Blanc is no stranger to working with Anastacia, having performed FOH duties for her on and off since her first single broke some eight years ago. He is also no stranger to DiGiCo and was happy to be able to specify a D5 for her latest tour.
As the tour didn't carry a full PA system, Blanc utilised 56 of the D5's inputs and fed the varying systems with five sends: main PA, front-fills, subs and delays as required.
"The show was her usual pop style, where the songs vary in colour and intensity," he recalls. "Most programmers work at home, so the 'pro tool' playback elements can often be level perfect, but not sonically right for the mix in a live environment. However, it's easy to address such issues within peoples programs with the digital trim on the console.
"I use a template session to start a tour that drives external effects and sometimes cue system. The board is such a great tool that you quickly forget how many issues it has already solved."
"I've had a great time with the D5 on monitors for Anastacia," adds Pell. "It sounds warm and natural, and the fact that it is so intuitive to get around means that I can keep my eyes on Anastacia and the band, and not have to look down too much."
(Jim Evans)
