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14 March 2016

It isn't every day that such an iconic piece of American TV culture changes sponsors, so it wasn't surprising that the rechristened programme, which is now sponsored by global banking giant Citi, debuted with a bang. From the high-powered superstar on stage, the charismatic Selena Gomez, to the dazzling lighting array made with Nexus 4x4 LED panels and Next NXT-1 moving fixtures from Chauvet Professional, everything about the inaugural concert conveyed the excitement of the moment.

Dressed in a stylish black cutout jumpsuit, Gomez captivated the audience (both live and TV) with a blend of old and new hits, along with some supple choreography, all set against a glittering background of richly coloured l

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14 March 2016

Based at Calibre's Bradford, UK offices, Gao's responsibilities include conducting in-depth market research, developing the company's presence and profile of Calibre branded products as well as expanding OEM relationships.

Recruited under the GREAT Ambassadors (China) Scheme, a joint initiative with the UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) and The University of Sheffield, Gao recently completed a Masters Degree in Marketing Management Practice. "This is a great success story. Calibre is setting the standard for UK businesses that increasingly are having to work on a global basis and they will provide Grace Gao with great practical experience and knowledge," says Yiyun Ling at The University of Sheffield.

"Grace has terrific business skills, and is a great fit to the Bradford team.

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14 March 2016

Commenting on the exhibition, Sebastian Bückle, sales & marketing director at Astera, said, "It is really great to be exhibiting for the first time at the JTSE tradeshow. Astera is growing every year and this is the latest chapter in our success. In 2015, we attended a record nine exhibitions, and 2016 looks to increase yet again."

Immediately after the JTSE, from 26-29 November, Astera's wireless range will be shown at the CISD Chinese Stage Design Exhibition in Beijing. Astera's dealer for China, Beijing Etch, wil

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14 March 2016

The Festival has become a must-see event in this region in just a few years. The recent editions have fully achieved the organizers' goal of attracting hundreds and thousands of young partying visitors to this summer event, which offers alternative music, fun and a space for reflection on some social issues such as the co-existence of different language groups, migrations and anti-fascism.

Norbert Hofer is the owner of Alpha Concept, the company that dealt with all the technical production aspects of the event.

"Hosting bands like Limp Bizkit was a big challenge for us," says Hofer

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14 March 2016

Adapted for the stage by British theatre director Katie Mitchell OBE, and adviser Rita Thiele, and directed by Mitchell, the production incorporates a multimedia approach to theatre by the use of live cameras on the actors, the feeds from which are then cut live and projected on to screens above, creating the effect that a movie is being made live on stage.

Many of Katie Mitchell's productions use multimedia, and this is used to explore the theme of detachment which is present in many of the plays she stages. In Reisende auf einem Bein the main character Irene, played by Julia Wieninger, begins life in Romania, but th

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14 March 2016

To ensure the inspired music's intelligibility for the crowd, audio, lighting and stage/support system contractor Cipiesse s.r.l. of Rezzato (Brescia) deployed a setup comprising two main hangs of 12 Outline Butterfly enclosures, flown one on either side of the 50m wide 'set' and 16 Outline Eidos positioned along the cathedral steps (which doubled as main stage) on front-fill duty. Four Outline Subte

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14 March 2016

Immersion rides that plunge visitors into a virtually surreal world have largely been the purview of giant theme parks. However, they are now beginning to emerge as standalone entertainment experiences in public venues around the world. Sensorama is a frontrunner in this trend with the development of VIX: a 24-person ride taking passengers on an underwater voyage at the Shopping Praia de Costa in Wila Velha, Brazil, a centre boasting more than 225 world-class shops and attractions.

The simulation experience is designed for families and thrill seekers alike, allowing passengers to travel through an

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14 March 2016

Making a large scale, complex multimedia installation of this scale is very difficult: The high humidity and in some cases direct water spray requires highly protected equipment, which applies for the video technology, lighting equipment, lasers as well as speaker systems.

HB-Laser not only implemented the technical equipment, but was also responsible for the complete multimedia control and wiring of the whole installation. Five main control boxes were insta

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14 March 2016

In conjunction with La Contrada - Teatro Stabile di Trieste, Wizard Productions srl acquired the exclusive performing rights of the original version for Italy from the author of the film herself, Eleanor Bergstein. The American author supported the Italian team during the casting, as she always does to make sure her show has the same characteristics as the original in every part of th

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14 March 2016

Also based in the north-west, system integrators Pure AV, who had already carried out past work for the client, were again introduced to provide a sound reinforcement in one particularly challenging area within the Power Hall, and turned to a Martin Audio O-Line solution, as they have many times in the past.

They were tasked with providing an audio system in a giant, loud ambient room within the Power Hall used for presentations to the general public. The area shows a locomotive with the side cut away while the presenter explains the workings of a steam engine. The audience is positioned in a viewing area opposite

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14 March 2016

Before the show, audience members are given a small wooden 'heart' - each with one performer's name engraved on it - to hold during the performance. And each musician is outfitted with a heart rate monitor that delivers live data to Cobalt. "Our system uses custom Java software to grab the heart rate data over Wi-Fi and send it out as a series of master level commands to ETCnomad using UDP [User Datagram Protocol] strings," explains lighting designer Ziggy Jacobs-Wyburn. "The cues throughout the sho

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14 March 2016

AV rental and production company Fluge Audiovisuales supplied the Cuepix Panels for the Spanish leg of the tour, which kicked off in May and played large arenas and outdoor venues in every major city through October.

"The Cuepix Panels were an important element in the lighting design for this tour," stated Chus Fernandez, who created the lighting design for the show and also served as tour op. "We used them to reinforce different lighting scenes w

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14 March 2016

John Hornby Skewes & Co. Ltd. has been a member company of the USA trade Association, NAMM, since the 1970's. This honour follows a previous Lifetime Achievement Award made to John Skewes by the British Association, MIA, in 2005.

This year JHS & Co. Ltd. achieved 50 years in business. The company was started in 1965 by John and Madge Skewes, and by hard work, perseverance and business skills, they have built the family owned company into one of the largest independent suppliers of musical merchandise and pro audio equipment in the UK.

(Jim Evans)

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14 March 2016

Perry's stage, named after Perry Farrell, Jane's Addiction lead singer who started the Lolla phenomena in 1991, is now synonymous with the best of dance beats and sounds and this year headliners included Fatboy Slim.

Colour Sound's crew of seven was led by Kester McClure. On site, they all worked very closely with Festival Republic production managers Spike Beecham and Kevin Sutherland, and in fact it was their third gig this summer working with this same production team who are "Fantastic, really on the ball all the time and ensure that any technical support - plant, riggers, extra generators, etc. - i

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14 March 2016

The non-stop Unbreakable show, which features over 30 songs in just over 90 minutes, generates 109 inputs, including Pro Tools tracks, to the two DiGiCo desks. Even with all those sources, Kyle Hamilton, Jackson's FOH engineer since her previous tour, in 2011, has no need for additional outboard effects. "I've always stayed away from using extra outboard stuff, just because I don't need i

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14 March 2016

The recent US leg of the current Waterfall tour campaign saw him using 26 x Robe BMFL Spots and 10 x Pointes as the primary moving lights on a rig supplied by VER together with other moving lights.

The BMFLs were deployed on three overhead trusses - five upstage, seven on the mid-truss and six on the front truss, with another eight on the floor behind & wrapping around the band - all adding to a dramatic and intense show that has delighted audiences across the US.

The Pointes were also positioned on the floor, sitting on flight cases in a straight line upstage.

Marc has worked for MMJ since 2006 and has a great rapport with t

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14 March 2016

The event kicks off with a networking lunch followed by an address by Richard Parry, who has been involved in export promotion for over 20 years in a variety of roles. Parry will inform attendees about UKTI and outline what they are doing currently to help UK businesses. This will be followed by Matt Lloyd of GDS and Chris Murphy of Velta talking about their experiences using UKTI services and the benefits exporting has brought to them.

There will be plenty of time to ask questions, share knowledge and, hopef

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14 March 2016

Once again, the city became a new and temporary community of international artists, local people, arts professionals and visitors, all united by a mutual interest in art and a hunger for a transformative collective experience.

Audiences braved the elements to see 29 extraordinary art installations spread across Durham's city centre, including a whale in the River Wear, a ghostly fog beneath the Cathedral, and 250 locals storming the 50m-high arches of Durham Viaduct, in Asalto Durham, a projected artwork by Spanish artist Daniel Canogar.

On Saturday, Lumiere's organis

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14 March 2016

"Algam is proud to add such a fantastic brand to its catalogue," says Benjamin Garnier, Algam managing director. "This partnership will enhance our portfolio, and open up new possibilities to further strengthen our standing in the French audio market. We are sincerely excited to develop the Allen & Heath brand in France."

To best serve the wide variety of Allen & Heath customers, which ranges from aspiring musicians to audio professionals, the sales operation will be divided between Algam Entreprises, which will manage sales to rental and staging companies and installers, and Audia, which will represent Allen & Heath to MI stores a

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14 March 2016

Since previous a/b testing took place at Millennium Studios' A Stage in private, further modification and improvements have been made and the system is now ready to thrill listeners at Troxy, 490 Commercial Road, London on 23 November.

The new "3 wide" fly bar designed and manufactured by Formidable will also get an airing. This will facilitate the ability to fly a narrower horizontal dispersion system whilst still maintaining the ability to provide extended vertical dispersion if required.

The event will take the format of an a/b shootout between the upgraded Flashlight system and an independently supplied and set up line array system.

The emphasis of the event will be to give listeners the opportunity to decide which system they believe delive