iNPUT... issue 1 / Autumn 2016

iNPUT The Official News Journal of Entec Sound & Light

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Autumn 2016

PURPLE REIGN AT THE APOLLO ENTEC SUPPORTS AUTISM ROCKS' PRINCE TRIBUTE

LIGHTING DEFTONES MEET THE FIFTH BOOTLEg A SONIC EVOLUTION FOR TCT AN EVENING WITH SUGGS & FRIENDS

en tecL I VE.com

AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT...

What a classic year this has turned out to be for Entec. As well as being immersed in a fascinating range of projects, we have been going through some very interesting changes that are making 2016 quite the milestone.

As you’ll see opposite, our team was recently joined by not one but two new members who have been bringing some fresh vitality to our sound department.

At the start of 2016, we hired Mark Cunningham as our Press Officer. Some of you will know Mark as the original editor-in-chief and co-founder of TPi magazine, and he has been working on numerous articles and other content, whilst teaming up with our webmaster, Colin Jones, to design the new Entec website.

In parallel with that, we’ve also taken the step to create a new, snappier domain name: entecLIVE.com, a very appropriate description, I hope you’ll agree.

You are reading another product of this feverish activity: iNPUT, a digital newsletter or mini-magazine (call it what you will) that will be published around twice a year and pull together the best of our most recent projects along with staff news and a dip into our considerable archives – we go back to the 15th National Jazz, Blues & Rock Festival and the summer of

“We have been going through some very interesting changes that are making 2016 quite the milestone.”

CONTENTS

issue 1

Noreen O’Riordan Managing Director / Head of Lighting

| AUTUMN 2016

3 • NEW BLOOD AT ENTEC 4 • PURPLE REIGN AT THE APOLLO 10 • LIGHTING UP DEFTONES 13 • THAT WAS THE YEAR THAT WAS: READING ‘75 14 • THE TEAM 16 • A SONIC EVOLUTION FOR TCT

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‘75 in this edition, and we look forward to turning your heads with many more old memories in future issues.

If you’re impatient, have a dig around the new website!

Please feel free to get in touch with any feature ideas or contributions. We will consider all suggestions.

In the meantime, I hope you will enjoy flicking through our first iNPUT offering and let us know what you think.

21 • SHORT CUTS 22 • MEET THE FIFTH BOOTLEG 24 • ALL THE WORLD’S A STAGE FOR JOSH GROBAN 31 • TEAM TALK: ADAM STEVENSON 32 • AN EVENING WITH SUGGS & FRIENDS FOR PANCREATIC CANCER UK

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NEW BLOOD AT ENTEC Introducing... Jonny Clark & PETER ELTRINGHAM Back in the spring, we were very pleased to announce the appointment of Jonny Clark to the position of Head of Sound and Peter Eltringham as Senior Service Technician within the sound department.

Clark (above left) has enjoyed a colourful career as a sound engineer for such diverse acts as The Magic Numbers, Athlete, Guillemots and Dry The River, and has most recently been developing his skills as a tour manager for Duke Special and production managing joint shows by Franz Ferdinand & Sparks (FFS).

Originally a drummer, Clark entered the world of live sound in 2002 and later landed a position alongside John Willis at Belfast’s Production House. Ten years on, he is relishing the challenge of heading up Entec’s successful audio department.

“Having done many of the things a young engineer aspires to, such as touring Japan and America with some great acts, I reached the point in my professional life where I wanted to come off the road, put down some roots with my family and apply my knowledge and experience in a regular job situation,” says Clark.

“Entec has always set a shining example, so I’ve been proud to be given this opportunity, and meeting and working with a new range of clients on a longterm basis has been very exciting.”

Soon after his arrival, Clark was joined in the sound department by Peter Eltringham (right), who spent much of his previous seven years in the industry in theatre as a freelance sound operator for touring and West End productions including the Olivier Award-winning ‘Chariots Of Fire’, directed by Edward Hall.

“Audio technology has long been an all-consuming passion of mine, going back to well before I became a professional,” comments Eltringham,” and so working with Entec’s world class sound inventory – and particularly the digital networking side – is something I very much looked forward to. So far, so good!”

Noreen O’Riordan commented: “With their individual backgrounds in rock’n’roll and theatre, Jonny and Peter came to Entec with a wealth of complementary experience, and we are very fortunate to have them on our team. Their appointments are a further sign of our commitment to maintaining our reputation and I’m very pleased to report that their first six months with us have been extremely positive.”

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Photography by James Cumpsty & Adam Stevenson

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PURPLE REIGN AT THE APOLLO Mark Ronson, Cee-Lo Green, Morris Day & The Time and bass playing revolutionary Larry Graham came together at the end of June to play two nights at the Eventim Apollo Hammersmith for the Autism Rocks charity as a unique tribute to Prince, who tragically died in April at the age of 57.

Interspersed by video footage of the purple-hued virtuoso at work, the highly charged performances enraptured the die-hard crowds as one classic after another – from ’Take Me With U’ and ‘Diamonds & Pearls’ to ‘The Beautiful Ones’ and ‘I Feel 4 U’ —was reeled off with authentic charm.

A joint presentation by Dubai-based 117 Live and AEG Live, the shows featured extensive production services from Entec who supplied versatile lighting and sound packages as well as video, sub-hired from Rhodri Shaw at Transition Video.

The founder of Autism Rocks, philanthropist Sanjay Shah’s inspiration for setting up the charity was very close to home. After his youngest son was diagnosed with autism, Shah set about staging high quality shows to generate funds for autism research, the first being a special, invitation-only performance in London by the late, great Prince in 2014.

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Entec supplies full production package for Autism Rocks’ charity tribute to Prince

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A pair of sold out shows in tribute to Prince raised a significant sum for the Autism Research Trust.

Above: Mark Ronson rocked the house with his DJ sets.

Offering further support, the artist played follow-up concerts at Koko in Camden Town and Pacha Dubai, with the promise of more to come.

“We were all set for another Prince fund-raiser this year and then came the tragic news that he had passed away,” commented Malcolm Giles, the operations manager at 117 Live, the Dubai-based company that manages live events for Al Ahli Holding Group and its brands. “The charity then decided to do this special tribute to Prince and spread more awareness of its goals. It was about presenting artists who were close to the roots of Prince, as determined by the charity.”

117 Live has enjoyed a fruitful, long-standing relationship with AEG Live, notably with production manager Allen Spriggs, with whom Entec worked on the multi-faceted Quadrophenia event earlier this year. According to Giles, it made perfect sense to join forces for these concerts.

“We know Allen very well and it’s a good partnership,” he said. “We gave Allen a brief and a production budget, and he made his choices based on his past experience. I’ve known Entec for years and have always heard positive comments about their work, so when Allen suggested them as our main supplier, I was more than happy to go with his decision.”

EMMERSON BEAMS IN Working with Entec crew Peter ‘Pepper’ Schofield and Steve Ma jor, Andy Emmerson was in the lighting hot seat as designer and operator. Discussing how he tackled the design, Emmerson said: “I designed everything around the LED video wall sourced by Entec. With three bands and a DJ on the bill, rather than give each performance its own look, I went with a festival approach to the lighting, especially as I knew that I would have little or no programming time.

“The only artist input came from Jamie Thompson, Cee-Lo Green’s LD, so I noted what he wanted and arranged the fixtures on the truss accordingly. In fact, Jamie’s wishes were quite key to certain choices.

Knowing that he’s an Avolites user encouraged me to specify a pair of Avo Sapphire Touch desks as standard, rather than go through all the fuss of swapping around. He also informed my choice of eight Clay Paky Sharpys to provide some back light beams behind the acts from the floor.”

Twenty-six Sharpy Wash 330 fixtures also featured, along with 19 Martin MAC Viper Profiles and 14 MAC Aura XB compact LED wash lights. “The Auras are very versatile,” claimed the LD, “and I chose them for key lighting from the front truss, side lighting and added back light from the side towers.

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Gnarls Barkley star Cee-Lo Green included his own classic ‘Crazy’ in his set.

“We had a bunch of SGM X-5 white LED strobes working in four-channel mode, giving key accents at a number of points. That choice was made more with the DJ sets in mind although Cee-Lo also made a feature of them.”

The party vibe was enhanced with much use of blinders: while 4-lite Molefays on the front truss beamed into the crowd, a line of 8-lites added contrast by silhouetting the musicians. “Another of Jamie’s requests was for a decent amount of PAR

64s,” informed Emmerson. “We had 60 of those to give him a range of looks throughout Cee-Lo’s set and I took advantage of them myself for chases, creating some nice waves and rolls.!”

Emmerson particularly enjoyed the DJ side of each night. “Mark Ronson did a killer set. I like the amount of creative free rein you get when lighting DJs – you can have a greater amount of smoke and play with the audience a lot more. We had video for him on the first night but he abandoned it on the next show in

AEG Live production manager Allen Spriggs (inset) and Malcolm Giles, 117 Live operations manager.

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A rare London appearance from Morris Day & The Time, stars of Prince’s ‘Purple Rain’ movie.

favour of more lighting action, so I went to town with the big looks.”

A & B OF SOUND At front of house, Matt Grounds presided over the Entec-supplied DiGiCo SD10 and Avid Venue Profile that were used as ‘A’ and ‘B’ consoles, depending on the requirements of each act. These desks were routed to a Midas Pro1 control surface from which all outputs were sent to the Apollo’s own Lake processors and,

ultimately, to the house L-Acoustics system. The Pro1 also handled compère mics and incidental audio.

The shows’ demand for 28 channels of RF was divided into 10 in-ear monitoring channels and a further 18 for wireless instruments and microphones. In charge of all things RF was Peter Eltringham, who joined Entec earlier this year as Senior Sound Technician.

“At first, it was a bit of a struggle to fit in all of the frequencies,” he said, “but the Shure Axient wireless management system – a fantastic piece of kit – gave

Andy Emmerson poised at the twin Avolites Sapphire Touch consoles.

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FOH engineer Matt Grounds on the mix riser with the DiGiCo SD10 and Avid Venue Profile.

Below: Larry Graham (left) and Mark Ronson.

us a very good result in the end by scanning the RF ranges and allocating the best frequencies based on strength and reliability in order to avoid any interference.”

On stage with Eltringham were patch technician Tom Olorenshaw and monitor engineer Emma Wood, who looked after another ‘flip flop’ arrangement of a Yamaha CL5 paired with an Avid Profile.

Wood explained: “The monitoring aspect of the shows turned out to be much, much simpler than we expected. Larry Graham’s set was mixed on the CL5, along with Mark Ronson, guest DJs and compères, while the Profile was used for Morris Day and Cee-Lo. We were able to save mixes on the Profile and just re-

use them with different EQ settings. All the processing was done internally on both desks.

“We had two physical patching systems in monitor world and while one act was performing on the ‘A’ system, Tom did the patch for the next act on the ‘B system’. It was a very simple transition that required Veam connectors to be moved from one panel to another.”

Wood continued: “Although we supplied Shure PSM1000 in-ears there was very little use made of them, apart from four channels shared between Larry and Cee-Lo’s band, whose engineer had everything dialled in from his files. They mainly used their IEMs to sync to a partial backing track and otherwise, like

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L-R: RF technician Peter Eltringham, Matt Grounds and monitor mixer Emma Wood convene at stage left.

everyone else, relied on Entec’s d&b M4 floor wedges with C7 tops and subs, all powered by d&b D12 digital amps.”

Shure UR2 hand-held wireless microphones were widely used. While DPA d:facto vocal capsules were employed for Larry Graham and Morris Day, CeeLo Green’s touring engineer preferred the standard SM58 head. Elsewhere, it was a standard Entec microphone package featuring models from Sennheiser, Shure and AKG as well as Radial J48 DIs. Artist changeovers went like clockwork – the only ma jor aesthetic difference being for Mark Ronson’s set, for which the stage crew rolled the side fills into the centre of the stage, either side of Ronson and his personal mixer, with FOH and monitors taking a basic left/right feed from his mixer.

Overall, the weekend went very smoothly for Entec’s sound team, with Emma Wood making mention of just one issue. “Morris Day arrived with a show file but no monitor engineer,” she said. “It was a little frustrating because some time was lost in trying to translate the file. Fortunately, we are all grown-ups who have dealt with much worse, so we just coped with the situation and it all worked out fine.”

Awards – one of the most significant Chinese cultural events in the UK, attracting an impressive array of high profile guests.

“All of the lighting equipment remained in place and we just moved some of the elements around to suit the brief,” said Emmerson. “It was an interesting three days for the lighting crew, that’s for sure, and I was impressed with how the gear stood up. The Apollo is a very familiar venue to Entec so it’s no surprise that everything worked perfectly throughout the whole weekend and the crew were especially helpful.”

More Autism Rocks events are planned at the Apollo later this year including a Nile Rodgers show on December 23rd.

All proceeds from Autism Rocks’ UK events will go to the Autism Research Trust (ART), which raises funds to support the Autism Research Centre at Cambridge University.

ART supports life-changing projects such as the development of an app, aimed at helping nonverbal children with autism to learn to speak.

www.autism.rocks | www.aeglive.co.uk | www.117live.com

AFTERMATH With the Prince tribute wrapped, a number of the Entec crew stayed behind at the Apollo to work on the following evening’s 2016 China Britain Film Festival

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Photography by Mark Cunningham & Greg Allen

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Lighting Up

Deftones

US alternative rockers return to Europe after Paris tragedy Direct from a highly successful tour at home in America, alt-metal stars Deftones arrived at Wembley’s SSE Arena at the beginning of June to play a large scale one-off show prior to a series of European festivals including Germany’s Rock Am Ring and Rock Im Park, Greenfield in Switzerland, Download in the UK and France, and Iceland’s Secret Solstice, with lighting support from Entec throughout the run.

Currently riding high in the charts worldwide, Gore, the Sacramento band’s eighth album, was released just months after the Paris terrorist attacks that came on the eve of Deftones’ scheduled performances at the ill-fated Le Bataclan venue.

Andy Tinsley, Deftones’ production/tour manager and FOH sound engineer, explained: “Three of our party were actually at Le Bataclan on that tragic evening last November but left before the shooting happened.

We were due to play there on the next three consec-

utive nights so if the terrorists had moved their plans back by 24 hours, it would have been us on stage.

“We had booked our lighting with Entec for a European tour that also included Wembley and some German club dates, but as a result of what happened the tour was cancelled. We’re now circling back to do honour some of those dates within our festival and it’s great that we are able to complete the job with Entec this time. Noreen O’Riordan [Entec’s lighting manager and managing director] was originally excellent to work with but she’s absolutely killing it for us now, while crew chief Will Wright has really nailed the technical side.”

Tinsley, who has previously toured with the likes of Alkaline Trio, Rise Against, New Found Glory and Mastodon, came into the Deftones’ camp two years ago “to fill in” and was soon asked to stay on full-time. He commented: “The current show is very similar to what

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LD Jon Eddy.

Below: A fully-loaded Total Fabs LAD tower.

we toured around the States just before we came over and our lighting designer/operator Jon Eddy runs the hell out of the rig.

“You’re always limited by how many lights you’ve specified but Jon seems to make all of them work in a way so that they’re creating different looks all night. He never runs out of steam.”

BIGGER... BETTER Entec’s full production lighting for the Wembley show included Ayrton Magicblade-R LED battens, Clay Paky Sharpy moving beams, Martin MAC Aura XB compact LED wash lights and MAC Viper Performance and Profile models, a large array of Atomic 3000 Strobes with colours and copious amounts of generics.

“This is getting bigger and bigger with every tour,” said Jon Eddy. “It’s very gratifying that I have had complete control of the design since I started with the band two and a half years ago, and they’ve been very happy with what I’ve done.

“It’s a fun rig – the Sharpys and the Magicblades would have to be the key fixtures for me on this tour. Of course, the Sharpy has really become an industry standard. I have 24 of them in total, upstage, downstage and on the floor, and I’ve been treating them more like spots lately. The Mag-

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Above L-R: All-rounder Andy Tinsley; Entec crew chief Will Wright; Wembley advertising.

icblade is a cool, relatively new product that I haven’t used until now. I can do windmill effects with them spinning in either the vertical or horizontal plane at a speed that matches the Sharpy.

“The band and the management wanted to have a wall of old school lighting, like PAR cans and blinders, like they’re performing in front of the sun! I then specified some newer technology to integrate into that mix, particularly the fixtures that I enjoyed using and threw some colour scrollers and strobes in there for the punch.”

“Entec’s ability to respond with all the gear I asked for really earned my respect.”

ANDY TINSLEY Eddy, who toured with Marilyn Manson in between the most recent Deftones tours, refrains from focusing light directly in the faces of the band members, preferring to concentrate on rear and side lighting.

While the MAC Aura XBs were particularly useful in providing a side wash across the stage and lighting up the backdrop, high output Viper Profiles contributed a low-key wash with gobo projections for the set’s ‘darker’ songs.

Another key element of Eddy’s design is Entec’s supply of eight Total Fabrications moving light LAD trusses that are used as upright floor lighting towers – six at the back and one at each side. Along with Eddy’s choice of console, an Avolites Pearl Expert Pro, these formed the basis of the festival lighting package that toured with the band during June.

“I have these trusses loaded with the same fixtures that are flown – there’s a bit of everything as well as a vertical bar of six PAR cans,” commented Eddy. “On the floor I have 200 Watt Fresnels as footlights or key lights for the band members because they like that classic, warm style of uplighting.”

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Before loading in at Wembley, Deftones’ LD spent some time at Avolites’ HQ to learn some aspects of the manufacturer’s latest software for the Pearl Expert Pro. Eddy explained his loyalty to the brand: “Avo was my first language as a lighting operator.

I learned on an old Pearl when I started messing around with lights and grew with that desk. Little by little, whenever I had the chance, I also plugged away on grandMAs so that I had that ability under my belt if gigs ever required that of me, but my Avo remains my preference. I know that I can roll into any festival with this desk and have total confidence that I will get the job done.”

Eddy’s favourite songs to light are ‘You’ve Seen The Butcher’ [from the album Diamond Eyes] and ‘Rosemary’ [from Koi No Yokan]. He says that some of the new songs from Gore, such as ‘Prayers/Triangles’ and ‘Rubicon’, have also been enjoyable to work on.

Mirroring Tinsley’s positive comments, Eddy reserved much praise for Entec’s service. He said: “It’s my first time with Entec and they have totally knocked it out of the park. They had our rig completely prepped for Drew Johnston, my touring lighting technician, and he’s very happy. For a company that doesn’t exclusively trade in lighting, Entec’s ability to respond with all the gear I asked for – especially the Magicblades – really earned my respect.

That doesn’t always happen with some of the lighting companies I’ve used in the States so it’s been great to find it here in the UK.” Entec’s crew on Deftones’ Wembley show also included Wil Gregory and Aamir Riaz, with R Jameson Event Transport handling trucking. Deftones returned to the United States at the end of July and their forthcoming plans include a series of shows this November in Australia where Gore recently made it to No.1 in the album charts.

Photography by Mark Cunningham

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When ENTEC Rocked Reading

The stage featured Entec’s old-style branding. Above: Anderson, Squire & Howe from Yes.

When Harold Pendleton, the founder of the Marquee Club and original director of Entec, launched the National Jazz Festival in 1961, little did he realise that this was the birth of a legend that would evolve into an institution.

Within a few years, the festival was at the heart of the ’60s revolution, but its search for a permanent home was a long haul. After years spent in Richmond, Windsor, Sunbury and Plumpton, Pendleton settled on Reading in 1971, as the festival’s acts began to gain a harder edge.

From the late ’60s until 1988, when Pendleton’s organisation sold the festival, the sound and lighting at almost every event was serviced by Entec, providing the company with some of the biggest highlights of its 48-year history.

By 1975, the festival – held over the August Bank Holiday weekend – was attracting a 70,000-strong crowd and its retuned image was so firmly established that it was only one year away from being known as Reading Rock.

In our next edition: The Police launch Rock At The Bowl in Milton Keynes, 1980

For now, however, it was labelled as the 15th National Jazz, Blues & Rock Festival and the 1975 edition was nothing short of a classic. A weekend ticket, costing a mere £5.95, gave fans such legendary acts as Yes, Supertramp, Hawkwind, Robin Trower, Dr. Feelgood, Thin Lizzy, Wishbone Ash, UFO, Joan Armatrading and Soft Machine. Although advertised, Lou Reed and Richard & Linda Thompson were ‘no-shows’.

In a recent Facebook post, an audience member recalled that Reading ’75 was “a fantastic mix of sun, rain, endless Party Sevens and great sound!”

Photography by David Major & Mick Davis

Dip into Entec’s colourful past a t w w w. e n t e c L I V E . c o m / 1 9 6 0 s

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ENTEC: The Team 2016 L-R: Ed Shackleton, Adam Stevenson, Peter Eltringham, James Kerridge, Tom Olorenshaw, Jonny Clark, cLIVE the dRIVE, Noreen O’Riordan, Phil Waters, James Hughes, Nick Pendleton, Barbara Pendleton, Will Wright, Simon White & Rob Maynard.

Photo by James Cumpsty.

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Find out more at entecLIVE.com/team

Insets L-R: Peter ‘Pepper’ Schofield, Druvi Attygalle & Laurie Coombs. iNPUT • ENTEC SOUND & LIGHT • AUTUMN 2016

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A SONIC EVOLUTION FOR TCT After 16 years, audio partners Entec and d&b continue to raise the bar for the Teenage Cancer Trust...

Now a staple of the Royal Albert Hall’s springtime calendar, the Teenage Cancer Trust’s annual festival of music and comedy shows has seen over 200 artists perform to nearly 500,000 fans, raising more than £22 million since its launch in 2000. Throughout the event’s 16-year history, Entec Sound & Light has been proud to remain its exclusive audio provider and, through its partnership with manufacturer d&b audiotechnik, has set new standards of excellence at the revered London venue this year with the latest versions of its Dante network package and d&b’s ArrayProcessing software It all began when Roger Daltrey encouraged The Who to play a show for the charity, and in doing so became the driving force for the events that followed, curating each year’s bill alongside show producer Des Murphy. This April’s week-long offering was typical of the range of talent to which audiences have become accustomed. Kicking off with a comedy night headlined by John Bishop, the week progressed with The Vaccines and Everything Everything, Simply Red, Bring Me The Horizon and New Order, ending with a classic performance by David Gilmour.

Entec became involved from the outset, in no small part due to the company’s former head of sound, Dick Hayes, who managed TCT’s audio up until his retirement last year. He said: “I had worked for The Who since 1969 under Bob Pridden and, coincidentally, my first gig with them was at the Albert Hall. When I joined Entec in 1995, Bob was one of the first people I contacted because The Who were forever having monitoring problems. I presented our APW monitors as a solution, Daltrey and Townshend loved them, and when the first TCT show was announced, Entec was given the job.”

The production team for TCT has remained stable throughout the show’s existence with Steve Allen in residence as production manager since the first event. However, no one takes their role for granted, according to Matt Grounds who, after running monitors last year, became both Entec’s project manager and crew chief for 2016. “The consistency of the crew over the years has been key to maintaining a good working relationship with TCT production,” said Grounds. “We are very fortunate to have highly skilled people whose personalities are a very good fit.”

TAMING THE AUDITORIUM Entec’s long experience of handling one of the world’s most notoriously challenging acoustic spaces carries considerable value. A d&b audiotechnik rental partner since 1995, the company originally deployed the C4 system, configuring it as a large centre cluster for the second year, before moving to the Q-Series. For TCT’s 2006 events, Entec débuted the J-Series – d&b’s entry into the large scale line array market – and it is a testimony to its design that it remains at the core of the TCT audio spec.

Powered by d&b D80 amplifiers, Entec’s PA for 2016 consisted of 14 J8s per side as the main hang with eight V-Series cabinets in each side hang, a balcony fill of four Y8s per side, a pair of Y7Ps with a Y10P per side, and a central hang of six J-SUBs, a front fill of two Y-SUBs, two Y7s and a pair of Y10s, two E8s for centre fill and four B22s underneath the stage.

Liam Halpin, who has designed the TCT system for Entec for the last seven years, commented: “As systems and technology have improved, and we’ve become increasingly digital with greater access to DSP power, we’ve become more clued up about the things

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Above: Bring Me The Horizon’s Oli Sykes relishing the moment; The Vaccines. Middle: Focusrite RedNets at the heart of the audio network; MyMix units were an important part of the comms system. Below: Dick Hayes passed Entec’s project management baton to Jonny Clark this year; Paul Ramsay & Liam Halpin at FOH. that affect sound in the venue and how best to deal with them for a better experience. We’re now having to do less EQ adjustment on a system that is mainly designed in advance and executed on the day with minimal tuning.”

Not surprisingly, a very healthy exchange of ideas and information exists between Entec and d&b. The ongoing support provided by the German manufacturer is “outstanding” and its beta versions of new products are regularly field-tested by the rental company – one of the most recent examples being the latest software update for its ArrayProcessing tool, demonstrated at TCT last year, ahead of its official launch at ProLight+Sound.

One of d&b’s most significant developments, ArrayProcessing (AP) allows each loudspeaker cabinet to be individually processed with FIR and IIR filtering to by-pass some of the limitations associated with line array cabinets, particularly the directionality and level distribution of the low-mid fre-

quency range. “This prompted d&b to take a further step with the system processing that allows the lowmid to be distributed more evenly and you can really hear the difference,” claimed Jonny Clark, the successor to Dick Hayes in his Head of Sound role.

ArrayCalc, the simulation tool within d&b’s processing suite, is a crucial link in the chain – the function used to design an array based on a map of the venue, providing system performance prediction, time alignment, rigging and safety parameters.

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NETWORKED SOLUTION Last year’s introduction of Entec’s custom-packaged, highly scalable Dante networking system was another step forward for the TCT shows, prompted by the distribution of amplifiers in the gallery, underneath the stage and in the ‘rat run’ behind the stage, and the associated desire to reduce analogue cabling and gain more flexibility. For 2016, the system took in 28 managed network switches with eight

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Above: The d&b system above the Albert Hall stage; a real-time scene in ArrayCalc.

Below: In monitor world; d&b wedges present and correct.

Focusrite RedNet units located around the venue and Lake LM44s running Dante input and output.

As a result of also being fed into the network, crew communications on TCT have reached a new level of sophistication. Matt Grounds explained: “We are using MyMix personal monitor mixers for the crew shout system which is integrated into our Telex BTR 800 radio comms and Mikey Grove, our stage manager, has a radio pack that can switch between each department with more flexibility than he’s ever known.”

INTERPLAY Advance dialogue with all artists informed the deployment of a DiGiCo SD7 as Entec’s house FOH console – manned by engineer Paul Ramsay – and an SD10 for monitor mixer Simon Higgs.

Grounds commented: “For The Vaccines’ engineers Martin Hildred and Neil Heal we brought in a pair of Avid Venue Profiles – this was one of the few special requests we received. We install what we believe is the best possible system configuration for the venue, but we are also here to serve the incoming artists so there are always a number of individually tailored items.”

Also at FOH, a Midas PRO1 was hooked up to the Dante network via a KT DN9650 network bridge to manage compère mic feeds, VT audio playback and matrixing for incoming consoles. Additionally, to service Matt Hey’s multitrack recording of every show in conjunction with FX Rentals, Entec supplied a system based around a 96-channel Avid D-Show Venue console running MADI to ProTools.

“The system processing allows the low-mid to be distributed more evenly and you can really hear the difference.”

JONNY CLARK Nearly every year sees Entec working with other rental firms whose clients are in the line-up. In April, the company teamed up with SSE for Bring Me The Horizon and Britannia Row for Simply Red and David Gilmour. Said Jonny Clark: “Between SSE and ourselves, we came up with the idea of Bring Me The Horizon [BMTH] running their own line system via our

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Above: Branding the famous Albert Hall ‘mushrooms’; Mr. Gilmour rests on an Entec flight case. Below: James Kerridge, Liam Halpin & Matt Grounds.

network and then into our SD7 at FOH. Meanwhile, the support band, PVRIS, used our line system and Profiles at each end so that we had two completely independent set-ups. That was immensely helpful because BMTH decided to augment their set with a full choir and orchestra, obviously impacting greatly on the input count.”

“That’s one of the really impressive things about TCT,” added Grounds. “The artists love being part of it and often go the extra mile to treat it as a special one-off show, and so adding a choir and an orchestra onstage is the kind of thing we’ve come to expect. There’s a level of excitement that you don’t normally see elsewhere.

“With David Gilmour, it was a case of accommodating his production within our existing set-up, so we removed the stage extension to create space for his trademark circular screen and recalculated to bring the rear PA hangs forward. Brit Row brought in their line system and SD7 at FOH for engineer Colin Norfield, although it was still Entec’s PA. “Maintaining good relationships with these other companies is important because at some point you are going to be working together on events like TCT and smooth interaction is what everyone wants.”

Entec’s crew also included technicians James Kerridge and Tom Olorenshaw. Of all the many special moments from the 2016 shows, one of the ma jor highlights came when, three days after Prince’s death, David Gilmour segued into ‘Purple Rain’ during his iconic ‘Comfortably Numb’ guitar solo – a fitting tribute at the climax of an emotionally charged week. www.teenagecancertrust.org Photography by Mark Cunningham, James Cumpsty & Jordan Curtis Hughes

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S H O R T

C U T S

A swift round-up of some other recent Entec projects...

Throughout the second half of May, Entec supplied lighting and crew for the UK leg of Brian Wilson’s Pet Sounds tour, celebrating the 50th anniversary of the release of The Beach Boys’ classic 1966 album. Featuring standards such as ‘God Only Knows’ and ‘Wouldn’t It Be Nice’, the tour included three ‘hot ticket’ nights at London Palladium and was notable for appearances by Beach Boys Al Jardine and Blondie Chaplin. Entec worked closely with lighting designer Christoper Stuba, production manager Clint Boire and Bob Bark from DHP Promotions.

Inspired by the twists and turns of folklore, ‘Unexpected Tales’ by the Jazz Dance Company, is the latest collaboration between lighting designer Richard Lambert, his company Lambco and Entec. Produced

by London Studio Centre and directed by Robbie O’Reilly for the Jazz Dance Company, the show toured UK theatres early this summer, featuring exciting and athletic genres of dance and music theatre.

Staged for one night only by AEG Live UK at the Eventim Apollo Hammersmith, Quadrophenia – The

Top: Brian Wilson with Al Jardine; Buddy Guy. Above: Cyndi Lauper; Worship & Communion Service at the O2 Arena.

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Above: Quadrophenia – The Immersive Cinematic Experience; Fetty Wap. Below: Gregory Porter; Joe Jackson.

Immersive Cinematic Experience was a multi-media presentation of The Who’s ‘mod opera’ follow-up to ’Tommy’, and combined a screening of the original film with synchronous acting and dancing from a live cast, a Q+A session with director Franc Roddam and stars from the film, including Phil Daniels, Toyah Willcox, John Altman and Mark Wingett.

The Apollo has generally been quite a hive of activity for Entec. New Jersey-born hip-hop star Fetty Wap stopped off in Hammersmith to support his eponymous US Billboard No.1 album with a well-received show in late May. Neale Tidd at Live Nation booked Entec to supply lighting and Andy Emmerson stepped into to design.

The evening climaxed with an exciting live performance by internationally renowned tribute band, Who’s Who.

Entec’s lighting department sprang to action for Cyndi Lauper’s June 30th Apollo date (on her Detour tour) and the team were back in the house just three days later to support Chicago blues guitar legend Buddy Guy and his LD Simon Chandler-Honnor.

Entec as the main production supplier for the event, providing digitally networked sound (Matt Butcher at FOH and Maurizio Schiavi on monitors), lighting (a Simon Tutchener design) and a Rosco projection screen on which the film was shown. Production manager was Allen Spriggs and trucking was by R Jameson Event Transport, Entec’s regular transport source.

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No stranger to working at religious gatherings, the company provided extensive resources for the Christian Worship & Communion Service with Pastor Chris Oyakhilome at a packed O2 Arena in London on June 5th. The event was designed by Simon Tutchener.

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Above: The Jazz Dance Company’s ‘Unexpected Tales’; Florence And The Machine.

Shortly after, Entec supplied sound and lighting for an associated event for the Christ Assembly at its Barking, Essex headquarters, with Jonny Clark production managing. Tony Austin operated the lighting and the crew included Richard Hutton, Aamir Riaz, Klins Ganger, Olivia Wilson and Conor Morris.

Entec’s sound department has also been on the road with Skunk Anansie in between fulfilling a number of sub-hires – everything from a pair of microphones to a full d&b J-Series system – to other rental houses for deployment throughout the UK and Europe on projects ranging from a world-famous festival to a ma jor religious event.

who has embraced pop, soul, jazz and classical music in equal measures since signing to A&M back in 1978 – has also toured recently with Chaz Martin designing his lighting, using a package from Entec.

The company has been proud to provide console hire to PGP and LD Rob Sinclair for the band’s latest world tour by Florence And The Machine. Entec also supplied crew and additional equipment for Florence’s Hyde Park show on July 2nd.

The Australian Pink Floyd Show has been back on the road with Entec – check out the next edition of iNPUT for a full, up to date report.

More lighting support from Entec was booked by Kennedy Street’s Jim Colson for ‘Liquid Spirit’ star Gregory Porter’s recent UK tour (another project for LD Simon Tutchener) while Joe Jackson – an artist

Photography by Robert Menzer, Tim Jobling/AEG Live, Peter Schofield Joseph Okpako, Roger Wood & Mark Cunningham

ENTEC SOUND & LIGHT is proud to be a supporting member of the Production Services Association

Join the PSA today and enjoy the benefits of an organisation that represents the professional interests of all its members

www.psa.org.uk iNPUT • ENTEC SOUND & LIGHT • AUTUMN 2016

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Raj Patel: Man in the background.

Bottom: Entec lighting crew chief Peter ‘Pepper’ Schofield

Meet The Fifth Bootleg * Respect to Sir George Martin CBE January 3 1926 – March 8 2016

*

Ra j Patel has been The Bootleg Beatles’ company manager since 1993. His arrival coincided with the tribute icons’ transfer from the social club and university circuit to theatre tours... and beyond.

“It was Oasis who gave us the big break,” he says. “They’d become big fans just before their 1994 debut album Definitely Maybe and that resulted in the Bootlegs supporting Oasis at Earls Court and Knebworth. Soon, we were playing Glastonbury, T In The Park, Buckingham Palace and festivals around Europe.

“When I came onboard, it was still very low-key.

The band carried everything in a 7.5 tonne truck – backline, a little PA, six PAR cans – and got away with it because the ‘tribute act’ was a new thing. But after the Oasis shows, we got a promoter in and did our first show at the Royal Albert Hall.

“Inevitably, we had to start thinking about production. I whizzed through The White Book, looking for a company that could provide a proper PA and lighting, and noticed Entec’s advert.

“Noreen O’Riordan was my first contact. She understood that we were

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“Noreen understood that we were quite new to all of this and helped us to put the whole package together.”

The Bootleg Beatles in Nottingham, December 2015.

quite new to all of this and helped us to put the whole package together, and looked after other aspects for us like trucking.”

LOYAL “More than 20 years later, we continue to be loyal to Entec. Quite frankly, it just works. Obviously our production has evolved with improvements to lighting and inclusion of video, and we have been graced with some terrific designers over the years, generally at Entec’s suggestion, and our latest is Simon Tutchener.

“Despite dealing with the finite core subject of The Beatles’ seven-year recording career, it’s very

important that we experiment with our resorces and do something different every year. And I’m delighted that Simon, together with [lighting crew chief] ’Pepper’ Schofield, Noreen and founding member André Barreau, who is now our visuals director, have worked wonders on this current tour.

“We’re now playing something like 90-100 shows a year, and I’m very pleased to say that Entec’s support is as great – if not better – than ever.” www.bootlegbeatles.com Photography by Mark Cunningham

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All The World’s A Stage For Groban

Autumn 2015 saw Josh Groban bring his Stages tour to the UK and Europe for four high profile shows in Manchester, Birmingham, London and Paris on the back of his chart-topping album of the same name.

Supported by a 22-piece orchestra and a fourpiece backing band, Groban performed a collection of Broadway and West End musical numbers that he described as “gorgeously arranged songs that have stood the test of time.”

For lighting supplier Entec, it was an excellent opportunity to work under the production management of Paul Binder for Tennessee-based production company Premier Global Production (PGP).

The close, collaborative relationship that has developed between the two companies has seen Entec deliver lighting for PGP’s artists in the UK and Europe on many occasions, as project manager Noreen O’Riordan noted.

“We combine forces and knowledge with PGP in an efficient teamwork situation that works extremely

well from all the initial communication right through the gigs themselves. There’s a lot of mutual trust,” she said. “We very much enjoy working with James Volhoffer and the team at PGP, and production manager Narci Martinez who is integral to the equation.”

Martinez production directed the U.S. leg of Stages and completed all the advance work on this initial European section, before handing over to Paul Binder to take on the road in Europe.

Stages is the fourth tour with Josh Groban for respected lighting designer Mac Mosier who spent down time with Noreen O’Riordan reminiscing enthusiastically about their first encounters, over 25 years ago.

“The essence of the industry is that while technology has moved on massively,” she commented, “it is still a very people and relationship-orientated business.” Despite this familiarity, it was the first time that Mac had worked with Entec, which he described as “a great experience.”

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Above: Josh Groban – a stellar performer.

Below right: LD Mac Mosier; James Hughes, Entec’s lighting warehouse manager, preps the chandeliers.

While Mosier created a completely new design for the Stages tour based on a theatrical rig to match the oeuvre style of the show, the Michael Zinman-designed set – originated for a PBS TV special – featured bookcases, picture frames, small trees and chandeliers to conjure a domestic ambience. It brought an intimacy through which Groban could deliver his personal selection of songs to the audience that worked well visually in a live context.

This whole vibe was a starting point for how Mac envisioned his stylish and elegant lighting which, although often understated, was notable for some powerful moments. For the first U.S. leg of the tour, projection ran throughout on an upstage sharkstooth gauze. However, this wasn’t possible for these particular European dates, so the lighting had to be adapted to compensate.

FINESSE Spread over four overhead trusses, the principal moving lights were 13 Philips Vari-Lite VL3000 Spots, chosen for their finesse and great quality of light, with 10 positioned on the overhead trusses and three on the floor, augmented with nine VL3500 Wash FX. These were joined by 25 Clay Paky Sharpys arranged in groups of three or four for some ‘traditional ACL’ moments and 30 GLP X4 Zoom LED washes, distributed for smooth and even stage coverage.

Eight Martin Stage Bar 2 LED pixel bar/wash units on the side torms (legs) were used for colouring, while nine PixelPARs and 16 PixelLine 1044 battens added to the general lighting of the orchestra, stage set pieces and backcloth. iNPUT • ENTEC SOUND & LIGHT • AUTUMN 2016

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“It was a really smooth transition for what were effectively four one-offs.”

MAC MOSIER For classic theatrical key and back lighting, 18 ETC Source Four PARs threw warm washes across the orchestra and eight Source Four Profiles were strategically positioned for special moments.

Four 1K fresnels on the floor provided secondary stage and set washing with 12 4-lite moles highlighting the audience interaction moments of which there were many as Groban has a great connection with his fans. Entec also provided two Lycian follow spots for the short tour.

Stark rear lighting on the piano and an outlined Groban may have given the impression that this was going to be minimalist show, but all bets were off when the mid-stage drape suddenly flew out to reveal the orchestra launching into the first number. It 38

was a great crowd-pleasing theatrical vehicle to start the set.

Mosier arrived from his South Carolina base a few days ahead of the first gig with his grandMA2 show file and, after swapping a few fixtures, he was ready for action, with Phil White leading Entec’s crew: Jonathan Dawson-Butterworth and Klins Ganger. “It was a really smooth transition for what were effectively four one-offs,” commented Mosier.

The most challenging aspect of the lighting supply proved to be sourcing the chandeliers. It was important to avoid anything too standard or too kitsch, and Noreen O’Riordan eventually found the perfect solution through a wedding specialist! After a few modifications back at the Entec warehouse they were ready for the road.

The tour is continuing in 2016 in the U.S. and Australia, returning to the UK and Europe in May. Photography by Louise Stickland

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TEAM

TALK

ADAM STEVENSON Assistant Head of Lighting

What brought you to Entec in the beginning?

“I joined Entec in February 1985. After leaving school, I was looking for a job – I didn’t want to go to college. I’d done stage lighting at school, and saw an advert in the job centre for a junior position in Entec’s lighting warehouse which was then based at Shepperton Studios. I applied and, fortunately, they gave me the job.”

The first project you worked on was...

“My first-ever gig out on-site was a large TV shoot for Dionne Warwick in 1988 at the Royal Albert Hall, lit

by TV great Mike Sutcliffe. It was the start of 10 very action-packed years after which, in 1998-99, I came off the road. I was ready to leave the industry and join the Fire Brigade, but Entec didn’t want me to leave.

They offered me the position of Assistant Lighting Manager to ensure I stayed.

Assistant Head of Lighting... what does that title mean on a day-to-day basis?

“My main role is to help Noreen with the running of the lighting department. I specify equipment for jobs when no specification is supplied. I deal with equipment dry hire and I look after and add all the lighting jobs to our inventory system. I also book crew and transport, and generally do a bit of everything to help the smooth running of the department, not to mention making my fair share of tea and coffee for the office.”

Tell us about the famous Entec family vibe...

“It’s why I’m still here after 31 years. It really does feel like a family. More often than not, the atmosphere is fun and happy. It’s like working with friends and family.”

If your career at Entec to date could be epitomised by one single event, project or moment, what would you choose?

“Working on The Mission’s tours was always very special. They were the first band I toured with, starting in 1986, and they took me everywhere, looking after me like I was one of the family – just like it has always been with Entec.

“Put it this way, in 1989 I broke my back in a car accident and spent three months in hospital. At the same time, The Mission did some charity concerts for the victims of the Hillsborough disaster and, later, the Lockerbie bombing. After the shows, I received a card in the post at the hospital with a cheque in it and the simple words, ‘Charity begins at home... love, The Mission’.

“I did most of their tours up until about 1996, going worldwide with them. I’m still in regular contact to this day, on both a personal and professional level.”

What’s your favourite, most recent addition to the lighting warehouse?

“At the moment, the Martin MAC Aura XBs compact LED wash light is certainly earning its keep. It’s so small, yet so powerful. The light output is incredible.”

Finally, can you reveal any future projects?

“It’s funny you should mention that. We’re doing The Mission’s 30th anniversary concerts and they are naturally high on my ‘can’t wait for this’ list. We’re also preparing for a top secret show that I can’t discuss, other than it’s very exciting, especially for personal reasons.”

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adam@entecLIVE.com

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AN EVENING WITH SUGGS AND FRIENDS

Viva McPherson & Jenny Johnson

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Over the last four years, an intimate event headlined by Madness frontman Suggs and staged by The Gig Company with the aid of Entec Sound & Light has earned close to half a million pounds for Pancreatic Cancer UK, the charity founded to support people affected by the condition, invest in research and campaign for greater recognition of a disease that continues to have the same mortality rate (3%) as it did in 1976.

The annual show, An Evening With Suggs & Friends, was

launched London’s Porchester Hall in 2013 by Jenny Johnson and Viva McPherson, the daughter of Suggs – an exceptionally motivated pair of event organisers brought together by the former’s aunt Alanah, who tragically died of the disease.

“That’s what really prompted us to join forces and put on our first PCUK fund-raiser with my dad and some of his artist friends,” explains McPherson. “I didn’t have a clue about pancreatic cancer until my aunt was diagnosed and it’s apiNPUT • ENTEC SOUND & LIGHT • AUTUMN 2016

Clockwise from top left: Table 17 is ready for action; auctioneer Russ Williams rallies the audience; selections from the auction bounty; Squeeze’s Chris Difford; Margo Buchanan duets with Tommy Blaize.

palling that it receives just 1% of the funding allocated to Cancer Research.”

While McPherson’s involvement in events came through her work in entertainment marketing, her partner’s job as a stylist for VIPs including top musicians led her down a similar path.

Johnson comments: “Our first event coincided with the publicity surrounding Wilko Johnson’s diagnosis.

At the time, Wilko didn’t think he had long to survive and he really wanted to help the cause and perform.

As it transpired, he made a miraculous recovery, but that is very rare with this condition.

“Having got on so well, Viva and I then founded The Gig Company and our partnership has been part of Alanah’s legacy. We love working together and both have connections with some wonderful people who are very generous with their involvement.”

Now hosted by Arsenal Football Club in the plush Emirates Stadium’s Woolwich Suite, the fourth annual edition on March 17th attracted 380 guests for a three-course dinner that raised a total of £97,140 through ticket sales and the proceeds of a lively auction run by the charismatic Russ Williams.

Preceded by a talk about PCUK by the charity’s Involvement Manager, Debbie Wells, the auction witnessed feverish bids for a holiday at Suggs’ Italian villa that fetched a massive £8,500, a Peter Blake print (£4,000), a life-size sculpture by Schoony (£4,500) and a fully signed Rolling Stones tour poster (£3,600) amongst many desirable items that also included a Gibson Les Paul guitar signed by Ray Davies. “There is no middleman with our auctions,” insists McPherson.

“Whatever we raise goes directly to the charity.”

For the remainder of the evening, the audience rocked to a feast of stellar live performances by Suggs, Jools Holland, Rudimental vocalist Anne-Marie and Chris Difford of Squeeze, backed by a world-class house band featuring singers Margo Buchanan and Tommy Blaize of ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ fame, guitarists Robbie McIntosh and Paul Gendler, bassist Steve

“It’s appalling that [the disease] receives just 1% of the funding allocated to Cancer Research.”

VIVA McPHERSON

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Entec’s crew, L-R: James Kerridge, Tom Olorenshaw, Liam Halpin, Will Wright, Peter Eltringham, Mark Wood & Maurizio Schiavi.

Pearce, Frank Mead and Matt Winch on horns, drummer Neal Wilkinson and keyboard player Dave Arch.

Arch was deputising for the band’s MD Paul ‘Wix’ Wickens who has performed at all previous events and advanced the band this year but was absent on the night due to his current U.S. touring schedule with Sir Paul McCartney. His wife Margo Buchanan, however, remained in the line-up and explained that the driving force behind their original involvement was the death in 2007 of their dear friend, monitor engineer John Roden, the partner of Entec managing director Noreen O’Riordan and father of their children.

“We lost John in a matter of weeks to pancreatic cancer and it was such a shock, not just to us but to the whole industry,” said Buchanan. “Since then we’ve lost Jon Lord and only last week we lost another friend to it, who was diagnosed in January. It’s brutal and it needs urgent research, so I will support Suggs and PCUK in their fundraising efforts as long as they need me.”

PRODUCTION COMMITMENT This family connection is one of the reasons why, for the last three PCUK events, Entec Sound & Light devoted itself to managing the entire production, providing sound, lighting and rigging, while hiring additional services such as staging and risers from Centre Stage, a local crew of 14 from Affinity and trucking from R. Jameson Transport.

“Unlike a lot of event organisers, Viva and I don’t have a production background,” says Johnson. “Our specialities include harnessing the connections, gathering auction prizes and co-ordinating the aesthetics.

That’s why it’s so brilliant to work with Entec – whatever we do, production-wise, it’s in their hands. We just tell them what we want and they send in all the crew and equipment that are available. Entec joined us for our second year at Porchester Hall and they couldn’t have done more for us. Once we became friends with Noreen we really turned a corner. Their commitment has been astounding.”

Measuring approximately 60 metres wide by 12 metres deep, the main room in the Emirates Stadium’s Woolwich Suite is ideal for a dinner, however, it can be a tricky venue to negotiate once live music is added to the menu, especially on a stage positioned in the centre of the space. In the absence of any flying points – and with a line of columns extending down the room – it is difficult to hang any lighting fixtures or loudspeakers.

Entec’s solution for the last two years at the venue has been to build a six metre box ground support truss from Tomcat elements between two of those columns with around 50cm to spare each side, and then dress the rear of the stage with a 10’ x 24’ Pea Light star cloth, lighting it with a trio of Thomas Pixeline 1044s.

According to lighting designer Mark Wood, this is precisely the kind of event that benefits from Entec’s seasoned troubleshooting. “There’s no getting away from it, this is a difficult one to light,” he comments.

“Much emphasis is placed on maintaining good sight lines for the audience so the idea was to keep everything as discreet as possible. There are very few reflective surfaces in the room so a lot of effort was focused on getting colour in there. One way was to

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Above left from top: LD Mark Wood and Liam Halpin in the foreground, mixing at FOH. Above right: Suggs bows to the king of boogie-woogie piano, Jools Holland. uplight the blinds on the back wall to achieve some bounce off of the roof. Due to access limitations, most of the atmospheric lighting had to be positioned at the far ends of the suite and on balconies to avoid running cable across busy walkways.”

Working alongside Will Wright, Richard Brennan and crew chief Nick Burlace, Wood reserved 22 iPix Satellite LED battens to light the columns down the room, while a chain drape either side of the stage was uplit with Thomas Pixel Par 44s, generating a very cool effect. ETC Source Fours with gobo breakups were hidden behind each column and provided washes across the floor, and five Robe 600 LEDs lined the balcony.

For the stage itself, two lines of seven Clay Paky Sharpy Wash 330s were rigged on the back truss of the ground support with another seven on the front truss, joined by six 1kW Vision Fresnels.

“The great thing about the Sharpy on this event was that to have an impact, it doesn’t require haze which banned at the venue,” says Wood. “Its output is fantastic in that respect and bright enough for any room, and you can achieve some very deep, saturated colours, and lose hardly any intensity. The zoom is also top class, allowing you to use it as a key light and for a wide wash, which is why I also used it to wash the ceiling on a full zoom.”

Wood specified an Avolites Tiger Touch 2 console for lighting control. “It isn’t something I had used very often but Entec purchased one fairly recently and I really liked using it,” he explains. “It’s a small desk that I find it easy to carry around, and it was definitely the right choice for this event. Anything bigger would

have been overkill, given the tiny FOH space in front of the stage.

“As usual, I did a lot of the prep work in Entec’s warehouse. The Touch 2’s very simple navigation makes light work of programming; I was programming ‘blind’ during the day before the rig was up, saving palettes, and then tidied everything up on the desk, assigning lights to faders during soundcheck.”

NETWORKED SOUND Like many of his colleagues, FOH engineer Liam Halpin has worked on all of the last three PCUK shows, and describes the event as “great fun to do, especially as the standard of the musicianship is always unbeatable.”

On show day, the truck tipped at 7.00am. “Last year, we had a rig day,” says Halpin, “but having become familiar with the venue layout, it was decided to cut costs this time by employing two extra people and have everything set up very calmly by mid-afternoon. It really helped that I’d already done three of these events and kind of knew what to expect while at the same time allowing for any surprises.”

In physical terms, the layout of the event defies convention, meaning that it required the main PA hangs to be positioned where side hangs would normally appear. Regardless, Halpin agreed that it was yet another fine showcase for Entec’s d&b audiotechnik inventory, powered here by the brand’s proprietary D6 and D12 amplifiers.

Supplemented by two d&b V-Subs at each side were four V8 top cabinets (per side), flown from the ground support in an upstage left/right configuration,

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Mark Wood.

Maurizio Schiavi.

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The house band, L-R: Matt Winch, Margo Buchanan, Dave Arch, Suggs, Robbie McIntosh, Steve Pearce, Jools Holland, Neal Wilkinson, Paul Gendler, Frank Mead, Chris Difford & Tommy Blaize.

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Above from left: Rudimental singer Anne-Marie; survivor Wilko Johnson was among the celeb attendees; the FOH Avid Profile sitting pretty. facing down both sides of the room. At the front of the stage was a pair of Y10Ps covering the dance floor area and two Y7Ps mounted off the staff tube to cover near fill.

“It was certainly a wacky system design but it worked,” observes Halpin. “Height restrictions dictated that we install two groups of three d&b dual-purpose T10s on cluster brackets stands as delays. It was probably the smallest and easiest deployed line array you’ve ever seen!”

Halpin mixed the entire show this year on an Avid Venue Profile. He says: “Being that kind of house band-plus-guests arrangement, we always play it safe and run a fairly generic input list because it’s not a band that can ever send out a technical spec. Invariably, we find out that we have a drummer rather than what he’s actually going to be playing. The input count ran to about 40 channels but that included a lot of room for manoeuvre, to accommodate a much larger kit than we had, for example.”

Despite being a relatively small event in terms of audience size, Entec assigned the full technical might of its Dante networking system – an audio standard for the company since it bought into the concept two years ago.

“I spent a good nine months developing what amounts to a fairly complex network but we’ve packaged it in such a way that it’s simple to operate day-to-day and is as robust as possible,” comments Halpin.

Two of the networking racks were deployed at this year’s PCUK event: a LM44 drive rack consisting of a

pair of Lake LM44 system processors for system EQ and matrixing, and a Cisco 26-port Ethernet switch system; and a RedNet drive rack with two Focusrite RedNet I/O units – one analogue and one AES – as well as a Cisco switcher.

Halpin: “The Profile fed into the RedNet rack at FOH and the Lake rack on stage provided the outputs for the system. Having the Dante units allowed us to cut out a lot of conversion and simplify the patch. I went into prep the gig a few days earlier and using those Dante racks enabled me to foresee a few potential issues.

“You’re effectively running silence while you reload show files on the Profile so we had a little playback rack fed into the Dante system via the RedNets, down to the stage and matrixed in the LM44s. This meant that if I needed to do anything of that nature for a visiting engineer I had instant playback readily available for them.”

“It’s great fun to do, especially as the standard of the musicianship is always unbeatable.”

LIAM HALPIN In addition to the main system, Entec fielded four d&b E12 speakers on tripod stands in the bar areas, predominately for the reception announcements.

“We also ran background music to those speakers from a laptop that was on the network,” adds Halpin.

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WIX’S MOTIVATION Sir Paul McCartney’s keyboard player since 1989, Paul ‘Wix’ Wickens talks about his loyalty to the annual event…

“Like Margo, my first personal encounter with pancreatic cancer was through John Roden, who became Paul’s monitor engineer just as I joined the band. John went downhill very quickly and it was a tragedy when we lost both him and Jon Lord, another pal, so it became firmly on my radar.

“I’ve had such a blessed career that I like to give something back whenever I can because it’s something positive that

“It was on a CAT5 cable which was a breath of fresh air compared to mini jack cables, and infinitely more reliable.”

you can use your skills for. So it feels good to continue my association with Suggs’s event and also do things like go to the House of Commons to talk with [Health Secretary] Jeremy Hunt and try to raise awareness of this cancer. Survival relies on early detection and to achieve that there has to be a lot of research funding.

“Joining Suggs in throwing my weight behind this cause is a good use of my time and another reminder of my relationships with with John and Jon, and it’s wonderful that my lovely musician pals come back each year to be a part of the fun.”

MIXING MONITORS “The way the room is laid out is very similar to a corporate event or an awards dinner,” says monitor engineer Maurizio Schiavi, describing the vibe in the Woolwich Suite. “So it wasn’t surprising that we placed some of our racks and amplifiers behind the rear drape for aesthetic reasons.”

Schiavi admirably rose to the challenge of squeezing 12 wedges into a 6m x 6m space with a ninepiece house band. “That was quite a feat in itself!” he laughs. “There was a lot that could have gone wrong in terms of the wedges firing upwards into the concave ceiling, causing unpredictable feedback through focusing. Liam and I went through a variety of system tests during the early part of the day to work out how best to deal with this phenomenon, and I used my Smaart Live rig to help me set the wedges’ EQ. “All that mattered was that the performers were happy and that was great to know because these musicians are all very experienced with grown-up expectations of how the limited stage space would impact on the amount of instruments routed to their wedges.

We had a chat and made a compromise.

“The singers had to work with the backline in close proximity and it was loud up there. But they’ve performed in every kind of venue imaginable so it wasn’t too demanding to have them play on a stage that wasn’t much bigger than that of an average live music pub. Fortunately, it wasn’t very hard to give them what they needed. In fact, during the gig itself, I was only asked to make a minor adjustment on one or two occasions which, for a show of that nature, was remarkable.”

Although Entec was fully stocked with five packs of Sennheiser IE4 in-ear systems on the day to cope with any request, the singers and musicians worked only with stage wedges, namely 10 d&b M4 and two M6 monitors that were placed downstage right for the BVs – a choice made in order to accommodate Jools Holland’s baby grand piano snugly behind the singers.

At the last minute, the original choice of a Yamaha PM5D-RH monitor console was replaced with the brand’s newer CL5. “I love that it’s fast to operate and so responsive,” says Schiavi. “When you’re mixing monitors you don’t have time to mess around, looking for something on your board like EQs, dynamics and mix sends. You want it right there so you can aid the performance quickly. That’s my job and that’s what I get with the CL5, as well as great sound.”

A standard range of Shure, Sennheiser, AKG and Beyer microphones were positioned around the drum kit, on the bass and guitar cabinets, and the horns, with Radial J48 active DIs assigned to keyboards, acoustic guitar and bass. Vocals and announcements, meanwhile, were catered for by wireless hand-held Shure UR2s with Beta58A capsules, and hard-wired SM58s on stands for the backing vocalists.

“We had a wireless Beta58A ready on a stand at the side of the stage that guest singers could just pick up as they walked onstage,” comments Schiavi, who used Shure’s Wireless Workbench software to co-ordinate and monitor radio frequencies.

“Seeing it on every Entec gig makes me very happy because as a monitor guy, RF problems can be a serious nightmare with a drop in level or complete fall out affecting not only vocal signals but also inears,” he says. “In monitor world, one should avoid all risks and Wireless Workbench is a great asset. You do a frequency scan before soundcheck, a few times

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iNPUT • ENTEC SOUND & LIGHT • AUTUMN 2016

before the show and monitor the condition of the RF throughout the performance, and that gives you a lot of confidence as an engineer to know you are doing the best for the artist.”

The sound crew also included stage manager James Kerridge, Tom Olorenshaw and Peter Eltringham, who was making his debut with Entec. Claire Walley at Dawbell looked after publicity for the event and Music Bank kindly provided band rehearsal facilities.

DISTINCTIVE The Gig Company’s other recent projects have included an event for drug and alcohol rehabilitation charity Focus 12, for which the ‘dynamic duo’ successfully persuaded Van Morrison to perform.

“There are so many charity events out there and what we do is to deliver a distinctive fun element,” says Jenny Johnson. “When we started working on behalf of PCUK, the charity didn’t have a demographic for fund-raising like this but we’ve now created that and I think it’s really helped the charity as a brand. It’s

MANAGING DIRECTOR & HEAD OF LIGHTING Noreen O’Riordan

Tel • +44 (0) 20 8842 4004 Email • sales@entecLIVE.com Web • www.entecLIVE.com

If you would like to support PCUK with a donation, please visit pancreaticcancer.org.uk

Photography by Mark Cunningham & Sue Moore

ACCOUNTS Laurie Coombs & Druvi Attygalle

SENIOR SERVICE TECHNICIANS Will Wright & Peter Eltringham

HEAD OF SOUND Jonny Clark

ASSISTANT HEAD OF LIGHTING Adam Stevenson

CHAIRMAN Nick Pendleton

WAREHOUSE MANAGERS Ed Shackleton (Sound) James Hughes (Lighting)

SYSTEMS TECHNICIAN James Kerridge

DIRECTOR/COMPANY SECRETARY Simon White

LOGISTICS & DRY HIRE SOUND Phil Waters

FINANCIAL DIRECTOR Barbara Pendleton 517 Yeading Lane Northolt, Middlesex UB5 6LN, UK

not only the money you raise, it’s the other revenue streams and opportunities that it opens up.”

Reviewing the March event, Maurizio Schiavi spoke on behalf of the Entec crew: “There was very much a communal sense of ‘we’re all in this together… let’s make it work’, and our main advantage was that we didn’t overlook anything in our planning. I think we all went away with that great feeling of having done something positive for a very deserving cause.”

For Noreen O’Riordan, however, these events have a much deeper resonance. “This charity is very special to me for obvious reasons. It feels good for me to be able to give back some love and work alongside great friends who are very dear to me and my family.”

iNPUT EDITOR/DESIGNER Mark Cunningham | Liveculture Copyright © 2016 Marquee Entec Limited

iNPUT • ENTEC SOUND & LIGHT • AUTUMN 2016

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BRINGING EVENTS TO LIFE SINCE 1968 10,000 MANIACS A-HA ABC AIR AL JARREAU AL STEWART ALAN PARSONS ALANIS MORISSETTE ALL ABOUT EVE ALL TOMORROW’S PARTIES AMICI FOREVER AMY SCHUMER AN EVENING WITH SUGGS & FRIENDS ANT & DEC ART GARFUNKEL ART OF NOISE AUTISM ROCKS B.A.P BARCLAY JAMES HARVEST BAY CITY ROLLERS BBC RADIO 1 BELLE & SEBASTIAN BEN ELTON BEST OF BRITANNIA BIG COMEDY NIGHT BIG FOUR BIG WORLD BILL BURR BILLIE JO SPEARS BILLY BRAGG BING CROSBY BISHOPSTOCK BJÖRN AGAIN BLACK SABBATH BLONDIE BLUE BLUR BOB DYLAN BOB MARLEY & THE WAILERS BOOMTOWN RATS BRIAN PERN BRIAN WILSON BRONSKI BEAT BUDDY GUY BUG JAM FESTIVAL CAMBRIDGE MAY BALLS CAMEL CAPERCAILLIE CARPENTERS CARTER USM CHAS & DAVE CHRIS NORMAN CLIFF RICHARD CLIMIE FISHER CREAMFIELDS CYNDI LAUPER DAME EDNA EVERAGE DAMON ALBARN DARE DAVID BOWIE DAVID CASSIDY D­AVID GRAY DEACON BLUE DEATH IN VEGAS DEBORAH HARRY DEFTONES DEL AMITRI DELIRIOUS? DIO DIONNE WARWICK DIZZY GILLESPIE DON WILLIAMS DON’T FORGET YOUR TOOTHBRUSH DURAN DURAN DUSTY SPRINGFIELD E.C.T. ELBOW EAGLE EYE CHERRY ECHOBELLY ELAINE PAIGE ELASTICA ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA ELLERY BOP ELLIE GOULDING ENERGY ORCHARD ENGELBERT HUMPERDINCK ENGLISH NATIONAL BALLET ERIC CLAPTON EVERYTHING BUT THE GIRL FACES FAITH BROTHERS FAMILY FAT FREDDY’S DROP FETTY WAP FISH LEONG FLEADH FLEETWOOD MAC FLESH FOR LULU FLORENCE & THE MACHINE FRIENDS OF THE EARTH FUREY BROTHERS FURNITURE FUTUREHEADS GARY NUMAN GARY WILMOT GENE GORILLAZ GET FRESH GLASTONBURY FESTIVAL GLEN CAMPBELL GOLDEN DAWN GRACE JONES GREGORY PORTER GUILFEST GURDAS MAAN HAWKWIND HUE & CRY IAN ANDERSON IKE & TINA TURNER IGGY POP IMELDA MAY IMMACULATE FOOLS INXS IQ ISLEY BROS IT BITES JAM HSAIO JAMES BROWN JAZZ BILZEN JESUS & MARY CHAIN JESUS JONES JETHRO TULL JIMMY CLIFF JOE COCKER JOE STRUMMER JOHN GRANT JOHN SQUIRE JOHNNY CLEGG JOOLS HOLLAND JOSÉ CARRERAS JOSH GROBAN JULIA FORDHAM JULIAN COPE KATHERINE RYAN KATRINA AND THE WAVES KENWOOD HOUSE CONCERTS KILLING JOKE KINGS OF LEON KOH SAMUI MUSIC FESTIVAL L’ARC-EN-CIEL LARMER TREE FESTIVAL LEONARD COHEN LIGHTHOUSE FAMILY LITTLE ANGELS LIVERPOOL POPS LONDON FASHION WEEK LOU REED MADONNA MAMA’S BOYS MARILLION MARINA & THE DIAMONDS MARK KNOPFLER MARQUEE CLUB MARY BLACK MARY WILSON MATT BIANCO MAYDAY MEGADETH MICKY FLANAGAN MIDNIGHT OIL MINT 400 MOBO AWARDS MONKEY: JOURNEY TO THE WEST MORRISSEY MOTT THE HOOPLE MUD NAS NATIONAL JAZZ & BLUES FESTIVAL NATIONAL TELEVISION AWARDS NAZARETH NEIL DIAMOND NIGHT OF BLISS NEW MODEL ARMY OH WHAT A NIGHT! OMD PALOMA FAITH PAOLO NUTINI PAT BOONE PATTI SMITH GROUP PAUL BRADY PAUL MCCARTNEY & WINGS PAUL RODGERS PAVAROTTI PETER MURPHY PHILIP KIRKOROV PJ HARVEY POP WILL EAT ITSELF PORTISHEAD PRIMAL SCREAM PRINCE PUBLIC IMAGE LTD PULP QUADROPHENIA: THE IMMERSIVE CINEMATIC EXPERIENCE RADIOHEAD RAMONES RAY CONNIFF READING ROCK RED LORRY YELLOW LORRY REM RICHARD CLAYDERMAN RICHARD MARX RICHARD THOMPSON RICKY MARTIN RIVER DETECTIVES ROACHFORD ROAR WITH LAUGHTER ROBERT CRAY ROBERTA FLACK ROCK AT THE BOWL ROCK GOES TO COLLEGE ROD STEWART ROGER CHAPMAN ROGUE MALE ROLLINS BAND RORY GALLAGHER ROXY ROY WOOD RUBY SADE SALT-N-PEPA SCISSOR SISTERS SENSATION SEX PISTOLS SHAKIN’ STEVENS SHIRLEY BASSEY SILVERFISH SIMPLE MINDS SKIN SKUNK ANANSIE SLAYER SLEEPER SOUP DRAGONS SPARKS STAN RIDGWAY STATUS QUO STEREOPHONICS STEVE MILLER BAND STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN STOP THE WORLD STREETS OF SPAIN FESTIVAL STUDIO ONE SUNSPLASH SWEET SYMPOSIUM SYSTEM OF A DOWN TANGERINE DREAM TATE MODERN TEENAGE CANCER TRUST TERRAPLANE TFI FRIDAY TINDERSTICKS TOP OF THE POPS THE ALARM THE AUSTRALIAN PINK FLOYD SHOW THE BANGLES THE BEAT THE BEAUTIFUL SOUTH THE BLOW MONKEYS THE BOOTLEG BEATLES THE BRAND NEW HEAVIES THE BRIT AWARDS THE CLASH THE CRAMPS THE CRYSTAL MAZE THE DAMNED THE DIVINE COMEDY THE DRIFTERS THE FLAMING MUSSOLINIS THE FRANK & WALTERS THE GODFATHERS THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE QUEEN THE HOLLIES THE LIBERTINES THE LOOK THE MAVERICKS THE MEN THEY COULDN’T HANG THE MISSION THE MONKEES THE NEW SEEKERS THE OLD GREY WHISTLE TEST THE ORB THE POGUES THE POLICE THE PROCLAIMERS THE PRODIGY THE REVERB BROS THE SAW DOCTORS THE SISTERS OF MERCY THE STRANGLERS THE STYLE COUNCIL THE TOURISTS THE TUBE THE WATERBOYS THE WHO THE WILDHEARTS THIN LIZZY TOOL VANESSA-MAE VERA LYNN VICTORIA WOOD WALL OF VOODOO WARRIOR WHAM! WIRED WOLFSBANE WOMAD WORLD STUDENT GAMES X JAPAN X-MAL DEUTSCHLAND XTC ZODIAC MINDWARP & THE LOVE REACTION... & MANY MORE

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