UK - Unusual Rigging has become renowned in the West End for taking charge of marking out, setting out and preparing the grids for some of the most famous musicals of all time. So it was not too much of a surprise when, 25 years after an Unusual team worked on the original production of Miss Saigon, the company was brought on board for the latest run of the show at the Prince Edward Theatre.

Jeremy Featherstone, design engineer at Unusual Rigging, said, "I was exactly 15 years and one month old when the show opened at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, in September 1989, but an older generation of Unusual riggers were heavily involved in all areas of the production, with the massive statue of 'Ho Chi Min' causing problems, as he weighed about five tonnes and had to be stor

UK - Lighting control expert, Artistic Licence, has introduced a major upgrade to one of its best-selling DMX splitter products, Rail-Split RDM, with no increase to the list price. Concurrently, a budget-beating sister product, Rail-Split DMX, is now offered for those in need of a reliable, no-frills DMX splitter without RDM functionality.

Long a main-stay of the Artistic Licence DMX splitter range, Rail-Split RDM has an optically isolated DMX input and six independent outputs, each of which is fully bidirectional. The latter feature makes the product compatible with RDM-enabled devices, a powerful feature in many scenarios - not least in facilitating automatic fixture addressing. However, RDM is not always a blessing, in that some DMX fixtures misread the data structure, resulting in a flickering effect.

Rail-Split RDM now has in built-in solution. In its normal mode of opera

Russia - For Tiens Company's annual distributor conference at Moscow's Russia Hall, featuring a combination of official speeches and an original concert programme for 8,000 guests, Martin Professional provided lighting designer Roman Kasaev with a M6 console to control a design with over 100 Martin lighting fixtures.

To ensure the lighting design integrated seamlessly with the conference's theme, Kasaev teamed with Daniel Maneshin, technical director at the Knyazev Agency, who was brought in to design the conference's main concept. Maneshin also developed the conference's business section as well as conceptualized many decorative and informative elements, which featured several LED screens mounted on the main stage.

Kasaev chose 48 MAC 101 compact LED wash lights due to the brightness and colours that complimented the LED screens used at the event. The MAC 101s were mounted on

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Case Study: Hans Zimmer Live

When award winning film composer Hans Zimmer brought his smash-hit tour Hans Zimmer Live to North America fall 2024, the show's audio team sought out to bring infrafrequency bass to the show to add new depth to the show's audio experience. The team chose Danley Sound Labs.

UK - Le Mark has produced a video with no product info or sales incentives, "just a great video to help promote a charity which aims to rid our lives of a disease that has affected so many of us, either through our own personal experiences or when supporting friends & family".

The girls at Le Mark, determined as ever, teamed up and do their bit to help the fight against cancer and the company is supporting them all the way. If you can, please support the girls at Parker's Piece in Cambridge on 20 July 2014 at 11am.

Donate: justgiving.com/peasinapod Video Link: www.youtube.com/watch?v=QfKkEareaB0

(Jim Evans)

UK - Eclipse Presentations supplied full technical production, design and equipment - including lighting, sound, video and staging - for the 2014 Catey Awards, the high profile flagship event of The Caterer magazine which was staged in the Great Room of the Grosvenor House Hotel in London.

Eclipse's own winning creative concept for the presentation included an eye-catching set design based around an impressive edge-blended video projection, which included mapped images onto two large scenic replicas of the iconic Catey Award statue flanking both sides of the stage.

Started in 1984, the Cateys recognise individuals, teams and business within the hospitality sector, and are claimed to be the industry's only 'truly independent' benchmark of operational excellence.

It was the first time that Eclipse Presentations has won the contract to supply technical production for the

Germany - Loudspeaker system manufacturer d&b audiotechnik has appointed Amnon Harman as CEO effective 7 July 7, 2014. In this newly created position, Harman will drive the continued success of the German premium provider, taking responsibility for the further development and implementation of the company strategy.

Prior to joining d&b, Harman was an independent consultant. From 2006 to 2012 he served as chairman of the management board of Augusta Technologie AG, an international technology company focused on niche markets for optical sensor technology and digital image processing. Previously, he was a member of the management board and COO at Suse Linux AG, where he took over the position as vice president and COO of the EMEA region after a sale to Novell Inc., a specialist for network and internet software products.

Harman holds degrees in industrial engineering and aeronaut

UK - Verbatim has announced the expansion of its LED range with a family of new easy-to-install luminaires for a broad range of professional lighting applications spanning hotels and restaurants to offices, retail stores and warehouses. Ideal for new lighting installations or upgrade projects, Verbatim's attractive light fixtures offer fast and easy fitting with compact housing dimensions and external power supply. Customers also benefit from improved thermal management and higher lumen output compared to when the lamps and fixtures are separate elements.

Suitable for most suspended ceilings, Verbatim's LED luminaires are far more energy and cost efficient than compact fluorescent or halogen alternatives, says the company.

Verbatim's recessed spotlights, with a choice of 25° or 40° beam angle and an adjustable LED head, are perfectly suited to delivering accent and spo

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The OPUS® X4 PROFILE is the new flagship model from Cameo and is among the most powerful LED moving heads on the market. Equipped with a 1,400-watt LED white light engine, this spot profile moving head produces an enormous light output of 50,000 lm, providing powerful spot and gobo projections on even the largest stages and much more.
www.cameolight.com

UK - Pro audio equipment provider Audiologic has added Phoenix Audio Technologies to its portfolio of distributed brands. Phoenix Audio Technologies is an innovator of audio communication solutions for Voice Over IP (VoIP), web conferencing, distance learning, and video conferencing applications.

Formed in the first instance by a group of scientists who, 30 years ago had worked on the development of SONAR systems, Phoenix came into being 10 years ago. Its key personnel having been at the forefront of academic research and having co-authored hundreds of professional essays and books on the technology, Phoenix very quickly established a strong portfolio of audio solutions for the emerging video and audio conferencing markets.

Key lines now available for shipping include the brand new Spider, the very latest word in conferencing phone technology. With SIP telephony & USB soft cod

UK - As GDS enjoys its 10 year celebrations it shows no sign of reducing its ambitious approach to innovation. The launch of ArcLamp, awarded the ABTT 2014 Theatre Award for Lighting Product of the Year, is yet more evidence of the GDS forward march.

ArcLamp is the final piece in the jigsaw toward achieving a total LED auditorium lighting solution. Suitable for any shape, age or size of venue, ArcLamp is a like for like replacement for the standard candle or golf ball lamp in a beautiful LED equivalent and has all of the attributes synonymous with the ArcSystem range.

ArcLamp is a compact and robust 4.8W LED lamp available in Candle & Golf Ball in both clear and frosted types. Truly and smoothly dimmable from 100% to Absolute zero, ArcLamp is ideally suited for chandeliers, circle fronts and wall-lights. In replacing tungsten/ incandescent lamps, ArcLamp offers in the region o

Portugal - PA company, ST Sonorizacoes Tuna, Lda, recently purchased Allen & Heath's new Qu-24 compact digital mixer to add to its hire stock.

"I invested in the Qu-24 for some of the smaller shows we manage where we do not need a lot of channels, Qu-24 is the perfect console as it is compact and has all the features we need to do a professional job. Out of all the consoles I tested, this one really impressed me with its great sound quality, quick setup, and easy operation. It's a good investment," comments CEO, Paulo Tuna.

The mixer was used for the first time at a Revolution Day celebration held in an auditorium in Mogadouro in the north of Portugal.

Sound engineer on the night, Pedro Oliveira, comments, "This console is perfect for smaller events. It has a great sound, and is very fast and intuitive to work with, including an easy set up procedure. In short

Taiwan - MSI Japan Taiwan has given Martin Audio's MLA system its debut in the Taiwan capital, at a recent show held at Taipei Arena.

This proved a big success for MSI Japan Taiwan - part of the MSI Japan HD Group, who set up their office in Taipei several months ago. Their first gig with the system was supporting the Taiwanese leg of the famous Japanese artist, Masaharu Fukuyama, for his Fukuyama Masaharu We're Bros Tour 2014.

Since the artist had used the MLA system for the Japanese leg, he wanted to retain continuity with the award winning loudspeaker technology that is a combination of multi-cellular control and progressive optimisation software.

MLA has already enjoyed great success in Japan and its reputation is quickly spreading through all the Asian countries. Without the need for delay towers, it can effortlessly provide consistent sound pressure level and fr

USA - This year's Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC) in Las Vegas easily earned its reputation as the world's largest electronic music festival with seven stages, carnival rides, art installations, fireworks displays and over 400,000 in attendance.

The landmark multimedia three-day event took place at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway and focused on providing a total entertainment experience for electronic dance music fans, with over 70 DJs performing each day.

3G Productions of Las Vegas/Los Angeles, who once again provided audio for the event, set up a fully loaded Martin Audio MLA loudspeaker system on Stage Two (Cosmic Meadow) to deliver the power and huge amount of low end required for the shows. DJs featured on the stage included Diplo, Justin Martin, A-Trak, Chromeo, Bassnectar, Dillon Francis and Destructo, just to name a few.

The system for Cosmic Meadow stage consisted of 16

UK - Arcstream AV, specialist provider of interactive technologies and special effects for events and permanent installations, has supplied a video and sound distribution system for the John Lewis and Sony live World Cup screenings at John Lewis' Oxford Street branch roof garden.

Five large displays - including Sony's 84" 4K Ultra HD model - have been screening all the goals. Complimentary pizza, beer and wine have also been available for this limited tickets event.

Neil Dickinson, managing director of Arcstream comments, "There are all sorts of places where people have been enjoying this World Cup, but this has to be one of the most ingenious. It was a pleasure to be involved in the process."

(Jim Evans)

Germany - Creating quite a stir at the moment is an exhibition at Berlin's Martin-Gropius-Bau: The life and work of David Bowie can be explored in this multimedia exhibition taking place at the historic building near the former border strip until 10 August 2014.

"David Bowie is a pioneer in many artistic fields, making him the ideal subject for an exhibition," says Victoria Broackes who, as co-curator along with her colleague Geoffrey Marsh, has had a key role in realising the exhibition and tirelessly brought together exhibits from different provenances. "The sound is presented as never before at an exhibition," explains the Bowie expert, highlighting Sennheiser's involvement - the technology of the audio specialist is an integral part of the multimedia experience and allows visitors to immerse themselves in soundscapes by this exceptional artist.

D

Indonesia - Jakarta is Southeast Asia's largest city, and a thriving metropolis with a lively nightlife. It is also home to Colosseum Club and many other venues that strive for the attention of a population of over 10m. Against this background, the ambitious team of 1001 knew that the club had to stand out. The goal was to introduce a sound and lighting design that matches the club's unique and truly colossal scale.

LEDsCONTROL would take on the task to transform the club and propel it to the forefront of lighting design to find its very own spot among other well-known venues around the world. Under the lead of Rebeca Sánchez Pastor and Miquel Clot, a spacious arena that spans over 1,000 m2 with an astonishingly high ceiling of 16 m had to be lit up in completely new ways.

After shipping the majority of equipment, the team worked three weeks to get it all set up. The team inv

UK - Robe will be supplying in excess of 500 lighting fixtures for the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games.

Robe is working with lighting designer Tim Routledge on this project, who was the lead lighting programmer for the London 2012 Olympics Opening and Closing Ceremonies.

The Robe fixtures shining bright in Glasgow will include Pointes, CycFX, LEDWash 600s, LEDBeam 100s and the recently released LEDBeam 1000, together with Robe's latest LightWare battery up-lighters.

The Opening Ceremony takes place at Celtic Park Stadium on 23 July 2014 and will feature a cast of 2000 performers as well as 4,500 athletes from 71 nations, with a live audience of over 40,000 and a potential global live TV audience of over one billion.

The Closing Ceremony takes place at Hampden Park Stadium on 3 August.

The ceremonies are being created by global brand

UK - Multi award-winning lighting designer Tim Routledge is using the Clay Paky B-EYE K20 to add extreme definition to his show-stopping stage design for Gary Barlow's latest arena tour Since I Saw You Last.

Routledge combines huge onstage elements such as a 25m wide chandelier made from LED tubing and a 100ft wide video screen for Barlow's high-spec and extremely glamorous show.

"The creative concept behind the show was based around the super wide video screen," explains Routledge. "It's almost twice as wide as normal arena shows. As soon as it was rigged it created a really epic feel with a nice clean line. I wanted the show to be sleek and contemporary, punctuated with innovative effects."

As part of his sleek lighting design Routledge specified 46 of the new Clay Paky A.Leda B-EYE K20 fixtures along with 20 x Sharpy Wash luminaires, all supplie

Denmark - Roskilde Festival 2014 hired in a Funktion-One sound system for its Apollo stage, as it looked to improve audio performance.

Funktion-One partner, Moto Rental, has supplied a large system for Roskilde's Apollo stage - its platform for electronic music. After experiencing issues while using a different system in 2013, the festival's organisers were keen to raise the audio quality for the audience, while minimising the impact on the surrounding environment - including nearby residents.

Apollo hosts a range of musical styles that fall beneath its broad electronic music banner and sees a mixture of playback, live and varying combinations of both. Naturally, bass frequencies have a prominent role to play, which presents both a challenge and an opportunity when it comes to sound reinforcement.

"Apollo is all about being progressive - the music, the light show and th

UK - Britannia Row Productions Training (BRPT) are offering a new programme of 1-day live sound training sessions at their London training centre from July through to 18 September. The scheme offers people in the live sound industry the opportunity to attend training in selected, specific topics, for example in system optimisation, RF, rigging and monitor mixing.

Training sessions are also available for Yamaha, Avid, DiGiCo and Midas digital consoles. Following the success of the first wave of one-day sessions taken up by a number of people from the UK and abroad, BRPT has expanded its offering to include packages such as System Analysis and Optimisation comprising of two tuition days plus a practical workshop, and a three-day package on Sound for Corporate Events, Theatre and Classical Music.

The range of topics also includes fundamental topics from the earlier stages of BRPT

UK - Four Ai Media S8 Infinity servers provided the cutting edge video mapping technology and 16 HD DVI outputs that powered the ethereal visuals behind Coldplay's much anticipated Royal Albert Hall (RAH) gig in London.

The RAH shows closed what was a short, six date, low key tour that supported their album Ghost Stories. Video director Ben Miles of Mixed Emotions, London, who has been with the band throughout, projected an evocative mix of live and pre-recorded content across the hall's 86 iconic ceiling mounted acoustic diffusion discs - known more fondly as the 'mushrooms'.

"I pushed for the Royal Albert Hall show to be particularly 'special', a stand-out performance from the rest of the tour," states Miles. "For this performance we wanted to combine the intimate setting we had created for the rest of the tour with something very visual and exciting.&q

Maldova - 20 DTS Raptors highlighted the Orange Music White Night event, held on 17 May at the Manej Sport Arena, in Chisinau City, Moldova.

Orange Music White Night - now in its fifth year and still growing - is one of Moldova's biggest music events; a unique show that gathers electronic music fans from across the whole country to dance the night away.

The event headliner was the world-renowned Andrew Rayel, who ranked #28 in 2013's 'DJ Mag's Top 100 DJs' poll. The Orange Music White Night light rig was installed by IvasArt, whilst Ivasco Stefan was lighting designer and operator.

(Claire Beeson)

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