In December 2007, a jury of musicians, celebrities and journalists listened to the numerous CDs and invited the best 120 bands to take part in live concerts, with eight bands each appearing in 15 German cities between January and February 2008. After the heats, this was whittled down to eight bands, who competed in the final round at the Musikmesse in Frankfurt.
At the international music expo, the groups performed live under PR Lighting XL 700 spot and wash lights, provided by German distributors, Focon Showtechnic. They were competing for the right to open the famous Rock am Ring Festival and to win a trip to the American Summer NAMM Festival in Nashville this July, to perform live on stage. The band who emerged victorious was Glory of Joann.
All the technical requirements for the event were handled by Ebi Kothe from Cologne-based production company, EMP.
The ground to ceiling headroom measured barely six metres (and a stage depth measuring the same) but fortunately it was possible to extend this with a podium; however, EBI still needed to create a complete ground support and rigging system to carry the lighting and video framework, taking DVI feeds.
Under the control of grandMA, a flexible lighting design was conceived for operator Torben Lehmann, with the entire data communication running over ArtNet.
Kothe comments, "Thanks to the support of Focon, we were able to distribute 25 of the new XL 700 spots and 23 PR Lighting XL 700 washlights on the back- and mid-trusses, as well as in the ground positions. We were delighted to be giving these fixtures their first major outing on a large-scale concert event."
(Jim Evans)
