China - Music China, the international trade fair for musical instruments and services (15-18 October 2003, Shanghai) will this year be joined by ProLight+Sound Shanghai. At the same time, the organizers have announced that the show will include a British Pavilion, organized in conjunction with the UK's Music Industries Association (MIA) and Trade Partners UK.
The second Music China event is already generating great interest from manufacturers and so far over 120 companies have been confirmed as exhibitors or have made serious expressions of interest, say the organizers. The exhibition will be joined by a new international exhibition in China for the professional audio and entertainment lighting industry, ProLight+Sound Shanghai. ProLight+Sound Shanghai will be positioned as a professional marketing platform for manufacturers of sound production, broadcasting and recording equipment, lighting, laser technology and special effects for the entertainment industry, stage, studio and event technology, and pro audio and lighting-related computer hardware and software. "Holding these two fairs together will have double impact, providing a unique exhibition platform for the MI and pro-sound and lighting industry," states Cordelia von Gymnich, vice-president at Messe Frankfurt GmbH.
(Lee Baldock)
UK - AV8 is a remarkable new venue situated adjacent to the mile-long runway at Kemble Airfield in Cirencester. Owner Ronan Harvey has just celebrated quite a month, having successfully negotiated for the classic Gnat jet, owned by Pink Floyd's Dave Gilmour, achieved a CAA licence, enabling him to operate as a commercial airfield, and successfully converted the former fire station into his new luxury bar/restaurant.
Harvey contacted an old interior design friend, Simon Radclyffe of Radclyffe Associates, to combine an Indonesian theme with an Airfix kit leitmotif - using the fabric and large ribs to soften the vibrancy of the wonderful terracotta, yellow and dark blues, hand-painted by local artist/sculptress Joanne Walker.
Manic Street Preachers' LD, Ollie Metcalfe, provided clever theatrical dichroic trackspot lighting, controlled by Hans Beier's CAV (who also provided the Martin Audio PA). This is certainly one of the most unusual venues Beier has had to work in, needing to steel reinforce the aeriated concrete of the false walls to get a fixing for the Martin speakers, while concealing his dimmer rack high up and out of the way.
CAV (Contract Audio Visual) were recommended to the project by local hi-fi company, Acoustic Energy. The two eating areas form a single sound zone while the bar is in its own separate zone, the Denon multiplay CD sound source - switched by a Cloud CX242 two-zone mixer - feeding a Martin Audio sound rig. The company opted for four black Martin Audio EM26s in each of the two dining areas (one wall-mounted on special brackets in each co
UK - Live video exponent XL Video and large format projection specialist E//T//C UK worked together to create an exciting, fast-moving backdrop for the Live Arena at the 2003 Autosports Show at the NEC. They were working for event producers The PMi Partnership on this popular autosports show. Staged in the NEC's Hall 4, Autosports Live featured a breathtaking, action packed, auto stunts show highlighting the most technologically advanced racing machines in the world. Five hour-long shows a day were attended by approximately 22,500 visitors over four days.
With the arena in landscape format, and the audience placed along one of the long sides, the visual requirement was to create a dramatic 250ft wide backdrop that changed scenes and locations opposite the seating stands. Screens for XL's live video camera shoot also had to be located in optimum positions for public viewing.
PMi suggested large format projection as the most cost effective route to provide a sufficiently bright background of that much surface area that would 'surround' XL's three 20 x 15 IMAG video screens. PMi then approached E//T//C UK with this projection concept.
E//T//C UK supplied three PIGI 6 projectors with single scrollers, rigged on a roof truss, for the project. They worked with PMi to create the artwork for the eye-catching backgrounds, including snow scenes, waves, mountains, fireworks, historical montages, etc. The PIGI's were controlled by a PC running PIGI 6 software, operated and overseen by Andy Joyce. A different backdrop scene was used for each section of the show presented by
New Zealand - At the end of 2002, the eagerly anticipated second instalment of The Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Two Towers, premiered in New Zealand, where the majority of the filming took place. XTA played its own part when Wellington-based Western Audio Engineering provided the sound along the red carpet at Courtenay Place in central Wellington, with an XTA SiDD at the heart of the system.
By day Courtenay Place is normally one of Wellington's busiest streets, and premier day saw over 15,000 Wellingtonians greeting the stars at this prestigious occasion. Western Audio is one of New Zealand's leading sound providers and, under the direction of Andy Craig, they provided both the people and technologies to stage this well-executed event, with two main Electro-Voice X-Array systems controlled by XTA DP226 processors, and the linking distributed system time-aligned with an additional DP226 - all under the hand of XTA's Audiocore PC control system. "The real star turn came from SiDD", explains Andy Craig, senior systems engineer on the day. "Inputs to the system were very simple: two hand-held radio microphones along with CD and video playback. The two radio microphones each had their own unique challenges and I was very keen to use the SiDD, supplied by Spherical (XTA's New Zealand distributor), to deal with these issues.
"The MC for the occasion was a television personality who was conducting interviews with a wide range of people. He is a former rock singer and has very good vocal projection. Not everyone he interviewed had the same vocal pro
UK - Popstars - The Rivals, the hit ITV1 show presented by Davina McCall and the latest musical success story following Pop Idol, appeared on the UK's TV screens for 10 weeks at the end of 2002. The show provided an exciting challenge for television lighting specialist RML, working with lighting designer Mike Sutcliffe, or 'Sooty', as he is otherwise known in the industry.
Sutcliffe's choice of lighting was largely determined by the set that was designed by Marcus Blee. His original thoughts were to use rope lighting in the actual set to provide lines of light, however Sutcliffe realized this to be a great opportunity to use a large number of Pulsar ChromaBanks - 65 in total. To complement the ChromaBanks, 36 ChromaPanels (which were also rope lights in the original plans) were built into the ceiling and catwalk area of the stage. Sutcliffe says these were "perfect for using under the perspex flooring and illuminating the catwalk area of the stage, which also happened to be the performance area - an added bonus!"
Sutcliffe comments on his choice of LED lighting: "Although the mixing can be 'steppy' and there is no dimmer, I favoured the LED lighting due to its immediate response and brightness - especially in the ChromaBanks. The majority of numbers sung by the contestants were ballads, thus it was necessary to create a number of moody looks, which proves to be a challenge when you need to keep these looking different. However this is when the ChromaBanks came into their own as they can create very striking looks."
Moving light operator Ross
UK - White Light has been appointed a UK dealer for Selecon, the New Zealand-based manufacturer of stage and architectural lighting equipment. The full range of Selecon's stage lighting products - including Pacific, Acclaim and Compact - are now available from White Light Sales. Enliten, the White Light Group's architectural lighting specialist, becomes a UK distributor for Selecon's Ardiis range of architectural lighting products.
White Light has been involved with Selecon's equipment for some years, supplying it when requested by lighting designers. Most notably, White Light supplied the first Pacific 80V system in the UK to David Hersey for a projected window effect in My Fair Lady, currently playing at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane.
The addition of Selecon to White Light Sales' stock means that White Light can now offer customers lanterns from all of the major lighting manufacturers, including Selecon, ETC, Strand Lighting and Robert Juliat, for whom White Light is the exclusive UK distributor. "Having access to the equipment from all of these manufacturers means that we can offer customers the widest possible choice, backed up with the impartial opinions we have always prided ourselves on," comments White Light sales director Peter Threadgold. "We have admired Selecon and their products for some time, and are glad that we have now been able to add them to the mix."
(Ruth Rossington)
UK - Leading sound, lighting and AV designer and installer Metropolis AV and FX has completed the design, supply and install of an entire lighting, sound and AV system at the new Sports Café in Manchester.
The £1.2 million project sees the conversion of a utilitarian 1960's office block in Quay Street, central Manchester, into an 1600-capacity sports-themed environment on two levels. Facilities include bar/dining areas with a large dancefloor, a mezzanine chill-out/games area with 16 pool tables, a Team Room used for private functions and, behind a laminated glass wall but clearly visible from the street, a basketball practice area - for those wanting a bit of physical exertion mixed with their energy drinks.
The Sports Café's technical infrastructure was designed by Metropolis's Simon Harris, working directly for Sports Café. The client specifically wanted one design and supply company to fulfil the complete technical brief. The five month fit-up was thus project-managed for Metropolis by Stuart Clowes. The interior designers/architects were Sutherland Smith, and shop fitting was by WFS.
Sound was the most galvanizing technical area. There was lot of space to cover and considerable control was needed to minimize sound spillage between audio zones. The issue of equipment control to prevent abuse once the operation was operational was also allowed for at the outset. The venue's main sound system features 10 HK 8.1 full range speakers and two 112 subs. Eight HK 12.1 enclosures are used for the dancefloor, plus two 115 subs. The pool tab
India - With bases in Hong Kong and India, Light Sound Image Ltd has developed a wide portfolio of high profile pan-Asia contracts. The company is the largest international AV consultancy group in India, which creates a hectic schedule for its audio-visual consultant Ian D Harris.
However, his life has been made easier with the discovery of the BSS 9088 Soundweb networked digital matrix system, which he used for the first time recently on installations for the ITC Sheraton Hotel Group in India. LSI won a competitive tender to provide an AV solution for two Irish pubs, situated within the Sheratons in Delhi and Kolkata (Calcutta). With Irish theming, these act essentially as fun pubs, but with a dancefloor and potent sound systems.
Ian Harris was asked to support LSI's Delhi-based Systems Integration Division and programme Soundweb for the two installations. "Although I had completed many projects using a similar device, I had never used Soundweb before," he admitted. "But it was so straightforward, and the programming was intuitive." By the time the plane touched down in Delhi he had already familiarized himself with the system architecture. "I opened up the programme at 3am, completed the design by 9am, and was onsite at 4pm ready to connect to the system. By 9pm we had a working system, fully equalized."
The design is based on a simple four-button panel with integral LEDs and a keyswitch located in the DJ booth. Compressor/limiting values have been set and also a leveller for the background music path within Soundweb. External fa
USA - The redesigned Shure Incorporated website made its online debut recently with a showing of smart new graphics and an enhanced architecture. Including full product information, endorsing artist pages with exclusive backstage info, detailed product specifications, and an intuitive, easy-to-use Wireless Frequency Reference Guide, the site is a useful tool for everyone from seasoned touring pros and contractors to young musicians just starting out.
Site visitors will note that Shure.com is now organized into three primary content 'channels' - Products, Knowledge and Artists. One of the most noticeable elements within the site is its highlight of content dedicated to education and knowledge-sharing. The Solution Database found in the Knowledge channel provides in-depth answers to virtually any Shure-related question, and encourages users to add to that database by asking any questions not already contained there. Questioners receive a personal e-mail response from a Shure applications engineer, and the new information is added to the 2800-plus topics already found in the Solution Database.
Wireless users will also be pleased with the Wireless Frequency Reference Guide. Representing a major step forward since previous versions, site visitors merely select a Shure RF product and US city, and the guide then responds by displaying content relevant to their search only. This allows retailers to find the right wireless products for their location, and helps touring artists and engineers quickly locate open channels as they move from city to city. Another innovation of
UK - Lively south coast nightspot TJ's in Eastbourne is the first UK venue to receive JBL's powerful, new, low-profile AE series installation speakers. Arbiter Pro Audio, JBL's UK distributor, supplied the speakers to installers Accord Audio, based in Horam, East Sussex, who fitted out the system as part of the club's latest technical upgrade.
The dancefloor in TJ's main room now features four JBL AM6212/95 bi-amped speakers, complete with high-powered ASB6128 subs. The AM6212 is the most powerful of three types of speakers in the AE range. A major feature, and one of the enclosure's many innovative points, is its very low profile - a slim and elegant physical shape and size which make it an ideal solution for fitting into small spaces unobtrusively.
The sizing has been made possible because the enclosures have rotatable waveguides, enabling them to be just as easily be mounted horizontally as vertically. The AM6212s are powerful - in fact, TJ's owner David Brown was initially sceptical that they would be up to the job, but once fired up, he had no qualms. Arbiter also supplied Accord with a dbx480 Drive Rack for system control parameters including EQ, crossovers and a selection of Powersoft amplifiers - including a D1502, a Digam 5000 and a Digam 7000. The entire club's amplification is now contained in a neat 3U of rack space.
The sound design was created by Arbiter's Dan Eades, who analyzed the room and then programmed and set up the system using Smaart software. TJ's manager Andy Malyon is delighted with the sonic results: "Lots of customers have comme
UK - ARRI celebrated the inauguration of its new 75,000sq.ft Highbridge facility recently, with a glittering party for 400 guests. Leading location lighting directors and DOPs - as well as directors from ARRI's parent company in Munich - arrived at the four acre site, situated alongside the Grand Union Canal at Uxbridge, where they were treated to a champagne reception and a festival of entertainment which went on well into the night.
Event manager Damian Clarkson had spent six months putting together a crack production team, which included lighting specialists Invisible Blue and caterers Taylor Made. The former were able to integrate moving lights, gobo projections and skytrackers with ARRI's generic tungsten and high-brightness HMI film and location luminaires. Invisible Blue project manager Richard Smart commented: "Amalgamating the two disciplines proved an interesting exercise. We used ARRI X-Lights to provide the blue wash over the building, three moving yoke scanners to provide the scans and a high-wattage 'Space Flower' to light up the night sky."
If this set the mood for the arriving guests, Invisible Blue also provided the pyrotechnics inside - which included a cascade of 'flutterfetti' and UV-reactive glitter bomb at the end of the keynote speeches. Prior to that guests had enjoyed a limitless supply of champagne and a special range of cocktails, including ARRI's own confection - 'ARRI Blue' - created in house livery Blue Curacao. Aerial artists performed overhead while onstage The Big Man (Greg Lawrence) & His Band provided the early evening
UK - A.C. Lighting's Northern Division has recently completed a project installation for The University of Leeds Institute for Sport and Exercise Sciences Department (ULISES). The department of sport and exercise sciences approached the company to develop a solution to rig and manually adjust the position of high speed motion tracking cameras in their Sports Biomechanics Laboratory.
The Infra Red cameras are used to assess the movement and performance of athletes under controlled laboratory conditions in both research and teaching. Activities routinely investigated include: rock climbing (the laboratory features an adjustable indoor climbing wall); running, and various throwing and kicking exercises, with a heavy duty net designed to catch missiles.
A moving camera grid, constructed from a series of 48mm aluminium tubes was assembled, featuring adjustable and fixed drop arms, Doughty barrel trolleys, and Manfrotto camera brackets. A significant benefit of this bespoke system is that floor space is maximized for experiments, whilst addressing the problem of being able to position cameras anywhere in the laboratory. Dr Messenger, Biomechanics Lecturer of ULISES commented: "The rig allows us a high degree of flexibility in camera placement without the encumbrance of bulky tripods. Once optimum camera positions have been set for a specific experiment they can be left in situ for longer, and increase efficiency of both the space and equipment usage."
(Ruth Rossington)
UK - Marquee Audio has assisted in the upgrade of Dust Bar Café on London's trendy Clerkenwell Road. The independent bar had been running as a ground-floor DJ bar on a 2am licence for the past five years - but recently decided to expand the operation onto the first floor. According to project director, Alan Burrows, the sound system upgrade coincided with a new interior design (by owner and co-director, Raymond Brown) and the launch of a new restaurant and cocktail list.
"Dust has developed a reputation on the back of breaking out new DJ talent, and so with the addition of a second floor, good sound reinforcement became a top priority," he said. He had been referred to Marquee by another satisfied client from a Shoreditch bar/restaurant, but the decision to use Marquee was only made after a competitive tender. "We found the company to have the necessary technical competence, a competitive pricing structure and the best understanding of our needs," he said. "Marquee faced the tricky challenge of balancing the sound levels across two floors and limiting the sound to the maximum dB requirements. But the new system sounds fantastic."
The limiting function was accomplished by a Formula Sound AVC2, with the music powered by Yamaha H3000/H7000 power amplifiers, routed via a Cloud Z4 four zone mixer and delivered by a combination of EV's EVID 6.2 loudspeakers (downstairs) and Martin Audio's Blackline F10/S15 system in the new area. Marquee also supplied a Formula Sound FSM 400 mixer. Atan Burrows is delighted with the result. "Ov
Denmark - Switchcraft Inc, the US manufacturer of connectors, audio and video patchbays and cable assemblies, has strengthened its international distributor base by appointing Professional Sound Systems to distribute its products in the Danish broadcast and professional audio markets.
Stephen Waldron, Switchcraft's director of international sales, said: "PSS is a very capable and well established distributor in the Danish market and we are very pleased to enter this partnership that will provide our audio and broadcast customers with improved product availability, service and support."
(Lee Baldock)
UK - North London recording and mixing complex Angel Studios, which specializes in classical recordings and film soundtrack work, has installed a Meyer Sound X-10 5.1 system into its newly-refurbished studio one.
Angel is the second London studio to install Meyer X-10s following the installation of a stereo system at Abbey Road's mastering room 7. Allen Stagg, recording engineer and former manager of Abbey Road Studios, was instrumental in introducing the Angel staff to the X-10. The sale was conducted through acoustic analysis expert Bob Hodas, a Meyer studio products dealer who is well-versed in X-10 technology. Meyer's UK distributor Autograph Sales handled the sale and also provided a SIM System II FFT Analyser for Hodas to install and tune the system.
Angel Studio's senior engineer Gary Thomas requested that Hodas help them to configure a 5.1 system for the new room. They selected a 5.1 music system consisting of five X-10 linear control room monitors for L/C/R and L/R rears, which would also be suitable for film music. The system also includes two X-800 studio subwoofers, an X-01 Crossover and six CP-10S tamper-resistant parametric equalizers. During the project, Hodas consulted with the studio designer, John Flynn of the Acoustic Design Group. "We covered subjects such as cabinet phase alignment for aiming, and air circulation for the soffits, since the amplifiers are built into the cabinets," he says. "We also discussed the centre of gravity of the cabinets since the X-10 weights about 85 kilos. John came up with a very clever mounting devi
UK - Lighting Technology Projects (LTP) were approached by the BBC Homefront programme (broadcast on 22 January 2003 on BBC2) to specify lighting equipment and provide solutions for the designs of the show's interior design expert - Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen.
A schematic design was created from basic concept sketches, and LTP operatives attended site during filming to install and program the lighting fixtures used to create the stunning visual effects Using products from Color Kinetics, Terry Reeves, Project Manager for the scheme specified a series of 'C75' fixtures for highlighting the walls and down lighting the 'DJ' area. A row of 'I-Cove' fittings were fixed behind a bulkhead above the seating area to provide a linear, even wash of colour changing light. The culmination of the scheme was to illuminate a commissioned piece of art, located behind the seating area, a 'C200' fitting was used to provide a defined concentration of colour designed to animate the piece of art.
To control the luminaries, LTP fitted a recessed synchronizer, which has eight soft touch buttons, each offering a different 'style' of lighting. These buttons can be easily re-assigned by the customer to achieve a infinite combination of lighting possibilities. Being a party room, the needs were for upbeat tempos and strong colours, changing seamlessly or strobing through various vibrant, primary and secondary colours, reverting to chill out states where soft pastels fading over periods of hours, transforming the room for that 'end of party' feeling.
(Lee Baldock)
UK - Lightpower, one of Germany's leading lighting distributors, has announced that it has cancelled its participation in this year's ProLight&Sound exhibition in Frankfurt (5-8 March). The reason given for the withdrawal is the bad timing of the show. Lighpower's statement says: "We regret this decision, however . . . when a trade show is planned concurrent with a national holiday and preparations for the Cebit trade show overlap, then we, as well as other exhibitors, come across some serious coordination problems. This simply means that over 40% of our clientele shall not show up because they will be tied up at the same time with their own service activities during the Cebit show projects and Carneval activities. More than 1000 event technicians will be working at the Cebit."
At a press conference at ProLight+Sound last year, Lightpower - a long-standing ProLight+Sound exhibitor - revealed that they had cancelled their involvement with the Showtech exhibition, which is staged biennially in Berlin, and would from then on be putting their support completely behind the Frankfurt exhibition. This, and the fact that the dates of the ProLight+Sound 2003 were already known at the time, make this latest announcement something of a surprise.
At the same time, Lightpower has said that it will be hosting its third series of open days at its Paderborn headquarters from 26-28 March.
(Lee Baldock)
USA - Mach Speakers and the Pro Audio Group of Pioneer Electronics (USA) Inc have formed a strategic alliance aimed at increasing brand awareness for both companies' products. The agreement joins together the Mach speaker brand with a leader in digital entertainment technology in a group sales and marketing effort that will give greater visibility to the Mach and Pioneer product lines while strengthening Martin's Total Club Supplier concept in the US market.
For Mach, the alliance allows the company to co-market Pioneer products alongside its own range of speakers, adding another established, professional brand to the Total Club Supplier, one-stop shop concept. The Total Club Supplier concept enables clients to procure Mach audio, Martin lighting, and Jem smoke in one convenient package. Mach will now be able to add a vast line of Pioneer digital entertainment products to its audio, lighting and smoke solutions.
The alliance gives Pioneer the ability to offer the Total Club Supplier concept as well. Pioneer will also benefit through the use of Mach speakers at exhibitions, regional shows and other events.David Sullivan, Mach segment manager in the US, stated: "We strongly support this exciting and positive move to form a strategic partnership with Pioneer in the US. It has great potential not only for us, but for our customers to truly benefit from our one-stop shop Total Club Supplier concept."
(Lee Baldock)
USA - The Super Bowl is not just the Big Game with a Big Halftime. It spawns hundreds of corporate parties needing lights, sound and a stage full of entertainers before, during and after the Jan. 26 show in San Diego. Prior to the game, Delicate Productions of Camarillo, Calif., is taking care of the VIP Tailgate Party. Goo Goo Dolls, Bonnie Raitt and various rap artists will take the stage under 12 Studio Spot 575s and 12 Studio Beam automated luminaires, with 12 bars of PARS. LD Gus Conger is controlling the show with a Hog 1000.
California's San Diego Stage & Lighting say they have "everything we own" involved with the Superbowl including the NFL Experience. SDSL's Renie Colwell says, "The NFL Experience is almost entirely High End Systems (equipment) and is also the largest contract that was awarded." A whole range of HES fixtures and consoles have moved to the site for all the the other soirees surrounding the Bowl, including the hospitality suites and villages for the tons of media, corporate sponsors and VIPs.
CW Productions of Los Angeles says their warehouse is cleared out for all the big parties. In particular, x.Spot and Studio Beam luminaires will outshine the stars at an 'Access Hollywood' media/celebrity bash. Cyberlight, Studio Beam, Dataflash, and Hogs of various sizes are also being recruited into action for other gatherings.
Halftime festivities feature No Doubt and Shania Twain, and LSD/Fourth Phase is providing equipment. In charge from the company is Robert Roth out of the Atlanta office, who says that because it won't b
UK - A.C. Lighting Ltd has reported it has sustained its 6% growth as of its interim figures of May 2002. A.C. Lighting's considerable investment in facilities, systems, and infrastructure has resulted in a more streamlined organisation, improved customer experience, and international business development. The recently formed A.C. Limited (Canada) Ltd is clearly indicative of plans to gain a more international presence and market share.
Managing Director and co-founder of A.C. Lighting, David Leggett, commented, "2002 was a tough year in the entertainment technology industry. Despite these troubled times, our company's growth is proof of our staff's diligence coupled with the loyalty and support received from manufacturers and customers alike. It is this combination which has led to our strengthened position."
Based 30 miles to the west of London, UK, A.C. Lighting was incorporated in April 1982 by its founders David Leggett and Richard Floyd. The company is now one of the largest European distributors of professional lighting and associated equipment to the entertainment industry and supplies customers located throughout the World. The corporate headquarters, housing UK and International sales, demonstration, manufacturing, repair and substantial warehouse operation are located in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. In addition a Northern Region sales office with additional demonstration and warehouse facilities is located in Leeds, West Yorkshire.
(Lee Baldock)
UK - Screenco have enjoyed a whirlwind winter, providing image magnification for three major televised awards presentations, as part of a workload that also embraced the Royal Variety Performance at the Hammersmith Apollo and the BBC televised final of Great Britons.
The most imaginative display was at BBC Television Centre, where for the third year running Screenco were equal to Christopher George's design for the BBC Sports Personality of the Year, sending video constantly streaming around the studio in a liquid pelmet. Screenco provided three screens in widescreen format to take the long camera shots, hiring in Barco i8 and i10 high-brightness modules from sister company Creative Technology, which they configured respectively into a single 7.2m x 4m, and two 4.9m x 2.7m walls.
Screenco then supplied four long 1.2m deep panel strips - two in 13.8m lengths, one at 9.7m and the fourth measuring 4.9m - for the studio perimeter. These were alternately broadcasting strips of video footage, generic graphics and liquid effects.
But it was at London's Docklands Arena that Screenco broke the LED record - fittingly at the Smash Hits Poll Winners Party. Contracted by production company Nine Yards, Screenco's vast 156-module, 25mm screen (pictured) measured 21.13m wide by 7.32m high, making it the biggest indoor LED high-brightness display ever seen in Europe. It provided an innovative solution for Done and Dusted, who were responsible for the production and design.
With all the risers set behind the screen, a large 8.1m x 4.88m door, positioned in the centre, raised a
Italy - Robe Show Lighting - the Czech moving light manufacturer - continues to establish new subsidiaries around the globe, with the formation of Robe Italia srl. This is a joint venture between Robe Show Lighting and SR Consulting, Robe's Italian distributor.
Robe Italia is headed by the charismatic Simone Rodella and is based in Castel Goffredo - alongside the vast majority of Italy's prolific Italian moving light manufacturers. The move follows the recent launch of Robe America, and last year, the appointments of key distributors including LMP in Germany and Coe-tech in the UK. Robe's Josef Valchar told us: "Robe Italia was the best choice for moving the Robe brand forward in the Italian market." He feels that customers like to see the factory behind a product - especially in Italy - with its high concentration of home-grown moving lighting manufacturers.
"Robe Italia gives us all the advantages of working in close collaboration with an experienced and knowledgeable distributor. We can be closely involved with their decision making, while they have all the benefits of Robe's worldwide marketing resources," continues Valchar. Until last year, Robe Show Lighting was well known as an OEM manufacturer and a supplier of many of Europe's leading moving light brands. Since deciding to launch a direct sales operation in spring 2002, Robe has been expanding rapidly on all fronts, and is establishing a worldwide dealer and distribution network.
(Ruth Rossington)
UK - Fifteen months in the job, and already the Fairfield Hall's new technical co-ordinator Ian Locke is beginning to make his presence felt; not least in the realms of safety. "Before I took the appointment I could already see this was a very, very busy venue; sometimes three performances a day, so I knew safe working practices would be paramount."
Consequently there have been "huge changes", not least the recent installation of a new rigging grid above the famous Fairfield stage. "The existing grid was well past its sell-by date, so in September of 2001 I visited PLASA to see what was available. At the time I didn't even know Total Fabrications' T2 system existed (hardly surprising as it was barely a year since launch) so when I stopped by their stand I was more than impressed with the system."
Being a prudent shopper, Locke looked around all the exhibitors, "but I couldn't see anything that was actually designed to be climbed on. The grid height at Fairfield trims at 10 metres, and there's a consistent need to access lighting and other equipment up there. With a health and safety regime in place, I knew with the T2 system that, when I sent people up there, they would be operating safely and comfortably."
Locke has invested heavily in the T2 system: 44 metres of trussing in a variety of lengths for maximum grid configurability. He also purchased a quantity of accessories. "We've got pick-up and hanging points - especially useful for visiting pop groups who often want to rig a mid truss - or any production that want
USA - If you've spent the last two years quietly dismissing the High End/WWG Catalyst as 'just a video projector with a mirror on the front', further proof that you were wrong, or had at least missed the point, came at New York's Grand Central Station over the 2002 Christmas period.
There, two Catalysts ran a series of specially-created animations, replacing the laser system which has formed the Christmas lightshow for the last few years. Creative Time, the New York arts association responsible for, amongst many other projects, the Tribute in Light (see L&SI May 2002), were approached by Grand Central Station to create a new entertainment for New York's most famous rail terminal. They approached New York AV specialists ScharffWeisberg for ideas. "We've worked with them in the past on outdoor projects, art projects - the fun projects," explains Peter Scharff. "In this case, our immediate thought was Catalyst."
With just six weeks until the show's start date, Creative Time then sent out requests for ideas; about 50 artists responded, and six were then asked to produce detailed concepts. "At this point, we brought them into our shop to show them the Catalyst - I don't think anyone really understands it until they see it. The artists - Builders Association, C404, Mumbleboy, Melanie Crean & Jordan Parnass, KDLAB and Leo Villareal - then created rough drafts of their work before returning to ScharffWeisberg to try it out. "They had an hour on a Friday, then an hour on a Monday, so they were all working over the weekend," Scharff recal