USA - There is a special joy the production team at Life Challenge Church, Odessa, Texas, takes in putting together Sunday morning children’s services. Creative spirits run a little more freely, and new ideas are explored more deeply in a bid to make bible stories come to life for young worshippers.
“The kids service gives us an opportunity to go a little more outside the box,” said Gabriel Loera, technical director at Life Challenge Church. “We do more immersive and moving fixtures and contrasting colours across the crowd. We use more upbeat and themed EP backgrounds during the full service rather than just during worship. The kids really respond well to the full immersive environments.”
On 18 October, the church gave adult worshippers the opportunity to channel the childhood imagination that resides inside them with a Sunday Nights Kid Service, an event that shared imagery from the children’s program with the congregation at large. Helping to create this unique experience was a collection of Chauvet Professional fixture supplied by Sweet Southern Sound.
“We do this several times a year,” said Loera. “It’s a family focus initiative that lets parents experience worship as their children do every Sunday morning. Everyone really enjoys it.”
Contributing to the immersive environment through the sanctuary for the event were richly saturated colours from the rig’s COLORado and Ovation fixtures. Loera positioned six COLORado 1 Solo fixtures above the first rows of pews and six over the upstage deck to provide a consistent col

South Africa - The newly refurbished Seabrooke’s Theatre at Durban High School (DHS) is making waves and delighting audiences with one successful comedy after the next. After a seven-month entertainment famine, the theatre was launched with Sylvia, presented by KickstArt Theatre Company, which ran from 23 October to 1 November.
Seabrooke’s Theatre is a 100-seater auditorium used by the schools Dramatic Arts Department as well as by amateur and professional companies and groups. Thanks to a generous contribution by DHS old boy and theatre lover, Chris Seabrooke, a much-needed renovation and equipment upgrade was made possible and commenced at the start of the Covid-19 South African lockdown. The theatre has been repainted, seats reupholstered, a green room/dressing room is currently being built, and on the technical side, a lighting and audio system has been supplied and installed by DWR Distribution’s Michael Taylor-Broderick and Nick Barnes.
The new lighting equipment includes 13 Robe ParFect 150s, six Robe LEDBeam 150s, four ETC Source Four 25 to 50 degree Profiles, a Le Maitre MVS Hazer with control via a grandMA dot2 onPC.
A Quest Sound system comprises of two HPI25 Front loaded 600w rms low profile and high power speakers, two HPI 12S Compact Passive Sub-Bass Speakers, two Quest 2004 Stereo Power Amplifiers, a Allen & Heath 16 channel digital console, two Audix OM2 Vocal Microphones, one Audix AP42 OM2A Wireless Microphone. In addition, Michael and Nick have rehung some of the lighting bars and added a patch panel to allow for

Thailand - Hotel Indigo Phuket Patong hired audio integrators Mahajak Development to design and install a Harman Professional audio solution that delivers quality sound throughout the property.
Hotel Indigo Phuket Patong is positioned near Patong Beach in the heart of the city of Patong. Located in a touristy area with a property size of 6,400sq.m, the hotel includes 180 guest rooms, a fitness centre, an outdoor pool as well as entertainment and dining amenities. The hotel also marks the first collaboration between renowned hotel companies, InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) and Kebsup Group Company Limited.
The hotel required a premium audio system that provides excellent sound across the resort. Meeting those requirements, Mahajak selected a Harman Professional audio solution that includes JBL Professional loudspeakers, Crown amplification, BSS signal processing and more.
“One of the challenges we faced was that the hotel had multiple zones with specific requirements, including meeting spaces, lobbies, seminar and banquet rooms, among others. We put our dedicated efforts to install Harman Professional products and provide the best service to the customer,” said Pongsakorn Kanchanachayphoom, director of project, Mahajak Development Co. “The client wanted the latest hi-tech audio solutions, and we were able to design the ideal systems using Harman products thanks to their flexibility, reliability and impeccable sound quality. To ensure consistent sound throughout the facilities, we installed JBL speakers with Crown amplifiers.”
Provid

Germany - Martin Audio's German rental partner, Kotsch-Showtechnik from Nessetal near Gotha, recently supplied a sound reinforcement solution for the faithful reproduction of classical music at the Schlosshofkonzert 2020.
In order to meet the COVID-19 requirements, the Gotha Thuringia Philharmonic Orchestra moved for three evenings into the courtyard of the baroque Friedenstein Castle in the City. Here, taking into account the rules of distance, a baroque evening, an operetta gala and a concert with violin and grand piano were able to take place in front of an audience of 400.
Torsten Kotsch, owner of Kotsch Showtechnik, implemented the sound and lighting design with his team and explained the special features required of classical music reinforcement: "The dynamic range of a classical concert is far greater than at many rock concerts,” he said. “Since the concerts were open-air, and not in a theatre or concert hall, we had to pay special attention to the correct set-up of the system.”
The choice of loudspeaker technology was always going to be self-powered products from Martin Audio. The MLA Compact was used as the main PA, with the area in front of the stage covered with DD12 speakers, and CDD-LIVE8 speakers were used as stage monitors.
Torsten Kotsch explained this selection rationale: "I can connect all speakers via Martin Audio's VU-Net and control and monitor them in the software,” he said. “Since we wanted to achieve the same sound experience at all seats, the mix of MLA Compact and DD12 was perfect. Both systems distribute s

Finland - Nestled between two lakes, Näsijärvi and Pyhäjärvi, Tampere is listed on MoveHub’s world’s most popular hipster spots and, with the most saunas in one city, is considered the sauna capital of the world.
The city is also home to the Tampereen Työväen Teatteri (Tampere Workers’ Theatre), fondly referred to by locals as the TTT-Theatre. This is one of the county’s main theatres and its recently updated sound system features L-ISA Immersive Hyperreal Sound technology, chosen both with audio excellence and the future in mind, as well as to address historic localisation issues caused by the venue’s extremely wide stage.
Originally, a standard L-C-R system had been specified for the theatre’s major audio overhaul, until Pauli Molnár, sales manager at L-Acoustics certified provider distributor, Audico Systems Oy, introduced them to the concept of L-ISA and its ability to create a completely different listening experience for the theatre’s audiences.
“We did a demo for the team and they were blown away,” says Molnár. “They understood that not only would L-ISA technology deliver more than they wanted in terms of sound quality, but also that it would address some key issues with which they had been struggling.”
The curved stage lip at TTT-Theatre measures a full 20m wide, likely one of the widest in Finland. This means that no matter where loudspeakers are placed in a standard configuration, the sound is not properly localised for the audience. In addition to this, the audio team struggled with gain before feedback

South Africa - MJ Event Gear has created an outdoor music concert environment at The Local Bar and Kitchen in Kyalami, no. 66 on the R55 Main Road, for those who want to enjoy good music in a space that strictly complies to the COVID-19 safety regulations. MJ has also set up a venue incorporating sound and lighting at the Bryanston Country Club.
The Local has JOC approval and has been given the green light by the SAPS and the fire marshal. The venue has various seating options available and includes paramedics on-site in case of an emergency, while all tables and chairs are sprayed and sanitized by Gary Love and the Viral Shield team. Patrons entering the venue will walk through a humidifier tunnel (not spray) and endure the usual hand sanitization and a temperature check, while face masks are sold on site.
Mike Jones, the owner of Johannesburg technical supply company MJ Event Gear, explains how the projects came about. “I’ve always wanted to build an outdoor concert venue and it’s something I’ve thought about for the past two or three years. Sven Hansen of 4 Plus 3 Productions and I had been looking at different venues where we could put up a roof on a more permanent basis, and then lockdown happened, and nobody could work.”
When President Cyril Ramaphosa announced in September that South Africa would move to Level 1 in regard to eased restrictions to allow 500 people at outdoor gatherings and 250 people at indoor gatherings, at a 50% capacity. Mike approached the Bryanston Country Club. “They allowed me access to build a venue to comf

UK - The Sugar Hut nightclub, bar and venue - made famous through its association with reality TV programme The Only Way Is Essex (TOWIE) -returned to TV screens earlier this month boasting a new refurbished look featuring Void Acoustics kit.
The venue has recently been acquired by the same experienced club operator who also owns London super club Studio 338 – a large music and arts venue on the Greenwich Peninsular, and sister club The Bridge (also in London). The team has consistently chosen Void as their audio system of choice for the last decade, starting with their install at Studio 338, which currently boasts a 4-point Air Motion system covering their large capacity multi-room club including one of the largest outdoor terrace arenas in Europe as well as a Loft Room and VIP level.
Sugar Hut has been celebrating 10 years of TOWIE. The venue’s re-opening and refurbishment has been eagerly anticipated and well-received.
“Being familiar with Void and the aesthetic quality of their products combined with their excellent audio credentials, it was an easy decision to specify Void throughout our Sugar Hut refurbishment,” explains Larry Field, technical manager and sound engineer for Studio 338 and Sugar Hut.
Acoustic challenges abound at Sugar Hut because it is located in a listed historical building, which, by its nature, provides a challenging layout. It is a maze-like 15th century coaching inn with a courtyard and hundreds of years of history.
Field comments: “From a sound perspective there are local residents to take

UK - Sound Stage Lighting Live (SSL Live) has been busy installing a combination of CDD and Adorn series speakers, BlacklineX and ceiling speakers for use in venues ranging from leisure and hospitality to immersive fitness centres.
The company, which was set up by brothers Elliott and Jack Smith three and a half years ago, had also added a Martin Audio WPC scalable line array to the company’s events subsidiary pre-lockdown.
The brothers are firm believers in Martin Audio. “We liked the clarity of sound, functionality and ease of deployment,” they say. “We also liked the reliability - we have since installed 500-600 installation speakers and there has never been a problem.”
All four Martin Audio commercial ranges feature in Red Fox & Peacock’s new flagship Lytham House, a multi-zone bar/restaurant, occupying a prime position on the coastal resort of Lytham, on the Fylde coast.
Run by Ross Robinson, the company’s other venues - The Eagle at Weeton, The Ship at Freckleton and The Queen’s Hotel, Lytham - are already equipped with Martin Audio from SSL Live.
“From an audio perspective the owners trust us, and once again we have given them the best speakers for the purpose,” they say. The site, a former Italian restaurant on a large plot, was left empty for two years as potential buyers waited for the price to drop. Eventually purchased by a local building contractor it was promptly leased back to Robinson’s company and the interior designers set to work in creating a multi-zonal, upmarket venue, incorporating restau

Germany - AO Drones’ fleet of drones lit up the sky above Munich’s Olympic Park in October to mark the launch of Deutsche Telekom’s 5G network in the city.
The GPS-guided, 300-strong swarm of drones performed a 10-minute night-sky performance, creating Deutsche Telekom’s logos and messages in white and Telekom’s brand colour, magenta for the video cameras below.
Tasked with creating the launch event, Düsseldorf-based event management company DO IT! brought in their regular production technology partner, AO Creative. They in turn called on their Dubai-based AO Drones team to deliver the state-of-the-art drone technology. Responsible for the overall production design was Jerry Appelt of JALD (Jerry Appelt Licht Design).
The AO Creative team, including show producer Marco Niedermeier, technical director Matthias Meyert, and project manager Tim Klopp, working within the strict procedures required during the COVID-19 pandemic, successfully realised Appelt’s creative vision, including the illumination of the stadium itself and the carefully choreographed drone show.
With just three weeks from go-ahead to show day, time was tight, explains Klopp. “But thanks to the great working relationship we have with DO IT!, it was extremely smooth. Achieving a project like this in such a relatively short time is only possible with a great client, and outstanding teamwork.”
Key to the success of the project was the advanced, integrated hardware and software of the drone system. Developed in the USA by Verge Aero specifically to meet the req

USA - After more than 12 years of growth and success, West Kendall, Florida, chef Adrianne Calvo, the owner and manager of Chef Adrianne’s Vineyard Restaurant & Wine Bar, decided it was time to move to a larger, more customised location.
Chef Adrianne took over and completely renovated an existing 8,000sq.ft restaurant space. The new space features a large indoor dining area, two private dining rooms, and a social-distance-friendly terrace outfitted with a large retractable projection screen and other AV tools throughout to accommodate special events. The new space has been designed with a warm, modern, Napa Valley wine country décor featuring tall ceilings and wide-open spaces. It can accommodate 270 patrons - a sizable jump from the old location's capacity of 60.
With audio support playing an essential part of the restaurant experience, Calvo turned to audio expert Ivan Sotomayor, president, and owner of ISF Enterprises, a south Florida-based audio and AV integration firm that focuses on restaurant, club, retail, and multi-use facilities.
“This installation was fun but also a bit challenging,” said Sotomayor. “There are multiple indoor audio zones we need to control, and outdoors, the facility is next to a waterway, so we needed an appropriate volume level and control for optimum sound quality and intelligibility for music as well as presentations - and they even needed surround-sound capabilities outdoors.”
Sotomayor explained that the team used a programme called Ease to help map out the number, size, and speakers' location

USA - When Athens First United Methodist Church in Texas decided to transform an old and seldom-used fellowship hall into a new contemporary worship space they selected an all ADJ, all LED-powered rig. Then, pleased with the quality and reliability of their lighting, the church again chose ADJ when it was time to replace the aging projectors in their main sanctuary with modern LED video walls.
A former paramedic/firefighter who then spent 10 years working in the oil and gas industry, Wes Akin felt a sense of calling to serve others again and began volunteering as the technical director at Athens First. Over time this simultaneously led to a full-time role at the church, overseeing business and operations, and a rekindling of his passion for technical production. Wes founded Gain Stage Productions to offer live audio and visual services to local venues as well as to provide installation services for churches in the area.
Wes’ first project was to design and install the audio and lighting system for Athens First’s new contemporary worship centre, which was created by renovating the church’s old fellowship hall. After meeting over coffee and donuts, members of the congregation now have two choices: a contemporary service in the new worship space or a more traditional service in the main sanctuary.
For the new contemporary venue, Wes designed a system that would offer a great deal of flexibility while also giving a very modern feel to the relatively small space. He also purposely selected all LED-powered fixtures, both to minimize future maintenan

UK - In these difficult times for the live entertainment industry, Yamaha is working with both practical measures and its #BringingLive2Life campaign to help audiences and performers alike to experience live entertainment again. One of its first successes was playing a key role in helping Boisdale of Belgravia - the first live venue in London to reopen.
Boisdale is a chain of four themed restaurants, located in London’s Belgravia, Bishopsgate, Canary Wharf and Mayfair. Before lockdown they featured live music every night, with a number of well-known artists - including Alexander O’Neal, Mica Paris, Natasha Hamilton, Rebecca Ferguson and Omar - booked for the Canary Wharf restaurant.
Boisdale managing director Ranald Macdonald has previously worked with Yamaha Music London and, as the national lockdown began to ease, contacted retail operations manager Stephen Davies to see if the company could help to restart live performances in a safe, sustainable way.
“Ranald and I came up with the idea of moving the artists they had booked for the 250-capacity Canary Wharf restaurant to the smaller Belgravia venue, playing two sets a night for two sittings of diners,” says Stephen.
As a result, on 15 August, Boisdale Belgravia was the first live London venue to reopen.
To make the initiative financially viable and ensure that live performances could be staged according to Government guidance, Yamaha Music London sponsored the stage and offered Ranald a combination of loaned and purchased equipment. This included a TF-RACK mixer and a pair of

Australia - Situated in Melbourne’s east, the community at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church was being crowded out by a suburb fast-tracked for urban growth.
Needing to relocate to a quieter location with room to expand, they became aware that a short distance down the road the St. James Uniting Church, with its striking mid-century early modern architecture, was looking to sell.
A deal was done which duly led to a full-blown renovation of the church, including a sensitive, high quality audio visual fitout in the heritage-listed building. This included a Martin Audio O-Line as the sound reinforcement system.
St. Paul’s Lutheran found an integrator in Mozaix that really understood house of worship requirements, and director Paul Tucker immediately struck up a rapport with the church’s building committee.
Paradoxically, the original St James space had been too acoustically ‘dead’ - which is an unusual problem to find in a church building. Due to its carpeted floors and construction of the vaulted ceiling, in its previous unrenovated form it didn’t suit St Paul’s style of ‘call and response’ congregational worship.
Acoustic engineer, Andrew Nicol, thus applied acoustic treatment in the form of an array of signature reflective diffusers for the front wall and behind the band stage, as well as hard stone tile flooring, acoustic panels on the rear wall and acoustic absorption on the balcony fascia. The result is an acoustically lively but controlled space that suits congregational involvement and accommodates high SPL sound rein

USA - Since its start in 2013, Faith Family Church in Baytown, TX has seen continued growth, quickly outgrowing its roots as a portable house of worship. Land was acquired, a campus was planned, and a 60,000sq.ft. facility with a 1400-seat sanctuary was opened in early March 2020. The integration of the church’s audio, video and lighting systems across the main auditorium and several ancillary rooms was handled by worship AV specialists Ellis Pro Media, a Continuant company.
“This was a design-build, and great client to work with,” says Austin Hess of Ellis Pro Media. “We knew that Electro-Voice would be a great solution, especially paired with the new Dynacord IPX series amplifiers. It’s a product we wholeheartedly believe in, to the point where many of the designers and staff at Ellis Pro Media have EV products in the churches we attend.”
A combination of EV loudspeaker models ensures a consistently high level of sound quality in spaces across the campus. The loudspeakers are powered by Dynacord IPX amplifiers configured as a centralised Dante/OCA audio/control network, and operated by SONICUE sound system software. “This is the first X2 rig we’ve deployed using SONICUE for processing,” says Hess. “It allowed us to be up and running more efficiently than in the past, and both our team and the client appreciated that.”
The main system in the sanctuary consists of twin X2 line arrays; six with a 90° horizontal dispersion above two 120° models. These are augmented by two EVF-1122D/126 loudspeakers for front fill and three EV

USA - 5 Words Media (5WM) is a US systems integrator based in Phoenix, Arizona. Founded in 2011, principally as a design/build company for houses of worship, its team also designs and installs audio, lighting and AVL systems regionally across the entertainment, education and corporate sectors
In recent months, 5WM has been working through a programme of audio installations in houses of worship using Coda Audio loudspeakers. Whilst the challenges of the Coronavirus have impacted the audio industry as never before, owner and design principal, Daniel Gourley and his team have worked tirelessly within regulatory constraints to install the systems whilst churches have been temporarily closed.
A recent initiative by 5WM was its #FreeChurchAV contest which invited churches across the US to pitch for a new AV system by telling their story and highlighting the benefits that upgrading technology within their church could bring. Music and the spoken word play a fundamental part in a church’s activities, so in tandem with a number of their suppliers, 5WM put together an AV offer which attracted more than 500 entries across the country.
The lucky recipient of the system was Hope Church in Danville, Virginia, where 5 Words felt that a new system would have the greatest impact. Having taken account of the Church’s requirements, Daniel undertook a thorough design process, before arranging the shipment of all materials and sending a team from Arizona to complete the install. A major part of the project was the purchase of a Coda Audio N-APS system, which was ins

Japan - When LD&K purchased a former theatre with the intention of converting it into a live music venue, there was no question about the fixtures that would make up its lighting rig. The company, which operates ‘live houses’ throughout Japan, had almost always used halogen fixtures, and it was set to do the same at its newest venue, the 1000 Club, located just three blocks from the bustling Yokohama train station.
That was until its management sat down and talked to the team at Hibino Lighting. Surveying the 1000-capacity room, Hibino recommended that, given the limited power supply available, it would make more sense to install Chauvet Professional LED fixtures. LD&K was hesitant, but trusting its vendor it agreed.
As a result, when the club opened (as a livestream venue) in August, it featured a powerful and versatile lighting rig comprised of 56 COLORado, COLORdash and Ovation fixtures. Arranged along the upstage deck, hung on overhead truss, and positioned on stage left and stage right poles as well as upstage stands, this collection of fixtures provides designers with a diverse range of options when lighting artists like Razor Oneman who perform at the club.
Key to this versatility are the 22 COLORado 2-Quad Zoom wash units in the new rig. Drawing on the wide 14ﹾ - 44ﹾ zoom range of the fixture, designers can easily use it to change coverage areas on the stage, moving from total color wash saturation to more focused spot effects.
Added colour is provided by the rig’s 22 COLORdash Par-Quad 18 fixtures, which feature ambe

Austria - The Vienna State Opera has replaced its 20-year-old Amptown Washlights with 70 SolaWash 1000 High CRI from High End Systems.
The upgrade was a challenge, as the new LED spotlights must be able to reproduce the characteristic old-fashioned light qualities of their predecessors and illuminate new productions in a contemporary way. The State Opera House has almost 200 repertoire pieces in its programme and the spotlights are in use for almost every piece.
Robert Eisenstein, vice-director of lighting at the Vienna State Opera, comments: "We had the pleasure of getting our hands on the first SolaWash 1000 in Austria. Together with Preworks and ETC, we were able to realise this project professionally, by implementing our own programme. Many companies presented us with a spotlight and offered to make the necessary changes by hand. With almost 200 performances and no rehearsal days available, this would have been an impossible undertaking in terms of time.”
The solution was developed together. Eisenstein explains: "Over the past year and a half, we worked with Preworks and ETC to write a great programme that gives the new SolaWash 1000 the exact data of the old Amptown Washlight. It must mix colour values in the same way as its 20-year-old predecessor. We determined values - colour values and position values. Of course, we also had to reduce the intensity because the new spotlight is much brighter, in spite of its far lower power consumption thanks to LED technology.
“The biggest challenge was reproducing the colour mix of the old fixt

Belgium - Allen & Heath Avantis and SQ mixing systems have been installed as part of a major update of Music Centre De Bijloke in Gent.
The venue reopened in September, resuming its role as a focal point for classical music in the region following a one-year refurbishment. Although Music Centre De Bijloke has been hosting performances since 1988, the building dates all the way back to 1228, when it served as a hospital.
A team of experts has enhanced the experience for performers and audiences in the main performance hall, going so far as to lower the floor and install extensive wood panelling to bring its unruly acoustics into the twenty-first century without detracting from its medieval oak ceiling and stone walls.
With the acoustics finely honed, the venue turned to its AV partners, City Sound Rent, to identify a mixing system capable of delivering excellent sound quality while being easy to use for in-house and visiting engineers. The centrepiece of the new setup is a 96kHz A&H Avantis at FoH. “I fell in love with the Allen & Heath Avantis mixing console from the first moment I used it,” comments Pieter Kinoli, sound engineer at Music Centre De Bijloke. “It’s so intuitive, easy-to-use and trustworthy. It’s definitely a step forward for us and the live performances we mix for.”
The Avantis is teamed up over a digital split with an SQ-6 on monitors. A GX4816 AudioRack provides the main I/O, with a portable DX168 stagebox giving Peter further I/O and added flexibility. A 64 channel Dante card in the Avantis gives the o

Japan - The Kaho Theatre in Iizuka City, Fukuoka, has survived many difficulties since the original building appeared in1922 and along the way this playhouse has been designated a Japanese ‘national registered tangible cultural property’.
The predecessor of the current Kaho Theatre, Nakaza, was originally opened as an entertainment place for people working in coal mines in the Chikuho region. Mainly traditional drama, Kabuki, standup comedy, juggling and silent films were performed during that era.
In recent years, it has been used as a multi-purpose event venue, and at full capacity can host audiences of 1,200. In addition to traditional performing arts, various events such as music plays, lectures, talk shows and concerts have all been staged there.
Because of Covid-19, the theatre was recently forced to close, but in collaboration with rental company, Toyo Amuse, who own a Martin Audio Wavefront Precision Compact (WPC) rig, they have been able to stream live online various performances at the theatre, creating a lot of impact in the media.
This is known as the ‘Yumebutai Project’. With fewer professionals coming to play at the theatre because of the pandemic, the production team decided to embark on a policy of open recruitment of performers, who in turn can feature their work online via a livestreaming service.
Mr. Masanori Keuchi, CEO of Toyo Amuse explains: “When all events and concerts were cancelled due to Covid-19, the theatre decided to collaborate with us to record and deliver performance online, to make people happ

India - Sighapandi Electronics recently equipped Royal China with a JBL Professional networked audio system to deliver the audio in the restaurant and nightclub areas.
Royal China is a fine dining restaurant in Kolkata, serving authentic Cantonese cuisine in a chic and upscale environment. Located in the Forum Courtyard Mall, Royal China also features a small nightclub.
During the design phase, the owners of Royal China recognised that the restaurant needed a flexible loudspeaker system that offered a clear, high quality sound. However, due to the low ceilings in the venue, they required a compact solution that would not detract from the décor. The owners of Royal China worked with Sighapandi Electronics to install a JBL Professional network audio system featuring JBL loudspeakers, JBL and Crown amplifiers and a BSS signal processor.
“The ceiling height of nine feet was a big challenge,” said Jagjeet Singh Bhatti, Sighapandit Electronics. “We obviously had to be very careful about reflections in the live room and ensure that the direct-to-reverberant sound ratio was kept high for every audience member.”
Sighapandi Electronics chose four JBL AM7212/95 loudspeakers with two JBL ASB6125 subwoofers for the club area. Sighapandi Electronics also designed brackets for the JBL AM7212/95 loudspeakers, as there was no option to fly the speakers with such a low ceiling.
In the restaurant, the team installed 12 JBL 8128 in-ceiling loudspeakers along with four JBL 8124 in-ceiling loudspeakers. These full range high fidelity speakers deli

Germany - Decisions often involve a trade-off, as taking steps to address one challenge may complicate another. Philipp Reister, the event technician at the famed Hochschule für Musik Freiburg, understands this issue first hand.
Reister values the flexibility of moving fixtures, especially since changing lights on the Z Bridge at the school’s performance hall is a time-consuming process involving a mobile crane. On the other hand, the moving fixtures that had previously been installed at the school, while providing the desired flexibility, raised the issue of noise.
In the past Reister and the team at Hochschule für Musik Freiburg have worked diligently to balance these issues. This summer they enlisted the help of a new “partner” to their cause: the Chauvet Professional Maverick Silens 2 Profile.
“We needed to improve our flexibility because our hall is a fixed installation,” said Reister. “Therefore, we have relied on moving heads, which are flexible in all areas - as spots but also as wash and with colours. However, some of the events we have also demand absolute silence. This is why we were so happy to see the new Maverick moving profiles. The Silens are as promised: they are operating completely in silence, especially when their Absolute Silence mode is enabled.”
The Z Bridge at the school’s hall is divided into three sections, with a single Maverick Silens 2 Profile controlled via sACN, positioned in each. Reister is quick to point out that the value of these fixtures extends far beyond their flexibility and silent op

USA - “You can tell a successful church just from the vibe,” said Mark Salamone, sales manager at All Pro Integrated Systems. “The first time I visited Wellspring Community Church in Ruskin, Florida, they had a red movie theatre carpet, velvet ropes, popcorn, and Star Wars stuff for the kids. There were a lot of young families, and it felt progressive and brimming with good energy.
“The service was amazing - full hands-in-the-air singing from everyone led by a charismatic pastor and a praise band loaded with talented musicians. The sound system was just ok, but Preston Eaves, technical arts director, was squeezing everything he could out of it. In terms of community service, Wellspring made it clear that they weren’t just talking the talk – they are actively working to improve access to the material and spiritual needs of the community.”
Salamone, who has a long history of critical listening in the role of recording and mixing engineer, attended that service in anticipation of Wellspring’s move to a new, larger sanctuary that would eventually benefit from Danley Sound Labs point-source loudspeakers, subwoofers, and DSP-enabled amplifiers. Wellspring Community Church’s existing sanctuary held only 180 people, and congregants were regularly overflowing into the lobby even though the church was holding five all-live services every weekend.
“We could see where we were at and where we were going, and a bigger space was definitely needed,” explained Eaves. “Our new sanctuary seats 550. We have a high-energy praise band with drums,

World - The #WeMakeEvents campaign has been ramping up activity in order to highlight how the global live events industry urgently needs to get back to work. Over 30 million people in 25 countries would usually work in the events industry, but with social distancing measures in place, there is no possibility of a financially viable return for the foreseeable future.
Over the past weeks, events have happened around the world - including in the US, Canada, Sweden, France, Germany, Spain and the UK - to raise awareness of those impacted in the event supply chain, from manufacturers, production companies, catering, transport, security and others, to the huge freelance community that works within the industry.
The majority of the industry has had no income since the beginning of the crisis in March, and with a global second wave of COVID-19 imminent, a date to return to work has become impossible to predict, leaving many companies and individuals devastated, both financially and personally.
The industry is now joining together as a worldwide force on 30 September for a Global Day of Action. This marks the start of a new phase of the #WeMakeEvents campaign which will continue to alert governments to the disastrous situation the sector faces.
“The situation in Spain is terrible and we’re working very hard to highlight that to our government,” says Juan Jose Villa, from Spanish trade association, AFIAL. “Our event on 17th September got coverage on most of Spain’s regional television and radio stations, and we believe that we have shown ho

UK - Since opening its doors 17 years ago, Suffolk creative entertainment, education and enterprise hub, the New Cuts Art Centre (The Cut), has gone from strength to strength, becoming a centre for arts in the community, and now offers a full programme of activities, including a weekly cinema, theatre, music, regular art exhibitions and an educational programme.
Looking to the future, the venue decided it was time to upgrade their existing lighting rig in the theatre to LED. As the space is used for a variety of performances and events, they needed fixtures that were versatile, easy to use and that could work for a range of styles - Prolights fixtures proved to be the answer.
Callum Macdonald of CM Lighting oversaw the specification and install of the lighting fixtures. He commented: “The theatre is a small community theatre that doubles up as a cinema. The programme mostly contains one-nighters and musical acts, so I wanted to create an easy to use fixed rig. There are no dedicated in-house technicians, so re-rigging for each act was not a viable option.”
After discussions and product demonstrations given by Benjamin Taylor of A.C. Entertainment Technologies - Prolights’ exclusive UK distributor - The Cut chose to invest in Prolights EclFresnels, EclProfile and Studio Cob PARs .
Callum continued: “I chose these Prolights products because of the light quality, colour and ease of use. In my opinion, the output of the saturated colours produced by the Studio Cobs exceeds that of some of the more expensive and popular equivalents out the