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03 December 2024

UK - Performances of Pergolesi’s 1735 three-act opera L’Olimpiade were staged in the grounds of The Vache, a Grade II*-listed estate in Chalfont St. Giles, recently.

A cast of seven members of operatic company Vache Baroque (plus narrator) delivered Pergolesi’s arias under the sensitive direction of Laura Attridge, while the 17-piece orchestra, led by Jonathan Darbourne, helped deliver a playful interpretation of this Olympics-style story, from authentic early music instruments.

However, the real breakthrough was the immersive soundscape created for audiences of up to 200 per performance, seated al fresco under a stretch canopy, which simulated a purpose-built concert hall. This was achieved by judicious use of reverb and delay. Tricking the senses was the TiMax SoundHub spatial reinforcement, guided by TiMax TrackerD4 stage trackers w

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03 December 2024

Europe - After production rehearsals in Copenhagen’s Royal Arena, Kygo kicked off his current European tour with four dates in Denmark, Sweden and Norway before heading into central and southern Europe.

“We’ve just finished a run through his home market in Scandinavia and it pretty much sold out,” said production manager Joel Stanley. “Kygo has developed musically as a performer, though remained rooted in his own personality; he’s much the same person he was ten years ago. That's a strength.” That said, the tour is tinged with a certain sadness, as Stanley explains.

“Neg Earth is providing the lights, the production design is by Rob Sinclair with Lorcam Clarke running the show. Solotech is providing PA with Kygo’s long-time FOH engineer Eds John at the faders. For video providers Video Design it has proved a very poignant start. The

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03 December 2024

USA - We Belong Here has been uniting EDM lovers on Miami's Virginia Key Beach for the past three years, and has now hosted its first-ever festival experience in New York City amid Central Park’s lush greenery and panoramic skyline views.

Held October 4-6 at historic Wollman Rink, design collective Datum Creative built a fully immersive 360° experience for festival-goers, including a stunning visual tribute to the city’s skyline using Elation Pulse Bar strobe and effect lights. 

The We Belong Here festival, known for offering an intimate, distraction-free music experience with its ‘no video’ policy, provided Datum Creative the opportunity to design a stage that was as visually impactful as the panoramic views surrounding it. On the southern end of Central Park, the lighting and production team utilised a series of 26 staggered trus

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03 December 2024

USA - Optic8 and Trilogy Studios have opened a virtual production facility in Dallas, Texas, powered by Brompton Technology’s Tessera SX40 LED processors and Absen’s high-performance LED screens.

This facility comprises three advanced production stages: a main cinematic volume designed for film and TV, a specialised car process stage, and a smaller stage tailored for commercials and music videos.

Optic8 and Trilogy Studios have been very pleased with the Brompton lineup. “We test and re-test so many products out there, and we bring those results to our clients,” says Dan Kretz, Optic8 founder. “Trilogy Studios was impressed with everything from the ease of use, the customisation capabilities and colour accuracy, to the ability to do Genlock and multi-camera virtual production shoots – Trilogy Studios was very excited to go with Brompton.

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03 December 2024

UK - The Last Dinner Party, the all-female quintet winners of the Brits Rising Star honour at this year’s Brit Awards, wraps their theatrical sound around a flamboyant stage persona. For the band’s current tour, Ed Warren has delivered a show that engages the audience with distinctive flourishes.

The backdrop was adorned with a crescent moon and velvety clouds. It was hand painted by artist Beth Quinton, then scanned and digitally printed onto cloth with a definition so fine that it looks like a highly textured, hand-painted work.

Warren accents this beguiling backdrop with a variety of lighting effects that shade the image it projects. But, at other times, he blocks it out altogether with brilliant outpourings of light. “Just because a backdrop is there doesn’t mean you need to light it the whole time,” he observed. “A blackout moment is

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03 December 2024

USA - Rolling Hills Covenant Church (RHCC) in California was founded in 1957 and dedicated its first church building in 1959. Following the sustained growth of its congregation during the 1960s and ‘70s, the Church constructed a larger worship centre which is now the main focus of its Rolling Hills Estates campus.

During the 1980s, RHCC expanded its emphasis on the arts as part of Christian worship, with a strong focus on the role of musical excellence in services. Setting high standards of music performance demands audio quality to match, and during a recent remodelling of its main gathering space, which saw new seating and stage layouts, the Church undertook an overhaul of its technical systems, including provision for a new sound system.

RHCC director of technical arts ministries, Brian Johnson, engaged with Scott Ramsey of AV installation speci

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03 December 2024

USA - Robe returns to Las Vegas for LDI 2024 where the moving light manufacturer will be launching two new products, the T.5 Profile – a smaller version of the T1 – and the LedPointe, the new LED member of the Pointe family.

Also highlighted are four more new products seen for the first time at a US trade show – the iForte Fresnel, the Painte Fresnel, the SVOPATT and the SVB1.

Robe’s new expo live show, The Fifth Dimension, features ‘three live performers, jaw-dropping action and plenty of imagination’.

Robe’s other businesses – architectural and LED lighting manufacturer Anolis; UK-based lighting console and media server manufacturer Avolites; Australian-based power distribution gurus LSC Control Systems; and lighting control and integration solutions specialist Artistic License – will all be located on adjacent st

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03 December 2024

USA - Hive, a specialist media control manufacturer, is making its debut at LDI 2024. The show will serve as the stage for Hive’s latest innovation, Nucleus, a compact, rack-mountable 1U media player designed ‘to redefine affordability and scalability in live events and fixed installations’. Hive will exhibit alongside its exclusive distributor, Show Sage, at booth 2123, where attendees can experience live product demonstrations and explore the Hive ecosystem.

The Nucleus media player combines powerful functionality with a sleek, portable design, featuring a 1U rack-mountable chassis with dual SDM sockets that support all of Hive’s Beeblade computing modules, including Minima, Osmia and Pluto.

Built with a machined aluminium chassis, the Nucleus is engineered to withstand the rigours of touring while maintaining the portability and reliabilit

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03 December 2024

USA - Mega-Lite will showcase its latest products at the LDI Show. Visit Mega Systems at booth #2283, next to the Circle Bar, for the launch of five new products from the Mega-Lite family and the latest innovations from Mega Systems Inc.

Guillermo Cabada, head of marketing at Mega-Lite, said: "We are excited to be part of this year’s LDI and can’t wait to see all our customers and friends. We look forward to creating new friendships as we release five new products this year.”

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03 December 2024

USA/Europe - City Theatrical’s DMXcat-E is now shipping. The device is an expansion to City Theatrical’s DMXcat Multi Function Test Tool system of solutions that allows for Ethernet control of a lighting fixture.

In addition to all the functions DMXcat users currently enjoy, including utilisation of the DMXcat free smartphone application for iPhone and Android to plan, install, operate, and maintain theatrical and studio lighting equipment, DMXcat-E allows users to view and send Ethernet protocols, including ArtNet and Streaming ACN (sACN).

The DMXcat-E also allows users to perform cable testing of five-pin XLR and Ethernet cables. DMXcat-E can read SMPTE timecode as well as MIDI timecode and regular MIDI for audio and other entertainment projects. DMXcat-E allows for bookmarking of timecode as well as the ability to save a file for sharing and n

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03 December 2024

Artistic Freedom - Theatres, opera and dance companies from across the European Union have warned the European parliament that "brazen attacks on artistic freedom" are posing an existential threat to creativity across the continent. Almost 250 artists and 178 cultural institutions from every EU nation are represented in the open letter to the parliament, which is also backed by UK figures including Battersea Arts Centre’s head of programming Pelin Başaran, reports The Stage.

The European Theatre Convention, Opera Europa, the Prospero – Extended Theatre platform, German and Swedish theatre academies and the national theatres of countries including Slovakia, Albania, Greece and Croatia are among those raising the alarm about an "orchestrated cultural-political strategy aimed at the disappearance of a diverse European culture".

According t

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02 December 2024

Europe - The ADJ Group of Companies has expanded its European headquarters in Kerkrade, the Netherlands. The ADJ Group includes ADJ Lighting, Acclaim Lighting, Duratruss, Elation and Obsidian Control Systems.

The new three-story Hall 4 building connects to the company’s existing facility and is now home to expanded R&D, QC, Service and Spare Parts departments. This substantial investment has been made to better serve customers through increased order processing capacity, expanded quality control, improved logistics, enhanced service, and ultimately greater innovation. Demonstrating the company’s commitment to the environment, the new building also features an extensive solar power installation capable of generating a large proportion of the electricity required to run the entire site.

“This is a significant project for the ADJ Group in Euro

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02 December 2024

UK - Billed as “the most diverse music meeting in the world”, WOMEX (Worldwide Music Expo) is an international music event, renowned for staging a vibrant annual gathering of music professionals and music enthusiasts. WOMEX features live music, films, a trade fair, panel discussions and presentations in a different European location every year, showcasing breakthrough artists and talent from around the globe.

2024 was the 30th anniversary of the WOMEX Festival event, and it was brought to Manchester, UK by host partner Manchester Music City, where locally based creative audio specialists Tube uk provided sound systems and engineering services for the four largest live performance stages.

Says Tube uk’s Melvyn Coote: “We were hugely excited to be asked onboard for this event in our home city and to work with some incredible line-ups and musici

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02 December 2024

USA - The Dub Stage in Burbank, CA recently relocated and took the opportunity to fully outfit the facility with a Meyer Sound loudspeaker system. Marti D. Humphrey, CEO and chief re-recording mixer, invited various mixers and producers to The Dub Stage to audition the system. Humphrey said: “Everybody was absolutely blown away by the quality and the dynamics of the system.”

The system comprises 25 Meyer Sound cinema loudspeaker products, driven by two Galileo processors. The loudspeakers consist of three Acheron Designer loudspeakers for left, centre, and right. Six X‑400C compact cinema subwoofers are for LFE, and LCR extended low frequencies are complemented with USW‑210P compact narrow subwoofers for additional bass management.

For the top and side surround channels, Humphrey chose 14 Ultra‑X23 compact wide coverage loudspeakers. Two MP

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02 December 2024

Brazil - Laroc Guarujá, the newest addition to the Laroc Club brand, has quickly earned its place among the leading venues for electronic music. The club’s Valinhos unit was ranked the 10th best club globally in 2024 by DJ Mag.

With its second unit in Guarujá, the brand continues its mission of delivering ‘unparalleled experiences’ to its 3,000-strong audience, blending ‘open-air design, natural surroundings, and cutting-edge production’.

According to the club’s official website, Laroc Guarujá is one of the only Brazilian clubs with a small boat pier, offering access via the Guarujá-Bertioga road or the Bertioga canal. Its diverse artistic profile ensures a varied range of musical genres – from mainstream to underground, progressive house to trance – allowing each night to have its distinct character.

Laroc Guaruj

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29 November 2024

Europe - The Pixera media server by AV Stumpfl is the backbone of Projektil’s latest Eonarium tour, an immersive projection mapping project that merges digital artistry with historic architecture across 30 churches and cultural sites in Europe.

AV Stumpfl’s real-time media processing, compositing and management system seamlessly handles the stunning visuals that bring these sacred spaces to life, transforming each venue into a canvas of light and sound.

The Eonarium Experiences tour, organised by the Zurich-based Projektil artist collective, comprises a series of immersive 360° light and sound shows in historic churches across Europe. Each 30- to 45-minute experience transforms the sacred places with digital artistry, transporting audiences into magnificent visual journeys that honour both the locations and the art.

By

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29 November 2024

Belgium - Housed in a magnificent former bank building, the renowned Belga Queen restaurant in central Brussels is now under new management, and recently underwent a complete renovation.

An important part of the Belga Queen’s renovation was the provision of a new audio system. The new management was keen to match its investment in the refurbishment with an audio solution befitting of the venue’s high-end values, and engaged experienced AV specialists FOL Sound, Light and Vision to design and supply a system.

Iwan Fol of FOL Sound, Light and Vision recommended a system based on the CM-Series, Pioneer Pro Audio range of commercial loudspeakers. FOL has successfully deployed the CM-Series on many occasions, taking advantage of the range’s warm, sound and sleek design, to discreetly enhance the atmosphere of a number of high-end hospitality venues.

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29 November 2024

Europe - KLANG’s immersive mix capabilities made touring with Berlin band The BossHoss a trouble-free experience for sound engineer Manuel Knigge, with the whole tour benefitting from immersive mixes via the DMI-KLANG expansion card, installed in their DiGiCo SD12. Monitor mix intelligibility improved and band members were instantly more comfortable with their mixes, providing Knigge with a smooth and efficient workflow that freed him from extensive sound checks at every venue the band visited during their summer of outside events.

“Summer tours can involve a lot of different styles of venue, one night we would be in a field, the next a tent. Before using KLANG, we had to work really hard to get the mixes right for every space,” Knigge recalls. “We would make adjustments at sound check, but then the audience would come in and change the acoustics, so

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29 November 2024

USA - The landmark Genesee Theatre in Waukegan, Illinois has installed a Meyer Sound Panther system, marking a major upgrade to its nearly century-old tradition of live entertainment.

Originally opened in 1927 as a grand movie palace, the 2,400-seat venue, owned by the city of Waukegan and managed by the nonprofit Friends of the Historic Genesee Theatre, shifted focus in recent years to present concert-heavy programming that called for a more robust sound system.

The theatre’s Meyer Sound M2D system, installed in 2004, was designed for musicals, speaking events, and films. But as the venue hosted more concerts, it bolstered the installed system with rental equipment.

Integrator TC Furlong, in collaboration with Meyer Sound and Genesee’s skilled union crew, designed and installed a powerful new Panther sound system that delivers an audio e

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29 November 2024

UK - WSDG will participate in the 12th annual Stadium Business Design & Development Summit. A global forum for innovators shaping the future of sports and entertainment venues, this event will take place at Emirates Old Trafford, Manchester, from 2-4 December, 2024.

The summit will bring together a diverse audience, including international project delegations from stadiums, arenas, and entertainment destinations, alongside leading architects, engineers, consultants, and sector specialists. Over three days, attendees will explore the latest innovations in venue design, construction, and technology, while taking full advantage of networking and collaboration opportunities.

WSDG’s extensive portfolio encompasses celebrated projects across sports stadiums, performance venues, and entertainment destinations worldwide.

Representing W