USA - After a two-year, pandemic-related wait, The Weeknd’s 19-date After Hours Til Dawn Tour surpassed even the loftiest expectations. This was plain to see (and hear) from the moment the stage erupted in light, and The Weeknd appeared dressed in black and wearing a mask to begin his show with a hauntingly evocative rendition of Alone Again.
Supporting The Weeknd during his transformative two-hour set was an immersive light and video show that featured over 1,100 fixtures and a 180ft video wall supplied by Solotech.
Solotech account executive Robert Kennedy and his team accomplished this feat by drawing on global resources. The resultant lighting and video rig was a key part of a production design.
Going beyond scenery, the design created an actual ‘c

UK - HH Electronics has announced the launch of its fully-featured SP26 and SP48 digital loudspeaker management systems.
The SP26 is a fully featured 2-IN/6-OUT digital speaker management system with two analogue inputs and six analogue outputs, each managed by a powerful DSP engine. Each input channel provides PEQ, gain control, dynamic low boost, noise gate function, RMS compressor, internal white/pink noise generator, and configurable delay. Each output offers up to 7 PEQ and crossover filters. Easy setup features intuitive front panel controls and an interactive LCD display for local setup, or a dedicated PC control interface for remote monitoring and configuration via USB or RS485.
For applications requiring more inputs and outputs, the SP48 4-IN/8-OUT offers four analogue inputs and eight analogue outputs, each managed by a powerful DSP Engine. Each input channel

France - Internationally acclaimed Franco-Brazilian photographer Sebastião Salgado is showing Amazônia, his seven-years-in-the-making photographic journey into the still-unspoiled heart of the world’s greatest and most awe-inspiring wilderness.
Salgado’s work is fittingly celebrated at the Amazônia Exhibition at Palais des Papes in Avignon, which runs until 30 November. Designed by Lélia Wanick Salgado and accompanied by evocative music from Jean-Michel Jarre specifically written for the occasion, this experience features over 200 black & white photographs that reflect the striking complexity and beauty of the Amazon.
Enhancing the power of the exhibit and making it even more transformative is a balanced lighting design by RT Events that features 166 Chauvet Professional fixtures.
Subtle and discrete, their lighting manages to add to the exhibi

UK - With 35 years’ experience in the corporate events sector, the people at MSP Global know all about the need to adapt. But when Covid brought the industry screaming to a halt, the Liverpool-based events services company overcame its biggest challenge yet, remaining afloat by successfully pivoting to become one of the north-west’s busiest lockdown live streaming facilities.
Now, with the events business roaring back, company founder and MD Colin Reader is ready to write the next chapter in the MSP Global story, investing in new inventory and backing a highly experienced team to build on a prestigious client list that already includes Matalan, Speedy Services, United Utilities, Santander, Monster Energy and Everton Football Club.
“We started looking to upgrade our sound equipment inventory before Covid hit, and I’d always remembered what a strong product Nexo

USA/Europe - The music of Phoebe Bridgers has been captivating an ever-growing fanbase since her first album release in 2017, with lighting designer Spike Kienholz Inglis of Spike Design having been lighting the artist since those early days.
The LA-based singer / songwriter released her second album, Punisher, in 2020. With live events and touring disrupted at the time due to covid, she is now mid-way through a 2022 world tour which started in the US, before moving to Europe for a festival blast through the summer, and ultimately culminating in a UK headliner tour.
For the US leg of the tour, Spike specified a full Robe moving light rig – with 24 x MegaPointes, 24 x Spiiders, 16 x Tetra1s and six Fortes – all supplied by Gateway Studios & Production from St Louis.
Spike first encountered Robe’s products whilst touring Europe in 2014 and has be

UK - The untimely passing of Foo Fighters’ drummer, Taylor Hawkins, left the music industry in a state of shock, with some even speculating as to whether the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees would ever perform again.
However the remaining members decided – with the blessing of Hawkins’ family – to hold two all-star concerts in tribute to their late friend, colleague and bandmate, which were held at London’s Wembley Stadium on 3 September and the Kia Forum in Los Angeles on 27 September.
Britannia Row Productions, which has supplied audio equipment and crew to the Foo Fighters global touring activities for over two decades, were trusted to deliver audio reinforcement for this pair of mammoth televised shows.
The six-hour marathon concert at Wembley Stadium was curated with a stellar line-up of artists to honour Hawkins’ life, including Liam Gallag

UK - Alex Barrand has been appointed sales manager EMEA at Optimal Audio. An experienced audio professional with an impressive background in audio engineering, design and installation, Alex cut his teeth on a number of large-scale festival installs before taking up the position of head of production at the Ministry of Sound.
During this period, he co-designed the main room sound system with Martin Audio and gained valuable experience in the management of technical requests and budgets. In 2011 he moved to take up a global management position with Pioneer Pro Audio.
“Opportunities to be involved in helping to develop a brand from its very early stages are few and far between and not to be missed,” says Barrand. “Optimal Audio’s approach to commercial audio places the emphasis on harnessing cutting-edge technology to help deliver solutions that are easy to operat

UK - Birmingham-based event services partner Taylex Group has unveiled its new look to mark significant post-pandemic growth and expansion of its event and exhibition services.
During 15 years of continued expansion, Taylex Group’s team has been synonymous with the delivery of exhibitions and event builds for the likes of Kawasaki, Raleigh, Commonwealth Games 2022 and BST in Hyde Park. Following post-COVID reflection, the business is now primed to enter 2023 with an evolved, expanded range of services and solutions.
The all-new Taylex Group offers full in-house CAD and technical expertise, production and fabrication of state-of-the-art special projects, events, interiors, environments, design and exhibitions.
A supportive and collaborative approach is taken with all clients, reflected by the launch of Taylex located at the NEC, providing modular solutions for
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Italy - On Saturday 24 September, the Italian fashion house Salvatore Ferragamo held its Spring-Summer 2023 show at the Portrait Milan Hotel, a 17th-Century former seminary in the city that has long been the centre of Italian fashion – and, by extension, of world fashion.
The central courtyard of the baroque building was covered with a layer of sand dyed in the same vivid red colour that is now the Ferragamo house colour, and which also filled the arches around the courtyard. The contrast between the classical location and the bright modernity of the clothes on view could not have been sharper.
In the centre of the courtyard, also forming a clear contrast with the building, its red decor and the new fashion collection, stood a circle of GUIL lifters, eight ULK 500 towers holding the speaker system that provided the music as the models walked across the sand.
T

Spain - Estopa, one of Spain’s most popular rock/rumba bands, have been touring the country for much of 2022. With many venues sold out, their Fuego tour has been a roaring success. Sixteen Showtec Sunstrips have been used as part of the lighting setup throughout the tour. They were supplied by Fluge Audiovisuales, who were responsible for the tour’s sound, lighting and AV equipment.
After performing a few dates in the USA earlier this year, Estopa have played more than 20 dates throughout Spain. The Fuego tour was originally planned to go ahead in 2019 and 2020 to support the release of the album that bears the same name but, due to the global pandemic, the tour dates in 2020 had to be scrapped.
Consisting of brothers José and David Muñoz, Estopa have now been successful for over two decades. In addition to touring Spain, they have played in the U

USA - Main Light increased its rental inventory of Ayrton lighting fixtures with the purchase of a large complement of versatile new Zonda 9 FX fixtures. The company currently has offices in Delaware, Tennesse, and Las Vegas, with a fourth location coming February 2023 to Teterboro, NJ. Main Light has seen a steady demand for its Ayrton Perseo, Khamsin and Diablo fixtures, which were acquired during the past two years from ACT Entertainment, the exclusive distributor of Ayrton lighting in North America.
Main Light’s acquisition of Zonda 9 FX represents one of the first investments by a US company in the luminaire. Designed for a multitude of applications, Zonda 9 FX is the first in a new family of products for stage lighting equipped with a high-performance 40W LED source with RGB+W additive colour synthesis. Zonda’s LED/optical system combination can produce a powerful

USA - A combination of pandemic exigencies and shortages means tours often have to be ready to move at a moment’s notice. That was the case for the first week-plus of theatre dates in the Midwest to kick off The Manhattan Transfer's 50th Anniversary & Final World Tour. The Grammy award–winning vocal group was founded in 1969 and has explored a cappella, vocalese, swing, standards, Brazilian jazz, rhythm and blues, pop music, and more in that half-century span.
But as the foursome prepared for the initial dates their 50th Anniversary outing last August and September, circumstances compelled them to hit the road with the barest minimum of tech rehearsal. And when you’ll be traveling with a 24-piece big band - in this case the DIVA Jazz Orchestra who are backing The Manhattan Transfer - it’s quite a balancing act. That’s where the DiGiCo Quantum225 console came in

UAE - Slated as the largest indoor health and fitness club in Dubai, offering world-class facilities over 75,000sq.ft, the new Wellfit gym has been fitted out with a Martin Audio sound reinforcement solution.
Located in Jumeirah Village Circle (JVC), this latest mammoth facility, situated on level 2 of the Circle Mall, features 200 of the British manufacturer’s loudspeakers, spanning several different ranges.
It is the second such sports, health, and fitness centre in the UAE opened by operators Arada, following the successful community pilot in Sharjah last year.
The sound is broadcast through the main activity zones via Martin Audio’s popular CDD series. These coaxial differential dispersion loudspeakers were installed by local partners, Pro Lab, to a specification by Pulse Middle East, who were responsible for the design and build of the venue. They form p

Switzerland - The St. Jakob Park in Basel, locally referred to as ‘Joggeli, has a long history. The largest stadium in Switzerland is a new construction managed by architects Herzog & de Meuron. After several extensions, St. Jakob Park is one of the first multifunctional venues in Switzerland with apartments, a shopping centre, restaurants, department stores, and is also a UEFA Category 4 stadium.
During the most recent modernisation in 2020 and 2021, the owner, FC Basel 1893 renewed the entire sound system with RCF sound systems. The under-balcony PA system and the entire grandstand PA system have been upgraded with RCF loudspeakers. Power amplifiers and audio matrix systems have also been replaced. In particular, the client chose passive systems of the HL, HVL, and P series from the Italian manufacturer to renew and improve the sound experience.
Since the moder

Germany - Kramer has announced its distribution partnership in Germany with Exertis Pro AV, headquartered in Uhingen.
With this new partnership, Exertis Pro AV will be able to market Kramer's entire portfolio while delivering the most intuitive audio-visual experiences through its wide network of resellers, integrators, planners and architects in Germany. Customers will now have access to a dedicated team offering reliable support that drives the business forward.
Marc Issan, global VP sales at Kramer, said: "Partnering with a distributor as credible and professional as Exertis Pro AV makes me excited for the future of this collaboration. With each other’s help, customers in Germany will gain access to Kramer’s secure and reliable AV products while experiencing seamless support from Exertis Pro AV through innovative audio-visual experiences that power creativity,

France - L-Acoustics has announced the creation of a new sales organisation focused on sales strategy, business development, and building territorial sales channels.
Under the general management of L-Acoustics CEO Laurent Vaissié, the team will be spread across three divisions: Sales and Sales Operations will focus on developing regional sales channels; the Business Development team will concentrate on developing commercial expertise and end-user outreach in key vertical markets; and the Strategy Leadership team will develop mid- to long-term go-to-markets strategies and key partnerships as well as manage resource planning and market intelligence.
The new organisation emerges with the retirement of executive director of business development Jochen Frohn who, for the last 14 years, has set the vision for the global sales team. Frohn has created a legacy of performance

France - Arbane Groupe will again be exhibiting at JTSE trade fair in Paris (22-23 November, Dock Pullman). Amongst the latest products and solutions from the French audio manufacturer brands APG and Active Audio, one show highlight will be APG’s NESS, the free spatialisation software.
JTSE visitors will get a chance to discover the benefits of NESS first-hand before the solution is presented to a wider international audience at next year’s ISE.
Available to download from the new-look Arbane Groupe website, NESS enables entertainment and corporate venue operators, including bars and nightclubs, theatres and conference rooms, to enter the world of immersive sound.
With NESS, APG aims to offer a robust, reliable spatialisation solution based on established, proven audio algorithms and principles. APG’s ambition is to create a thriving community of users arou

USA - Elation expected a busy LDI 2022. Their booth was crowded from the minute the show opened on Friday at the Las Vegas Convention Centre and lighting pros continued to make their way to the booth to talk lighting and demo Elation, Obsidian and Magmatic products throughout the weekend. The Elation team was excited to be back at the show after a three-year hiatus.
“We had a fantastic show,” enthused Elation director of sales & marketing, Eric Loader. “We expected a lot of contact and interest from customers leading up to the show so the crowded booth didn’t surprise us in the least. It was great to see so many faces again, both our faithful partners and customers but also the many new faces and contacts we made. The attention on our new products was great and based on the quality leads generated it gives us a lot of opportunities to continue our growth.”

Germany - A 132sq.m LED wall from Alfalite has been selected as the centrepiece for Plazamedia Lazanedia's new hybrid studio near Munich to broadcast all the FIFA World Cup matches from Qatar. The TV set will use camera tracking and multi-camera systems from Mo-Sys, also the Alfalite LED wall supplier for this installation.
Plazamedia is a live entertainment and sporting events producer and established provider of intelligent digital content solutions in Germany. They have chosen an Alfalite Modularpix Pro VP XR 1.9 ORIM 33m-wide and 3.5m-high curved U-shaped LED wall for their new hybrid studio at the AGROB Medienpark to broadcast the 64 FIFA games from Qatar, including 23 live matches. Deutsche Telekom will air all 64 2022 FIFA World Cup matches live on MagentaTV.
Mo-Sys and the Spanish company Alfalite installed the ORIM LED wall in record time. ORIM (Optical Resin

Czech Republic - To provide the Stages Hotel Prague with a comprehensive and versatile networked audio system, AV integrators Nowatron Elektronik and AudioMaster CZ installed a wide range of Harman Professional audio solutions.
Situated near both the O2 Arena and O2 Universum, the Stages offers visitors to Prague a luxury experience showcasing the city’s music and arts scene. Along with its modern rooms, restaurants and meeting spaces, the Stages also features a fully linked audio-visual network between the hotel, the O2 Arena and O2 Universum. This ambitious system allows for independent or shared media broadcasting and streaming between the three venues in real time with minimal latency.
The Stages required a modern AV solution that balanced advanced features and bandwidth with ease-of-use and accessibility. To meet these requirements for the hotel’s audio comp

UK - Universal Pixels (UP) provided kit and crew for Robbie Williams’ 25 Years of Hits tour, which visited arenas across the UK and Ireland in autumn 2022.
The high-profile run, which opened with two nights at London’s O2 Arena, showcased the artist’s latest album, XXV, which features many of his greatest hits re-recorded and newly orchestrated courtesy of Dutch pop and jazz orchestra, the Metropole Orkest.
In order to match Williams’ entertaining live show, tour director Ade Bullock and production manager John Lafferty brought in UP to provide an eye-catching and dynamic video setup; renewing a relationship that has also been tried and tested in the past with show designer, Paul Normandale.
“UP always provide excellent service, which is why I’ve used them on numerous projects for many years now,” says Normandale. “We wanted to reflect Rob

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