South Africa - Cape Town-based rental and production company Ultra Event Technical Solutions has been extremely busy since the industry re-energised post-covid, a challenging time that nonetheless saw them retain their complete staff through resourcefulness, creative thinking and adapting the facilities and skill base they had to a pandemic economy.
Thankfully as soon as the gathering and meeting up restrictions were lifted, “We’ve been absolutely full-tilt,” explained Ultra’s founder and CEO, Costa Champanis.
With business growing, it wasn’t long before they needed more lights, so Costa made the investment in 24 x Robe LEDBeam 350s.
Ultra is a ‘one-stop solution’ for technical production. Their work encompasses a multiplicity of corporate and industr

USA - World Cup champion Lionel Messi created shock waves when he passed up offers from better-known clubs to sign with the struggling Inter Miami team.
Anticipation was high when the seven-time Ballon d'Or winner suited up for his first game on Friday 21 July, but Messi, still recovering from an exhausting travel schedule, had to sit on the bench for the first 54 minutes. Then, with the sell-out crowd standing and cheering wildly, he entered the game and proceeded to score the winning goal.
A few days before, the player was greeted at the team’s DRV Pink Stadium in Fort Lauderdale with a welcome celebration.
Helping to create the heady atmosphere was a bright, bold, and colourful lighting design from José Laria, lighting designer Andres Albornoz and the entire team at LPS Production that drew on the intense output of over 100 Chauvet Professional IP65 rated

USA - By any measure, the numbers for the Dead & Company final tour of 2023 are impressive. Although among the top-grossing acts since its first tour in 2015, with this year’s outing the band shattered all of their previous totals. Across 28 shows in 19 cities, according to Billboard Box Score, Dead & Company grossed $114.7m and sold 845,000 tickets.
However, the magnitude of this final leg of “the long, strange trip” must be measured by more than hard numbers. It marked the coda of a resilient cultural and sociological phenomenon - launched by the Grateful Dead - that has spanned nearly six decades and three generations. Appropriately, the tour’s significance as a milestone of Americana was recognised in a lavishly illustrated 2,500-word feature in The New York Times.
As has been the case since the outset, Dead & Company was again accompanie

The Netherlands - At IBC, Sennheiser, Neumann, Dear Reality and Merging Technologies (D50 in Hall 8) will demonstrate immersive production workflows as well as solutions for audio capture, monitoring and processing. Creators and audio professionals of all levels are welcomed to stand.
Four spaces invite IBC visitors to explore state-of-the-art solutions for today’s content production: the immersive presentation zone, active and passive product islands, a Neumann area and a separate Wireless Multichannel Audio Systems (WMAS) zone.
In the immersive presentation zone, which is powered by a 5.1.4 Neumann monitor set-up with nine KH 150 monitor loudspeakers and two KH 750 DSP subwoofers, guests will be able to get hands-on with the Dolby Atmos/immersive broadcast workflows facilitated by the products of Merging Technologies, the latest member to join the Sennheiser Group.

Indonesia - To provide the new Tokyo Riverside Apartment complex with vivid and engaging lighting, architectural firm PT Chayolite deployed a selection of Martin lighting solutions.
Located in the Pantai Indah Kapuk 2 precinct (PIK2) within Jakarta, Tokyo Riverside Apartment is a luxury living complex featuring modern Japanese architecture and smart living tools. Developed by Agung Sedayu Group, the complex is conveniently located near a variety of amenities, including sports and recreational facilities, a 2.5-mile white sand beach and the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport.
To accentuate its architecture, PT Chayolite and Harman Professional Solutions were appointed to illuminate its façade in a way that complemented its luxurious details. To meet this requirement, the installation team deployed Martin VC-Dot 1 outdoor LED lights.
Featuring individually co

USA - Just when it seemed like this summer’s temperatures couldn’t climb any higher, R&B legends TLC and Jamaican icon Shaggy brought the heat to stages throughout North America with the TLC & Shaggy: Hot Summer Nights Tour 2023. The package tour, which blazed through 26 cities throughout the US and Canada in June and July, served up a feast of hits spanning three decades and showcased performances by special guests En Vogue and Sean Kingston.
Tour sound, provided by Major Tom, centred around a Meyer Sound Panther large-format linear line array loudspeaker system spec’d by Parker Vandenberg and the Major Tom team. Vandenberg, TLC’s production manager, took on an expanded role of production manager for the entire Hot Summer Nights tour, while also mixing monitors for TLC.
The Panther PA proved to be the right choice due to its versatility, compact size,

UK - A Serious Stages Supanova provided the colourful focal point for Brighton’s Fabulosa Pride in Preston Park, with over 150 LGBTQ+ artists entertaining 60,000 fans, 5-6 August, 2023.
Widely acknowledged as the country’s most popular Pride event, Serious Stages supported the organisers of this year 50th Brighton Pride anniversary weekend. The Black Eyed Peas, Zara Larson, Steps and Melanie C were amongst the artists appearing on the 22m Arch Supernova stage, complete with front-of-stage thrust allowing the stars to get up close to the sparkling audience.
Two goalposts carrying giant LED video screens and PA speakers flanked the stage, creating a spectacular focal point for two days of music, looked over by the Serious three-storey front-of-house tower with the technical sound and lighting mixers. Serious also installed speaker delay towers across the park.

France - One of the biggest heavy metal music festivals in the world, Hellfest recently wrapped its 16th edition in Clisson, where KISS launched the festival with Claypaky Xtylos and an array of Claypaky fixtures played key roles for other bands.
The four-day festival featured 180 bands performing on six stages in the concert area plus additional outdoor stages. KISS, Iron Maiden, Motley Crue and Slipknot headlined as more than 150,000 extreme music fans attended performances, camped out and explored the full Hellfest 2023 experience.
France-based B Live Group has been Hellfest’s technical partner from the start of the festival providing lighting for both of the main stages and the Warzone. This year, they chose Claypaky Sharpy X Frames to illuminate Main Stage 2, which hosted the biggest international bands, and Arolla Profile MPs and Sharpys for the Warzone, the st

USA/UK - Audio equipment manufacturer Audient has announced the appointment of Korg USA as exclusive US distributor of its entire product range, with immediate effect.
This news comes as Momentum Audio Sales president, John Devins announces his retirement. Audient sales director Simon Sinclair remarks, "We'd like to place on record our personal appreciation of John, the whole Momentum back-office team and our regional representatives. We started in his garage 10 years ago, sharing space with the Triumph Spitfire and now we're a significant player in the USA market. This is thanks in no small measure to John and his highly focussed US team. We wish John a very long and happy retirement with the knowledge of a job well done."
Korg USA is one of North America’s most diversified independent distributors of pro audio and musical instrument brands. Simon comments on the a

UK - Plymouth’s varied event venues, from a private castle to the local football club, are being showcased at a trade exhibition next month (September). The city’s museum, gallery and archive, The Box, will host the event which features a wide range of hotels, venues and suppliers.
Potential clients looking for the perfect conference, meeting or event space, are invited to meet the exhibitors and enjoy a famed Devon cream tea on 11 September.
Among those taking part in The MeetPlymouth VENUE Showcase are: Pentillie Castle, a country castle on the banks of the River Tamar, available for exclusive hire; BLOCK, a stylish workspace, meetings and event venue at historic Royal William Yard; Plymouth Argyle Football Club, available for celebratory events from weddings and christenings to presentations and product launches, and Le Vignoble Wine Merchant and Lounge which o

Finland - Bank 55 in the Helsinki district of Lauttasaari is the brainchild of Finnish stand-up comedian and actor, Sami Hedberg. Formerly a bank that was first inaugurated in 1955 – hence the name – today Bank 55 is a sauna and lounge dedicated to private events of all types, from conferences and meetings to corporate get-togethers or simply private parties with friends and family.
Music plays a vital role in the new events space, and Hedberg – who was already familiar with Genelec – had no hesitation in specifying custom painted Genelec 4000 series loudspeakers for his new venture.
"I’d been dreaming of opening an events space for some time, but I needed to find the right venue – and that takes time," confides Hedberg. "I finally came across the old bank premises in Lauttasaari which I loved. I bought it in 2016 and have been renovating it bit by bit, all

USA - District E Powered by Ticketmaster is an esports venue situated in the heart of downtown Washington, D.C. Adjacent to the Capital One Arena, this venue spans nearly 14,000sq.ft and stands as a hub for esports enthusiasts and fans. With a prime location and partnerships with globally recognised esports teams including Team Liquid and Wizards District Gaming, District E offers a different and immersive gaming experience.
The audio system needed to accommodate diverse programming, from high-stakes esports matches to corporate events and viewing parties with a seamless integration with the cutting-edge LED video throughout the venue. Monumental Sports, an assembly of seven DC-area sports and gaming teams, turned to McCann, to design and install the audiovisual integration help to create an elevated esports experience.
For the main gaming space, McCann selected 1 Soun

Belgium - There were over 230 Chauvet Professional fixtures at the Happy Belgium concert in the Cinquantenaire Arcade, but it’s doubtful that any of the 60,000 people who were there to celebrate the National Day of Belgium on 21 July noticed many of them. Lighting designer Jordi Vandekerkhof of the More To Show design studio would have it no other way.
For him, the purpose of the majority IP65 lighting fixtures at this exquisitely orchestrated evening event, was to be “seen” (in terms of their effect), without being noticed because of their protective domes. “We wanted to light the stage, audience and surroundings without drawing attention to the fixtures,” he explained.
Jordi credits Splendit, which supplied the fixtures for the event, with helping to put together a rig that was low profile, while still being powerful enough to create a stunning impression.

USA - Lighting designer Eric Price turned to Elation’s Proteus Lucius as the feature light of an all-purpose floor package for rock band Taking Back Sunday as they headlined the travelling Sad Summer Festival in July. Reminiscent of the Warped Tour, the fourth incarnation of Sad Summer Festival ran coast to coast and featured a strong line-up of pop punk’s finest.
Price has been with Taking Back Sunday since 2017 and served as lighting designer, programmer and operator for the band’s Sad Summer set. He says he had used the Proteus Lucius before, on a tour with Mastodon, and knew the all-purpose LED moving head well. “The Proteus Lucius is great technology with a lot of features and you don’t lose anything with it being IP rated,” he said. “It makes no feature compromises and is just what you would expect from a professional moving fixture.”
Proteus Luc

Europe - QSC Pro Audio division has announced the hire of Jeff Gorton and Colin Smith as directors of sales in EMEA and the UK, respectively. These new positions will enable QSC to strengthen its market share and enhance its brand presence across the region.
Gorton joins QSC after two decades of experience in commercial pro audio/AV space. “The current and future of QSC products are inspiring and are certain to set benchmarks for the industry,” says Gorton. “It’s exciting times and I’m delighted to be part of the company’s future and play a role in its success.”
Smith, whose professional experience includes managerial roles in both retail and AV industries states, “I am excited and honoured to be appointed as the UK sales director for the pro audio division,” says Smith. “Our portfolio of products will enable us to be one of the best-selling audio b

USA - Brompton Technology has been recognised by the Television Academy with an Emmy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Engineering, Science & Technology. The Emmy was awarded for its Tessera SX40 LED video processor, which has played a crucial role in the widespread adoption of LED screens for virtual production and elevated the storytelling process through its impact on how television programmes are created.
The Television Academy named Brompton Technology’s founders Richard Mead (CEO) and Chris Deighton (CTO), alongside director of engineering Adrian Jeakins and engineering manager Evangelos Apostolopoulos, as the core team responsible for the Tessera SX40.
Since its debut in 2018, the SX40 has played a crucial role in the widespread adoption of LED for virtual production in the television industry, and has been used across many of the most popular and techn

Studio Sale - The BBC's historic Maida Vale studios, which have hosted sessions by stars ranging from The Beatles to Adele, have been sold to a group led by Oscar-winning composer Hans Zimmer.
Zimmer, who wrote the scores for films like The Lion King and Dune, has teamed up with Love Actually and Cats movie producers Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner.
The BBC said the complex would remain a "centre for pioneering music-making". It was valued at about £10m but the BBC did not disclose the purchase price. Built in 1909 as Britain's largest indoor roller-skating rink, the north-west London building was bought by the BBC in 1933. It is home to the BBC Symphony Orchestra and has hosted the world's biggest rock and pop stars - from Led Zeppelin to Radiohead and Jay-Z to Little Mix.
It also played host to John Peel's famous Radio 1 sessions and the

USA - Christie has introduced two new RGB pure laser projectors: the M 4K15 RGB and M 4K+15 RGB. Part of our award-winning M 4K RGB Series, they deliver 15,750 lumens and are designed for the most demanding applications, including staging and live events, projection mapping spectacles, and theme park attractions.
“Our original M Series projectors, first introduced in 2007, were our most successful line of Pro AV projectors with over 16,000 units sold,” says Joel St-Denis, director of product management, Christie. “Our new models continue the tradition of innovation which has made the M Series so popular, combining ruggedness, reliability, and brightness into a compact chassis.”
Christie has simplified installation and operation by delivering full brightness at 120V or 220V, omnidirectional rigging capabilities, and TruLife+ electronics, which eliminates the has

UK - Display specialist PSCo (part of the Midwich Group) has announced the introduction of the Absen MR2.5 high resolution LED floor display. The high impact floor display is exclusively available from PSCo in the UK for trade-only rental and purchase.
The MR series LED floor panel is available in 2.5mm pixel pitch and uses a GOB SMD packaging process resulting in deep blacks with a non-reflective surface. Specified with Brompton R2 processing, the wide colour gamut and high-contrast performance of the MR2.5 produce impressive in-camera performance versus other LED floor technologies.
The Absen MR floor can be combined with Absen PL2.5 Pro Brompton LED walls to create seamless floor-to-wall 2.5mm displays running from the same Brompton controllers. These products are perfectly suited to xR stages and virtual studios, as well as eye-catching corporate and live events.

UK - TechLED will showcase its range of UK-manufactured lighting effects on stand G30 at this year’s PLASA Show. Contributing the lowest possible airmiles to low-energy LED effects, the show-stopping range from UK-based Abstract, is a must-see for any UK installer with a green agenda and an eye on sustainability.
Recognised as one of the pioneering market leaders in effects lighting with a manufacturing legacy spanning over 30 years, Abstract’s key lighting effects units will be demonstrated, including the Abstract Candi Blox and Abstract Candi Bar, the Abstract X-Lite Pro freestanding lighting system and the Abstract X-Drive. The popular Abstract-supplied, Pixel Neon lighting system will also be at the forefront of stand G30.
Pixel Neon is a square neon flex lighting effect supplied by Abstract. Flexible, weatherproof, and easy to install, Pixel Neon is perfect fo

USA - A premiere public arts school in the greater Orlando area, Osceola County School for the Arts (OSCA) has a long-standing tradition of excellence with many alumni having gone on to attend various prestigious university programs, such as The Juilliard School, Berklee College of Music and more.
Osceola County School for the Arts’ Jazz A Ensemble, specifically, is a two-time winner and five-time finalist at the Essentially Ellington Competition & Festival and has performed at many jazz festivals throughout the United States. When the programme was in need of new and improved microphones, director, composer and veteran educator Jason Anderson turned to MXL Microphones.
“After learning more about the kind of instruments we were using, what the band was like and what we would be using the mics for, MXL came through big time and within a month or two we were usi

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