Canada - The Virgin Mobile Presents Squamish Valley Music Festival site will be going fully cashless for the first time, working in partnership with Canadian access control and cashless payment specialists, Intellitix.

Produced by Live Nation Canada in partnership with Festival creators brand.LIVE Management Group, Virgin Mobile Presents Squamish Valley Music Festival takes place at the Logger Sports Grounds and Centennial Fields in Squamish, British Columbia, 8-10 August 2014.

In its fifth year, the festival will be welcoming its most impressive line up to date with a mix of top international artists and emerging local talent. Over 70 acts will be taking the stage including headliners Bruno Mars, Arcade Fire and Eminem, who will be performing his only festival of the 2014 season.

Each of the expected 35,000 visitors per day will be issued with a Radio Frequency Identificati

UK - VDC Trading, distributors of the Van Damme cable, managed to fulfil a huge order for over 150 microphone leads at very short notice for SWG Events to complete their installation at Glastonbury this year.

The South West Group is a regular supplier of events services to the Glastonbury festival and employs 10 full-time staff members and over 100 trained technicians, managers and consultants. SWG's coverage of the event spectrum includes sound, lighting, power, audio-visual, production services and event support. The company prides itself on having all resources to hand and we deliver only the very best service to our clients, sometimes with incredibly challenging deadlines. This was one of those times.

Richard Howells, project manager at SWG, said: "The guys at VDC really helped us out this year in preparation for Glastonbury, turning around 150+ cables in only a coupl

Sri Lanka - PR Lighting fixtures were used extensively to provide a dynamic backdrop for a major concert by Bengali Bollywood/Bhangra star, Mika Singh in Sri Lanka recently. The Punjabi star is a prolific songwriter, singer, performer and composer, who since releasing his first album 17 years ago has produced numerous chart hits - either taken from his film scores or privately recorded albums.

Local production company The Lighthouse (Pvt) Ltd provided a real tour de force, decorating the main hall at the MICH (Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall) in Colombo with 30 XS1200 (1200W) discharge spots, 30 XR200 Beams, and six XL1200 Spots.

The design was handled by Lighthouse's Dinusha Perera, who credited the fixtures' "excellent reliability and high brightness." At the command of the Avolites Pearl Expert, he confirmed that they fulfilled all the function

UK - Avolites and Avolites Media continued their strong association with Glastonbury Festival with an impressive array of equipment and an eager team out in force to support friends and colleagues alike.

With no less than three headline acts on the main stages controlled by Avolites, as well as numerous other acts and stages, the festival proved an excellent opportunity to showcase the power and versatility of the range.

The first of those headliners, Arcade Fire, brought the Pyramid stage to a climactic close for day one with a set list spanning their four albums. The band put on a compelling show, performing in elaborate costumes and face paint against a myriad of moving mirrors, fireworks, and an outstanding use of lighting skillfully conducted by Chris Bushell from a Sapphire Touch.

Meanwhile, Kaiser Chiefs ended the day one festivities on the John Peel stage, with Ali P

Norway - The largest Meyer Sound Lyon linear sound reinforcement system ever assembled was heard this summer at Telenor Arena in Oslo, Norway. Provided by Bright Norway AS, the 360-degree system entertained 8,500 employees of Scandinavian supermarket chain REMA 1000 with performances by Norwegian musicians Karpe Diem, D.D.E., and Kurt Nilsen.

Named 1000 Colours of REMA, the show required a system that could provide even in-the-round coverage at rock music levels with impeccable speech intelligibility. The solution designed by Bright Norway's Preben Frostad incorporated eight arrays of 11 Lyon linear line array loudspeakers each. To deliver powerful and even low-end coverage, the audio team specified a TM Array configuration, with four arrays of seven 1100-LFC low-frequency control elements suspended directly over the centre stage.

"The whole audio package was perfe

Belgium - AED Rent has recently made some new investments in the field of wireless microphones and in-ear monitoring. It includes a comprehensive package from Shure systems, complemented by DPA miniature microphones. So AED Rent now has Axient, ULX-D and PSM1000 in its rental range.

In a time where more and more wireless applications are used, but where less bandwidth is available for the pro-users in the audio industry, Axient offers a highly reliable solution for high profile events, allowing the user to set up a 100% redundant wireless connection, say AED.

"With Shure ULX-D we find ourselves in another market/price segment. The price-quality ratio is very good. What gives the opportunity to many users to use wireless microphones in a digital version. In the AED group, a total of nearly 100 channels ULX-D are available spread over three different frequency bands,"

UK - The Technical Theatre Awards, which celebrate the outstanding achievements of people working behind the scenes, have announced that this year's awards ceremony will take place on Tuesday 7 October at 5pm on The Theatres Trust TheatreStage (R40) at PLASA London.

The Technical Theatre Awards (TTAs) will also have their own stand during PLASA, S30, which runs 5-8 October at London's ExCel.

The TTAs, which debuted at PLASA 2013, were established to give due credit to the often unsung heroes and heroines that work backstage to make the theatre magic happen.

With the guidance of TTAs co-founders and organisers Ian Taylor and Olivia Dermot Walsh, the event has attracted immediate support from some of the biggest names and companies in the industry, including Philips Entertainment, PRG, and Triple E, all of which are sponsoring the awards again this year.

The TTAs announced n

USA - PLASA Events has announced the cancellation of PLASA Focus: Austin 2014, scheduled for 9-10 September. The show, returning to Austin for the third time in three years, was experiencing location saturation. Even with the prior success in Austin, it was clear the Events team would not be able to deliver the high quality experience exhibitors and attendees have come to expect from this celebrated series.

However, the PLASA Focus 2015 show series will hit the sunshine state once again, bringing the world's latest entertainment technology to Orlando on Tuesday, 17 February and Wednesday 18 February, 2015 at the Rosen Plaza Hotel.

Companies already signed up to exhibit at PLASA Focus: Orlando 2015 include: The Light Source, GLP, Ushio, Altman Lighting, CHAUVET Professional, TMB, Barbizon, Elation Professional, Harrington Hoist, Group One, Ultratec, A.C.T Lighting, and many oth

Italy - Clay Paky, the Italian manufacturer of professional show lighting, has today announced that it is preparing for a new phase in its history, with the signing of an agreement for the acquisition of the company by OSRAM, one of the world's leading light source manufacturers.

Following the acquisition, which is subject to approval by the relevant antitrust authorities, Clay Paky will continue to operate from its production and administrative head office in Bergamo, Italy. Key positions will remain in place, ensuring continuity in management, the company says.

"Integration with OSRAM, which has a great wealth of technological competence and an in-depth knowledge of the lighting market, is an ideal opportunity for the further development of Clay Paky," says Pasquale Quadri, founder and current president of Clay Paky. "After 40 years crowned by success, I am de

USA - Sensaphonics has added two more audiologists to its Gold Circle listing. The Sensaphonics Gold Circle is a group of audiologists who have been specifically trained to meet the hearing needs of music industry clients, with a special emphasis on in-ear monitoring.

Joining the Gold Circle ranks are audiologists Dr. Teresa Cannon of Staten Island Hearing and Balance, Staten Island, New York; and Dr. Matthew Bell of Pacific University in Hillsboro, Oregon.

Held at Sensaphonics headquarters in Chicago, the Gold Circle seminar is the only formal training system for audiologists on the in-ear monitoring from the musician's perspective. Instructors for the Gold Circle seminar include Sensaphonics founder and President, Dr. Santucci, and audio engineering consultant, Joe 'Sound Guy' Tessone. Topics include in-ear monitoring and hearing protection technology, concert sound system d

The Netherlands - It's been nearly a year since over 80 Robe lighting fixtures were supplied and installed at the charismatic Energiehuis, a former power station at the confluence of the Wantij and Beneden Merwede Rivers on the outskirts of Dordrecht, The Netherlands.

Energiehuis was transformed into a new multi-venue cultural centre by Jonkman Klinkhamer Architects - a stylish and cool integration of majestic civil engineering with contemporary industrial design and modern performance facilities offering the very highest production values.

The once thriving power station was closed in the 1970s and lay derelict and neglected before the three year regeneration plan commenced in 2010. The Energiehuis project was instigated and driven by Dordrecht Town Council and the performance elements developed in conjunction with theatre consultants, PB Theateradviseurs, who produced the te

UK - Antony Warren, promoter for the Whisky Sessions approached Illuminate Design to provide lighting, sound, staging and technical support for their marquee at the Isle of White Festival.

With limited power, Chauvet Colorado Par fixtures were chosen for their punchy colour from a small unit. Source 4 Lustrs were provided to illuminate the backdrop of the stage. Traditional festoon lighting was used to light the 360m2 marquee to give a rustic feel in line with the branding for the event.

With a varied mix of acts playing on stage, the sound needed to be flexible whilst taking into account the very strict sound levels on site. RCF (HD10A + Art905AS) powered speakers were provided for both the FOH PA as well as the on stage monitoring systems (HD10A). Various microphones and DIs were supplied to cater for both voice and instruments, with a Yamaha LS932 as the main mixing console

UK - The Eagles brought their History of the Eagles tour to London's O2 Arena in June in a worthy celebration of a lifetime of work. Performing classics and songs from their top-selling documentary, the concert is an exploration of one of the world's biggest-selling and culturally significant American bands.

Butch Allen, in collaboration with lighting designer Patrick Woodroffe and the band, designed the set and show. PRG provided lighting & rigging and worked alongside PRG Nocturne UK, who supplied video and a live camera package for the show.

Lighting director Dave Hill and his entourage of Stateside Lighting crew, led by Jason 'Atta Boy' Statler, crossed the Atlantic with production to reproduce the success of the North American run. Jason was joined by his team of professionals, including Russel Lyons, Greg Gore, Brian Monahan, Errol Reinhart, Matt Schnieder and UK

Italy - Italy - Vasco was back this summer, 2014, with seven sell-out concerts at stadiums. The tour consisted of three dates at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome and four at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza in Milan. Vasco became the first artist ever to do three consecutive nights at the Stadio Olimpico, and set a new record total number of 21 performances at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza.

The show itself was fit for breaking records: an exceptional, extremely impressive production. Clay Paky's lights were a must for the stage. The new A.Leda B-EYE K20s stood out in particular among the 'special lights' in the lighting design. There were 38 on stage and 15 on the large external structure.

"In order to use these lights," Vasco's lighting designer Giovanni Pinna explained, "I got great support from Clay Paky, because we are not talking about traditional lights... we are talkin

UK - Respected production technician Andy 'Fraggle' Porter ensured the Pyramid Stage at this year's Glastonbury was a dazzling display of bright and frenzied strobe effects by rigging 33 Showline SL Nitro 510 luminaires in an arch array.

Heavy metal headliners Metallica were one of the many acts that took advantage of the SL Nitro 510 strobes, which were supplied to Glastonbury by Neg Earth. Throughout the weekend, the strobes exhibited their versatility and offered the various lighting designers endless creative possibilities as the plethora of acts performed.

"Last year we used the SL Nitro 510 strobes in combination with our standard strobes and they worked really well," says Fraggle. "They are also a fantastic energy saving solution - a whole bunch of conventional strobes all bumped together has a huge impact on the generator mains which can cause us issues

UK - It would be practically impossible to overstate the importance of the Everyman Theatre to the city of Liverpool. To list the names of those whose careers are synonymous with it, would be to compile a who's who of artistic giants, their ground-breaking work deeply embedded in the national psyche, their place at the top table of British cultural history assured.

In the early 1960s a group of artists, poets, writers and musicians who met at the then Hope Hall Cinema, decided that the building would make a good theatre and in 1964, the Everyman was born. Closed in 1975 for rebuilding, it reopened in 1977 and there followed 34 years that shaped the careers of Willy Russell, Alan Bleasdale, Julie Walters, Bernard Hill and Pete Postlethwaite to name a just a handful.

In 2011, the Everyman closed its doors again for a £28m redevelopment, funded for the most part by Arts Cou

UK - For the 18th year running, July saw Sennheiser attend the Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts (LIPA) annual graduation ceremony, to reward students for their outstanding performance in initiatives that the company sponsors.

Taking place on 31 July and attended by both LIPA co-founders Sir Paul McCartney and Mark Featherstone-Witty, Sennheiser CEO Dr Andreas Sennheiser and the company's president of global sales Paul Whiting were present to hand out awards to this year's crop of Sennheiser-sponsored students.

2011 Sennheiser Scholarship winner Tomos Pierce graduated from LIPA, having enjoyed the considerable benefit of Sennheiser's support, experience and financial help during his time at the Institute.

"The application process for the Sennheiser Scholarship is designed to ensure that we support an outstanding student, who will go on to great things in the profes

UK - This summer's Commonwealth Games in Glasgow were preceded by Live at Edinburgh Castle, a 2.5-hour multi-act concert, televised live on the BBC from this location that dominates the Edinburgh skyline. The line-up for the event was extensive and included Culture Club, OneRepublic, Kaiser Chiefs, Motown legend Smokey Robinson, Jessie J, Paloma Faith and Il Divo. Various acts were backed by a 12-piece house band and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. To keep up with the fast-paced nature of the high-profile event, two SSL Live consoles were provided by Britannia Row Productions.

Though the event was headed by Brit Row project manager Lez Dwight, with Stefan Krista managing the inputs and cross-patch from scores of 12-way sub-snakes, Nahuel Gutierrez operated one SSL Live for the 75-member orchestra, generating group stems for FOH, monitors, BBC broadcast and 16 persona

USA - Carlos Santana and Buddy Guy have garnered 16 Grammy Awards between them, and for one magical night this summer, the two guitar virtuosos performed on stage at The Greenwich Town Party under the light of 22 Legend 230SR Beams from Chauvet Professional.

An intensely bright moving yoke fixture powered by a 230-watt Osram Sirius lamp, the Legend 230SR Beam anchored a muscular lighting rig installed by JDI Productions of Johnston, Rhode Island. "We used over 140 fixtures on the stage, covering the performers and reaching out into the audience," said LD and lighting crew chief Derek Iorfida. "This was a dynamic series of performances, not just by the two iconic headliners but all the artists on the programme, and we wanted to match the intensity of the music with an overwhelmingly powerful lighting display."

Iorfida singled out the Legend 230SR Beam, which

UK - 2014's Farnborough International Airshow saw the installation of a QSC Q-Sys networked audio management system to control the PA/VA systems at the biennial event, which took place in Hampshire in late July.

This year's show, as always, showcased the latest in aviation and airborne defence technology alongside displays of period aircraft and aerial acrobatic prowess, to the usual mixture of aviation industry experts, defence procurement mandarins, and the aircraft-loving general public.

As far as audio systems were concerned, however, it was all change; after the last show in 2012, Show Hire - one of Europe's leading event communications companies - were appointed for the first time to install and manage the on-site PA and audio systems.

The Airshow site at Farnborough is very large, covering approximately 2000 acres. From a PA perspective, it comprises several different

UK - Arcstream AV, specialist provider of interactive technologies and special effects for events and permanent installations, has supplied an interactive floor to the new reception area at Great Ormond Street Hospital.

The reception area has been done out in a seascape theme, so Arcstream created an interactive floor that looks like a rock pool. It's a fun idea that lets children play and looks good too.

The company has also provided an interactive floor and touchscreen table to Step by Step School for autistic children. Both feature Snowflake ABC software so that the children can learn while having lots of fun.

Neil Dickinson, managing director of Arcstream AV comments: "We have masses of experience in creating interactive floors for all kinds of uses from corporate events to education. They're incredibly absorbing and the content creation experts at Arcstream can dev

USA / UK - Peavey Electronics Corporation has announced that it is "redefining itself in consideration of the evolving and increasingly competitive market". In order to remain effective, the company says, it is restructuring its international operations - a process that will include the closure of its UK distribution facility.

Founded by Hartley Peavey in 1965, Peavey has multiple US factories throughout Mississippi and Alabama in addition to distribution facilities in the US, Europe and Asia.

The company's statement says: "While prices from China lowered the cost of the products in the marketplace, Peavey has continually examined its operating structure and made adjustments to compete with the lower cost structure of its competitors . . . The UK facility was originally set up as a manufacturing plant for large items to minimize international shipping expense

World - Lighting designers can enter their own Imagination into the wysiwyg Lighting Design Video Challenge by CAST Software - a challenge open to all current wysiwyg R33 users and members and to those who become so before the deadline of 26 September 2014.

"As in previous years, we're looking to discover the next lighting design talent through pre-visualization, but this year's participants will be challenged by having a 'budget' just like they would in a real world project. This 'budget' will be represented by an equipment limitation list," explains, Igor Silva, marketing manager at CAST Group.

"Entrants can be pros or amateurs - all you need to do is be a registered wysiwyg member, follow the equipment limitation list and guidelines, create a two-minute video of your lighting design using wysiwyg version R33 then post it to your YouTube account and share it o

USA - UK motion control specialist Kinesys is opening a new operation - Kinesys USA Inc, headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia and headed up by industry veteran David Martin.

Kinesys products have surged in popularity in the US over the last two years, and the move is part of the company's planned medium-term expansion strategy to optimise sales, technical support and after-sales service for all Kinesys owners and users, both existing and potential, the company says. "It also sends a strong message that the brand is very serious about consolidating the level of support for its US clients and enhancing its presence in the Americas," they say. Kinesys USA will also serve as a commercial hub for business in Canada, Central and South America.

David Martin will co-ordinate the technical sales and support in all these regions and work in close collaboration with the relevant d

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