Italy - dBTechnologies digital line arrays towered above the Motocross World Championship racecourse in Fermo last month. The dramatic undulations of the Italian track used for the last Grand Prix of the season could have presented quite a challenge for an audio engineer to provide complete coverage during the two-day event. Andrea Salvioli, however, was definitely up to the challenge.

Making use of the manufacturer's newest release, DVA T12, dBTechnologies product manager and audio specialist, Salvioli explains the system's design. "We used three clusters each comprising ten T12 modules, flown from a crane at a height of 16m. Beneath these were a further two stacks of the DVA S20 subwoofers, six facing one way and six the other, to get the best possible low frequency coverage for the area. One stack of subwoofers was delayed by 4.5 milliseconds to compensate for the gap be

USA - The Bible-based, evangelical Gateway Church opened its new, main Southlake campus last fall from which it oversees the North Richland Hills (NRH) campus in the centre of the Dallas/Ft. Worth Metroplex and an extension campus in Frisco, Texas which opened last July. The church has a congregation of more than 20,000 people; the senior pastor's messages from the Southlake campus are fed live to the other campuses via fiber during Sunday worship services.

Southlake boasts a grandMA2 full-size with a grandMA2 light as a backup while NRH is outfitted with a grandMA2 light - all purchased from Barbizon Lighting.

"I used to be a touring guy whose console of choice was the original grandMA," says director of lighting/stage design Kyle Russelburg. "When I joined the church in 2008, part of overhauling the current lighting system was upgrading their current lighting

Poland - Jozef Pilsudski Park in Ostrowiec Swietokrzyski is one of the most popular recreational areas in Poland's Kamienna river basin. One of the latest attractions of the park is a new thousand-seater amphitheater. The programme scheduled for the new venue includes both theatrical productions and live concerts. This being the case, the amphitheater's sound reinforcement system necessarily had to be capable of offering the highest possible level of intelligibility as well as enough punch to bring musical performances to life.

The planning and implementation of the sound reinforcement solution was entrusted to two Polish companies: Tommex, the Polish Dynacord distributor, and Anna-Bud which was in charge of the installation. Together both companies opted for a lavish Dynacord system based around the compact Cobra-4 line array and featuring eight Cobra PWH planar waveguide bass

Germany - Almost half a century after their first gig in the city, The Beatles finally came home to Hamburg when the concept of a permanent interactive exhibition dedicated to the Fab Four became a reality, with a Renkus-Heinz loudspeaker system powering an immersive cinema experience.

Situated at the end of the Reeperbahn, in Hamburg's famous red-light and club district, and close to many of the venues where the band performed, Beatlemania is a 1,300 sq m celebration over five floors of the Liverpool band, from their early days in Hamburg's Indra club and Kaiser Keller to their break-up in 1970.

Technical partner for the ambitious project was Hamburg-based Amptown System Company (ASC), who designed and installed audio, lighting and video technology and integrated media systems. The client brief also called for a ticketing system using RFID technology to coordinate ticket desk

UK - The National Skills Academy is coming to the Birmingham Hippodrome on Friday 4 November for the Birmingham leg of this year's Offstage Choices programme, which introduces young people to the variety of career options available 'offstage', through workshops and tours backstage in industry venues.

Join them from 5.30pm in the StageSide bar for an evening of informal networking and the opportunity to discuss topics including:

- How the Skills Academy can benefit you

- How the NSA can support Birmingham's creative and cultural industry

- What opportunities are available with existing Skills Academy Members in the West Midlands

- The backstage training centre

- Future projects and potential opportunities

CCS Skills are particularly interested in talking to freelancers about the new freelance membership of the Skills Academy which will be rolled out in the next few mo

Denmark - Martin Professional recently held an installation products training seminar for lighting designers at its headquarters in Aarhus, the first of several planned over the coming year.

Martin product manager for fixed installations, Jonathan Meineke, headed the training with participation from members of Martin's R&D and design & application departments.

The training included an up-close look at a live lighting installation on the exterior of Martin's headquarter building, along with hands-on training in the Martin demo room. Discussions covered general lighting topics such as the appropriate use of LED, fluorescent and discharge light sources in different applications, and in-depth case stories like the award-winning Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi.

The training gave lighting designers the opportunity to get hands on with several Martin installation products, including the

UK - NL Productions - the events arm of Northern Light - provided a range of equipment and services to this year's MOBO Awards, which took place in Glasgow on Wednesday 5 October.

The company was called upon to provide a variety of audio visual systems including repeater screens to the left and right of the main stage, projectors, plasmas and lighting effects.

Phil O'Halloran, head of NL Productions, commented: "It goes without saying that being asked to work on an event as prestigious as the MOBO Awards was a fantastic coup for NL Productions. We've recently rebranded to make our service offering more creative; and an event like this really enabled us to shine. We hope to continue our working relationship with the MOBO Organisation for many years to come."

NL Productions utilised Panasonic 10k projectors and two repeater screens on either side of the stage and pro

UK - London based AV and technical production services company Presentation Rentals (PR) has become the first UK company to offer an all-White d&b Audiotechnik sound system in its rental stock, which is being used to service its busy ongoing work schedule.

The initial PR White Series speakers comprise d&b T10s and B4s, which make an suitable system for high profile small to medium events, and join PR's extensive d&b audio rental stock.

PR has made the move after recent work in many venues in and around London - including art gallery and exhibition spaces - which are clean, white and airy, lending themselves ideally to the aesthetics of a white audio system. The same is true of marquees and other tensile structures, which are also usually white-based, however the new system looks equally appealing and sounds excellent anywhere with a good design and atmosphere.

Explains PR's

UK - Members of Cooper Control's entertainment lighting control team spent the month of August onsite in Edinburgh, supporting one of the world's largest and most diverse performance festivals - the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

Over 150 venues selected Zero 88 control desks and dimming for their fringe appearance this year, with products being supplied from a large variety of Zero 88 dealers including Northern Light, Black Light, Hawthorn, HSL, Stage Electrics and Stage Lighting Services. On-site backup was provided by members of the Zero 88 team throughout the month long festival, including a number of training and support consoles supplied directly to give venue staff members an opportunity to try out equipment even whilst theirs was in use.

Continuing its partnership with the festival, which began in 2003, the 2011 Edinburgh Fringe proved to be one of the busiest years for Ze

UK - Audio Light Systems has recently completed work at the Theatre Royal Newcastle on the restoration project.

The ambitious development required the technical infrastructure to be replaced in the main auditorium and surrounding spaces. Audio Light Systems working to a Charcoal Blue specification completed the five-month build with the usual high standards required for this level of work.

Over 20 miles of cable, over 100 new panels were used and more than 3,500 man hours were taken during the short build period. The Audio Light Systems project engineer Dennis Martin used his extensive experience to make sure the project programme ran as smoothly as possible.

"The auditorium has been fully refurbished and it was a priority that newly installed facilities be discrete, if not invisible. This was a challenge, but the end result was outstanding. Doughty panels and IWB's wer

France - Nexo Geo S12 line array cabinets have been chosen by the Theatre Mac-Nab, the municipal arthouse of the French town of Vierzon, near Orleans. Installed by rental and installation specialist XB Diffusion, the system is a pgood example of Nexo's sound reinforcement solution for a 500-capacity auditorium.

The theatre is named after the celebrated 19th century singer Maurice Mac-Nab, a native of Vierzon. Now in its 12th season, this dynamic venue punches well above its weight, booking well-known artists and hosting an eclectic programme of classical music, variety, drama and musical theatre productions, contemporary dance and comedy. Technical director Jean Marc Bondeux recently commissioned a new sound system, capable of handling such a diverse artistic menu.

XB Diffusion has given Theatre Mac-Nab a very versatile answer, a Nexo Geo S12 line array system that lives insid

New Zealand - St. Peter's School in Cambridge, New Zealand, recently installed an Allen & Heath iLive digital mixing system in its 600-capacity auditorium. Comprising an iDR-32 MixRack with iLive-T112 Control Surface, the system is an upgrade to the incumbent analogue mixer.

One of New Zealand's leading independent secondary schools, St. Peter's is set in 100 acres of land and includes facilities such as an equestrian park and golf academy. The auditorium hosts various dance, drama and music events throughout the academic year, culminating in an intensive performing arts fortnight, which includes two variety concerts, a rock concert, dance showcase and house music competitions.

"We have had a variety of A&H desks over the years and we loved our GL2800 but the complexities of the concerts we stage and the scale of our annual major production means an upgrade to digital was

Australia - St Catherine's school in the Sydney suburb of Waverley is both the oldest Anglican girls' school and the oldest independent girls' school in Australia. It boasts many famous old girls including Dame Joan Sutherland and the school's performing arts centre - the Dame Joan Sutherland Centre - is named in her honour.

However, the centre was opened 15 years ago and although their sound system, supplied by Jands Contracting, way back when, and incorporating JBL speakers, had performed magnificently over this time it was starting to show its age and needed to be updated to meet current technologies.

Rod McKinnon, from Jands Sales followed up an inquiry, and involved Lee Conlon, managing director of Revolver Audio, to implement, supply and install a renewed solution in terms of their audio system.

"The school was happy with the performance that their old JBL system

UK - XL Video supplied LED screens, Video projection, IMAG camera system, HD playback and control systems and crew for the spectacular celebration event marking 25 Years of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Phantom of the Opera musical, produced by Cameron Macintosh and staged in London's Royal Albert Hall.

The high-impact digital scenery and projections elements were designed by Jon Driscoll. He was asked onboard by the anniversary show's designer Matt Kinley and by Cameron Macintosh's production manager Nic Harris. Driscoll also designed the projections for Phantom sequel Love Never Dies which ran at the Adelphi Theatre.

Driscoll in turn asked XL to provide the hardware, with XL's Paul Wood project managing their elements of the three RAH shows, the final one of which was broadcast live to movie houses in the US, Japan, Australia, Europe and across the UK. Driscoll has wor

Europe - Making significant progress in its technical work, the OCA Alliance pre-released a first set of technical documents to its observer members, making it possible to follow up on the process to become an open public standard for professional media network systems.

The Open Control Architecture Alliance has been formed to ensure the standardisation for a wide interoperability of professional audio equipment. Since its formation in June 2011 the nine full members have been working towards a final technical definition of OCA and it eventually becoming worldwide standard.

The following documents are now available to observer members: OCF Open Control Architecture Framework and OCC Open Control Architecture Control Classes.

The observer members are encouraged to give their feedback to the OCA Alliance at this early stage of development and will be able to join

Finland - The Espoo Cultural Centre (Espoon kulttuurikeskus) is the premier venue for performing arts and cultural life in Espoo, Finland's second largest city. Earlier this year, Meyer Sound dealer Studiotec installed a new M'elodie line array system in the cultural centre's 800-seat Tapiola Hall (Tapiolasali).

System versatility is key at the Tapiola Hall, which hosts musicians from around the world for dance, opera, and conferences, as well as crossover performances with classical orchestras and electric bands. Local children with their Finnish kantele are also amongst the stars at the venue.

"The sound reinforcement system has to be very sensitive and very powerful, while the clarity must remain the same for every performance," says Tuomo Matikka, sound designer at the Espoo Cultural Centre. "Because the installation is in a concert hall, the system must als

Spain - Robert Juliat has confirmed that Entertainment Equipment Supplies (EES) of Spain has joined the Robert Juliat distributor family.

From 1 September 2011, EES has assumed responsibility for sales activity across Spain and Portugal, promoting and supporting the full range of Robert Juliat lighting equipment including tungsten, HMI and LED profiles and wash lights and the world-famous range of followspots.

EES has two bases in Spain from which to service its customers, at Astigarraga and Madrid, whilst the Portuguese market benefits from its own Figura Determinante, Siamanto Ismaily, whose experience and direct presence enables EES to provide a better service and assistance in the region.

Mrs Leire Olascoaga, managing director for EES, says, "The whole EES team is delighted to have started our relationship with Robert Juliat. EES's main aim is to meet all our custom

The Netherlands - The Dutch Maritime Museum - Het Scheepvaartmuseum - has reopened following major renovation. The museum consists of several themed exhibitions, object exhibitions and interactive exhibits. Rapenburg Plaza made an important contribution to the interior layout of the Museum.

Rapenburg Plaza is responsible for the complete media and lighting control, the major part of the audio-visual installations and also the entire technical content, including the lighting & sound design for the Voyage at Sea - an impressive maritime experience. A Richmond Sound Design SoundMan-Server Virtual Sound System with 96 track playback and 48 input and output channels handles all the sound content and effects as well as all audio from the video sources in this attraction.

The Voyage at Sea is a 20-minute show divided over five rooms in which the public is taken on a jou

South Africa - Showgroup recently underwent a complete transformation from a fresh new logo, new website, trucks with bright green sign-writing, office renovations and a Spa where clients and staff alike can make appointments for anything from free manicures to massages, ensuring everyone's welfare is looked after, says the company.On the technical side, Showgroup purchased 16 Robin 300E Spot fixtures, liking the optics, design and zoom of the fixtures, along with 14 new LTM Loadguard 500kg hoists. The Robins have already been hard at work on various gigs including ABSA Choirs, the Business Women's Association of South Africa Awards and a rather spectacular reveal of the AHRLAC!At the Teatro at Montecasino, Showgroup used 16 Robin 300, eight VLX Washes, and VL 2 500 Spots for the seventh annual ABSA Choir Halala Festival. A grandMA was hired in for the show.The concept behind the

Germany - L-Acoustics certified provider Soundhouse has installed a Kiva WST modular line source system into the Max Littmann Saal concert hall in Bad Kissingen.

The historic concert hall, built in 1913 and panelled in cherry wood inlaid with ebony, can accommodate 1,160 people and specializes in classical music and spoken word performances through to blues and rock music. When the time came to upgrade its sound system, the major requirements were low weight, wide and controlled coverage and low visual impact.

Soundhouse installed a left/right system of eight Kivas and two Kilo low frequency extension units per side, driven by LA8 amplified controllers. "This system provides an appropriate sound coverage while remaining almost invisible in this historic environment," says Christoph zur Loye from Soundhouse. "It can be configured for floor and/or balcony coverage

Indonesia - "In keeping with tradition of making the best sounding speaker boxes in the world, Adamson have outdone themselves. The E15 combined with the T21 is a force to be reckoned with. This changes everything," declares Ken 'Pooch' Van Druten about his experience mixing Linkin Park on the new Adamson E15 rig in Jakarta Indonesia.

A set of shows over two evenings was the Asian maiden voyage for the new Adamson E15 system. Big Daddy productions based in Jakarta, Indonesia together with Team 108, Adamson's distributor for Southeast Asia (Singapore, Malaysia & Indonesia), came together to provide a large scale E15 system for the two back-to-back events.

Big Daddy productions, a division of Big Daddy Entertainment Group recently acquired an E15 system as a beta testing company. This enables Big Daddy to place the new system in front of numerous tours and FOH engineer

UK - Llanelli-based Lighting Technology Projects (LTP) was asked by Lancashire-based Lite Ltd who are a Philips partner for the Midlands and the North providing solid state lighting solutions, to bring to life their lighting design for a new illuminated cube array feature at the city's Eagle Market.

This bustling town centre market is incorporated within the new Westfield Derby shopping centre development which opened in 2007.

The nine internally lit cubes are suspended from the steel grid ceiling structure and illuminated with over 3500 nodes of Philips CK i-Color Flex SLX. This was spec'd by Lite and LTP as a flexible dynamic, robust and energy efficient solution, which would allow programming of some interesting abstract coloured dynamic effects - including twists, scrolls and swirling rainbows as well as being able to provide a straightforward colour changing lighting appe

Canada / France - L-Acoustics and Sennheiser Canada Inc. have announced their joint decision to end their collaboration. Sennheiser Canada will cease to be the exclusive distributor of the L-Acoustics brand in Canada, effective 1 January 2012.

Starting January 2012, all sales support will be provided direct from L-Acoustics. A communiqué to this effect will be issued to all Canadian customers and users within the next few days. As for the future representation of the brand, L-Acoustics will establish a Certified Provider Network for Canada. This scheme has already been implemented successfully in other European markets and in the US.

L-Acoustics business development director Jochen Frohn comments, "Sennheiser Canada has always proven to be a professional and dedicated partner for L-Acoustics during our many years of collaboration and we wish them well for the futur

Poland - Mitsubishi Electric has commissioned a major stadium screen installation for the newly-opened Wroclaw Stadium in south west Poland. The 42,771 capacity stadium will be the main venue for the UEFA Euro 2012 soccer tournament as well as an impressive range of other major cultural, entertainment and sporting events planned for the coming year. The two 98sq.m screens overlook opposite ends of the stadium and have already been used successfully at several high profile music and sporting events.

Working closely with local long-term partner and AV integrator, Shadok Audio-Visual, Mitsubishi supplied the two 12.8m by 7.68m screens, consisting of its recently introduced Diamond Vision ODX8 LED screen modules. Each 15:9 aspect ratio screen offers a native resolution of 1600 by 960 pixels at 6000 cd/sq.m, delivering extremely high-quality images in all lighting conditions.

The s

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