Italy - Leading Italian television lighting designer Salvo Perrini used nearly 200 Robe moving lights on the most recent series of Reazione A Catena (Chain Reaction) for national TV channel RAI.

The show was recorded at RAI's Auditorium HQ in Naples where Perrini lit the show for the second time, before which it was recorded in Rome.

The game is based on the association logic of words or numbers and allows viewers to test their intuition and mastery of the Italian language. Each episode needed to have a different look and flavour, on which Perrini worked closely with scenic designer, Marco Calzavara.

As each programme built up towards its final section the money stakes increased dramatically ... and the lighting was integral to helping build the tension.

Perrini has worked for RAI for 27 years and has been using Robe products regularly in his work for the last three

Gabe Kubanda thinks big. A singer-songwriter by trade, he is constantly working to expand his exposure through creative ideas. In 2011, he was cast in the "Rock N' Roll Fantasy Camp" reality show on VH1 Classics. This year, he co-founded the Epic Proportions Tour, a new concept in promotion. Kubanda and two other unsigned artists, Lost In Atlantis and School Boy Humor, played 15 dates at military bases, high schools and colleges throughout the summer. When planning the tour, the new Line 6® StageSource™ L3t loudspeakers played a key role.

"Epic Proportions is a new and different approach to touring. The idea is to get great live bands a lot of exposure without a lot of financial risk," Kubanda says. "Instead of getting a dozen or so people to see us in a club, we play free shows for large crowds, often in the thousands. Kids love to hear new bands, an

UK - ETC is supporting the World Stage Design festival in Cardiff with a series of technical discussions on lighting with LED.

The festival, which runs until 14 September, is a celebration of international performance design from the world of theatre, opera and dance, running alongside which is Scenofest, bringing together live events, including performances, master-classes and hands on workshops.

Presentations will include ETC's technical director Adam Bennette and Steve Terry, ETC's vice president of R&D, who will be chairing a technical discussion on how to set up LED in a lighting rig. Bennette explains: "LED fixtures use power in a quite different way to tungsten - if the rig is set up in the way it would be for tungsten, it can cause all sorts of power issues. So we talked about what the problems are, and how to work around them, then talked about how to mix old and

Japan - Martin Audio is capitalising on its success in Japan and the Far East by setting up a new regional hub in Kanagawa.

The new operation, Martin Audio Japan, was announced in early 2013 and recently ratified, with Yusuke Karato, director of Martin Audio distributors, Audiobrains, fronting the operation.

Under the new structure, Martin Audio Japan will act as main distributor and Audiobrains will take on a dealership role. Mr. Karato believes that this will lead to even greater penetration and brand recognition for the manufacturer. "We considered what we needed to do for the Japanese market and this will deliver greater business opportunities in a wider number of market segments."

He added, "We recognise that with loudspeaker technology becoming increasingly complicated, first class customer training and service support were essential. We wanted to be the

UK - PLASA London 2013, which takes place at ExCeL London from 6-9 October 2013 has announced the return of a series of DJ sessions, supported by the National Association of Disc Jockeys (NADJ). The sessions will run on Sunday 6 October as part of PLASA London's popular Professional Development Programme of free educational seminars.

Paul Arnett, national chairman for the NADJ, said, "PLASA London is a great opportunity to meet up with like-minded professional DJs from across the country - we feel that, through attending events such as this, we can better equip our current and future members with the tools and resources they'll need to help build and develop their businesses. Our professional seminar speakers will have sage advice and guidance on marketing, presentation, DJing skills and so much more."

Highlights of the seminar sessions include:

• Tony Winyard

Super Star - Bruno Mars will perform at next year's Super Bowl halftime show. The NFL confirmed the Locked Out of Heaven star will sing at the game in February. He follows the likes of Madonna, Michael Jackson, Black Eyed Peas, Beyonce, U2, Janet Jackson and Bruce Springsteen. Super Bowl XLVIII will take place at the MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey on 2 February 2014. Mars, is currently midway through his Moonshine Jungle tour, which will arrive in the UK on 2 October starting at Odyssey Arena in Belfast.

Piano Man - Sir Elton John will perform live at this year's Emmy Awards. The musician, will play a tribute to Liberace, the American pianist and vocalist whose life was told in the recent biopic, Behind the Candelabra. The HBO film, which premiered in Cannes this year, is up for 15 Emmys. The awards, hosted by Neil Patrick Harris, will

Italy - Mishima is the name of a project that the Brazilian artist Ismael Ivo staged at the arena at the Pietrarsa Railway Museum in Naples, Italy. It is based on the life and creative world of the Japanese artist Yukio Mishima, who committed sepuku (samurai ritual suicide) at the height of his brilliant career.

The performance started at dusk and the Gulf of Naples formed a natural backdrop for a rice-covered, Japanese-rock-garden-like set. The stage hosted an encounter between dancers involved in a ritual celebration representing the contrast between sunrise and sunset and between life and death.

The show was co-produced by the Fondazione Campania dei Festival, the Arb Dance Company and the Accademia di Belle Arti di Napoli. The Vietnamese dancer Khai Ngoc Vu led the performance, accompanied by dancers from the Compagnia Arabesque/Les Danseurs Napolitains, the voice of Angel

USA - This summer, New York Philharmonic performed a series of five concerts in parks throughout New York City using a Meyer Sound Leo linear large-scale sound reinforcement system. Two large shows took place on Central Park's Great Lawn, where Meyer Sound loudspeakers covered a widely dispersed audience estimated at more than 50,000.

For the 15th consecutive summer season, both sound coordination and FOH mixing duties for the New York Philharmonic were entrusted to Larry Rock, audio director for the symphony orchestra. For Rock, a Grammy-winning veteran of hundreds of classical concerts and recordings, Leo's debut performance raised the bar for large-scale presentation of classical music.

"It was a new experience," says Rock. "The Leo system is very powerful - it is particularly clear and efficient in the high-frequency ranges. Also, its throw is rather astonis

Chile - Wireless Solution Sweden demonstrated W-DMX during Chilean distributor Iluminacion Profesional Valook SA's Light Up! recent training sessions and open house in Santiago, Chile.

The Light-Up! show hosted approximately 200 people on 30 July for the open house and over 40 lighting designers for the training sessions on 31July. The training sessions were conducted via the use of visualisation systems such as Light Converse and intelligent lights from Robe.

For the open house and training sessions, all moving heads and DMX fixtures that were used were connected with W-DMX BlackBox F-1, F-2 and R-512. Fabian Cortez Lopez of Illumincion Profesional Valook SA commented, "The W-DMX products are incredibly user friendly and reliable. The W-DMX marketing material helped us a lot to inform our customers about the innovations and products from Wireless Solution.

Kashmir - On 7 September 2013 maestro Zubin Mehta and the Bavarian State Orchestra hosted a landmark event in the foothills of the Himalayas in the town of Srinagar. Srinagar had not witnessed any official form of cultural activity since a cricket match in 1983, making this one of the most eagerly anticipated concerts in recent times.

Zubin Mehta is the music director for life of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra and main conductor for Valencia's Opera House. Nearly 2,000 guests attended the event, hosted by the German Embassy in the Shalimar Gardens in Srinagar.

It was the lifelong dream of Zubin Mehta's to perform in the beauty and serenity of the Shalimar Gardens. The garden is over 500m in length with natural waters running through the garden and then entering into the famous Dal Lake. A nineteenth century Mughal house was chosen as the backdrop, providing many additional

Germany - This summer in Cuxhaven, Germany, rental house POOLgroup deployed its Meyer Sound Leo linear large-scale sound reinforcement system for the main stage of the 2013 Deichbrand Festival.

Headlined by acts including Bush, Die Toten Hosen, and Funeral for a Friend, the four-day festival attracted around 35,000 people a day to an airfield near the ocean. According to the audio team, the effects of wind became a key consideration in designing the sound system for the main stage.

"The Leo system is so much more powerful than anything else we have worked with," says Tim Humpe, head of entertainment and touring production for POOLgroup. "The biggest challenge with this festival is the wind. With Leo, the sound stays focused and in your face, without the need for delay towers."

The main stage system provided sound for the entire 150m-long audience area. &q

The brand new Hakkasan nightclub within the MGM Grand in Las Vegas has added dazzling sparkle to its huge main dance floor by installing 16 of Clay Paky’s powerful laser-like beam Sharpys.

The sixteen perfectly parallel pure beam Sharpys are rigged on the main dancefloor, which forms the heart of the 10,000 sq ft multi-tiered nightspot.

Dublin-based nightclub lighting expert Audiotek – which has been involved in some of America’s biggest nightlife venue installations – worked with Hakkasan Ltd to specify and supply the Clay Paky Sharpys as part of the club’s commitment to creating a world-class venue. The luminaires were then installed by Nevada-based 4 Wall.

"When you are working, designing and overseeing the biggest club venue in the world, it pays to know that your specification and light show is going to deliver,” says Audiotek

UK - Calling on their relationships with industry leading experts, Sennheiser UK has produced a series of insightful eye-catching videos, capturing the lives and work of world famous engineers, producers and artists. In these videos, these Masters of Sound talk about their craft, as well as providing a multitude of interesting and useful industry tips.

The Masters of Sound campaign kicked off at the beginning of 2012 and gave aspiring musicians the life-changing opportunity of helping to create a new track with singer-songwriter and producer, Labrinth. Worcester-born singer, songwriter and pianist Clare-Louise Rossie was chosen as the winner from over 600 entries with her composition Designed to Fly.

The five new video sessions continue the Masters of Sound topic by offering a wealth of useful material to anyone whose passion lies within professional audio world.

The first M

Spain - Allen & Heath's Xone DJ mixers were used throughout the Ibiza season at various venues across the island, requested by top DJs including Pete Tong, John Digweed, Chris Liebing, Juanjo Martin and Richie Hawtin.

The flagship Xone:DB4 digital FX club mixer, along with the pro touring XD2-53 headphones was used by Pete Tong at his new weekly Le Grand Bazaar party at the Ushuaïa Ibiza Beach Hotel. Pete also used the same set up for his Essential Mix Liveat Privilege, broadcast on Radio 1. Leading Spanish DJ and producer, Juanjo Martin, also resumed his SuperMartxé residency at Privilege, where he used XD2-53 headphones and a Xone:DB4.

The M-NUS crew took up residency at Space for Enter, featuring Xone:92 mixers and Xone:K2 controllers in the booth, which included regular appearances from Richie Hawtin, Magda, Nina Kraviz, and Gaiser. Similarly,

UAE - Melody House, distributors of Primacoustic has recently announced the availability of Primacoustic Paintables for the GCC market. Primacoustic Paintables are an innovative acoustic panel range that features a specially formulated textured latex surface that may be repainted on-site to match the colour scheme and decor of a room or facility.

Paintables ship in an attractive absolute white finish and are available in a variety of sizes. This makes them suitable for both large scale and small room installations including house-of-worship, airports, home theatre, offices, call centres, board rooms, restaurants, video conferencing rooms, broadcast facilities and recording studios of all sizes.

"With the increase in demand of acoustical treatment for studios. Primacoustic Paintables takes studio look and design to the next level," commented Grayson Soares, operations

UAE - Nicolas Kyvernitis Electronics Enterprises, distributors of Shure microphones and audio electronics in the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Qatar and Oman has recently supplied 10 channels of the new PSM series transmitters with 19 receivers, 24 channels of the new URF-R series with 32 transmitters, eight plug-on transmitters and 35 of the new MX150B lavalier microphones to local AV supplier Tek Signals who installed the system in the new Dubai Media Incorporated (DMI) News Center facility in Dubai Media City.

DMI is the parent company for many television and radio channels including Dubai One, Dubai TV, Sama Dubai, Dubai Sports Channel, Dubai Racing Channel and Noor Dubai.

"Dubai TV is a strong local media provider in the region and depend on Shure wireless products for their durability and performance," commented Shajahan K K, Shure product manager. "Remot

Germany - Studio Hamburg Newcomer Awards have been presented since 1997. German-language films made by students who are studying film-making at institutions of higher education compete in the Best Production, Best Short Film (Audience Prize), Best Director and Best Screenplay categories. The Günter Strack Television Prize is also awarded during the gala night to the best up-and-coming actress and actor, as well as the Hamburg Murder-Mystery Prize (since 2008).

For this year's ceremony, the lighting designer Andreas Rinne used eight Clay Paky Sharpys, 30 Clay Paky Alpha Spot HPE 300s, 10 Clay Paky Alpha Spot HPE 700s, 16 Clay Paky Alpha Beam 300s and a grandMA2 light, as well as other equipment.

"My experience of Clay Paky products in the last few years has been very good. For this reason, these lights were crucial to the lighting concept," said Rinne. "Clay Pak

Denmark - The Roskilde Music Festival has brought together some of the world's most popular artists since the early 1970s. On this year's Orange Stage, Metallica headlined the festival, with performances from many other globally acclaimed artists, including Rihanna and Slipknot. Designed by veteran lighting designer Kasper Lange, the Orange Stage featured a vast amount of Martin lighting fixtures for the Metallica set.

The Orange Stage included 68 Martin MAC 2000 Wash XB's and 34 MAC III Profile moving heads, along with 65 MAC 101's and 10 MAC Aura LED moving heads. Thirty-four Atomic 3000 strobes with Atomic Colors scrollers were deployed for blinding punch effects. Copenhagen-based rental company Litecom, supplied the gear.

Martin lighting, which has graced Roskilde for years, also played a role on several other stages at the 2013 festival including the Pavilion Stage, featu

Germany - Over 2000 Robe LEDWash fixtures are in action on a series of high profile stands - including Audi, BMW, Mini. Opel, Porsche, Seat and Volkswagen, at the Frankfurt 65th International Motor Show (IAA).

One of the world's leading auto expos, IAA 2013 is being staged at the Frankfurt Messe, 10 - 22 September 2013.

The different stands have been designed by some of the leading creative practices in the country, and the fixtures supplied by a number of the primary German rental and dry hire companies.

The preparations started months ago with Audi constructing its own temporary exhibition Hall - Agora - especially for IAA; and Mercedes Benz building a three-level high showroom into the famous Frankfurt 'Festhalle', more usually a host to large scale concerts. The Frankfurt Motor Show - powered by the prestigious German Manufacturers - is also a leader in innovation and te

UK - Creative & Cultural Skills has announced plans to host a series of one-day masterclasses this autumn for young people embarking on careers in technical theatre.

Supported by the Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation, the Technical Masterclass Series will be held at The Backstage Centre over three days, with each day accommodating a different age group.

The events will take place on 29, 30 and 31 October, and will be aimed at key stage 4 students, further education students, and higher education students respectively.

The masterclasses are designed to supplement classroom learning for students who have a keen interest in backstage theatre, and to provide a valuable networking and training opportunity for technical theatre students and young professionals.

Attendees will be able to participate in one masterclasses from the following options, and will benefit from practical lea

UK - Over the past twelve months Pearce Hire has been working on an intricate and very different style of project from what they are most known for. This time last year, the theatre group Shakespeare at The George got in touch to ask for Pearce Hire's expertise in project managing and building a bespoke temporary stage set for their annual performances. But it is no ordinary stage set as the production takes place outdoors in the middle of an olde English Inn in the heart of Huntingdon, Cambs, that dates back to Cromwell's time.

Pearce Hire were charged with producing a solid and reliable temporary stage system for use in an environment akin to how it would have been in Shakespeare's time. With the intricacies and detail of a Jacobean Courtyard to contend with, it was certainly not going to be a simple straightforward installation of standard stage components.

Explains Richard

UK - Problem-solving theatre consultancy Charcoalblue has collaborated with Bland, Brown and Cole architects to inject its bespoke brand of design sorcery to create Cambridge's The Leys School's new £9m Great Hall.

The focus of Charcoalblue's expertise is the Great Hall's new 320-seat theatre, which incorporates high-spec backstage facilities, technical infrastructure including lighting and sound equipment, a control room and workshop, storage areas and a green room. These will allow the Leys Drama Department and technical staff to operate a fully functional "teaching theatre", with pupils involved in every aspect of productions. The lower seating tier of the theatre is retractable, creating a School Hall which can comfortably seat 600 for a full assembly.

Charcoalblue has provided theatre design and planning services as well as the detailed design of the theat

UK - Lighting design and rental company Siyan chose Avolites consoles for this summer's Lovebox musical extravaganza in East London's Victoria Park. This year saw the company step up to the Sapphire Touch and Tiger Touch Pro for the main and second stages respectively.

"Historically, Avolites consoles have been Siyan's first choice at Lovebox," explains project manager Jez Johnstone. "For the past few years we've used the D4 range for FOH at the main stage, with the Expert on the smaller stages. With technology moving forward, it was a natural progression to spec the Sapphire Touch at main and the Tiger Touch Pro at stage 2."

At the controls of the Sapphire on the main stage was lighting designer Paula Trounce, taking care of artists including headline act Azealia Banks as well as Tinchy Stryder, Jurassic 5, D'Angelo, Rudimental and Charlie Wilson, among ot

UK - Rental company Sound of Music has supplied its Nexo Geo S12 for two strikingly different major summer events, the Reading and Leeds Festivals and a classical spectacular for 30,000 in Derby.

At Reading and Leeds, Sound of Music worked in collaboration with rental company Entertainment Sound Specialists to supply systems to both BBC Introducing stages. Each system comprised of five Geo S12 ground stacked elements plus two RS18 subs per side. These were all driven by Nexo NXAMP 4x4 powered digital controllers.

"We catered for 42 bands which rotated round identical setups at both sites," explains Sound of Music director Sash Pochibko. "There was always a steady audience which peaked at around 3,000 at the busiest times. Five elements per side were ample to throw to the back of the 60m deep crowd and beyond with consistent intelligibility."

By contrast,

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