Germany - Thomas Gerdon, lighting designer for one of Germany's most popular television shows, Verstehen sie Spass, used a substantial rig of Ayrton lighting fixtures to light the live broadcast from Munich's Bavaria Studios no 9 in April.

Verstehen sie Spass, a 'hidden camera' television series of two live and two recorded shows, features three musical acts within its format. The line-up for this particular evening included vintage German rockers, The Scorpions, Germany's 2015 Eurovision representative, Ann Sophie, and baritone crooner, Marc Marshall.

Gerdon chose 24 Ayrton IntelliPix-R panels, 24 Ayrton MagicPanel-R fixtures, 16 Ayrton NandoBeam-S3 moving heads and 6 giant Ayrton MagicRing-R9 units to light the performances which were watched by some five million

UK - Cloud Electronics is now shipping its new CS-C Series of in-ceiling loudspeakers launched recently at Infocomm15 in Orlando.

The CS-C Series features 5-inch, 6-inch and 8-inch full-range models and an 8-inch subwoofer completes the range and is also shipping. The CS-C Series loudspeakers boast two-way coaxial drivers with soft dome tweeter providing consistent dispersion and broad frequency response. All models offer ZeroEdge magnetic grilles which remove to reveal high or low impedance switch settings for distributed audio systems.

The speakers, designed for Cloud Electronics in the USA are tuned to complement Cloud Electronics range of amplifiers and mixer amplifiers using premium quality components and electronics. A range of surface loudspeakers is also expected to be shipping very soon.

(Jim Evans)

UK / Poland - Cadac has announced the appointment of Tommex, among the oldest most established audio companies in Poland, as its exclusive distributor for that territory.

The distributor agreement was signed immediately following Cadac's launch of its new CDC six console; a product for which Tommex envisages significant demand on its installation projects and amongst its customer base.

Tommex can trace its origins back to the difficult, pioneering Communist era of the 1970s, when founder Jan Tomasz Zebrowski founded a workshop to distribute and service Dynacord equipment in Poland. By the time Poland became a democracy, the company was servicing many state theatres and concert venues, and had become a gateway for professional audio equipment into several Soviet bloc republics. With democratisation came the opportunity to expand and take on the distribution of many western audi

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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.

Italy - Vasco Rossi completed his Live Kom 15 stadium tour in a blaze of glory with a production designed by the combined talents of set company Gioforma and long term lighting designer Giovanni Pinna, which also incorporated substantial video elements with screen content managed and controlled via grandMA2 light.

The edgy industrial stage aesthetic featured scenic video made up from Pixled's F-37 product, plus an epic IMAG video presence ensuring that everyone, even those at the back and to the sides of the stadiums, received a great view as well as those closer to the action.

The tour completely sold out, so nearly a million fans experienced the full glory of Rossi - one of the industry's classic showmen - and his legendary live performance.

All the scenic video control was run via two media servers being triggered by a grandMA2 light console in a custom control system spe

UK - Richard Martin Lighting (RML) is currently working on a broad range of TV shows.

In It To Win It, the BBC National Lottery game show is back for another series. The show is now filmed in Pacific Quay, Glasgow. RML continues to supply the lights, in association with Tony Kennedy and TSL. Martin Kempton designs the lighting rig. This includes MAC 500's, VL1000TS, Chroma Banks, Chroma Panels, Sharpys, Pixel Par 90's, Alpha Wash 1200's and Pixel Brick kits.

Dermot Murnaghan is back to host another season of the teatime quiz show Eggheads. Lighting designer Martin Kempton continues to originate the show, lights provided by Richard Martin Lighting and supported by TSL Glasgow. The design specification includes one of RML's most recent purchases, the VL4000 Spot. Alongside these are MAC Auras and Chroma Banks.

Question of Sport, Britain's longest continuo

On The Fringe - The Edinburgh International and the Fringe festivals started together for the first time in 18 years. The festivals had been out of sync by one week since the fringe decided to begin a week earlier in 1998. Venues are reporting an increase in advance sales, with international festival sales up by 25%.

Number Crunching - The Edinburgh Festival Fringe in numbers: There will be 50,459 performances of 3,314 shows between 7 and 31 August; the number of shows is a 3.8% increase on last year's programme; acts from 49 countries are taking part in the festival, including Japan, South Korea, Russia, New Zealand and Finland; the majority of shows are billed as comedy - 34% - while theatre makes up 27%, music 14%, children's shows 5% and cabaret 4%; here are 807 free shows for audiences to try and 1,778 premieres. A total of 313 venues are being used, including 14 new

USA - After the success of its spring regional training events, Audinate has announced a fall schedule of Dante AV Networking World conferences throughout U.S., Europe, Middle East and Asia. These free all-day events are designed for anyone interested in audio networking, and will feature presentations, training workshops and interactive panel discussions led by industry experts.

The events are co-sponsored with 20 leading audio manufacturers, including Ashly, AtteroTech, Audinate, Audio Technica, Bose, ClearOne, Extron, Focusrite RedNet, Lectrosonics, NTP, RDL, Roland, Shure, SSL, Stewart Audio, Symetrix, Vue Audiotechnik, Williams Sound, Xilica and Yamaha Commercial Audio. Each event will feature Dante-enabled product demonstrations from the sponsors and will give attendees the opportunity learn about and see Dante-enabled products in action.

Agenda topics will include: an i

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BikeFest Spain 2025 - Join the ride!

BikeFest Spain is set to return for its fourth consecutive year, inviting cyclists from across the industry to join the 360km ride towards ISE in Barcelona. From 31 January to 2 February 2025, riders will again rally in Valencia, cycling along the Mediterranean coast in support of industry causes.
For more information and to sign up, visit: www.joinbikefest.com

South Africa - South Africa-based In Living Colour, established in the mid '90s by Gavin Buckle, recently invested in an Avolites Tiger Touch II and 12 x Robe Robin 300 LED Wash fixtures.

"Due to In Living Colour's position within the market where an equal amount of events and sub-rentals to other related companies are responsible for our sustained growth, we concentrate on investing in leading brands that are consistently sought after by international touring companies as well as local suppliers," commented Gavin Buckle. "Our lighting desks and fixtures are required to keep pace with the rigorous demands we place on them, whether being used in the controlled environment of a theatre or the unpredictable exposure of outdoor festivals. The glaringly obvious solution was the Avolites and Robe brands. Since making the wise investment they have thankfully seen little

UK - A state of the art welding machine is set to help Doughty Engineering keep up with increasing customer demand for its Modular Rigging System. Since the launch of the product range at the end of 2014, welders on the shop floor have been pushed to capacity to ensure orders are manufactured and shipped to schedule.

Mark Chorley said, "Little did we know when we launched the Modular Rigging System last autumn, just how popular it was going to be. We thought orders may decrease as time went by but on the contrary our workers have never been busier as word spreads and lighting designers realise just how innovative these drop arms and h frames allow them to be."

The TIG welding lathe is used to TIG Weld 'round components' made from aluminium. At Doughty specifically, the machine welds all items within the Modular Rigging range as well as the company's boom arms. Elimin

UK - Festival attraction the Tree Top Troubadour, otherwise known as Ben Trevor, has begun using a Shure QLX-D wireless microphone system for his guitar and vocals on his summer dates, most recently at July's Larmer Tree festival.

As his nickname suggests, Trevor - an arborist in his day job - is well-known for playing his concerts from the branches of trees, which somewhat limits his options for amplification to wireless-based systems. The QLX-D's extended battery life and efficient spectrum usage have proved a boon at his festival gigs, given the heavy usage of the RF spectrum at modern festivals, and the fact that replacement batteries and charging facilities are not readily available when you're performing high up in an oak with only a Chesterfield sofa and a glitterball for company, as Trevor was at Larmer.

Many musicians turn to charitable endeavours if they're lucky eno

UK - A UK hydraulics firm pulled off a stellar performance to arrange manufacture and delivery of a range of hydraulic cylinder components in a short space of time, for the opening night of a new performance at The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC).

MGR Fluid Power ensured that the RSC's performance of Othello went off without any last minute glitches after it sourced 14 custom-designed hydraulic cylinders for the main stage, in a matter of days before opening night. The company was called in at the last minute to ensure that the stage hydraulics were capable of moving the stage in the way that the performance dictated.

Far from being a simple task, the brief for MGR Fluid Power was to source and supply cylinder components to exact specifications, and to ensure the hydraulics operated smoothly. The rams for the cylinders were flanged with stainless rods, operating under v

Australia - This year's Splendour in the Grass festival in Byron Bay, close to the famous Gold Coast, hosted a significant quantity of SGM's outdoor lighting fixtures. With damp experiences from the past haunting festival organisers and production managers, the requirement for lighting that could withstand torrential winter rainfall was the highest of priorities And Mother Nature did not disappoint!

The four day event saw SGM lighting fixtures such as the P-5 RGBW wash and the Q-7 RGBW flood take part in several installs and stage packages across the festival. A most notable display being that of Melbourne artist Sam Songailo. His 20sq.m maze comprising 100 large pillars was a big attraction of the festival, gathering thousands of attendees at any given time. Entertainment Technology Australia's Taylor Chadwick was recruited as lighting designer for the install, in charge of bri

USA - Multi-Grammy Award winner Keith Urban has carved out a niche in the country music genre since he arrived on the scene in the 1990s by combing raw musical power with sweet uplifting lyrics. Urban was his usual open, carefree and engaging self when he appeared on The Today Show Summer Concert Series recently, showing an uncanny ability to connect with his audience and even surprising an ecstatic young fan from Chicago by giving her his guitar.

Urban's generosity and upbeat music weren't the only things engaging fans during his performance. Also captivating the audience at Rockefeller Centre and watching at home on television was a sparkling, bright and colourful lightshow created by designer Peter Greenbaum that featured a collection of Chauvet Professional Nexus 4x4 LED panels and Next NXT-1 moving LED fixtures supplied by WorldStage of New York.

Greenbaum gave the

Germany - For the 25th Anniversary of Audi's Summer Concert series inside its factory in Ingolstadt, Germany, Meyer Sound Leopard linear sound reinforcement and Constellation active acoustic systems formed the foundation of an extraordinary audio experience for both the audience and musicians. The combination transformed a cavernous space that normally stamps out steel side panels for the Audi A3 into a temporary concert hall worthy of hosting the London Symphony Orchestra and conductor Kent Nagano.

The concert was the first show where Constellation worked hand-in-glove with the new Meyer Sound Leopard line arrays. While Constellation provided a virtual orchestra shell to envelop musicians with the sonic environment of a concert hall, twin arrays of eight-each Leopard loudspeakers projected the performance to about 1,000 audience members.

"It was truly breathtaking the wa

Saudi Arabia - Masjid al-Haram, the holiest shrine in Islam, is now visited by over 3m Hajj pilgrims annually. In order to provide the best facilities to the legions of devout Muslims, The Custodian of Two Holy Mosques (the former King) Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz undertook the expansion of the Holy Mosque and associated elements. A part of this project has been the complete upgrade of the Mecca Mokabariah facility's microphones to the latest digital models from Sennheiser. These microphones are being used at all prayer locations around the Kaaba, and in the Mokabariah studios from where all audio content and prayers originating from Mecca are broadcast across the world.

The major advantage of the upgrade has been that though on-going construction relating to the expansion has required shifting of the microphones to locations that are large distances away from the studios, the qualit

Singapore - The island state marked its 50th anniversary - SG50 - with pride, as flamboyant celebrations erupted all across the island, culminating in a special National Day Parade (NDP) in the Padang, right in the heart of the city. The NDP show was attended by the Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and President Tony Tan, several international heads of state, politicians, dignitaries, a host of VIPs plus 60,000 members of the public. It was also broadcast live on national TV, beamed across Asia and streamed locally to giant LED screens in several key locations around Singapore.

Spectacular lighting for the energetic multi-media SG50 NDP show directed by Dick Lee was designed by Javier Tan, and the equipment - including the 350 x Robe BMFL Blades - delivered by Showtec Communications Pte Ltd., which recently purchased over 700 BMFL fixtures.

The BMFL Blades were positioned on all

Although it was the 22nd year of the major Scottish music festival, this was the first time it was held at its new site in the grounds of Strathallan Castle in Perthshire. T's former home at Balado airfield a few miles down the road was finally vetoed last year after long-running health and safety issues about pipelines which run directly under it.

Some of the biggest names in music made their way to Scotland in July for the three-day festival including Jessie J, Labrinth, The Libertines, The Script, Noel Gallagher, Stereophonics, Ella Eyre and Twin Atlantic.

Twin Atlantic, headlined the Radio1 Stage at T in the Park this year. Lanz Short, content designer and programmer reports, "I designed and made some content for the show. Specifically their hit song Heart and Soul. I also set up VideoMapper and made custom DMX personalities and programed the Amba so that the lighting

The HSBC Headquarters Building in Hong Kong's Central district - Norman Foster's remarkable machine-like structure, had been the subject of a facade lighting project in 2003 which became 'A Symphony of Lights'. HSBC HQ was one of 24 of the most significant buildings that joined Hong Kong's permanent nightly light show that year.

Twelve years later, illumination Physics was commissioned to help bring to life the first wave of HSBC'S 150th anniversary messages. A complete update of the façade lighting and the integration of three large media walls followed.

In 2003, the HSBC main building was equipped with the best lighting technology available at the time. The LED revolution had yet to take hold. The first step of illumination physics' plan for this building upgrade was to bring the façade lighting up to date. The photometric requirements for this building are very precise. Few plan

UK - A dozen Straightpoint wireless load shackles have been installed by Rigging Services in the Bob and Tamar Manoukian Production Workshop, where scenic artists and craftspeople create the sets and scenery for the world-famous Royal Opera House in London. The Production Workshop is located at High House Production Park, a centre of excellence for the creative industries in Purfleet, Essex.

The Rigging Services-branded load shackles are 3.25t capacity and feature bespoke multiple wireless load cell controller (SW-MWLC) software. They are installed on 12 overhead cranes, which travel on gantries and I-beams that cover the entire floorspace.

The load shackle installation represents a landmark project for both Rigging Services and Straightpoint. The Bob and Tamar Manoukian Production Workshop is a state-of-the-art, purpose-built facility and home to scenic painters, carpenters a

UK - PSCo, the trade only AV distributor and rental specialist, is showcasing the latest innovations from its leading manufacturer partners at the PLASA Show 2015 (London's Excel - 4-6 October). Visitors will be able to view PSCo's must-see 3-2-1mm LED line-up of Absen products on its 70m² stand, alongside innovative LCD displays including the new Samsung High Bright and video wall displays, and the stunning new Samsung 105" display - the largest professional display available in the world.

"Following the success of last year's PLASA, we are excited to be showcasing so many new technologies from our rental and sales portfolio for system integrators and live events partners," says Stuart Holmes, managing director of PSCo. "We will have new technologies across mu

UK - With branches in nine cities across the UK, Calvary Apostolic Assembly - founded in Birmingham in 2005 - is a thoroughly modern, multinational Pentecostal church.

A weekly programme that includes everything from daily early morning prayer meetings to a webcast Sunday morning service means the Birmingham church is a busy hub of activity. And given that the various gatherings all have their own distinct audio needs - from individual speakers to amplified instrumental groups and choirs - it's a church that's demanding of its in-house PA system.

That system is a PreSonus StudioLive 32.4.2AI digital mixing console and StudioLive RM32AI rack-mount digital mixer - networked over AVB with an SL-AVB-MIX card and Cat 5 digital multicore - that allows for real flexibility and, crucially, remarkable ease-of-use for church members.

Specified and installed by Ian Edwards of Gigs A

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