played to sold-out big-city club crowds. Westerberg chose a compact ETC Congo jr lighting control console for the tour, taking it with her on the tour bus or, when she flew, checked it through in her luggage.

Westerberg used 12 Studio Beams (six on the flybar, six on the floor assidelights), a sharkstooth cyc, four six-cell battens, six four-light Moles,three Diversitronic strobes, three half-sphere rotating mirror balls (placedon the floor) and six ETC Source Fours.

Designing for a performer who likes to change things each night meant thatlighting would differ from show to show. New songs would be introducedwithout warning and the play list would be moved around. Westerberg had t

Details
UK - HSL's new Robe ColorSpot and ColorWash 700 ATs were delivered from the Czech Republic, unpacked from their boxes, tested and cased up to go on tour with New York indie rockers Brand New.

Lighting designer Sarah Landau was initially recommended to HSL by Mainlight Industries at the end of 2006, when seeking a video based solution to realise her design for the band's upcoming UK tour - their biggest production outing to date.

Further research revealed that HSL carried a large stock of ColorKinetics iColor Tiles, and Landau thought they would be the hire company for her.

HSL's Mike Oates says: "We're all very excited to be working with Brand New and Sarah - there's a real buzz about the band, and Sarah is extremely talented and has a great career ahead."

Landau says: "Mike and HSL have done everything possible to make the tour smooth, efficient and enjoyab

Details
USA - Reinforcing the interoperability of JBL Professional loudspeakers across product lines, Clair Brothers Systems recently installed a WJHW-designed audio system at the new Glass Cactus nightclub in Grapevine, TX. The system includes JBL Vertec line arrays, AE Series loudspeakers and Control 29AV speakers.

Built on the grounds of the Gaylord Texan Resort and Convention Centre in Lake Grapevine, the $16 million Glass Cactus covers a total of 39,000 square feet and accommodates approximately 1,500 people. The state-of-the-art sound stage features musical acts ranging from country to blues to rock. The Glass Cactus regularly showcases local talent, while top-named national acts also perform routinely.

True to its name, the eye-catching design of the Glass Cactus includes an abundance of glass surfaces. While these make for an aesthetically pleasing environment, they pose a cha

Details
UK - Timothy Bird, director of The Knifedge Creative Network, is celebrating again this week after his company's ground-breaking projections for Sunday in the Park with George helped the West End musical win five Laurence Olivier Awards, including Best Set Design and Most Outstanding Musical Production. Last year, Bird and fellow designer David Farley also won the Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Design, and the Critics Choice Theatre Award for Best Design for the same production.

Directed by Sam Buntrock, Sunday in the Park with George first opened at The Menier Chocolate Factory in November 2005, before transferring to Wyndham's Theatre in May 2006. Originally written by Stephen Sondheim, the musical tells the story of pointillist painter Georges Seurat and his muse Dot.

Knifedge's innovative projections have been a key feature of the production, allowin

Details
Norway - Often referred to as 'the Scandinavian Alps', Hemsedal in Norway is the premier Norwegian ski resort. One of the oldest hotels in the area is the esteemed Skogstad Hotel. Owned by the Thorset family since its beginning in 1905, the hotel boasts more than 100 years of atmosphere and history.

On 17 Febuary, the doors opened to the completely renovated Skogstad Club, which is among the most modern nightclubs in Hemsedal. With a strictly enforced dress code and age limit, Italian-designed furniture and excellent ambience, the Skogstad Club is a classy venue with a genuine club feeling.

The sound installation at the venue, carried out by EHS Pro Shop, utilised a total of 12 Cornered Audio C6TRMs as sound reinforcement for the bars. These were chosen because of the speakers' "Armani-like" design, as one of the hotel's project managers described it! The only compla

  1. Zurich's Kaufleuten installs Adamson
  2. Solotech and Meyer's Milo for Andre Rieu
  3. Hawthorn at the Xerox Conference
  4. Martin lights the Storcenter Nord
  5. The Police use Sennheiser at the Grammys
  6. Church chooses Aviom monitoring
Page 853 of 1802
Astera - June 2025
Sennheiser - June 2025

Latest Issue. . .