TPi September 2019 - #241 by Mondiale Media

TOTAL PRODUCTION INTERNATIONAL LIVE EVENT DESIGN & TECHNOLOGY • SEPTEMBER 2019 • ISSUE 241 ‘CAUSE I’VE BEEN ON THE RUN SO LONG THEY CAN’T FIND ME…

P!NK

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CREAMFIELDS • BOOMTOWN FAIR: CHAPTER 11 • IN PROFILE: FIX8GROUP • MAIN SQUARE FESTIVAL MARKET FOCUS: TRUCKING & FREIGHTING • GEARHEADS: D&B AUDIOTECHNIK A-SERIES • MIF • PSA

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EDITOR’S LETTER

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See you August! Although there are still a few more festivals left this season, the TPi HQ has officially put away our tents and wellies for another year. Between Jacob, Hannah, Lyndsey, Harley and I, TPi has travelled the length and breadth of the UK to cover a range of events including Gottwood Festival, Download, Boomtown Fair, Creamfields, British Summer Time, Bluedot, Parklife and All Points East. Not to mention a paricularly small up-and-coming festival called Glastonbury – I swear it’s going to be big! Thanks again to the numerous crew who have given us such a warm reception this year. We still have one more Festival Focus penned for our October issue, so if there are any more stories you still wish to tell, be sure to let us know. In between a busy schedule, Jacob found time to jet over to Munich, Germany, to witness P!nk’s Beautiful Trauma World Tour transition from arenas to stadiums. From daredevil aerial stunts to her outstanding vocal delivery, P!nk and her loyal touring family demonstrated its capabilities at the top echelon of global touring. Also, in this issue, we speak to Touring MiniCams Phil Woodhead about the development of miniature cameras in the world of live touring, along with speaking to the team from Fix8Group about its latest developments. But, as they say, no rest for the wicked! We’ve already got the ball rolling on our next issue, having witnessed the latest academy run from Skunk Anansie not to mention getting to see metal titans, Rammstein in Europe – but you’ll have to wait until October for that one. No doubt we’ll see many of you at Plasa London in the next few weeks. Although - prewarning - I might be recovering from Andy Lenthall and I’s 200+ mile ride journey to the trade show, all in the name of Stagehand. Psst! We’re still collecting donations for the challenge - you can donate at: www.justgiving.com/fundraising/teampsa. Stew Hume Editor

EDITOR Stew Hume Tel: +44 (0)161 476 8385 Mobile: +44 (0)7702 054344 e-mail: s.hume@mondiale.co.uk

STAFF WRITER Jacob Waite Tel: +44 (0)161 476 8352 Mobile: +44 (0)7592 679612 e-mail: j.waite@mondiale.co.uk

ASSISTANT EDITOR Peter Iantorno Tel: +44 (0)161 476 8360 Mobile: +44 (0)7763 233637 e-mail: p.iantorno@mondiale.co.uk

ADVERTISING ACCOUNT MANAGER Lyndsey Hopwood Tel: +44 (0)161 476 8360 Mobile: +44 (0)7800 557094 e-mail: l.hopwood@mondiale.co.uk

ADVERTISING ACCOUNT MANAGER Harley Daniels Tel: +44 (0)161 476 9119 Mobile: +44 (0)7854 087731 e-mail: h.daniels@mondiale.co.uk

EDITORIAL INTERN Lily Harrison

DIGITAL EDITORIAL ASSISTANT James Robertson Tel: +44 (0)161 476 8360 Mobile: +44 (0)7725 475819 e-mail: j.robertson@mondiale.co.uk

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CHIEF EXECUTIVE Justin Gawne Tel: +44 (0)161 476 8360 Mobile: +44 (0)7768 850767 e-mail: j.gawne@mondiale.co.uk GRAPHIC DESIGN & PRODUCTION Dan Seaton: d.seaton@mondiale.co.uk Sonam Diki: s.diki@mondiale.co.uk

ACCOUNTS Lynette Levi / Sarah Miller: ar@mondiale.co.uk

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Issue 241 - September 2019 Annual subscriptions (including P&P): £42 (UK), £60 (Europe), £78/$125 (RoW). Subscription enquiries to: Subscriptions, Mondiale Publishing Limited, Strawberry Studios, Watson Square, Stockport, SK1 3AZ, UK. Tel: +44 (0)161 476 5580 Fax: +44 (0)161 476 0456 e-mail: subscriptions@mondiale.co.uk www.tpimagazine.com www.tpiawards.com

TOTAL PRODUCTION INTERNATIONAL is a controlled circulation magazine, published 12 times a year by Mondiale Media Limited under licence. ISSN 1461-3786 Copyright © 2019 Mondiale Media 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 Media 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 Media Limited United Kingdom. The 2019 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. US Postmaster: Send address changes to Total Production International, Air Business Ltd, C/O WorldNet Shipping USA Inc., 155-11 146th Avenue, Jamaica, New York, NY11434. Subscription records are maintained at Mondiale Media Ltd. Waterloo Place, Watson Square, Stockport, SK1 3AZ, UK.

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ITINERARY

EVENT FOCUS

Klassik airleben 2019 Yamaha teams up with the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra.

Les Misérables Autograph Sound provides a Clear-Com solution for the touring production.

The Grand Concert de Paris GB4D deploys 152 Optocore preamps for France’s national day celebration.

16 ETC & High End Systems An exclusive High End Systems showcase event at Edinburgh’s iconic Leith Theatre. 18 PSCo Innovation House Party Midwich Group unveils a brand new 50,000sqft southern showroom.

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PRODUCTION PROFILE

P!nk: Beautiful Trauma World Tour The fearless singer returns with a technically and physically extravagant stadium show.

Creamfields The band of loyal suppliers battle wind, rain and scorching heat for three days of EDM excellence.

Boomtown Fair: Chapter 11 The festival embarks on the 11th chapter of its wildly idiosyncratic narrative.

FESTIVAL FOCUS 60

TPi checks in with the crew at Bluedot, Main Square and MIF, among others.

IN PROFILE

Manchester-based FIX8Group discusses the next stage of the company’s growth.

MARKET FOCUS 94

TPi looks at the latest innovations in world of trucking and freighting.

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PRODUCTION FUTURES 106 NEC Group become UKs first to complete a Live Event Rigging Apprenticeship.

GEAR HEADS

108 d&b audiotechnik’s Lorenz Betz details the capabilities of the A-Series.

INTERVIEW 112 Touring MiniCams’ Phil Woodhead discusses the development of miniature on-stage cameras.

ENDLESS ROTATION

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PSA: THE BIGGER PICTURE 116 Andy reflects on the summer season.

INDUSTRY APPOINTMENTS 118 The latest movers and shakers.

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BACK CHAT 122 Harman Professional Solution’s Michael Walker, takes the hot seat.

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EVENT FOCUS

YAMAHA TEAMS-UP WITH THE LEIPZIG GEWANDHAUS ORCHESTRA The popular Klassik airleben concerts return with Yamaha digital mixing to ensure the 60,000-strong audience enjoyed two great evenings of Italian classical music.

The Klassik airleben shows play an important part in Leipzig culture, bringing orchestral music to many who are presumed to rarely attend concerts in the Gewandhaus concert hall. Conducted by Musical Director, Andris Nelsons, this year’s shows featured soloists Kristin Opolais and Thomas Hampson in a programme of works by Italian composers Rossini, Verdi and Puccini. The show’s production company is Leipzig-based Frontsound Veranstaltungstechnik, headed by Gunnar Gosch and Christian Arnold. They chose Yamaha QL5 and CL5 digital consoles to mix the show, with two Rio3224-D2 and two Rio1608-D I/O racks, on a redundant Dante network. “As a company, we focused on high quality technology at an early stage. We believe in quality, not quantity,” said Gosch. “We have recently reinvested in Yamaha equipment with several QL and CL series consoles. Despite their compact dimensions, they have enough channels, sound good and are, overall, very powerful.” The QL5 was used to mix the FOH sound from a position around 60m from the stage. Two matrix mixes were output, one to the main L-C-R PA system, plus frontfills and outfills, the other to eight delay towers. The PA system processors were controlled digitally via AES / EBU from the Yamaha R-series units. With one of the Rio3224-D2s assigned to the delay lines, it meant that, if necessary, filtering could be applied in the main PA, without affecting the sound of the delay speakers. The use of wireless Shure ULX-D microphones meant they could be conveniently controlled from the Yamaha mixing consoles. “This is a really

useful feature,” noted Gosch. At the monitor position, Engineer Rudolph Andreas was manning the Yamaha CL5 console. “The CL5 offers incredible flexibility,” he said. “When you are setting up the mix, you can achieve what you want quickly and the signal routing within the console is very clear. The workflow is also very flexible, you can set up everything just as you like it.” Andreas used a number of the CL5’s onboard high quality effects, including a hall reverb for Kristine Opolais’ soprano, enriching it and providing a better monitoring experience for her in the unfamiliar situation of an open-air performance. He was also very pleased with the flexibility of the Dynamic EQ. “I can selectively change individual frequency ranges with it, improving the sound for the artist without them even noticing,” he said. “The CL5 has a very neutral sound, which is a great advantage especially in classical music and theatre. Sound colouration by the preamps can be useful, but only if you can choose and target it - for example like you can with the Yamaha RIVAGE PM10 and PM7 digital mixing systems.” “We rely on Yamaha as trusted brand,” added Gunnar. “Another thing we are very interested in is the SWP series network switches, which we will soon be investing in. You can’t expect every system technician to be a network specialist, so being able to simplify setups using the SWP switches will make a real difference.” TPi Photo: Jörg Küster www.frontsound.de 08

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EVENT FOCUS

CLEAR-COM ON THE ROAD Autograph Sound provides a communication solution for the touring production of Les Misérables. Now approaching its fourth decade, Sir Cameron Mackintosh’s production of Les Misérables is the world’s longest-running musical since it opened in London in 1985. Having performed in 52 countries and 22 languages, the current UK and Ireland tour opened to rave reviews in Leicester and continues into 2020, throughout the UK. London’s Autograph Sound is continuing its long association with Mackintosh’s organisation by providing a complete audio package for the touring production, working closely with award-winning sound designer Mick Potter. The company deployed a composite system of wired and wireless Clear-Com products, combining established designs with the very latest in digital wireless systems. These included analogue Encore and Partyline units including 14 RS601 and RS602 belt packs, two remote stations, seven speaker stations, a main station and matrix master station. All of which integrated seamlessly with units from Clear-Com’s latest FreeSpeak II digital wireless system, including six antennae, three antenna

splitters, thirteen wireless digital belt packs and a Base Station. Amongst other advantages, Autograph’s design allows placement of multiple antennae which provide coverage wherever it is most needed. Autograph Senior Production Sound Engineer, Andy Brown commented: “Being able to freely combine units from disparate ranges of Clear-Com equipment works exceptionally well for us. It allows us to provide a comms system which is perfectly tailored to the project, using the very best of both new and established technologies, which gives the required coverage at every venue on the itinerary. In-show crew communication is critical for any modern theatrical production on this scale and once again Clear-Com equipment has helped us to deliver exactly what was needed.” TPi Photo: Matthew Murphy www.autograph.co.uk

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EVENT FOCUS

OPTOCORE POWERS AN IMMERSIVE FRENCH NATIONAL DAY CELEBRATION GB4D deploys 152 Optocore preamps for a national day celebration at the Eiffel Tower.

The Grand Concert de Paris, celebrating the anniversary of the storming of the Bastille, takes place every 14 July at the foot of the Eiffel Tower, in the Champ de Mars. This year, a crowd of 300,000 people assembled to listen to the concert live, while a record audience of 3 million viewers tuned in to watch the spectacle on television. Specialising in the delivery of large-scale shows globally, Gilles Bouvard Events and Shows (GB4D) has been working on this event with Radio France since 2015. This year, thanks to a successful experiment, they extended the traditional site wide Optocore redundant optical fiber loop by deploying an additional 152 Optocore X6R preamps. Explaining the reason, Bouvard said: “We had conducted several experiments with Radio France prior to the event, including the recording and capture of a jazz concert at La Maison de la Radio, with immersive sound, using a 22:2 multi-channel mix.”

The idea had emanated from Radio France’s Pascal Besnard and Bruno Lompech, with the latter taking up the story. “Before thinking about mixing 22:2 specifically, I thought of the huge possibilities of audio network coverage that Optocore offered, and suggested it as an alternative to other more audio-oriented IP systems. We could envisage something far more innovative than a simple stereo mix to our FM transmitters.” The audio recording was made using 48 Optocore preamps wired to a LAWO console for the antenna sound. The concert was mixed by a Yamaha Nuage post-production console for the immersive sound, all connected via a MUX22-IVT/MADI, for audio and video from Optocore sister company, BroaMan. Tuning in to the live concert in Studio 105, listeners were immediately immersed in a 16:2 sound field. Distribution of audio stems to the 18 inputs of the immersive sound converter was handled uniquely by the MUX22 IVT / MADI. 12

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Meanwhile, a BroaMan Route 66 16/24 video router retrieved HD SDI camera signals, distributing video to the sound engineers in all studios, and broadcasting the concert to the Dailymotion video-sharing platform, with images and sound immersively mixed in 22:2. As Lompech explained: “We distributed to other studios because ultimately we wanted to be able to operate any of our studio mixes to any or all of the mixing booths.” The opportunity for such an elaborate mix both on the net, and simultaneously for Radio France’s Radio Frequency Modulation (FM Radio) antennas had been the brainchild of Radio France’s Hervé Desjardin. “This was all made possible by the quality of the Optocore preamps, and the speed of distribution of audio channels from one studio to another, with almost zero latency,” said Lompech. Once proof of concept was established, this BroaMan / Optocore topography was considered perfect for the Grand Concert in Paris for July 14th. GB4D detailed 144 preamps for the stage—120 for FOH and 24 Dual Mic preamps for solo monitors. In addition, eight FOH preamps were used for the on-site public ambient sound, in addition to the live radio and television sound recording; at the same time a multitrack recording was performed on a 128-channel Pyramix from the FOH console, facilitated by the additional MADI ports (3 and 4) on BroaMan’s bidirectional Video and Data MUX22-IVT/MADI converters, and M12—an Optocore MADI router with eight MADI ports. The 5.1 OB truck on duty is already equipped with 120 LAWO preamps and is generally supplemented with Optocore preamps. “The quality of the Optocore preamps is extremely high, and so it makes no difference to Radio France’s sound engineers whether they use LAWO or Optocore preamps, especially when Optocore gain and phantom can be controlled directly

from the LAWO console,” said Bouvard. Laurent Fracchia, one of the sound directors at Radio France, realised the final sound mix for radio and TV. He had prepared a rescue mix of four stereo groups that was distributed in MADI in the Yamaha DM1000 as a back-up if necessary. The console was implemented on the Optocore network to manage TV commercials and wireless microphones for preshow presentations, and was also used to broadcast the soundtrack of the fireworks. In addition to X6R-FX-16MI and X6R-TP-16MI preamps for stage capture, GB4D used V3R-TP-8MI for ambience mics, while the Optocore network also distributed audio stems for the Adamson broadcast systems. The France TV television channel was also connected by Optocore, the FOH broadcast processor interfaced in the network via a DD32R-FX for AES streams, and an X6R-FX for analog backup. The four mixing consoles were connected to the MADI network, with BroaMan MUX22-IVT/MADI and Optocore M12 interfaces. Bruno Lompech said the Paris experiment had been “a complete success. We were able to prove that from a dedicated event to a media source, thanks to Optocore’s intelligent and transparent distribution we could create a multitude of events simultaneously. “All this was made possible thanks to the commitment not only of Radio France, but also the control of the technology by the teams of GB4D. The possibility of passing the video via the network between all the mixing and listening points has brought us great satisfaction and convinced us of the quality of the Optocore and BroaMan devices.” TPi www.broaman.com www.optocore.com 14

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PRODUCTION PROFILE

P!NK: BEAUTIFUL TRAUMA WORLD TOUR Back by phenomenal demand, P!nk returns with a technically and physically extravagant stadium show. TPi’s Jacob Waite catches up with the touring team 149 dates into the global campaign at Olympiapark München, Germany

P!NK

For over a decade, P!nk fans have become accustomed to extravagant, theatrical and often acrobatic shows. Suffice to say, Beautiful Trauma, P!nk’s seventh album and tour, was no exception. Having kicked off in Phoenix, Arizona in March 2018, the unrelenting live offering is scheduled to draw to a close at the end of the year. Equal to the theatrical nature of the tour was the prowess of the seasoned live touring personnel involved. Leading the charge, Production Manager Malcolm Weldon called upon the expertise of Stageco, Solotech, Britannia Row / Clair Global, TAIT, Five Points Productions, Legacy Power, Pyrotek, eps, Beat the Street, McGuinness, Sound Moves and Eat Your Heart Out.

never have expected.” Halpin latched onto the concept of juxtaposition and how could something be both beautiful and traumatic. “The polemic concept at the root of each act and scene within the show, was whether it was deemed beautiful.” He pointed out the “ornate yet twisted Hollywood MGM musical scene” during the opening number, and the look behind the curtain once the lights go out to “reveal the ugliness beneath.” Much like a sculpture, over the weeks and months leading up to the production rehearsals, Halpin and P!nk chipped away at the ideas to see which ones would work in line with the setlist and the overall concept of the show. At its core, the Beautiful Trauma World Tour contained all the hallmarks of a theatre show, not least with the abundance of automation and flying gags – an element that has always played a significant role in P!nk’s tours. “As she continues to push the envelope in terms of aerial performance, it’s essential to have great partners in the technology and execution end of things,” commented Halpin. The turnaround time between the arena tour and the stadium tour

GET THE PARTY STARTED Production Designer, Baz Halpin of Silent House Productions was first brought into P!nk’s orbit by ubiquitous manager, Roger Davies’ friend and mentor, the late Mark Fisher. “I was unaware at the time, but that introduction would lead me to a new path in my life and career that I would

Y ! U B LL USED SE

GEAR 26

P!NK

Systems Engineer, Johnny Keirle & FOH Engineer, David Bracey; Monitor Engineers, Jon Lewis & Horst Harmann. Audio Programmer, Joe Wolfe; Head Rigger, Gabriel Wood; Stageco’s Geert Van Heertum.

was so tight that Halpin and the creative team had to look at it from the perspective of an expansion rather than a completely different design. “The majority of the production elements over the stage remained similar, but we expanded the wings with custom surrounds for the outside LED screens, as well as pushing lighting trusses and pyrotechnics to fit.” Recounting the entire production process, Halpin concluded: “I have been incredibly fortunate to have worked with P!nk for 14 years. She continually pushes herself to do bigger, better, harder things. I’m always very proud of what we create.”

the rig and they’re fantastic.” Lighting Technician, Gabi Scheff was one of 12 lighting technicians on site and responsible for the Robe RoboSpot system. “This remote follow spot system is very intuitive because the camera is directly at the fixture. With one manual operator per station, it’s incredibly accurate even when factoring mental processing.” Robe BMFLs covered the stage, as well as long throws on the delay towers. “We depend mostly on them during the show because of their impressive reach, as well as using conventional house spots to cover other on-stage action and, in particular, the ‘3D fly gag’ section further out in the field,” she said. The tour marked Scheff’s first tour with Solotech. “It’s been a blast,” she said. “All of the gear from the warehouse is wonderfully packaged and maintained, making it easy to achieve a show on this scale with the support we need.” On a personal level, she enthused: “It’s such a spectacular show. Everyone in this entire crew is the best of the best; everything is taken care of properly and it’s great.” Six concluded: “For me, the best part about this tour is the lighting crew and I’m grateful to have them.”

BRIDGE OF LIGHT In the midst of his third tour with P!nk, Lighting Director, Steve ‘Six’ Schwind retraced the roots of the project. “It’s got progressively bigger and more complex, as tours of this scale and popularity usually do – technology has also increased tenfold.” The role of lighting was to “create an etched-out theatre show”. Six commented: “Silent House has provided a well-executed project, which I know looks good and performs flawlessly. As for the show, we hold nothing back. It’s full on from the time she hits the deck to the time she leaves.” Six dubbed timecode as “essential” to the show’s success. “Not only because of the various moving elements but because it’s reliable when it comes to delivering continuity.” Control came courtesy of his “go-to” MA Lighting grandMA2 console. “I can program things nowadays that I wouldn’t have been able to do while running the show manually. Particularly when it’s used as a tool as opposed to a crutch.” The LD coined the TMB Solaris Flare Q+ LRs as “neat fixtures that you just can’t go wrong with”. However, his favourite units on the rig were the Claypaky Mythos 2 and Claypaky Scenius Unico fixtures. “There aren’t many lights that are that flat of field,” Six said. “We’ve got around 200 of them on

FAMILY PORTRAIT Solotech provided 2,216 Saco S12 LED panels to the tour. The upstage centre LED wall comprised 804, while the onstage band risers used 60. Flanked either side of the stage were two giant IMAG LED screens, a left heart-shaped IMAG screen was made from 676 of the Saco S12 LEDs, while the right used another 676. A pair of disguise gx 2 media servers handled all content playback as well as some of the IMAG effects. Given that many moments of the show were heavily theatrical, Halpin needed to rely on “digital scenery.” He said: “Most of the content became backdrops of sorts while still remaining musically dynamic.” During the straight-up rock songs, Notch affected the IMAG or musically graphic 28

P!NK

Lighting Director, Steve ‘Six’ Schwind; Head Chef, Dan Lefevre; Wardrobe Assistant, Laura Spratt Lighting Technician, Gabi Scheff; Video Engineer, Tim ‘The Doctor’ Jones, LED Technician, Cameron Dixon & Head of LED / Camera Operator, Rob ‘RBYC’ Brewer.

content, produced by Gabriel Coutu Dumont and JT Rooney of Silent Partners, and programmed by Kirk Miller. Airworks Inflatables was invited by Halpin to build inflatable heart surrounds for the left and right IMAG screens. Airworks Inflatables Matthew Whitehead explained: “We came up with the distressed metallic look as we felt it fitted well with the theme and suggested the use of our custom lighting units to illuminate the pieces from inside. There are 150 fixtures spread across the two hearts, which were installed inside the fabric

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permanently.” Video Engineer, Tim Jones joined the conversation: “The IMAGs can be a little challenging for camera work because the screens are asymmetrical,” he said. “It’s crucial to get the camera shot to look nice in both heartshaped IMAGs because they’re mirrored essentially, so you have to be more conscious of your framing for the screens, which is the camera team’s biggest challenge.” Solotech provided a full Grass Valley camera package. Onstage, two

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LDX86N handheld cameras partnered three long-lens cameras with 107x and 99x Fujinon 4K lenses. A Ross Furio Robotic camera track, dolly system, plus a jib located on stage right, as well as a pit camera at the front of the B-Stage, helped keep pace with the non-stop action of the show. Jones said: “It’s always an evolving capture process depending on what is happening within the audience. It’s the nature of the live show; things change.” An additional RF Link GoPro was mounted in the chandelier that P!nk began the show hanging from. “The camera shots have to match the high energy of the show, adding cameras to key acrobatic apparatus such as the chandelier helps us capture that energy and excitement,” Jones added. “The RF GoPro allows us to capture P!nk flying up towards the camera just as the pyro is going off.” Video Director, Larn Poland brings the show to the big screens through a Grass Valley K-Frame with Korona Switcher Panel. “Larn and P!nk have worked together on pretty much every tour since the beginning,” Jones explained. “We have eight operated cameras, which is not the norm for a lot of shows. You would struggle to achieve the same quality of visual story that we are aiming for if you replaced manned cameras with robocams. With such a fast paced show you need the eight sets of eyes out there in the audience and onstage reacting and finding the best shots to bring the show to life on big screens.” A mainstay of the two-year tour, Solotech’s support was crucial to the visual delivery of the show. Jones explained: “Solotech’s commitment to the tour doesn’t just stop with the guys on the road. Having the support and depth of expertise of the guys (back in the US) who build and service this gear makes a huge difference. If something breaks, being able to get a replacement piece of gear, technical advice or information, the support from the Solotech technical staff is gold standard.” Jones commended Solotech systems as “well built and rock solid” for the touring environment. “They’re modular so we can add extra pieces of equipment if needed,” he said. “As soon as we made the jump from arena to stadium-sized shows, we were able to up-scale the equipment very easily

and with minimal time needed to re-prep”. Video Engineer Richard Parkin agreed: “This tour has kept up with the technology; as the show has progressed, so has the technology.” JUST LIKE FIRE Pyrotek was brought in for pyrotechnic, flame, atmospheric and confetti looks, as well as manning the technical, safety and logistics factors in order to create the looks on stage. Pyrotek Project Manager and Designer, Reid Derne commented: “We worked closely with Halpin and P!nk to put the technical pieces in place to bring on-stage moments to life.” Pyrotek deployed 12 Salamander Quad Pro DMX-controlled flame units, two Silent Storm confetti machines to blow leaf confetti during the singer’s powerful forest scene; a 30 x 30 gold gerb waterfall; close to 100 comets, mines and flashes; and low smoke generators. Derne explained: “One of the biggest reasons we chose to use Salamander Quad Pros, which run on liquid fuel, was to avoid any kind fuel regulations that would have prohibited us from using propane.” The kit was set up by two touring pyrotechnicians throughout the tour, ensuring that all equipment was inspected, placed and executed correctly. Adjustments were made to the gear as it travelled European venues. Stage Operations Manager, Kenn MacDonald commented: “Our crews also work with local officials on site to ensure all equipment is operating within a safe distance of audiences and performers, while also conforming to any codes or regulations required by the venue or location.” Derne said working with P!nk on a tour of this magnitude was incredibly rewarding: “We are thrilled to be helping her tell her stories all over the globe. It’s a one of a kind tour and sets a precedent for those looking to create something that is theatrical at its core.” P!NK NOISE For control, FOH Engineer David Bracey relied on a trusty DiGiCo SD7. “I’ve used nothing else but this mixing desk since it launched in 2007.” He explained his keen interest in exploiting automating functions traces 30

P!NK

about tower placements and ring delays,” Keirle explained. “We have to make sure it’s cohesive with the other departments, which is modelled beforehand so she knows where she can and cannot go.” Bracey added: “The ring delays and additional delay towers help with more sources at lower levels and localises the sound, especially when it comes to stadium sound restrictions, which we have to deal with in Germany.” Signal distribution was achieved by Lake Processing LM 44s and LM 26s, while the majority of processing was done by L-Acoustics LA12X. Britannia Row Productions supplied the tour’s audio elements for the entire European run, enlisting its worldwide partnership with Clair Global to facilitate the wider worldwide dates. “As well as packaging the kit fantastically, they offer quality people and a service like no other vendor,” Keirle confirmed. “I’ve done a lot of work with Britannia Row in the past so I’m familiar with their high standards. Their global partnership with Clair Global also makes it much simpler from a logistical perspective.” Britannia Row’s Dave Compton added: “Once again, we’ve really enjoyed working with P!nk’s team. It’s been an amazingly popular worldwide tour where the artist and engineers have given it their all across a multitude of dates in some huge - and tricky - venues. We’ve been managing the project from London, shipping the universal control package and key crew from the UK and picking up the rest locally from Clair Global and JPJ Audio in Australia. Having this kind of worldwide back-up and resources makes a world tour on this scale a smooth operation to execute.” Due to the complexity of audio coverage during the acrobatic elements of the performance, it was imperative that someone was focused solely on P!nk’s mix. Step forward Jon Lewis, who as well as playing a vital role on stage, featuring in a flute-based cameo to open the show, is also a dab hand behind the curtain. “It’s always a very physical show, as well as vocally demanding in the spaces because she sings every note live and nothing is on track – even while suspended upside down,” the Monitor Engineer told TPi. “Fundamentally, she works hard so everybody else works hard; because she puts 100% effort in, everybody else in the crew goes that extra mile.” Sennheiser provided an integrated in-ear monitor and Digital 6000 system, both handheld and bodypack, an improved custom mic / in-ear combination, and wireless monitoring via Sennheiser 2000 Series. Nine Sennheiser 6000 Series wireless mics covered the stage, in addition to wired mics. “She sings with one IEM because she likes to hear the crowd, and it’s what she’s comfortable with,” Lewis added. “If she’s above the audience or stage, on bungees, each singing environment is different, so it’s about tailoring her mix with that in mind to keep it in constant.” For IEMs, P!nk used a custom, bespoke, one-off piece manufactured by Sennheiser. “They have always been good to us,” Lewis gestured to the model. “It’s been years in the making to end up with this P!nk mark 2.0. Her mix is generic, picture and timing references; it’s about keeping the consistency for her across all areas.” The IEM features an integrated mic

back to the analogue age, summarising that live sound engineering is a “continual exercise in problem solving.” Interestingly, Bracey mixed with no plug-ins, instead using outboard reverbs in the shape of Bricasti Design’s Model 7 Reverb Processor. The FOH Engineer acknowledged that pop shows always come with the challenge of “extensive choreography, stage design and props which don’t lend themselves to sound design.” However, he was quick to state his admiration for P!nk who made mixing the show a pleasure. “It’s a joy to mix because she’s such a good vocalist.” One thing that Bracey and Systems Engineer, Johnny Keirle discovered challenging was the fact P!nk spends most of the show in front of the PA, coupled with the fly gag. “We have to be very mindful when we’re talking about tower placements and ring delays,” Keirle explained. “For a show of this scale, you also need to have the best speaker system possible.” The PA choice was unanimous. “L-Acoustics are my favourite speaker manufacturer and the rest comes down to the working relationship between myself, Johnny and the speaker boxes,” explained Bracey. The standard stadium configuration comprised 16 L-Acoustics K1s, four K2s and 16 flown KS28 subs. A further 16 K1s as side hangs, four K2s underneath, and an upstage hang of eight K2s covered the top corner, fills and subs in the ground. “We’ve upped our game when it comes to stadiums. It’s imperative is to ensure that it sounds great in every seat,” Bracey said. The team deployed two delay towers with 12 K1s per side. In some venues, it fluctuated between three or four, while in others, ring delays varied from five to 10 K2s. “We have to be very mindful when we’re talking

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which allows me to have individual sequences rather than working from one master session on a timeline,” he explained. “All of my songs start at bar one, so if there’s ever a situation where I need to rescue or jump around, it allows me to do that.” If arrangements changed, Wolfe was on-hand to duplicate or adjust his sequence accordingly. “Although the setlist is set in stone, there are often certain shows, like festival shows, where we don’t do the full set – sometimes she’ll request a set from 2018 and I can access it easily.” BUILD ME (ONE LAST STAGE) TAIT helped with creating elements to execute the onstage vision, providing a custom mainstage, band and ego risers. The staging specialist also built custom LED fascia, pyro integration and light shelves - in addition to performer lifts in the mainstage and thrust. Additional custom TAIT treadmills were built along the thrust as well as custom acro grid. Two automated prop lifts were utilised during in various portions of the show. TAIT Project Manager, Phil Mitchell commented: “Every show has a health and safety protocol, but specifically when it applies to performer flying. There is a very well documented engineering book as well as a rescue plan for any possible scenario.” TAIT built brand new performer flying 3D winches in order to make the 3D flight from arena as impactful in a stadium environment. “There was a need to increase the speed significantly to keep the same effect and move P!nk around massive stadiums within one song.” To which end, the thrust for arenas was heart-shaped, while the stadium thrust was fashioned into a T shape. Mitchell summed up: “It was a pleasure to work on these the last two years. The production team are excellent and we at TAIT look forward to working together again soon.” eps provided additional infrastructure to the stadiums by delivering 300m of black barriers and 170m of cable ramps, most of them fitted with additional AMS ADA wheelchair ramps for a more secure environment. “Our width reducers made it easy to guide the up to 10 cable channels through the barrier lines, without dropping safety standards,” commented eps CEO Event Europe Sebastian Tobie. To decorate the stage, Backline Fabrications built a round spinning couch, two bellhop luggage carts and pink luggage. Eight lamp posts featured on stage throughout the high-flying circus-like extravaganza, controlled via RC4 Wireless RC4Magic S3 2.4SX DMX4dim-500s units. Eagle AVL and StageWorks collaborated to create the posts. “Eagle AVL developed the streetlamp post LED effect with StageWorks, and made the RC4 Wireless recommendations,” explained Eagle AVL Lighting Department Director, Felix Torres. The production also used RC4Magic S3 2.4SX DMXio-HG Data Transceivers with an external antenna to deliver a universe of data to the central acrobatic chandelier for P!nk’s aerial performance throughout the show. It was also used to control several hundred LEDs imbedded into the piece. Led by Dirk De Decker Stageco provided a multiple structures and layered decking system for the stage – the standard for the indoor portion of 10 shows required just three truckloads of equipment. Aside from a festival appearance at Rock Werchter, the remainder of the leg was focused on stadium dates where Stageco provided a 25m roof that was reinforced to cope with heavy rigging. On either side of the roof, a PA wing construction was engineered to deal with a giant pair of heart-shaped IMAG screens that were taller than the roof itself. The support mechanism for a flying act feature was engineered into these two side constructions while, at the far end, Stageco’s delay towers were also reinforced for the same purpose. Fourteen Stageco trucks were deployed for each of the two stadium systems, with Rene Lunenberg, Paul Van Belle and Stefaan Angillis leading the teams.

connector on one ear allowing the removal of the headset microphone. The meticulous design allows the headset to stay in place without the need for any additional fixings, whatever position P!nk finds herself in. The ear also includes a split to allow P!nk to remove the second earpiece – a requirement specified by her – so that she can use the headmic / in-ear as a single-sided version. Lewis explained: “Quick changes are generally 90 seconds so the design of this works. The headset clips into the ear, so once it’s in it never moves, which is ideal when she’s upside down.” The band’s Monitor Engineer, Horst Harmann utilised JH Audio Jerry Harvey Roxanne IEMs. “They’re the most universal IEM on the market right now, and they allow me to create the sound I want,” he commented, going on to explain the band mix as a general FOH sound, “boosting the instrument they’re individually playing.” A series of thumpers were also placed underneath the bass player to cut down on the low-end information. The drumkit was miked with Sennheiser evolution e 901, e 902, e 904 and e 905 instrument microphones, while the Leslie speaker was picked up with three MK 4s. For backing and guest vocals, additional SKM 6000 handheld transmitters and evolution e 935 microphones were used, while the atmosphere is captured by MKH 8050 super-cardioids, MKH 8060 short gun and MKH 8070 long gun microphones. Lewis shared a DiGiCo SD7 on an Optocore loop with FOH, sharing input modules on the same system as FOH. “Not a lot of people like doing it because you don’t have individual control,” he admitted. “It’s a matter of trust and working together, with us being on the same network, we can fire it down to me using the comms network.” Harmann mixed on a Yamaha RIVAGE PM10. “I’ve used Yamaha consoles extensively so I understand the technology and workflow of this desk,” he said. “Everything I mix is on the fly – I’m 62 years old now, so this is a good console for an old engineer as everything is a little bigger.” Wedges comprised a mixture of L-Acoustics X15s and Clair Global CM22s. Lewis explained: “The voicing across the whole L-Acoustics range is very similar, so they sit very nicely with her hearing the PA and the wedges.” The Clair Global CM22s were hidden under the stage under grills for a clean front-line. Flown sidefills of L-Acoustics Karas, six each side, provided overall coverage for the on-stage performers as timing references.

FUNHOUSE “The unique element of this tour is the 3D fly gag, where she flys around like a spider camera at speeds of 13 metres-a-second!” Head Rigger, Gabriel Wood exclaimed. A team of three riggers worked primarily on the 3D fly gag, while one handled the aerial apparatus, and two further riggers overlooked conventional rigging like hanging chain motors and trusses. “I always try to bring in the same people,” Wood said. “I feel like in our industry we gain a better overall product if you look at things in the long term rather from the viewpoint of one tour. To create a really strong team, you have to know each other really well and understand their skillsets and workflow.” Five Points Production Services provided ChainMaster LIFTKET rigging motors. “The competitive advantage is that you can fit more motors in a trailer, which when you get up to about 110 points makes a difference,” he assured.

TIMECODE AFTER TIMECODE Synchronising lighting, video and audio was Joe Wolfe. Having been a fixture of the touring family for many years, the importance of the role was not lost on the Audio Programmer. “I assemble the masters in a run for the show. As the show gets closer, we start to tie in timecode elements.” Wolfe reflected on the scale of the undertaking. “This is probably the biggest tour I’ve been on,” he said. “There are so many moving and visual elements – acrobatics, flying, automation so timecode is essential to the delivery of the show.” For control, Wolfe harnessed the timecode creation capabilities of Digital Performer 10 software. “It has this fantastic feature called ‘chunks’, 32

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The inclusion of BroadWeigh wireless load cell equipment is becoming “fairly commonplace” according to Wood. “What it gains you is experience throughout the world by easily providing onsite personnel with 100% confidence that we’re loading equal to what the roof can handle.” BroadWeigh’s dynamic wireless load monitoring equipment allowed the riggers to look at peak holes and shock loads. “You can monitor that on a minute-by-minute basis as we’re programming so we know how much load we’re putting on the ceiling and how much force we’re putting on the shivs.” Despite the scale of the stadium run, hanging anywhere from 140 to 170 motors in the ceiling, the tour’s largest configuration was during the arena legs. “We’re trying to make the volume of space she flies in as big as possible to create a true ‘wow’ factor.” Wood stressed the significance of paying attention to the morale of the crew during the two-year schedule. “The show and load-in are as organised as we need them to be. However, when people are working everyday it’s important to check-in with how they’re doing, whether that means giving them a few minutes to be a person or relax.”

troops and performers were well fed. It is here where Eat Your Heart Out’s ability to cater for a range of dietary requirements came to fruition. “We provide a real home from home style of catering,” noted the Head Chef. “Thankfully, it’s becoming gradually easier to facilitate and provide food for a range of intolerances and diets.” WHAT ABOUT TRUCKS McGuinness deployed a fleet of 50 trucks to load-in and out of the stadiums. With limited space to manoeuvre, lead drivers were tuned in to the venues better placed than others to accommodate large numbers of trucks. Cian McGuinness commented: “Thankfully, working with Malcolm Weldon means professionalism is a given and between the production team and our lead drivers, the tour was managed brilliantly.” BEAUTIFUL TRAUMA Scaling 26 European cities from 16 June to 11 August 2019, Beautiful Trauma World Tour averaged 45,950 fans per show on the continent. A showcase of not only athleticism but vocal dexterity, P!nk packed the liveliness of an entire tour into every single show, presenting a medley of artistry, acrobatics and ground-breaking tour tech – albeit delivering an incredible $126.8 million of revenue and 1,194,697 tickets across the European dates, according to Billboard and you can’t ask for much more than that. TPi Photos courtesy of silentHOUSE www.beautifultraumatour.com www.stageco.com www.solotech.com www.britanniarow.com www.clairglobal.com www.taittowers.com www.fivepointsproductionservices.com www.legacypowerservices.com www.pyrotekfx.com www.eps.net www.beatthestreet.net www.mcguinness.eu www.soundmoves.com www.theatrewireless.com

GLITTER IN THE AIR Keeping pace with the P!nk’s fashion sense over the past decade was Wardrobe Assistant, Laura Spratt. “It’s a very collaborative process,” she began. “I typically have an input when it comes to quick change-friendly costumes because there are a lot of super-quick changes, the quickest taking place in 25 seconds.” During any one show, P!nk donned six full costumes, each with two packs sewn in – one for the in-ears and another for headset mic. Spratt reflected: “At the beginning, the main challenge was trying to decide where the mic packs were going to go and if they were comfortable enough for the artists,” she explained. “The mics are always located at the back of each costume because that’s where she does a lot of acrobatics on stage.” RAISE YOUR GLASS Catering for the crew during the European legs of the tour was Eat Your Heart Out. In between the lunchtime and dinner rush, TPi tracked down the man behind the meals, Head Chef, Dan Lefevre. “We feed nearly 200 people at lunch and 270 at dinner,” he began. “It’s a bit of a brutal schedule but nothing we aren’t up too.” A team of 12 caterers, 10 locals and two runners ensured the touring 34

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PRODUCTION PROFILE

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CREAMFIELDS

A staple of the UK dance scene, Creamfields out did itself this year. Overseeing the daily roster of 200 DJs was Creamfields veteran Ian Greenway. This year the PM and the LarMac LIVE team battled varying weather conditions to pull off the impossible, presenting a musical feast. “We’ve really seen it all this year,” commented Greenway, sitting back on his chair in his production office recounting extreme rain, mud, high winds and scorching heat. “Everything other than snow,” he laughed. During the site build, the conditions affected the load-in timetable. “Usually when the suppliers roll-up, we only have a standby structures team on site, rather than the 120 crew this year that were still putting everything together. It was the wettest year any of us could remember and the tow trucks got more than a fair bit of use.” With the site hitting the high 20s, Greenway was quick to thank all the crew from Acorn Event Structures that, despite the challenges, made it happen. “Creamfields is tricky as we have a lot of stages that are close together, many of which are custom builds,” stated Greenway. “Acorn are vital to the backbone of the festival having been involved every stage.” Britannia Row Productions, Adlib, Capital Sound, Colour Sound Experiment, Showforce, PRG, Christie Lites and BPM SFX made up the supplier roster. “It’s been said so often it’s almost a cliché, but it’s true that everyone might have the kit but not necessarily the crew,” stated Greenway. “The last thing I would want to do is spread our suppliers too thin. We want to make sure we are not only getting the equipment but a decent team of people to come and operate it. Especially when we are working such long hours. You have to have strong people to know you are in safe hands which is why we spread a selection of suppliers so no one company is overstretched.”

BRITANNIA ROW PRODUCTIONS Creamfields has become known for its awe-inspiring visual productions. However, it was the audio to took centre-stage in this year’s production meetings. “It has to be said that audio doesn’t always win with massive video screens and visual displays,” he explained. “There are only a finite number of places to hang PA.” However, one the main goals of this year’s production was to focus on fine tuning the audio set up. “We’ve never had any real audio ‘issue’ but for 2019 we made a very conscious effort to lessen the effect the audio had on local environment,” said Greenway. “This meant that every single stage’s sub array has been revamped.” To achieve this reduced off-site effect, LarMac Live invited all of the audio suppliers to join forces to find the ideal solution. “We brought three of the best audio suppliers in the UK together. At the end of the day, they are the ones with the expertise, what I call the ‘audio magic’.” Providing three unique L-Acoustics arrays on CF01, CF02 and the Steel Yard, was Britannia Row Productions. Overseeing the project was Account Handler, David Compton with the onsite activity being handled by Audio Crew Chief, Alex Hore. This was somewhat a homecoming for Hore who, despite having worked almost seven Creamfields alongside Compton in various capacities, had not worked on the event for a number of years. “Earlier in the year we had a round table meeting with Creamfields, the audio contractors - which included environmental and noise management consultants Vanguardia - and festival promotor, Live Nation,” reminisced Compton. “On our side, we had a few changes to sub configurations on all stages which is generally the problem area. The whole event has been a real collaborative effort between all audio suppliers,” stated Hore. “The whole team has worked hard to improve the audience experience and reduce 38

CREAMFIELDS

the off-site noise. It’s always a tricky balancing act and, as we discussed with Vanguardia, it’s not an exact science as you never know what way the wind will blow or what the humidity will be doing that day. Creamfields itself is also quite a tricky audio environment as we are geographically quite high up and exposed.” Hore went on to explain that the audio on the CF01, CF02 and Steel Yard stages was designed by of Josh Lloyd. All three of the stages saw the deployment of an L-Acoustics K1 system. On CF01 the main speaker array comprised 32 K1s, 28 K2s for ground out fills and delays, 32 KS28 ground subs, six ARCS II ground delays and 18 KARA front fills. For CF02, 28 K1 were utilised along with 24 K2 for ground out fills and delays, 32 KS28s ground subs, six ARCS IIs ground delay and 18 KARA front fills. CF01 control came via two SSL L300, one for FOH and the other for monitors while CFO2 had a pair of Midas PRO2C at FOH and on stage. “We have a new design for Steel Yard this year,” commented Compton – referring to the gargantuan steel structure which has become a favoured fixture at Creamfields. “In summary, we have more flown sub and delays than previous years,” outlined Compton, which he was pleased to report, “worked very well.” The rig for this stage consisted of 60 L-Acoustics K2 Enclosures with 16 K1SBs flown subs with a further 28 - both flown and arranged on the ground. Also present were six SB18s for delays, eight ARCS IIs and 18 KARAs, with 12 for delays and eight as front fill. Hore oversaw 16 crew and five trucks in total. “When it comes to a show like this, especially in this heat, it’s important to ensure that everyone stays hydrated and takes decent breaks when they can,” asserted Hore. “It all comes down to keeping organised.”

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CREAMFIELDS

The Adlib team at FOH at CF07; LarMac Live’s Ian Greenway; Britannia Row Productions Audio Crew Chief, Alex Hore; The Capital Sound team at FOH; Capital Sound’s Oliver Fallon.

CAPITAL SOUND London-based Capital Sound offered two separate sound solutions for two stages, CF03 and CF08. The larger, CF03 - also known as the Generator - boasted an Outline GTO system. Creating the sound design for the stage was Ben Turnbull. Having been involved with the Generator stage previously, he explained the changing nature of the space. “This year, our Outline system consists of 12 C12s a side along with 24 GTO-SUB. It’s a similar array to last year with the C12s,” stated Turnbull. “One of the main differences has been with the sub set-up where we have gone for a cardioid arrangement - which is in part to do with the overall goal to reduce off site-noise.” However, Turnbull stated that the Outline subs rear rejections were already fantastic. “With cardioid there’s virtually no noise backstage,” he enthused. The set up also consisted of Mantas 28s for delays. “Last year we were using another product for the delay position but it’s great this time round to have a system that all the same brand means everything gels a bit more.” The system was powered by Powersoft X8s with control coming from Midas PRO 2 console. Finally, for system processing Turnbull made use of an Outline Newton which also allowed any touring to be switched in their own console. On the other side of site, Capital deployed a Martin Audio MLA system for CF08 – known as the Warehouse. Overseeing the audio for the stage was Oliver Fallon. Although this was his first year at the festival, Fallon was more than enthused with the results he and his team had achieved. “MLA is just ideal for this stage,” he began. “The slap back you can get on this style of temporary structure can be tricky.” However, he coined the MLA’s zoning software as “amazing” to overcoming this. “The software allows you to create dead-areas. I’ve got the cut-off point right by the door so there is a notable high-frequency drop off as you leave the venue.”

The system in total comprised of nine MLA and one MLD for the down fills each side. Then eight MLX subs were arranged in a cardioid format on the front of the stage. “When you hear it, you wouldn’t believe it’s only eight subs,” stated Fallon. For control, Fallon used Midas PRO 2C2 with two Lake Processing LM 44s. “One of other elements of control that has been really useful has been the MAXX BCL Processor, via Waves, which we have used mainly for the low end,” stated Fallon. ADLIB The most local of the three suppliers - with its new warehouse only being down the road in Liverpool – Adlib supplied PA and crew for CF05, CF06, CF07, CF09 along with the hospitality area. For the project, the team opted to utilise two brands with CODA Audio systems being utilised on CF05, CF07 and CF09 while an L-Acoustics system was used on CF06. Discussing this year’s offering was Audio Crew Chief and System Designer, Billy Bryson. “Our main aim was to reduce rear and off axis low end in CF06 and CF07,” he stated. “We achieved this by using an end-fire sub configuration, with five stacks of two-high subs spaced along the pit and another identical array underneath the stage.” For the CF06, 20 L-Acoustics KS28s were deployed alongside the main hang of 12 K2s per side and 4 K2 per side serving as delays hung from audience trusses. In the case of CF07, 20 CODA Audio SCP Sensor controlled subs were deployed in an identical end-fire configuration alongside the arrays of 12 AiRAY with two ViRAY as downfills. Behind the main hangs were eight flown SC2 Sensors controlled low frequency extensions which allowed Bryson precise control of low frequencies within the arena. The System Engineer commented that the subs had been well received throughout the weekend adding: “We’ve been getting compliments from both production and even 40

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audience members. The transient response is impressively fast and low frequencies sounds accurate and clean.” Moving the conversation to CF05, TPi discovered a similar configuration to CF07, although in this case, the arrays were ground stacked both sides of the DJ booth. In total six AiRAYs per side with four SC2s were used with an additional 12 SCPs deployed underneath the DJ booth in an end fire configuration as two blocks of six subs. Lastly, in the main arena was one of Bryson’s biggest challenges - CF09. He elaborated: “The geographic height on site makes it prone to causing off site noise problems.” Once again, 16 CODA Audio SCP subs were used in an end fire configuration. “In that stage, four equidistant locations inside the walls of the round structure housed sets of four SCPs, arrayed as a block of two behind a cut-out in the cladding of the arena with another block of two subs spaced behind.” The rest of the array in the venue consisted of ViRAY and SC2s, stacked on the top level of the structure. HOPS8s were deployed on brackets around the structures top ‘VIP’ balcony to provide coverage. Adlib also provided a lighting solutions to CF05, CF07 and the hospitality area, looked after by Lighting Crew Chief and Account Manager Jordan Willis. Having been involved with the festival as a lighting technician for a number of years, this was the second time Willis took up the Project Manager mantle. “The main goal with the lighting was to give both stages a fuller look and give a bigger feeling to the stages and not just focus everything around the DJ,” stated Willis. To achieve this, the Adlib team focused a lot of effect fixtures out into the audience. “This meant they had the best effect from both the front and back and would not be lost if you stepped away from the centre of the room,” stated Willis. The designs themselves were both based on last year’s renditions which had been created by Ian Tomlinson of High Scream – a formidable force within dance music design - and updated

by more current and improved fixtures along with an extra tower aside in CF07. The main workhorse fixtures were the Martin by Harman MAC Aura XBs of which Adlib deployed 100 across both stages (80 on CF07, 20 on CF05). “We used them for the speed, zoom range and versatility really fitted well to the music,” stated Willis. “We also had 40 GLP JDC-1 on CF07 as our main FX light as again the versatility of the fixture from pixel mapping to the aggressive strobe is just second to none.” Willis continued, discussing the collaborative process between screen supplier PRG. “We had a few conversations with Rob from PRG prior to ensure load-in was smooth and the running day to day were all in tune. CF05 is a bit more specific with the single panels being hung around the whole curve of the structure so we filled in the gaps with the lighting to cover the whole surface of the structure.” Tom Webber, Paul Abdullah, Dave Smith and Ash Dawson from Adlib all worked closely with the VJs from PRG to make sure the whole thing worked together and was all in sync from colour picking, to FX when the drop came. Willis concluded: “The event went extremely well from our point of view and it is always a pleasure working with Ian Greenway and his team, they care so much about the level of production and no stone is left unturned.” COLOUR SOUND EXPERIMENT Led by Colour Sound Experiment Crew Chief Tim Meadowcroft, the lighting specialist provided kit and crew to CF06 and CF08. Lighting design for CF06 was handled by David Fletcher with Sam Campbell creating the looks for CF06. “Colour Sound has been involved with this stage since it was conceived in 2016,” he began. “The big change from last year mainly involved the layout of the video screen. In 2018 we had several low-res surfaces but this year we went for one large higher res feature piece, bordered top and bottom with a good number of LED wash beams.” 42

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Operator and Programmer for the stage, Tom Sulat, continued: “Robe MegaPointes and LEDWash 600s made up the majority of the rig. We had a massive bank of Chauvet Professional Rogue R2 washes which made some great effects on stage. Martin by Harman Atomics and two cell moles made for some great punch for when the beat dropped.” The rest of the rig had an asymmetric layout, but with “little hidden symmetries nestled within the number and direction of the hanging L shapes” according to Campbell. “The asymmetry is a fun poke at the sloping dancefloor. It adds a touch of organic ‘grime’ into the space in keeping with its deep house and drum ’n’ bass nature. Personally, I just like a bit of asymmetry, it tends to creep into many of my designs.” Sulat discussed some of the challenges faced by the crew this year, namely the weather. “The venue itself is on a steep hill which makes any build interesting,” he commented. Despite the changing conditions Sulat was pleased to report this year’s collaboration between screen supplier PRG and visual company Funktion Creep.

redesign of the CF01. “For the wings we have installed ROE CB5s. There are 430 tiles on both the left and right-side screens with just under 1,000sqm across the whole stage. We’ve used CB5 on the stage in previous year for the upstage wall but this is the first time we have been using it for the wings. The product itself looks stunning and this show is a case and point,” Macca explained. The sheer size of the wings meant that the design incorporated 9 million pixels for each wing. Inevitably this was somewhat of a challenge for data management. The solution - a rack of Barco E2s at FOH combined with the Brompton SX40 processors . “We’ve setup a system to be incredibly flexible to cater for any touring production bringing their own servers in , to visiting VJ’s playing out from a laptop and FOH.” Also provided on each screen was a Resolume Arena 7 media server. “Resolume was the natural choice for media serves as it’s the most common product used my most VJs,” said Macca. “We provide two servers on each stage - one main and backup.” It’s not only hardware that PRG provide but a selection of onsite VJs to produce and play out content for incoming artist. Over the years, both PRG and LarMac LIVE have developed an efficient system to both receive content and assets from artists and bringing in talented VJs to create new content for the stages. “Essentially both LarMac and us share an emails address where we ask artists to send in any logos of pieces of content which the VJs then take to produce looks for the various screens.” On the second stage, the wings were made up of ROE Visual MC18 LED panels. The justification for this product came down to reducing the pixel size making it more manageable. Also making an appearance throughout out the site was ROE MC7 along within the tried and tested WinVision 9 LED panels. All backed up with a Resolume arena 7 server rack and fibre/

PRG Providing the complete video and rigging solution for all the stages on site, along with lighting for stage CF01, CF02 and the Steel Yard, was PRG. Starting off the conversation was Creamfields’ visual-veteran, Paul ‘Macca’ McCauley. “Every year, this event continues to grow both in terms of kit and the number of crew it takes to pull all the pieces together,” began Macca. “Due to the number of years we have been involved we have got ourselves into somewhat of a routine but we always look at ways we can improve the production.” This year one of these improvements came in the form of an extensive 44

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network connectivity to FOH in every stage . Macca went on to explain the advantage of having PRG handle both video, lighting and rigging across several of the festival stages. “Having a PRG package across the main two stages and the Steel Yard means we can have discussion in house,” he explained. “The Steel Yard for example was a huge logistical effort on its own with 17 trucks.” The combined expertise across the different disciplines , really shone through with the build schedule in Steel Yard reduced due to the high winds earlier in the build. Everyone came together and we added shifts to work round the clock to get back on track.” For the Steel Yard, PRG provided a Movecat automated system that spanned the length of the structure. “We have up to 900 blades on each of the trusses,” enthused Macca, explaining that despite the logistical effort the final look for Eric Prydz performance this year. Discussing the other side of the visual coin was Rob Watson, Lighting Account Manager for CF01 and CF02 who worked alongside fellow Account Manager, Yvonne Donnelly Smith who oversaw the Steel Yard. “We have a lot of touring acts on CF01, with the likes of deadmau5, Calvin Harris and Swedish House Mafia,” stated Watson. “Thankfully, we are involved with all three acts as we supply deadmau5’s production, Calvin who is on tour with us and Swedish House Mafia which is a mixture of us and another supplier. This made it a lot easier logistically.” To aid the logistical task, the PRG team enlisted the aid of Ben Holdsworth. His sole role was to handle logistics on site not to mentioned the team from Ginger Owl Productions who looked after crew welfare to look after the 130 PRG handling everything from meal tickets, accreditation and any other day to day admin, leaving each member the opportunity to focus on the task at hand. On the main stages PRG opted to replicate last year’s wing design,

despite having to factor Swedish House Mafia’s large format video wall. “We’ve ensured that all the fixtures on the wings would attach to the ROE CB5 touring frames,” stated Watson. “This included Vari-Lite Showline SL NITROs, Claypaky Sharpys and generic moles.” On the top of the wings were GLP impression X4 Bars and Icon Beams which were for Swedish House Mafia only. “There are just so many visiting artists that we didn’t need to put in a huge lighting rig of our own,” explained Watson. “For example, Swedish House Mafia are bringing in an extra 130 PRG Icon Beams onstage. All we need to do is supplement their touring packages. During the day, we can’t use their touring package but our house rig is more than sufficient to provide a good-looking show.” The rig in question consisted of TMB Solaris Flares, Claypaky Sharpys, Martin by Harman MAC Quantum Washes and PRG Best Boys. All of which were driven by a MA Lighting grandMA2 with PRG Super Node. On CF02, one of the biggest changes to the design was the wings. On the lighting front a total of 94 Claypaky Sharpys were hung in a staggered formation to give both the house LD and those traveling with artists plenty of creative options. “Credit really has to be given to Chris Scott and Luke Jackson who designed CF01 and CF02 respectively,” stated Watson. Both stages had PRGs custom festival racks that have certainly done the rounds this season, all designed with plug-and-play in mind. With so many touring acts visiting each stage, producing a simplistic busking page for Operator, Adam Power, at CF02. “The layout was simple for anyone to jump onto the system and start working,” enthused Watson. “The same can be said for Mark Jones’ pages who oversaw the Steel Yard throughout the weekend.” PRG’s pre-visualisation suite, overseen by Erica Frost, was also available for touring productions and artists. “We have Barco E2s and Resolume media servers for touring productions to come and check their content 46

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Cryo-Fog or for those that don’t have VJs to see how the content they submitted will look on the screens.” Frost was able to upload any of the screen configurations on the festival site in the suite via Barco E2s and Resolume media servers, which Macca cited as “vital” due to the unusual arrangement of some of the LED. “Each year the change overs get bigger and bigger so by the time there is time to program you are into daylight hours. To have an area where an engineer can relax is vital.” PRG also supplied a Lighting Wysiwyg suite to the area which meant acts on PRG’s stages could pre-program their show away from the stage managed by Tiago Lima and Alec Corbett. This meant especially on CF01 where the touring productions were large the LD’s could program somewhere dark instead of battling the daylight on the stage. BPM SFX One of the longest serving suppliers of Creamfields, BPM SFX, were back onsite for its 13th time. “Having their onsite knowledge is invaluable and we have a great relationship with them. From the off, they can begin to work with local authorities and our safety team, so we are prepared from day one,” Greenway explained. Providing SFX and Laser packages on all but

two of the stages, including both main stages, overseeing the SFX operation was BPM SFX founder Adam Murray, Liam Haswell Technical Director, Senior SFX Technician Tom Stead and Senior Projects Coordinator, Katie Strickland. “Like everyone, we were behind schedule on the first day due to the weather conditions,” she reminisced. “I’ve personal worked the last 11 Creamfields and this was by far the worst weather pre-festival and for load-in I had seen.” Despite the challenging environment, Strickland was happy to report it was the least stressful in terms of logistics. The secret to this success - organisation. “Between all of us, we had organised ourselves, the crew and the equipment well in advance. Adam had already set out an equipment itinerary for each stage which meant it was a case of loading up the relevant truck to go to the correct destination.” On the topic of organisation, Strickland was keen to point out that through her 11 years and despite the trying conditions - it was the least stressful build she had ever experienced at the festival. “We had 40 crew in total, excluding drivers and the logistics team,” she stated. “SFX isn’t like other disciplines such as lighting, video and sound, where there are plenty of crew. Due to the few available, I personally had the majority of the crew in place by January with most of the 47

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final names and numbers set by May.” On site Murray, Haswell and Stead oversaw the running of the stages and all technical aspects of the main stage with Strickland overseeing the rest of the site ensure all the crews had everything they needed. “We have a schedule at the start of everyday where we can work out the movement of crew throughout the day and when and where they are needed - we stay operational in some arenas until 4am.” For the biggest looks from the weekend, you need not look any further than CF01 and CF02 with headline sets from Tiesto, Calvin Harris and Swedish House Mafia, but it was the later that really laid down the gauntlet in terms special effects deployment. “Our house rig was already in place on Main Stages, consisting of Confetti Stadium Blasters, DMX PsyCO2 Jets, Xtreme Stadium Streamer Shots, G-Flames, Wave Flames, Chameleon Flames and Stage Pyro with big pyro display endings for the Main Stage headliners. The Swedish House Mafia’s rider just kept getting bigger in the weeks leading up to the festival and the bespoke flame rig alone was one of the biggest we’ve ever done.” Another highlight for the special effects specialist was over in the Steel Yard for Eric Prydz on the Friday night. “That venue was very heavy on lasers!” enthused Strickland. Included in the laser package were one of BPM’s latest offering to the live community – namely 18w lasers mounted on Wahlberg DMX winches offering increased options to change the look of already malleable stages thanks to an extensive Movecat system hung over the audience. SHOWFORCE This year, the number of Showforce crew leap from 788 to 1,051, including 38 by licenced telehandler and cherry picker drivers. Over the course of the project, the Showforce crew amassed almost 10,000-man hours, with crew deployed from Showforce’s national network of offices in Liverpool,

Manchester, Coventry and London. Showforce provided stagehands, backline crew, plant operators, crew chiefs and a site boss. The team were responsible for the load-in of all equipment for every stage around the site, supporting the rest of the contractors. Showforce Operations Director, Chris Martelly, commented: “We’re very proud of our reputation with Creamfields. It’s a large event which grows in stature year on year and the requirement for our services has been in step with that. Many of the crew supplied have experience of working on large festival sites and have worked for Showforce at Creamfields for the last four or five years. “Creamfields is a large site and the set-up is always gruelling for the crew, inclement weather conditions in the days leading up to this year’s event made it particularly challenging. However, using their experience and initiative our crew got through it and delivered with their usual good humour and high spirits.” TPi Photos courtesy of Geoffrey Hubbel and Anthony Mooney www.creamfields.com www.larmaclive.com www.acorn-events.com www.britanniarow.com www.capital-sound.co.uk www.adlib.co.uk www.vanguardia.co.uk www.coloursound.com www.christielites.com www.prg.com www.bpm-sfx.com www.showforce.com 48

BOOMTOWN FAIR: 11TH CHAPTER The festival embarks on the latest chapter of its wildly idiosyncratic narrative, as TPi’s Jacob Waite discovers…

Crowned by festival goers as a field of unity, creativity and freedom heading into its 11th Chapter - Boomtown Fair fused a diverse line-up of underground and global music with breath-taking set design, immersive theatre and performance to create a living, breathing, fictitious city. To truly understand the multi-layered experience of Boomtown, TPi met the production crew battling the challenging outdoor elements to provide a backdrop to the untold stories of festival revellers. Production Manager Robin Collings vendors of choice comprised Video Illusions, PRG, Laser Grafix, Aardvark FX, AF Live, Audio Feed, Coreworks, Phixion and Nitelites.

a ‘run of the mill’ corporate event. A lot of money has been spent by the festival on creative, a huge part of the Boomtown story starts with the build and the elaborate set design.” Despite its vast and monolithic nature, the construction of the Nucleus stage under the guidance of Build Manager, Ben Pickering, was relatively “straightforward” according to Hodge. The structure was created by Coreworks, while Belgium-based Phixion, known for its impressive collaboration with Tomorrowland, was brought on to devise the set design. “We’ve brought together capable and creative contractors to make this possible,” Hodge explained. The main scaffolding structure was built with approximately 120-tonnes of scaffolding material by Coreworks in addition to FOH, field delay towers and main PA hangs. All of which were constructed with a Layher Allround scaffolding system, while the main PA structures were built from Coresteel towers. Coreworks was involved in creating site infrastructure such as entrance gates, signage and routing at the check-in areas. Approximately 80-tonnes of scaffolding material was built up across two areas of the site

NUCLEUS STAGE At the heart of AREA 404, a brand-new structure emerged. At its core, a glowing orb made up of Video Illusions VI-L6 LED panels pulsed and flashed at the epicentre of the advanced performance space. “The aesthetic of each stage plays its part in the narrative of Boomtown,” stated Nucleus Production Manager, Zoe Hodge. “That’s what sets this festival apart from 50

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within two weeks, by seven Coreworkers and 10 locals. As well as providing sitewide resources, Video Illusions provided all video production and lighting fixtures to the Nucleus – with two-tonnes of video screen, it was up to David Whiteoak and VI team to devise the rigging points required for to make the vision of Phixon vision become a reality. A total of 200sqm of VI-L6 panels were fitted on the stage with custom content created and customised to correspond with the storyline of Boomtown. “It’s a very robust product which catches the light well and is a lot smoother than other LED panels on the market,” Whiteoak explained. Over 300 lighting fixtures were deployed on the Nucleus stage. A total of 40 Prolights Panorama IP Beams, 64 SGM G4s, 58 P5s and 12 P10s, 36 Colorado Solo 1 IP pars, 56 Linear 1m IP Rated Batons, 12 1kw floods as well as 2, 4 and 8 cells made up the entirely IP rated lighting rig. He believed the most refreshing part of the festival was being given “creative control” to “suggest ideas” and see them come to fruition. “Most of the time you find video at festivals isn’t used in a particularly creative way,” he noted. “Boomtown affords us the freedom to be as creative with the technology as we like.” Also working part of the VI team on Nucleus was Project Manager, Loz Poulton joined the conversation: “There aren’t many festivals out there at over 65,000 attendees with this level of detail,” he said. “Over the years, Boomtown has reaped the rewards of bigger structures, teams and production all while remaining fiercely independent.” Despite the challenging outdoor conditions, the event continued. “To pull a successful festival out of the bag in these conditions is a reflection of their planning, contingency and the response measures in place,” Poulton stated. With high winds, the VI team travelled sitewide to ensure that each deployment of LED was installed safely and securely. Additionally, the team fit monitors anemometers at the top of the Nucleus structure to “keep an eye” on the wind. “If the wind gets above a certain level, then the stage is

evacuated and everyone goes to the bar,” Whiteoak assured. “Thankfully, we haven’t got to that point yet but accommodating what might happen prepares us for all eventualities.” All of the Nucleus stage visuals were under control with two of Gaia Novas Resolume Arena 6 media servers running an 11k canvas . “We chose to use Resolume 6 as all our VJs are Resolume users for freestyle VJing,” Whiteoak said. “We sent the full canvas to the new Ai Q3 media server via DVI on the capture to control the new Synergy system, where the video colours are fed to the lighting fixtures and take full control.” LD Paul controlled the lighting fixtures from an Avolites Arena console and a back-up but could at any point let the video content control the colours and intensity. The LD worked with Video Illusions on this project since the introduction of Sector 6 a few years ago. “It made sense to keep the same legends rolling in to Nucleus to smash the Temple Valley of Boomtown for the fourth year in a row,” Whiteoak shared. Taking into account the sheer size of the structure and its exposure to the outdoor elements, the LD made sure the architecture was, “first and foremost, well lit.” He utilised the capabilities of architectural LED IP fixtures such as SGM P-5s and Q-7s. For the big beam and wash looks, Deville purposed Prolights Panorama IP Airbeams supplied by Wolf Lighting and SGM G-4 Wash/Beams. The control system consisted of an Avolites Ai Q3 media server. The Ai Q3 server was fed by the Resolume Arena 6 servers or “live control” server rack and in turn fed video over NDI streams to the Arena console. The console output was then routed to the Avolites Titan Net Processors (TNPs) and Titan Net Switch (TNS) to feed data to the lighting rig to control the 30 universes of lighting fixtures. “This provided a system that was equally able to be used for instant response, live lighting and video busking as well as the fully timecoded Nucleus Spectacular show which was all choreographed and performed by the Invisible Circus guys,” said Arena 6 System Tech, Alex Buckley, who joined Tom Wall , Dan Shutt and VJ 51

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Antonio Pagano. The Nucleus Spectacular Show was a highlight of the night. Designed by the Invisible Circus and programmed by Video Illusions team - Whiteoak, Oli Chilton and Avolites’ Sam Parry. Playback was all controlled by Abelton 10 to run full SMPTE timecode control to Aardvark SFX’s George Davies-Coward flames and pyrotechnics. Toby Macknight of Laser Grafix used cutting edge technology Parry programmed in an Avolites Arena to feed eight performers across the stage in bespoke LED bodysuits, designed by Tim Chown of Smoking Hot Productions. The suits changed colours throughout the show, with the sequences created by Chown to integrate these into the show. Parry connected the suits to the Arena using a modified dimmer personality that allowed DMX signals to be sent via bit-data. Parry then triggered the cues for the suits in line with the show from the desk out to Chown’s wireless transmitter. The Wolf Lighting crew comprised Jon Oliver, Simon ‘Diggers’ de la Cour, De Villiers, Trev Fairclough, Stu Barr and Sam Parry. While the Video Illusions team was made up of Crew Boss Chilton, Jake Burchell, Alex Buxley, Mike English, Zac Mugleton and Visual Operators, Tom Wall, Dan Shutt and Pagano Supplying lasers for the third year on the Nucleus stage and Relic stage was Laser Grafix, who were introduced to Boomtown through Video Illusions. “Having everyone return and being familiar with the festival really helped and the team behind Nucleus stage,” Whiteoak explained. “It’s a great festival and everybody is happy to be here and get stuck in,” Macknight said. “They’ve taken it to another level really. It’s a good family, friendly bunch of people to work with and alongside. Everyone helps each other out, it’s the ‘Boomtown spirit’.” He added: “It’s not a normal structure where everything is contained, so hanging and rigging can be a bit of a challenge, as well as waterproofing fixtures – which is half the challenge for us.” Laser Grafix deployed the same setup on both stages. Eight 24w Phaenons and 20 Starbeam fixtures. “The council don’t allow us to use any audience exposure effects with the lasers.” To overcome this, the team utilised Starbeam fixtures single beam fraction effect for multiple colour output. A further 10 lasers were deployed on the Relic Stage, including six 24w Phaenons and Starbeams, six MDG fog machines on both stages and a

wireless control systems to control the effects remotely from FOH, Macknight dubbed as a bonus at festival sites where “the cabling gets muddy”. The majority of the show was busked live. “We work closely with the lighting operator taking turns of coming in and out with lights, which is good because we prefer to run most of our shows are like that.” The Laser Grafix team comprised Macknight, Olly Yates, John Strahan, Charlie Creese, Rupert Morse, Justin Griffith and Corinne Webb. While the Aardvark FX crew comprised Crew Chief, Mark Skuse, Taylor Egan, Jack Crane and Davies-Coward. Since the birth of Boomtown Fair in a gloriously sunny forest clearing back in 2009, AF Live has been at the beating heart of the event, providing full technical production management to the festival as it’s grown to encompass over 100 stages. This year, AF Live’s Paul Rose and Matt Howes designed the PA for the Nucleus stage – as well as working closely with the Relic design with SSE Audio Group and d&b audiotechnik. Nitelites was brought in by AF Live to ensure sonic clarity. System Technician, Jamie Moore picked up the story: “The system design changes every year. This time AF Live has really pushed the boat out by developing an intelligent surround sound set up,” Moore said. “The idea is that the audience will receive the same surround sound and energy of the speakers throughout.” An extensive L-Acoustics rig comprised 48 K1s, 36 K2s and 38 Karas were spread over 20 hangs along with four ground stacks of 38 KS218s and 78 LA12Xs. Dante networking, Lake LM 44s and LM 26s handled processing, while a DiGiCo SD9 was specified for control. “There isn’t a festival like this in the world, in my opinion. The effort that goes into the set and sound design is spectacular,” Moore said. “Our role is to the give the audiences as much impact as possible without exceeding limits.” The Nucleus audio team comprised Boomtown Audio Crew Chief, Adam Benton; Nitelites Systems Engineer, Moore and System Tech, Tom Geoghegan; Boomtown System Technician, Howes and Boomtown FOH Tech, Timothy Steer. LION’S DEN Lighting for the illustrious stage was achieved by Chris Scott, who specified and extensive lighting rig comprised PRG ICON EDGES, Claypaky Scenius 52

BOOMTOWN FAIR

Audio Feed’s Oz Jefferies; Nucleus Project Manager, Loz Poulton; Nucleus Production Manager, Zoe Hodge; The Nucleus visual crew; Laser Grafix’s Toby Macknight.

Unicos, GLP impression X4L Bars, GLP impression X4 Bars, TMB Solaris Flares, SGM P-5s to light the structure and left and waterfalls, 2-Lite and 4-Lite Molefays. All controlled by a pair of MA Lighting grandMA2 full size consoles, managed by grandMA NPUs and PRG Super Nodes.   PRG worked closely with The Streets Lighting Designer, Steve Hough to supply a floor package which featured Martin by Harman MAC Vipers, TMB Solaris Flares, 2-Lite Molefays and SGM P-5s. “The Streets show looked amazing,” PRG Account Handler, Rob Watson praised the design and timing of the set, which he claimed was “perfect in every way.” PRG also facilitated The Chronixx, Lauryn Hill, UB40 and Groove Armada on the stage. PRG also supplied lighting and video rigging motors which included a mixture of 1-tonne, 500kg and 250kg EXE Rise Hoists. Rigging Crew Chief, Nick Brown was assisted by ‘Giz’, Marcus Brown, Neil Hayden, Michelle Hayden and Ali Morris. PRG Crew Chief Jonty Rivers was assisted by Callum Humphries, Ashley Neal, Sam Jackson, Charlie Smith, Simon Lynch, Devante Benjamin and Sara Janebrink. Video Illusions provided an additional HD camera package and IMAGs. Having been through a structural change, going from an old temple to a mountain top relic / monastery has brought in “newer and different artists to the festival”, according to Video Illusions’ Ollie Davies, who dubbed the stage as effectively a “touring arena show” ideal for touring artists, allowing an entire rig to “roll in and out” seamlessly. The IMAG system boasted Video Illusions new VI-ER4 LED panels, upgrading from 6mm for higher resolution feed. VI also supplied the large 15m wide back-wall screen was over 2k output. The camera package contained a stage left and right camera, a tracking dolly with platform on the front, 12.5m pole jib arm, along with FOH long lens and wireless cameras. Davies praised the festival’s collaboration with PRG. “They are fantastic and know what they’re doing, the changeover has brought a more structured and deliverable target,” he said. “When PRG give you a time for

load in you can guarantee that it’s done. The professionalism of the riggers is also great.” The Video Engineer expressed the temperamental outdoor elements as a “massive challenge” to the screen building process. “Structural changes have also meant there’s been a few challenges with IMAG builds and breakdowns. However, the planning and pre-production here is led by David Henley and he is fantastic and organised.” Davies recounted the Boomtown ethos. “We’re building cities, not stages,” he explained. “Temporary structure-wise it’s like nothing I’ve seen before, the set design blows your mind every time you see it.” AF Live’s Paul Rose was tasked BCS Audio with providing sound for Lion’s Den for the last seven years. K Series has been his choice from day one, with the system expanding in line with the evolution of the stage. “One of our main challenges is achieving coverage in the natural bowl that forms the audience area. The stage also needs a system that is universally rider friendly, fast and easy to rig whilst delivering the best quality sound across the entire audience area,” said BCS System Engineer Oli Crump, who worked alongside FOH System Tech, Kim Watson. “L-Acoustics ticks all those boxes and Soundvision software’s integration with Sketchup means we can directly import detailed terrain data and site boundaries, allowing us to accurately predict the coverage and tonality across the audience area and use that to refine the positions of delay towers and fills,” Crump explained. The new Autosolver tools in Soundvision allowed the engineers to easily keep on top of last-minute structure changes and quickly import the new electronic settings into almost 50 amplifiers in LA Network Manager. Crump explained: “These predictions translated very well into reality, reducing the tuning time significantly, and allowing us to quickly get to the finer details during our limited tuning time.” The final design comprised main hangs of 10 K1s and four K2s stage left and right, with outhangs of 12 K2s and a sub array of 24 KS28s across 54

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David Whiteoak & Oli Chilton; Trevor Fairclough & Simon ‘Diggers’ de la Cour; Jamie Moore; Christian ‘Smithy’ Smith & Elliot Baines; Ollie Davies.

the stage front. Front fill was courtesy of 12 Karas and delays were four hangs of seven K2s. Stage monitoring also included DV-subs and Karas. The system was driven by LA12X amplified controllers. “I’m not a fan of festival mixing positions/towers, and the ‘Lion’s Den’ position halfway up a natural amphitheatre didn’t look too appealing,” recalled The Streets FOH Engineer, Johnny Haskett. “The system design was such that coverage was great, sub was even, and I had plenty of headroom for even my largest sub drops, all the time managing to stay well inside the festival noise

requirements both on and off site. It’s one of my most enjoyable mixes of the summer!” RELIC STAGE On the Relic Stage, PRG provided around 400 lighting fixtures, video screens and rigging. The impressive lighting rig comprised 60 PRG Icon Edges, 24 PRG Best Boy Washes, 18 PRG Bad Boys. Sixty TMB Solaris Flares, 74 Martin by Harman Atomic 3000s, 140 IP-Rated LED Pars and 24 Molefays (4-lite)

BOOMTOWN FAIR

were controlled by an MA Lighting grandMA2 full size and Lite consoles, complete with PRG Super Node infrastructure. The lighting was designed by Adam Power and manned by Crew Chief, Bradley Stokes; assisted by Tom Harris, Steve Smyth, Alex Griffths and Harvey Fitzpatrick. Onstage screens boasted ROE Visual MC18 LED panels, while the entrance screen was made up of ROE Visual MC7 screen. PRG Account Handler Paul ‘Macca’ McCauley explained: “The video screens provided were a key feature to enhancing the overall live experience for both the audience and for the artists performing on stage.” Rigging Crew Chief Jay Call and Marcus Brown, assisted by Phil Tickle and Mike Rungen deployed a range of 2-tonne, 1-tonne and 500kg EXE Rise Hoists. Video Technicians Matt Canter, Mike Kane, Shane Slinger and Richie Cummings made up the team. Watson summed up: “Thanks to all the crew on a very challenging show on both stages and look forward to what next year brings,” he went on to thank Graham MacVoy, Paul Rose, Abi Baker and David ‘Pev’ Peverly for their assistance during PRG’s first year at Boomtown. “We found this first year very challenging, but the end result of both stages was very rewarding. We look forward to what next year brings!”

equipped for touring applications. For example, the cabinets are simple to push onto dollies, pick up and hang. It’s a plug and play system essentially, which makes our job easier. You can push it off a van, plug it in and you’re good to go.” Jefferies explained that some engineers were initially reticent about working on the new system. “I’ve received emails claiming Vero VX is one of the best systems they’ve ever worked on - so it’s been a satisfying process having been involved closely in the R&D and demo process.” This year’s main sonic challenges faced by the team included the weather, waterproofing and high winds. “It’s been windy, and we’ve been getting quite a lot of sway on the hangs. Despite being perfectly safe, we had to shut the stage for a few hours during the day as a precaution for the stage roof structure. The festival doesn’t want to take any risks, which is great.” Reporting good levels over the weekend, Jefferies said the main reason for this, he said, was because the stage was located in the middle of the site in a bowl. “One of the reasons our company has been so successful is that we believe it’s our job to protect the license and work with the festival and noise control officers to make sure a balance is found. Noise control officers have been coming over and saying it’s the best sounding system on site.”

METROPOLIS Boomtown introduced the flashing lights of futuristic Metropolis with Pagoda Plaza as the new main stage for house lovers this year. FunktionOne has always held a strong relationship with Boomtown, key to its delivery was Audio Feed, a Funktion-One partner for over a decade. “We cherish our relationship with Funktion-One because it’s one we don’t get with any other speaker manufacturer,” Audio Feed’s Oz Jefferies beamed. “They take a real passion and commitment to all of their innovations, projects and partners. Funktion-One care about how their speakers are deployed, to ensure they’re being used to their full potential which is great, and it makes our job a lot easier.” Launched at Prolight+Sound, the very same eight Funktion-One Vero VX speakers were deployed to the Boomtown site. “For Tony [Andrews, Funktion-One founder], it’s a pursuit of excellence,” Jefferies explained. “He’s always on site to check if all is going well and he won’t stop at anything to make it right.” Funktion-One has a reputation for being an ideal solution for electronic dance music but there’s more to it than that, said Jefferies: “A good loudspeaker performs well in any environment and the Vero VX is particularly good for live music. The vocal range is amazing.” Aimed at the live touring market, Vero VX have been designed to adapt to dynamic and ever-evolving backdrop of live touring. “This model is

CHAPTER 11 Offering more music, experiences, theatre and dazzling set design than ever before. Walking through the mind-blowing stages, intricate winding streets and intimate immersive venues of Boomtown Fair. Davies festival defining words rang true. “This entire festival is based on the relationships with people and the environment,” he reflected. “It’s not just about presenting music to people, it’s about inclusion and bringing people into a festival environment to express themselves and be who they want to be without fear of judgement.” TPi Photos: Rob Watson, Oz Jefferies and Avolites www.boomtownfair.co.uk www.prg.com www.lgfx.co.uk www.aardvarkfx.com www.aflive.co.uk www.audio-feed.co.uk www.coreworks.nl www.phixion.be www.nitelites.co.uk www.videoillusions.net www.bcsaudio.com 56

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FESTIVAL FOCUS

BLUEDOT Aptly coinciding with the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11 moon landing, the annual science and future tech themed festival is back again for its fourth year with a varied line up of lectures, comedians and music. TPi arrives at the affecting Jodrell Bank Observatory to expand its mind and learn more…

Here at Bluedot, which is now in its fourth year, a veritable culture-clash of experts from various scientific fields and a myriad of musical acts share the stage. Like the acts, the event has very much found its place in the smorgasbord of the annual festival season schedule. Space has been a common theme each year at the festival, but, as 2019 was the celebration of Apollo 11’s landing on the moon, Bluedot rightfully joined in with the festivities. This included one screening of the 2019 film Apollo 11, one unique show projection mapped onto the Lovell Telescope, as well as an event dubbed The Moonbounce in which festivalgoers were encouraged to write messages to be pinged off the surface of the moon – not exactly your usual festival line-up then. TPi was greeted at the press tent by Ben Robinson, Bluedot’s Festival Director, who delivered his debrief on this year’s event. “We’ve really expanded the site this year due to the demand for the talks we host each year,” stated Robinson, who noted Tim O’Brien’s appearance on Friday was

“packed”. Crowd-pleasers like these mean the size of their Mission Control stage has been trebled, he explained, adding, “Over the years, we’ve got to know our audience and what they’re after.” The varied line-up had, in previous years, created an interesting challenge of audio spill. “So, we created the Tranquillity Base, situated behind the main Lovell Stage,” commented Robinson. “It takes its name from the actual site of the original moon landing. This is the new home of the Mission Control and Contact Stage.” Continuing the conversation about the redesign was Jon Drape, Managing Director at Ground Control Productions, who said this year’s reinvention was focused on the talks and their capacity to accommodate eager listeners. “It was obvious from 2018 that we were going to have to increase capacity on those stages as well as address the sound spill issues.” Production Manager duties were shared between Jon Green and Tommy Sheals-Barrett. While Sheals-Barrett was over at the Lovell and the Orbit 60

BLUEDOT

Ground Control Productions MD, Jon Drape & PM Jon Green; Bluman Associates’ Pod Bluman; PlayPass’ Ben Wild-Hirons, Kasandra Fry Mills & Steve Jenner.

stage, Green handled the other elements across site. “Duties were split between Jon and Tommy due to the demands of Bluedot which are unlike any other festival,” explained Drape. One such “demand” which created some interesting logistical issues was the screening of the movie Apollo 11. “The movie is currently in the IMAX cinema and protected by licencing,” explained Green. “This meant our video panels and servers were not set for purpose. A lot of work has gone in to ensure our dsp and dsi is compatible not to mention shipping in a lens from Germany.” Despite the evolving nature of the festival, the Ground Control team signed up two of its long running suppliers for 2019. Transition Video provided video and camera solutions site-wide along with dbnAudile suppling lighting and audio across the festival. “In the last three years, we’ve developed a really strong team with both Transition and dbnAudile,” reflected Drape. “It’s a very tried and tested formula and there’s certainly no reason to change it for this year’s event.” Another supplier involved with Bluedot since its conception is Bluman Associates, which has consistently facilitated the technical requirements of the famed projection onto the Lovell Telescope. This year the projection specialists increased the equipment provided so festivalgoers were able to walk around the circumference of the whole structure. Bluman Associates’ Pod Bluman told TPi about the new disguise gx 2c servers used. “They are able to give us a lot more power to create more

interesting visuals. We had more confidence in being able to deliver high quality, dynamic visuals due to the increased capabilities of the gx 2cs.” During Kraftwerk’s headline performance, the Bluman Associates team made used of the disguise real time capabilities to achieve RGB control for five individual quadrants of the telescope via artnet, which allowed the lighting designer to dynamically control the projections throughout their show. This year, Bluman explained how the team added an extra projections tower, each housing a Panasonic 30K laser projector. “They are more punchy than previous years and they use less power,” stated Bluman. The Telescope acted as an awe-inspiring backdrop to the headline sets on the main stage and doubled as the site of Luna Loops, a two-hour visual narrative. It was designed by Visual Projection artists, Illuminos, using some of the 19,000 hours of audio ‘loops’ created between mission control and the lunar module, fused with signals and recordings generated by the Lovell Telescope as it tracked the moon landings. Illuminos also collaborated with Tim O’Brien and the team from Bluman Associates to create custom looks for the telescope for The Moonbounce. The activation encouraged the audience to phone in ‘messages’ to be sent to the moon via the Dwingeloo Telescope in the Netherlands that were then bounced off the moon’s surface and picked up on site at Bluedot. Noisebox Productions, that managed sound for the show, gave the team 62

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access to a radio link, which was the send and return. The echo was used as a signal, inputted into real time generative software Notch to influence the projections on the telescope. The audio input signal was a mixture of live and pre-recorded signals, all of which created a unique visual reaction which was visible on the telescope. “Bluedot is always a highlight of the summer,” concluded Bluman. “This year has certainly been more complicated with the extra tower but we are very pleased with the result.” Providing the four bespoke projector towers was staging provider, Serious Stages. The company designed and installed four towers stationed around the 76m Lovell radio telescope, to accommodate the projection technology used to deliver the projections. Below the telescope Serious supplied a 19m Supernova Stage, which saw headline acts such as Hot Chip, Kraftwerk and New order perform to 35,000 people across the course of the weekend. Serious also supplied an assisted viewing platform, four 9m satellite PA speaker towers and a FOH structure. Among the familiar faces was a new presence at this year’s Bluedot Festival; PlayPass, the cashless RFID providers. Not only did the company offer its standard functionality with all payments being cashless on site using PlayPass’ system, but also collaborated with festival organisers to supply a more immersive experience for festival goers. Steve Jenner, PlayPass Managing Director explained: “We’ve been speaking to the organisers of Bluedot for a number of years. But when we discussed additional elements, above cashless, to create a more immersive experience for festival goers the conversations moved up a gear.” This immersive experience took the shape of Bluedot Mission Log. With multiple activation points across the site, festival goers could use their RFID wristband (a sustainable recycled plastic / bamboo item) to ‘log in’. This

allowed them to record their festival journey and once home look back at what they’d seen and get more information about them. “Collectively, we’ve deployed an extra 100 scanners across the site,” commented Ben Wild-Hirons, PlayPass’ Production Manager for the festival. “This was our biggest UK festival deployment to date, with additional equipment and people on site and it’s been a great innovative project.” To oversee the implementation of the Mission Log collection of information about all the speakers and artists and cashless operation the festival employed Cassandra Frey-Miles. “I’ve done cashless operations at other festivals but the approach at Bluedot was also to add to the customer experience,” she enthused. “Getting all the info for the talks, installations and performances has been a collaboration between all of our team and the programmers – who’ve been keeping tabs on all the stages to make sure the schedule is up-to-date for people tapping into a certain position.” Wild-Hirons concluded: “We’re already excited for next year. We are hoping to do more real time activations in connection to the Bluedot app. We can expand the capability of the RFID integration to open up the audience experience across the festival so that everyone can get more involved.” TPi Photo: Bluman Associates, Arial Focus & TPi www.discoverthebluedot.com www.groundcontroluk.com www.dbnaudile.co.uk www.transitionvideo.com www.blumanassociates.com www.playpass.be 64

MAIN SQUARE FESTIVAL

MAIN SQUARE FESTIVAL Taking place on 5-7 July, Main Square Festival welcomes a star-studded line-up of artists, musicians and touring technology - along with TPi - to the iconic Citadel of Arras, France...

Created in 2004 with the goal of becoming one of the biggest music festivals in France, the latest incarnation of Main Square Festival welcomed the likes of DJ Snake, Macklemore, Ben Harper and Christine and The Queens. Attracting a record-breaking crowd of over 125,000, the festival owes part of its success not only to the big-name three-day bill but the expertise and hard work of France’s crop of capable touring and technical personnel on site. Paris-based Dushow Group joined forces with Alabama Media to provide an extensive festival package boasting video, lighting and audio to all corners of the 16-acre site.

Alabama Media and Absen in order to save precious time during installation for rental staging applications. A further 16sqm of AT5 Pro LED screen was deployed behind FOH. Director of Main Square Festival at Live Nation France Armel Campagna commented: “The screen resolution quality is compulsory to offer the same views from the front of the stage all the way to those 60 metres behind FOH.” To facilitate signal exchange, hosting and dispatch between the stage and FOH, a Barco S3 was selected in FOH as well as the back of the stage, connected via MTP24 Neutrik fibre. “The idea was to have greater flexibility in order to get a good flow between the bands on any given day/night, as well being able to pick up the signals anywhere on the stage or FOH,” Alabama’s Technical Manager for video, Paul-Louis Blouin, reflected. “Martin Garrix, for example, provided us with all the signals in FOH to feed all the screens on stage.” For DJ Snake, Alabama added an additional 14m x 2m LED riser. The

VIDEO On display at all corners of the festival, Absen screens played an invaluable role in documenting the nonstop action. Main stage left and right IMAG screens boasted 30sqm of Absen’s brand-new Altair AT5 Pro 5.5mm outdoor LED panels, equipped with a touring frame developed in partnership with 66

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screen on the back of the stage was used by a number of acts including Gavin James, Bring Me The Horizon, Bigflo & Oli, Jain. Absen products were also placed in several of locations on site. The Greenroom stage, a pair of screens comprising AT5 Pro 5.5mm panes were also supplied to stream a live feed from the stage. Finally, in the VIP tent Dushow installed an Absen AT3 3.75mm LED screen measuring 8sqm to broadcast images of the main stage.

“The main difficulty was the changeover times. We have to load-in complete productions in 30 minutes in some cases.” To succeed, organisation and upstream thinking was required. Hamonou summed up: “It was a particularly complicated edition but a feat in great technical and human success. Everyone went away satisfied and the most importantly, the audience was able to fully enjoy the artists performances.” Arnaud Presse, Camille Loiseau, Lionel Mulet, Julien Riefenstal, Nicolas Marc, Stéphane Colin, Julien Rousseau, Benoit Saint Denis and Fabien Croize made up the main stage lighting team.

LIGHTING Dushow Lighting Crew Chief, Fred Hamonou took care of the lighting design and rig plans, assisted by Jérôme Santi on the Mainsquare festival since 2015. “The relationship with the festival is excellent and based on a relationship of trust between the production and the technical.” Having been a fixture of the festival since 2012, Dushow’s technical involvement also required the desired “human factor” Campagna was searching for. “Dushow has been with us throughout the evolution of the festival. All of our vendors supply the best in terms of sound, video, lighting.” Hamonou explained the lighting design changed each year to give the festival a fresh look while also being able to adapt to plug and play capabilities of the various touring acts. To light the way, Dushow provided a range of beam, wash, spot and strobe fixtures along with projectors with good light output, reliable, and simple operation capabilities. Robe MegaPointes, BMFL Wash Beams and BMFL Spots were among the workhorse fixtures of the extensive main stage lighting rig. Impressively, the team also provided added kit for artists such as Macklemore or DJ Snake which required an additional 100+ fixtures in 30 minutes during the set change. This involved adding 46 Robe Pointes, 56 GLP JDC1s and 27 Martin by Harman Viper DXs. The latter moving heads were used to replicate a focal point of an 8m totem, in addition to a screen in the form of 14m x 2m DJ booth.

SOUND Historically, Dushow Project Manager Marc de Fouquières has maintained a basic principle when it comes to sound design - have as many boxes as possible in order to achieve best coverage - without overworking the speakers. Campagna recalled: “We insist on not having a big ‘in your face sound’ instead opting for quality, working with technical partners with the sound experts to achieve that.” The resulting output was a soundscape that fit best for the festival both on and off stage. Capagna explained: “We want to make it as smooth as possible for the bands to turn up and play in the best sonic conditions.” As well as constant investment, key to the sound quality, according to Dushow Technical Manager Gaetan Salmon, was Meyer Sound boxes. “It’s a great sounding system with very low distortion and accidental headroom. In my opinion, it is the best system on the market.” The main stage PA hangs comprised two clusters of 23 Meyer Sound LEO-M line array elements as well as two columns of 21 Meyer Sound 1100LFC transient subwoofers in cardioid mode. A cluster of six Meyer Sound LEO-M line array elements were purposed as down fills along with two clusters of eight Meyer Sound LEOPARDs. Four stacks of three Meyer Sound LINA small dense curvilinear elements 68

MAIN SQUARE FESTIVAL

Meyer Sound LINA small dense curvilinear elements were used as front fills. Whereas two clusters of six LEOPARDs were placed aside the FOH delay screen as delays. For control, a mixture of Yamaha CL5, QL1 and Avid Profile Venue mixing desks were specified in FOH and monitor world across three stages along with a range of Shure and Sennheiser microphones. The Bastion stage PA System boasted two stacks of four Meyer Sound LEOPARD two-way high-power cabinets on top of two stacks of three 900LFC subs. Two Meyer Sound UPJ cabinets as fills and eight UM-1P wedge monitors made up the extensive Meyer Sound rig. Marking one of the few festivals as audio operator, Salmon recalled his roots with the festival: “I’ve been doing this festival since 2012,” he smiled. “This is one of the first big festivals Live Nation covered in France, which has since opened the door to other big festivals in France and I’m thankful for that.” Having signed an extended contract until 2026, Campagna relished the prospect of Live Nation France’s involvement in the festival for a further seven years. “We’ve hit 125,000 while still being a relatively young festival,” he said. “Its origins are anchored in the region and we reinvent our approach each year in line with the increased ticket and technology demand - which is rapidly evolving. Although now reached a level of maturity, we’re constantly striving to improve.” TPi Photos: Nicko Guihal, Marc de Fouquières & TPi www.mainsquarefestival.fr www.dushow.com www.alabama-media.com www.absen.com

performed as front fills. While two clusters of six Meyer Sound LEOPARDs aside sounded the FOH delays. Six Meyer Sound LEO-Ms as downfills and two clusters of eight Meyer Sound LEOPARD were purposed as out fills. Four additional stacks of three

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MIF 2019

MANCHESTER INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL: ATMOSPHERIC MEMORY Mexican-Canadian artist Rafael Lozano-Hemmer presents Atmospheric Memory, a technologically advanced immersive art environment, as part of this year’s MIF

Bringing together a broad range of artists from myriad disciplines, Manchester International Festival 2019 saw innovative artworks, films and music take centre stage at venues across the city. One of the festival’s most talked-about pieces came from Mexican Canadian artist Rafael Lozano-Hemmer. “Atmospheric Memory is a project five years in the making and possibly the most ambitious I have ever undertaken,” Lozano-Hemmer said of his creation. “It is the result of research on disparate fields from robotics to fluid dynamics.” Staged in an extraordinary custom-built structure made with shipping containers next to the museum’s 1830 Warehouse, Atmospheric Memory explored the beautiful tumult of the air we breathe – and ultimately celebrated the transience of the sounds that fleetingly live within it. Utilising technologies such as computerised surveillance, biometrics and automation, and working with a team that includes programmers, designers, scientists and architects, it was clear from the start that such an ambitious project would require specialist technical support. One of those charged with making sure the exhibit ran smoothly was Stage Technician,

Tom French. It was no mean feat, but when TPi caught up with him at the festival, he was typically modest. “The guys from Canada came over and installed the art, and we just installed the infrastructure around that,” he began. “Everything in the room is run over networks and is being monitored in real time from Canada, so we’re just babysitting really. We’re managing what they have built.” Panasonic projectors and Datapath Fx4s were among the visual kit specified. Four custom-built media servers ran TouchDesigner and MadMapper software. Atmospheric Memory proved to be a nice change of pace for French, who is more accustomed to working on theatrical productions. “I’m a big fan of modern art so it’s nice to get into a new world and experience something slightly different.” French went on to explain how his stage experience was a big help to the artist: “This is the first time that they have ever put some much stuff in one space,” he said. “That’s why they got a technical theatre team behind it – because it’s a show in its own right.” tube uk Sound Engineers Dan Steele and Adam Taylor devised and delivered the complex sound scheme which entailed some nifty and out-ofthe-box QLab programming. Cloud Display comprised a substantial wall 6m x 2.5m tall with which guests engaged by talking to into the intercoms with their words appeared 70

MIF 2019

Stage Technician, Tom French.

on a wall constructed from hundreds of small square water vaporisers - which when operated emitted a cloud of vapour, effectively formed a digital display of the words. Lozano-Hemmer and his team created the exhibits with their related computers which ran via completely bespoke sets of code. Steele and Taylor ensured that the sound elements from the machines were picked up from the intercoms and distributed to the right machine all around the space. tube uk installed an extensive Dante network with the eight computers plus another three sitting on it together with a console and the QLab system. The task of communicating between the sound desk, the QLab and the computers took several days to achieve and involved many kilometres of network cable being installed around the venue. Each intercom pillar featured an internal speaker - in addition to the microphone used for the voice commands - so controlling feedback was a delicate issue that needed to be dealt with. Eight intercom pillars, one per artwork, were positioned around the room and eight pairs of loudspeakers speakers were located just above head height down the length of the room. Steele chose to use a QLab as the most flexible and reliable system for integrating the necessary audio control and routing the bidirectional signals. This was programmed with an ambience soundscape and a series of curated sounds, samples, recordings and effects which were played out through the assorted artworks during the show cycle. The key to mastering the control needed was programming the QLab stack to react to Open Sound Control (OSC) network protocol requests from the artwork computers. As the whole exhibition’s show cycle / soundscape ran itself, the sequence itself sent out these bidirectional OSC messages to QLab which issued a series of sounds that were sent on to the different artworks triggering reactions across the network. The sounds made by the artworks – as activated by guests - went directly via tube uk’s Yamaha QL5 sound desk to the relevant computer running one of the artworks. The show was one of many for which tube uk coordinated audio throughout the MIF2019 festival period. TPi Photos: Mariana Yáñez & TPi www.mif.co.uk www.dbnaudile.co.uk www.tubeuk.com 71

WE OUT HERE

WE OUT HERE For its inaugural year, the organisers of We Out Here festival join forces with Neuron Pro Audio and A-Live Sound to provide a full Danley sound solution sitewide.

A newcomer to the UK’s festival scene, We Out Here promised to join the musical dots between soul, hip-hop, house, afro, electronica, jazz and beyond. With the backing of Gilles Peterson, who wanted to celebrate UK club culture and its community, the line-up looked to offer something new to this year’s season. With this particular genre, audio quality was always going to be of the upmost importance. Enter Kyle Marriott, Managing Director of Neuron Pro Audio. The Manchester-based audio company has specialised in Danley Sound Labs for a number of years – a strength which proved to be exactly what the festival organisers were looking for. “We have worked with the NVS Music Group on projects such as Outlook and Dimension Festival in Croatia and it was through them we got involved in this project,” began Marriott. Along with the NVS connection, Neuron also got put forward by A-Live’s Ian Mackie who recently took over distribution rights for Danley Distribution. The two companies collaborated, for all 12 stages, providing with full

Danley Sound Systems, from the smaller DJ stages all the way up to the main festival stage. Almost the entire range of Danley brands were out on display from the Mini 180, the Nanos and the Cubes, all the way up to its larger BC218/BC415 sub and J3-94s. Jumping into a one brand solution sitewide was somewhat of a risk, especially as Danley is not necessarily well-known within this sector. What’s more, this was not your traditional main stage PA array. “In total we are using one box per side, two front fills and six subs - that is it,” stated Marriott matter-of-factly, continuing, “With this set-up we were able to provide audio for 6,000 people at full capacity, although we were actually set up for up to 10,000.” The boxes in question consisted of two Danley Sound Labs J3-94s, four SH46s on front fills, and one SH95HOs for the centre front fill with SH96HOs for the 60m delay. For subs, four BC218s and two BC415s were selected. Powering the system were eight Danley DNA20K Pro amplifiers. “I think it’s safe to say a lot of people were sceptical it could be done,” mused Marriott. “When someone says we can replace the traditional 12 to 16 box-a-side line array with some front fills and a box hung at 10m it just doesn’t sound plausible. But throughout the festival we were achieving 107dba at FOH and still had more in the tank.” It’s no surprise, he added, citing Danley’s pitch. 72

WE OUT HERE

Namely, they have a “single pure point source” and “use a combination of drivers for one horn” which “results in the need for less gear, less weight, less stuff to transport and you get a better, purer sound.” Despite his confidence in the system, Marriott admitted he was apprehensive before the gates opened. But the glowing reports from fellow engineers, festivalgoers and even Gilles Peterson himself, who took to the main stage to commend the sound system during the festival, speak for themselves. “We’ve been overwhelmed by the comments, especially those from the engineers working the festival and those passing through out of curiosity.” Despite breaking the norm for its PA set-up, the team from Neuron were keen to keep some consistency for visiting engineers. At FOH on the main stage, a Midas Pro2, an Allen and Heath dLive and a DiGiCo SD11 were available to use. Elsewhere on site were a full range of Allen and Heath consoles with dLives consoles on the main stage, Rhythm corner and Lush Life stages. “We wanted all engineers to be comfortable enough so the only thing that was different was the PA,” stated Marriott. “Having a touring engineer walk up with everything being unfamiliar puts you on a bad footing to start. We are very much positioning Danley alongside the bigger brands so it makes sense to use a similar control package to what you

would find with those other systems.” As enthused as Marriott was about the performance of the system, he urged TPi not to just take his word for it but simply “look at the facts.” He elaborated: “Danley, as a manufacturer, approached everything in a very scientific way. Everything they do is very data driven. If you go online you can check out any of their products and find independently produced data with phases, plots, coverage angles and GLR files.” This information also benefitted Marriott in the field while tuning the system. “I personally mixed the subs on one of the stages, a job that usually takes a lot of work with the time alignment. But because I had the published phase response, I knew going into the event how far off I was likely to be making it a very quick job. The boxes are so well behaved in coverage and response, they stay consistent, even when you are off axis. We didn’t even have to use any FIR on any of the boxes with very minimal correctional work going on.” Clearly satisfied with this year’s performance, Marriott and the rest of the team are looking forward to the future, riding the wave of positive feedback. TPi Photos: Neuron Pro Audio www.weoutherefestival.com www.neuronproaudio.co.uk

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NATURE ONE

NATURE ONE Elation Professional’s Proteus fills the cubic truss design as the only moving heads on outdoor Open Air Floor.

Lighting Designer Thomas Gerdon turns to Elation Professional Proteus line fixtures for one of the largest European open air Electronic music festivals in Pydna, Hasselbach, Germany. “Last year, I discovered how easy and cool it was to have an IP65 fixture with the Proteus Hybrid,” the designer stated. “This year, I was sure I wanted to use as many IP65 fixtures as possible. Ninety percent of this year’s fixtures were IP65 rated and all the moving lights were Elation Proteus series.” Populating Gerdon’s newly designed overhead audience and stage rig were Proteus Hybrid moving heads, new Proteus Rayzor 760 LED moving heads, and new 50,000-lumen Proteus Maximus LED moving heads. Gerdon created a large, ground-supported architectural truss structure that spanned the crowd. “If you go to a big club in a place like Ibiza, you always have the lighting rig above the people.” he said. “This year, we went back to basics a bit with a huge, cubic truss design and lighting rig above the people that we filled with a lot of Proteus.” To feature top artists like Paul van Dyk and Eric Prydz, a large stage was also a key requirement. Gerdon continued the cubic design on stage with vertical columns of stacked metal pyramids, or “shields”, covered with LED video and topped with a lighting fixture. “The metal shields are new this

year. They are a foundation to work from and we will use them again in next year’s design to build the stage look. It gives something recognisable, which will guide us through the next three to five years,” the designer said. Columns of LED video screens added to the visual landscape with a large backdrop LED screen used to feature the artists. The metal shields were custom-produced by Schoko Pro, who handled lighting and sound supply for the festival. With nothing to protect either the audience or stage rigs from the rain, Gerdon turned to an all IP65 moving head rig. “From a design point of view, you don’t have the limitations that the rain covers give you like struggling with lighting through plastic, reflections and shadows. But as we all know, a rain cover does not work 100%. There is still risk of water damage. From a budget point of view, you don’t need the rain cover or the logistics and manpower to install it so you save a lot of money. Even if the IP65 fixtures cost a bit more, in the end it is cheaper than using a nonIP65 fixture with a rain cover.” With a 44m wide by 18m high stage to work with, not to mention the crowd itself, there was a lot of real estate to light. The Proteus Hybrid served as the main workhorse of the rig with 98 located in the rig above the crowd and another 48 mounted on the upper edge of each metal shield on stage. Additionally, a line of 32 compact Proteus Rayzor 760 LED wash luminaires with SparkLED technology lined the downstage edge. “I like to use washlights on the front of the stage and it was the first time I used the Rayzor 760,” Gerdon said. “Besides being a great effect light it provided wonderful flare on all cameras and photography. Even though 76

NATURE ONE

they are IP65 they are pretty compact relative to the output. There’s a lot of output in that small fixture.” Useful as a simple wash or specialty effect light, the Proteus Rayzor 760’s SparkLED. “The eye candy SparkLED is a nice feature as I liked to use it as a camera flare. Even when the fixtures were off, I could fill the space with the sparkle effect and still have something interesting for the camera. They worked out well.” Gerdon secured 22 Proteus Maximus units for Nature One and used them to light the metal shield pyramids from positions on stage and in PA towers. “They were the coolest, most badass fixture in the rig!” he said of the all-purpose power luminaire. “I was able to light the pyramids really well from those angles and because they were so bright I didn’t need a large number of fixtures.” Housing a 5.5- to 55° zoom and 950W White LED engine, the units

delivered an unmatched level of brightness with the power to cut through at great distances. “This was the first time I got on site and experienced that the fixtures I had were more than enough because they are so powerful,” he concluded. “Even using a wide zoom angle, it was more than enough. We used big zoom ranges, gobos, effect wheel - all very visible and bright enough to be recognisable, even with all the light coming off the LED screens. They worked out really well and their IP65 protection makes them even more attractive.” TPi Photos: Elation Professional www.nature-one.de www.elationlighting.com

OUTSIDE LANDS

Ryan Lewis, Ian DuBois, Jeremy Miller, Tom Lyon, Scott Tkachuk, Andrew May, Aharon Lund & Andy Kaiser.

OUTSIDE LANDS Meyer Sound marks a dozen years at Outside Lands’ main stage.

Audio on the Lands End main stage was delivered through a Meyer Sound system as supplied by legendary Bay Area rental company UltraSound. The twelve-year run at Lands End underscores the close working relationship the sound providers have forged with the festival’s promoters, Another Planet Entertainment and Superfly. “It’s a relationship that goes back to the beginning of Outside Lands,” said UltraSound Director of Operations Josh Osmond. “Since this event is held right in the backyard for both our company and Meyer Sound, it just makes sense. It’s been a no-brainer for us all the way around.” Speaking on behalf of Another Planet Entertainment, Production Director Mary Conde noted: “I was insistent on using UltraSound and Meyer for the main stage. We knew that the quality had to be there, it could not fail, and it had to be great from the first note to the last. I’m happy we made that decision, and every year it just gets better.” The Meyer Sound LEO Family system at Lands End was reconfigured to maintain uniformly high levels across the audience area while better confining broadband sound within the festival boundaries. The main front arrays of, per side, 13 LEO over three LYON-W line array loudspeakers were boosted by two sets of largely down-firing delays. The near set comprised three towers, each with 11 LEO over three LYON-W loudspeakers; the far delay system had two towers, each with six LYON-M over six LEOPARD loudspeakers. Rounding out the full range complement were side hangs each with 10 LYON line array loudspeakers (six LYON-M and four LYON-W) plus 16 LEOPARD for front lip and L/R front fill. Dual flown gradient arrays of nine each 1100-LFC low frequency control elements joined with 10 1100-LFC

elements in a 5x2 ground arc to deliver low frequency punch. VIP areas were served by a mixed inventory of 34 loudspeakers including UPA-1C, UPJ-1P, LEOPARD, CQ-1 and UPM-2P. The VIP DJ system comprised six LINA line array loudspeakers coupled with four 900-LFC low frequency control elements. The LEO Family system was a welcome sight for Kenny Sellars, FOH Engineer for Twenty One Pilots, as the band had toured with a similar rig the prior year. “It’s always nice to walk in and see a familiar rig, because then you know what to expect,” said Sellars. “I can’t say enough about the transient response, how fast and tight everything sounds. I can pick out and hear a depth in my mixes I don’t always get from other PAs.” Sellars is also enamored with the system’s bass impact. “The low end information I get from the 1100s is amazing. When the kick drum hits, it just slaps you right across the chest. It’s everything I’ve always wanted from subs.” UltraSound also equipped The Barbary tent, a “comedy and variety” venue hosting an eclectic mix of acts including Mike Birbiglia, Tony Danza and Jimmy O. Yang. The system here was anchored by eight LEOPARD line array loudspeakers per side, bolstered by two CQ-1 and four UPM-2P loudspeakers, and with four 900-LFC elements for deep bass. “I’m always pleased by our partnership with Meyer Sound and UltraSound,” added Mary Conde. “We bring in Meyer Sound when it really has to be perfect, as it must be at the main stage of our marquee festival.” A third Meyer Sound system was deployed at the GastroMagic stage, in this case as supplied by McCune Audio/Video/Lighting of South San Francisco. The system here tallied 16 LEOPARD line array loudspeakers and six 900-LFCs low frequency control elements. TPi Photos: Meyer Sound www.sfoutsidelands.com www.meyersound.com 78

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LET IT ROLL

LET IT ROLL 25,000 fans enjoy seven stages of drum ‘n’ bass mayhem in the atmospheric environment of Milovice Airfield.

The festival has been on the current airfield site for the last five years, growing in popularity and profile and this year Robe moving lights again played a prominent part in ensuring everyone received a superlative experience. Directing all the Mothership (Main Stage) technical production was Pepa Ženíšek from SMART Production, who hand-picked a talented team of creatives and a trusted set of suppliers to deliver another exciting bespoke environment unique to this festival, originally the brainchild of Czech DL and DNB guru, Suki, who is still integrally involved in every aspect of the festival. The Main Stage production lighting design was imagined by Ondrej Bylok, who has worked on the event for the last 10 years or so, initially as a lighting technician, and as main stage LD since it moved to this site in 2015. For the last two years, everyone has used the ‘house’ rig and lighting for all the sets have been operated by Bylok and his colleagues. In addition to that, a focal point of the entire festival is the timecoded Opening Ceremony show which takes place on the Friday night. Bylok specified nearly 100 Robe fixtures for the Mothership to cover all the lighting needs – a mix of 38 Pointes, 12 MegaPointes, 18 Spiiders,

12 Tarrantulas, 12 CitySkape Xtremes and six BMFL Blades, all supplied by rental company JESA, together with the audio. He collaborated closely on evolving the Mothership look with Show Director and Video Designer Tomas Nezval and Set Designer Martin Kana. They have all worked together for a few years now and honed what has become a highly “fluid and productive” creative process. The Mothership design was clean and streamlined, with the Pointes and Spiiders rigged in six vertical columns spread across the 50m of stage width. At the centre of the Mothership was a 5m diameter inflatable head. Robe Tarrantulas were positioned in the Mothership’s engine turbine recesses while the MegaPointes were in a line on the deck. CitySkape Xtremes were deployed on the floor where they could illuminate the set architecture and decor, which was also lit from the six BMFL Blades positioned on the FOH structure. Bylok explained: “The power and intensity of fixtures like the Pointe, MegaPointe, Spiider, BMFL – and the fast movement both of which are essential building blocks for lighting a DNB show.” He programmed and ran the lighting – which also includes some other fixtures – on a grandMA2 light console. The Opening Show music trac was 80

LET IT ROLL

Lighting Designer, Ondrej Bylok.

created by ABIS, Hybrid Minds & Insideinfo, Neonlight, Icicle and Outside Agency and fully timecoded. Bylok was able to pre-vis and programme for three weeks, followed up by two full-on nights of programming and tweaking onsite. He and his production team of three co-ordinate around 30 crew working on that stage. The fact that it is all about design and making a custom experience each year is one aspect making Let It Roll very special, together with the dedicated Opening Ceremony which is always a talking

point. SMARTâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s other regular production suppliers included lasers from Kvant and pyro from Flash Barrandov. Air Works from the Netherlands made the inflatable Mothership head and the rest of the set was built by Czechbased Set Art. TPi Photos: Louise Stickland www.letitroll.eu www.robe.cz

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SPIN OFF FESTIVAL

SPIN OFF FESTIVAL Brompton Technology eases the load at Australia’s Spin Off Festival

Australia’s popular Spin Off festival returned in 2019 with an anticipated audience of over 20,000 at the massive 84m by 64m mainstage tent, presenting organisers, FiveFour Entertainment, with huge technical requirements where the need for screens was paramount. To meet this demand, technical provider,

Adelaide’s Novatech Creative Event Technology, employed two onstage ROE Visual Carbon five IMAG screens, an upstage screen, a delay screen behind FOH and two delay screens outside of the tent, controlled from two Brompton Technology SX40 processors with three Brompton Tessara XD distribution units vastly simplifying cabling requirements. “With such a huge footprint, we needed to ensure that not only everyone inside the tent could see a screen but also outside,” explained Phil Pieridis, Senior Video Project Manager from Novatech. “Using many

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screens generates a lot of signal distribution but the latest Brompton SX40 processor, with its huge capacity, enabled us to run multiple screens off the same processor, whilst the brilliant Tessera XD units easily resolved any cabling issues.” Staged on Adelaide showground, the sell-out one-day festival featured the headlining acts appearing at sister festival, Splendour in the Grass, including Catfish and the Bottlemen, Childish Gambino, and Ocean Alley. “With so many top-flight artists, technical rider demands were high and changeover times pivotal but Brompton equipment drastically reduces set-up times and configuration is really quick,” continued Pieridis. “The ability to create custom scaling in the processors and save those to presets was a huge advantage to us, as different acts required a variety of input resolutions or needed to use different parts of the screen.” As a daytime event, screen glare was also a big consideration but by utilising Brompton’s Tessera control over a network, the brightness of the outdoor delay screens were independently controlled throughout the day as the sun moved across the site. “Brompton massively contributed to the technical success of Spin Off,” concluded Pieridis. “Our load in was exactly to schedule, the set up was simple and swift, and the screens performed flawlessly. We were very happy, and the clients were extremely satisfied with the results!” TPi Photo: Gasoline Media www.spinoffadelaide.com.au www.bromptontech.com

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51ST STATE FESTIVAL

51ST STATE FESTIVAL Light Design Ltd delivers seven stages of creative festival production for the fifth edition of 51st State Festival, taking place in Trent Country Park on 3 August 2019.

Following a series of meetings, which initially started at the Festival Awards 2018, Senior Project Manager, Terry Lewsey and the rest of the Light Design Ltd team set about working across the seven stages of designs and specifications for the annual dance music festival event, with the plan to showcase higher levels of production across all stages. The stages were filled with some of the world’s best DJs and artists, some that can only be described as house music royalty, so the designs and look and feel of the production needed to match this impressive line-up. All stages of the festival site and technical production management were overseen by Lewsey. The Project Manager’s first task was to set about working a main stage design that raised the bar on previous productions.

Light Design’s Milos MR2K 12m x 10m stage was available for this date which with its full mother grid was more than capable of taking the necessary weight for this type of dance music lead production; but we wanted to do something much more impressive. Lewsey worked with Glen Brown from Area Four Industries to fully integrate the standard Milos MR2K Roof system with the Milos LED screen ground support system they already stocked to make an all in a eight tower 10 leg structure that stretched out across the Trent Country park just over 30m wide. This super wide configuration then allowed a much wider production and video design, complete with IMAG screens and live camera feeds to show the stage production to the thousands of people throughout the park, all expertly controlled and mixed by Jason Madeira from 5th Dimension Graphics. To compliment this impressive stage structure and LED video set up, a design utilising the Doughty H frame system was decided upon as it allowed the design to have fixtures at lots of varying heights whilst maintaining lots of floor space for the busy change overs. The stage was 84

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51ST STATE FESTIVAL

then filled with an impressive array of lighting fixtures from Robe, Ayrton, Claypaky and Chauvet lighting fixtures, all operated over Artnet from an Avolites Arena by Main Stage Lighting Operator, Tom Cull. ESD Lumen 6mm black faced screen hung from Milos MT1 Tower Ground Support at Stage 2 and was the main focus where the DJs performed immersed by video design. Martin, Claypaky and Robe lighting fixtures were positioned around the ground support and flown arena trusses. The stage lighting was operated on Avolites by Light Design’s Sam Else with James Mean on video duties using the Green Hippo Amba+ media servers to drive this impressive video and lighting design throughout the day. As the sun started to set, Olly Suckling and Rob Benson took over control at FOH of lighting and video for the DJ EZ’s special guest appearance where the show certainly took things up another level in this packed arena. The equipment specification across the rest of site was also on point with hundreds of moving light fixtures from Martin, Robe, Ayrton and Claypaky lighting fixtures with indoor and outdoor LED screens running into the hundreds of sqm filling up all the stages all hung from Light Design’s own stock of Milos truss and rigging, all operated exclusively across the entire site from a full range Avolites consoles.

Another important factor for this year’s festival were the audio requirements and working within the sites noise limits. Stage Audio Services were given the task to deliver this important role, with Terry working closely with Operations Manager from Stage Audio Services, Ste Banbury to find suitable solutions to deliver both excellent sound quality for the performers artists and customers while maintaining a balance on sound bleed from the site to keep the residents and local authorities happy. The final specification included a site wide L-Acoustics audio solution using three 45ft lorries full of L-Acoustics K2s, Karas and DvDosc systems across the site. All main stages had flown PA systems with Light Design’s new Milos MRT1 PA Towers making easy work of getting the sound where we needed it without compromise. Lewsey reserved a special thank you to the entire production team. “There are too many to name individually, but the show wouldn’t have happened or been this good without you all, thank you all so much!” TPi Photos: Light Design LTD www.51ststatefestival.com www.lightdesignltd.co.uk 86

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IN PROFILE

FIX8GROUP: CONSIDERED DESIGN The Manchester-based creative and technical event solutions specialist has come a long way in 14 years. Now, with an expanded management team and a stunning new HQ designed to foster staff well-being, creativity and efficiency, the company is all set for its next stage of growth…

Since its foundation in 2005, FIX8Group has been known for its commitment to excellence. Founder Neil Trenell began the business with an intuitive understanding that delivering a successful event solution for any client depended on first understanding the event’s purpose. “It comes down to asking ‘where do we add value?’,” said Trenell. “It’s not about providing package A, B or C, it has to be an appropriate solution. If we understand the intended message of the event, we can add value and reaffirm that message at every point. How can we make the visual communication more effective? How can we make the first impression contribute towards that message? I think of it as ‘considered design’. It’s not about using the latest technology, it’s design led, with technology as an enabler, not as a definer.” Senior Project Manager Ben Hyman, who joined FIX8 in 2018, agreed: “Once we understand the aims, we can engineer the solution to meet those aims. It sounds obvious, but it’s not the way it’s usually done. The event

shouldn’t be shoe-horned into a technical solution. Technology plays a big part, but it’s finding the appropriate technology for the event’s purpose. That’s the difference - that’s the FIX8 way.” NEW BEGINNINGS In November 2018, FIX8Group moved into its new headquarters, a beautiful, bespoke home for a company which bridges creativity and technology. The building, a prime example of ‘considered design’, is tailored to meet a variety of aims. It combines warehousing, spacious offices, studio spaces and communal areas. Inside, everywhere is light and space, while the detail of the finish, from perfectly-laid cabling to custom-designed stairways, reflects the ethos of excellence at the heart of the business. The move sealed a year of progressive change for FIX8Group. Trenell, with objectivity enough to recognise that his little enterprise had grown up, and that the responsibilities of management were diverting him from 88

FIX8GROUP

Creative possibilities from the Fix8Group 3D studio; chameleon animation created for trade association ARMA; The FIX8Group team outside its new HQ in Manchester.

what he loved best - providing clients with great events - brought in a new Managing Director, Mark Porter. It was a smart move, but one which many entrepreneurs fail to make. “Sometimes the best way to move forward is to fire yourself,” laughed Trenell. “The change has been great - refreshing and thought provoking. We’ve got amazing strengths in the company and we should be playing to those. As a company, we’ve become stronger because we’re all playing to our strengths in a more efficient way.” He added: “When I’m with a client now, I’m engaged with them. I’m not worrying about the finances, day-today admin, HR and all those other things. I can be fully present.” Importantly, the management change also acknowledges that FIX8Group is long past the point of being a one-man show. Once synonymous with Trenell, it now has a wider team of experienced, highly skilled, but equally passionate team members, all of whom share the founder’s vision of how events should be produced. “We’re not a business that relies solely on one individual,” agreed Porter. “There is sufficient skillset within the business for us to be resilient.”

business on the doorstep. Porter continued: “Our challenge is to make ourselves known to people who don’t know us, and to build up that level of trust that we enjoy with our existing clients. They know what we do and they trust us. We need to make sure that continues.” He added: “There are more opportunities now in this business then there have ever been, but the business is only as good as the people within it, which is why we’ve invested so much in the working environment. Within the next three years, I see no reason that the turnover of this business isn’t doubled.” BUILDING ENGAGEMENT There is always an eye on the future, as FIX8 didn’t just design and build one new building, but three. One unit was constructed for a third party, a second was built as an investment resale opportunity, and the prime unit is the company’s new home. Anyone who visits the new facility can’t help but leave with an appreciation of the leaps forward being made by the company. “Staff engagement, health and well-being has been an absolute priority,” said Porter of the new facility. “This has been a tremendous step forward in those areas. We’ve got a facility now which really helps to conjure creativity. There’s a feel-good factor. It’s an amazing environment light, airy and bright, it opens up that responsiveness from the team.” For the staff, there could be no clearer signal of the company’s investment in them, and in the future of the business. Capitalising further on the positive momentum created by the move, the company also achieved Investor In People (IIP) status in March, and plans to take that even further striving for Gold IIP accreditation within the year. Nor is that all. The business is also focused on achieving ISO9001 accreditation, to demonstrate to stakeholders its commitment to robust repeat processes. It’s also going for ISO14001, the environmental management standard. “We take our Corporate Social Responsibility very seriously,” said Porter. “We’re a forward-looking business, so we need to be socially accountable. We need to demonstrate that our processes are

DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES One of Porter’s first steps as MD was to introduce a Business Development function, bringing in Martyn McArthur, a sales professional with wideranging experience, to establish the new department. McArthur’s first appointment was Business Development Manager Chris Hobson, whose solid background in events management is already delivering new opportunities. “Until now we’ve thrived on repeat business, and word of mouth,” stated Porter. “Now we’re contacting brand new customers, in and around the north-west of England - and globally, in fact - but there is a focus on the north-west.” It’s a good point. Although located in the north of the UK, FIX8Group’s services are more likely to be found on the F1 circuit, or on Eurovision, or on major international corporate events or rock ‘n’ roll tours – none of which will necessarily bring them to the attention of the businesses that are geographically closest to them. There’s an untapped source of new 89

FIX8GROUP

Creative Director, Neil Trenell; Senior Project Manager, Ben Hyman; Business Development Manager, Chris Hobson. Head of Design, Filipe Martins; Office & Finance Manager, Karina Etchells; Managing Director, Mark Porter.

solid and efficient, our supply chains are sustainable and our impact on the environment is minimal.” The new HQ also offers expanded design studio and previsualisation facilities. FIX8’s 3D design studio team is led by Head of Design, Filipe Martins, and includes designers Harriette Machin and Rachel Fielding. Here too the team takes a considered, contextual approach to design. Martins explained: “Before we begin to make something, we like to explore the client’s brand, what they do, what they don’t do, how they communicate, to get a feel for the company’s personality. That helps massively to create something that aligns with the brand, but also which challenges or pushes the brand in some way. If you have a completely blank page, where do you start?” As well as delivering content design, Martins and his team are also geared to provide clients with VR-assisted previsualisation of their projects – a facility that also proved useful in planning the internal layout of the new building.

Brompton Technology and Analog Way have already used the spaces, while others are in the pipeline. “The biggest advantage is that it allows us to mock up and test the bespoke elements of projects,” said Williams. “Particularly those that involve interactive elements, which require us to model exactly the environment they’re going to be deployed into. It allows us to test to a much higher level than before, without impacting on the function of the business in any way.” AN EYE ON TECHNOLOGY The prioritisation of purpose over technology explains why FIX8 holds limited stock of what they call ‘output devices’. “We own the control systems, the media servers, the consoles, the infrastructure for moving audio or video,” said Hyman. “But not the projectors, LED screens or speakers - because you have to ask which is the right product to use in that environment? This is how we deliver bespoke experiences, and by not having large stocks of these devices, we can remain agile and innovative.” Instead, FIX8 has formed close working relationships with like-minded suppliers of output devices - audio providers like Wigwam, based just up the road in Heywood, or Bradford-based Pro Audio Systems, and lighting suppliers including Urban Lites, dbnAudile and Siyan, among others. “There’s strength in having partners,” said Hyman. “It’s about partnering with people that understand what you do, and who want to deliver the same level of service. It’s short-sighted to be the company that says ‘we can do everything, we own everything’. Nobody does that successfully.” Williams added: “There’s a constant evolution in the way that we use technology. That includes the communication tools that enable people to

ROOM TO MANOEUVRE The new space delivers many practical benefits, from the greater efficiency of moving equipment in and out of the building, to managing and prepping kit, and planning and modelling projects in the studio spaces. “It’s a lot more efficient,” said Technical Director Paul Williams. “Artics can back in to the warehouse, you can load the equipment quickly without being hampered by the weather, and you can be a lot more organised in the spacious warehouse facilities.” The two flexible studio spaces can be blacked out and reconfigured as required, and include large movable screens for previewing projects. They are also being used for training purposes by FIX8’s technology partners. 90

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FIX8GROUP

Project Engineer, Harrison Page; Head of Business Development, Martyn McArthur; Technical Director, Paul Williams; Designer, Rachel Fielding; Previsualisation in the new HQ’s spacious new studio space.

link-up and collaborate, and also the technology in our daily lives which impacts on how clients want to communicate their message within their events. The mediums by which they do that change at a seemingly everfaster rate, so we have to make sure that we’re on top of that. We’re in the business of helping people communicate with their staff or customers, so we can’t rely on the way that was done 15 years ago, or even the way it was done three years ago.” Lastly, a technology solution might not be all about the ‘now’. Williams explained: “For a one-off event, what’s possible today is key, but for the longer-term projects - a more permanent installation, for example - we have to make sure clients understand the implications of the changes that are going to happen during the lifespan of that project. The motorhome for the SportPesa Racing Point Formula 1 paddock, which has a lifespan of about 10 years, needs infrastructure that will allow it to be an effective marketing and communication tool in 10 years’ time, without having to gut the thing every year and start again.”

a risk that you get this natural disjoint between office and warehouse, but you’ve got a human in the middle who’s not only involved with the project, but also in the prep. They’re like an intelligent funnel between the two, and it works really well.” Page, who has the unusual distinction of being both one of the longest-serving members of the FIX8 team, and one of the youngest (having started in a work experience role aged just 14) is himself an example of this, responsible for the day to day involvement in equipment preparation and systems, as well as running projects. He personally looked after the Pit Garage multi-screen AV system that FIX8 created for the Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 team, and accompanied the installation worldwide through the entire 2017 F1 season. “As you grow as a business there’s always a risk that you start departmentalising, and you lose that connection and communication,” he said. “We’ve handled that really well. We’ve kept it so we’re one unit, and everyone knows everything that’s going on.” The process is helped by regular team meetings in a large, comfortable seating area adjacent to the office space, and by the inclusion of meeting rooms and communal dining facilities designed to encourage both formal and informal communication. What FIX8Group seems to have in abundance is that essential awareness of change and the challenges it presents. From Trenell’s bold management decision to the major investment in its new headquarters and the commitment to communication, FIX8Group is a thinking business with a considered view of its future. TPi Photos: FIX8Group www.fix8group.com

TALKING POINTS Most business owners will be familiar with the problems of maintaining effective internal communication as a company grows. For FIX8, internal communication is built into its processes, the layout of its new headquarters, and even its job roles. It’s something that all are determined to maintain as the team grows. “Due to the size of the company, we’re actually very much entwined,” said Projects Engineer Harrison Page. “Most of those in the warehouse are also technicians who will go out onsite, so it’s very fluid. The people who are responsible for the kit are also directly involved with the projects.” Hyman furthered: “The role of Projects Engineer is a clever role. There’s 92

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MARKET FOCUS

TRUCKING An overview at some of the leading trucking providers on the market.

TRUCKINGBY BRIAN YEARDLEY With offices in London and Leeds, TRUCKINGBY Brian Yeardley pride itself on supplying reliable, friendly, and quality assured trucking service to clients. Operating one of the largest modern fleet of Euro 6 environmentally friendly trucks in the industry. TRUCKINGBY run a fleet of our 80 vehicles of all sizes from LWB sprinter vans to over 70 x 45ft low ride high security box trucks, satellite tracked and supported by its team of skilled operators who are on call 24/7 to ensure that equipment arrives on time across the globe. Additional 24 hour UK and European rapid response breakdown cover on the truck trailers and tyres further ensures all eventualities are catered for in the unlikely event of a breakdown. Each of the company’s drivers are dubbed as ‘ambassadors’ and work directly with clients on a daily basis, always willing to help when needed and be part of touring crews. “You will not meet happier more helpful friendly drivers they are our A team,” commented Managing Director Kevin Hopper. “They are all highly trained and experienced in all areas of live events from music touring to festivals.” TRUCKINGBY also have a heated backline storage facility offering heated individual lockable cages ranging from 20ft, 30ft and 45ft - all covered by 24 hour security and CCTV the facility also has a prep area and we offer our clients 24/7 assess to our site in Leeds. TRUCKINGBY have been working hard on our Brexit strategy for over two years now and are as Brexit ready as we can be having key members of staff being involved with government and transport bodies to ensure we are ready for any Brexit outcome. www.brianyeardley.com 94

TRUCKING

With Brexit looming the company now has depots in Holland and Ireland to cover whatever the outcome maybe. Plus, of course, each trucks is Euro 6, allowing access to any location throughout Europe that has any ultra low emission zone restrictions. European trucking regulations are more restrictive than ever and records of truck/driver movements are easily accessible by other countries. With this in mind, EST invests a lot of time and effort in the management of drivers hours and supply extra personal on the road to maintain 100% legality - this obviously comes at a cost, but EST believe is better than missing a show or even an accident due to driver fatigue. EST stresses its biggest problem is a shortage of good drivers, refusing to use supply agencies. Each EST applicant must complete a training process before they are allowed to go on tour. www.yourock-weroll.com

EST EST, formerly Edwin Shirley Trucking, celebrates its 45th year in the music touring industry this year. Having been â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;marriedâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; to Transam Trucking for the past 10 years, EST boasts a combined fleet of 150 tractors and 160 trailers, making for much more buying power with fuel and ferries. The logistics specialist recently completed successful tours with the likes of Bon Jovi, Michael Buble, Bryan Adams and The Eagles to mention a few. 95

TRUCKING

few months of music. Tours for Anne-Marie, George Ezra, Rod Stewart, The Chainsmokers, Enter Shikari, Kelly Jones, The Stereophonics, BFMV, Katherine Jenkins and Collabro to name just a few, ran alongside full production trucking and on-site management for BTS, support trucks for P!nk and Take That, as well as the culmination of three years touring on Ed Sheeran’s Divide Tour. Although huge uncertainty still surrounds the future of international trucking after October, Stuart McPherson remains positive and ready for the challenge. “The desire to leave the EU is not a view I share, and only time will tell what effect this will have on our industry. However, my responsibility now lies solely in the welfare of my business, my employees and my clients. “After what has been an amazing few months, KB Event has strategies in place to react immediately to whatever the final outcome may be, and is in the strongest financial position possible to face the uncertainty of life after Brexit.” www.kbevent.com

KB EVENT Now in its 27th year of trading, 2019 has been another landmark year for trucking company KB Event. Business levels across its music, corporate and theatre sectors have reached an all-time high, necessitating a further £2.6m investment in its operating fleet, the employment of a General Manager – a new position within the business – to work alongside Managing Director, Stuart McPherson, and continued extensions to its recently expanded offices. Following a busy start to the year with returning business from Qdos Pantomimes and Corporate projects including WEF in Davos and MWC in Barcelona, the Spring marked the beginning of an unprecedented

Alison Moyet • Anne - Marie • BFMV • BTS • Collabro • David Guetta • Ed Sheeran • Enter Shikari • Eric Prydz • George Ezra • Gladys Knight • Gorgon City • James Bay • Kelly Jones • Katherine Jenkins • Lea Salonga • Old Dominion • Passenger • PINK • Rod Stewart • Shawn Mendes • Stereophonics • Steve Aoki • Take That • Tame Impala • The Chainsmokers • Tom Chaplin • The Streets • Wolf Alice

Rolled out this summer

Specialists in Event Transport and Logistics Trucking • Air and Sea freight • Conferences • Documentation • Exhibitions • Liveries • Music • Roadshows • Warehousing +44 (0)1773 811 136 | sales@kbevent.com | www.kbevent.com

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TRUCKING

SAAN TRUCKING Saan Trucking makes sure that live entertainment can be truly live. Any time, any place in Europe. The company offer custom made transport solutions for live entertainment productions. Its strength is characterised by high quality service and its engagement with customers all along the road. With a small committed team, it provides the best trucking service for the best price. The company handles many different types of live entertainment trucking projects and touring shows, family entertainment, sports events, music performances and one-off projects. Saan Trucking believe it’s not only about the trucks on the road, it’s about the people who drive them. As a mainland-based outfit - with its support office near Amsterdam - the company are capable to service its clients in the best way possible. Dedicated drivers speak fluent English and are very experienced in handling any live entertainment production successfully. Saan Trucking drivers think beyond transport and provide additional services on site where possible; offering transport solutions suitable to client needs. The company put great care in personal contact with its clients, therefore clients are able to contact 24/7 by email and phone. Even in the middle of the night if necessary. For the last couple of years, many touring shows and complicated logistic projects have been trusted to Saan Trucking expertise. The company strive for quality and continuity, which results in long term partnerships with its clients. Saan Trucking’s focus lies on the road in front of us, but its view is beyond the horizon. www.saantrucking.com

PIETER SMIT Pieter Smit started his business in 1980. Over the years, his passion for the entertainment industry combined with a healthy business instinct have helped the company grow into a significant global player with nine locations in seven countries. Primarily a trucking business, transporting equipment and gear for theatre, pop/rock music, entertainment and sports events. No matter how big or small, there is a trucking solution for you among Pieter Smit’s fleet. At Pieter Smit, the company prides itself in the knowledge and involvement of its employees. Pieter Smit’s services don’t stop once the trucks stop rolling. The company assist at the load in and load out and its seasoned touring professionals can help crews build and tear down gear and stages, as their technical knowledge are unmatched. Pieter Smit offers complete solutions for European tours, even including international air and sea freight. The company can assist you with customs formalities, but our services do not stop there. Pieter Smit also offer air conditioned or climate controlled storage, container, crew bus and nightliner rental options. “Every day, our touring professionals prove their worth across Europe,” commented Pieter Smit ‘s Lenneke Knape. “But burning the tarmac doesn’t come without responsibilities. That’s why Pieter Smit vehicles are equipped with the cleanest possible engines. “The company’s entire fleet can run on HVO (‘blue diesel’) upon request. Pieter Smit strongly believe that every touring artist should contribute to making the entertainment industry greener, so it encourages peers to work towards decreasing our ecological footprint. www.pietersmit.com 98

TRUCKING

MCGUINNESS McGuinness’ sole focus is managing the transport and logistics for concert tours throughout Europe. The company offer comprehensive service that covers all aspects of a tour’s logistics. In addition to transportation it assist with details such as carnets/customs clearance, ship chartering and airfreight. Crucially, McGuinness builds strong relationships with its customers and are trusted to act as consultants as well as logistics managers. The trust its clients place in McGuiness allows the company to utilise its experience and expertise to help in optimising tours. Oftentimes, the company will be asked to assess the feasibility of several proposed schedules long before the itinerary is agreed. Once a tour is underway, managing day-to-day logistics becomes a real team effort. McGuinness have an incredible group of lead drivers, each one knowledgeable and helpful. They work closely with production managers and our in-office staff to make sure every detail is covered. www.mcguinness.eu.

European Music Tour Trucking • EU and UK registered trucks to accommodate all requirements info@mcguinness.eu

www.mcguinness.eu

TRUCKING

The company has 16 trailers and three 14 tonne rigids in its network, purchased during its first touring rigid in September 2018, working six months straight from tour to tour. Since then, the trucking side of the business grew rapidly in July 2019, building its first 48ft tour trailer. The company further expanded its spec, building a steady fleet of new, clean, high end trailers to ensure its customers are looking hot on the highway and of course less chance of mechanical issues with increaded efficiency all round. A few recent acts Live Event Logistics’ has toured with include RuPaul, Tash Sultana, Angus and Julia Stone, Gang of Youths, Hayden James and number of trade shows. Woods commented: “We’ve had incredible growth with a 50% increase in our second year, we run a tight team of five employees at the highest level of efficiency. We’re excited for the future, kicking off as a start-up - programming 30-40 touring acts in our roster over a solid 12 months of trucking. We aim to tackle that gap in the market to service the tours that expect the highest level of customer service and communication. Our services range from parcel courier type moves, through to ground transport for pallets, air freight, tour trucking, carnets and charter aircraft, not only in Australia through globally.” www.liveeventlogistics.com.au

LIVE EVENT LOGISTICS Australian based entertainment freight company Live Event Logistics launched in July 2017, and has been growing at a rapid rate. Chris Woods started Live after working for two of Australia’s major entertainment logistics companies - moving his way up into a senior position before realising there was a need for a third player with a focus on customer service on the small to mid-range size tours. The bigger freighting company’s have the 30-40 truck tours down pat, and have lead the way for years but when the busy summer period hits touring crews are left stranded without a trailer when you get a few big shows on the highway. “Live Event Logistics started small with a strong focus on our Australian bands and productions on the international side, touring major acts globally and the natural progression was to lead into trucking in Oz,” commented Woods. 100

ARENA SIZE REHEARSAL VENUE PRODUCTION & PERFORMANCE SPACE 3 year winner of … TPi Awards Favourite Trucking Company 500 tonne UDL Roof Capacity Over 6 x 400a 3ø Supplies 21 En-suite Bedrooms Green Room | Catering Floor 42m x 40m x 18m | 4 Loading Docks 5 Dressing Rooms | Production Suites FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT WWW.FBNSTUDIOS.CO.UK EMAIL: INFO@FBNSTUDIOS.CO.UK TEL: 01527 962 963 FLY BY NITE REHEARSAL STUDIOS | BROAD GROUND ROAD, LAKESIDE, REDDITCH, WORCS B98 8YP

TRUCKING

FLY BY NITE Heading into its 30th anniversary in 2020, having been founded by current MD David Coumbe, Fly By Nite started out with just a couple of trucks in 1990. Fast forward three decades and the company now boasts a fleet of 170 trucks with around 250 full time employees. The company’s large client base is down to the variety of work it covers, including music tours, corporate and private events, road shows, theatre productions, exhibitions and supply work for numerous suppliers throughout the events industry. The 170 vehicle fleet features a range of truck sizes enabling the company to provide a suitable vehicle for the volume of equipment requiring transport. FBN have focused on providing an outstanding service at competitive prices and delivers value for money. The company’s attention to detail is second to none, aiming to provide a ‘one stop shop’ for our clients; providing a comprehensive wrap around service - including warehousing and storage, rehearsal facilities, vehicle tracking apps and obtaining relevant customs documentation and travel permits/visas. This comprehensive service is valued by are FBN’s loyal client base. Aided by the shift in trend within the music industry with bands now requiring to tour more than ever to generate revenue, attending concerts is

now also very fashionable for the general public with clips of shows often widely shared on social media. There are interesting times ahead with Brexit looming but FBN are as well prepared with resources at its disposal to overcome the challenges it may be faced with. www.flybynite.co.uk

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PRODUCTION FUTURES

NEC Group Become UKs First to Pass Live Event Rigging Apprenticeship Four NEC Group apprentices have recently become the first in the UK to complete a Live Event Rigging Apprenticeship.

Group and JGA, the assessment was developed to test the skills that the apprentices have learnt over the three years and give them the next step in their career. Over the past three years, the apprentices have also achieved their Level 2 National Rigging Certificate and rigged for world-class concerts and exhibitions. The assessment saw the apprentices evaluated for their work in real scenarios, with Sam and Tyler rigging for a show at the NEC, and Luca and Connor rigging for the Gurdas Maan concert at Arena Birmingham. After deciding university wasn’t for him, Sam Carr applied for a rigging apprenticeship with the NEC Group in 2016. He said of the experience: “I’ve learnt so much over the course of the apprenticeship. When I first started my knowledge of rigging was non-existent, but over the last three years I have acquired a wealth of skills and qualifications and now I’m a fully competent rigger.” Angela Walsh, Apprentice Co-ordinator at the NEC Group, said: “At the NEC Group we are committed to providing opportunities that can offer career stability in fun and dynamic environments. Offering the Live Event Rigging apprenticeship has allowed our apprentices to learn from fully experienced riggers with years’ of experience and will help them towards the next step in their career. I know that a couple of our apprentices are hoping to travel the world with their qualifications, supporting touring shows, and I am confident we have given them the skills they need to flourish.” The NEC Group has already placed more than 30 apprentices in 2019, with almost 20 apprenticeships currently available in a variety of different disciplines, spanning its business, leisure, and entertainment venues. TPi Photo: NEC Group www.necgroup.co.uk

The NEC Group has recently announced that four of its latest employees have complete their Live Event Rigging Apprenticeship. Sam Carr, Tyler Smyth, Luca Monaco and Connor Millington have had the opportunity to work across a range of live events at Arena Birmingham, Resorts World Arena and the NEC during a three-year apprenticeships. Completed under the eagle eye of expert assessors from The JGA Group, the end point assessment is the first of its kind. Created by both the NEC

106

VL800 SERIES BRING ON THE SHOW Vari-Lite quality. Every event.

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D&B AUDIOTECHNIK A-SERIES TPi chats to d&b audiotechnik’s Lorenz Betz about the development of the manufacturers latest loudspeaker offering – the A-Series augmented array.

What were the initial goals during the creation of the A-Series? In terms of flexibility, size, budget and output – whether for mobile or installation markets – existing solutions don’t meet system requirements in the most efficient way. As we looked at point sources and line arrays, we saw an opportunity for a new concept, one that could unite certain benefits of each - an idea that would realize the best possible solution for the user. With regards to coverage and SPL for midsize applications, we focused on the need for a highly scalable system, with an optimum size/ performance ratio. All this set the scene for the development of the A-Series and the augmented array.

which provide an economical acoustic optimization solution for users in addition to the more extensive ArrayProcessing tool, which can be applied to all d&b line arrays including A-Series. The ArrayProcessing algorithms receive the optimisation filters from the d&b ArrayCalc simulation software, which requires user input to model the configuration of the system relative to the audience listening planes. The software generates optimisation filters (IIR and FIR) for each cabinet, depending on the mechanical configuration (splay angles), thermal conditions, and the desired SPL distribution over the listening planes. What are the highlights of the internal loudspeaker configuration? A key feature of the loudspeaker configuration is the waveguide design, which enables variable splay angles in the horizontal or vertical direction depending on how the cabinets are deployed. Two 10-inch loudspeakers in a bipole arrangement maintain constant directivity down to 550 Hz (AL60) and 370 Hz (AL90) and deliver overall improvement in pattern control. During the development process different waveguide designs were evaluated and optimized via FEM simulation and measurement, in order to fulfill the requirements in directivity, efficiency, nonlinear behavior, and sonic characteristics. The bass reflex ports employ optimised geometry to reduce flow noise. The vents are located in the corners of the cabinet

What are the key design elements and how do they benefit end-users? The cabinet design, together with a new rigging concept allows the user to combine up to four boxes either as a vertical or horizontal array. The A-Series also adheres to the d&b obsession with directivity control to create a compact system with excellent acoustic controllability. Such results are achieved thanks to a bass reflex design using two 10-inch loudspeakers in a bipole arrangement, and a 1.4-inch HF driver mounted to a central waveguide that delivers a coherent wavefront within an array. A-Series also benefits from Midrange Directivity Control (MDC) setups, 108

D&B AUDIOTECHNIK A-SERIES

d&b audiotechnik’s Wolfgang Shulz d&b Product Manager and Lorenz Betz d&b R&D Acoustics.

in order to save space; d&b produces these vents using plastic injection molding because the design and limited amount of space make the shape of the part very irregular – they also reduce the overall weight. Another challenge was designing a rigging system that can fly an array in two different orientations. The rear link uses a telescopic structure to overcome the large distance between two cabinets at the minimal splay angle position. For front rigging we wanted to avoid overhanging parts, so we made a hook design for the front link. The hook on the front link allows the array to be built up easily either in vertical or horizontal mode.

corresponds to the two cabinets positioned at either end of an array. Using the link option to connect two loudspeakers with the same setup is also very economical insofar as saving amplifier channels. The midrange lobe is compensated by adjusting the amplitude and phase relationship of the inner and outer boxes in the array. The mid-frequency directivity is adjusted to match the high frequency directivity of the array, which provides a significant improvement in tonal balance over the listening area. How important is feedback to the development of the product? Collecting early feedback from our test users is extremely important for the development process. We do a lot of simulation testing, measuring in our laboratories, and listening under different setups. This is crucial, not just from an acoustical point of view, but also for handling issues and ease of use. It’s a process of iterations and reviewing over many months to realize the highest potential of any d&b product. A-Series had already benefitted greatly from user feedback during the prototype phase before collaborating with end users and also our colleagues from the d&b Education and Application Support department.

What target markets will the A-Series cater for? When we consider the feature set and acoustic potential, the A-Series can cater for a wide range of markets. One of its main advantages will be in covering audience areas with steeply raked seating, like the kind you see in arenas and smaller stadiums. Vertically deployed, A-Series can provide even coverage over a large angle up to 150° with just four cabinets. The option to use two variants, with 60 and 90° in either orientation, is a much more cost-effective solution compared to conventional line array setups because it reduces the number of loudspeakers and amplifier channels. Deployed horizontally, the system’s wide coverage can be useful in fixed installations, in houses of worship, multipurpose venues, live clubs or midsized outdoor stages - where the audience area is often wider than it is deep. The flexibility of the system enables a broad range of setups, either as a main top, or as a side-/out-/front-/nearfill system. You can also deploy a single cabinet to effectively cover a rather small zone, avoiding any reflections.

Where are we likely to see the A-Series in the coming months? A-Series was launched in June at InfoComm, Orlando and straight away it earned a huge amount of interest and some very positive comments. As it turned out, almost everybody instantly understood the concept of the augmented array and appreciated our efforts in bringing the idea to life. So, we have lots of projects in the planning phase right now – from midsized sports venues to theaters, houses of worship and clubs to cruise ships and congress centers. The A-Series is also appealing to rental houses of all sizes; we’ve received a lot of interest from corporate and touring companies. During the summer, we will be offering some demonstrations and listening sessions, and when shipment starts at the beginning of October, we will be seeing augmented arrays accomplishing all sorts. TPi Photos: d&b audiotechnik www.dbaudio.com

What options do Midrange Directivity Control setups offer end users? Midrange Directivity Control (MDC) is a new feature that effectively compensates for midrange lobing caused by the size and shape of the array. For the user it’s very easy to operate as you simply choose from two different amplifier setups according to the loudspeaker’s position within an array. The ‘In’ setup is for the inner cabinets, while the ‘Out’ setup 110

COMPACT TOURING TAKES OFF

C1500 + TABLET + DM32 MIXRACK

Touchscreens + IP8 + DM32 MIXRACK

Travel Light. Mix Hard. When you need the ultimate in efficiency for fly dates and gigs that demand an ultracompact solution, a dLive Wings system is just the ticket. Choose a MixRack, pick your interface and I/O options, and dLive serves up its superior mix power whether you mix the show from a C1500 surface, a laptop, a tablet, our handy IP remote controllers, or whichever combination works best for you. Prepare to board at: www.allen-heath.com/wings

ALLEN&HEATH

INTERVIEW

TOURING MINICAMS’ PHIL WOODHEAD With lipstick cameras increasingly being used by touring productions to achieve intimate, close-up shots, TMC’s Phil Woodhead tells TPi why the minicam is here to stay.

Run by touring veteran Phil Woodhead, Touring MiniCams (TMC) has made a name for itself supplying a range of lipstick cameras to touring productions. Having cut his teeth in the early ’90s by producing camera packages for extreme sports, including climbing and kayaking, Woodhead has worked closely with mini cameras for over 25 years. Since Woodhead started directing cameras for touring productions in the early 2000s, he has created mini camera packages for the likes of Kings of Leon, The Stone Roses and Jack Johnson. These camera packages were always supplied by the main video vendor; Woodhead would then adapt the cameras by adding different lenses and clamps. In 2018, Woodhead supplied a microphone camera for Liam Gallagher’s As You Were tour and was so impressed with the strength and quality of the

Marshall CV225 lipstick camera, he saw the opportunity for an independent company to supply and rent lipstick cameras at competitive rates – and so TMC was born. “As a video director on tour, I found it difficult to rent mini cams that were actually mini,” Woodhead said, reflecting on why he started the company. “Even though technology is making things smaller, mini cameras seemed to be getting larger and more complex.” Since he started the company in March, TMC has supplied lipstick cameras for Liam Gallagher, Nile Rodgers & CHIC, George Ezra and Mariah Carey. For Liam Gallagher’s tour, the company had six lipstick cameras on the stage, together with an RCP, which controlled the engineering settings for up to seven cameras. “There were a few unusual camera positions, 112

I I I

PHIL WOODHEAD

Touring MiniCams’ Phil Woodhead.

including the visceral microphone shot,” said Woodhead. “It was just inches away from his face, and Liam sometimes gave the camera a big clout, but it just kept on working. There was a main camera in the pit on a track and dolly with a Cartoni Dutch head,” Woodhead continued. “On top of this camera was a satellite lipstick camera with a 9mm-22mm lens. There was no extra weight for the cameraman and as it was on the same central axis as the main lens, we could cut between a wide angle shot and a close-up from the same camera position and never get a bum cut.” He also had a camera on the lead guitar amp – “the guitarist was a little nervous at first, but once he saw how small it was, he was fine.” It was during his climbing adventures that Woodhead began to experiment with lipstick cameras. Keen to get close-up shots, he created a handheld lipstick camera that enabled him to get within inches of a climber on the rock. “I used to either climb up or abseil down with the lipstick camera housed in a little holster on my waist, and we recorded on mini DV tapes,” he recalled. “That was a long time ago!” Woodhead has now adapted that idea into one that can be used by a camera operator on stage. “It gives some amazing shots, especially if the camera operator and drummer have a good relationship,” he commented.

“It creates shots that almost feel like you are inside the drum kit – it’s brilliant for ‘on the beat’ moves. Woodhead loves the accessories you can get for these cameras. “When it comes to lenses, you are spoilt for choice,” he said. “You can get a lens for every occasion – fish eye, zoom, even handmade prime lenses.” For a new company, it’s been a busy few months for TMC. “We’ve been busy sourcing cameras, looms, clamps, lenses and cases, but it has been a cool journey to start with and, with interest in these cameras increasing, I think I’d better start buying a few more,” smiled Woodhead. As with all new companies, things don’t always go according to plan, but Woodhead is appreciative of the support he’s received from his supplier, MarCam Europe. “Spencer and Alex at MarCam have helped and supported TMC, which we do appreciate,” he commented. “TMC has a few new ideas, which we are going to implement over the next few months to make our systems even more efficient for touring. We will see you in catering sometime soon, I hope.” TPi Photos: Touring MiniCams www.touringminicams.com 114

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PSA: THE BIGGER PICTURE

PSA’S SUMMER ROUND-UP Andy reflects on the summer season...

You’ll probably know that the PSA is overseen by a council, elected by members to ensure it works for the benefit of members. The Council meets regularly but, over the summer months, it’s impossible to get everyone together because people are just too busy. That said, not everyone who influences our industry actually works in it and they’re the people we deal with; meetings happen, decisions are made, plans are hatched opinions sought. While writing a little end of summer update for Council members, it occurred that it might be a good idea to share some of its content more widely.

because a healthier live music industry leads to more work for our members. Two key issues discussed at the summer meeting were media reporting of sexual assault statistics from music festivals. Discussion about whether they were actually accurate or not swiftly closed down when it was suggested that the real need was for the music industry to unite behind a message that any event, from the smallest venue to the biggest festival, should be free from sexual harassment. A simple message really, to be disseminated across all available platforms, we await the wording. Another regular agenda item recently has been business rates, both for music venues and festival sites on agricultural land. The former have no reduced rates enjoyed by pubs and bars, the latter do have exemption from business rates until local authorities decide to charge because they land has been used for a rateable purpose. Confusion can then arise when a bill appears for the use of the whole farm for a whole year, not a common occurrence but something to keep an eye on.

THE SAFETY SESSIONS Twice a year, associations and key employers in the entertainment industry dispatch representatives to meet with the HSE under the guise of the Joint Advisory committee fro Entertainment (JACE). HSE updates included and increase in the hourly rate for Fee For Intervention (where HSE deals with a material breach of legislation) to £154 per hour. One key element of HSE’s work plan across all sectors is workplace stress and mental health. With initiatives being developed across the whole entertainment sector, as well as the business events arena, it was timely to hear about the recently-convened UK National Arts Wellbeing Collective (UKNAWC) which had started to gather together news of initiatives as well as provide a portal for sharing of good practice. What is of interest though, is the absence of any regulation or legislation relating to workplace stress. If, say, their work plan was to focus on falls from height, a regime of inspection and enforcement built around the Work at Height Regulations would be a clear strategy. All health and safety legislation is a framework around which safe workplaces are structured, but when it comes to stress, there’s nothing specific and the regulator is left looking at employers and industry bodies to come up with something. Another opportunity to share was taken by representatives from the Royal Opera House, who gave a presentation from their perspective of their unsuccessful appeal against damages awarded to a musician who had suffered acoustic shock during a rehearsal. We’ve covered more detail of the claim and condition previously; the presentation and subsequent discussion found no conclusive pathway to avoiding future action and suggested that HSE’s own guidance would need revisiting, bearing in mind that legislation doesn’t mention the condition that led to the original claim.

SKILLS AND EDUCATION Another of UK Music’s core activities is to oversee and develop skills and education across their sector. It was they that pointed out the opportunity that led to the development of the Live Event Technician Apprenticeship; they’ve also received funding to develop further music industry apprenticeships, including musical instrument technicians. Originally thought of as a music retail apprenticeship, we ensured it reached into the backline technician arenas as a possible route into the live market. We’re also working with them to develop job descriptions for roles in our sector, these will feed in to a career choice web site that is designed to broaden the appeal of the music industry in general. We’ll be asking for help soon! Aside from Music, the Event Management Apprenticeship Programme was put together to map event management roles against potential apprenticeships at several levels; we attended a workshop to give input into the development of event management apprenticeships, ensuring consideration of effective links to production as well as inputting on legal requirements for organisers in terms of workplace safety. TAKING CARE OF EACH OTHER It’s been great to see the growth of Music Support’s safe areas, backstage at festivals. While they’ve been out in the fields, we’ve been talking about how we work together to encourage more of our self employed members to become Mental Health First Aiders. Let’s just say a plan has been hatched and, if you’re interested, please get in touch. At both PLASA Leeds and London, time has been dedicated to panel-

TAKING CARE OF (LIVE MUSIC) BUSINESS UK Music remains a potent voice for all areas of the music industry, including live. As a core element of the live music sector, we’re there to represent those members that serve the live music industry, simply 116

PSA: THE BIGGER PICTURE

led discussions on mental wellbeing. Each discussion has reported on progress. This year’s panel at PLASA London will be no different, as several associations (including the PSA) have committed to funding research specifically into the wellbeing of backstage workers. THE B WORDS Boris and Brexit, never out of the headlines yet as clear as mud, wading though political posturing to find any semblance of sense from which to glean a crumb of advice is virtually impossible. The best we have been able to do is, once again, help with figures for no deal impact planning as well as circulating links to a survey that we hope many of you had time to complete inside the very short window of opportunity. LOOKING TO THE FUTURE Of course, while our members are busy and the inbox shrinks to a more tolerable level, there’s the opportunity to start planning ahead. To that end, we’re ready to push the big green button on our 2nd annual survey which, this year, focuses on the workforce rather than company statistics. Survey links will land in your inboxes later in September. Last year’s survey got a great response but we need to keep up the good work to ensure we are able to plot trends and act accordingly. OH, MY LEGS! Sticking with welfare and in what is rapidly becoming a tradition, several intrepid souls will be travelling to PLASA London by bike, a bunch riding 100 miles from Wiltshire and two slightly less sensible people, namely PSA GM Andy Lenthall and TPi Editor Stew Hume riding 200+ miles from TPi HQ in Stockport. The whole point is to raise funds for Stagehand, the industry welfare fund started by PSA members 20 years ago, and Backup. We do hope you had a great summer with opportunity to have a holiday, or at least a day off, or a good night’s kip, or maybe just a sit down. TPi www.psa.org.uk

The Showman’s Show 16-17 October 2019 Newbury Showground

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INDUSTRY APPOINTMENTS

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INDUSTRY APPOINTMENTS

A.C. Special Projects’ Business Development Manager, Muraly Kuhan; QSC’s Vice President ,TJ Adams; Ayrton confirms menzi ebz of Horgen as Swiss distributor; Chauvet Professional’s Ritchie Reed & Shaun Robertshaw; Elation Professional Pro’s Eric Loader & ULA’s Cuono Biviano; Audiologic reveal the recruitment of Iain Cameron.

A.C. Special Projects expands its team with the appointment Muraly Kuhan in the role of Business Development Manager. Muraly will work closely with AC-SP’s project managers and architectural lighting brand partners - including Traxon/e:cue, CLS, Acclaim and Chroma-Q - to develop and implement new business. AED Display enlarges its already impressive stock of ROE Visual LED products with another robust investment. Investing in a series of new products released by ROE Visual will ensure AED’s rental fleet is completely up to date to respond to market developments. Ambersphere Solutions announces that Rob Beamer has joined the company as Key Account Manager. Based in Liverpool, Rob will be representing the Ambersphere portfolio in the North of England. Audiologic revealed the recruitment of Iain Cameron to the role of Business Manager with specific responsibility for Scotland and the island of Ireland. Based in Glasgow, Iain will work to expand the company’s reach in what is a fertile and rapidly growing marketplace for the Essex-based distributor. Ayrton confirms menzi ebz of Horgen, Switzerland as the latest addition to its international distributor network. From 15 September, menzi ebz will exclusively distribute and support the full Ayrton range of LED lighting fixtures across all three language areas of Switzerland and the Principality of Liechtenstein. Until the end of 2019, existing Ayrton customers are welcome to contact the current distributor, cast Switzerland AG in Villeneuve. BlackTrax unveils Purple Vector India Limited as the company’s first dealer in the India region. Launching in September at InfoComm in Mumbai, Sirvinder ‘Lucky’ Singh, owner of Purple Vector India Private Limited, explained his willingness to introduce BlackTrax to a brand-new market.

ChamSys opens a spacious facility on Brooklands Courtyard. The building epitomises a commitment on the part of ChamSys to build on its alreadystrong tradition of providing unparalleled quality products and customer service. To keep pace with the growing demand for its products in the UK, Chauvet Professional expands its team by appointing Shaun Robertshaw and Ritchie Reed as Business Development Managers. The two highly regarded industry professionals will be responsible for the Chauvet Professional, Chauvet DJ and ChamSys lines in the Midlands and South markets. DBpixelhouse opens its customer innovation centre, PixelLab in West London. The home of all things innovative in the world of experiential marketing, PixelLab features the latest interactive digital experiences and jaw-dropping tech. Dante Latteo has been appointed as the new CEO of D.T.S. Illuminazione in the pursuit of the company business continuous growth. The new management will continue the company development process started a year ago, giving new impetus to the products innovation and brand repositioning in the world market, as well as consolidating the domestic achievements. Elation Professional welcomes ULA Group as the new exclusive distributor for Elation Professional products in Australia and New Zealand. Established in 1991, ULA Group provides leading entertainment, architectural and LED digital lighting solutions to an extensive portfolio of clients across the region. Flightcase Warehouse continues its growth with the acquisition of London-based case manufacturer ABS Cases. The acquisition will see all 118

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INDUSTRY APPOINTMENTS

Powersoft names Preeti Trading Corporation (PTC) its distributor for the region of South West India; Prolyte Group opens a new office in Guangzhou, China.

manufacturing being transferred to their Head Office site in Tamworth, Staffs. The MJR Group confirms its acquisition by TEG, Asia Pacific’s leading ticketing, live entertainment and technology business. Promoting and

operating more than 2,000 shows a year, The MJR Group has toured acts including 50 Cent, Hans Zimmer, UB40 and Culture Club. Michael Craig Enoch becomes Vice President of International Business Development at MODE AUDIO. In this role, Enoch will be responsible for increasing global sales efforts with a focus on building distributor and dealer networks worldwide Powersoft names Preeti Trading Corporation (PTC) its distributor for the region of South West India. The company currently supports all kinds of commercial projects in the region, large and small, with its core customer base primarily consisting of small and medium-sized enterprises that sell and install audio equipment for use in commercial, governmental, corporate and public buildings. Building on the significant presence throughout Europe and the success of the business in Asia, Prolyte Group expands globally with the opening of a new office in Guangzhou, China. The new premises provide capacity for manufacturing, warehouse, sales, and customer services across China next to the existing sales and support from Prolyte Malaysia office – PAP (Prolyte Asia Pacific). The establishment of Prolyte China accelerates Chinese presence and the access to the region with strong economic growth and a large territory. It will be an invaluable step for Prolyte to broaden the Chinese market. QSC confirms the promotion of TJ Adams to Vice President, Systems Product Strategy and Development. In this new role, Adams will continue to oversee strategy development and execution of product development for its Systems portfolio, including the Q-SYS Ecosystem. RCF, which this year celebrates its 70th anniversary, announces the appointment of Sirius Sound & Lighting Systems as its new exclusive distributor for Greece. As one of the most significant first steps in her new role as Triple E Deputy Director, Lucy Edelstein has been instrumental in the company’s recent international dealer network expansion with the appointment of Tokyo Velludo Co. as Japanese distributor. TSL Lighting publicises that Blinding Light will now operate under the TSL Lighting branding, following its acquisition of the event lighting specialist in January 2018. The move marks a milestone in the expansion of TSL and reflects its forward-thinking approach under the directorship of Sam Tamplin, Loz Wilcox and Dom Sheerman. Verity Studios unveils that Head of Sales Fabrice Couadou is the latest addition to the indoor drone systems growing senior management team. Verity founder and CEO Raffaello D’Andrea looks forward to seeing the impact Couadou will have on the sales team as well as the wider organisation. TPi www.tpimagazine.com/industry-jobs/

MILLENNIUM STUDIOS

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10k Used Gear 26 Absen 67 Adam Hall Group 13 ADJ 65 87 Advanced Power & Generators AF Live 53 111 Allen & Heath Aura Audio 117 Ayrton 75 Beat The Street 27 BPM SFX 45 Britannia Row Productions 33 ChainMaster Buhnentechnik 5 Chauvet Professional 61 Claypaky 79 CLF Lighting 82 2 CODA Audio Core Pro Audio 41 Danley 73 Devill Productions 53 DiGiCo 35 43 Digital Projection Duratruss 121 Elation Lighting 7 FIX8Group 17 102, 103 Fly by Nite Follow-Me 43 Funktion-One 57 GIS 21 GLP 115 GLS Lighting 77 Green Hippo 15 IBC Harman Professional 109 HighLite International IPS 77 John Henryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 10 KB Event 97 Knight of Illumination Awards 11 LarMac LIVE 39 LDL 85 Le Maitre 87 Leisuretec Distribution 4 Light Initiative 115 101 Live Event Logistics Look Solutions 47 Madrix 53 McGuinness 99 Millennium Studios 120 Mission Control 33 Movecat 83 MTFX 29 Music & Lights 9 NAMM Show 119 Neuron Proaudio 74 Neutrik UK 69 NEXO 91 Pioneer Pro Audio 19 Powersoft BC 9 Pro Tapes and Specialities Prolyte Group 93 Protec 3 RC4 Wireless 31 RealMotion 81 Renkus Heinz 21 Riedel 6 Robe 49 ROE Visual 41 97 SAAN Trucking Showman Show 117 Touring MiniCams 113 TRUCKINGBY Brian Yeardley 105 TW AUDiO 63 TXRX 18 Vari-lite 107 Video Illusions 55

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BACK CHAT

MICHAEL WALKER Senior Sales Director, Harman Professional Solutions

CT has always been the pinnacle of AV staging and video rental solutions and I learnt a huge amount from the best people in the business and developed my career as a part of that great team for 14 years and became a board director of the company.

How has professional lighting developed? The biggest change has come from LED as a light source which Martin Professional has pioneered since the beginning and developed it into a superior alternative to the discharge lamps of old and managing to find the holy grail of LED quality, the MAC Encore, featuring a tungsten lamp emulation light engine to satisfy the most critical of applications. With the implementation of embedded P3 control Martin Professional is still out in front with innovation as our lights become video enabled to add unique creativity to the way lighting is used.

What Martin Professional projects stand out to you? Difficult question with so many to choose from but a recent one would be Carpe Diem which used Martins Creative Video products extensively and to incredible effect, Muse with Ollie Metcalfe designing and programming some of the most creative rock and roll shows I have ever seen and the Chemical Brothers with Paul Normandale pixel mapping MAC 101’s behind a transparent EC20 screen which was the first time that technique was used. Why did you pursue a career in the events industry? A lot of my earliest childhood memories relate to music. Playing guitar in a band was all I wanted to do growing up but I realised fairly quickly that making it a career was not in the plan for me. We played a few gigs, cut some tracks and had a lot of fun but working for nothing indefinitely was not something I wanted to do so I had to find more gainful employment.

How do Martin Professional develop its products? What we have done is focus R&D at its home base in Aarhus, Denmark with the same team that have been designing Martin lighting products for many years. We have also joined the product development team with the rest of Harman Pro’s other brands at our Shenzen facility in China where 320 people now work to bring product innovation to life.

What has been your ‘big break’ in the industry? My first job in the business was working for Creative Technology as their first ever business development manager which combined the commercial skills I had developed in other industries with my love of music and the entertainment industry - the next best thing to being in a band!

What is next for Martin Professional? Expect to see a lot of exciting new product revealed at LDI ready for shipping later this year and next, the new product roadmap is packed with lighting technology positioned in each of the main categories and demonstrates perfectly how the changes are delivering what we have planned and what the market wants. 122

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TPi September 2019 - #241

Articles inside

We Out Here

We Out Here

Manchester International Festival: Atmospheric Memory

51st State Festival

Main Square Festival

Main Square Festival

Bluedot

Bluedot

Bluedot

Boomtown Fair: 11th Chapter

Boomtown Fair: 11th Chapter

Boomtown: 11th Chapter

Boomtown Fair: 11th Chapter

Creamfields

Creamfields

Creamfields

Creamfields

Creamfields

Creamfields

P!NK: Beautiful Trauma World Tour

P!NK: Beautiful Trauma World Tour

P!NK: Beautiful Trauma World Tour

P!Nk: Beautiful Trauma World Tour

P!NK: Beautiful Trauma World Tour

PSCO Innovation House Party

ETC & High End Systems

Optocore Powers an Immersive French National Day Celebration

Yamaha Teams Up with the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra