UK - Cadac's S-Type console has had two high profile deployments in the Far East recently, involving Japan's prestigious Shiki Theatre Company and one of Indonesia's leading rental companies, Sumber Ria. Shiki Theatre Company added two S-Types to its complement of Cadac consoles for the opening of two new productions in January - Phantom of the Opera at the Dentsu Shiki Theatre SEA in Shiodome, Tokyo, as well as Evita which opened on 27th January at the Shiki Theatre AKI, also in Tokyo. In Indonesia, Sumber Ria recently chose an S-Type to tour artist Krisdayanti (KD) in late 2004, as a high quality analogue alternative to their usual analogue and digital console hire stock.
Shiki Theatre Company currently stages an average of seven performances every day of the year, with seven theatres of its own and eleven productions running simultaneously throughout Japan at any one time, all performed in Japanese. Mr. Kanamori of Shiki explained: "We wanted the very best in terms of both audio quality and facilities, and the S-Type undoubtedly represents the best console in its price range. Its compact size was an important consideration, as is the flexibility of being able to move the modules, so that we can configure the desk exactly to the needs of each show." The S-Type on Phantom serves as both an orchestra mixer and as an extension for the J-Type, linked by sub-in rather than D-sub buss connectors found on all Cadac consoles. "We have noticed a real difference since we started using the S-Type, with the orchestra sounding better overal
UK - London's glamorous Thai-theme restaurant and club, the Sugar Hut, has opened a large sister venue in Brentwood, Essex. Housed in a lavishly renovated Grade I listed building, the Sugar Hut Village features a high-quality but completely invisible dancefloor and club room sound system from ElectroVoice. Visually, its interior owes much of its success to the inspired use of LED effects. Cosmic Electronics, which was responsible for designing and installing the sound and lighting infrastructure, approached Lighting Effects Distribution, and 40 Solar L80 PCB LED effects (with DMX drivers) and a set of Alkalite Octopod 80s were used to colour wash the multi-zone venue.
Following the huge success of the original Sugar Hut in Fulham, London, owners Chris George, Gary Smith and Frazer Donaldson have taken on a 15th century coaching inn in the heart of Brentwood village. With its unique galleried courtyard playing an important role at the heart of the venue, the old hotel is now home to six different themed clubrooms, bars and restaurants. As a whole, the Sugar Hut Village holds nearly 900 people, dispersed through the Karma Bar, the Krug Suite, the Gallery Bar, the main restaurant, and other areas.
Having worked on the Sugar Hut in London and its sister venue, the KBar in Chelsea, local audio installation company Cosmic Electronics was called in to provide the all-important sound systems. "Volume just wasn't the issue at the Sugar Hut," explains Mark Damon. "This is not a disco, it's a very upmarket club, so the brief called for precise, high-quality
UK - Serious Stages supplied a 12 metre Orbit stage and roof system for the final of TV series Celebrity Big Brother at Elstree Studios. The latest Big Brother winner was ex-Happy Mondays dancer Bez - initially considered an outsider - who attracted huge public support along the way and squeezed Blazin' Squad rapper Kenzie and actress Brigitte Neilson into second and third places respectively.
Serious Stages was contacted just five days before the final by producers Endemol, after deciding they wanted the stage for the final evictions live on the Sunday. Eight Serious crew, led by Shaun Dixon, erected a standard one-bay Orbit roof system, 12 metres wide by 12 metres deep. The stage was completed and ready for lighting, audio, set and other production elements to commence their get-in on the Saturday morning. At the end of the show itself, the house guests were interviewed by Davina McCall before taking their seats for the final announcements, watched by a live audience and some six million Channel 4 viewers.
(Lee Baldock)
UK - A 40-channel Allen & Heath GL3300 multi-purpose live console has been installed in one of the largest concert and conference venues in the west of England. The Forum, located in Bath's city centre, features a 1700-seater auditorium, which was in need of an audio upgrade. The venue is a converted 1930's super-cinema, which has been extensively renovated in its original art deco style by current owners, Bath City Church. Its0 main function is as the home of Bath City Church, a vibrant Christian group with a growing membership of around 500 people. The auditorium's sound system, installed in the early 1990s, is operated by a team of 15 volunteers from within the church, comprising four teams of three sound engineers working on a rota basis, plus two riggers and a team leader.
"Selection of a suitable replacement desk was a project in itself," commented team leader Chris Stone. "Not only would the desk need the capacity to support the regular church meetings - which usually involve a lively band with three or four singers - but to be able to run larger, and sometimes high-profile events in performing areas such as music, dance, drama, and multi-media." Requirements included good monitoring capabilities, dual FOH and monitor operation, sufficient outputs for recording and an audio for video feed capability.
"The GL3300 gives a cleaner sound, particularly noticeable on vocals. The engineers running the desk have found the individual channel metering to be a useful improvement on the previous desk and overall, the desk is clearly laid out a
Abu Dhabi - United Arab Emirates capital Abu Dhabi's newly-built Heritage Theatre boasts, as well as breathtaking décor, a state-of-the-art audio infrastructure that will allow it to be monitored from several thousand miles away in the United Kingdom, using QSC's QSControl.net technology. Perched atop a hill overlooking the Persian Gulf, the 550-seat theatre was designed as a multi-purpose venue, hosting historical and folkloric events, lectures, and conventions, as well as doubling as a cinema with surround sound. UK-based audio company LSI Projects specified QSC amplification and processing and performed the full system integration, including sound, video, lighting, engineering and project management, for Abu Dhabi's Ministry of Heritage.
QSC PowerLight PL4.0, PL236 and PL218 amplifiers drive the main PA, and are fitted with DSP-4 signal processing modules, which add high-powered digital signal processing without extra rack space. The system is remotely controlled and monitored via QSC's CM16a Amplifier Network Monitors, part of the QSControl.net platform, each of which provides 16 channels of audio level control, monitoring and system management, operated remotely via QSC's proprietary application software, Venue Manager, on a Windows-based PC.
PLX-1604 amps drive the monitoring system, supplemented by DCA-2422 digital cinema amplifiers for movie exhibition. Set-up changes, powering options and diagnostic routines are all carried out remotely from LSI's headquarters in southern England. The company's UK distributor, Shure Distribution UK, provided all the QSC
Estonia - Arup Lighting, in collaboration with MVRDV, has created a spectacular lighting display that will be suspended 35m high over the Old Town quarter of Tallinn in Estonia. The semi-permanent art installation will be lit over the city, making the dark and wintry Tallinn awash with light every evening for three hours, between 3 - 6 February. The ambitious project was conceived at an Estonian designers' workshop for young architects with the aim of creating a lighting installation to enhance the city and inspire its residents during the winter gloom.
Invited by the Tallinn City Government, MVRDV architects and Arup Lighting were asked to find solutions to realise the winning idea - a 'light cupola' above the city. The Light Dome is the precursor to more anticipated installations of a similar nature in Europe, and the design team hopes to install a larger one in London in 2006. Winy Maas of MVRDV interpreted the cupola as a foggy cloud above the city that could radiate light downward during the dark winter days. He handed over to local architect, Veronika Valk of ZiZi and YoYo, who progressed the planning, design and realisation of the light dome.
Arup's Rogier van der Heide came up with the idea of using 500 white meteorological balloons, each 2m wide with 'smoke' diffused around them to create a light reflective fog. Rogier explained: "This concept will create a reflective medium up above the city when lit from underneath to resemble an ethereal self-illuminated cloud". The balloons will be set out on a grid 25m x 25m to create a floating surface o
UK - Britannia Row Productions provided audio for the giant concert at the Cardiff Millennium Stadium in aid of the Asian tsunami relief fund, covering the enormous crowd of 61,000 Brit Row used their L'Acoustics system, with Yamaha for control in the shape of both a PM1D and PM5D at either end of the snake.
"I'm sure there isn't an audio provider in the country that wouldn't have been willing to do this show," commented Brit Row director Bryan Grant, "and I'm honoured that Claire Sampson, show producer, asked us. We were able to assemble a really outstanding team of people: crew chief John Gibbon, Dave Bracey and Gary Bradshaw at front of house, Tristan Farrow and Kursten Smith on monitors, Pete McGlynn, Steph' Thompson, Dorus Hummels and Nahuel Gutierrez onstage and Richard Trow, Chris Peters and James Bowyer on system."
The bands all went through the PM1D's while the PM5Ds handled track acts and all the associated presenters, personal appearances and sends from VT. BBC Wales broadcast the show live in its entirety; artists included Eric Clapton, Lemar, Jools Holland, Feeder, the Manic Street Preachers, Katherine Jenkins, Charlotte Church and Aled Jones.
(Lee Baldock)
UK - Star Events Group has teamed up again with the Arena Group to create an infrastructure for the spectacular watersports pool at the Schroder's Boatshow at ExCeL in London's Docklands. The team designed and built the support for the 70m x 25m pool that held over 2,100 tonnes of water. Windsurfing, wakeboarding and sailing pros demonstrated their skills, using wind generated by the huge fans that flanked one entire length of the pool. 24 of these fans, each weighing 1 tonne, were supported on a raised structure also supplied by Star Events Group.
For the second year running, working closely with the National Boat Show (NBS), Star Events Group was brought in by the Arena Group to supply ExCeL with a complete temporary facility that was fully available from the first day of the exhibition tenancy. This enabled NBS to concentrate fully on the production requirements. This year's challenge for Star Design was to create the foundation for the watersports pool using elements from last year's structure, together with some newly designed components to make the structure easier to level above the rough surface of the car park underneath. An entirely new Heavy Duty jacking system meant that the water depth only varied by 5mm across the whole pool, as opposed to the 50mm variance last year. This decking is designed to withstand loads two and a half times that of a normal stage floor. A split level stage area was spanned by a 28m wide, 2-bay Star Orbit stage roof frame complete with proscenium arch, providing an impressive screen and lighting support which was rigged by Star
UK - Audio Network Plc, the media music and sound specialist, has announced an investment by Leisure & Media VCT plc to accelerate its worldwide growth. Leisure & Media has invested £250,000 in return for a 7% equity stake in Audio Network, which says it has a revolutionary model, "supplying music for use in film, television and multi media production without the usual restrictions, cost and complications".
During the three years since its formation Audio Network has signed up over 100 composers and sound designers and has become established as a leading supplier of music to the UK production community; its music and sound library, comprising over 50,000 sounds, can be previewed on-line at www.audiolicense.net.
Robert Hurst, managing director of Audio Network, said: "We are delighted to welcome Leisure & Media VCT as shareholders in the company and welcome their participation over the coming years as we replicate the success that we have had in the UK television production sector into new markets." Maarten Hemsley, representing NAV, Fund Manager of Leisure & Media VCT, commented: "We are very excited to be involved with such an innovative and exciting company with the foresight to anticipate the changes impacting the international media markets."
(Mike Lethby)
UK - Visitors to London's famous Somerset House have been soaking up the winter atmosphere and the grandeur of the Victorian era with Calor, the UK's leading supplier of liquefied petroleum gas, lighting the way. The open-air Winter Ice Rink located in the venue's main courtyard has attracted thousands of visitors for a fifth consecutive year. An added attraction this year is the use of real Victorian-style gas flame lamp standards, installed by specialist events company EMF Technology. The chosen fuel for the authentic lighting is Calor LPG.
Stuart Roberts of EMF Technology, which provides bespoke special effects and audio and video displays for major events and local authorities, commented that, to provide the right flame effect for the facility, LPG was the only answer. "We wanted to have the right ambience and an authentic look for the Victorian scene. We also had to ensure that the fuel supply and fuel deliveries would meet both safety requirements and strict technical requirements - and that meant talking with Calor.' The agreed solution was a temporary installation of two 2,000 litre Calor LPG bulk tanks, topped up at weekly intervals. Calor's technical team worked with EMF Technology to provide a hassle-free gas supply with each tank situated in its own compound, 50 metres apart.
"We've worked with Calor throughout the five years we've been handling this event," said Roberts. 'The strict safety requirements of the project coupled with our own safety record demand a supplier with the right expertise and safety pedigree.' Calor's LPG experti
Australia - A fresh insight to PA system specification for stadiums was promised by audio consultant Olaf De Ceuster on being asked by Australia's Major Sports Facilities Authority (MSFA) to set standards for a full range PA system to be installed at the Cowboys Stadium (capacity 35,000 seated, 12,500 standing) in Townsville, Queensland. "The 105 dBA standard was borrowed from the standards set at ANZ Stadium," he explained, "where I looked after all the production facets and operated sound for eight years with The Broncos, another National Rugby League club." That's 105dBA over 95% of the audience.
"On this consultancy I took a different approach: since this was a stadium for people, not engineers, I decided to let a cross-section of normal people liking this particular rugby football code (NLR) to decide what they liked best. We played them music and had a compère read a script. The people then answered a specific set of questions with a point-scoring system between one and ten. Hence the loudness and intelligibility were a subjective measure decided by people, not engineers." He also carried out acoustical measurements on the day for legal reasons.
The d&b audiotechnik system in question consisted entirely of Ci90s driven by d&b D12 amplifiers, the installation being designed by Shane Bailey of National Audio Systems (d&b's Australian distribution partner) with support from Ralf Zuleeg (d&b Applications Support, Germany). The installation was made by Audio Sales & Recording, the sales arm of IJS Logistics, based in Brisbane. A l
USA - When Rochester Assembly of God church built its new addition in 1997 it included a rudimentary lighting system, with 'theatrical' lighting consisting of a few coloured lights and a couple of basic 'can' spotlights near the ceiling, all controlled by infrared dimmers purchased from a national electronics chain store. The only control the church had over the fixtures was to turn them on or off.
As the church grew, so did the need for a more extensive lighting system. Church officials wanted to create more professional looking and appealing productions and more emotional traditional weekly services. With its annual Christmas program on the horizon, Rochester Assembly of God decided to upgrade to a new system that would be both cost-effective and expandable.
"We were going to be presenting The Gospel According to Scrooge, so we decided to install a lighting system the way it should be done," explained the church's Clyde Ediger. "The system had to be scalable; we wanted to install a few components this year, and then add to it throughout the year. Next year, we hope that the show is even more extensive, and that we can do more sophisticated lighting and effects."
Ediger, who supervised the lighting system upgrade, consulted with Dave Johnson at Minneapolis-based Gopher Stage Lighting, who recommended a dimming system that originally included eight Bak Pak individual dimmers from Entertainment Technology. Because the Bak Pak dimmers proved easy to use and inexpensive, the final installation was extended to include 14 dimmers.
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USA - Calvary Church Santa Ana, in Santa Ana, California, has opted for a digital audio processing and control system in the form of SymNet Audio Matrix. Like many churches, it increasingly incorporates live music into services and stages drama skits. In addition, the facility is used for other non-church purposes, such as school graduations, which demand extensive mic capabilities.
The new system enabled the church to replace its old analogue equipment with a system easily configurable and controllable via computer. Doug Gates, owner of Gates Sound, a Buena Park, California, sound systems installation company that installed SymNet for the church, said the system has vastly simplified audio management and given the church the confidence to make future changes as needed. "This was the first major upgrade to the church's sound system since the early 1990s and it replaced about 15 audio hardware units, like mixers, limiters and compressors. Now, all of those functions are handled by SymNet."
To gain digital control over all of the required inputs and outputs for a system that must cover a large, 2,800-seat auditorium and adjacent areas, Gates utilised two SymNet 8x8 units and one Breakout12, configured in a network using SymLink, a digital audio and control data bus running over Cat 5 cable. With a big left-centre-right loudspeaker cluster and a host of delay speakers, as well as lobby speakers and an assistive listening system, a SymNet solution able to handle a significant number of outputs was critical. With the Breakout12, in addition to the 16 provi
USA - 2005 promises to be a strong year for the cruise industry, which looks set to achieve record growth. Numerous new cruise ships are scheduled for launch in 2005, with further major projects slated for 2006 and 2007. This positive trend will translate into real business opportunities for UK specialists providing lighting, audio, AV and staging technologies.
Exploiting this development will be the forthcoming SeaTrade exhibition in Miami (March 15-17) - the largest gathering of cruise line owners, operators and suppliers in the world. One of the main features of the show will be the new 'PLASA at Sea' Pavilion - a showcase of all the latest innovations in entertainment and leisure-based technology. Confirmed exhibitors to date include Barbizon, Vari-Lite, Rose Brand, Rosco, Color Kinetics, Xilver, Martin Professional, Mavco, Teledimensions, Stage Technologies and Snow Masters.
UK companies can now take advantage of a grant worth up to £2,500, which they can put towards the cost of exhibiting at SeaTrade. This funding is available via PLASA (the Professional Lighting and Sound Association) and will help UK companies put their technologies and services in front of key buyers and specifiers. A Brochure Group Service is also available for PLASA members who can have their literature and marketing material distributed to interested attendees.
If you would like to participate in SeaTrade, contact Shane McGreevy at PLASA on +44 (0)1323 410335 or e-mail at the address below.
(Ruth Rossington)
UK - A wide range of LED lighting products from the catalogue of Lighting Effects Distribution has been supplied and installed by TMC, the main sound and lighting contractors for Cosmos Leisure's new Rififi Club in Stalybridge. Fronted by the experienced Caroline Madden, the converted 1930s Palace Cinema opened its doors in early December following an extensive refit and reconfiguration of the space.
The building now houses a downstairs front bar, with all day trading, linked via a removable partition to the rear bar, which is available for private lets and trades alongside the upstairs nightclub. Ian Kirby's Lighting Effects Distribution have specified the effects and architectural lighting to all the main feature areas, using Coemar, Geni and proprietary LED-based fixtures. Six Solar M100b RGB LED units positioned on each side of the building, project columns of colour changing light up the walls.Illuminating the ground floor dancefloor are six Ayrton EasyColor 1 LED moving lights, set in two rows of three and divided by a 40cm mirrorball and rotator. Control is via Geni PC Brain - a simple playback unit suited to bar staff operation.
Coemar automated head lighting is used extensively over the main dancefloor - suspended from two 12m long lighting bars, which curve out to the centre of the dancefloor to form a lazy 'X' motif. A mirrorball has been placed in the centre and the lighting plotted along the bar lengths. To achieve the desired effect, 12 ProSpot 250LX fast-moving heads have been set along a specially-fabricated truss, to create a sharp beam and sim
UK - Harman Pro UK has supplied Sound Division with an AKG CS 2 Conference System for installation at the Kennel Club's HQ in London's Mayfair, complete with a Base/Chair station and 21 Delegate stations. Kennel Club manager John Golding was seeking an upgrade for their existing conference hall, which regularly facilitates the General Committee's meetings. Golding wanted a system that was quick, easy to set up and intuitive to use, so there was no chance of some of the more elderly attendees being intimidated by the new technology.
Harman's Andy Duffield and Sound Division's David Graham collaborated on the specification and supply of a fully modular, portable AKG CS 2 conference system. It's a plug-and-play system that comes complete with amplifier; each Microphone/Delegate station features two powered speakers and a microphone with 'Call' and 'Volume Up/Down' push button features. The Voice Zoom function means two people can use the station with a consistent output signal. The microphones hook into the top of the base unit and speakers taking the floor simply hit the 'Call' button to activate the microphone and output to each station's speaker system.
The CS 2 Chair/Base station can control up to 200 mics and is the main controller. It has an override facility and all other mics can be switched on/off at the main station. It can be used in Manual or Voice Activated modes, so those wishing to have as little interaction as possible with the system can just leave their station voice activated, knowing that the mic will turn on when they speak. Harman also suppli
USA - The recent production of Peeru Gunto at the University of Colorado in Boulder displayed a magical array of Kabuki-style surprises, lit with Wybron Nexera lighting. A variation of Peer Gynt, by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen, this production is based on Japanese themes.
The play was adapted and directed by Dr. Cecilia J. Pang, known for the critically acclaimed Alice in Wonderland - Or Not! Pang, who studied the Kabuki style of theatre in Japan, introduces cultural themes in the form of vibrant costumes and colourful scenery representing locales from Japan to the American Wild West. The superhuman-sized, spectacularly lavish style of Japanese Kabuki theatre required imaginative stage lighting. Robert J. Shannon, senior instructor and lighting supervisor at CU's Department of Theatre & Dance, explains his choice of Wybron Nexeras to compliment the rich hues of the costumes and the variety of scenery: "I decided to light the show in the manner of a dance production, except that I did not have good positions available for low angle sidelight. But I gave myself total control of my top, highside, and front washes, using a channel-per-light hook-up. The final piece of the puzzle, however, was the Nexera washlights. I instantly had bright, soft edged, re-focusable, colour-changing units, which gave me exactly the flexibility I needed for this 36-scene, two-act production."
He continues: "About three weeks before the show opened, the number of painted drops in the show was going down from seven to three. I was asked to do som
France - Described as 'a European institution like no other - at the crossroads of choreographic culture, creativity, diffusion and teaching' - the Centre National de la Danse turned to Harlequin to furnish the all important dance floors. The company then provided 1,648sq.m of Harlequin Cascade flooring.
12 years in planning and development since the original idea was first mooted in 1992, the Centre National de la Danse (CND) is a new French state establishment devoted entirely to dance. Housed in a former municipal administrative building, the architects in charge of its refurbishment, Antoinette Robain and Claire Guieyesse, were briefed to renovate the structure and to adapt the space to meet the needs of the CND. Arranged around the dominating presence a concrete central staircase, are 11 dance studios, a specialized media archive, an exhibition hall, a dance cinematography area and the CND. Together with conference halls, study rooms and meeting rooms, in all comprising 7,000sq.m of working space, more than 200 choreographic artists and students, as well as numerous members of the public are welcomed daily.
The location close by the Parc de la Vilette in Pantin, Paris was deliberately selected to allow CND to develop important relationships with neighbouring cultural institutions - the City of Music, the National Conservatoire of Music and Dance, the Grand Halle, the City of Sciences and Industry.
(Lee Baldock)
UK / USA - Software providers Stardraw.com has announced that support for Global Caché's GC-100 series of network adaptors has been incorporated into their new application, Stardraw Control. Global Caché, based in Southern Oregon, is dedicated to producing low-cost, state-of-the-art products to enable technology in the home environment. The award-winning GC-100 Network Adaptor provides the means for PC-based control, automation and management software to access, control and deliver services in a networked home to diverse and previously unconnected devices and appliances.
Stardraw Control is exactly that - a software-based application designed expressly to control systems that contain diverse products. It generates standalone, customized control programs that can manage and monitor any type of addressable equipment from any manufacturer using any protocol over any communications infrastructure. This approach frees systems integrators from closed or proprietary architectures and applications, offering instead the ability to create a single application that can control many different products with as much or as little complexity as the end user needs.
Global Caché president, Walt Keller, said he was "delighted" that support for the GC-100 range has been incorporated into Stardraw Control. "Stardraw Control's ability to automatically generate customer specific applications on-the-fly is truly a breakthrough technology, and is a very complementary product to ours. We believe the combination of our respective products will ensure that integrators a
UK - On 31 March 2004, the identification colours of electrical cables changed in order to harmonize with Europe and other countries. The Professional Lighting and Sound Association (PLASA), in association with Lighting&Sound International magazine, has now produced a guidance document and aide memoir card (included with the January issue of the magazine) on how to work safely during the two year transition from the old wiring colours to the new.
The document has been produced with a view to being established as a Best Practice Guide for the industry and has been created by a team of industry representatives. Please click here to view the document.
(Sarah Rushton-Read)
Italy - Allen & Heath's iDR DSP system has been installed in a new top fashion retail outlet opened by Spinazzè, in Noventa di Piave in the north-east of Italy. The owners requested a modern, cutting-edge system that would also be easy to manage by store staff. Salgareda-based Elettrostudio, was entrusted with the management of the audio installation, selecting Allen & Heath's iDR system and accompanying PL Series of remote controllers through the manufacturer's Italian distributor, Grisby Music srl.
There are six zones in the venue where the audio must be distributed - men's, women's, and children's departments, the admin offices, the dressing rooms, and the concourse outside the shop. Elettrostudio programmed the iDR system using the iDR System Manager and PL Designer software.
During opening hours, a music source is selected from CD, radio, or MP3 (via a PC). The iDR is programmed so that, at predetermined times, messages such as the opening and closing of the store, or sales promotions, are broadcast.
System parameters in individual areas, such as volume and source selection, can be controlled by staff using the PL-6 fader panel and PL-4 wall plate, as well as via PC, using the PL Client software. 'Live' announcements can also be made by staff through a paging system, which can be accessed via the PL remote control. During these announcements, the iDR is programmed to duck the music source automatically. "The owners are highly satisfied with the ease of use, the quality and the reliability of the whole installation," said Grisby's MD, Lorenzo Ben
UK / USA - Software provider Stardraw.com announced its most significant US expansion to date, with the establishment of a West Coast office in partnership with US distribution specialists, North American Pro Audio (NAPA). The move follows an extraordinary year for Stardraw, which has necessitated the provision of additional resources to serve and develop the US market. The partnership with NAPA, operating as Stardraw.com USA, will look after all Stardraw's customers within the US, Canada and Puerto Rico, and manage resellers and reps in the territory with effect from 1 January 2005.
In addition to handling all sales and front-line technical support, Stardraw.com USA will offer a comprehensive schedule of user training seminars across the US for 2005. Furthermore, support through Stardraw's toll-free number has now been expanded to operate between the hours of 9am Eastern to 6pm Pacific time. Stardraw.com USA will also benefit from NAPA's comprehensive rep network, thereby increasing access to and representation of Stardraw's product range across the territory.
Stardraw marketing director, Rob Robinson, welcomes the new arrangement, commenting: "We had such a phenomenal year in 2004 that it became clear that we should increase our resource base, and early indicators for 2005 suggest that this is definitely the right move at the right time. With its proven track record in high end pro audio distribution to the systems integration market, North American Pro Audio presented itself as the ideal distribution partner. Furthermore, the company's preferred modus ope
UK - Tower Productions' Oxford office received a late call to provide temporary power, heating and lighting to a series of marquees (from Field & Lawn) built within the Millennium Dome to house London's homeless over Christmas. With a site meeting on Wednesday in the week before Christmas, the job confirmed on the Thursday and the load-in starting on the Friday, this was something of a challenge at a very busy time of year, say the company.
As no fuel was allowed within the Dome, heating was provided by 36 18kW electric heaters (each requiring a 32A three-phase supply) from Tower's own stock and supplemented by others hired from Aggreko. Generation was by two 500kVA sets with 3900-gallon tanks, which powered four 400A three-phase distros from which approximately 3500m of mains cable of varying sizes supplied heating, lighting, site power and show power. Approximately 140 house and emergency light fittings were installed overnight prior to the marquee linings being hung the following day. The final challenge for the company was to clear the site (of everything) in one day on the 30 December.
(Lee Baldock)
UK - The presence of Sting at any opening gala is indicative of a significant event, if not a worthy cause. This gala was different; while Sting wasn't overshadowed, he was at pains to keep his presence muted for there was a bigger star on offer. The accolades heaped upon Newcastle College's School of Music and Performing Arts - the Performance Academy - are many: Britain's education inspectors, Ofsted, have repeatedly awarded it Grade 1 status. That alone is perhaps good enough reason for £21m to be spent on a new purpose-built home for the Academy in the college grounds on Rye Hill.
While the new building is not unattractive, you have to conclude that most of the cash has been spent on the interior. What resonates most strongly as you enter the atrium foyer is how little like an education establishment it feels, and how much it reflects the style of a typical modern performance venue. Peter Hardy, the Academy's leader of music, says: "We'll have something like 200 live shows here a year. Our theatre seats 250, while the music room is licenced for 300 standing." These new facilities for Newcastle appear timely, Hardy revealed that Newcastle's famous City Hall may need to close its doors to live shows as the Disability Discrimination Act comes into force, as they simply won't be able to make the required physical changes - an issue that must be haunting many UK venues presently.
Beside the two performance areas already mentioned, there is a 60-seat studio theatre, 10 recording studios, 10 rehearsal rooms, a television studio, nine sprung floor drama an