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12 August 2024

USA - All-female Mexican vocal groups, Pandora and Flans recently undertook a 17-city theatre and arena tour of the US, mostly visiting the Southern States.

The Inesperado (‘Unexpected’) tour was supported by a large inventory of Martin Audio WPL line array, provided by New Mexico-based rental partner, High End-RG Productions. The high-energy show combined the two legendary groups in one spectacular event.

Martin Audio’s successful Wavefront Precision PA was deployed; 12 boxes per side for the group’s FOH sound engineer, Luis Quiñones. High End-RG Productions president, Enrique Ortiz, confirmed that the PA setup had been designed in collaboration with system engineer, Orlando Calzada, with the 12 SXH218 subwoofers set in an L/R cardioid configuration, six enclosures per side, providing the LF extension.

Responsible for outfi

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12 August 2024

Hungary - In the Hungarian capital city of Budapest, the Széchenyi Chain Bridge has been given a new lease of life following extensive renovations and the introduction of a decorative lighting system controlled by solutions from Pharos Architectural Controls.

The bridge, which opened in 1849, crosses the Danube River and connects the western ‘Buda’ to the eastern ‘Pest’ parts of the city. The refurbishment works dealt with large areas of rust and deterioration, treating the painting and the railings. The structural elements of the bridge have also been replaced and repaired. Furthermore, the bridge will no longer allow for cars to pass over - instead, traffic is limited to taxis, buses, cyclists and pedestrians.

The improvement works have also seen the modernisation of the bridge’s lighting, with the replacement of 1,180 outdated luminaire

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12 August 2024

USA - To capture music legend Billy Joel’s historic 100th consecutive performance of his residency at Madison Square Garden, show producers turned to ARRI’s Alexa 35 and Mini LF cameras for this primetime broadcast on CBS. The concert has since set new standards for live concert broadcasts, earned multiple Emmy nominations, and impressed exacting artist Billy Joel who praised the result: “I’m never comfortable how I look on camera, but this is the best our show has ever looked on film.”

The live performance took place on 28 March 2024 and was a crowning achievement in Joel’s unprecedented MSG residency. Producers realised the visual presentation needed to match the magnitude of the moment. “We knew this wasn’t just another show,” said Barry Ehrmann, executive producer at Enliven Entertainment. “Billy’s 100th concert at The Garden was a

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12 August 2024

USA - 21 June marked a momentous day for fans of extreme metal music. On that evening Dimitri Minakakis returned to join The Dillinger Escape Plan for the first of three shows at the Brooklyn Paramount Theatre, held to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the band’s seminal Calculating Infinity album, a work hailed by critics as “capturing a major shift in extreme music sensibilities.”

Minakakis, a potent force in the multi-award-winning band’s early formative years, hadn’t performed with the group since 2001, other than a few guest appearances at shows, the most recent of which was in December of 2017.

Given his compelling guitar riffs and fierce, unmistakable vocals, Dimitri Minakakis’ homecoming made huge waves in metal circles. Also making a return on that unseasonably hot night in Brooklyn, though it was after a far shorter h

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12 August 2024

UK - "L-Acoustics was specifically requested for this tour. It's the system I feel most comfortable with after years of working with it, mixing for other artists," shares Philip Harvey, FOH engineer for Keane. Celebrating the 20th anniversary of their album Hopes and Fears, Keane embarked on a triumphant UK arena tour that presented a unique set of acoustic challenges. The tour, spanning six arenas for seven shows, including two nights at London's O2 Arena, demanded a concert sound system to deliver both whisper-quiet moments and full-on, high-energy peaks with equal clarity and power.

"While Keane are known for their melodic ballads, their live performances demand a very dynamic sound," explains Harvey. "Our goal was to deliver a powerful rock show that ranges from the intimate moments to thunderous crescendos, all while ensuring every seat in the

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12 August 2024

Australia - In 2023, Opera Australia (OA) brought Wagner’s groundbreaking production of the Ring Cycle to life at Brisbane’s Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC). Renowned as the pinnacle of opera, Wagner’s Ring Cycle spans 15 epic hours performed over four nights, featuring a collective of 83 musicians and 102 voices performing some of the most transformative music ever written.

The visionary behind this epic was Chinese creative theatre director Chen Shi-Zheng, who challenged traditional opera boundaries by introducing the world’s first digital 'Ring' into the performance. The production was a fusion of futuristic storytelling and cutting-edge technology, featuring giant LED panels that spun, tracked, and flew to create an immersive, mesmerising virtual world for the audience.

At the heart of this technological marvel

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09 August 2024

UK - RCF UK partner JPS Sound & Light fielded 108 RCF loudspeaker enclosures at the recent Zimfest Live 2024 festival in Hertfordshire - now celebrating its 25th year.

Involved with this event for the past five years, John Southee’s company has watched the event ­- a celebration of Zimbabwean music, culture and music - mature from its old Colesdale Farm site near Potters Bar to the premium Hertfordshire County Show Ground outside St. Albans, where up to 10,000 people from across the UK congregate over the two days.

JPS was tasked with providing a complete technical infrastructure (sound, lighting and video as well as camera crew) - populating two stages, the enlarged main stage and a six-pole Big Top. “The SmartStage180 provided a massive 15m x 12m stage area, with a 10m high roof. This offered an impressive 20-tonne weight-loading and addit

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09 August 2024

Austria ­- High in the Austrian Alps, nestled amidst breathtaking scenery, lies Onkel Willy's Hutte. This Alpine restaurant and ski hut is more than just a venue for traditional Austrian food and stunning views, it’s also a party haven. The sound system was crucial to achieve their goal of the best view, culinary and music experience, which is why they chose Void Acoustics.

The venue needed a powerful sound system capable of filling the outdoor space and withstanding the harsh Alpine climate. Freezing winter temperatures presented unique installation challenges for the speakers in the outdoor dining areas, as did the limited electrical supply up in the mountains.

Alongside the outdoor speaker challenge, the venue’s indoor spaces also needed a sound system capable of creating the perfect atmosphere for diners.  

Musikuss Tonkultur, Void'

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09 August 2024

USA - Princess Cruises has upgraded the lighting rig in its 1000-seat Princess Theatre on the Crown, Emerald, and Ruby Princess ships. In a project completed in 2023, Princess Cruises fleet lighting supervisor Matt DeJong and the Princess Entertainment technical team selected Robe Lighting TE (Transferable Engine) fixtures, ushering in a new era of LED lighting technology to enhance the cruise line's entertainment offerings and sustainability credentials.

The Crown Class lighting revitalisation project included 69 Esprite Profile, 87 Spiider, 78 Painte Profile, 98 LEDBeam 150, and 48 ParFect 150 wash luminaires, which has reduced the Crown Class’ overall electrical consumption by an impressive 50%. This not only benefits the environment but also leads to reduced HVAC draw and overall fuel costs. Additionally, it significantly reduces operational and mainte

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09 August 2024

Europe - Sometimes, the best new ideas are those that make us most uncomfortable. Such was the case with brutalism, a school of graphic and architectural design that emerged in the 1950s.

Emphasising stark, bold form and function over ornamentation, brutalism represented a radical departure from traditional thinking. Although many criticized this new concept as “unromantic”, it ultimately caught on, reshaping our notions of design, and taking the human imagination to new places in the process.

This summer, some seven decades after brutalism first shook things up in the design world, highly regarded lighting and production designer Bryan Barancik has channelled its visceral power to create a gripping, deeply moving show for Lenny Kravitz on the four-time Grammy winner’s 27-city European tour, which began23 June in Hamburg at Sporthalle. 

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09 August 2024

USA - The Venice Performing Arts Center (VPAC) in Venice, Florida, has recently undergone a significant lighting upgrade with the installation of Elation Fuze PAR Z175 luminaires, facilitated by production and integration company Thunder City Pro. The venue, which previously relied on conventional Lekos and Fresnels for stage lighting, now offers an enhanced visual experience using state-of-the-art LED wash luminaires with dynamic colour mixing and motorised zoom.

“The goal was to incorporate colour mixing and moving lights to enhance the concert experience,” stated Justin Stancil, president of Thunder City, who notes that the upgrade also included Focus Spot 5Z moving heads from Elation sister company ADJ. “The new lighting system really allows for far more dynamic and exciting scenes for all of the concerts and theatrical shows they present.”

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09 August 2024

World - Initially billed as a “reunion tour”, Blink-182’s World Tour 2023/2024 marks the band’s 30th anniversary and first tour with original singer and guitarist, Tom DeLonge, since 2014. Given the significance of the tour, front-of-house sound engineer Charles Izzo and monitor engineer Ray Jeffrey knew there would be high expectations for quality audio during performances from both the band and its audiences around the globe. Pulling from their past experiences with the brand, the duo set their sights on a variety of DPA Microphones vocal and instrument mics.

To ensure the band delivers unbeatable sound on stage throughout the North American and European legs of the World Tour, together Izzo and Jeffrey selected DPA’s d:facto 4018VL vocal microphones for singer/guitarist Tom DeLonge and bass guitarist Mark Hoppus. They also deploy DPA mi

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09 August 2024

Taiwan - 1 Sound, an American-made premium loudspeaker brand, celebrated its launch in Taiwan with a demo event, organised by official distributor Seapower Technology. Held at the New Taipei City Government’s conference room, a mid-sized theatre with tiered seating for about 330 people, the venue offered a perfect space to showcase the impressive capabilities of a whole range of 1 Sound speakers. The demo presentations were given by 1 Sound’s APAC sales executive, Leonardo Dani and Seapower Technology CEO, Douglas Chang.

“The audience consisted of mostly systems integrators who had nothing but positive things to say. 1 Sound, though a relatively new brand with just two years in the global market, left a strong impression,” explained Chang.

“Taiwan, known as the global hub for high-tech industries with giants like Taiwan Semiconductor Compan

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09 August 2024

Italy - Trans Audio Video (TAV), one of the leading brands of cine-video-photo production products, and Sony Europe supported the creation of exclusive images during Vasco Rossi's live concerts held in Milan from 7-20 June and then in Bari from the 25-30 June. For the first time as many as 22 cameras were used, most of them with full-frame sensors, all part of the Sony line-up to create a film about the iconic rock star during the live events at the San Siro stadium.

The Stadio Comunale in Bibione on 2 June hosted the zero dates of Vasco's tour, where filming with the same Sony cameras was tested and optimised.

Director Pepsy Romanoff, with the Except production company and the technical supervision of the production services company EMG Italia, wanted to give a typical cinematographic connotation to the filming. The aim of conveying the intense emot

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08 August 2024

Morocco - Prolights’ Halu Pix illuminated the 24th edition of the Mawazine Festival, organised by the Maroc Cultures association. This event, spread across six different locations between Rabat and Salé, attracts over two and a half million spectators each year with performances by top-tier artists from the Arab, African, Moroccan, and international music scenes.

For the stage at the Mohammed V National Theatre in Rabat, Kilmi Musique - in collaboration with EcmaPro Systems, the Prolights distributor in Morocco - provided and installed the event's lighting setup, selecting Prolights' Halu Pix.

These LED matrix modules ensured an extraordinary visual experience with 3D volumetric graphics depicting the star of Morocco. This captivating visual effect was achieved through the pixel mapping function, allowing control of each individual LED source.

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08 August 2024

UK - Fabric London has extended its relationship with Martin Audio, dating back nearly a quarter of a century, by announcing a substantial upgrade to its flagship Room One.

Since the installation of Martin Audio W8C, Blacklines and WSX subwoofers at the start of the new millennium, the club has never looked back, having gone through several generations of Martin Audio systems - maintaining its faith in the state-of-the-art sound systems offered to its roster of world-class DJs.

But when it came to the latest refresh, technical manager Matt Smith decided to follow a different path. Nervous at the prospect of losing what he describes as “that distinctive Room 1 sound”, he asked Martin Audio if they would overhaul the existing 20-year-old W8L line array by fitting it with new drivers. The High Wycombe manufacturer was happy to oblige.

Howeve

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08 August 2024

USA - When OC Local acquired the long-established The Pizza Store in Laguna Hills, they engaged Dan Burdett of locally-based dB Media Services to provide a new audio system that would deliver premium quality at a competitive price. dB had previously tidied up a third-party install at one of the restaurant group’s other venues and OC Local were keen to achieve the same audio standards for their remodelled new venue. Burdett recommended, designed and installed an Optimal Audio system for The Pizza Store.

“Optimal Audio was a great option for this project because of its high performance/low cost ratio. Restaurants don’t always have the required budget available for media technology, so the Optimal Audio product matched the needs of the budget without any audio compromise, as well as meeting the high-performance standards expected by dB Media,” explains

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08 August 2024

UK - Avolites’ D9 lighting console, and an Avolites AI Qgen media server running Avo’s proprietary Synergy protocol, were at the heart of lighting and video control for Arcadia Spectacular’s new live experience launching their Dragonfly conceptual art installation, which debuted at Glastonbury 2024.

Originated and designed by Arcadia’s Pip Rush (creative director) and Bert Cole (technical director), the 30m-long, 8.5m-high biomechanical dragonfly is built from an ex Royal Navy Sea King helicopter and was surrounded by a 50,000-capacity evolved geometric ‘energy field’ at the festival.

The sculpture ‘awakened’ every night of Glasto at 23:30, presenting Warraloo - a breathtaking nine-minute show developed by Arcadia in collaboration with the Whadjuk Noongar nation of Western Australia and based on the dragonfly’s pup

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08 August 2024

Colombia - Christie HS Series 1DLP laser projectors deliver a spectacular immersive experience to visitors of La Selva, an educational geodesic dome designed to foster appreciation and preservation of the Colombian rainforests. Located in the Parque Empresarial El Tesoro shopping mall in Medellín, this project is a collaborative effort between the mall and Lonko Labs.

To honour these vital ecosystems and raise awareness about their conservation, Parque Empresarial El Tesoro created La Selva, a sensory experience made possible through a realistic and immersive digital environment developed by Lonko Labs.

La Selva features a 13m (43ft) diameter and 8.5m (288ft) high dome with a negative pressure system. The exterior closely resembles a traditional maloca or jungle dwelling, while inside the dome, six 13,500lm Christie HS Series projectors are blended

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07 August 2024

China - A team from Netherlands-based creative studio Live Legends recently completed a bold technical scheme for the Sir.Teen Group and their Club Been, a new venue and entertainment concept that has burst onto the highly competitive nightlife scene in Beijing, China. Headed by project director Serge Patist and lighting designers Thomas de Vries and Bas Knappers, the brief encompassed set, video, lighting and audio.

For the venue’s lighting design, over 250 Robe moving lights were selected, including 144 Spikies, 76 Viva CMYs and six T1 Profiles.

Other creatives involved in the project from Live Legends included Daan Oomen (creative director and principal designer), Stefan Peters (interior designer), Rik Schoutsen (video specialist), VFX artists Jim de Brouwer, Robbert Lubken and Boudewijn de Kraaij, plus music producers Joos van Leeuwen and Maart

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07 August 2024

Spain - The ancient temple of San Miguel in the Spanish city of Cuenca provides a stunning backdrop for Luz Cuenca, a fully-immersive sensory experience offering an artistic expression of the cultural wealth of the city.

Drawing on the city’s history, which is closely linked to art ­- and especially abstract art - Luz Cuenca is a multimedia exhibition that combines artistic lighting techniques and a dramatic orchestral music score with 2D and 3D projection mapping.

Digital immersive experience specialist Ibercover Studio was in charge of production and content design, turning to leading AV company Fluge to design and supply a high-quality sound system for the project.

Jesús Catá, AV project engineer at Fluge, explains: “Ibercover Studio asked us to design an immersive, robust and high-quality audio system as a key ele

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07 August 2024

France - The Twist Years at the Eiffel Tower Theatre in Paris follows a group of young people who traverse the moral and social revolutions of the tumultuous 1960s through some of that decade’s formative music. Recounted via music classics of the era, from French and international artists, all songs are presented live beneath an Elation rig of Fuze Profile and KL Profile FC luminaires.

Boris Jacob, from Elation’s French distributor Best Audio & Lighting, handled lighting design on the project. He comments: “This show really gives pride of place to the Elation brand with the Fuze Profile and the KL Profile FC. The luminous flux and high CRI, the identical colorimetry between the Fuze and KL series, as well as the silence, make these fixtures the perfect choice!”

A flexible framing fixture for theatre and TV, the Fuze Profile house

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07 August 2024

UK - ETC architectural lighting and power control has been selected for the refurbishment of major music and arts venue, Bristol Beacon. Specialist systems integrator and ETC dealer LSI Projects installed the lighting fixtures and power systems including ETC ArcSystem fixtures, Echo and Paradigm, F-Drive, Sensor3 and ColorSource ThruPower power controls, Response networking and more.

Hailed as ‘one of the great cultural icons of modern-day Britain’ by Arts Council England, the Bristol Beacon is recognised as a world-class music and arts venue which has been hosting performances - including for artists such as The Beatles and David Bowie - for over 150 years.

The selection of ETC products is a significant upgrade aimed at enhancing the Bristol Beacon’s visual and operational capabilities. The chosen products, which include Paradigm and Echo syst

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07 August 2024

Spain/UK – LED displays from Spanish manufacturer Alfalite have been installed in a new centre of excellence for education and research in AV content and process at London’s University of Greenwich. The centre, which has been named SHIFT (Shared Hub for Immersive Future Technologies), aims to be a pioneer in the study and development of advanced AV technologies.

The installation includes an Alfalite Modularpix Pro 1.5 ORIM VP XR LED wall, which will provide an advanced platform for the creation and display of XR content. The system was supplied and installed by Mo-Sys along with StarTracker Max systems and other XR solutions for a complete VP XR experience.

Through the new centre, the University of Greenwich will design virtual production training programmes for industry professionals, participate in research and knowledge exchange projects to id