B&R Medientechnik has a long-standing association with Manowar, having first worked with them on the VivaLive-TV coverage of Ringfest in Cologne in 2002. Since then, the association has developed, not only between the band and the rental company, but also with Magic Circle Music and God of Thunder Production.
Numerous recordings, festivals, tours and ambitious productions with the band, a 60-strong symphony orchestra, a mixed chorus of four voices and much more have taken place around the whole of Europe. From these shared experiences, a close friendship has developed between Joey de Maio, founder, manager and bassist of Manowar, and Bernd Kugler, owner and general manager of B&R Medientechnik.
"Our love of English console manufacturers- B&R is the owner of the only SSL Axiom MT+ Recording Mobile in Europe - made our decision to invest in the DiGiCo SD9 very easy," sayss Bernd Kugler. "We have had a very good relationship with atlantic audio and owner Wolfgang Garçon for a long time. The exceptional speed and flexibility of both the console manufacturer and the German distributor meant that we were able to supply the SD9 in time for the Eastern Europe part of the tour, which included festivals such as Sonisphere in Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey."
Adds Achim Lanzendorf, "The user interface of this small DiGiCo desk is certainly different in comparison to the bigger consoles and that results in a different working routine during the show. In practice, everything worked very easily and smoothly - fortunately you don't have to read a manual to be able to get working quickly. I'm familiar with the workflow of the bigger DiGiCo consoles - the SD7 and SD8 - so I could easily find my way around the SD9 and could also explain a lot of features to Joey. "
(Jim Evans)
