USA - There's a grandMA2 in the house for Wicked, the Broadway musical about the untold story of the Witches of Oz. The long-running show at the Gershwin Theatre recently switched to a grandMA2 full-size console for lighting and special effects control.

"It was time to replace our previous system due to its age, and it made sense to update to a grandMA2," says Brendan Quigley, show electrician. "All of the Wicked shows worldwide are on the grandMA platform, so it was our turn to move up. The grandMA2 is proving to be both agile and rock solid."

India - Within days of the launch of DiGiCo's SD10 console in 2010, Indian rental company Sound.com had invested in one, its first DiGiCo console. Two years on, the desk is a regular fixture on events serviced by the company, the latest an orchestral tour celebrating the work of composer AR Rahman.

Purchased via DiGiCo's Indian distributor Rivera International, the SD10 was "the ideal product to give Sound.com the edge in the competitive Indian market".

"I always wanted to be a part of the DiGiCo family, but we wanted to invest in a product which is right at the begin

Japan - The idea of providing even audio coverage for Tokyo Dome's massive 55,000 seats - without the need for delays - has always been the holy grail of incoming production teams.

Finally this dream became a reality - when the Martin Audio MLA Multi-cellular Loudspeaker Array made its debut there recently, supporting one of Asia's most successful acts, TVXQ (an abbreviation of their Chinese name, Tong Vfang Xien Qi).

Major rental company, MSI Japan had chosen this venue for the début of its new MLA system - supporting the Korean electronica pop star sensations (now a duo fea

Australia - After Aussie rock legend Cold Chisel's rapturously received best-of arena shows of last year, they played a few intimate shows at venues such as the Festival Hall in Melbourne where sound engineer Greg Rosman utilised the in-house JBL VerTec PA system.

Not exactly big news except Rosman had a powerful new weapon in his arsenal - JBL V5 VerTec presets courtesy of the new Crown VRACK, a complete amplifier management rack system solution. The VRACK features three built-in Crown I-Tech 12000HD amplifiers, immediately providing an easy-to-configure, plug-and-play solution that

UK - RCF has confirmed the sale of its first D-Line HDL 20-A active line array system in the UK to Leicestershire-based Chameleon Pro Audio & Lighting Ltd.

Given the vast spectrum of events for which the company provides production support, Stewart Duckworth's long-standing sales, rental and installation operation sensed the time was right to invest in its own line array system after previously hiring in. As a result, this month they took delivery of an initial 12 HDL 20-A full range enclosures and four SUB 8006-AS subwoofers from RCF UK - and believe this is just the beginning.

Bas

Ireland / UK - Irish electronic act, The Japanese Popstars, selected an Allen & Heath ZED-420 USB mixer as the permanent mixer in their tour set up.

"Allen & Heath is a music industry stalwart and well trusted by many producers and performers. We have previously used the MixWizard with great results, one of which was our first BBC Radio One live performance as part of 'In New DJ's We Trust', so you could imagine our excitement when we got our hands on the ZED-420," explains band member, Gary Curran.

The Japanese Popstars have toured with the ZED mixer for the past year, pl

USA / Netherlands - Sensaphonics and Elcea, the Netherlands-based specialist in custom hearing solutions under the Elacin brand, have reached an agreement whereby Elcea will manufacture Sensaphonics custom-fit sleeves for Shure earphones in the European market.

"We are very pleased to be working with Elcea," says Sensaphonics president and founder, Dr. Michael Santucci, Au.D. "Our companies share a common heritage and mission: to provide our customers a safe, high fidelity listening experience without compromise. Now European users of Shure SE Series earphones can get t

UK - A very busy start to 2012 has resulted in West Midlands- based video and AV specialist Central Presentations Ltd. (CPL) making substantial investments in its audio and AV departments.

In keeping with the company's commitment to premium brands and being able to offer its clients the most innovative technologies, the very latest Panasonic HD projectors have been ordered to add to hire stock, together with a range of Sony HD broadcast cameras plus d&b's compact T Series line array sound systems - all to service CPL's on-going live event work.

The inventory of HD Panasonic projecto

Singapore - Following the success of a similar event in the UK, Lab.gruppen and Lake have announced plans to hold a training and certification event in Singapore on 21 & 22 June (during SLV Expo 2012), in partnership with local distributor Team 108 Technical Services Pte Ltd. The training programme is designed to introduce key aspects of Lab.gruppen and Lake technologies and develop user familiarity with the companies' industry-leading tour sound hardware and software platforms.

The introductory 'Level 1' Certification course, being held at SLV Expo near Changi Airport, will introduce

Italy - For the 23rd consecutive year, a crowd reportedly in excess of 750,000 packed Rome's Piazza San Giovanni for the traditional 1May concert, amplified for the first time in 15 years by an Italian sound reinforcement system - Outline's GTO.

For the event's producer, Anyway srl, Rome's Limelite provided audio, lighting, video and the huge set for the eight-hour event, aired live by state broadcaster Rai.

On either side of the set, the main system comprised 15 GTO hung below three GTO-LOW, plus an array of eight GTO-SUBs alongside. On the ground in front of the stage, 12 Lab 21 H

France - The Château du Rivau in the Loire Valley is said to be one of the most important medieval monuments of the Touraine region of France. With its majestic keep, protective drawbridge and picturesque towers, the Château du Rivau looks as if it has come straight out of a fairytale.

In 1992, when the chateau was in danger of falling into ruin, the current owners undertook a massive restoration campaign to restore Rivau to its former glory. This also included the magnificent gardens and the legendary stables where medieval warhorses were bred and raised, and where Joan of Arc hers

Germany - From 24-26 April, Straubing was the venue for Dynacord's latest International ProLive Academy. The Dynacord team led by Frauke Jungbluth (sales manager Dynacord Europe), Martin Traut (senior product manager) and Andreas Köstlinger (tech support) welcomed 23 participants - pro audio experts from France, Sweden, Hungary, Serbia, Slovenia, Bosnia and the United Kingdom - to the event.

The principal theme of the seminars on this occasion was provided by Dynacord's newly introduced Vertical Array systems, which were examined in detail. As was the case at this year's Prolight+Sou

Germany / UK - To celebrate its 88th Anniversary beyerdynamic has refined its DT770 PRO headphones with a special 32 Ohm edition, optimised for mobile devices.

The DT770 PRO headphone has been a professional audio industry standard for more than 20 years. While the new 770 PRO 32 Ohm anniversary edition satisfies even the highest studio requirements, it is also compatible with smartphones, MP3 players, tablets, laptops and PC soundcards, says the company.

Like its bestselling 80 Ohm and 250 Ohm twins, this special 32 Ohm version is hand-made in Germany complete with a black soft-ski

USA - This Easter saw 4000 people in attendance at the Journey of Faith outdoor service, where a dBTechnologies DVA T4 line array provided the sound for the Californian church worshippers on Manhattan Beach. Supplied by sound, lighting & stage company Broadcast Support Inc, the success of the event has ensured the team is now the Journey of Faith vendor of choice for future lighting, sound and stage events.

Comprising four groups of three DVA T4 on top of three S09 subs in a cardiod formation, and a further 8 DVX DM12 wedges as monitors, the PA did an great job according to Anthony Ga

UK - Crestron has announced a new appointment to its growing team. Helen Badger has been appointed as commercial business development manager, concentrating her efforts on growing Crestron's business within the commercial market.

"The Commercial market is a significant part of Crestron's activities." Says Phil Breitschadel, UK sales manager at Crestron. "It is important for us to maintain our involvement in this sector and continue to grow and develop it, which is why I am really looking forward to Helen joining the Crestron team. Helen's new role will ensure that we co

UK - ATEÏS Europe has restructured its operations in the UK and appointed a new partner to handle exclusive distribution of its public address (PA) and voice alarm (VA) products and systems. Leading professional and commercial audio distributor Fuzion will take over responsibility for the ATEÏS product lines in the UK and Republic of Ireland. The ATEÏS UK office has now closed but Fuzion will be building on the work already done and expanding the range of services for the PA/VA market.

Fuzion is among the best-known audiovisual companies in the UK and represents some of the key man

USA - Union Transfer is Philadelphia's newest midsize music space - a former Spaghetti Warehouse restaurant that's been transformed into one of the city's most dynamic live venues. Opening its doors in the fall of 2011, this general-admission hall comes complete with multiple bars, ample stage viewing angles, sky-high ceilings, a warehouse vibe, and a movable stage with expandable capacity and state-of-the-art lighting and sound.

Tom George of Eighth Day Sound configured a flexible system for the venue that they could grow into - an SD8-36 at FOH, SD8-24 at monitors and a D Rack - one

USA - With the installation of Audica Professional's MICROseries audio system at Fresh's flagship Union Square location in New York City, the high-end lifestyle and beauty store "gains a powerful, compact sound system that matches their design aesthetic and enhances the experience of customers by encouraging them to shop to the beat".

"Since we opened our first location in Boston in 1991, music has always been an essential element of the shopping experience at Fresh," says co-founder Alina Roytberg. In fact, Fresh updates its musical content programming on a monthl

World - High End Systems products play an instrumental role in Tangerine Dream's spring/summer Electric Mandarine Tour 2012. The German electronic music group, founded in 1967, has become internationally known not only for their mind-entrancing music concerts but also for their film soundtracks.

LD Andreas Fink, from Austria's Preworks, specified two High End Systems DL.3 Digital Lights and two Showgun 2.5 and two Showbeam 2.5 automated luminaires. He's controlling the rig with a Road Hog Full Boar with Road Hog Full Boar Playback Wing including DMX Extension Kit. The gear come

USA - To strengthen its market position further in the Americas, DPA Microphones has chosen Eric Mayer to serve as president of the company's US operations. A fixture in the pro audio industry for more than two decades, Mayer will utilise his expertise in the market to help the company continue its growth stateside.

"I am very excited to be working with a high-quality brand like DPA Microphones, which develops innovative products that are standouts in the industry," says Mayer. "For most of my professional career, I participated in the growth and development of another

Switzerland - Barix has successfully marketed its two-way Annuncicom IP audio and SIP/VoIP devices around the world, bringing bidirectional audio streaming and control solutions to various markets within the commercial, entertainment, private sector and residential worlds.

Barix now builds on that success with the introduction of two new Annuncicom devices at InfoComm 2012 (June 13-15, Las Vegas Convention Centre, Booth C11722) that are priced to compete in large-volume projects and applications.

The new Annuncicom 50 is built specifically for OEM applications. Barix is now shipping

UK - Allen & Heath's Irish distributor, Rea Sound, recently provided all the lighting and sound equipment for the new Metropolitan Arts Centre (MAC) in Belfast, installing iLive and iDR digital mixing systems throughout the venue.

"iLive is a very powerful mixer with an easy to use interface. Even a technician who is new to digital can easily find their way around this console. The MAC is one of the most prestigious arts venues in Ireland with a variety of acts from across the world using its facilities. The audio consoles provide the venue with a very credible audio infrastructu

USA - Renkus Heinz has announced two major changes to their sales management force.

Industry veteran Phil Van Peborgh has joined the company as Eastern regional sales manager, while technical sales manager Ladd Temple has been promoted to Western regional sales manager.

Van Peborgh comes to Renkus-Heinz after several years as a manufacturers' representative with Highway Marketing and TechRep. He also founded and was director of marketing for social media portal Knetwit.com, and was general manager of video games magazine Polygon.

Prior to moving to the US in 2000, Van Peborgh spen

South Africa - The 13th Cape Town International Jazz Festival was held at the ICC on 3-4 April 2012. The event kicked off with a Free Community Concert held a few days prior to the event. Various South African rental companies worked on the festival days.

The Free Community Concert was hosted at Green Market Square on the 28 March and boasted the largest crowd to date. The concert is part of the build-up to the CTIJF and features some of the top headliners that also perform at the Jazz Festival. C&S Audio provided the full technical, where the biggest challenge, due to the event takin

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