TPi November 2013 - Issue 171

TOTAL PRODUCTION INTERNATIONAL

TOTAL PRODUCTION INTERNATIONAL

WWW.TPiMAGAZINE.COM NOVEMBER 2013

ISSUE 171

LIVE EVENT DESIGN & TECHNOLOGY • NOVEMBER 2013 • ISSUE 171

BRUNO MARS

RETRO THEMES MEET THE LATEST TECHNOLOGY FOR THE GENRE-DEFYING ARTIST

YOU’RE THE BEST WAY I KNOW TO ESCAPE THE EXTRAORDINARY

PETER GABRIEL • IN THE SPOTLIGHT: GREEN HIPPO • FLEETWOOD MAC • PLASA REPORT THE ITALIAN JOB • URBAN PEACE 3 • MASSIVE ATTACK • AMPLIFICATION MARKET FOCUS

CMYK

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Meyer Sound Laboratories Inc. • 2832 San Pablo Ave. • Berkeley, CA 94702 • 510 486.1166

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Total Production International October 2013 Issue Creative: LEO Quote Unit:

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PRODUCTION NOTES Keylines do not print INK: 4/c STOCK: magazine

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PRELUDE

VIVA ITALIA At the start of October, Hannah and I embarked on a road trip across northern Italy to visit entertainment technology manufacturers local to the region. It’s amazing what can be established during a specially planned visit, and it’s clear that such relationships are of the utmost importance in our world. We had a brilliant time getting to grips with the latest technological innovations, but also with the personalities and visionaries behind each of the nine companies we dropped in on for an espresso.

You can find the result of this trip on pg.64. We’ll be creating this feature as often as we get the chance to, and next up is Las Vegas, so if you’re reading this and have an office or warehouse out there, do get in touch and we’ll swap out the coffee for a drink of your choice…

Back to the November issue, and this month sees our pages bursting with touring production profiles from some of the music industry’s most influential, notable and current artists. From Peter Gabriel waving the Solid State Logic flag in Prague and Fleetwood Mac showing one of the two Clair PA systems we got to hear this month, to Massive Attack V Adam Curtis in Druisburg, the production of which laid claim to one of the late summer’s most controversial tours, we’ve really learnt from it all.

And not forgetting cover star, Bruno Mars; I may have grown up on hardcore punk, but my word did that show make me dance! I’ve had some Motown R&B classics on repeat ever since. And special thanks to Bruno Mars’ carpenter, Dana Vanella, for letting us share the kettle and borrow the sofa after four days of tradeshow meetings.

Speaking of which, pre-Bruno, team TPi attended the PLASA show at London’s ExCeL (just a white knuckle ride away from the O2 in a cable car). This year PLASA was notably smaller and offered far less pro audio news than we’re used to, creating a mixed reception from exhibitors, attendees and the press alike.

The feeling that unfortunately, Britain’s prime tradeshow for our industry no longer carries the international audience it once did, was resonated throughout the majority of people we spoke to.

The full report is on pg.76.

During PLASA we also attended the 6th Knight of Illumination Awards for which TPi was a sponsor. Above is a photo of myself and Hannah with Rachael and Jamie from sister publication, mondo*dr and Clay Paky’s Massimo Piccinini.

Thanks for a great night KOI. On a more serious note, do make sure you read this month’s PSA column. There’s some quite worrying findings for those of you who work with staging tools on a regular basis and therefore carry them on your person. Rest assured, the PSA is here to help with such matters. You can find out the details of this situation pg.100.

That’s about all from us this time, next month we’ll bring you more reportage from the HQs and backstage areas from around the globe and we’ll be gearing up for LDI in Las Vegas. Hannah and I will be there to hear all about the latest lighting trends so if you’re attending the show, feel free to drop us a line.

“It’s clear that relationships are of the utmost importance in our world...”

Oh and Andy Hurst: no, that nickname didn’t catch on and yes, you do owe me £50.

Or a year’s supply of HSL-concocted Bloody Marys. The choice is yours...

Kelly Murray Assistant Editor

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CHAINMASTER BÜHNENTECHNIK GMBH Uferstrasse 23, 04838 Eilenburg, Germany Tel.: +49 (0) 3423 - 69 22 0 Fax: +49 (0) 3423 - 69 22 21 E-Mail: sales@chainmaster.de www.chainmaster.de 03

ITINERARY

CREW

a member of

Assistant Editor Kelly Murray Tel: +44 (0)161 476 8360 Mobile: +44 (0)7738 154689 e-mail: k.murray@mondiale.co.uk

EVENT FOCUS 6

Right Structures goes large in Malta.

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Advertising Sales Kieren Gardens Tel: +44 (0)161 476 8360 Mobile: +44 (0)7733 113284 e-mail: k.gardens@mondiale.co.uk Graphic Design & Production Dan Seaton: d.seaton@mondiale.co.uk Mel Robinson: m.robinson@mondiale.co.uk

Urban Peace 3 Hip Hop takes over the Stad de France with a new take on NEXO’s STM system.

14

Bestival The Isle of Wight gets amplified with Powersoft.

16

Pitbull Chauvet Professional’s visual tour enhancements.

PRODUCTION PROFILE 18

Bruno Mars

SUPPORT

International Advertising & Sponsorship Hannah Eakins Tel: +44 (0)161 476 8360 Mobile: +44 (0)7760 485230 e-mail: h.eakins@mondiale.co.uk

Rockestra

The Hawaiian superstar bring his Moonshine Jungle to London’s O2.

IN THE SPOTLIGHT 32

Peter Gabriel The legendary rocker takes Prague by storm with his Back To Front production.

General Manager Justin Gawne

44

The British dance sensation creates a political art experience with Adam Curtis in Germany.

Mondiale Group Chairman Damian Walsh

54 www.tpimagazine.com • www.tpiawards.com

Cover Photography: Bruno Mars by Cory Fitzgerald

ON THE ROAD 64

The Italian Job Kelly and Hannah hit the motorways for a lesson in Italian engineering and GPS failure.

IN THE SPOTLIGHT 74

Annual subscriptions (including P&P): £42 (UK), £60 (Europe), £78/$125 (RoW).

Subscription enquiries to: Subscriptions, Mondiale Publishing Limited, Waterloo Place, Watson Square, Stockport SK1 3AZ, UK; Tel: +44 (0)161 476 5580; Fax: +44 (0)161 476 0456; e-mail: subscriptions@mondiale.co.uk

Fleetwood Mac One of the most listened-to bands of all time take to the stage in Manchester.

Leader photo by Jim Ellam Printed by Buxton Press

Massive Attack V Adam Curtis

Green Hippo’s Rackoon Sales Director, James Ros Heron, introduces the Rackoon and explains why good things come in small packages.

EXPO 76

PLASA Team TPi hits the show floor and hears the industry’s verdict on PLASA’s new home.

MARKET FOCUS Issue 171 / November 2013 TOTAL PRODUCTION INTERNATIONAL is a controlled circulation magazine, published 12 times a year by Mondiale Publishing Limited under licence. ISSN 1461-3786 Copyright © 2013 Mondiale Publishing Limited. All contents of this publication are subject to worldwide copyright protection and reproduction in whole or part, in any form whatsoever, is expressly forbidden without the prior written consent of the Publishers. Every effort is taken to ensure accuracy in the preparation of this publication but neither Mondiale Publishing Ltd, nor the Editor, can be held responsible for its contents or any consequential loss or damage resulting from information published. The views expressed are not necessarily those of the Publishers or Editor. The Publishers accept no responsibility for the return of unsolicited manuscripts, photographs, illustrations, advertising materials or artwork.

Total Production International USPS: (ISSN 1461 3786) is published 12 times a year by Mondiale Publishing Limited United Kingdom. The 2013 US annual subscription price is 117USD. Airfreight and mailing in the USA by Agent named Air Business, C/O WorldNet Shipping USA Inc., 155-11 146th Avenue, Jamaica, New York, NY11434. Periodicals postage paid at Jamaica NY 11431.

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90

Amplification We bring you some of the best in amplification manufacturers.

PSA 100 The Bigger Picture From training to the legalities of production tools, Andy Lenthall reveals the latest.

MOVERS & SHAKERS 102 Appointments The latest industry jobs.

VITAL STATS 106 Keith Wood

PERMANENT PRICE DROP S & B SERIES TRUSS NOW 25% CHEAPER FOR MORE DETAILS VISIT: PROLYTE.COM/SANDB

AEG Live UK’s Keith Wood takes the hot seat.

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EVENT FOCUS: Rockestra

LET’S ROCK IN MALTA TAKE ONE TINY ISLAND WITH ONE MASSIVE APPETITE FOR LIVE EVENTS, 130 VOLUNTEERS, A LIVE ORCHESTRA, SOME OF THE BEST-KNOWN ROCK AND POP ANTHEMS, AND A TEMPORARY VENUE LIKE NO OTHER – AND YOU’VE GOT ROCKESTRA, MALTA’S LARGEST EVER INDOOR EVENT. TPi TOOK A LOOK BEHIND THE SCENES. Now in its fifth year, Rockestra is a charity event raising much needed cash for the Community Chest Fund, which helps vulnerable, sick and poor communities and individuals on the island of Malta. On 14 September it welcomed its biggest crowd to date as 13,500 people headed to the Malta Fairs and Convention Centre (MFCC) in Ta Qali, to enjoy an evening packed with performances from the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra and a myriad of the island’s top vocal talent.

The orchestra was under the musical direction of Sigmund Mifsud, with an eclectic line-up of Malta’s most popular singers including Ira Losco, Ivan Grech of Winter Moods, Kevin Borg, Matt of Red Electrik and Konrad Pule. Selling out in just two days, and filmed for broadcast on Malta’s TVM, this year’s Rockestra was the most important yet, held under the distinguished patronage of The President of Malta and his wife Mrs Abela. The president wanted this year’s event to be “bigger and better” than any before it. The production team certainly took the brief to heart.

LOCATION LOCATION LOCATION The MFCC isn’t your usual venue. The Tensioned Fabric Structure (TFS) was the marquee used 06

by Wembley Stadium in the UK during its 2006 refurbishment. It’s been Malta’s largest indoor venue since then, welcoming artists such as Calvin Harris, David Guetta, Elton John and The Prodigy.

Yet a tented structure isn’t ideal for large scale events, mainly due to a lack of rigging capacity. Its owners have made significant investments to solve this issue, developing a unique arch system, which has since spawned a stand-alone staging and structures company Right Structures.

Edward Zammit, Right Structures Project Manager, said: “The 28 metre span arch system at the MFCC features three arches designed to follow the shape of the tent’s roof, maximising the available space. On tracks, they can be moved into any position up and down the venue. For Rockestra we positioned two at one end which formed the grid over the stage and the third three quarters of the way down. This was used to hang delay speakers, a follow spot platform and screen, to give the audience at the back a clear view of the onstage action.”

With each arch boasting a 30-tonne rigging capacity it provided ample strength to hang the extensive Rockestra equipment. The totals stood at 17.5-tonnes above the stage and 9.5-tonnes on the rear arch.

“The RS Marquee Arch is constructed using modular steel RS Marquee Arch is constructed using modular steel components so has a much higher rigging capacity than the usual systems used within marquees, which are typically aluminium and truss based,” continued Zammit.

“The whole ethos behind Right Structures was to have a core set of components that we could adapt to a multitude of uses. We have since developed a selection of products including the arches, indoor and outdoor stages, and our RS Globes which are ideal for branding and special effects. These are all now available for hire across Europe.”

AUDIO One supplier to take advantage of the RS Marquee Arch was PA supplier Besteam. System designer and FOH engineer Antoine Busuttil has worked on the past five editions of the event, managing sound for live and broadcast audiences.

“We’ve made significant investments into equipment to keep up with the demands of the artists and the growth of the event each year,” he said. “Five years ago we were completely analogue with five consoles, today we have two digital consoles and we’ve also brought in two new PAs, one used to cover the delays

EVENT FOCUS: Rockestra

Opposite: Rockestra was Malta’s biggest ever indoor event. Below: The RS Marquee Arch is constructed using modular steel components; the event saw stars from all over the country perform.

and a new monitoring system. We’ve invested in microphones, notably some DPA 4099s, that work especially well for violins which can be difficult to capture.

“We had 34 violins in the orchestra split into four sections (first, second, violas and cellos), plus percussion, guitarists, brass and woodwind.

About 100 musicians in total, with every single instrument mic’d up.”

But combining a full live orchestra with rock isn’t easy. “They come from very different worlds,” laughed Busuttil. “It’s different people with very different approaches and expectations. You need to be very logical.”

Busuttil worked with 15 different singers, with some drastic changes from song to song, which included everything from No Doubt to Aerosmith to Queen and Labrinth.

“At this type of event there are always passages of the music that are low and hard to hear in a live crowd, especially one this big,” he continued. “We had to mix at very high volumes to find all the parts. Classical creates a lot of vibration, whereas rock needs to be quite hard.

It’s tricky to mix these together, even more

under a tented roof. I adapted as I went along to compensate for the difference between the empty rehearsal venue and being full on show night.”

The 28-metre wide stage proved ideal for separation and achieving audio clarity. All 15 main performers and backing singers had their own Sennheiser microphones and headphones pre-programmed prior to the main performance using a 16 channel Aviom personal mixer, supported by 36 Electro-Voice monitors: 12 ZX5 15-inch loudspeakers; 12 ZX1A compact powered loudspeakers, and 12 XLD218 120º horizontal, three-way compact line array elements. The main PA comprised 20 ElectroVoice XLci127DVX 120º horizontal, three-way compacy line array elements; 18 Electro-Voice Xsub dual18-inch subwoofers with 12 EV XLci127DVX’s and four EV XLci215 high-output dual 15-inch subwoofer line array elements for delays. Amplification came via Electro-Voice P3000RL, Electro-Voice TG7 and Electro-Voice Dx46 with 12 Electro-Voice ZX5 loudspeakers, 12 Electro-Voice ZX1A loudspeakers; and 12 Electro-Voice XLD218’s for monitors. A Yamaha

M7CL digital mixing console was used for the monitor mix with an Avid Venue Profile (96 channel) at FOH. LIGHTING Maltese-based Nexos Lighting Technologies was the chosen lighting supplier, with Ismael Portelli taking the role of Project Manager and LD and tasked with creating distinct looks for the 15 artists, with effects suited to both the live audience and the needs of the broadcast teams.

Portelli commented: “This event is fantastic for me as I have carte blanche on design each year. I try to introduce new elements to keep it interesting. The main significant change this year was the LED screens that were in place, which meant a move away from the back projection techniques we’ve used in previous years.

“This year I started without knowing all the numbers, creating six sets of looks and revealing one to fit everyone, which I narrowed down with the charity board members. This year needed to be a ‘wow’ because it’s the President’s last year.”

The chosen lighting plot utilised Clay Paky

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EVENT FOCUS: Rockestra

Below: Mad About Video supplied a total of 18 video screens for the gig.

Alpha Wash 1200 washlights; Clay Paky Sharpy moving heads; Clay Paky Stage Zoom 1200 moving effects projector; Clay Paky Alpha Spot HPE 1200 effects projector; the DTS Lighting XR-3000 Spot moving head projector; the DTS Lighting XR-9 SPOT moving head projector; and the Studio Due City Color 2500 wash light fixture. Conventional lighting used included Philips Selecon Pacific profiles, Philips Selecon Arena fresnels, Par 64s, DTS Lighting Flash 4000L blinders and DTS Lighting Flash 4000 blinders. The plot was controlled using an Avolites Tiger Touch with Avolites Pearl console for all white lights.

Portelli continued: “I wanted lots of sharpness in the design and the lights needed to have the punch to get through the LEDs, which is why I went for the Clay Paky Alpha Wash 1200 and DTS Lighting spots. The arKaos media server gave us full independence and we added two DPSS Green Lasers which really made a difference and worked incredibly well with the graphics. On the third arch we had two follow spot operators using Robert Juliat Victor 1800W follow spots.”

One compromise Portelli did have to make was to lose some of the dark contrasts originally planned, due to WE Broadcasting, recording throughout and needing low level lighting on the audience at all times.

“On the whole it all ran smoothly,” he concluded. “The venue is interesting to work in, the rigging capacity created by the RS Marquee Arch system is the best on the island, and the

08

shine on the TFS can be used for effect. One challenge was that there was no click track, so we were completely reliant on the orchestral conductor for timings. Luckily we had plenty of rehearsal time to get it perfect.”

VIDEO Gerald Agius Ordway from Mad About Video talked TPi through the video set up.

He commented: “I’ve worked on Rockestra for three years now, and this is the first time I’ve been able to persuade the team that split screens would work perfectly for the event. You can create some amazing effects.

“We had 18 video screens across the entire staging area, which were used individually for some songs and then as one large split screen for others. My company usually does the design for the graphics but on this occasion they were given to us by the Rockestra organisers. It worked really well, and looked great, especially when combined with the live close-up footage of the performers.

“Another significant change this year was the focus on interactivity. We wanted the musicians’ faces to be seen by the audience, to be more personal. We introduced hand held cameras on stage plus a crane camera, to get the interaction between the orchestra and the audience and vice versa.”

The 18 10mm pixel LED screens were controlled using an ABSEN A1088 LED screen pitch 10,66mm server and arKaos Media Master Pro. The two side screens were controlled

through a separate server, with relay camera footage showing the main singers and orchestra, captured by six cameras.

These were supplemented by an additional 40 cameras recording on the night for broadcast and future reference. The live feeds used on the two side screens and back screen were controlled by Winston Degiorgio, who mixed live with Gerald’s graphics allowing all 13,500 audience members a clear view of the on-stage action.

Ordway concluded: “It’s been a fun show to work on, a good mix of graphics and live. One of the songs - a James Bond theme - we relay graphics over the top of the video which looked great and adds something different and very recognisable. Rockestra as an event has grown so much over recent years and there is lots of room for creativity.”

A HELPING HAND What’s great about this event is that it’s volunteer run - with all production team members and performers donating their time and expertise.

Colonel Mark Mallia, the event’s main coordinator and Co-Founder explained: “There is a lot of goodwill around President Abela and he has inspired a lot of people with this charity. The security around this year’s event has been a carefully managed operation, with the President, Prime Minister and numerous high profile politicians and VIPs in attendance.

“Additionally we have over 130 volunteers

EVENT FOCUS: Rockestra

Below: Nexos Lighting Technologies created a vibrant lighting design.

on show day, helping with everything from car parking and traffic control to customer services.

The President hosted pre-event briefings at the palace in the run up to the night to ensure everything ran seamlessly.

“The Community Chest Fund aims to provide funds for the relief of poverty, famine, distress, sickness and disability for individuals and communities,” continued Mallia. “It’s an extremely worthy cause and the popularity of the event always seems to grow. We used to call artists and singers to perform; now they call us.“

Artistic Director Paulo Borg Bonaci is one of the country’s most popular entertainers, and spent over six months refining the creative content of the show, but on the night performed with his trademark comedic style and energy. He concluded: “There was definite pressure this year to go bigger and better at the President’s request. But more singers equals more songs, which equals more people, logistics, equipment and effects.

“We introduced songs people wouldn’t expect, such as AC/DC’s Thunderstruck

performed by Frank Calleja. The whole show was big - a mix of well known artists mixed with newcomers. We all gambled, from creative to technical to logistics, pushing the limits to deliver something special. Our hope now is that Rockestra will continue and be one of the great legacies President Abela leaves the island with.”

TPi www.rockestra.org www.rightstructures.com www.besteamaudio.com www.nexoslighting.com

The rightstructures for your events

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EVENT FOCUS: Urban Peace 3

STADE DE FRANCE AT PEACE WITH NEXO’S STM IN SEPTEMBER, EUROPE’S PREMIERE URBAN MUSIC EVENT DREW 60,000 BUZZING FANS TO FRANCE’S NATIONAL STADIUM FOR AN EVENING OF RAP AND HIP HOP. URBAN PEACE 3 UTILISED A HUGE, ALL-NEXO PA SYSTEM, PROVIDED BY LEADING FRENCH RENTAL HOUSE, MELPOMEN AND CENTRED AROUND THE MANUFACTURER’S STM SYSTEM, WHICH IS CONTINUING TO RAISE EYEBROWS ACROSS EUROPE, PAUL WATSON CROSSED THE CHANNEL TO HEAR THE LATEST. This was my third outing with STM, and I’m really beginning to get to grips with the French company’s whole modular approach to its latest technology. I got a preview in Paris a couple of years ago and the concept sounded interesting, but as ever, the proof is always in the pudding... And this particular dessert is fast turning into the finest of Crème brûlées.

It was a simple, easy-on-the-ear STM configuration that I was first introduced to when I attended James Last’s Royal Albert Hall show earlier in the year; and when I travelled to Nantes for Hellfest in in the summer, a much larger two-stage ‘flip-flop’ configuration showed the raw power and versatility of the system - it even made some hardcore metal bearable(ish) even if you’re not a fan a head10

thrashing. But what I witnessed at Stade de France was something different entirely - if it is indeed true that loudspeakers, much like motor cars, need fine-tuning as they evolve, then NEXO might have just found its Ferrari - or should that be Bugatti?

So, Urban Peace 3 - well, if French hip-hop’s your thing, then this is your heaven: headliners were IAM and Sexion D’Assaut, though the lineup also included Chris Brown, Stromae, Orelsan, Youssoupha, and La Fouine. This event comes five years after Urban Peace 2 (nope, don’t know why) and was the first Urban Peace event that Melpomen had provided kit for.

Aside from a sizeable Thierry Tranchant / Vladimir Coulibre-designed STM system, which we’ll come to in a second, Melpomen also utilised the permanently-installed NEXO GEO

S12 PA at the Stade de France for extra coverage of the uppermost seating areas - and wow, are those boxes loud; when I made the journey up the many stairs to the top, it felt like I was standing at FOH, but with vertigo. Impressive, indeed.

Seventy-eight STM ‘sets’ were used in total (a NEXO set constitutes one M46 main, one B112 bass, and one S118 sub) and the PA breakdown was as follows: 15 M46’s and 15 B112’s per side for the main PA; nine M46’s and nine B112’s per side for the side outfills and first delay (located 60m from the stage) respectively; and a second delay (a further 30 metres back) incorporated six M46 and six B112’s per side.

Melpomen’s engineers employed a previously untried sub configuration for this show - and that, I am told, is what made the

EVENT FOCUS: Urban Peace 3

Opposite: Paris became home to some of France’s most influential urban acts; The Stad de France’s usual audio set-up is for football fans, but with NEXO reinforcement, it had an iconic rebirth for this live event; The configuration of the NEXO subwoofers were a big talking point for the pro audio experts - this was the first time anyone including NEXO itself - had witnessed a rental company using them in this set-up.

system sound so spot on. Groups of nine S118 sub bass cabinets were groundstacked along the front of the stage; in each group, six units faced forward and three faced back.

This ‘hybrid’ cardioid configuration offers the same output as the omnidirectional mode but with a significant benefit, according to Thierry Tranchant, Melpomen’s Director.

“The new cardioid pattern has given us a 16dB drop in volume behind the stage; and this two and one configuration has made the sound even tighter,” he explained, during soundcheck.

“This is the largest of all the French STM shows so far, and everyone’s been so happy at the way the system has performed; it means less work for them, and the carry of the low-end is particularly beneficial when working with this type of music.”

Tuning went very smoothly, Tranchant said, and despite SPL limits of 115dBA with a 15-minute LEQ at Stade de France, headroom was ample, and was helped by the delays being positioned so that STM was able to work optimally.

“HF is often a major issue when working in stadiums, but with STM, it’s been very simple to achieve what we want in all departments,” Tranchant revealed. “We only needed to make a few minor tweaks in the high end; and the overall performance of the system has again been perfect - the best it’s ever been, in fact.

Everyone’s very relaxed here too, which speaks volumes.”

Relaxed is an understatement; the FOH riser, which was manned by Melpomen’s system techs, Cedric Bernard and Alexandre Garnier, was as chilled as a polar bear on a lilo - and that’s during showtime as well as soundcheck. It must have been catching, too: at one point, rather ridiculously, I found myself literally leaning on the back-up console during a headline performance, and I wasn’t even asked to move... This is not normal!

“Although this is the largest STM show we have ever done - physically, it’s only taken oneand-a-half days to put it all in, do the EQing, set the phases, and so on - it was very easy to tune, and everyone is very happy with the results,” 11

EVENT FOCUS: Urban Peace 3

Below: The Melpomen (which is part of SSE Audio Group) engineers were all very pleased with the system’s sonic results as were the acts themselves.

Bernard told TPi, as he lit a cigar and reclined his chair (just kidding). “All of the engineers have found it very easy to just turn up and mix on this system - no problems at all - and they have commented particularly on how beautiful the low-end is as well as the great clarity in the highs.”

After checking out the monitoring setup most of the performers were using Sennheiser IEMs, supplemented by NEXO’s PS15-R2 wedges and 16 45°N-12 line monitors; four of the 45°N-12s were presented as pairs, the other 12 were spaced across the stage in the layout preferred by rappers - I decided to pace out the steps from the stage to the first delay, which was pointless really, as I knew it was 60 metres; however, in the process, and indeed as I continued onto the second delay, what struck me was the absolute constant SPL, particularly

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in the low end. I’ll stick my neck out here and say I heard practically no difference at the first delay, and perhaps a couple of dB maximum at the 90 metres point.

“This kind of urban music obviously requires a lot of low-end, but, because the system is so versatile, we didn’t have to tweak it any differently than we would for a pop / rock show,” said Garnier, as I returned to FOH position for the show. “From an engineer’s perspective, less time is required to make adjustments on the console: for example, the engineer for headline act IAM only put in a hipass filter on his vocal channels; everything else was flat, which says a lot about STM.” It does indeed - and come showtime, it didn’t disappoint. The overall sound was gutsy without being too aggressive, and the highs really sparkled. What was great about hearing

rap and hip hop through STM is that as a genre, it’s littered with extreme highs and extreme lows, so not only is it putting the system through its paces more than ever before, it’s also providing a great platform for the system to show off its true abilities: a real audio ‘moment’ came during IAM’s set where a rather trebly break-beat was rising over an almost inaudibly low resonating bottom end, and in the centre was the sound of an electric guitar, heavy on the mids. For me, it showcased STM’s three elements perfectly, and I could see I wasn’t alone in thinking so, judging by the very smiley [NEXO concert sound specialist] Stuart Kerrison.

TPi Photos: Francis Vernhet www.melpomen.net www.sseaudiogroup.com www.nexo.fr

EVENT FOCUS: Bestival

BESTIVAL GETS AMPLIFIED THE NEW PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN POWERSOFT AND TRACTION SOUND CHOSE THE PERFECT SHOWCASE FOR PREVIEWING THE POTENTIAL SYNERGY ON OFFER BY HARNESSING THESE TWO BRANDS, WHEN THIS YEAR’S BESTIVAL KICKED OFF ON THE ISLE OF WIGHT. Italian amplification manufacturer, Powersoft, supplied six of its flagship K10 switch-mode amplifiers to drive both the powerhouse Hidden Disco tent and the more sublime, soothing grooves of the Ambient Forest, at this year’s festival on the Isle of Wight. bringing the best out of Traction Sound’s passive soft dome loudspeaker technology.

Powersoft provided 72kW of muscle in just 6RU spaces (12kW per amp), with one audiophile polling on Traction Sound’s Facebook page and observed: “That disco is not going to stay hidden for long!”

Traction Sound Business Development Director, Jonny Goodwillie, replied on the same site, “Powersoft are killing it with their K Series.” As if drawn like a magnet to the sound, the hidden stage was always packed to overcapacity.

It was Goodwillie’s friendship with festival owner Rob Da Bank that delivered the opportunity for both brands to showcase the products at what is one of the most high profile events in the UK, having won the title of Best 14

Major Festival 2012 in the UK Festival awards.

Having got the call just two weeks before the event it was only natural for Traction Sound to ask Powersoft to power the system due to the two companies close relationship since the launch of their SDS range.

Goodwillie said the exercise had been to “prove the compatibility of the systems and prove our capabilities as a production team.

The aim was to get in front of DJs, bands, hire companies and sound engineers - effectively creating a big demo room.”

Meanwhile, Powersoft has a philosophy all of its own, and according to Marketing & Communication Manager, Francesco Fanicchi, the dynamic driving this has more to do with passion than simply generating as many raw kilowatts as possible, with a determination to nurture different technologies for the greater good of the industry.

Arguably as important as cranking out high-octane wattage, eddying into the lowest registers of Traction Sound’s Hades infrasonic bandpass subwoofers, is the fact that Powersoft’s Armonía Pro Audio Suite remote

control and monitoring software will put the power status onto the screen, as Billy Woods notes.

“This is the first time we have used Armonía at a gig. It’s perfect for monitoring the health of a system and I know which boxes are getting hot so I can adjust the limiters and EQ settings accordingly. As for offsite noise, Armonía enabled me to sort limiters offsite straight from the laptop.”

Traction Sound had already tested the reliability and quality of amplifiers and had been in contact with Powersoft’s Account Manager OEM Matteo Bianchini before selecting Powersoft D-Cell amplifier modules for its active loudspeaker system.

Stated Woods: “It’s great to be collaborating with another like-minded company. With both Powersoft and Traction Sound sharing a distributor in South Africa (iLED), it seemed logical to seek other similar ‘shared’ opportunities in the future.

“What we like is the efficiency of the amp and low carbon footprint. At festivals the less strain you can put on generators the better,

EVENT FOCUS: Bestival

Opposite: Bestival was an award-winning event in 2012, with the 2013 festival set to follow suit. Below: Powersoft and Traction Sound have created a partnership that has delighted audio enthusiasts from both the pro audio and festival fan worlds alike.

while the software enables us to monitor the system and stay ahead of environmental health control. On top of that, these amplifiers take up such little space in the van - everyone is amazed how small it is.”

In fact numerous touring sound reinforcement systems have been built around racks exclusively utilising K10’s for all frequency bands. Operation with two ohm loads is not only safe but recommended, as this reduces the number of amplifiers required in a system.

Fully digitally controlled and with a serial PC communication port as standard, the K10 is also available with either or both KDSP board and KAESOP Ethernet / AES3 interface. Equipped with both options, the K10 DSP+AESOP amounts to a fully integrated power source including state-of-the-art sound shaping remotely Armonía controllable.

Certainly the combination proved an irresistible one on the Isle of Wight. Said Goodwillie: “All the DJs have been really impressed with the FOH and monitor setup - and the crowd have loved it too. Our rig smashed it and kept people dancing 15 hours a day and didn’t miss a beat. Now that’s the way to do a festival.”

So how had they achieved this? In Ambient

Forest they deployed two Atlas single 18-inch bass cabinet and Kodiak mid tops (with two Soft Dome Source SDS horns and 12-inch driver), running through two Powersoft K10’s.

In the more power-obsessed Hidden Disco, on each side of the stage were a pair of Hades infrasonic bandpass subwoofers, driving the bottom end down to 22kHz a pair of Zeus V4 twin 18-inch high output bandpass-horn subwoofer loudspeakers, and four Kodiak SDS mid tops powered by four Powersoft K10.

Summing up, Billy Woods stated: “It’s great to set up a system and know the amps are just going to do their job without having to have someone babysitting the whole time. We didn’t get close to hitting limiters,” he reports. “There was so much headroom that in fact DJs were turning the system down.”

The two companies share one fundamental tenet: a determination not to make products that anyone else is manufacturing - and to source as many of the components as locally as possible. Bestival could just be the start of a long exciting adventure together.

TPi www.powersoft-audio.com www.tractionsound.com www.bestival.net 15

EVENT FOCUS: Pitbull

PITBULL DURING HIS RECENT NORTH AMERICAN TOUR, RAPPER, SONGWRITER AND PRODUCER PITBULL IGNITED THE AUDIENCE WITH HIS HIGH-ENERGY PERFORMANCES NOT ONLY RAPPING LIVE, BUT ALSO INCORPORATING HIS FAMOUS DUETS WITH RENOWNED ARTISTS LIKE JENNIFER LOPEZ, CHRISTINA AGUILERA, MARK ANTHONY AND CHRIS BROWN, ALL ENTERED THE STAGE VIA RECORDED TRACKS ON MASSIVE VIDEO DISPLAYS. TPi LOOKS AT THE TOUR’S VISUAL SUCCESS. Video Director for the Pitbull US. Tour Nate Selvidio and Production Designer Justin Geiger of Impulse Creative Group conceived a simple yet striking design using 263 Chauvet Professional MVP Ta8 Curve and MVP 12 video panels for the tour’s 24 shows. While Chauvet Professional Nexus 4 by 4 pixel-mapping wash lights were used on tour as blinders above the video walls. Orlando-based production company Complete Production supplied the gear.

“One of the big requirements for any show that Pitbull does is having LED walls, or at least

16

one, centred main wall,” Selvidio said. “Pitbull performs songs with lots of featured artists who are shown on the screen behind him. When Jennifer Lopez is performing her part of the song he actually spins around and addresses her as she sings. Having an LED wall in the back centre becomes a very important aspect in every show.”

Complete Production Resources chose the Chauvet Professional video panels for their flexibility, mounting hardware, connectivity, outdoor rating, light weight and brightness, according to Lucas Peterson, Director of

Lighting Production and Lighting Crew Chief for the tour. “We looked at different options but we chose the Chauvet Professional video panels because they best fit our needs,” Peterson said.

“They worked really well on our tour.”

An important aspect of the design was setting up for recording and broadcasting live.

Performances in various cities were recorded for a possible tour DVD, while during the performance at the Hollywood Bowl NBC, two songs that were broadcast in the Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular event were used. “We angled the side panels for shooting

EVENT FOCUS: Pitbull

Opposite: Pitbull has become one of pop music’s most charted acts. Below: Selvidio and his team used three Chauvet Professional VIP Drivers and LED Studio software to map the video panels, which were fed from three Green Hippo Hippotizer media servers.

TV, giving a deeper perspective of the stage on video,” Selvidio said. “Since the Chauvet Professional video panels are flicker-free we had no issues with the quality of the recording.”

Made of 120 MVP Ta8 Curve high-definition video panels the central wall was flanked by four side walls, two on each side, built of MVP 12 modular video panels. “Our design had a lot of elements to it,” Selvidio said. “Besides the 30ft main LED wall we also had risers on the front of the stage made of Chauvet Professional MVP Ta8 Curve panels. The side tiers above and below the side walls were made of MVP 12 panels.”

Selvidio and his team used three Chauvet Professional VIP Drivers and LED Studio software to map the video panels, which were fed from three Green Hippo Hippotizer media servers. Three VIP signal distributor fixtures distributed the signal. “We had to take into consideration every aspect of the LED setup,” he said. “Different panels would have text on it; the other panels could have just colours; or live video feeds. The Chauvet Professional video panels are very versatile. We could map it however we wanted.” An important step

was mapping the blank spacing in between the video walls so content would flow from one panel to another so it all looked natural and correct on stage.

“This show is 100% video content-based; we would rather have content sometimes over laidin, so having panels that are easy to program was a big help.”

Brian Henley, LED Technician for the tour oversaw the setup, repairs, load in, break down and mapping of content for the video panels.

“It was very easy to work with the driver and the software: LED Studio,” he said. “We did all the video mapping in the shop before we went on tour. This allowed for the first day of load-in to basically set the panels up and just send the maps to the panels without having to do much of the configuration.”

Since most of the venues were outdoors, brightness and viewing angle had to be considered. “Audiences are wrapped around at times all the way up to the stage, so people need to see the concert from harsh side angles and in the brightness of the daylight,” Selvidio said. “The main video wall was too bright, we had to bring down the output to the

lowest setting and also toned it down in our media server. We had to match everything for video, so we had to adjust spotlights, colour temperature, individual pixels or rows and we did this within the LED Studio software.”

The Chauvet Professional Nexus 4x4 wash lights were used for their colour capabilities and as audience blinders, placed equidistantly high above the stage. “The Nexus 4x4 worked perfectly,” Peterson said. “They were able to fill entire arenas, like the one at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas where we drenched the venue in rich colours, from reds to blues, to ambers. We also used them as strobes. They are extremely versatile, reliable, easy to hang, and they have three and 5-pin DMX. It’s just very easy to work with these fixtures.”

Henley said the Chauvet Professional LED panels and Nexus 4x4 wash lights worked very well throughout the tour. “These fixtures are very durable and we were able to load in and out without hassle. The show went on without a glitch,” he concluded.

TPi www.chauvetlighting.co.uk www.pitbullmusic.com

17

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Bruno Mars

BRUNO MARS’ MOONSHINE JUNGLE IN SUPPORT OF HIS LATEST NUMBER ONE ALBUM, UNORTHODOX JUKEBOX, POP STAR BRUNO MARS, HAS TAKEN TO THE WORLD’S ARENA STAGES FOR THE SECOND SOLO HEADLINE TOUR IN HIS CAREER. THE MOONSHINE JUNGLE TOUR - WHICH WILL LAST WELL INTO NEXT SUMMER - IS BILLED AS AN ‘EXTENSION’ OF THE SINGER BY HIS PRODUCTION TEAM AND USES SOME OF THE MOST ACCOMPLISHED VENDORS IN THE TOURING INDUSTRY. TPi’S KELLY MURRAY ATTENDED THE LONDON O2 ARENA GIG TO HEAR ABOUT THE TOUR’S PRODUCTION VALUES FROM ITS ENGINEERS AND DESIGN EXPERTS. Just four months into The Moonshine Jungle tour, Bruno Mars’ live shows had grossed an incredible US $40m. As the follow up to the successful first outing - Doo-Wops and Hooligans - this tour boasted an altogether different set up. From the more complex stage set to the truly digital audio configurations, it seems as though the now-global chart-smashing recording artist is able to seamlessly transfer those studio talents into a live environment. It’s taken Bruno Mars 10 years to get to this stage, but what a stage to be on. Towering above TPi is an attention-demanding and dynamic Clair PA, which curves around the stage like a flattering accessory, adding to, rather than obstructing the eye line and immediately suggesting that live sound is of the utmost 18

importance in camp Mars.

For 90 minutes, the Billboard dominating singer and his impeccable musicians dance, sing, play, joke and generally entertain an arena audience - the diversity of which ranged from families and couples to screaming teens - and genuinely disperse an atmosphere of undeniable fun. Reeling off hit after hit including Moonshine, Treasure, Billionaire, covering the likes of Genuine, R Kelly and Aloe Blacc alongside, When I Was Your Man, Grenade and Just the Way You Are, the performers certainly know how to keep a paying crowd happy.

Backstage, before all the live fun began, the crew was also incredibly down-to-earth and enthusiastic about aiding this production night after night. The road team was clearly fond

and supportive of each other; TPi spoke to the people who made this tour capable of such success from the inside out.

PRODUCTION DESIGN “I was 12 years old and doing a summer theatre program when I quickly realised that I enjoyed being backstage rather than on it,” explained Cory FitzGerald, the tour’s co-designer who worked in conjunction with renowned live design expert, LeRoy Bennett. “The rest as they say, is history.”

The Moonshine Jungle tour is Bruno Mars’ biggest arena venture yet, with influences ranging from reggae to Motown, pop to hip hop, the tour is a creative amalgamation of the Hawaii-raised singer’s life-long influences. The look of the show, from the FOH pit at London’s

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Bruno Mars

Opposite: Bruno Mars performed with his eight piece band and delivered an all singing, all dancing retro style show.

Below: Bruno Mars’ current single, Gorilla portrayed some fitting visuals...

O2 Arena is quite spectacular; a giant disco ball hovers over the stage like a silver moon, and Clay Paky Sharpys lay subtly in the TAIT set design, which reveals a nod to the ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s amid the latest lighting technology.

Indeed, the audience is taken on a journey detailing the singer’s every inspiration from rock to funk.

Continued FitzGerald: “We started working with Bruno in 2011 designing his Hooligans in Wondaland tour [a joint headline tour featuring Janelle Monáe]. There were a variety of different paths we went down, but ultimately the idea was to create a world where the band could play their wide range of songs and really own the stage for the whole performance. LeRoy and I worked very closely with Bruno to create the

show.

“The needs of the stage and band helped dictate a lot of the spacing on the stage, and the look and feel was a concept that morphed into what it is today based on a lot of back and forth ideas. Bruno is very hands on and has a unique and clear vision of what he’s looking for.”

LIGHTING “I like to use the lights to really capture the dynamics of the music and play along with the songs, just like the musicians do. It’s all about expanding on what they are doing in the venue, and giving the audience a visual show to match the energy on stage,” added FitzGerald.

He chose an MA Lighting console to run

the show, and highlighted: “I’ve been using the grandMA2 since 2011 and it has come a long way since then. I feel that it can do everything I need and anything I can think of. Like many shows and artists, Moonshine Jungle is an extension of Bruno himself. His energy and talent are showcased every night on that stage, and we get to help to magnify that.”

In order to create the look of the show, FitzGerald specified a sizable lighting rig from VER, and the production is being operated by Dave Marcucci, the touring Lighting Director.

Fixtures comprised 13 Philips Vari-Lite 3500 Spots, Robe Robin 600 LED Washes, 26 Martin Professional MAC Viper Profiles, 66 Clay Paky Sharpys (in black), 14 Clay Paky Sharpys (in a gold finish), 42 Clay Paky Sharpy wash 330’s

19

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Bruno Mars

Below: Clay Paky Sharpys created intense beams of light as part of the design by Cory FitzGerald.

(in silver), 45 Martin Professional MAC Auras, 27 GLP impression X4 LED moving heads, 20 Martin Professional Atomic 3000 DMX strobes, 14 Solaris Flare LED strobes, 30 Martin Professional Stagebars, 12 Philips Color Kinetics ColorBlaze TRX LED fixtures, one Supernova Novalight search light, 276 Chromlech Elidy PX100 active tiles and 26 Chromlech Elidy PXX9 power supply units. For additional atmospheric elements, two MDG theOne haze generators, two Martin Professional Jem ZR44 hi-mass foggers and two Martin Professional AF-1 Fans were utilised on stage.

Jim Petrusson, the tour’s Lighting Crew Chief, has been with lighting vendor VER since March, following 15 years in the industry. “They’re a great company to work for,” he stated. An electrician by trade, his introduction into the industry was accidental, yet he’s thrived off life on the road ever since.

Although not involved in the lighting design or operation, the one-time mechanical engineer noted: “Clay Paky has really made a big name for itself in the last couple of years... I know we have a lot of Sharpys on this rig, and with that product, Clay Paky really have nailed it!”

FitzGerald added: “We were tasked with creating a world for Bruno and his band to inhabit. Bruno has a lot of sounds and pushes past a lot of genres, so he needed an environment that would accommodate all his music. The lighting fixtures help a lot with that.”

The versatile Sharpy Washes are “used for everything,” he said. “They’re the main wash for the show, and we have 36 overhead and 20

six on the floor. We built a ceiling, and the Sharpy wash 330’s are so small that they can be recessed in it and still shoot through. They also have a great zoom range and can do amazing beam effects,” he added. “It’s great to have the option to go super wide or super narrow. The fact that they can colour mix is a life saver.”

Francesco Romagnoli, Clay Paky Area Manager for North and Latin America, commented on the products used: “We’re very proud to have so many of our fixtures on this tour and are impressed with the great work that Mr. FitzGerald has done.”

GLP’s impression LED Moving Heads were also a must-have fixture for the tour. Fitzgerald had 27 Impression X4’s built into the retrostyle set. The LD explained that he has worked through several generations of GLP’s premier LED fixtures over the years - starting with the original impression 90 and RZ 120 Zoom. “I think the X4 is a natural progression - and a great fixture for tight places or smaller shows,” he said, adding that the compact size has enabled the fixtures to be built into the mirror ball, as well as being used inside the band risers.

“They are great lights - very fast and bright and work well alongside the video elements and discharge lamps,” he continued. “It has a great zoom and I particularly like the fact that there is a separate white LED.” Another big part of the show was the Solaris Flares, of which a total of 14 were used.

FitzGerald noted: “The flares are not only incredibly bright, but also incredibly versatile.

Their unique design allows them to be a blinder,

a wide but directional washlight, and a powerful strobe, all while combining colour mixing and white LEDs. They are a truly powerful new tool!”

CONCERT SOUND The Clair Global tour is outfitted with dual DiGiCo SD7’s at both the FOH and in monitor world, both running redundant Waves Soundgrid servers. Each desk has two SD racks for individual control of preamps and is connected via digital Optocore fibre cable - a big change from the 2011 tour. FOH Engineer Derek Brener is sending Madi lines direct from FOH to the record rig - handled by Charles Moniz - who records 96 channels into an Avid Protools rig, seamlessly.

Brener is managing a total of 108 physical inputs for the eight-piece band consisting of two drum kits, bass, guitars, multiple keyboards, a B3 organ, plenty of vocals, horns, playback, and a couple of talkback mics. Bruno Mars’ band have been out on the road with the artist for the last couple of years and the current line up is: Phillip Lawrence, (back-up vocals) Phredley Brown, (lead guitar, backup vocals), Jamareo Artis (bass guitar) Eric Hernandez (drums) Kameron Whalum (trombone), Dwayne Dugger (saxophone), James King (trumpet), John Fossit (keyboard, piano). Resembling a larger, modern take on The Jackson Five, the backing group channels the likes of Prince, Luther Vandross and Stevie Wonder throughout the duration of the show.

Brener has been a DiGiCo fan since Mars’ first run in 2011, and stepped up to an SD7

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Bruno Mars

Below: Tour Carpenter, Dana Vanella; FOH Engineer, Derek Brener; Clair System Tech, Jeff Hargrove; SGPS Rigger, Art McConnell, VER’s Lighting Crew Chief, Jim Petrusson; the Snakatak catering team who source fresh, local food for the tour; Monitor Tech, Eric Rodstol; the Transam, EST truck drivers; this is Bruno Mars’ biggest tour to date with equipment from leading vendors.

(from an SD8) because of the larger input requirements. “We have 108 physical inputs and I still have plenty of capacity for eccentric bussing, effects, and outboard apparatus,” he explained. “I love DiGiCo consoles for their smooth sonics and ultra-customisable surface.

The SD7 is a monster and gives me a lot of freedom and space to experiment and tweak.

It has a staggering amount of features and power. The snapshot recall scope, dual engines and dynamic EQs to name a few are great. I can go on and on about the features it offers, but simply put, for a digital desk, it’s the cream of the crop.”

James Berry is also no stranger to DiGiCo desks, having used an SD7 on recent outings with Beyonce before signing on to tour with Mars. The band recently transitioned to all in-ears, utilising customised JH Audio in-ears, Sennheiser 2050 IEMs and Sennheiser 3732 wireless systems.

“The new features in this latest software version are very helpful,” said Berry. “I love the way the new control group feature helps to 22

control auxes. It’s great to be able to splay out all my auxes at one time on one channel. I’ve been using the copy audio feature extensively to route audio anywhere, which gives us a lot of multi-tasking opportunities and lets me connect a lot of gear with better quality. We also have a total of four SD racks between FOH and monitor world, as well as two mini SD racks loaded with all AES cards taking in all the wireless. This allows us to keep everything digital.”

Berry is also making use of everything onboard the SD7 for his effects, with the exception of a few Waves plug-ins for Bruno’s output and vocals. “I’m using a TC Electronics 2290 for Bruno’s delay, and running three TC M6000 taking that AES to my vocal rack on the SD7, and its all clocked in at 96kHz off the console. I’m also using Midi to control those from the snapshots. In addition, I’m using the Waves C6 plug-in on both his vocal and outputs.”

Additionally, he’s used the SD conversion software extensively on this tour. “Early on, we were carrying an SD5 as a backup, so I was able

to easily transfer between the platforms using the software seamlessly.”

Working on the stage is Monitor Technician, Eric Rodstol a full-time engineer at Clair who has worked with the artist for the last few months.

He told TPi: “I did the promo run with Bruno before the tour started, it’s been really fun and somewhat challenging. We’ve been doing some fun stuff in our little DiGiCo world, running everything truly digital at 96kHz. James [Berry] was already on the SD7 when I joined this camp, he’s been with the desk for quite some time and I know he’s very happy with it.”

In the US, Rodstol deployed some stage wedges as a ‘comforter’, but in the UK, their presence was removed due to the use of the Sennheiser IEMs which were considered sufficiently reliable.

MICROPHONES Brener, who has been Bruno Mars’ FOH engineer for three and a half years now, recalls a point where Bruno’s audio infrastructure took a huge step forward: “One of the main turning

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PRODUCTION PROFILE: Bruno Mars

Below: TAIT created an Austrian style backdrop for the tour; the entire network of musicians and crew used Sennheiser IEMs; TAIT also created a six ft mirrored disco ball.

points was when James [Berry] came in and said he would not use anything else but the Sennheiser wireless ¬that’s when everything changed. James is such a heavy hitter having worked with Beyoncé, Weezer and lots of other great bands, I trusted his opinion.”

After trying various Sennheiser capsule and transmitter combinations, Berry and Brener eventually settled on an SKM 5200 handheld transmitter with an MD 5235 capsule. “For me, the MD 5235 capsule punches through the PA system better than any other microphone we’ve used on Bruno Mars,” said Brener.

“He is very involved with Derek and I on the way things sound and has very clear ideas on what he wants and what he expects,” Berry added. “Now, it is a comfort thing. Whether we are playing arenas, stadiums or awards shows, there is no debating; ¬he wants Sennheiser, and that’s what he’s going to get.”

For vocals and horns, the band’s wireless consists of ten channels of Sennheiser EM 3732ii receivers, seven SKM 5200-ii transmitters with MD 5235 capsules and three SK 5212-ii bodypack transmitters. Berry says that one of the primary reasons they chose the EM 3732-iis was because of the AES3 digital output with external word clock synchronisation: “We are clocking our wireless devices at 96kHz to get the best sound quality we can. We didn’t consider anything other than this unit because we knew it would give us the best sound quality 24

and reliability on the RF side.”

“For me, clocking at 96kHz opens everything up so it sounds fuller,” Berry continued. “You have the entire frequency expanse in there, and what you put in is what you get out.

Therefore you can hear the Sennheiser MD 5235 microphone capsules we are using with even greater fidelity.”

The band also relies on Sennheiser for its wireless monitor systems, of which Berry has sixteen channels of SR 2050 IEM. This covers the entire band, as well as off-stage technical staff. “I’ve used a lot of in-ear systems, and the reason I chose Sennheiser is because of sound quality,” said Berry. “The wireless IEMs deliver a wide stereo image so I can put things right into place where they need to go in my mix. For me, there is no other option than the 2000 series because of that.”

PA AND AMPLIFICATION Clair Global System Tech, Jeff Hargrove, has been an avid Clair freelancer for eight years.

“Growing up, I was always interested in music and electronics and they just merged together,” he explained. “This system we have out here sounds amazing, when my friends and family came to the Huston, Texas, show - which is my hometown - they were all impressed with how it sounded.”

The system in question comprises Clair i5’s for the main rig and i3’s for the rear speakers.

The system was configured with 20 boxes per side which were made up of 12 2.5° long throws; four 5° medium throws; and four 10° near throw boxes (the 90° horizontal dispersion models, used for additional nearfield coverage).

The side hangs were 16 i5’s boxes with four 2.5°, four 5° and eight 10° models. This was complemented by the rear delays which in turn comprised eight boxes of i3’s per side. Additionally, there were 12 flown iS2-18 subwoofers per side and eight BT2-18’s, (an 18inch front-loaded dual speaker enclosure), which were placed on the ground.

“This PA is the same configuration we’ve used in the States, and for me it’s the best arena system that I’ve ever had out with me,” said Hargrove. “It sounds so good, and we’ve had lots of great feedback. All the audio engineers out here really know how to get the job done, they’re a really knowledgeable team,” he added. “The system goes up in just a couple of hours, mainly because Clair’s rigging is second to none; because it manufactures everything itself, so it all fits together perfectly. Clair knows what artists need because so many engineers work for Clair, it gets that direct feedback from the road and use it to adapt or improve a certain product from the inside. Not a lot of vendors can do that. Clair differs to a lot of PA companies, which make this kind of system because most manufactures doesn’t have its own staff physically using the equipment.”

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PRODUCTION PROFILE: Bruno Mars

Below: Pyrotek and Le Maitre collaborated in creating the right tools for the show, including serveral gerb and comet effects.

For amplification, Lab.gruppen PLM 20000Qs are the only amplifiers for a Clair rig.

Co-designed with Clair Senior Engineer, Howard Page, (described by Hargrove as a ‘genius’), the amplifiers are certainly out in full force at the O2 Arena. “I just love them!” enthused Hargrove. “They’re actually the best amplifiers in the world. Lake processing is unbeatable; the DSP is incredibly powerful. We’re running all digital AES signal with analogue back up and we have 33 amps per side. If you add up the total amplifier power, there’s 1.3mW here!” enthused.

The audio crew was completed by Charles Moniz, Recording Engineer, and PA Techs, Austin Dudley and Mike Gamble.

VIDEO Adam Dragosin, PRG Nocturne’s Video Crew Chief and LED Technician has worked with Bruno Mars before, and returned to the tour courtesy of PRG’s experience with the creative and technological achievements on the previous tour. “There were certain effects that the Video Director wanted us to pull off, so as far as the design factor went, we were able to fulfill that because we have several different types of LED available to us,” said Dragosin.

Nocturn provided a Saco v18 18 mm LED wall, which could be adapted in size for the venue - ranging from 60ft by 13.5ft to 50ft by 14ft. The video screen weighed in at an impressive 9,000lbs and is winch-moved on motors. Several cameras are used throughout 26

the show including long lenses, hand held, Jimmy Jib and RoboVision cameras. “We’re shooting in SD,” noted Dragosin, “Because of the old look and feel we have in this show. He’s a great entertainer, he gets everyone involved and keeps them in the moment, for his entire performance.”

The video set up saw an IMAG screen either side of the stage, two Barco FLM 20K projectors and two of PRG’s Mbox Extreme v3 media servers. The show’s video content is triggered by the MA Lighting grandMA2 lighting desk, and plays off of the media servers. All content created for the show is loaded and triggered on time code and the cues are controlled over DMX. The Mbox receives a program feed from a Grass Valley Kayak video switcher and then further effects are added by the media server.

Video Director, Steve Fatone, (No doubt, Justin Timberlake, Lady Gaga) has worked freelance for PRG for several years and had directed some one-off events with Bruno in the past. “I kept in touch with production and was very happy to be able to come back and work on this tour. Video is always a big help to any show. IMAG shows other angles and brings the artist on stage that much closer to his fans.

“The few songs which do run content are used to add an overall look, not dominate the stage. For this tour, as the content plays, it’s very important not to upstage what is happening on stage but to enhance it. After all, the fans came here to see Bruno Mars perform.”

The video crew was completed by, Jason

Harvey, Video Engineer, Krystena Rice and Andrew Hunter, LED Tech and Camera Operators and Lee Shull, LED Tech and Jib Operator.

PYROTECHNICS Lorenzo Cornacchia, President of Las Vegasbased Pyrotek had worked with Bruno on several award shows when the star was starting to gain notoriety. “From the Grammy’s to the Billboards, we saw him perform and knew he was going to be an overnight sensation,” said Cornacchia. It was the company’s relationship with PM Joel Forman, which had then put them in good stead for the singer’s lengthy tours.

“Joel and I go way back, since the early days of him production managing the Jonas Brothers, and we’ve worked with designer LeRoy Benett over 25 years.

“I worked with Cory, LeRoy and Joel in determining what Bruno was looking for and then I was given carte blanche to present some ideas and key accents that would bring Bruno’s vision to life.

“We were presented with the challenge of trying to give Bruno the big pyro looks he wanted with the placement of such effects in a limited space, with a low panel ceiling trim.

Regardless, these are issues which we face continuously in our business and we make the looks resonate with the audience and ensure the safety of artists and band members at all times.”

With Cornacchia back in the Nevada office, on the road is Rob Liscio, Crew Chief and Pyro

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Bruno Mars

Below: The video crew with Crew Chief, Adam Dragosin; Philip Vari-Lite fixtures comprised part of the lighting rider; TPi attended a date on the tour at London’s O2 Arena.

Shooter and Mark Jones, Pyrotechnician.

For the UK and European leg of the tour, Pyrotek asked UK-based Le Maitre to lend a hand. “We asked Le Maitre to manufacture some custom effects, especially the durational gerbs, because of distance issues on stage in Europe, the gerbs needed to be tight and clean as they were extremely close to band members, prior to this tour the band didn’t have much experience with pyrotechnics at all,” Cornacchia told TPi. For this design, he chose a combination of specially manufactured 23mm white flashpots

with report, a 20ft silver gerb, 20 15ft silver gerbs, several mortar hits and some comet flames. “The comet flames were chosen because the design incorporated artistic ceiling panels which trimmed in at about 20ft. Bruno wanted flames and we new the comet flames maxed out at about 15-18ft depending on the angles,” he said.

“With Cory / LeRoy’s lighting design being predominantly green during the song Gorilla the comet flames also presented an excellent contrasting orange element. Mortar hits always provide that great ending cue which resembles

the set and stage blowing up. The white flashes with bang were chosen because Bruno loves that jarring thump and flash!”

As previously hinted to, health and safety is a big part of any pyrotechnic touring display and each country has its own protocol. Cornacchia elaborated: “We work with our UK affiliates to ensure all procedures are adhered to and strictly followed. We ensure all distances from audience members are fire brigade approved and we set time for fire officer walk-throughs and demos,” Cornacchia highlighted. “We also ensure the venues understand the show we are bringing

27

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Bruno Mars

Below: The tour had a technical combination of stage construction from TAIT, lighting from VER in which Clay Paky and GLP featured heavily, an audio system from Clair and pyrotechnics from Las Vegas-based Pyrotek.

into their building with a presentation package, which details full descriptions of effects and stage plot placement.”

Moonshine Jungle required an adaptable performance environment that could convey a variety of visual undertones within one fully working set. Working under the direction of designers, Bennett and FitzGerald, and alongside PM Forman, TAIT was able to create just that.

The complete staging solution features an array of custom elements, including a flying video wall, scenic chevron wall, geometric ceiling panels and a bespoke mirror ball. TAIT’s Project Manager, Brian Levine said: “We were able to offer a fully-customised solution with optimised stock components; maximising value for the client.”

There were a total of five carpenters travelling on the road, headed by the very helpful Dana Vanella, who in between making us cups of tea, could be found skateboarding backstage and giggling in his California drawl.

He too already had an existing relationship with the tour’s PM. “I met Joel in 2008 on a Jonas Brothers tour; I’d work with him any day!” he smiled.

Before handling preproduction at the Bank of Kentucky Centre, Vanella went to TAIT’s HQ for a week, in Litiz, Pensilvania to help build the set.

“We did a few weeks of rehearsals and TAIT are 28

fantastic, day and night, they’ll help you out. For example, the power cycle in Europe is different to in the USA and we had trouble shooting with some motors because the power affected the drive units. When we couldn’t figure it out, they flew an engineer in from Litiz and it was resolved really quickly.”

TAIT’s magdeck mainstage was treated with a high-gloss finish and features band risers with gold-trim fascia and custom-made Chromlech Elidy bumpers that house LED tiles. A flying video wall powered by TAIT’s Navigator control system and hung from nine variable speed chain motors, creates a unique digital display. The video wall flies in and out of view, incorporating video content for Video Director, Steve Fatone, as needed. TAIT also provided two integrated mainstage lifts and a kabuki system.

Another key aspect of the set’s interchangeable design is a three-piece automated, chevron wall. Made up of 135 formed plastic Kydex shapes, the scenic wall created a refined, neo-retro vibe. TAIT engineered the element to be light enough to hang from a standard Austrian system. Adding to the cohesiveness and depth of the design, cubic shaped ceiling panels mimic the stage surface and offset the show’s lighting rig. At various times throughout the performance, the custom mirror ball, which measured in at 6ft in diameter, descended from a Navigator hoist

overhead. The interior-lit element is made up of a configuration of both mirrored tiles and empty slates that allow beams of light (created with the Clay Paky Sharpys) to blast through and deliver a spectacular retro disco effect to the entire arena audience.

RIGGING Art McConnell, Crew Chief for rigging vendor, SGPS, has gained his fair share of live production education having studied at various Universities in the USA.“I learnt about all aspects of live productions from stage combat, acting, vocal training to lighting design, stage carpentry, and theatrical rigging, he told TPi. “I ended up with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in acting from Florida State University, but my heart was set on what was required to hang the production.”

McConnell’s presence on this tour came through a recommendation, “I was working on the Sigur Ros tour in the Spring when I got a call from Joel Forman. He told me that his Stage Manager knew of a carpenter - as we’d worked together on the Lady Antebellum tour two years ago - and suggested Joel gave me a call.”

The Las Vegas HQ of SGPS has supplied all the chain motors and the motor power packages. It also supplied the cable bridge trusses, the mirror ball truss, and the video wall truss. The rig weighs over 41 tonnes, so for McConnell, he sighted his main concern is

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Bruno Mars

Below: PRG Nocturne supplied the tour’s video kit, the content was directed by Steve Fatone.

ensuring that each group of local riggers are working as safely and efficiently as possible.

“I have to be very detailed with our stage and rigging specs and with that, I advance our rigging plan with the local engineer, the lead rigger, and the promoter rep for each venue.

I also have to work in conjunction with these same people to make sure that our show weights are acceptable to hang and that these weights will be evenly distributed so the ceiling will not be overloaded,” he noted.

“We use CM Load Star motors ranging from 1/4 tonne Pro-stars, 1/2 tonne, one tonne and two tonne models. I have to hang 92 points all within a four-hour time slot each morning. We use SGPS 20.5ft Plus box trusses for our cable bridges and lighting torm Truss of which the 10ft, 8ft, 5ft and 4ft products are used.”

Continued McConnell: We also use SGPS 12ft mini-box truss for our kabuki truss (10ft and 8ft in length). We use SGPS 18 by 30ft Motor Grid Truss (MGT) for the video wall and mirror ball truss.

“This tour is wonderful to work on. I’ve made some good friends and hope to work with everyone again in the future. Regarding Bruno and the band, they are all really nice and they have a great time up on stage. They’re very talented and I enjoy listening to the show every night!”

CATERING Catering Supervisor, Emily Cribley, of Snakatak followed in her parents - Lisa and Frank’s 30

footsteps and has joined the family-established business, based in Sheffield, UK. TPi caught up with the friendly and bubbly Cribley during load-in at the O2 Arena.

“We’re working with and feeding the crew and band and it’s been a really nice experience.

Our food has had very good feedback so far!” she smiled.

“It’s a real mix of home cooked food, for example, chicken breast and brown rice for the really health conscious, whereas others will eat loads of anything and everything! Tonight we’ve got Cajun pepper grilled pork with white rice and onion sauce, turkey schnitzel with cranberry sauce, lime and chili tuna, black bean chili and a comforting gnocchi with a blue cheese sauce. We always do a red and a white meat, a vegetarian option and a pasta dish too, so there’s something on our menu for everyone.”

On the UK run, Snakatak has been feeding 70 people for breakfast, 70 for lunch and 100 for the pre-show evening meal. Continued Cribley: “We do five choices for dinner, three for lunch and a full breakfast range and we source food locally, so we have a local fruit and veg supplier, a butcher and a daily fresh produce intake.”

A city Cribley is looking forward to for its food reputation is the French capital: “We’ve been on the tour for about nine days so far, and we’re on the road untill the end of the European tour; we’ll be going to Paris next which will be brilliant for its local food.”

TRANSPORTATION The tour’s trucking is being handled by the EST division of Transam Trucking. With a crew of 12, the lead driver is Roger Thomas, who is coordinating the 12 16.5-metre trucks on the road. EST’s Ollie Kite said: “The itinerary is quite intense and will run from the first show in Belfast - which commenced on 30 September and will continue until 25 November in Newcastle, having been across Europe. There are some logistical challenges that need double or triple drivers but nothing out of the ordinary for a tour of this size and stature.”

On the bussing side, Beat The Street’s Joerg Philipp told TPi: “We have six buses out on this tour; one Starbus [a luxury double decker], one band bus and four crew buses. We’ll be providing the buses for the whole of the UK and European tour. Bruno, the band and the crew are all lovely people, they seem to be handpicked!”

Indeed they are, which is perhaps what makes this road team one of the year’s biggest creative, technological and commercial success stories.

TPi Photos: Cory FitzGerald and Kelly Murray www.clairglobal.com www.verrents.com, www.sgps.net www.nocturneproductions.com www.taittowers.com, www.pyrotekfx.com www.snakatakcatering.com www.beatthestreet.net www.transamtruck.com

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19/09/2013 18:19

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Peter Gabriel

TECHNOLOGIES OLD AND NEW UNITE IN PETER GABRIEL’S BACK TO FRONT TO CELEBRATE THE ANNIVERSARY OF THE RELEASE OF PETER GABRIEL’S SO ALBUM, THE IMAGINATIVE AND ADVENTUROUS ARTIST EMBARKED ON THE BACK TO FRONT TOUR OF EUROPE, FOLLOWING SUCCESSFUL DATES IN NORTH AMERICA. TPi SAW THE REVAMPED PRODUCTION AT THE O2 ARENA, PRAGUE, AND DISCOVERED HOW VINTAGE EQUIPMENT WAS COMBINED WITH CUTTING EDGE TECHNOLOGIES. Renowned for his visual innovation and creativity, Peter Gabriel’s live productions have entranced audiences for decades.

The artist’s latest tour pushes the technological boundaries once again, while commemorating the 25th anniversary of his much loved So album, played in its entirety with the original band, with whom he hasn’t performed alongside for a number of years.

Production Manager, Gary Trew, has worked his way up the ranks since starting out in the industry in the ‘70s. Trew has headed up the production team ever since he was introduced to the team by Tour Manager, Dave T, in 2009.

“There is a lot of loyalty in this team,” said Trew.

“Peter doesn’t like change and there is a core crew that has stuck with him for many years.

It’s a bigger production than your average tour - some artists only have a couple of trucks and a generic lighting rig, whereas Peter likes to experiment with new kit. For example, we’re the guinea pig tour for the brand new Solid State Logic SSL Live desks.”

Initial tour designs were discussed between Gabriel, Lighting Designer, Rob Sinclair, and 32

Trew. “It keeps you on your toes, working with someone like Peter who is known for being so innovative and creative - there’s never a dull moment and you’re always busy doing something,” said Trew. “Equipment such as 3D printers were used along with a lot of other modern technology and we are using scanners, which produce a 3D image on the screen.”

One of the key concepts behind the tour was to combine old and new technology, such as the boom arms from Gabriel’s original tour, which were positioned on a railway track. “This kit was modified and strengthened by Total Solutions to bring it up to date, but it’s the same equipment that was used 25 years ago,” said Trew. “Peter was interested in incorporating and modernising it by using cutting edge lighting fixtures on the end of the arms.”

“What Rob (Sinclair) does with the booms is an incredible bit of choreography and because they’re all manually operated it’s like a ballet using heavy machinery.”

Other striking elements of the production included a helix structure, made by Russell Beck Studio, and a kabuki incorporated in Quebec

City during rehearsals, and produced by Show Distribution.

Most of the show’s suppliers had been involved in previous Peter Gabriel productions.

Trew has worked with Neg Earth, which provided the lighting equipment and crew for the UK leg of the tour, for many years. “As usual, the kit was impeccably tidy and the crew all worked together well,” said the PM. “Similarly, Britannia Row has worked for Peter for years and also supplied our audio systems for South America so was pretty heavily involved all the way through. The L-Acoustics PA system is the same as has been used for Peter’s previous tours because our FOH Engineer, Ben Findlay, knows the gear he likes to spec.”

Video supplier Creative Technology also performed an important role throughout the tour, both on the US and UK legs. “CT has been with us since the New Blood tour in 2010 and some of its crew came to America where we will use local guys and then CT provides gear from its Chicago or London base; so we shipped a lot of kit over and took a container load of equipment from Creative Technology in the UK

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Peter Gabriel

Opposite: All visual content was live, whether it was based on cameras or graphics that responded to audio generated every night. Below: The boom arms, which featured in Gabriel’s original So production, were modified and strengthened by Total Solutions; Gabriel performed the So album in its entirety during the Back To Front tour.

and then married it up with the American LED system,” said Trew.

Stagetruck and Beat The Street are also longstanding suppliers, with three buses and seven trucks being provided for the Back To Front tour. “Both have been fantastic and because they worked for Peter and his crew for so long they know exactly how the whole tour operates,” continued Trew.

The experienced PM’s highlight is catching the show, which he refers to as “truly spectacular.” “That’s what gives you the buzz and makes all the hard work worth while,” he said. “We’ve sold out all the way through, which is great because you get such a great vibe when there’s not a spare seat.”

THE LANGUAGE OF TECHNICAL TOURING Rob Sinclair’s work on Gabriel’s South American tour in 2009 made such a lasting impression that he was brought back to design the orchestra tour in 2010, before creating the visual designs for the most recent production.

As a starting point, Lighting and Show Designer, Sinclair, along with Gabriel, decided to use the lighting boom arms that featured in the original tour in 1987. “It’s quite strange because it’s like remaking something that has existed before and I feel like I’ve been ordered to direct a new Star Wars movie,” said Sinclair, who worked closely with Lighting Crew Chief, Steve Kellaway and the rest of the lighting team.

Boom Captain, Pitso Pirie, oversaw the

movement of all boom arms. The new show was built without direct reference to the old production, but using the same tools. “We have used hardware that has been completely re-engineered with new technology, but tried not to refer back too much to what they’ve done before and so I consciously didn’t watch any videos of previous shows,” said Pirie.

The visual team wanted to incorporate LED screens and wanted to avoid using a large video wall sitting at the back of the stage. “Therefore the screen was buried behind a gauze, which works incredibly well because we’re able to make the screen disappear,” continued Pirie.

“We also made the decision not to have any pre-recorded repeating content. Everything had

KINGS OF LEON

BEYONCE ROBBIE WILLIAMS

MUSE LORD OF THE DANCE

ELTON JOHN ED SHEERAN

RUSH

CHEMICAL BROTHERS

BEADY EYE

MILOW

ALICIA KEYS

All filmed with Bradley Engineering equipment

+44 (0)1590 622 440 www.bradeng.com Picture courtesy of Blackcamsystems

33

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Peter Gabriel

Below: Gabriel is well known for his innovation and creativity; The new show was built without direct reference to the original production, but using some of the same tools.

to be live, whether it was based on cameras or graphics that respond to audio that was generated every night. Everything was software driven by a programme produced by our Lead Developer, Stefan Goodchild.”

A sizeable amount of work was required to ensure the backline fitted into the track, that the boom arms rolled on, around the stage. A week of rehearsals in Twickenham before the tour allowed the crew to work with stage layout and risers to see how cables would run underneath the track.

“Peter is incredibly involved from the first moment - he’s a very hard task master, but he also understands production and speaks the language of technical touring very well,” said Sinclair. “We had long meetings and he always looked at how things were progressing during the development stages.”

The show was organised into three parts - the first being similar to a rehearsal with the house lights on, the second being entirely monochrome and containing some of the more dramatic songs that fit well into a sometimes bleak world without colour. “For the So section (third section), when Peter performs the album in its entirety, we start to use colour, which is a good punctuation moment,” continued Sinclair.

“It also means this section feels very glossy and ‘80s at times. Holding off on using colour until this time helps a lot.”

One of the main fixtures used in the show was the Clay Paky Alpha Spot QWO 800 - 15 of which were placed on the end of the boom arms. As the boom is a counter weighted crane, it took a while for the crew to find a fixture that was bright and modern, but of the lowest possible weight. “Every kilo we put on the end of the boom meant we had to counterweight three kilos at the back,” explained the LD. “So the Clay Paky QWOs are 5kg lighter than other fixtures we were looking at. This means we have 50kg less counterweight and when the booms weigh a tonne, every kilo helps.”

Other fixtures used on the tour included 50 Martin Professional MAC Auras - chosen for the quality of light produced - and 26 Martin Professional MAC Washes, which Sinclair referred to as a trusty workhorse. The production also made use of a Philips Vari-Lite VL3500 Wash in a hole at the front of the stage, which was used for one cue, along with haze 34

from the Reel EFX DF-50 diffusion and fog effects from Martin Professional’s Jem ZR44 HiMass.

Sinclair used the Jands Vista to operate the lighting. “I know it so well that it was perfect for this tour,” he said. “It’s the one I am fastest at using. As we were very short of rehearsal time, speed of programming was of the essence. I’m working with cues because it’s a very well scripted, cue stacked show. It’s a fairly complicated production and as well as running the lighting I call all the boom cues and spotlights so it’s fairly busy for me.”

FORWARDING NEW TECHNOLOGY Video Director, James Liddiard, and Catalyst Programmer / Chief Technology Officer, Nev Bull, made up the video duo working on Back To Front. While Bull took care of the Catalyst and MA Lighting grandMA2 desk, Liddiard fed the server with camera feeds, which in turn fed the screens. Creative Technology employee Liddiard has been a part of the crew for four years, first working on the New Blood tour as an engineer. “Blue Leach originally directed the shows and designed the treatment and then worked closely with Nev to make sure the look of each song was perfect beforeI stepped in,” said Liddiard. “This show is interesting because there’s no actual content, it’s all generated live.

Also, because of the upstage LED, the video is quite a key part of the show and this all tied into the look, with the lights as an overall package opposed to just having IMAG.” The Back To Front production has evolved from the previous orchestra tour in terms of its visual aspect, which was slower and more steady. Visuals play a central role in Gabriel’s Back to Front tour, featuring on all but a few songs and with all content having been treated in some way. “This one is more radical and has a rock ‘n’ roll feel,” said Liddiard. “We have a variety of cameras so we sat down with Peter to see which effects he liked best. It’s always developing and moving forward - there are no two shows the same. Every day there will be a small tweak so it’s ever evolving.”

Bull continued: “We are pushing the Catalyst servers very hard, each server taking in five video sources and splitting these sources into 25 individual windows. The servers can take which ever camera source they need for the song

by switching the matrix themselves - all under Artnet control.”

A selection of cameras were utilised during the tour including Xbox Kinect cameras, three Sony D55’s, three Bradley Engineering remote heads and two Iconix minicams for the drums and keys. “It’s the first time I’ve used the Iconix and they’ve been great,” said Liddiard. “The three Bradley cameras are remote pan and tilt heads - we have one up in the roof on a motor that comes out for a couple of songs at special moments.

“There are also five big lighting booms and we have one on the end of those, which provides some nice shots. The third one is just upstage of Peter’s grand piano and gives us an across stage shot. I’ve used the Bradley Engineering models quite a few times and they’ve been out on most of the tours we’ve done with Peter because they are easy to use and rig.”

Bull added: “This was one of the trickiest shows video wise because we couldn’t have any prepared content. The song that uses the Xbox Kinect cameras is particularly interesting because it takes a constant 3D scan of the band members, then renders a 3D model on the screen. So that whole song has no real cameras, they are all virtual so you can pan around and move up and down live within 3D space. We can change the colour and make them into a mesh or dots or other textures.”

LED screens on stage comprised the Creative Technology-supplied Flyer 12, which was arranged in five columns across the back along with two regular IMAG screens left and right of the stage. “The Flyer 12 is great and we’ve been using the Panasonic DZ21Ks, which are really punchy projectors. CT has a lot of Flyer 12 because it goes out on a lot of gigs,” continued Bull. “For this show it’s quite a straightforward rig because it’s just five columns.”

The video system was bespoke from the ground up, having been designed by Liddiard and Bull to ensure it was a highly tourable system. Video world was mainly built around a Panasonic AV-HS450 switcher, sitting alongside an MX50, which was used to create ‘80s-looking effects. Another piece of vintage equipment - the Fairlight CVI video processor - which Gabriel had recovered from his studio, was also introduced. “It had been there for

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Peter Gabriel

Below: Xbox Kinect cameras took constant 3D scans of the band members and then rendered a 3D model on screen; The second part of the show was entirely monochrome.

the past 20 years and he asked if it could be incorporated into the tour,” said Bull. “We revamped it and built it into the system to work alongside the new equipment. Peter was keen for the old equipment to be used to recreate the ‘80s look and bring back an authentic old feel.

You can replicate a lot of this, but it’s nice to use the original equipment.”

Video control was carried out using four Catalyst media servers (two plus two backups), VDMX server for Quartz Composer effects and a bespoke software based media processing environment. “One machine is running a programme that takes in multiple lines of audio as separate channels and then react through

36

the video. It’s all reactive and there are multiple occasions when the audio triggers what happens on the LED screens,” Bull continued.

Visual innovation was also achieved using the Failtor - the creation of media artist and theatre technician, Karl Klomp. The ‘80s video test gear with unmarked dials was used to distort and break up the video signal and produce a shadowy, gnarly effect during one of the songs.

“It was great for me to see the rock ‘n’ roll side of Peter Gabriel’s live productions because I’d only worked on the orchestra versions of the songs,” said Liddiard. “I worked with him for three years before I heard Sledgehammer live. I don’t think you’d get away with half the things

we’re doing on a regular rock ‘n’ roll show, but because Peter is really into forwarding new technologies he’s keen to push the boundaries.

Working with Rob Sinclair is great too because he sees it all as one canvas - IMAG, stage, and lighting.”

SPECIALIST VIDEO EFFECTS Lead Developer, Stefan Goodchild, was tasked with creating a bespoke piece of software capable of producing unique video effects. The brief from Rob Sinclair was “no renders, no video and nothing that isn’t generated in realtime.” Goodchild and his team, who work with Sinclair regularly, spent a week prototyping ideas

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25/09/2013 12:14

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Peter Gabriel

Below: Audio Engineer, Richard ‘Dickie’ Chappell; Head Rigger, Steve Belfield; Production Manager, Gary Trew; Lighting Designer, Rob Sinclair; Band Monitor Engineer, Dee Miller; FOH Engineer, Ben Findlay; Catalyst Programmer, Nev Bull; RF Technician, Jimmy Nicholson; Stage Manager, Gary Currier; Video Director, James Liddiard; Kinesys / Helix Operator, Blane Dracup; System Technician, Adam Smith.

so they already knew one song would use Xbox Kinect cameras to generate wireframe figures.

Goodchild and James Acre built a custom show application framework in openFrameworks, which makes multi-track audio analysis data of various types and depth, and colour data from Kinect cameras, available to multiple custom visualisers.

“These would generally be for a particular song, or a section of a song’s visuals, these scenes are selectable and tweakable over Artnet, DMX, OSC or MIDI, so can integrate into most show setups,” said Goodchild. “We spent a considerable amount of time making sure the base framework was solid and reliable over many hours of use.”

On top of this framework, they built an application to generate a number of visual looks from live audio feeds. This ran on an Apple Mac Pro with a MOTU Audio interface and a second application was developed that ran on five Apple Mac Minis connected to Kinect cameras dotted over the stage, one for each musician. These were treated as virtual cameras during Red Rain, with the wireframe looks being tweaked live from an ArtNet MA Lighting grandMA2 lighting desk.

“Our aim was always to create something that felt like a plug and play appliance rather than a piece of software that needed constant attention by a specialist,” Goodchild continued.

“The main challenge was building a piece of reliable software in a short timescale that would survive night after night, generating complex visuals without crashing.”

38

Catalyst Programmer, Bull, continued: “The effect looks amazing. For example, during one song - No Self Control - a swarm of bees form Peter’s face on the screen and then break away again.”

INTEGRATING NEW TECHNOLOGIES TPi spoke to Jason Kelly, Product Manager for the Solid State Logic SSL Live console, to find out more about the desk’s features. The Back To Front tour was an important event for the company because it was the first full outing of the console, which was launched at Frankfurt’s ProLight + Sound in April.

“The console was designed from the ground up, specifically for the live environment,” said Kelly. “It needed to be flexible in lots of ways, from an audio processing perspective and a user interface perspective, and that’s what makes it really different from other consoles.”

When developing the desk, the team tried to ensure it was compact but user-friendly and flexible, while integrating new technologies.

“We have included multi-gesture touchscreens and designed specific components such as the full colour backlit buttons,” said Kelly. “The live console has been a longstanding project at SSL and there’s always been an undercurrent of pressure to release one. Feedback has been really positive, the more engineers that see it, the more people ask when they can take it out.

As we start to develop the software side of the product, the possibilities will increase even further. It’s been interesting to see how the three engineers on this tour are using the same

console, but in very different ways. I think this shows how the flexible design is fulfilling its potential.”

Gabriel had a lot of artistic input into the console - particularly on the interface side - because he was very interested in the psychology of how people interact with devices.

“The work he does with some of his start-up projects is focused on many new developing technologies,” continued Kelly. “For example, he was behind the Eyeconics feature, which allows an engineer to associate icon images and colours to channels on the mixer, this really speeds up recognition and navigation.”

Audio Engineer, Ben Findlay, has a background of working at Gabriel’s Real World Studios, where he recorded, mixed and produced records. This background has enabled him to become accustomed to the artist’s musical style, however, despite his familiarity with Gabriel’s work, the SSL Live console had a big impact when he mixed at FOH. He commented: “The desk is very scalable.

Peter’s shows tend to be fairly channel hungry, so being able to accommodate high channel counts easily was very useful, but the main thing I like about it, is that it sounds great. Very clean, lots of definition between the elements even in some of the more dense arrangements, elements that would normally be buried or masked, are audible.”

Findlay also found the dynamics and EQ on each channel very usable and he was a fan of the bright and clear graphics when using the touchscreen. “This operates with the same

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Come and get Me 013 LD I 2 6 5 3 4 9, -2 4 6 h t Boo ber 22 gas m Nove Las Venter Ce n o i t en C o nv

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Peter Gabriel

Below: The Fairlight CVI video processor - which Gabriel had recovered from his studio - was incorporated into the production; The tour’s MA Lighting grandMA2 desk; Video world was packed with technological delights; A Failtor - the creation of media artist and theatre technician, Karl Klomp - also featured in the show; The Back To Front tour marked the first outing of the Solid State Logic SSL Live desk.

functionality as an iPad and - as you would expect from SSL - there has been a lot of attention to detail paid to these components,” he said. “There is no third party plugin support so I am not using plugins as you or I would know them, however there is an effects rack carrying SSL’s interpretation of all the usual suspects.”

From the stage there were around 70 inputs, with six ambient mic inputs and various external inputs such as video playback and shout mics for LD Sinclair. “We are also recording the show using Avid Pro Tools for a video release so we will be recording all the coms that are used, so we can sift through the various commentaries from Peter’s engineer, Dickie, or the director or even the LD calling follow spots and booms. This takes the channel count up to about 90,” said Sinclair.

Findlay used four pieces of outboard Quantec Yard Stick for very long reverbs, a Bricasti M7 for Gabriel and the backing vocalists, a Sans Amp Rack mount distortion also for Gabriel’s vocals on a couple of songs, and a rack mounted Line 6 delay for vocals. “Peter’s main requirement is audibility, but he is also very fond of distortion,” explained the engineer. “All of the balances need tending - not necessarily big moves, just subtle changes to keep the focus of the melodic narrative present and understandable.”

TECHNICALLY FLAWLESS Audio engineer, Richard ‘Dickie’ Chappell, is

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more familiar with Gabriel’s monitor mix than anyone else, having working for the artist since the mid ‘90s in the studio and on the road. “I’ve mainly worked with Peter in live production and when we go on the road I’m the person who makes sure everything is technically flawless in his mix,” he said. “I sit down with Tour Manager, Dave T, and PM, Trew, and we figure out what we’re going to do with the music and what mics we will need.”

Like band monitor engineer, Dee Miller, and FOH Engineer, Ben Findlay, Chappell used the new SSL Live console from Solid State Logic, a company Gabriel purchased in 2005.

He commented on his experience of using the desk: “It sounds really good and from my experience it’s the next generation of console.

Ben Findlay and I have been at SSL for the past two months working on it and making tweaks.

It’s definitely new technology compared to the desks we were using before. As an engineer, consoles are your instrument and even though this is new I feel comfortable using it already.”

System Technician, Adam Smith, has also been impressed by the desk: “The SSL has been very stable, which is obviously a key factor. Its stability is something they’ve worked very hard on because they didn’t want it to go out on tour and fall over at an early stage.”

According to Chappell, Gabriel - who made use of Ultimate Ears - wants his monitor mix to be “inspiring”, so he mixes like he does in the studio, whereas band monitor engineer, Miller,

mixes to facilitate everybody on stage. “I mix to make it sound good for Peter so it’s a live running mix,” said Chappell. “I have a snapshot at the beginning and end and take snapshots as I work because everything changes with this show. This is particularly true because we start with an acoustic section, so when you build it up from the acoustic to electric section your mix changes. If Peter comes off stage not saying anything then you know you’ve done a good job!

“Peter really cares about the show and always wants to do the best performance. Every day after the show you get notes and even when you do the last performance of the tour he will give you notes because he cares about it.”

While Chappell created Gabriel’s mix, Monitor Engineer, Miller (Robert Plant, Led Zeppelin, Alison Krauss, Jeff Beck, Dave Gilmour), had a challenging task mixing monitors for the band, working with IEMs and wedges. Miller, who has worked with Gabriel for a decade, is comfortable working on tours such as on Back To Front, where he had to mix multiple musicians, and generate 30 mixes for both stereo in-ear monitors and wedges.

“Peter likes his technology and there’s a lot of cutting edge kit here - there always has been,” he said. “In-ears are critical because if the mix isn’t right it can really put people off so it’s always a challenge at big arenas that have less than ideal acoustics.”

Like the other audio engineers, Miller is also

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Peter Gabriel

Below: As always, LD, Rob Sinclair, used the Jands Vista to operate lighting; According to Monitor Engineer, Richard Chappell, one of the main discoveries on the tour was the Audix OM6’s; The boom arms were positioned on a railway track; Movement of a custom circular truss was controlled by Blane Dracup; The video team prepare for show time; Dramatic lighting effects were prominent throughout.

a fan of the SSL Live console, finding it to be a “very powerful tool with a very precise sound.”

A PROVEN SYSTEM TPi last met System Tech, Adam Smith, when he was touring with Florence + the Machine.

Working on behalf of Britannia Row, the PA expert has also been responsible for ensuring the audio was flawless on Robbie Williams’ tour and Gabriel’s previous New Blood production.

“For this tour we have a standard arena set-up - similar to the one on New Blood where we’ve implemented an L-Acoustics K1 main left and right system and side hangs.

The flown system is made up from a total of 52 K1 elements, 12 L-Acoustics K1-SB’s and 12 Kara elements as downfills. A third hang a side of Arcs is used for coverage beyond the 180º line,” said Smith. “We run left and right ground subwoofers consisting of nine L-Acoustics SB28’s a side and a centre ribbon of four, all of which are run in cardioid mode.

“A compliment of L-Acoustics Arcs are used as ground outfills with paired Kara across the front as front fills. The K1 is the current large format system of choice for both Peter’s productions and Brit Row, which has a long standing history with L-Acoustics equipment. It’s a proven system and one we have a great deal of experience working with,” he said.

For system EQ and alignment, the team ran a series of Lake LM 44 processors at FOH that transmitted onto a DANTE network to a total of six Lake LM 26 processors, three living either side of stage. “This is a fully redundant network, but with the added insurance of running analogue signal adjacent as back-up,” continued Smith. “LA Network Manager is used 42

for speaker management, additional system processing and over all control of the LA8 amplifier platform from FOH.” Also making an appearance in the infrastructure were new amplifier dollies from Britanna Row, which saved time in the build.

“We had them out in the summer in stadiums, but this is the first time we’ve taken them into an arena situation,” said Smith. “Having the ability to roll all your amps into position as one, patched and ready to go, is great and speeds the whole process up.”

HIGH LEVEL OF CONTROL Having worked on Gabriel’s live productions for the past few years, RF Technician Jimmy Nicholson, was aware of how RF intensive the artist’s shows are. “There is a lot of wireless equipment on this tour,” he commented. “We have 32 channels - 16 IEMs and 16 radio mics, most of the band and crew are wearing IEMs, and we have a six-way shout system with talkback mics to the crew IEMs, which is crucial for the smooth running of the show.”

The IEM systems were Sennheiser 2000 Series; all antennas, combiners and distribution amplifiers were also from Sennheiser and the radio mic receivers were Shure UR4D’s. The systems were chosen for their proven reliability, wide tuning bandwidth and “superb audio quality.”

The systems were all connected to an Ethernet network and controlled by a PC, running software from both Sennheiser and Shure. Nicholson’s PC workstation also included an Invisible Waves RF scanner from Kaltman Creations that allowed him to quickly scan the local conditions during the load-in and then

recalculate frequencies as necessary using the IAS software from Professional Wireless. Quick deployment of new frequencies was achieved using the built-in infrared sync feature of both the IEM and radio mic systems.

Radio mics were a mix of Shure UR2 handheld transmitters with Audix OM6 capsules, and UR1 and UR1M beltpacks for instruments and headset microphones, which were Shure Beta 54’s. Other microphones being utilised on tour included DPA 4099’s on the accordion, Audix OM6’s for wired vocal mics and three Audix SCX 25a in the piano.

Gabriel’s Monitor Engineer, Chappell, praised the microphones that had been chosen for the tour: “Our main new discovery on this tour was using Audix mics - they sound really good on the vocals so they are all on OM6’s now and we like them so much we’re using them on the Shure handheld systems too. We’ve also chosen some Sennheiser 409’s for the guitars.”

AUTOMATION WITH IMPACT According to Kinesys / Helix Operator, Blane Dracup (Robbie Williams, U2, Rolling Stones), while there wasn’t an excessive amount of automation in the show, it made an impact when it was deployed. Dracup controlled the movement of the custom circular truss (built by Total Solutions), above the middle of the stage, using a Kinesys system controlled by Vector to reveal a custom-built helix-shaped structure and a kabuki that then drops to reveal Gabriel.

“As automation isn’t used throughout, this means it would be more noticeable if there were to be a problem, especially regarding the set pieces the motor control reveals,” said Dracup. “it needed to be spot on and there was no room

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Peter Gabriel

for error. The artist was standing underneath, so safety was paramount.

“The main event is the second to last song - Tower - when the specialist helix and kabuki comes down to leave Peter stood in the middle, with a camera shooting straight downwards.”

Although Dracup has used a variety of automation systems, he has found Kinesys to be the most reliable and readily available. “It’s simple to use and easy to set up, whereas many predecessors were finicky and unreliable,” he said. “For a tour like this, Kinesys is the only way to go. I like how straightforward it is and how easy it is to repeat what you’re doing every day.

I don’t have to spend time setting things up for different trim heights so it’s really designed for touring.”

Health and safety was at the forefront for Dracup, who double-checked any equipment that rose above the ground and moved. “You need to ensure the bolts are done up, safety pins are in and the Kinesys has safety switches so if anything goes wrong it can be halted,” he said. “Where I set up my control I have full view of everything and if Peter is not stood in exactly the right place or other band members are in the way I won’t move anything.”

A TECHNICALLY AMBITIOUS TOUR For a complex and technically ambitious production such as Back To Front to run

smoothly, a talented Stage Manager needs to be in place. Gary Currier last toured with Gabriel in 1993 and was delighted to rejoin the production crew as Stage Manager for 2013’s show.

“Although I have worked on his tours before, this is the first time I have been with some members of this specific crew so I work closely with PM Gary Trew because he knows everybody here,” he explained.

Currier’s main task was to make sure the crew worked together so unity could be achieved.

He also needed to guarantee all equipment loaded in and out on time, while liaising with all involved. “Even though there’s not a lot of lighting kit up in the air, it’s challenging in some respects because of the nature of the show and the movement that takes place on stage,” he said.

Rigging responsibilities were equally crucial to the success of Back To Front, requiring the expertise of Steve Belfield, who has enjoyed a 15-year career working with the likes of Robbie Williams, Kylie and Queen. “I originally worked on Gabriel’s production in the lighting department because I get most of my work through Neg Earth’s Dave Rigdeway,” he said.

“I came to the US last year because I do a lot of automation work with the company and then moved on to rigging for this tour.”

A total of 12 riggers were used at each venue, with eight up and four down - although

more were required for the show at Prague’s O2 Arena TPi attended. The rigging team normally started marking out at 7am, with all points up by 10am. “It doesn’t take too long because there aren’t a huge amount of points to go up, but there’s a lot that happens underneath,” he said.

“Dee and his monitor world roll in one side and then we have all the boom equipment too. We need to make sure the points go up quickly so everything can get into place.

The art of being a good production rigger is advancing everything properly so the days are straightforward with no surprises.”

Belfield echoed the sentiments of many members of the crew when he concluded: “This really is an excellent team across all departments and it’s so enjoyable to be working with the nicest artist in the industry.”

TPi Photography: Zoe Mutter and Rob Sinclair https://petergabriel.com/ www.britanniarow.com uk.ct-group.com www.negearth.co.uk www.stagetruck.com www.trussing.com www.kinesys.co.uk www.russellbeckstudio.co.uk www.beatthestreet.ne http://triplegeek.com

oS Peter Gabriel hcuS Creative Technology UK USA

Germany UAE

China Singapore Holland Qatar

+44 (0) 1293 582000 music@ctlondon.com www.ctlondon.com

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PRODUCTION PROFILE: Massive Attack V Adam Curtis

MASSIVE ATTACK V ADAM CURTIS DEFINITELY ONE OF THE LIVE HIGHLIGHTS OF THE YEAR - FILMMAKER AND JOURNALIST ADAM CURTIS’ INTENSE COLLABORATION WITH LIVE DANCE MASSIVE ATTACK, IS VISCERAL, EMOTIONAL WORK THAT IS CHALLENGINGLY CEREBRAL AND STRUCTURALLY LIBERATES. IT INVITES THE AUDIENCE TO OPEN THEIR MINDS AND EXPLORE NOTIONS OF HOW OUR WORLD IS SHAPED THROUGH MANAGED SCENARIOS. LOUISE STICKLAND SAW THE TOUR IN MANCHESTER, ENGLAND AND DRUISBURG, GERMANY TO EXPERIENCE THE ART SHOW IN ALL ITS GLORY. The power of data and information, its manipulation, life’s chaos factors and coincidences and the inextricable links between them is just part of what it meant to see this production. How the balance of power can so easily shift from one set of beliefs to another, a composition of omnipresent and uncomfortable reminders of the parallels existing at polarised extremes of democraces and their abilities to present mediated societies and belief systems is something every memeber of the crowd was forced to engage with.

Massive Attack are well known for their politics, innovative application of technology and unique performance concepts, but it took some serious creative balls to present this work and keep 2,000 people enrapt for 90 solid minutes of sonic and visual immersion - still leaving room for individual thought.

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Massive Attack V Adam Curtis was the brainchild of Adam Curtis and Massive Attack’s Robert ‘3D’ Del Naja, an ambitious sound and visual art installation, made all the more intriguing by Curtis threading through snapshots of the lives of some extraordinarily talented and enigmatic individuals - Pauline Boty, Jess Marcum, Yegor Letov, Yanka Dyagileva and more… All adding an almost tabloid style touch of human fascination.

A huge atmospheric layer was added by Massive Attack’s gritty, bass-tastic underlining grooves and Liz Frazer’s haunting, uneasy vocals - something only a ‘live’ band and set could bring to the equation. The work was commissioned by the Manchester International Festival (MIF) together with the Ruhrtriennale International Festival of the Arts and The Armouries in New York.

TPi saw the world premiere in Manchester

with the production squeezed into the charismatic Mayfield Depot, beneath the derelict old Mayfield train station. Chillingly fabulous though that was, in the Kraftzentrale at Duisburg’s Landschaftspark, the show had a chance to fill the proper sized production space for which it was designed.

Overlooked by the towering majestic hulk of the former Meiderich ironworks, of which the venue was once a part, there was still a historical industrial setting to the whole experience.

TECHNICAL PRODUCTION The production team was led by the wonderfully approachable Project Manager David Lawrence and Technical Production Manager James Baseley both of whom have worked for Massive Attack (as TM and PM respectively) for some time.

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Massive Attack V Adam Curtis

Opposite: The show was billed as more of an art installation than a live gig. Below: XL Video deployed several video elements for the production.

Lawrence is also involved with MIF as a Project Manager, and both were employed directly by the festival to produce the event at the Mayfield Depot, disused since the 1980’s.

Next stop was Duisburg, and then New York - where it will have turned a few heads! The production design concept of 270º video projection with the band behind screens at one end and audience in the middle, was originated

by London-based United Visual Artists (UVA) in another of its master-mixes of cutting-edge, cool technology and style.

Once this spookily raw environment was established, the evolutionary process of developing the show and the necessary technical production to achieve the end result began. It was “collaborative in every sense of the word,” explained Lawrence. It was also very organic. Although the basic skeleton of the show was in place - as well as in Curtis’ and 3D’s heads - it was only during the pre-production week at Mayfield that the final version properly evolved. From there, it was further fine-tuned for Duisburg, which included recording the allimportant narrative commentary in German (the English version is Curtis himself).

Integral to the whole process were the equipment contractors. HSL supplied the

lighting, XL Video the video and visuals, Wigwam the audio and UK Rigging undertook all the rigging. Lawrence commented: “Everyone embraced the art meets rock ‘n’ roll vibe. I have worked with most of these suppliers for around 10 - 15 years, and once again they all really got behind the project - we were on a tight budget - and were completely instrumental in making it happen so successfully.”

The individuals heading up each department Lighting Designer Tim Oliver, Visuals Director Icarus Wilson-Wright and FOH Sound Engineer Shan Hira and their crews, also had a particular passion for the show.

It was something different and something that made a difference - everyone was immensely proud of that. Their combined skills, knowledge and experience all helped to produce some serious production magic.

Everyone helped deliver the show in three very different locations, where getting the presentation spot-on was absolutely crucial to the impact of the performances.

VIDEO Icarus Wilson-Wright has worked with Massive Attack for the last decade and was asked back again to oversee the video element and

programme the d3 Technologies media server, a product that also has a long association with the band and their penchant for ground-breaking live visuals.

UVA modelled all three venues and calculated the projector positions in the d3s on-board visualisation programme, so there were no big surprises on that front when they reached the sites.

The full size set up consisted of eleven 10 9-metre gauze screens in 4:3 format, stretched floor to ceiling, four down each side of the space and three across the ‘top’, covering the stage, with the band positioned behind.

These were fed by 12 Barco HDF-W26 projectors fitted (in Duisburg) with .67 lenses, including one doubled up pair at the stage end, all rigged at angles onto a 80ft long by 20ft wide box truss in the roof above the audience.

The projectors were networked using Barco’s Projector Toolset, and were chosen for their brightness and reliability, with the necessary keystone and perspective correction all completed internally.

Two d3 Technologies media servers, utilising the latest hardware, were used to store and deliver Curtis’ film.

Each projector was individually fed with 45

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Massive Attack V Adam Curtis

Below: The production team which got the show on the road from the UK to mainland Europe and on to the East Coast of America L-R: Icarus Wilson-Wright, Shan Hira; Tim Oliver; Ritchie Jewell; Euan Dickinson; Dave Lawrence.

signal by Kramer fibre transmitters via a Lightwave Dual Link eight by eight DVI matrix, networked into the d3 servers. Three Datapath X4 devices split the 2048 by 1536 image into four 1024 by 768 segments which were output to each projector.

It was triggered by SMPTE timecode generated by the band and output via their QLab control system running onstage, overseen

by Gizmo (Oliver Twiby) along with all the clicks and playback tracks coming from the ProTools system, run by Massive Attack’s Studio Engineer, Euan Dickinson. Upstage of the band were 96 tiles of Barco I-12 LED screen configured as a 16 tile wide and 12 high 4:3 format screen to mirror the projection surfaces, hung on one of the imposing industrial cranes that was once part of the Meiderich ironworks’ production line.

This screen was also fed by selected content from the d3 servers, and mimicked the almost hallucinogenic appearance of the band behind the screens from time to time, as they were revealed by clever and precise lighting and grainy surveillance camera images.

Four Sony mini-cams were positioned to pick 46

up band members and singer Liz Fraser, cued via the timeline of the appropriate songs. The video system was designed for all three venues, but due to the reduced width, lower trim height and rows of pillars running down the middle of the Mayfield Depot, several compromises were needed to make it work. Wilson-Wright worked closely with projectionist Richie Jewell, and XL Video’s Project Manager Gareth Jeanne.

challenging productions, so this ticked many boxes!

From a lighting standpoint, much of it was about reinforcing the drama and atmosphere of the piece, revealing the band at strategic moments but always so they complemented the images onscreen while also reminding viewers that it’s a live performance... And they are not listening to a backing track.

“It’s about creating light and dark, getting inside people’s heads - just like the film does”

LIGHTING Tim Oliver has designed lighting for several previous Massive Attack art projects and also worked with Liz Fraser last year (with WilsonWright on visuals). His background is in theatre and he really enjoys working on off-beat and

“It’s about creating light and dark, getting inside people’s heads - just like the film does,” he explained. In Duisburg the main FOH lighting positions were on the same central box truss housing the projectors, with 12 Martin Professional MAC 3 profiles, eight Atomic

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Massive Attack V Adam Curtis

Below: Adam Curtis created a world of in-depth thinking for the whole audience to get to grips with; The show was designed for just 2,000 to enjoy at any one time, with a strict capacity enforced.

strobes and 34 1.2K fresnels, utilised purely for house lights. Behind the gauzes around the auditorium were 44 Martin Professional MAC 2K XBs, 32 stationed behind the side screens and 12 upstage of the band gauzes onstage.

Lighting the band behind their screens were 12 Martin Professional MAC Performances for band keys and additional rear light on the screens, complemented with six Robe Robin MMX WashBeams for back lighting the band and the gauzes, bringing a layer of additional depth to

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the visual picture.

He also focussed 22 ETC Source Four Profiles with 14Âş lenses around the band for supplementary key and highlights. Fifteen 650W fresnels, all on the floor, were the sources for some very effective silhouettes and shadows.

The floor fixture count was completed with five Atomics, one behind each band member and five Lowell Omni floods for wide backlight beaming onto the band, plus two 650W fresnels at the front of stage to pick up the vocalists‌

So a reasonable size lighting rig for a masked band.

The lighting treatment needed to be extremely careful. It matched the often stark and contrasty film images, which included some fascinating, disturbing, priceless and classic TV clips and news archives - Curtis has worked closely with the BBC throughout his career.

There was also the odd comic element just to disarm people - the one where Donald Trump was asked if he counted all his money kept me

Wacken Open Air Festival, Germany www.dbaudio.com

30 years of fun, obstinacy and neutral sound: d&b is d&b.

They say that d&b have built a selection of remarkable sound reinforcement systems in the course of time. All of them efficient tools for sound engineers, not forgetting the rental companies as well as the artists. Whatever: d&b as usual.

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Massive Attack V Adam Curtis

Below: Martin Professional Mac 3’s were controlled by an MA Lighting grandMA2 for the lighting design, supplied by HSL.

sniggering for days!

The band appeared and disappeared from view seamlessly, almost as if they were spliced into the film.

The audience lighting was used only in a few key moments, but it had real impact, scooping everyone up further into the action. Strategic hazing also helped ramp up the atmosphere and bring a cinema feel to the space. Oliver ran the show from a MA Lighting grandMA2 lighting console utilising two NPUs. He commented: “The support from HSL has been fantastic, especially for Manchester,” where the spec was fluid until late on as the ‘work in progress’ gradually emerged into the final show.

HSL’s Project Manager was Mike Oates and the crew in Duisburg were made up of Crew Chief John Slevin, Stuart ‘Wales’ Picton on dimmers, Rob Gardner and John Trincas.

SOUND “This is the hardest show I have ever had to mix,” declared FOH engineer Shan Hira, adding quickly that he’s really enjoyed pushing himself and also working with Adam Curtis, who had some very clear ideas about how audio should be applied. This was also his first show for Massive Attack, although he’s worked with David Lawrence before on The Streets.

He chose a d&b audiotechnik J-Series PA system for its quality and unobtrusiveness, which in Duisburg was configured as main left and right hangs of eight J8 elements and two 50

J12 downs, with four Q7’s for infills behind the front screens. Six d&b audiotechnik J-SUBs were positioned under the front of the stage with three extra subs a side at the front of stage firing down both sides of the room.

The delays were eight V8 per side plus a centre hang of three more J-SUBs. On the floor were four stacks of three subs a side behind the side screens, which were 3D’s idea, blasting directly into the audience adding more low end energy and drama for special effects during Chernobyl, 9-11 and other apocalyptic parts of the movie The system was fine tuned to perfection by systems engineer Nick Mooney.

was the vocal glue pulling many tangential fragments of information together and as such, absolutely crucial. Then there were a number of FX channels for rumbles, crashes, bleeps, noise and other extraneous chaos and eight channels of underscored strings and moody background music.

Then there were the band channels - drums, E drums, bass, guitar and 3D’s Prophet keyboard and vocoder and the five different vocals.

He used eight on-board effects on the Avid Profile plus a selection of outboards including a Lexicon 480 reverb across all the vocals, one of his favourites, using two engines one for male and one for female vocals.

“The audience lighting was used only in a few key moments, but it had real impact, scooping everyone up further into the action…”

Hira spec’d an Avid Profile console because it was “the right tool for the job,” which involved a lot of automation and 32 ProTools channels.

Eight of these were used for the band’s clicks, and the 24 audio channels comprised ‘archive’ channels running audio and dialogue from the vintage footage and clips contained in the film plus a stereo channel for the narration, which

Avalon 737 compressors were applied to all the vocals and a Rupert Neve 5045 Primary Source enhancer on Liz and 3D’s vocals to boost the levels. Inserted across the main outputs were XTA graphics and a Summit DCL 200 stereo compressor. The 60 odd snapshots in the show were fired by a Rosendale timecode reader, and in addition to the automated

NEWS FOCUS: Massive Attack V Adam Curtis

Below: The German venue allowed the show to be seen in its intended environment.

elements, he also had plenty of intricate work to do live on the faders, to achieve the optimum mix.

Of the 27 live tracks played out by the band, two were Massive Attack songs - ‘Safe From Harm’ and ‘Karmacoma’ - the rest were covers. This - together with the whole concept - was a surprise to some audience members, particularly in Manchester, with some people expecting a Massive Attack gig rather than an art installation. Adam Curtis was mistaken for a DJ on more than one occasion. On the stage end, Monitor Engineer Paul Hatt also enjoyed the challenges of his first gig with Massive Attack.

He used a Soundcraft Vi6 console which he likes for its analogue feel and layout and warm preamps. All the band techs onstage were running Soundcraft’s ViSi Remote App on their iPads enabling them to fine tune their own monitor mixes so Hatt could concentrate on the band, who were all on a Sennheiser IEM system together with the four tech mixes. They mainly used Ultimate Ears UE11 moulds with the quad drivers.

Liz’s vocal mic was a DPA D:facto II, which Hatt reckons is 52

“brilliant” sounding and ideal for delicate voices. From the technical production angle what makes the whole Massive Attack v Adam Curtis experience that much more special, is that although hugely successful, it clearly wasn’t a commercial venture.

It was down to the dedication, imagination and technical ingenuity of David Lawrence, James Baseley and their creatives and crew - as well as the vision of Adam Curtis and 3D… To deliver a hugely provocative, mind stimulating experience in three dynamic venues.

You can take away so much from MAVAC, but the scariest thing is the ultimate clarity of the relationship between information, fear and power. Stunned and exhausted frOm the onslaught…

The audience stumble out of the back of the long building to be seen off by barking guard dogs in complete darkness, dissected only by a single scanning searchlight.

TPi www.massiveattack.co.uk www.mif.co.uk www.hslgroup.com www.wigwamacoustics.co.uk www.ukrigging.net www.xlvideo.tv

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04-10-13 08:59

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Fleetwood Mac

FLEETWOOD MAC RETURNS WITH OUTSTANDING LIVE CREATION THE LATEST REUNION APPERANCES FROM ONE OF ROCK ‘N’ ROLL’S MOST ICONIC GROUPS, FLEETWOOD MAC, OFFERED AUDIENCES PRODUCTION PERFECTION, HIT AFTER HIT AND CHRISTINE MCVIE’S FIRST STAGE APPEARANCE WITH THE BAND FOR 15 YEARS. TPi FOUND OUT HOW TECHNICAL AND CREATIVE EXPERTISE ENSURED THE BAND’S GREATEST HITS TRIUMPHED IN A LIVE ENVIRONMENT. Appealing to music lovers of all ages, the extensive - 17 album-strong - back catalogue of Fleetwood Mac has had an undeniable impact on the industry. So it came as no surprise that when the legendary artists announced they were venturing out for the Fleetwood Mac Live 2013 World Tour the buzz created was nothing short of phenomenal.

From The Chain, which drove the crowd into a frenzy at the beginning of the set, to the ethereal Dreams, the evening TPi attended was full of musical masterpieces. But the creativity and talent extended far beyond the band’s performance, to every aspect of the visually magnificent and sonically stunning show. TPi may have missed Christine McVie’s appearance when she joined her original band members on stage at London’s O2 Arena, but the performance at Phones4u Arena in Manchester was still full of impact and met with a rapturous response.

Production management duties for Fleetwood Mac’s 2013 outing were taken on

by Bill Leabody, who TPi last met at Stade de 54

France for Coldplay’s Mylo Xyloto tour. He was supported by Production Coordinator, Mindi Pelletier (Dixie Chicks, Tori Amos, Stevie Nicks), who revealed some of the tour’s back story: “This has a lot more to it in terms of production than other shows I’ve worked on. We bring everything with us - staging, video and lighting, whereas on some tours you just show up. The stage is already there and you have a limited amount of light, video and audio. But this has all been made easy because everyone is top of their game - we couldn’t have asked for a better team.”

Fleetwood Mac had a lot of input into all aspects of the show during the pre-production process and rehearsals at Sony Studios in LA. This tour saw many return vendors such as PRG, Clair Brothers and Chaos Visual Productions.

“For this particular tour there are many familiar faces on the crew too. As far as the design goes, when you have multiple artists like this you have to get them all to agree on the budget because that dictates how big a design you have so this was a crucial part of the process.”

Pelletier and the other team members

heading up the production team were impressed by all suppliers involved in the tour: “PRG has been involved in the Fleetwood Mac world for a very long time and its service is always good,” said Pelletier. “They get the whole process and are top of the list as far as lighting companies go. Clair Brothers is probably the number one larger touring audio company and has also supplied the band for a long time, similar to Chaos Visual Productions, whose services we have been really impressed by.”

Challenges on the road included the smaller size of some venues, which made getting the stage close enough to the front row difficult.

“Guitarist and vocalist, Lindsey Buckingham, likes for it to feel intimate for the crowd in the front row so we needed to make sure we could accommodate that with the stage and barricade. Most of the venues we have played are acceptable of this size of production though,” she continued.

A LONGSTANDING RELATIONSHIP Audio Engineer, Dave Kob, has mixed Fleetwood Mac’s live performances on and off for 30 years,

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Fleetwood Mac

Opposite: The latest outing marks the first time the band has been out on the road since 2009’s sold-out Unleashed tour. Below: This year is also the 35th anniversary of the Rumours album, one of the most successful in recording history.

having also worked with artists such as Lionel Richie, Alicia Keys, Pink and on Stevie Nicks’ solo tours.

“As always, I am an unrepentant ‘analoguesaurus,’ so I prefer analogue consoles and am still using my trusty Yamaha PM5000 mixing desk for most of it and then I have auxiliary inputs on an Avid Venue desk,” Kob said. “The Yamaha is the standard analogue desk I use for just about everything - it sounds great and is very reliable.”

As Kob believes the console produces an incredible sound, he doesn’t require much outboard, as he explained: “The main thing is my Summit Audio TLA-100 compressors that I use on the vocals, but I also use three dbx 160’s for patching instrument channels and for effects I have a Lexicon 480L, TC Electronics Delay, a Yamaha SPX2000 for drums and also make use of the Lake signal processing through the Lab. gruppen PLM 20000Q amplifiers [with in-built Lake processing] we have from AudioRent Clair in Switzerland,” he said. “There are a few very simple delays on Lindsey’s songs and some reverbs for a couple of Stevie’s, but by and large they are just playing straight rock ‘n’ roll.”

The engineer worked with around 80 inputs, with all mixing being carried out on the fly.

“This channel has flying faders and you can mute channels so I have that programmed for

every song to give me a starting point.”

Kob is happy to be working with the Clair i5 system as the main PA, having worked with Clair since 1974. “There is a longstanding relationship and we’re still together after 40 years,” said the engineer. “Clair has been with Fleetwood Mac since the ‘70s exclusively too.”

Microphones used for the tour included a beyerdynamic TG-X80 for Nicks, AudioTechnica for Buckingham, Shure SM57’s on snare and a beyerdynamic 201 on the snare under. Additionally, Sennheiser 421’s were used on toms, AKG 451’s on the hi hat, Milab M96 on the overheads, AKG 414 on the gong and Sennheiser 612 in the kick drum.

“Every venue is different when you’re working in audio and that’s where the experience comes in. When you enter the building you need to decide how many loudspeakers to put up, where to aim them and tune the building to be able to judge how filling it up with people will change it so you don’t over EQ it,” said Kob. LOWEST LATENCY OPTION Due to the large number of inputs, two monitor engineers were required for the tour - David Coyle and Ed Dracoules. “Half the band uses wedges and half use in-ears so the compromise was to split responsibilities so Ed mixes all the

wedges and I do all the in-ears,” said Coyle (U2, John Mayer, Stevie Nicks). “The only person who is exempt from that is Mick Fleetwood who uses in-ears and wedges.”

A total of 54 mixes were produced in monitor world, with 132 inputs needed for FOH and monitor mixes. Dracoules preferred using the full size Avid Venue, whereas Coyle opted to use the DiGiCo SD10. He explained: “This band has listened to analogue for a very long time and although digital has been around for a long time, they prefer analogue and the DiGiCo SD10 has the lowest latency. So it takes less time for the computer to process the sound and push it back out. There are no issues with analogue so we picked the SD10 because it was the most comfortable for Stevie and offered the lowest latency.”

Future Sonics MG5’s were chosen for IEMs, which, according to the engineer, impressed Nicks with the analogue sound produced. Two types of loudspeakers were on stage - Clair R4 three-way boxes for sidefills and 12AMs for the wedges. When it comes to wedges, the artists required the mix to be loud, explained the engineer. “Stevie really likes to listen to the album so what it came down to, was the effects and the way the album is mixed. She wanted the live version to sound like it did in the studio.

She constantly asked me to listen to the studio

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PRODUCTION PROFILE: Fleetwood Mac

Below: The tour production design was created by Paul ‘Arlo’ Guthrie; Drummer, Mick Fleetwood; Guthrie wanted to produce a design that looked modern, but had the ability to light the band and set in a traditional theatrical fashion; The view from FOH, amongst a packed venue.

piece so the biggest requirement was making it sound like the album each night.”

A HIGH QUALITY POWERFUL SYSTEM Clair Brothers’ Dave Moncrieffe took on the responsibility of System Technician for the tour, working with other members of the audio team - Donavan Friedman, Ricky Avila, Megan Tempio, Hannes Dander and the tour’s FOH and monitor engineers.

“We build our own PA system so it was only natural for us to take one of our systems out - the Clair i5,” he said. “The system comprises a main array of 16 deep i-5’s and i-5b’s, which is a bass extension cabinet. There is also a side hang of 10 i-5’s and a rear hang of i-DLs, which is a smaller array and are arranged eight deep in that array.”

The system also featured six Clair iMicro loudspeakers - a smaller line array - underneath the lip of the stage and then two stage wings to provide the nearfill. “Since the PA has a lot of bass in it anyway we have three powered subs, CP-18’s in a cardioid configuration downstage centre just to fill in a little bass in the front few rows,” he continued.

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“Everything is top quality and well powered and we’re using digital amplification so the entire system runs on those two racks and Lake processors are in the amplifiers.”

Moncrieffe used an Opto-Logic electronic measuring device to measure the length and width of the room in different tiers, before taking it into Clair AlignArray which presents an acoustic plot and displays the acoustic output of the system per speaker. “It gives me the ability to dial amplifiers should I need to keep things as loud at the back as they are at the front for even coverage,” he added.

A TRADITIONAL THEATRICAL FASHION Production design for the tour was placed in the capable hands of Paul ‘Arlo’ Guthrie of Minneapolisbased Toss Film & Design, whose past credits include Sheryl Crow, Chris Isaak and Kanye West. After lighting Stevie Nicks’ 1999 tour, he lit the 2003 Fleetwood Mac Say You Will tour along with Curry Grant, before designing the full production for the 2009 and current tour.

“I wanted something that

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Fleetwood Mac

Below: Lighting Director, Richard Locklin; FOH Engineer, Dave Kob; Video Director, Jerry McReynolds; Monitor Engineer, David Coyle; System Technician, Dave Moncrieffe; Production Coordinator, Mindi Pelletier; Head Rigger, Russel Glen; Stage Manager, Bjorn Melchert; Head Carpenter, Patrick Boyd.

looked modern, but still had the ability to light the band and set in a traditional theatrical fashion,” he said. “There can be no haze or smoke with Fleetwood Mac so that dictates a lot right off the bat and the lighting can’t upstage the band so it has to be subtle and supportive. Right from the beginning we knew the band wanted to sell all around the sides so it needed to be very open so they could sell every last seat to 270°.

“I have to cater to four different personalities and bring them together as one team,” he explained. “For this show we have four big soft box panels and 32 Clay Paky Sharpy Wash 330 on curved lighting pipes, some of them on the floor, some on the rigs and some in pods that come out. They hang on weird angles and move during the show - some are on 45º, 90º and 120º angles. They’re well featured - the main workhorse washlight of the rig.”

The lighting design comprised 26 PRG Best Boy 4000’s for key and set lighting, which Guthrie refers to as “the Rolls Royce of lights” and a fixture that does everything “precisely and beautifully.” A total of 40 GLP Impression X4’s were then chosen for LED effects and washes, which - like all the other fixtures - were supplied

by PRG. Guthrie had become an early adopter of GLP’s pioneering LED technology, using the original Impression 90’s soon after they were released and moving onto the Impression 120 RZ Zooms in 2010, when Sheryl Crow went on tour. Guthrie commented: “This was the first time I had used these fixtures and loved the pixel effect in the face of the lamp. I had some X4’s rigged high in the mother grid - for overhead effects, 16 on an upstage truss to provide upstage wash and also tone a white drape that is used for the middle section of the show and then some on the floor under the band risers. They integrate perfectly with the conventional 1200W and 1500W fixtures.”

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Stage wash and beam effects were then created using 32 Clay Paky Sharpy Wash 330’s, which Guthrie believes are capable of cutting through to provide aerials as well as a beautiful even stage wash. These were joined by 24 Philips Vari-Lite VL3000’s for layering and a further two, manually operated as truss spots along with six Philips Vari-Lite VL3500 Wash FXs for upstage floor lights. An additional eight PixelRange PixelLine 110’s were selected for set lighting with 72 DWE blinders chosen for impact.

Guthrie said: “I tried to design a rig that moves and has dynamic elements so I can change the look of the show. I chose the Sharpy Washes because I needed something small and bright. I was curious to see if I could use them as a beam effect without any haze - the band doesn’t like to work in haze.”

He discovered that “the beam reads really well in just the atmosphere. With their great wash capability they’re equally good as a tuning light that adds to the theatricality of the show.”

Guthrie mixed using an MA Lighting grandMA2 full size, which was his first choice due to its reliability and his familiarity with the console. “I programmed the show on my own board as it’s convenient and easily handles controlling everything we throw at it.”

The lighting designer brought his own MA Lighting grandMA2 full-size on tour to run “the whole show” and reported that “it’s working as good as it always has. It’s super comfortable; it’s like hanging out with an old friend each day.

My grandMA2 is more than capable of running everything, including the video.”

Lighting operation duties were then resumed

by Lighting Director, Richard Locklin, who has worked with the likes of Paul Simon, Sting and Bob Dylan during his 36-year career. “Having impact for an audience in an arena-style setting is important because this band brings a lot of

energy that really needs to be supported by the lighting,” he said. “The design Guthrie created is very tasteful and creative and produced impact without overpowering. Live production is important with artists like this because their music is so emotional and has meaning for many members of the audience at a certain time in their life.”

Although the MA Lighting grandMA2 console was chosen by Guthrie, Lighting Director, Locklin found it to be a natural choice and a stable platform to work with. “It’s all cued, but every now and then some things are manually executed to enhance certain moments,” he said. “It’s a well-programmed and great looking show, and a pleasure to operate so I’m really happy Guthrie has trusted me to run it. PRG has been fantastic too - the crew is stellar and the gear is great.”

In Europe, the touring team comprised Ryan Textor, Anthony Siampa, Matt Le Roux, Urko Arruza Urrutia and Gary Rees. TPi met Lighting Crew Chief, Bob Fry, who has enjnoyed being part of what he refered to as a “well-balanced” show and one of the best he has worked on in terms of lights integrating with video.

“It’s a very layered, textured show where you have the softness of the Martin Professional LC panels and the harshness of the video wall,” he said. “As Arlo did the content as well as the moving lights, it’s much more seamless so there isn’t a disjointed feeling between video and lighting.”

PERFECTING THE VISUAL BLEND As video featured in almost the entire show, perfecting the visual blend between lighting, content and IMAG was crucial for Guthrie to achieve. “Incorporating video is always a balance between the different principles’ needs and tastes,” he said. “I feel we brought a modern look to the visuals distracting from

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Fleetwood Mac

Below: Clair’s i-5 was the system of choice; Four large soft box panels featured in the design; Monitor Engineer, David Coyle, mixed using a DiGiCo SD10; The venue pre soundcheck..

what was happening on stage.”

The production featured a 51ft by 30ft WinVision 12mm wall upstage that served as the main video element, which like all the video equipment - excluding the PRG Mbox EXtreme servers - was supplied by Chaos Visual Productions. This joined four overhead soft boxes that had Martin Professional LC 2140 panels in them behind a rear projection screen, to give a dynamic lighting effect. The wall ran custom content and some IMAG while the soft boxes ran simple graphic or textual content to provide some movement.

“For the European legs of the tour, Barco FLM R22+ projectors were used for the IMAG screens, while playback came from a dual output PRG MBox EXtreme,” he said.

“One output went to Video Director, Jerry McReynolds, as a source for the wall and another went straight to the LC panels. Video content was triggered from FOH by the MA Lighting grandMA2, with everything manually triggered rather than using timecode.”

McReynolds (Santana, Ozzy Osbourne, Janet Jackson) was hired by Tour Manager, Marty Hom to cut cameras. He joined four other members of the video team - Jon Huntington, Dave Jacobs, Sixx Williams and Robert Stansfield. A total of three manned Sony HXC100 cameras, two Sony BRC700 robocams - one on the drum kit and one overhead - and two Bradley Engineering HD10 point of view minicams on keyboards and background vocals were used to capture the performance.

Chaos also supplied a Grass Valley Kayak 1.5ME switcher, which McReynolds has used in the past. “For this show I needed at least 1.5ME because I needed footage to go to the LED wall and the side screen,” he explained.

“Video is pretty central to the production because there’s a large LED wall behind them and then up above the band there are some Martin Professional LC 2140 LED screens along with side screens for IMAG, which was projected using Barco FLM R22+ projectors,” said McReynolds. “The LED screens above the stage flipped down on the US leg of the tour, but they stayed stationary when we were in Europe.”

With regards to visual content, Guthrie and the creative team already had content

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PRODUCTION PROFILE: Fleetwood Mac

Below: An MA Lighting grandMA2 took pride of place at FOH; Audio Engineer, Dave Kob, mixed using his trusty Yamaha PM5000 along with an Avid Venue desk; Show Designer, Paul ‘Arlo’ Guthrie.

from Stevie Nicks’ solo shows, but wanted to modernise it for the current tour. “I think we pushed it a bit in the creative process to make it more contemporary,” he said. “I tried to create more mystical and ethereal images for Stevie’s songs and more edgy and dynamic images for Lindsey’s songs. We kind of met in the middle for the rest.

“I think the pieces for Tusk, Rhiannon and Don’t Stop are the highlights of the content department. They fit perfectly with the songs and are great fun to look at.”

FOCUS ON THE ARTISTS When producing the set design for the tour, Guthrie wanted to bring more focus to the four members of Fleetwood Mac. “I tried to push everything to the edges and leave them in the middle,” he said. “I wanted something that changed throughout the show since they play for two and three quarter hours. Having subtle shifts scenically helped evolve the show over the evening.”

From working on the last tour and Stevie Nicks’ previous production, Guthrie already knew how large items on the stage were, such as Mick Fleetwood’s drum kit. “Stevie and Mick both have quick change rooms on stage that they need easy access to, so I needed a way to hide these - these were high priorities for them,” he said. “Everything else is up to me drawing on all that I have learnt from the last 10 years with them.”

Guthrie produced a simplistic stage design, which was curved at the front and featured ears to hold side fills and help mask tech world stage left and right. There were also two D-shaped scenic panels upstage to back the extra musicians and hide the quick-change tents.

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“Overhead we had four D-shaped soft boxes to provide overhead dynamic in place of haze,” he added. “We also had a diffusion drape that covers the LED wall and runs content on the wall, while using the drape to diffuse and soften it in six of the songs.”

The production included some automation elements that needed to be taken into account initially, but changed since the tour began in Europe, seeing the overhead motion control removed. All Access was responsible for building the set and overcame all challenges to meet the delivery date. “All Access had to pull a few redeye shifts, but we got it all together and out the door on time,” said Guthrie.

In order to reproduce the stage and set at every venue, Head Carpenter Patrick Boyd, teamed up with carpenters Pat Boyd, Eric Duheaney, Pete Perez and 12 local riggers. The carpentry team was tasked with constructing the whole stage and risers for the band, which was a meticulous process. “I worked closely with All Access which initially produced the stage to ensure my team could re-create it perfectly at every venue. Fleetwood Mac own the drum riser, however, which was custom built years ago,” he explained.

All Access provided the rolling stage, custom apron and side wings, custom floor screens, ‘sardine cans,’ projection screen frames, band risers and custom lighting for the Clay Paky Sharpy Wash fixtures.

The initial design concept changed after band rehearsals began and the set needed to reflect this. The All Access team spent several weeks fine-tuning the designs before getting construction drawings approved and moved into fabrication. “There was much that Designer, Arlo, was trying to accomplish with the different

design elements and we provided him with as many viable solutions as possible. With the changes to the initial design, we tried to keep as much of the concept intact as we could,” said Project Manager, Steve Murbarger.

The main challenge the company faced was the absence of soft goods early enough in the design process. “They did not show up until the show was loaded in for rehearsals,” he said.

“We overcame it once we had them all in hand and installed.”

A PRESTIGIOUS ACT Having worked with Production Manager, Bill Leabody on multiple occasions in the past, Stage Truck was delighted to be given the opportunity to quote for trucking on Fleetwood Mac. “We’ve not worked with the band before, but the tour was one we didn’t want to miss,” said William Johns, Operations Manager. “It has been great to be involved with such a prestigious act and with such a professional production and crew.”

Once the company was briefed on the tour’s requirements, the team calculated mileages and how to deliver the best service possible. A total of 12 Mega Cube 45ft tractor / trailers, with the new DAF XF105 super space cabs, were used.

An additional double decker trailer with three moving decks inside, was also provided, making loading easier and requiring less crew. The key members of the trucking team working with Johns were MD, Robert Hewett, Lead Driver, David Ballantyne and Matthew Kenward (double drives) and Amie Hewett (permits).

The production team selected travel agency The Tour Company, to organise hotels throughout the tour, Premier Aviation for charter flights, while Aspen Travel was in charge

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Fleetwood Mac

Below: When producing the set design for the tour, Guthrie wanted to bring more focus to the four members of the band yet the visuals still had an enhancing impact.

of international flights. Managing Director of The Tour Company, Tina Waters, has been involved in all of the band’s tours since 2003 and therefore knows what is required. This year has seen the company work on a large number of artists including Barbra Streisand, Alicia Keys and Elton John. The team was confronted with obstacles at a couple of cities where trade fairs were being held, which meant securing accommodation was a bit more challenging.

“I’ve worked with Tour Manager, Marty Hom, and Production Manager, Leabody, for many years on other projects so it’s always nice to be working with people you know well.

The highlight has been seeing Christine McVie perform with them at the O2 Arena - pure magic!”

Freight on tour was handled by Sound Moves, a company that has worked with Tour Manager, Marty Hom, on previous productions.

As with most of their tours, Sound Moves was brought in to help confirm the final routing prior to the shows. “One of the largest budget line items - especially with a tour of this size - is freight,” said Justin Carbone, Vice President, Sound Moves USA. “Therefore, we are asked to advise costs for different international routings with the goal of playing those dates economically.”

Sound Moves handles all cargo moves for the touring equipment, including transporting all of the production and any associated touring gear from venue to venue, as well as handling all customs clearance issues in each country. “Our specific involvement is when the tour moves internationally,” he continued. “We accomplish this using a combination of commercial and private cargo aircrafts, trucks and cargo ships.

From August through December we will make a number of international moves for this tour using each mode of cargo transportation.”

Carbone admitted there are difficulties in the freight business as tours are constantly travelling, with more equipment, and on tighter schedules. The two biggest components when planning the cargo moves on a tour are the volume of gear being shipped and time constraints between shows. “This tour has both a large volume of gear and very few days off,” he said.

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“We will be using commercial freight options to move the cargo from Europe to Australia and from New Zealand back to the US. However, we have a very tight move between the last show in Brisbane on 2 December and the next show in Auckland on 4 December. For this we will be using a chartered cargo aircraft as there are not sufficient commercial options available to meet the tour schedule.”

ON A JET PLANE Lizzy Templer, Senior Charter Broker at Premier Aviation (Sting, Bruce Springsteen, Eric Clapton) was introduced to Fleetwood Mac by the band’s Tour Manager Marty Hom years ago.

Premier Aviation did the 2009 tour with the band and returned as a vendor in March after Templer and co were tasked with researching the show cities and most appropriate airports.

Said Templer: “Airport curfews play a big part in determining when the artists fly, and across Europe there are quite a few! However on this itinerary they were quite lucky with the majority being 24 hour airports.

“Ongoing throughout the itinerary adjustments, is the important part of sourcing the most suitable aircraft to suit the passenger load and the flying involved, as a broker we ensure that any aircraft and operators we offer do fulfil a strict criteria that we personally set for service and operational levels.

“Marty had 13 passengers so we concentrated our search on large wide bodied business jets, the final choice being the spacious Bombardier Challenger 850 with 13 seats in executive layout.

“Where possible we arranged for all the bags to be screened and loaded in advance of the passengers, so that when FM arrived at the airport they could just board in the minimum time. We also monitored all the movements and kept in touch with Marty prior to each flight.

“Talking and liaising for the last seven months with the delightful Marty Hom was a highlight. I was also really pleased to see the show at the O2 Arena, it is very easy to get absorbed by the details of the charter logistics and forget what it is actually all about - a very great show by a really big band,” she concluded.

A PHENOMENAL TEAM Bjorn Melchert has been in the industry for 15 years, working on the productions of Paul McCartney, Pearl Jam and Stevie Nicks before joining Fleetwood Mac’s team.

His responsibilities on the band’s current tour include setting the stage and ensuring everything is in the correct place for the band to go on stage. For Bjorn, the most important aspect of the tour is truck access at the venue, loading docks and storage space.

“As we have no motion control, pyro or crazy special effects this leg of the tour has been pretty straightforward,” said the stage manager.

“On the previous leg we featured automation using a system from ShowRig, but this time we decided to opt for a simpler version of the show.”

Working alongside Melchert was Head Rigger, Russell Glen, who TPi last met on Coldplay’s Mylo Xyloto tour. As the only touring rigger in the team, Glen works alongside 16 local riggers to complete the build in around five hours. Truss brands the rigging team worked with included PRG’s Bat Truss, Slick Mini Beam and Tomcat Plated Medium Duty truss.

“This team is really efficient and Lighting Designer, Arlo, has made a great looking show, but it is fairly easy as far as technical rigging difficulty goes. Now we aren’t incorporating automation into the production it makes it much easier and cuts our equipment by another truck, which makes a difference when you’re trying to load into venues that don’t have loading docks,” said Glen.

“The artists have been really easy to work with and the production team has been phenomenal. It stems from the top - if the Production Manager is competent then it filters all the way through the team.”

TPi Photos: Zoe Mutter, Paul ‘Arlo’ Guthrie www.fleetwoodmac.com www.clairglobal.com, www.prg.com www.chaosvisual.com, www.allaccessinc.com http://tossfad.com, www.thetourcompany.co.uk www.soundmoves.com, www.stagetruck.com www.premieraviation.com www.aspentravel.co.uk www.beatthestreet.net

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ON THE ROAD: The Italian Job

THE ITALIAN JOB TPi’S KELLY MURRAY GETS A TASTE FOR NORTHERN ITALY’S INFLUENTIAL MANUFACTURERS...

Getting off an airport bus service and into a jet black Fiat 500 - in the pitch black of night - a rental car rep looked up from under his baseball cap and simply suggested: “If you see any scratches, write it down and I’ll check it when you drop the car back off.”

Needless to say, without a torch, magnifying glass or even the slightest bit of patience to be stood in the Milan rain post rollercoastersimulating transfer ride, it would appear as though our Italian adventure had begun.

The adventure in question was one myself and Hannah Eakins were undertaking in order to visit a number manufacturers in the innovation hub of northern Italy’s industrial home. Now, I imagine a fair amount of you will have driven on Italian motorways before. Whether you did that in a car akin to a prop from the Borrower’s feature film is another story.

To say I have a lot of love for Italy is an understatement, my grandparents were originally from Trieste and my mother once lived in a convent in Rome. And no, I wasn’t 64

adopted. In Manchester, I grew up with two big brothers and a penchant for go-karting, so I do love driving; in any country, at any time of day or night and in any vehicle, but the rules and regulations of Italian roads are, for the most part, worthy of a Hollywood comedy.

So, in order to begin our journey which would see us drive from Milan to Verona and a few spots in-between, the lovely Hannah swapped to the right hand side, hit the tarmac and made friends with the rental car GPS. Sort of. I know many of you reading this will have heard Miss Eakins’ cheeky laugh at one tradeshow or another, but there’s an altogether different - even funnier - tone to her voice when she’s quite seriously asking if the drivers on either side of us can see our tiny Fiat while still managing that infectiously hysterical giggle.

We’d been in the car a total of 12 minutes when it dawned on us moving up the real life scalextric track; there were approximately 130 hours, nine companies and just 1,500 miles to go…

ON THE ROAD: The Italian Job

www.spotlight.it

The first stop on our visit was Spotlight, a business, which started in 1969 as a manufacturer of fixtures for the disco and amateur theatrical lighting markets. Over the last 44 years, Spotlight has invested in R&D and consequently its technology can be found in professional theatre productions the world over.

Spotlight is proud to offer its customers a wide range of products, problem solving solutions and advice for end users and installers alike.

The development and recognition of Spotlight’s products can be found in prestigious Italian theatre venues such as Milan’s La Scala theatre and Moscow’s Bolshoi. Spotlight also provides its technology to the broadcast TV industry.

More recently, it has adapted its professional expertise into the architectural lighting sector, combining advanced technology with aesthetics. Of specific interest to TPi is Spotlight’s range of automated and conventional lights, LED, digital lighting, software for video editing, media servers, lighting dimmers and consoles, lenses, colour changers,

suspensions and supports, clamps, trusses and platforms.

Spotlight’s Thomas Nell, Export Manager, and Augusto Andraghetti, the company’s President, showed us around the warehouse and the demo room which had fixtures ranging from fresnels to LED models. Spotlight was actually one of the first manufacturers to adopt LED technology.

Over a cappuccino, Spotlight’s Communications Manager, Manuela Minardi hinted at big things to coming in the next year and, as a side note declared, the driving etiquette in the north as “too regimented”, oh how we laughed.

Today, Spotlight offers a wide range of products to answer the most specific market requests: the product lines are complementary and can be integrated whenever necessary into complete systems thanks to the consultancy approach of a highly qualified team of sales men, draftsmen, designers and engineers specialised in system integration projects which can support projects all around the world.

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ON THE ROAD: The Italian Job

www.outlinearray.com

Next up, we were en-route to Brescia for a lunch meeting with the charming Giorgio Biffi, CEO of Outline. We experienced what can only be described as total navigation failure. The phrase ‘searching for satellites’ is one of the most unnerving of notices when you’re already mid-route. Especially when Signore Biffi is already waiting at the lunch table…

Fast-forward an hour, a slightly different area (ok, we were 30km away) and we’re sat in his office getting a lesson on the geography of Italian provinces. “We’re so sorry Giorgio,” we sang in unison. “Don’t be sorry for me,” he replied, “I am sorry for you, because you can’t work a navigator!” In this instance, that wonderful sarcasm and authentic Italian bluntness couldn’t have been more accurate.

After a few more life lessons on how to survive the Italian roads, a sandwich and yet another coffee, we got down to talking about the international pro audio market - with a focus on America - with Biffi and Director Michele Noselli (son of company founder, Guido Noselli and brother to Stefano, also a company 66

Director).

As a manufacturer of professional loudspeaker systems and its associated products, we discussed how the week before our arrival, it had officially announced that a new distribution partnership had been agreed with CUK Audio, a Scotland-based operation ran by Managing Director, Stuart Thomson.

CUK Audio has now assumed exclusive UK distribution rights for all Outline products.

2013 marked a special year for Outline, the company celebrated its 40th year in business.

Bringing CUK on board as its UK partner is part of this on-going process to remain a global contender. Concerning Outline’s outgoing UK representative, CUK Audio is a leading UK proaudio distributor that has built a strong portfolio of installation and AV integration brands.

While the portfolio has given it a prominent position in the installation market, the more recent additions including Powersoft and Cadac, Cordial Cables and Pivitec personal monitoring solutions to its line-up has expanded the company’s live sound offering, and led by MD

Thomson to create CUK Live, a new division dedicated to serving the UK’s live sound and concert rental markets. “With CUK Live being clearly focussed on the needs of the live market, it became clear that we needed a credible loudspeaker offering for the sector,” said Thomson.

“We’d been looking for some time, but frankly what we found were numerous loudspeaker manufacturers producing similar product lines with little differentiation between them.

“In picking a loudspeaker partner we applied the same ethos as we always have we wanted a brand with relevant, interesting products, backed up with innovative technologies, providing - effective solutions. We can then add the distribution strength and support to those core attributes to deliver something that is genuinely different.”

With the next area code now fully tapped into our not-so-trusty sat nav, we found ourselves waving goodbye and driving towards our next meeting.

ON THE ROAD: The Italian Job

www.claypaky.it

“Kelly! Hannah! You’re here! How did you get here?” Clay Paky’s Davide Barbetta exclaimed as we walked through the door of the lighting giant’s offices.

“We drove,” we smiled.

“You drove? Seriously?”

“Yes,” we declared in unison, knowing exactly why he sounded shocked. Did I mention that just moments before, a gentleman had been reversing up the motorway right in front of us?

“You’re very innovative English girls…” he decided as we geared up for a factory tour.

‘Innovative’ is word which Clay Paky uses frequently, and rightly so.

Since the Sharpy burst onto the professional lighting scene in 2010, the company has enabled more award-winning lighting designs to come to life in the entertainment technology world than ever before.

Started in 1976 by Pasquale Quadri - or Paky to his friends - Clay Paky has reinvented how end users implement lighting technology time and time again. By 1987 Golden Scan projector was unleashed, becoming the world’s best selling in its day. This product was so

memorable, that almost 20 years after its conception, it inspired the song Golden Skans

by British nu rave outfit, Klaxons. Who’d have thought that my music journalism days, spent popularising music genres and trends would somehow lead me full circle back to the home of said song’s origins. I don’t suppose Klaxon’s are Barbetta’s cup of tea, but six years ago you couldn’t attend a European festival without hearing this song played live, in effect paying homage to the manufacturers now vintage design.

Notable products to follow included the Super Scan, the Alpha Series (spots and washes) and in 2008 the Alpha Beam. But it was 2010’s Sharpy which would cement the company’s place in modern manufacturing. With 189W of power, the tiny Sharpy produces an intense, laser-like beam, bright enough to rival far larger, higher wattage fixtures.

In the last couple of years, the Sharpy has gained global notoriety, according to Barbetta; the Sharpy and really represented a turning point in the lighting industry. Three years on there really are very few large productions that

are able to do without the Sharpy beam.

In the Italian region of Lambardy lies the city of Bergamo, its population being estimated at just over 120,000 yet its homegrown R&D, manufacturing and clear vision of the lighting industry has made it known the world over. In the last three years of covering tours for TPi, in my experience, it’s rare that a production does not have a Sharpy on its technical rider.

The philosophy behind Clay Paky’s working ethos is more of a mission statement, in which its staff aim to utilise and manipulate every characteristic of light to produce truly innovative luminaires that can be used to create fascinating and exciting light settings in any domain, be it concert tours, theatre, architectural or fixed installations. Said Barbetta: “We aim to establish ourselves as a company that is appreciated for the distinctive features of our products. We firmly believe in the values of quality, commercial seriousness and customer service: these are values we intend to pursue with constancy and diligence. In this process, we acknowledge the strategic importance of people and their skills, as well 67

ON THE ROAD: The Italian Job

as open, fair and constructive communication.

Quality is not just a word at Clay Paky, but has a physically tangible meaning. It is guaranteed by meticulous control over components, processes and every stage of production until the final product becomes reality.”

As would be expected in any competitive industry, Clay Paky has faced the onslaught of copycat product designs. However, the company reacted by continually developing new products and furthermore, by pursuing excellent quality through the use of Italian manufacturing to safeguard the company’s traditions.

Barbetta cites Clay Paky’s R&D department as having “great know-how, the ability to innovate but also the ability to look to the past for inspiration.” Passion as a characteristic, has always distinguished Clay Paky staff, he explained. “Not only within R&D but also the commercial and marketing functions involved in the development of a new product. We believe that a winning product is the result of a team that knows how to listen to the needs of the market, while maintaining its intrinsic creative abilities.”

Brand new product, the A.leda B-Eye is truly innovative for its unique lighting effects;

its unmatched versatility makes it a fantastic creative tool. Firstly, it an excellent washlight, with beautiful colours and an impressive 6° to 70° zoom. The beam however can be closed further down, to as little as 4° switching the light from wash diffusion into a parallel beam.

A.leda B-Eye thus becomes a beam-light for amazing aerial effects. It generates a pulsating bundle of individually controllable micro-beams, each with its own colours and shades. A.leda B-Eye finally introduces a totally unseen feature, the front lens can be rotated and numerous little beams are created, that can be unfolded or closed like petals. Adding colours and dynamic patterns, A.leda B-Eye turns into a unique effect light, generating countless kaleidoscopic projections, as no other LED fixture has ever done.

Barbetta continued: “A.leda B-Eye, the new LED-moving head (which was launched at PLASA), is an example of how Clay Paky can mix innovation, technology and creativity. It is a completely new product in our industry, yet it in some ways it sees a return to our origins with its ‘vintage’ effects housed in a modern fixture.”

After our Italian visit, from which we headed straight to the tradeshow, the B-Eye certainly

gained the attention, curiosity and kudos of many an on-looker. The product won a PLASA Award for, you guessed it, Innovation, and the judges commented: “The A.leda B-Eye has the ‘wow factor’. It has an innovative look and is a modern retake on a classic effect. It’s also a fully-functional and versatile luminaire.”

Joining us for dinner that evening was Clay Paky Sales Support Engineer, Massimo Piccinini and ACT’s Chris Patton, soon to be an English man in New York, where he’s recently joined ACT’s New Jersey office. This year, ACT was named as Clay Paky’s exclusive distributor in the North America and Canada territories. The dinner took place at the Da Mimmo restaurant in Bergamo’s quaint old town. The irony being that the traditions of a Catholic-run northern Italian town meant that it was home to precisely zero nightclubs, despite it also being the birthplace of Clay Paky - and the industry’s club lighting legacy.

What Clay Paky has in store next is anyone’s guess, but we bet you a cold glass of prosecco that you’d be able to class that next move as ‘innovative’...

www.bcspeakers.com The next morning we were heading to B&C Speakers, to meet Claudia Stortini. New to TPi, but well known to sister publication, mondo*dr, B&C Speakers is based in the beautiful Florence countryside, Bagno a Ripoli to be exact.

Another well-established and successful Italian manufacturer, we looked beyond the loudspeaker as a whole and at the pro-audio component market in which B&C has become a global player.

In 1944 Roberto Coppini and brother-in-law, Fernando Borrani, stumbled upon the idea of joining forces to establish a business, which could produce electro-acoustic drivers and horns for the Italian market. They established a company the following year, in 1945, initially naming it ‘BBC Elettroacustica Professionale’, using the initials of the family names. Until the early 1970’s, BBC Elettroacustica Professionale remained a small 68

artisanal producer, mainly making installations for cinemas and theatres. During the ‘70s, the company started producing acoustic transducers for open public areas. When rock ‘n’ roll captured the world’s attention, B&C’s services were in high demand.

In 2009, B&C Speakers completed the building of its new state-of-art production facility. The new 8,800 sq metre facility (5,000 sq metres of production and 3,800 sq metres warehouse space) can produce over 800 high-frequency drivers and 1,400 low-frequency drivers per day.

B&C Speakers can call itself one of the largest and most prestigious electro-acoustic transducer manufacturers in the world. It produces a wide variety of components, which are manufactured with the B&C Speakers brand name, and three quarters of its sales are made directly to OEMs.

ON THE ROAD: The Italian Job

www.red-lighting.com

Within the same facility, another new manufacturer to the TPi pages, and to the industry in fact, is RED Lighting. This company now sits under the R&D International umbrella, which owns B&C Speakers.

RED Lighting is proud of its access to the Italian heritage, which has been firmly established by the B&C brand. Its products are engineered, designed and tested in the operating HQ in Rimini. The company states that behind each product there is stylistic research focusing on attention to aesthetic detail. Form and function complement each other giving life to original rounded shapes where sharp edges disappear and volumes become lighter. A thin shell marked by a compact and linear design envelops the technical hearth of each fixture enhancing its innovative essence.

RED Lighting sees being green within its business as a duty and a long-term environmental strategy. An expression of this commitment is the research of solutions that enhance the great potentialities of LED, both in terms of quality of light and in terms of energy saving and cost management.

Franco Natali and Gherardo Flaccomio Nardi Dei today manage the company. On site, Hannah and I met with B&C Speakers’ Ron Tizzard, International Sales Manager who was visiting from Canada and Red Lighting’s Alberto Cannizzaro, Operations Manager. Recently, SFM, a leading distribution company in Canada of event technologies, has been appointed the sole distributor of RED Lighting in Canada.

www.rcf.it

Our next visit of the day was to RCF. I was only a few months into my job at TPi when first I met up with the loudspeaker manufacturer RCF’s Marketing Manager, Gioia Molinari and System Tech, Emanuele Morlini, at Milan’s San Siro stadium in 2011. Between the influx of red wine and espresso with Jerry Gilbert (the company’s PR agent) in tow and the introduction to Italian superstar Vasco Rossi, the pro audio industry in Italy had once before proved to be an interesting lesson in local culture and state of the art technology.

At the RCF HQ in Reggio Emilia this time, and the company’s resident audio expert, Morlini, was once more on hand to give Hannah and I a tour of the site’s facilities. The company’s mission statement seems to adhere to utilising the latest technology in seamless harmony with

traditional Italian craftsmanship.

The busy factory floor has various production departments, each with experienced staff and skilled workers. A glimpse at the meticulous transducer department showed us that every compression driver and low-frequency transducer is carefully handmade. Morlini explained that by having its own in-house transducer production line, RCF gains a perfect synergy between drivers, electronics, cabinet design and, increasingly, digital processing.

In 2008, a wood workshop was established for the manufacture of its loudspeaker cabinets.

The enticing scents of Baltic birch wood, fresh from Russia, was rife. Cut with expert precision by machine, the cabinets are then hand-finished before being painted.

One thing that really strikes me as Morlini is

talking, is his passion for the company and its products. A true credit to the organisation, he explained how he loves the Italian, homegrown ethos behind the company’s ongoing and evolving expertise.

The company started by making microphones, amplifiers and related products for public-address applications. During the 1950’s and ‘60s RCF established itself as an OEM manufacturer of transducers, and by the mid-‘60s the company had become the first in Europe to have a high-level Transducer Research Centre. This leadership in transducer design and manufacturing continues to the present day, with RCF continuing to supply woofers, midrange units and compression drivers to some of the best-known and prestigious loudspeaker brands in the world.

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ON THE ROAD: The Italian Job

With the launch of its ART Series in 1996 active composite-molded pro-audio cabinets - RCF was marked as a serious contender in the international pro-audio loudspeaker market. The first product I personally got to grips with was the (Vasco Rossi approved) TT+ High Definition Touring and Theatre Series in Milan.

Since it was founded in 1949 by three electro-acoustic engineers by the names of Rosso, Campari and Ferrari, a vision has always been in place at RCF: to create, through technical innovation, quality control and attention to detail, audio products that would offer the highest-possible performance in their market sector. And today, RCF is still investing

in and sharing its knowledge and innovations with the rest of the industry. The RCF Audio Academy allows for a series of intense seminars made by RCF product specialists and engineers - held in the manufacturer’s HQ to establish a professional grounding and product understanding from various sectors. Be it for the touring market or for installation environments, the seminars offer a high level of audio tuition and have become very popular. Over the last year in particular, RCF has endeavored to share its findings with other like-minded professionals in order to help ensure that the next generation is well-versed in the company’s pro-audio excellence.

www.eighteensound.com

Around the corner from RCF’s offices is Eighteen Sound, another leading designer and manufacturer of high-end professional audio speakers hailing from the home of parmesan. The company has rapidly become an industry-standard component supplier for the most renowned professional loudspeaker brands.

The Eighteen Sound project started in early 1998, the team had been assembled at AEB’s existing plant nearby Reggio Emilia, in northern Italy’s high precision industrial mechanics heartland, and then in 1999 the first cone driver unit came off the production line.

The original concept was to deliver transducers at the top of technology at a reasonable price, without compromising reliability. Today’s two highly automated manufacturing lines for cone drivers, together with a high frequency unit production line, makes Eighteen Sound capable of supplying the best possible quality transducers to pro audio sound reinforcement companies.

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Said Eighteen Sound’s Sales and Marketing Director, Giacomo Previ: “We’re continuing to invest and think into the future because if we make the proper pillars to support our company structure, then this will help a lot. That’s why Eighteen Sound has recently moved in a new factory that answers the increased demand for space from a growing company, as well as its future expansions. The new industrial building hosts our state-of-theart automated production lines, an improved R&D lab area with updated testing and measuring equipment together with a new anechoic chamber and a listening room.”

Eighteen Sound’s mission is to continue to offer top quality professional loudspeakers designed and manufactured in Italy. This is possible with the help of massive industrial automation, in order to keep the cost of manufacturing as low as possible.

“We believe that it’s the market that will tell you what it really needs. We want to support customers with exactly what they need,” concluded Previ.

Right now, RCF is gearing up for some big launches at the NAMM show in Anaheim, California, so do keep a look out for its new developments. Technology aside though, what makes RCF a great company to know is the lady behind its marketing strategies. Having fallen into the industry upon returning home to Italy after spending several years in London, it’s Molinari’s enthusiasm and drive which makes her an excitable and interesting person to spend time with. She was quite the perfect lunch date - just don’t let her order a ‘small dessert’ if you’re already full from homemade pasta...

ON THE ROAD: The Italian Job

www.powersoft-audio.com

On our penultimate day, we found our way to Powersoft’s HQ in Scandicci, Florence, where we met with President, Carlo Lastrucci. One thing I truly adore about Italians is their ability to be mischievous and productive all at once.

“Girls, have you had time to get to know the local boys?” he asked. “Not really sir… we’ve been working,” I explained. “Yes, but what’s your point?” he quized.

The effortlessly charismatic Lastrucci spent 40 years as head of an important radio communications company, before working with sons Claudio and Luca, and their mutual friend, Antonio Peruch, to use their passion and knowledge of music and technology, to manufacture high-power amplifiers and develop professional electronics hardware and software applications. They began by modifying amplifiers and occasionally building them from scratch in 1995; 18 years later Powersoft has become a prime example of Italian excellence, one of the leading companies in the pro-audio industry to produce advanced products and technologies based on three product lines touring amplifiers, installation amplifiers and amplifiers modules.

With an increasing year on year turnover, which mainly originates from the international market, Powersoft embodies the concept of Italian excellence. Its Italian made products are available in over 50 countries, with widespread partners, distributors and authorised service centres. The global distribution network is overseen by three area managers: Daniel Salomao (South America), Arthur Soh (East) and Steve Smith (EMEA); who are coordinated by Luca Giorgi, Pro-Audio Business Unit Manager, who also manages the Amp Modules line, and OEM of which Matteo Bianchini is the Account Manager.

The Chief Executive is Luca Lastrucci.

Production is under the control of Antonio Peruch and R&D, the driving force of Powersoft Audio, by Claudio Lastrucci. In Florence there is also the Marketing and Communications Department, managed by Francesco Fanicchi.

Powersoft also has a sister company in the USA - run by Ken Blecher - with almost 20 agents promoting Powersoft products in this territory.

Powersoft invests over 10% of its turnover in the research and development of technologies applied to products and solutions dedicated

to the pro-audio industry making it an unconventional company. The company has a different philosophy from mainstream thinking, product development is not dependent on the sole analysis of the opportunity for better business or revenue, but on the experimentation and curiosity of breakaway technologies which can potentially help to create innovative products that do not cater to the requests but create them. Many technologies pioneered by Powersoft testify to this approach.

Almost 20 years ago, Powersoft was the first company to introduce Pulse Width Modulation technology (PWM), elsewhere within its innovations is the Green Audio Power, a Powersoft registered trademark that identifies environmental friendly products. Saving energy has been an integral part of its ‘DNA’ make up since the birth of Powersoft, but the mission to design and manufacture truly energy efficient products now grows exponentially based on global warming and increasing cost of petroleum-based products. “These phenomenas,” Fanicchi said, “have produced a marketing trend that has been particularly well received in the entertainment industry where 71

ON THE ROAD: The Italian Job

there is a special consciousness about what is environmentally friendly or green.”

Around the corner from its Florence office, over a delicious lunch of porcini mushroom tagliatelle, Giorgi’s passion for Powersoft’s Italian roots were highlighted: “As an Italian manufacturer we want to bring to the market the quality and design elements that are universally associated with the ‘Made in Italy’ badge of distinction in many other sectors. In addition to this, we believe that our innovative DNA pervades every single board, every single watt is designed and produced in our Italian research centre and factories. While products can be copied it would be impossible to emulate this level of knowledge and passion for audio

that every single member of the Powersoft team has. This is what we want to communicate to the market and we believe that little by little this is being perceived by the entire industry. It is really rewarding to see this accepted after so many years of strong effort and dedication.”

As for plans for the coming years, Marketing Manager Fanicchi - who was new to the proaudio industry before Powersoft enticed him in - explained that it’s the company’s thought-out investments in quality R&D which has allowed it to be in the position it currently holds: “The volume of business is increasing year by year.

This is thanks to the quality of the products and the technological evolutions, which enable us to bring innovation to the pro-audio industry. We

will strive to continually raise our market share, feeding the industry with brand new products that can change or even create new markets.”

The attention that Powersoft dedicates to business relationships is also of equal importance. “Less competition, better cooperation” is the spirit by which we are moving in the creation of business partnerships,” he added. The recently announced Powersoft / Pioneer partnership is a prime example.

“I think that ‘business’ is done not only through our product offering, but also through alliances and collaborations with partners with whom we have the same vision and share similar values,” concluded Fanicchi.

vital part of many interesting projects - some of which have garnered global appreciation.

Orietta Rosso, Marketing and Communications Manager explained: “We have been lucky enough to work on some great projects, like the Olympic Games for which we worked on the London Eye and the Olympic Rings, but perhaps people don’t know about our involvement.”

Huge photos of the event adorn the office walls alongside achievements ranging from musicals Priscilla Queen of the Desert, and Disney’s The Lion King, to other Disney projects including amusement parks across Europe. Litec created the tallest stage in the world (54-metres to be exact - the equivalent of a 16-floor building), again another project for Italian rock star Vasco Rossi’s Live Kom Tour in 2011. Having seen it in action, I can confirm it looked like something

from a film set, a larger than life extravagance created for a tour with production values, which demanded world-class safety procedures and rigging techniques.

Rosso continued: “We always take the challenges that our customers propose and follow projects from initial concept through to installation, providing them with knowledge and experience to help realise safe, simple and easy-to-assemble solutions for their visions. The expertise of our staff is so high that we can also produce many other complex aluminum products, we’re not just limited to our trusses.”

Rosso is a very experienced member of the company herself, having joined them seven years previously, and she has certainly contributed towards Litec’s brand awareness and growth. In an ongoing effort to raise

www.litectruss.com

Our final day in Italy was spent with Litec, a truss manufacturer at the forefront of safety regulations. Litec was preparing to host two courses at its Mogliano Veneto factory upon our arrival. The Trussing & Rigging practical courses were led by Eric Porter, PLASA Advisor.

Professionals from Malta, Greece and Italy were enrolled to take part in the training courses.

Additionally, 50 German university students and seven professors from Beuth Hochschule für Technik Berlin, visited the premises to discuss European safety standards, as well as the innovation and design of Litec products. During our visit, it became clear that the company doesn’t just offer its expertise in trussing and chain hoist technology, but also in training in European safety standards.

Over the last few years, Litec has been a 72

ON THE ROAD: The Italian Job

the standard of quality and technology being provided in the trussing industry, Litec has certainly put Italy on the map as a pioneer in its sector. “Over these last seven years, a lot of changes have occurred; health and safety has forced our industry to change for the better and become more organised than ever before. Our market requires new, different and specialised products thought out for specific purposes, which are easily storable, transportable and quick to assemble,” said Rosso.

“New products need to be re-thought in newer materials and with new construction methods. For example, trusses are no longer single elements that combine with other components of a system, but they are often made bespoke for individual uses. Trussing has become more technological and has been reinvented to become lighter and more affordable. Our industry is requiring more and more highly specialised products.

“The current economic juncture has slowed

down our market for sure, but evolution is continuing and new needs are constantly being presented. The companies that will be ready to face new challenges, are those that will have great opportunities in the future,” Rosso added.

In August 2012, Litec was part of an acquisition by the Milos Group - during which Milos also acquired Tomcat - and since this move, decisions have been taken to optimise production, the product mix and sales and marketing activities between the three.

“Our strategy is to be able to offer not only trusses, but also our line of chain hoists and controllers and other interesting products that will complement our range,” said Rosso.

Prolight+Sound 2014 - in Frankfurt - will reveal a range of new products for Litec, but until then, we’ll have to maintain patience with this merger’s developments.

Another change for Litec came in September 2012 when it appointed a new Managing Director, Fabio Prada. New to the live

production industry, Prada is as enthusiastic and excitable about trends in the industry as you could hope for from someone in such a position of a clearly innovative company. After a tour of the factory floor where we saw trussing being welded - the more the joint has been fused together, the strong the reinforcement in the craftsmanship - he gave us his thoughts on the industry so far: “My evaluation is definitely positive. The entertainment industry is one of the most demanding B2B businesses I have experienced during my 30-year career. My motto is ‘never give up and keep on running!’ because unpredictability forces you to have an extraordinary reaction time and flexibility out of common standards. This is caused partly because of the intrinsic nature of this sector and partly because of economic recession.

Still, in the new year, we should be collecting some good results after all this hard work and dedication…”

TPi 73

IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Green Hippo

GREEN HIPPO TPi TALKS TO GREEN HIPPO’S SALES & MARKETING DIRECTOR, JAMES ROSS HERON, ABOUT THE COMPANY’S LATEST LAUNCH. DURING PLASA 2013, THE MEDIA SERVER TITAN REVEALED RACKOON - A NEW ADDITION TO THE HIPPOTIZER SERVER RANGE. How does the saying go… The best things come in small packages?

If this is the case, then Green Hippo’s Rackoon is certainly testament to this as it delivers a level of functionality testifying that its diminutive stature really does echo such sentiment, while seamlessly integrating with all existing Green Hippo servers.

James Ross Heron talked TPi through the concept behind this latest release: “Horse power and compact dimensions were the focus. The levels of performance that Rackoon can achieve, compared with bulkier hardware, means it is now possible to have six layers of full HD playback from a 1U rack mount server.

Our software is always in a state of rapid development, so while there is nothing radically new in terms of hardware, certain advances in Hippotizer software have made Rackoon much more viable.”

Sitting between Green Hippo’s standard definition HippoCritter and GrassHopper, which has the advantage of being able to accept input card options, Rackoon is suitable for small to medium size events as Heron went on to explain: “Theatre shows and rock ‘n’ roll 74

tours will benefit from Rackoon, as will retail applications. They all need less space and weight, yet still need to be able to create high definition shows with ease.”

Rackoon has an unrestricted output resolution, full HippoNet compatibility and all the software usability of its bigger relatives, as well as a number of features that make it special, such as full geometry control and support for integration into almost any set-up via a host of native protocols. All the Hippotizer tools for video-mapping and multi-server set-ups are also built in, while built-in timeline functionality and scheduling features make it a powerful stand-alone playback device. PixelMap multiple universes via Ethernet, or even display composite video inputs such as cameras or players on any or all of its six layers, are also possibilities.

Having chosen PLASA London for Rackoon’s launch, Heron told TPi: “Timing is the main reason behind any product launch but we felt it apt to launch, what we see as, a key addition to the range at our ‘home’ tradeshow.

“We always knew the product would be well received but PLASA confirmed that we have hit a ‘sweet spot’ with Rackoon. People love the

power versus size balance.” Indeed, the touring market will benefit from this product’s compact size, which makes it easily transportable and therefore environmentally friendly whilst still maintaining all the necessary power.

Commenting on the PLASA London show in general and the controvosy that surrounded its move to ExCeL, Heron added: “The worldwide tradeshow landscape is changing rapidly. PLASA is different to what it was, say five years ago and exhibitors need to tailor their presence and at this, and any other exhibition to reflect the changes in business worldwide. While we see some elements we’d like to change, we are also evolving the way we work to reflect the current business culture. We’re working closely with the PLASA organisation to provide input on where we see the future of the show going.”

Green Hippo, as we know, likes its ‘quirky’ product titles and this latest venture is no exception. Heron explained the reasoning behind this approach: “In an industry that feeds creativity, with tools to be imaginative we sometimes despair at the amount of tedious technical product names and hence the Hippotizer XT46753-5.3 Extreme TechLite was

IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Green Hippo

Opposite: Technical Sales Manager, Sarah Cox, gave Green Hippo product demos at PLASA. Below: Rackoon follows in the footsteps of other Green Hippo products with another quirky name; Rackoon sits between Green Hippo’s standard definition HippoCritter and its GrassHopper; the Green Hippo team were on-call at PLASA.

never an option!” he laughed. “Our company ethic has always been to take our products very seriously, but never do the same with ourselves.

Green Hippo products are sophisticated, professional tools but that doesn’t mean they can’t be loveable too.”

With a friendly and approachable team in place - the latest addition to which is Sarah Cox who could be found talking customers through Green Hippo products at PLASA - who are technically minded and creative in flare, it would seem that Heron and his team might

just continue to have a winning manufacturing formula on their hands.

Green Hippo’s Rackoon will be available to buy from December 2013.

TPi www.green-hippo.com

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EXPO: PLASA 2013

PLASA 2013 PLASA 2013 WAS AN EVENT THAT GOT A LOT OF THE INDUSTRY TALKING, FROM THE NEW VENUE TO THE QUESTIONABLE AMOUNT OF AUDIO MANUFACTURERS EXHIBITING, TPi LOOKS AT THE RESULTS. The move to ExCeL was always going to be surrounded by scepticism. Negativity around the move has hung in the air for the best part of a year, if not longer, with many in the industry questioning whether the show’s organisers could pull it off and attract those much-needed international visitors. As one of the longest reigning shows however, there is still a considerable amount of affection for PLASA and people want to see it succeed, they want to believe it still holds a place in the industry, and for many it still does.

ExCeL itself is a big improvement on Earls Court, it is a purpose-built venue with accessible loading facilities, onsite accommodation and more importantly, free wifi! And while there had been considerable concern over its location, a number of overseas exhibitors TPi spoke to had actually found it easier to get to than Earls Court, flying straight into City airport, although there had been a fair few grumbles at the cost of a taxi from Heathrow and Gatwick too!

While the show was undeniably smaller, with the pro audio sector seemingly turning its back on PLASA for this year at least, having walked the show for the entire four days, generally TPi found it to be fairly busy.

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The lighting sector came out in full force, with all major brands represented, either directly or through a distributor, however only a handful of audio brands such as Martin Audio, FBT, TC Group, Roland, Sony and Pioneer Europe chose to exhibit and while they all appeared to be relatively happy with the visitor traffic, the jury is still out, as questions remain over who the visitors will be made up of next year.

PLASA did try and cater to those interested in audio through its AudioLab Arena, which aimed to offer demonstrations and shoot-outs of the latest technology, but the feedback received suggests it was less than successful and major improvements need to be made moving forward.

Official figures were still subject to ABC audit when TPi went to press, but it appears this year’s show attracted over 11,000 visitors, of whom over 3,000 attended on multiple days.

Last year’s show attracted 11,500 visitors across the four days. In the run up to the show there had also been some doubt as to whether PLASA could pull in the international community this year, with the new location being blamed for the route of the problem. Last year’s figures reported that 25% of the 11,500 visitors were

from overseas, representing 2,875 international visitors. Official figures for this year’s show report that 2,200 visitors from 84 countries attended, which could suggest a drop in numbers.

What the future holds for PLASA is anyone’s guess, but we don’t have a crystal ball. We went to this show expecting the worst in the build up due to growing concerns from exhibitors, so we expected negativity at every turn but this wasn’t exactly the case. Yes, there were a lot of grumbles relating to the venue itself but you get that at the majority of shows, you are never going to please everyone, all of the time. Moving forward the organisers need to concentrate on listening to its exhibitors. What is it they want from a show? Do they want more seminars and education programs? Do they want more networking opportunities out of show hours? Whatever it is, for the show to succeed they need to listen to what people want and deliver, as ultimately, like the audio sector has done this year, the industry will vote with its feet. One thing is for certain, as a whole, the industry is craving a varied international appeal and this year just didn’t deliver. So without further ado, TPi delves into the 2013 show

EXPO: PLASA 2013

Opposite: The PLASA show enjoyed visitors from the UK but it was noted that an international audience was somewhat lacking this year.

Below: AC-ET’s James Malony; Anna Valley’s Shaun Wilton; TC Group’s Mark Millar, Martin Andersson and Mark Flanagan; PR Joan Lyman-Melzis and Gil Densham of Cast; The new Avolites Saphire Media Wing; The Chauvet crew: Graham Barron, Michael Brooksbank and Stuart Fenwick; Clay Paky’s Davide Barbetta and Renato Ferrari in the Ambersphere Village; 5 Star Cases brought back its Speed Challenge.

further ado, TPi delves into the 2013 show news...

Leading European flightcase manufacturer 5 Star Cases used the 2013 PLASA exhibition to re-launch its popular ‘Speed Challenge’ motor racing simulation game crowning Carl Sheehan, Deputy Manager of Event Technology specialist PSAV as the 2013 5 Star Speed Challenge Champion.

5 Star created a completely new bespoke simulator for this year’s Speed Challenge, built using 5 Star’s legendary Super Tour specification product, complete with several special features and running Sony’s PlayStation 3 Codemaster F1 2012 racing game in full HD. This year it had an additional resonance as 5 Star has been one of the most enthusiastic of a number of industry supporters of British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) racing’s rising star, Jack Goff, throughout the 2013 season.

A.C. Entertainment Technologies showcased its latest selection of lighting, audio, rigging and video solutions including the many marques that AC-ET distributes exclusively in the UK. AD Systems’ AD-Net software for its networking system amplifier Impuls NT-4 was showcased on the Polar Audio stand this year.

AED Distribution is a master distributor of High End Systems products throughout the UK, France, Belgium, The Netherlands and Luxembourg. On show at PLASA was the High End Systems Hog 4 lighting console, which has featured on several high profile tours throughout the year including TPi cover stars, Biffy Clyro.

Altman Lighting, which was exhibiting with the company’s exclusive UK distributor, White Light, displayed its latest LED technology offerings including the LED SpectraCyc - seen in the Broadway production of Spiderman - and

the ME3 25W LED ellipsoidal.

“We enjoyed a very busy PLASA exhibition with far more visitors to our booth than normal,” said Glyn O’Donoghue, Ambershpere MD. “We represent Clay Paky, MA Lighting and Robert Juliat exclusively for the UK and as they were all launching new products we had a lot to catch peoples eye. It was great to see the industry switching to ExCel without a hitch.”

Anna Valley showcased the latest in its products and services, including the AV-4 Super High-Res LED, Duo12 12mm LED, Digital Projection Titan Super Quad 20K projectors and Avolites Ai media servers.

The ArKaos team showcased the 3.2 MediaMaster software alongside the Stage Server Pro and offered a sneak peak of the new Studio Server, a four output media server designed to deliver optimal images for the high-end demands of studio, concert tour,

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EXPO: PLASA 2013

Below: The Compulite stand; The Brilliant Stages and Prolyte teams; Avid’s Derk Hegedorn; Lift Turn Move showcased its Limpet system.

television and corporate applications, and Video Optimiser, which allows users to convert video files to optimal format.

Artistic Licence introduced a number of innovations at this year’s PLASA including the nanoScope, a pocket-sized, battery-powered tester for DMX512 and RDM; eSense a dedicated co-ordinater for RDM that incorporates monitoring, data storage and sophisticated display functionality; Art-Osc, a new protocol that allows remote interfacing of lighting control date via smartphones or tablets.

ASL Intercom’s Digital Intercom System and Pro Series Analogue Intercom products were showcased alongside the Basic Series Analogue Intercom solution on the Polar Audio stand at

the show.

This year’s PLASA marked the UK debut of the Avid S3L live sound system. Avid presented free daily training sessions throughout the four days, demonstrating how the S3L modular system solves the challenges of live sound mixing and provides the performance, sound quality and features that live sound professionals rely on.

Avolites Media unveiled its S Series of media servers, available in three models S2, S4 and S6, as well as the Ai V7 media server. On display from Avolites was Wings for Sapphire systems and Titan Mobile Wing.

Backstage Academy exhibited on stand A37 and A33 (with The University of Bolton),

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where it informed visitors about its new BA Visual Production and BA Top Up Live Events Production degree courses, as well as its short courses, bespoke training and FdA Live Events Production. Backstage Academy hosted a seminar as part of the PLASA Professional Development Programme on Sunday on ‘Live Visuals: Creativity, Convergence and Careers.’

Beyerdynamic’s TG 1000 digital wireless system and Opus 910 wireless system were both on display on Polar Audio’s stand, alongside the Opus 600 wireless system.

Brompton Technology had a productive show with plenty of interest in its Tessera LED Processing system. It was a busy four days on stand K66 with hands on demos to rental

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EXPO: PLASA 2013

Below: The Rosco ladies out in full force; The City Theatrical stand with Gary Fails; Helmut Protte of Coolux; The Sommercable team L-R: Martin Elsner and Peter Riek.

companies, installers, designers and LED manufacturers who were all looking for the next stage in LED Video Processing. The new K-Series processor was well received with a lot of very positive feedback, both about the concept and its striking looks.

Cast Group displayed BlackTrax, the multi-award winning tracking system for lights, video, cameras, sound and video. Also on display was the latest release of wysiwyg, R31, which delivers an array of new features, enhancements and library additions, including the new Material System in Shaded Views,

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which allows material properties to be applied on a per-element level to any object in the file.

Chauvet Professional exhibited several new products including the launch of the new Epix range, a klingnet-based product in the form of video strips and battens.

Continuing on the video and pixel product theme, there was a heavy representation of the MVP and PVP video panel range as well as the Nexus Series. The company also showed new additions to the Colorado series, the new lines in the ColourDash range and Ovation – a product line aimed at theatre

and studio.

Chroma-Q showcased its Colour Force, Studio Force and Inspire ranges of lighting products, demonstrating its colour accuracy and consistency, and precise theatrical grade dimming. Also, showing for the first time, was the DC battery powered version of Studio Force V 12 Phosphor variable white lighting fixture.

Receiving its UK launch was the new ShowCom, a compact, rugged, cost-effective show intercom beltpack.

Chromlech presented Elidy software version 2.0 for the first time in the UK, which includes a number of features such as Animation Maker; sACN networking capabilities; and multisource control mode. The Elidy Strip was also introduced – an LED strip light composed of either five or 15 LEDs. City Theatrical launched a number of new products, including its line of QolorFlex LED tape and D Series of LED dimmers, the AutoYoke Source Four LED, and SHoW Baby 5 wireless DMX transceiver. The Cognito lighting console was also on display.

The A.leda B-Eye was the focus of Clay Paky’s stand - with wash and beam light capabilities, this versatile product introduces an unseen feature in that the front lens can be rotated, creating many little beams that can be unfolded or closed like petals. Adding colours and dynamic patterns, B-Eye turns into a unique effect light generating kaleidoscopic projections.

CLD exhibited its new LED lightsource range, suitable for installations in multiple sectors including all types of public spaces, buildings, offices, retail outlets and so on. Showcased products included the T8 LED tubes, LED panels, 100W LED High Bays, LED

Down-Light range, and Osram Flex.

Also on show was the Gig series of audio cables.

Columbus McKinnon demonstrated its new two-tonne single fall hoist, due for release next year, along with the CM Lodestar and Prostar electric chain hoists.

Compulite launched its Vibe lighting console - a new concept in lighting control integrating conventional buttons and wheels with an innovative and dynamic touchscreen graphical user interface housed in an ergonomic and adjustable control surface.

Cooper Controls exhibited at PLASA for the first time as part of the Eaton Corporation. The company presented a selection of lighting control products from Zero 88 and Cogent, alongside the latest technologies from distributed lighting brands including DTS and LDR. Core Lighting showed its range of cable-free, battery-powered LED lighting for indoor and outdoor use, all designed and produced in the UK. The company’s new ColourPoint uplighter could also be found over in the White Light Zone.

Not having exhibited at PLASA for the past couple of years, Creative Technology’s return to the exhibition was marked with a stunning stand comprising a four-metre radius curved screen and back wall constructed entirely out of Barco’s C5 LED, a five-mm high res screen that is one of the top spec LED products CT holds in its inventory. CT wanted to support PLASA’s move to its new venue at the ExCeL, with the expectation that its new home would breathe renewed life into the renowned exhibition. CT’s Adrian Offord, Director of Business Development, commented: “We were really pleased with the quality of visitors to our stand which was universally

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EXPO: PLASA 2013

Below: CLD Distribution’s Tim Archer; Columbus McKinnon’s Tom Hobman; The Doughty Engineering stand; Harting’s Kevin Canham; The DTS Team; The Elation gents unveiled the ELAR Quad Series; ETC showed its Source Four LED fixture family; The Flying By Foy crew; CT’s Dave Crump; The SES team who reportedly had a great show; Rigging Services’Director, Paul Fulcher.

praised both for its visual appeal and, by those in the know, for the technical achievement of building a uniform horizontally radiused screen and the dramatic in house content.” d3 Technologies focused on the international community and the promotion of its growing network of d3 Studios. d3 Technologies also introduced the new downloadable version of its software, d3 Trial.

Doughty Engineering’s motorised lectern, as well as its new range of truss adaptors were displayed for the first time at the show. The lectern is fully DDA compliant, is supplied with a reading light and fitted with anti-vibration / noise dampening microphone mounds to ensure a clear, concise sound. The truss adaptors, made from solid highly tensile aluminium fit all major brands of triangular and square truss.

In conjunction with its UK distributor Sound Network, DPA highlighted the breadth and depth of its live sound microphone range, which includes the award-winning d:facto II model.

D.T.S. showcased the Max moving head, the Nick NRG 501 LED moving head, and the Raptor beam moving head as part of the Eaton network.

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Elation unveiled the ELAR Quad series of lighting fixtures alongside its new Level Q7 / Level Q7 IP flat-style professional-grade Pars, the Satura Spot LED Pro, the EZ6 LED video panel, the Platinum Beam 5R Extreme, the Rayzor Q7 and Q12, and the TVL 3000 II series.

On display at the ETC stand was the Source Four LED fixture family, including its new CYC lighting adapter, the Selador Desire fixture family, including the new Desire D22 luminaire, the Cobalt 20 – the first of a new family of control desks from ETC and finally, the Eos Titanium – the flagship desk from ETC’s Eos control line.

At the Flying By Foy stand, the company was demonstrating the Aerographer advanced design tool for flying automation along with the Pegasus automation system.

Green Hippo showcased Rackoon, a power-packed addition to the Hippotizer server range. This 1U rackmount gives six layers of full 1080p HD playback and includes all the usual features of Hippotizer’s award winning software.

Rackoon integrates with all other Green Hippo servers seamlessly.

HSL’s infamous bloody mary’s once again

proved a popular concoction, making its bar the show’s main socialising and networking hub, and a meeting point for all those attending but not exhibiting with their own booth.

JB Lighitng presented its current LED products, and the brand new Sparx 7 and the Varyscan P8. On the White Light stand it showed the new Sparx 7 convinced in terms of concept, functionality and design. It offers almost unlimited combinations of patterns and colours and the user nevertheless requires only six DMX channels in order to control all LED effects.

JBL Professional showcased the PRX700 Series of portable loudspeakers and 3 Series studio monitors.

J&C Joel hosted a buzzing cocktail party on its stand, complete with fresh ingredients and a colourful environment to wind down after a day on the show floor.

Kinesys highlighted three products - the GIS 250kg BGV-C1 39m/min hoist, integrated with Kinesys’ EVO controllers; DigiHoist system, which supports positioning encoders and Vector/K2 control; and Kinesys LibraWatch multi-platform load monitoring software.

EXPO: PLASA 2013

Below: Le Mark Group; The Kinesys team; LTH’s Daniela Titze; John O’Neil of Amptown Cases with TPi’s Hannah Eakins; Look Solutions exhibited; Bjoern Gaentzsch of MA Lighting; Martin Professional’s Mike Walker; The Prolight Concepts team.

Laserworld displayed its semi pro lasers, the Club Series and the New Proline RGB with multi-function effects, but most of the interest was for our pro ranges SwissLas & Rti manufactured in Switzerland & Germany. Said Denis Phoenix, Laserworld UK & International Sales Director: “Overall there was a good attendance of UK customers but only a small amount of international, hopefully PLASA can try and address this for next year to improve attendances from further afield.”

“We had an excellent Plasa show with good quality visitors on our stand ” commented Fabiano Besio of LDR. “The show was a good occasion for finalising the distribution contract with the company VALOOK for representing LDR in Chile and to reinforce our position as a leading supplier of colour scrollers for the professional entertainment industry.”

Leader Light showcased its LL stage CYC 6C - a six colour cyclorama fixture. The luminary is specially designed for TV studios, concerts, theatres, backstage lighting or soft front lighting with high CRI. The Le Mark Group chose PLASA to launch its new range of Dirty Rigger Glowman LED series, the Backstage Light Glove. Featuring integrated i-lume technology by fibretronic, Glowman combines workwear expertise with cutting edge LED technology. The gloves are ROHS compliant with a luminous density 30,000 MCD, and are touch screen compatible with all major phone and tablet touchscreen devices.

Taking pride of place at the Lee Filters stand was its LEE range of LED filters. All the colours from the LEE Designer series - a range of filters created specifically for LEE by leading lighting 84

designers - were also on show.

Litec launched two new products, the EXERise chain hoists with low voltage control and the Cablecross CC25HD and CC66HD. Other trussing products showcased included the End-plated trusses, the new E and P truss Series with conical connection and the versatile Libera System.

Following the announcement of the UK distribution agreement earlier this year, LMC Audio featured a range from new UKmanufactured pro audio brand, Inspired Audio.

The company additionally showcased the latest in digital console technology from Yamaha, Midas and Allen & Heath, alongside other established premium pro audio brands including Martin Audio, NEXO, DPA, Soundcraft.

Look Solutions displayed its range of highquality smoke and haze machines, including the Viper S, the Unique 2.1 Hazer, the Orka smoke generator, the CryoFog low-smoke machine and the Tiny Fogger.

LSC introduced three new products – the Clarity LX900 console; its new intelligent power distribution unit APS, designed to remove the problems of collective in-rush currents; and its new data backbone system - DNA. LS-Live exhibited on stand E59 for the first time. The stage, set, automation and studio company invited attendees to its stand to discuss the entertainment sector and to find out about the company’s services and products. LSLive has recently worked with hip hop superstar, Jay-Z. LTH revealed a new member of its SquareLED Fresnel Series. The new motorised control of pan, tilt and beam angle is housed

in a compact unit equipped with a single chip LED module in a round shape and high quality 200mm lens.

Lift Turn Move showcased the Limpet,and provided demos for interested parties. As Limpet’s exclusive distributor LTM has given training on the product for tours such as Jesus Christ Superstar and Muse. LTM also showed it new range of Zero Fleet Angle winches, and new product featured was the 5t Ground support tower with 2500kg SWL (single chain) LoadGuard hoist. LTM is now the exclusive UK distributor of Alfa Systems stage engineering products and for Dutch manufacturer, Interal Truss.

LumenRadio for its SuperNova3, and Artistic Licence for its eSense each were noted for their efforts and shared the last Plasa Award. The judges said, “They both solve data management problems eloquently and practically. They will create new ways of understanding the massive data produced by shows and installations in an efficient and understandable way.”

With the MA VPU light, MA Lighting has developed a compact video control offering nearly the same performance as the MA VPU plus and MA VPU basic. The MA VPU light features sophisticated hardware and proven MA software. The in-built screen displays all essential information about the status of the MA VPU light.

Mackie’s updated and expanded product ranges were presented for the first time on the Polar Audio stand. The products included the SRM 1600W HD powered loudspeakers, the VLZ4 analogue mixers, and the redesigned

EXPO: PLASA 2013

MRmk3 Series powered studio monitors with music-centric voicing.

Martin Audio showcased its, ultra-compact MLA Mini, bringing revolutionary MLA cellular technology to a wide range of small-to-medium scale portable and installed sound applications. Its companion MSX mini-sub power plant houses networking, DSP, and nine channels of Class D amplification to drive itself and 4 MLA Mini enclosures.

Also showcased was the MLA Compact, LE Series monitors, Blackline+ and XD Series systems, as well as the DD6 ultra-compact Differential Dispersion system. Installed sound was represented by the OmniLine micro-line array and models from the AQ and Ceiling series.

Martin Professional presented products from its portfolio including the full range of MAC Viper family luminaires, high performance lighting fixtures in the MAC III

family and the new Rush range.

MC2 demonstrated how it can take care of signal distribution, processing and amplification needs. The Ti Series was part of the mix, offering network audio output, signal processing and amplification, all controlled from bespoke installation software application, iCore.

MDG released its new e-series, an evolution of its Atmosphere APS Series haze generator and MAX APS Series fog generator. The e-series marks the natural evolution for the company’s product portfolio and brings increased efficiency and total electronic control to the industry’s atmosphere generators.

Neo Neon introduced the dual moving head Gemini range as well as launching the new Neo-Pro product line incorporating the Neo-Flash and Neo-Pulse ranges with great success at the show.

This year’s PLASA show saw the latest luminaires from

Below: DiGiCo’s Maria Fiorellino and David Webster; Alex Barrand of Pioneer Europe with Powersoft’s Luca Giorgi; SGM’s Peter Johansen; The PreSonus team.

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EXPO: PLASA 2013

Below: Shure’s Tuomo Tolonen; PSCo’s Stuart Holmes; ShowLED’s Jeroen Carette; Mark Ravenhill of GLP; The Sony crew; Stage Technologies Martha Gall; Sound Moves on the HSL stand; TAIT’s Liz Sinclair and Jessica Allan.

Philips Entertainment’s four premier brands Selecon, Showline, Strand Lighting and Vari-Lite – exhibited on the AC-ET stand (P41). Philips have a presence on the HSL Stand (H80).

Pioneer Europe and Powersoft joined forces to present the new GS-Wave and XY series of club loudspeakers.

The new PreSonus StudioLive 32.4.2AI digital mixer and StudioLive AI series threeway active PA loudspeakers, were presented on the Source Distribution stand. Jim Odom, President of PreSonus was present for the UK debut of the StudioLive console.

Production Resource Group, L.L.C. (PRG) demonstrated its innovative proprietary products as well as debuting new products on Stand R20. Attendees got the opportunity to try out the compact V276 on Mac control interface and Mbox Studio, a software-only version of the popular Mbox Extreme media server.

Debuting in Europe are the UV Bullet and UV Wash, compact, high-output ultraviolet LED luminaires. Both units use powerful 365nm UVA-LED emitters for blacklight effects. Debuting in Europe are the UV Bullet and UV Wash, compact, high-output ultraviolet LED luminaires.

Both units use powerful 365nm UV-A-LED emitters for blacklight effects.

Prolyte Group and subsidiary Brilliant Stages enjoyed a busy PLASA Show at its new home, ExCeL London, earlier this month. Both companies reported positive feedback following their decision to do something different for PLASA London 2013.

On display for the first time in the UK was the ProLyft AETOS range. Visitors were given the opportunity to see a selection of the new hoists in action on a dedicated demo booth – stand Q65. UK Sales Director Keith Williams commented: “The reaction to ProLyft AETOS has been amazing. We realise the products have to be seen to be fully appreciated so we had 86

several working units on display, which gave us an opportunity to demonstrate their potential.

The hoists were very well received, reinforcing our plans for the future. We had quite a number of enquiries from new contacts and met with many of our existing global distributors.

Despite some initial reservations about the new location, overall it was a great PLASA show.”

Pro Light Concepts showcased a multitude of lighting effects in a spectacular time coded light show. New features include pixelmappable, super-bright panels and battens, plus the eLumen8 Kudos moving heads, which feature smooth, fast movements to create dynamic pan and tilt effects. The Kudos CM 150 and Kudos CM 200 have pixel mapping, whilst the Kudos features motorised zoom.

PSCo announced its entry into the LED display market by unveiling a range of ultrahigh resolution, exceptional performance LED models.

Renkus Heinz products were showcased on the Polar Audio stand and included the IC2 (SQUARED) loudspeaker, the IC7-II and ICX7-II series of loudspeakers, and the CF/CFX12S series of loudspeakers.

Robe showcased new products including the Pointe, MiniMe, CycFx 8, Cyclone and MMX Blade, along with the Parfect, a tough PAR-can styled plastic housing featuring Robe’s LEDBeam 100 lightsource.

Robert Juliat introduced a new motorised yoke as an accessory for its range of Fresnel lanterns.

As Technical Partner to PLASA London this year, Roland Systems Group products took an active role in the AudioLab Arena, a new purpose built pro audio demonstration facility.

The Roland V-800HD multi-format video switcher was at the core of the set-up.

SES, the power supply company enjoyed a very busy this PLASA this year. The power

experts reported that it was able to provide quotes for various different companies and organisations throughout the course of the show.

ShowLED launched its new Animation HYBRID led, a hyper flexible ip67 extreme temperature resistant 7led dot, with auto colour correction. “The Animation HYBRID is the multi deployable system for both studio low res video cyclorama and outdoor signage on buildings as well as powerful touring stage led backdrops, all in one,” stated Jeroen Carette, ShowLED Business Development Manager.

Sony’s Anycast Touch draws from its best innovation and heritage in live production and switcher technology. Ideal for events, corporate productions, and houses of worship to get the best of an integrated audio / video switcher capable of recording, playback and streaming in one portable box. Ideal for organisations considering broadcasting or webcasting live events.

Soundcraft showcased its complete line of Si Expression and Si Performer digital consoles.

Following the announcement SGM will establish a dedicated Danish base and in turn create up to 400 jobs, the manufacturer went on to win a top award at the PLASA Awards for Innovation for its G-Spot intelligent LED moving head.

Shure Distribution UK showcased a number of new products from its distributed lines, including Shure, QSC and Radial. A new education and training initiative aimed at all levels of the audio industry, from specialist integrators and contractors to retail sales teams and end users, was also launched during the show.

Smoke Factory UK, exhibited at PLASA for the fifth time, showing the full range of Smoke Factory haze and fog machines, including Tourhazer 2, CaptainD, Data2, Scotty2, and

EXPO: PLASA 2013

Spaceball2 among others.

The design of its stand enabled SSE Audio to display an impressive range of products at the show. SSE Sales director Alex Penn commented on the event “It was the first time SSE Audio Group exhibited as a joint force with Wigwam and products from L-Acoustics and d&b audiotechnik were displayed to represent both companies. There was much interest in the Group’s expansion and the stand attracted both Wigwam and SSE associated visitors. Our presentations on the stand are focused on helping people to understand how the Group fits together.”

Stage Technologies launched the TipTow point hoist, a virtually silent, gearbox-less point hoist designed for use in theatre, TV and film.

Its new design provides a feature rich, compact and portable solution for scenery or performer flying. For minimum noise, the motor and drum are directly coupled thus eliminating high-speed transmission components.

The Plasa Award for Sustainability was awarded to TMB for the Solaris LED Flare.

The judges said, “This product will save loads of energy by eliminating massive power consumption of existing fixtures including strobes, audience blinders, and wash fixtures.”

The team behind workforce management software uTRAC enjoyed its first time exhibiting at PLASA this year, as they met suppliers from

the lighting and sound industry to discuss the problems they face with staff deployment.

During the PLASA evening events, Avolites hosted a fancy dress party at the Troxy. WE Audio supplied its recently acquired Martin Audio MLA-Compact system 36. The system was configured with 12 mid-hi elements per side and six DSX-F subwoofers that were stacked in a cardioid configuration to reduce any unwanted noise on stage. Said WE Audio’s Rylan Machin, Director of Operations: “We found that the MLA-C system worked its magic incredibly well in the Troxy and provided a very smooth SPL response throughout the whole venue, even with the challenging deep under-balcony audience area.”

Additionally, DiGiCo supplied an SD10 console at FOH and Martin Audio supplied an additional monitor system. “I was Project Managing and we had technical support from Nigel Meddemmen at Martin Audio and Tim Shaxton from Digico,” concluded Machin.

The WhiteLight Zone once again served as base for the latest lighting, effects, and media control technology from manufacturers. The company showcased enhanced White Light services for 2013, including its in-house custom colour service, expanded training programme, and improved product support.

Wireless Solution Sweden presented its W-DMX G4S software along with hosting an

educational seminar on how to use wireless DMX, RDM and Ethernet protocols and how to avoid interference from other wireless products to achieve a perfect co-existence.

Wyrestorm exhibited its all-in-one AMP001-010 HDBaseT Class D digital audio amplifier, its modular MX-PP-POH Pro Plus matrix, and its Presentation Switcher that features HDBaseT technology and HDMI switching.

XTA showed, for the first time in the UK, its new multi-channel analogue DS8000D audio distribution system, which adds more distribution possibilities to the DS8000, giving not only two electronically balanced and two transformer isolated outputs from each input, but also offering a pair of AES digital outputs for each input. XTA also showed how the FIR filtering ‘power bump’, which is now available for free for the DP448.

Working with Roland Hemming and the team from RH Consulting, Andy Cooper - Manager of the Yamaha Commercial Audio Support Centre Europe co-presented seminars on the first two days of PLASA. The presentations featured a range of Yamaha digital audio equipment, including DME64N digital mixing engines, MSP series active loudspeakers and MY series interfaces.

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EXPO: PLASA 2013

6TH KNIGHT OF ILLUMINATION AWARDS WINNERS ANNOUNCED The sixth Knight of Illumination Awards (KOI), held on 6 October at London ExCeL’s Platinum Suite, saw lighting and video professionals enjoy a glittering night of celebration and recognition for the exceptional creative talent within their industry.

The ever popular awards - organised by The Society of Television & Lighting Design (STLD), The Association of Lighting Designers (ALD), Clay Paky and Ambersphere Solutions and generously sponsored by Chroma-Q, Hawthorn, MA Lighting, Osram, Robert Juliat and XL Video - provide public recognition for outstanding achievements in touring, television and theatre lighting and video design.

Hosted by Andy Collins, the sparkling ceremony saw over 300 lighting and video professionals from the worlds of TV, Theatre, Concert Touring and Events come together to celebrate the diverse range of creative talent in production design today.

First to be announced the Television Category with the Light Entertainment Award going to Gurdip Mahal and Ross Williams for The Voice Final. The Small Studio Award went

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to Colin Case for Howard Goodall’s History of Music; the Drama Award to Ashley Rowe BSC for Dancing on the Edge; the Event Award to Nick Collier for Bollywood Carmen Live and finally the new - introduced this year - Graphic Display Award went to Gurdip Mahal, Ross Williams and Dave Newton for The Voice.

In the Theatre Category the Dance Award went to Fabiana Piccioli for iTMOi at Sadler’s Wells; the Musicals Award went to Paule Constable for Barnum at Chichester Festival Theatre Tent; the Opera Award went to Jean Kalman for Death in Venice at English National Opera; the Play Award went to Charles Balfour for The River at Theatre Upstairs, Royal Court and the new Projection Design Award went to Lysander Ashton for Feast at Young Vic. The dinner was rounded off with the Concert Touring and Events Category which saw the Arena Award go to Baz Halpin for Pink; The Stage Award go to Bruno Poet for Sigur Rós; the Live Event Award go to Patrick Woodroffe for London Olympics Ceremonies and the newly introduced Video Electronic Content Award go to Sarah Hopper and Damian Hale for Sigur Rós.

As is tradition the evening was bought to a

close by Clay Paky’s chief commercial officer, Pio Nahum who made the KOI charitable donation of £10,000 to Light Relief. This was closely followed by the prestigious Enrico Caironi Lifetime Recognition Award, which this year was presented to industry personality Ian Dow by international lighting designer - and KOI co-ordinator - Durham Marenghi.

During his speech Marenghi said: “Ian Dow was a unanimous decision. The KOI committee feels he has worked and supported the lighting industry in very many ways. He was an engineering manager and lighting designer for the BBC for many years and has been the Chairman of Showlight for the last eight years.

Ian has spent many hours training students and is particularly proud that Showlight offers 40 free places to students to help get them a foothold in the Industry.”

Each winner received the traditional Knight of Illumination trophy, an authentic medieval battle sword handmade in Toledo, Spain.

The 2013 Knight of Illumination Awards was chaired by Stuart Gain for TV, David Benedict for the Theatre and Sarah Rushton-Read for the Concert Touring and Events Category. http://knight-of-illumination.com

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I

SW6 1HS

MARKET FOCUS: Amplification

AMPLIFICATION AD SYSTEMS

www.ad-systems.com

The AD-Systems NT4 system amplifier makes use of highly integrated networking concepts and as a result provides flexibility and economic efficiency. This touring grade four-channel amplifier unites state-of-the-art DSP processing capabilities with Ethernet-based command and control and digital audio. By using AVB for audio signal transport it is possible to use a common and inexpensive Ethernet network for audio and for command and control simultaneously. The amplifier stages represent the latest developments in Class-D design. They provide Hi-Fi audio quality at 2.5kW of output power each - forming up a powerful package weighting just 13.5kgs.

APART AUDIO

www.apart-audio.com

The Champ-3D is a three-channel fully programmable digital amplifier. This versatile power centre is ideal for medium to mid-sized applications up to 2,100W and because of its convection cooling, it has no fan inside so will stay dust-free. The built-in loudspeaker wizard of Champ-3D makes life easy during set-up. This wizard offers an easy way to select all Apart Audio top cabinets and subwoofers, which will now automatically be configured with the ideal DSP settings to protect the sound system and guarantee a warm and dynamic high-end sound. With the built-in high class DSP processor there is the possibility to adjust the four-band full parametric EQ and crossover, delay, compressor and limiter-leveller.

BEHRINGER

www.behringer.com

The iNuke 12000DSP amplifier delivers 12,000W of Class-D power, rock solid reliability and state-of-the-art signal processing - all in a lightweight 2RU form factor. The onboard DSP eliminates the need for external gear by providing sophisticated delays, three crossover filter types, eight parametric and two dynamic EQs, dynamics processing and lockable security settings. Controlled by the front panel LCD display, or the software interface via USB-connected computer, the iNuke provides robust power with dependable speaker protection and plenty of headroom.

CAMCO

www.camcoaudio.com

The D-Power Series of amplifiers introduces six, two-channel models to the market - the D-Power D05 250W per channel, D1 500W per channel, D2 1,000W per channel, the D3 1,500W per channel and the D4 2,000W per channel and D7 3,300W per channel. The D7 / D4 / D3 / D2 models utilise a hybrid Class H amplifier engine, while the D05 and D1 use the new UMAC Class-D technology. All models benefit from the latest advances in Camco’s SMPS technology. The introduction of the D-Power Series expands the choice and ability to refine system specification to exact requirements. D-Power power output specifications have been selected to work as stand alone amplifiers or in combination with Q-Power Series so that exact power formats can be matched, minimising rack space and maintaining family function and design.

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MARKET FOCUS: Amplification

CROWN

www.crownaudio.com

The I-Tech HD Series 4x3500HD DriveCore Series amplifier is a high-powered tour sound amp featuring four analogue inputs, four AES3 digital inputs and four AES inputs as well as the ability to select four CobraNet inputs. The I-Tech 4x3500HD offers operational flexibility with advanced features including a 4.3-inch frontpanel LCD touchscreen, Harman HiQnet System Architect 2.0 control functionality and Version 5 DSP preset support for JBL Professional’s VTX Series V25, plus VerTec Series line array loudspeakers. The four-channel I-Tech 4x3500HD incorporates Crown’s sixth-generation Class-I engine with DriveCore technology to deliver 3,500W per channel burst into four or two ohms.

D&B AUDIOTECHNIK

www.dbaudio.com

The D6 and D12 are two-channel power amplifiers specifically designed for use with d&b audiotechnik loudspeakers. Digital signal processing is incorporated, as are analogue and digital signal inputs, as well as links outputs. d&b audiotechnik loudspeaker specific controller functions are implemented within the DSP, and both channels have independent user definable four band parametric equalisers providing optional boost / cut or notch filtering. The signal delay capability allows delay settings of up to 340 milliseconds to be applied independently to each channel. The D6 and D12 amplifiers can deliver 600 or 1,200W into four ohms per channel respectively, while the switch mode power supply automatically selects the mains voltage. d&b audiotechnik load monitoring enables automatic and continuous impedance monitoring.

DYNACORD

www.dynacord.com

The flagship of the LX Series delivers a mighty two 2,100W into two ohms and two 1,500W into four ohms and therefore has plenty of headroom for large subwoofer arrays. For decades, Dynacord has been one of the leading manufacturers in the pro audio sector and has established a secure position in the amplifier market thanks to the excellent audio performance, absolute reliability and high stability of the Linear Precision Series.

With their outstanding operational security, which guarantees years of problem-free use, the amplifiers of the Linear Precision Series are now the standard for a wide variety of full-range and multi-way loudspeakers systems in professional venues as diverse as theatres, stadiums, discotheques, clubs and concert halls.

ELECTRO-VOICE

www.electrovoice.com

Designed for the most demanding applications in both touring and installed sound, Electro-Voice’s TG7 Tour Grade power amplifiers offer a combination of 3,500W (two ohms) per channel output power, sonic excellence, and high efficiency - all in a compact, 14.5kg lightweight format, that’s ideal for life on the road.

Based on a grounded-bridge three-step Class-H topology, Tour Grade amplifiers feature a high capacity switch-mode power supply to ensure maximum headroom for high dynamic outputs and reliable operation on extreme low loads. The optional IRIS-Net remote control modules add state-of-the-art IRISNet-controlled DSP, including FIR-Drive loudspeaker optimisation, IIR filters, signal routing, level control, dynamics, system supervision and networking to the package.

EQUIPSON

www.equipson.es

Equipson’s Work brand touring amplifier, the Zenith 6000 is capable of delivering up to 6kW (four ohms bridged mode), and promises high-quality electronics, low weight and robust construction. Aimed at touring applications, the amplifier is equipped with all the feature of the full Zenith series including switch-mode power supply stabilised by microcontroller allowing continuous power up to 8kW; power supply capacitors chosen for high ripple current capacity, improving performance at low frequencies; circuit components manufactured with SMT technology with automatic construction and testing; stereo, bridge and parallel mode operation; optimum performance at two ohm load; and protection against short circuits at the output, over temperature, DC and VHF signal even in continuous operation.

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MARKET FOCUS: Amplification

FULL FAT AUDIO

www.fullfataudio.com

The FFA-4004 DSP and FFA-6004 DSP are four channel Class-D amplifiers with onboard DSP hardware. The amplifiers accept analogue or AES digital input. Control is by Ethernet either directly connected to a MAC or PC or using a switch or router. The powerful DSP has two inputs and six outputs which allow further signal processing to two more amplifier channels so a multitude of system designs can be achieved without the need to use a standalone DSP processor. A control port with VCA’s for each of these six output channels is provided for further user control. Power outputs are four 1,000W and four 1,500W at four ohms. Designed and made in England.

KAM

www.lambaplc.com

Kam manufacture high quality and affordable tools for musicians, DJs and peformers. The Kam KXR V2 power amplifier series is engineered to deliver high quality professional audio. This series builds on the succcess of Kam’s hugely popular original range of KXR power amplifiers. The Kam KXR V2 Series is truly designed for performance. Kam is so confident of the build quality of this series that it is offering a 10-year warranty on each amplifier. The current range comprises six models with power rating up to 4000W per channel peak.

KEMPTON

www.fbt.it

The Kempton KA Series is designed and engineered by FBT, Italy. The amplifier series features circuitry designs in Class-D, Class-H and Class-AB using Surface Mount Technology with the placement of high grade output components to provide extremely low distortion factors as low as (<0.03%) THD along with a wide and ruler flat frequency response. The KA 2403 power amplifier features three channels delivering two 500W continuous at four ohms with a third channel of 1,000W continuous at four ohms to power a dedicated subwoofer in a two rack space chassis. Additional features include a high pass filter switch and variable stereo crossover frequency potentiometers to contour the response to satellite speakers.

LAB.GRUPPEN

www.labgruppen.com

The PLM 20000Q is the flagship model of Lab.gruppen’s most powerful amplifier platform, and also a mainstay on a large majority of major tours, events and productions worldwide. As well as providing a rock-solid amplifier platform, including four discrete output channels (bridgeable), each rated at greater than 5,000W into 2.2 - 3.3 ohms (4,400W into four ohms), PLM 20000Q also benefits from having the industryleading digital sound manipulation features of Lake Processing fully integrated into the package. The result is a seamlessly unified sound reinforcement core that offers flexibility in configuration, pristine digital filtering and delay, plus the ability to drive difficult loads.

MARTIN AUDIO

www.martin-audio.com

Martin Audio’s MA5.2K delivers two 2,600W into four ohms in a 1U, lightweight design. Its efficient switchmode power supply features global mains operation and Power Factor Correction for reduced mains current draw, while Class-D output stages achieve approximately 95% efficiency, almost independent of input level.

A host of features include front panel LCD interactive display, variable-speed cooling fan and PC remote control. The MA5.2K DSP option integrates advanced signal processing capabilities - including parametric EQ, and IIR and FIR filters for crossover implementation.

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GUESTS

AWARDS

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MARKET FOCUS: Amplification

MC2 AUDIO

www.mc2-audio.co.uk

The E100 from MC2 Audio offers outstanding power and performance in a lightweight package designed to be as happy on the road as it is in a club. It features Class-D technology and a switching supply, backed up by a massive energy reservoir. This enables it to offer exceptional transient response and prevent any bass ‘sag’ - maintaining the highest sound quality under the most arduous conditions. The E100 can deliver in excess of 2,500W into four ohms across all four channels simultaneously, with exceptional noise and distortion figures right up to maximum output. All this power comes with control - newly designed limiters and a Power Reduction Control system allow you to ‘rein in’ this drive to suit the application.

OHM

www.ohm.co.uk

OHM Daisy is a range of Class D amplifier modules with built in DSP and output powers up to 3,800W. Housed in an extruded aluminium pod, each Daisy weighs 5kg with a front panel size of 133mm (3U) high by 88mm wide. With coupling hardware, five Daisy modules will fit into a 19-inch rack. The integral 96kHz DSP is accessed by ethernet or USB and runs on OHM’s Spyder software. There is a XLR input and link, which will accept a mono analogue signal or stereo AES digital signal. Mains power is via a Powercon and outputs are on an eight pole Speakon. The front panel has a settings display, signal LEDs and buttons for selecting pre-sets and channel mutes. There are four modules in the range; three channel – 2,400W + 700 + 700, two channel – 2,400W + 700W and 800W + 800W, single channel – 2,400W. In the same package there is a mains sequencer with four mains outputs.

OUTLINE

www.outline.it

Equally versatile in both portable and installed system configurations, and with its four channels delivering up to 5,000W (2,500W when running in Bridge Mode into a minimum eight ohm load) all neatly packed in one single rack unit weighing just over 7.3kg / 16lb, Outline’s M5000-4 is a flexible, cost-effective solution for small to medium sound systems. The M5000-4’s four channels of amplification combined with the external DSP presets for Outline loudspeaker systems provide the perfect solution for a number of applications. The flexible two / four channel format is ideal for installations where space is at a premium, but where output power is essential.

PEAVEY

www.peavey.com

The IPR 1600 DSP power amplifier combines user-friendly loudspeaker management with the lightweight power and performance of its IPR digital power amplifiers. The onboard digital signal processing system includes preset banks for popular loudspeaker types and configurations, as well as Waves MaxxBass psychoacoustic processing for the first time in any power amplifier. The IPR DSP takes users through an intuitive setup wizard to set EQ curves, delay speakers, crossover (full-range or full-range with sub), high pass and low pass; adjust a four-band parametric EQ and horn EQ; and specify the amount of Waves MaxxBass processing from 0-100%. MaxxBass uses psycho-acoustics to calculate precise harmonics.

PKN AUDIO

www.pknaudio.com

The PKN XE10000U is the largest brother of the PKN Audio universal line of touring amplifier range.

Compact one rack unit lightweight device can deliver more than 10kW audio power with great dynamics and improved damping factor. The amplifier has low effect on the mains thanks to the new, all digital controlled high-frequency, single-stage resonant power supply with high power factor operation. This new amplifier has exceptional AC line range and ruggedness against line disturbances, just like all other models in the XE-U series. It works from 64Vac to 300Vac and survives up to 560Vac connection without need of service.

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MARKET FOCUS: Amplification

POWERSOFT

www.powersoft.it

The K10 DSP+AESOP is the most versatile amplifier within the Powersoft K Series. Useful for most subwoofers as well as high-power, full-range systems, it provides 12,000W per two output channels. Due to remarkably high efficiency exceeding 85%, the vast power density warrants top performance despite running off a single mains phase, while occupying only a single rack unit. A fully integrated state-of-the-art DSP provides extensive system management functionality. IIR / FIR filters, safety features like TruePower limiting and Live Impedance measurement, as well as the convenient Active Damping Control, are intuitively manageable with the free PC software Armonía Pro Audio Suite.

QSC AUDIO

www.qscaudio.com

The PLD Series for live sound reinforcement from QSC features advanced signal processing combined with a unique power distribution configuration, the PLD / CXD multi-channel processing power amplifiers completely redefine the rack-mount power amplifier category. Housed in a 2U chassis, PLD Series features new QSC proprietary Class-D power devices, which enables multi-channel, high performance power. The innovative Flexible Amplifier Summing Technology (FAST), provides better power allocation by actively distributing the total amplifier power across one or all four outputs enabling amp channels to be combined for maximum current or voltage output with the largest models capable of up to 5,000W.

RAM AUDIO

www.ramaudio.com

Based on QuantaPulse Technology, the V Series from RAM Audio, have dual oversized high efficiency regulated SMPS with PFC to deliver full performance independently of mains status. Cooling through a component-free path with removable front dust filters guarantee a reliable operation into dirty environments.

Full digital control, LCD shows, channels, temperature, attenuation or VUmeter mode, operating time, input links, gain, dual or bridge mode, and so on. Equipped with high performance DSP with post-DSP signal links, Ethernet connection and digital AES3 inputs.

YAMAHA

www.yamahaproaudio.com

Yamaha’s TXn range comprises three high power output, compact two unit rackmount models which stably drive load impedances as low as two ohms, making them ideal for touring systems. An integral 24 bit ADDA 96kHz DSP engine delivers amplifier control, status monitoring and extensive speaker processing capabilities, while each model features a mini-YGDAI card slot, fitted with an AES/EBU I/O card for digital input and throughput. Balanced analogue inputs and throughputs are located on the amplifier’s rear panel. Analogue and digital inputs can be used independently, or signals input to both and mixed or switched automatically.

The mini-YGDAI slot can also be fitted with alternative cards, allowing seamless integration with audio networks.

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THE BIGGER PICTURE

THE PSA BUSINESS SUPPORT HELPLINE IS KINDLY SPONSORED BY

THE BIGGER PICTURE MUSIC INDUSTRY CELEBRATES LIVE MUSIC ACT ANNIVERSARY For those that work with live music, it’s good to know that there are people out there supporting the next generation, encouraging grass-roots, easing the burdens on venues that provide the training ground for new talent. The PSA works closely with UK Music both to ensure a healthy supply of new talent and recognition for our members that are part of the core of the UK’s live music sector.

The Musicians’ Union (MU) and UK Music recently celebrated the first anniversary of the Live Music Act coming into effect by publishing a report on its impact at a roundtable held at the Cornerhouse in Manchester. This event marks the culmination of a series of roundtables across the country over the past year - in Birmingham, Cardiff, Liverpool, London, Bristol and Manchester. These events were a chance for the MU and UK Music to discuss the Act with venue owners, promoters, musicians and others involved in live music at a local level.

Overall, the discussions showed that most welcomed the Live Music Act, which allows performances of live music in England and Wales to take place without local authority permission if they are to audiences of fewer than 200 people.

The Live Music Act was introduced by Liberal Democrat peer Tim Clement-Jones and promoted in the Commons by Bath MP Don Foster. The MU and UK Music will now focus on spreading the word further and on urging the Government to commit to extending the exemption to cover venues with fewer than 500 people in attendance.

Horace Trubridge, MU Assistant General 100

Secretary for the Music Industry said: “The Live Music Act was a fantastic achievement and really opened up opportunities for small venues to put on live music. The work that we’ve been doing over the past year, going out and talking to promoters, musicians, venue owners and councillors, has been aimed at maximising the impact of the Act – and I think we’ve made great progress. “It’s an exciting time for both venues and musicians, who can use the opportunity to work together to create a growing audience and profile, and long-term success. As the research undertaken by PRS for Music has shown, live music can be hugely beneficial for pubs - pubs without featured music being three times more likely to close than pubs with featured music.”

Jo Dipple, Chief Executive of UK Music, said: “The Live Music Act is a truly grassroots beast. In an inherently top-down political system such as ours, it’s pretty unusual for legislation to come ‘up from the ground’ in this way. Yet this was a move long-advocated by musicians, supported by UK Music and the Musicians Union, proposed by a musically enthusiastic backbencher in the House of Lords (Tim Clement Jones) and piloted though the Commons by Don Foster. “As the anniversary approached, we really wanted to get out into the grassroots of the industry itself, out in the regions where most British music is played and heard. I’m really pleased with the work that has been done locally as a result of these roundtables and I’m certain that the live music scene, which was already strong in the UK, will now flourish even more.”

Lord Tim Clement-Jones says: “I had the

pleasure of chairing the two roundtables in London and Bristol. It is early days, but it is quite clear the Act’s fundamental objective of decreasing complexity and regulatory burdens is having a very real impact on musical performances across the land. I am pleased that the music industry is continuing to monitor the impact of the Act and working with a number of partners to promote the benefits.”

Don Foster MP said: “The Live Music Act started the process of reducing regulation around the performance of live music. Evidence over the past year shows it’s working. It’s easier for smaller venues to put on a diverse range of musical entertainment, the fears that there would be a big increase in complaints about noise and anti-social behaviour have proved unfounded, and progress is being made on further de-regulation. In short, it’s been a win for performers with increased opportunities to perform and develop their talents, a win for venues with increased commercial opportunities and a win for communities with more to see and hear.”

Paul Clements, Director of Public Performance Sales, PRS for Music said: “PRS for Music applauds the Live Music Act which removed a barrier to business. We believe the UK has a great history in producing fantastic live music experiences which benefits musicians and venue owners alike - progress on legislation, licensing and the nurturing of vital talent can ensure a sustainable live music industry for all.”

The full report can be found at: www.ukmusic.org

www.psa.org.uk

BRITANNIA ROW CELEBRATES LAUNCH OF TRAINING FACILITY

Take some spare space, add decades of experience, inject a healthy dose of technology, mix with passion and specialist expertise and you’ve got yourself a training centre.

The official launch of the Britannia Row Productions Training centre was celebrated with an event following the completion of the first Live Sound Technology course.

The party was attended by representatives of partners from the industry and the education sector, as well as press and tutors involved in

the course. The organisers were particularly pleased to welcome the Mayor of Wandsworth, Cllr Angela Graham.

The occasion of the successful completion of the first Live Sound Technology course run at the centre was highlighted in speeches along with the achievements of successful trainees who were running the live sound of the evening.

Britannia Row Productions Director Mike Lowe reflected on the nature of live sound

work: “It is a vocation and to my mind, cries out for vocational guidance and training from within the industry. He highlighted Britannia Row’s support for trainees by saying: “We can open many doors. We are passionate about following through with our trainees. Their ongoing success is our success.“ Course Director, Barry Bartlett, explained the rationale behind the curriculum and course structure: “Industry relevance has been our priority in the design of this course, providing trainees with the core skills required to take up entry-level positions within the industry.

Also, its 12-week duration gives our trainees a realistic picture of the pressures and work loads experienced in the live sound environment.”

Britannia Row Productions Training MD, Matthias Postel emphasised the need for this initiative: “Professional live sound deserves dedicated training. Otherwise, the training and education landscape does not offer adequate, industry-based opportunities for young people to learn this specific trade.”

This event also provided the opportunity to announce the first recipient of the unique placement guarantee offered by Britannia Row Productions Training. The best performing graduate from the course Gonçalo Lopes was offered a 12-month paid position with Britannia Row Productions as a valuable stepping stone in his future career as a live sound technician. http://training.britanniarow.com

DON’T LET A MULTI-TOOL GET YOU ARRESTED We had a worrying phone conversation the other day. One of our members had his bag searched by the Police, they found a multitool and immediately arrested the person in question. Three nights in custody, a charge for possession of an offensive weapon, bail conditions that prevent him from working and the worry of an impending court case, all for carrying the right tool at the wrong time.

Of course, they’re ubiquitous in our world, a useful bit of kit that removes the need for lugging around a bag full of bits, all neatly package in a holster on your belt or, in this case, easily forgotten in the bottom of a bag that you last used for work.

The legal situation is relatively clear; anything with a locking blade can be classed as an offensive weapon. The legal problem seems to stem from the locking blade, it is illegal to carry such a knife without reasonable explanation.

Having spoken with importers, it seems to be a common problem, and they actively engage with hobbyist groups to advise and in some cases, deal directly with enforcers, to justify the carriage of equipment as a work tool or as part of a leisure activity. Picture the family camping holiday; dad straps the Leatherman he had for Christmas to his belt, relaxes in the evening by whittling a new thumbstick, then wanders off to the local. At some point, a present from the kids has the potential for a £5,000 fine and four years inside.

Of course, we’ll do all we can to help the member in question but, even facing a very uncertain immediate future, he was keen for us to spread the word to avoid others suffering a similar plight. The final word, from the gov.uk web site: Lock knives (knives with blades that can be locked when unfolded) are not folding knives, and are illegal to carry in public.

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

MOVERS & SHAKERS

CUK Audio has appointed Rich Soper as Brand Manager, Live Sound, with responsibility for sales and support of Cadac, Clair Bros, Cordial, dbTechnologies, Outline, Pivitec and Powersoft.

Soper has a background as a FOH engineer, working on tours, cruise liners and live events.

He joins CUK Audio from Yamaha Commercial Audio where he held the position of Regional Manager and specialised in digital consoles, DSP and loudspeaker systems. Prior to that he worked for dbTechnologies UK and Amber Sound.

“The appointment of Rich is a major step for CUK Audio. It is a key element in the substantial commitment and investment we are making in terms of both sales and support in the live sector, and the direction the brand portfolio will take moving forward,” said CUK Audio’s MD, Stuart Thomson. “We have established a great portfolio of brands and believe Rich is the person with the right connections, knowledge and approach to take this to the next level and establish CUK Audio as a major player in this sector.”

Thomson continued: “CUK Audio has predominantly been an Integration focused distributor and now, eight years on, it’s time to fully commit to other sectors without detracting from our core business. With the recent changes to the brand portfolio and the addition of Rich, it places us in a strong position to contribute to this sector in a positive way.”

Harman Professional Division has announced the integration of Martin Professional US operations into its organisation effective immediately. The move provides Martin Professional customers with access to its deep resources, including the industry-leading product portfolio, unmatched R&D capabilities and depth, a world-class sales and support infrastructure, including a state-of-the art showroom in Northridge, California, and the 102

financial strength to see additional lighting and video technologies added to the portfolio.

The combining of Harman and Martin will result in operational efficiencies, including the closure of Martin’s operations in Sunrise, Florida.

The company will maintain a strong sales and product support presence in the Fort Lauderdale area and all staff from the facility have been offered positions within the Harman Professional organisation.

The integration of Martin and Harman US operations has already yielded an array of sales and marketing initiatives - not least the new 10,000 sq ft Customer Experience Centre in Northridge, California; a dedicated Martin roadshow truck that will visit customers and partners throughout the US; several senior new hires to bolster customer resources and the increase to three fixed sales and service centres in the US. Capitalising on this wealth of experience and talent at recently acquired Martin Professional, Harman also announced the appointment of Brian Friborg to lead US sales, groupwide as USA Vice President of Sales, Harman Professional.

Friborg, who previously held the position of President, Americas for Martin Professional, immediately assumes responsibility for sales and support of Harman Professional audio and lighting technologies in the US. He will report directly to Scott Robbins, Harman Professional Executive Vice President, Worldwide Sales.

Elsewhere, TC Group has appointed Owen Xing as Managing Director of its Chinese division, TC Group China. Xing, 34, has held managing positions in the music and audio industries for more than a decade, which makes him a perfect match for TC Group China that operates out of Beijing in the MI, Install, Touring, Broadcast and Production markets.

Further, Owen Xing has a background as a guitar player and composer, which also ties in

well with the core values of TC Group - rooted in the passion for sound in all forms.

Xing joins TC Group China at very exciting times, as the company has recently moved to a brand new location and established a dedicated sales company as well as an Asian distribution centre, all of which is due to continuous growth for both TC Group China and its key partners for years. With great products in the pipeline covering all of TC Group China’s business segments, the future looks very promising for the company.

“I am very excited to be joining TC Group China,” said Xing. “I have been familiar with the brands of TC Group as well as its line of products for years and I strongly believe that the company has a great future in China as well as the rest of the world. I look forward to being part of that.”

As part of Ambersphere Solutions’ continued growth, it has taken on industry veteran Lee House to join its sales team.

House brings a wealth of industry experience as he begins his new role as Technical Sales for Ambersphere. House joins after previously being Product Manager of the Green Hippo Hippotizer media server range and before that, the Head of AC Video with AC-ET. “When we heard that Lee was available it was the ideal time to expand the team here and we are very excited with his arrival,” commented Managing Director Glyn O’Donoghue. “Top flight personnel is a key part of our company’s ethos making the decision to snap Lee up all the more easy. Using Lee’s main skill set we will see him primarily concentrating on the TV and Film market with our exclusive range of MA, Clay Paky and Robert Juliat products, continuing to provide excellent customer care and technical support countrywide.”

“I am very excited to join the team at Ambersphere,” added House. “With quality people and, importantly, quality product it was

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Opposite: CUK Audio has announced the appointment of Rich Soper to the position of Brand Manager, Live Sound; TC Group has appointed Owen Xing as Managing Director of its Chinese division, TC Group China; Ambersphere Solutions welcomed Lee House into its sales division; Harman Professional announced the appointment of Brian Friborg as USA Vice President of Sales; White Light is pleased to welcome David Ferraz to the White Light Sales team as Sales Product Support; GLP has announced that it has hired Oliver Schwendke as its new Key Account Manager. GLP has announced that it has hired Oliver Schwendke as its new Key Account Manager.

an easy decision to join the team.

Getting back out on the road and putting product in front of customers is a passion and with MA, Clay Paky and Robert Juliat the request for demos just keeps on increasing. The opportunity to work closely with the manufacturers and still be out in front of customers is one that I am looking forward to getting stuck into.

White Light has appointed David Ferraz as Sales Product Support, further expanding its after sales support available to customers and dealers of White Light Distribution products. Ferraz began working with White Light in July 2013 and is focused on providing support for White Light exclusive product lines. He will respond to technical enquiries, as well as delivering product training sessions and on-site demonstrations.

“We are always happy to expand our offering of services and support for our customers,” said Peter Threadgold, Director of Sales for White Light. “This means customers have a direct line of support from their trusted supplier.

They can deal with one company across several brands and products, which will be especially useful for customers in our dealer network.

Adding David as dedicated product support means we can continue to deliver great products and superior customer service all in-house.”

GLP has hired Oliver Schwendke

as its new Key Account Manager from its HQ in Karlsbad, Germany.

Schwendke is a familiar face to many in the European entertainment production market, having worked at Hamburg based Procon, which subsequently became PRG Hamburg after an acquisition a few years ago, for more than 20 years.

Udo Kuenzler, CEO of GLP, commented: “Oliver is a great addition to GLP. He has a huge amount of experience with the biggest companies in our industry and will be a great to customers and designers alike.”

Schwendke added: “I have followed GLP and their evolution for many years. Finding the right new challenge after my previous experience was important, but I am now really excited about working with GLP and G-LEC and working my know-how into the company.”

Along with his key account responsibilities, he will also become a core part of both GLP and G-LEC’s strategic development team, managing the different brands’ product portfolios. G-LEC is the creative video company that was acquired by GLP in 2010 and has made a name for itself with products such as Phantom, the first semi-transparent video panel which first appeared in 2000, and Solaris, a cable based video system which offers designers creativity in both 2D and 3D applications.

TPi www.tpimagazine.com/jobs

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Cambridge Folk Festival: PA Systems 2014 Portacabins 2014 Security Services 2014

(All with options to extend for 2015 & 2016) For tender documentation contact: Rachel.Knight@cambridge.gov.uk stating which contract you are interested in.

Tender documentation will be dispatched from Mon 28th October 2013 Closing Date for tender submissions is Friday 20th December 2013, 12.00hrs

103

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VITAL STATS

VITAL STATS 152 Keith Wood Profession: Production Manager, AEG Live UK Date & place of birth: February 2, 1959, Essex, England How did your career in live production begin?

From the age of 14 I was regularly going to concerts and this continued throughout my time studying Electro Acoustics at Salford University - with a view to work in studios or for the BBC. I got involved in the university’s entertainments division and became Social Secretary booking bands such as The Jam, Blondie, Ian Drury and Elvis Costello. After leaving University in 1980 I thought promoting shows would be a great job and so approached several major promoters and luckily got a job. My first job was on the road with Genesis followed by Thin Lizzy and Peter Gabriel tours. I couldn’t believe my luck!

Did you have a mentor or were you thrown in at the deep end?

I’ve been able to learn and pick up some invaluable experience working with some great characters in the concert industry. Firstly with Adrian Hopkins, a proper old-school promoter who’s company not only promoted tours, but managed artists, venues, and had a tour merchandise company covering tours, festivals, and venue concessions, so I picked up a broad understanding of deals and the live touring business and got to travel the world. I then had seven years with John Giddings at Solo and stepped up to stadium level touring, working with artists such as The Rolling Stones, Bowie, Genesis, The Corrs, Celine Dion and Phil Collins. This was followed by looking after tours for Barry Dickins at ITB with Bob Dylan, Simon and Garfunkel, Diana Ross and Robert Plant before joining AEG Live and working with AEG Live’s President of International Touring, Rob Hallett. With AEG as well as Bon Jovi, Beyonce, Guns N’ Roses, Leonard Cohen and Rod Stewart.

What’s the best piece of professional advice you’ve ever been given?

Listen and learn. I learn something new every time I go and see a show…

Or read TPi! You’ve worked on some incredible productions during your career, is there a particular event that still resonates with you?

I’ve been fortunate enough to work with some top artists and personal musical heroes including David Bowie, Robert Plant, The Who, Prince and James Brown. Dealing with Michael Jackson’s 50 nights at the O2 Arena were also some of the greatest and sadly, lowest times. Two things I regard as favourites were when I toured Europe as Promoter Site Manager on U2’s Popmart tour and when we created, from scratch, the first Party In The Park back in the late ‘90s, which has now come full circle. Now in Hyde Park, we have AEG’s British Summer Time, which has really raised the bar in site infrastructure and show production design.

Last year you were voted Production Manager of the Year at the TPi Awards. What did this mean to you?

I’ve always tried to keep in the background as I feel as my name is not on 106

“I learn something new every time I go and see a show...

Or when I read TPi!” the poster, so why would anyone want my opinion? I was so chuffed to win though, and I know that my peers were kind enough to vote.

You’re at the top of your game… What working values do you feel a PM needs to be successful?

Some sort of broad technical understanding as technology moves on and prices go up, so you need to know what a product does and why it costs what it does, before it goes into the budget. I always seem to have a lot of work going on and so have learnt to bring in assistance with great additions to my team, such as Holly Sandeman and Kahren Williams.

AEG’s brilliant Jesus Christ Super Star has just finished its UK run, what can we expect to see you working on next year?

Jesus Christ Superstar was hard work; to put a whole project together like that, but it’s something that I’m really proud of. Similarly, I’ve just produced the Stephen Lawrence Unity tribute show at London’s O2 Arena with 15 live artists and TV coverage, which was quite a challenge, so I’d like to do more of those sort of projects in between my normal productions, which are typically pop and rock groups in fields and football stadiums.

How important is training in terms of working your way up to be a PM? There wasn’t a Production Management for Dummies text book when I started out. The best training is to get out there on the road and observe how shows and tours are put together and how other production managers work. You will soon work out who the good ones are and learn from them.

Of course, in recent times the health and safety side and working practices is a very important part of a PM’s role in ensuring a safe working environment for staff, artists and the public. So the minimum level of training such as the Safety Passport is something we, as an industry, need to aim for and push for from the suppliers and freelancers we’re hiring.

You’ve been doing this for almost 34 years, what do you consider to be the most rewarding part of your job at this point?

Any chance to get some sleep...

What is your desert island disc?

Rescue Me by Fontella Bass.

Made for each other.

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