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20 August 2024

Spain - In the final four shows of superstar Karol G’s 62-date Mañana Será Bonito Tour, it was the “details” - even the most painstaking ones - that gave rise to some looks that enthralled the sold-out crowds at Madrid’s Santiago Bernabéu Stadium.

Working with a production design by Travis Shirley, lighting designer Ignacio ‘Iggy’ Rosenberg of Lightswitch artfully pixel mapped every cell of 310 Chauvet Professional Color Strike M fixtures to add an extra level of depth and continuity to the massive set.

“We did a ton of pixel mapping,” said Rosenberg. “Every cell was really used individually to get as much flexibility throughout the show. Given the overall arc of the design, we constrained the palettes we used for the first two sections of the show, so we needed all the tools we could have to create different looks.”

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20 August 2024

UK - Oxford’s Bodleian Libraries chose a custom LED video wall from Leyard Europe as the main display in the public area, or loggia, of the Weston Library, home to the library service’s special collections.

The Leyard Europe TVF LED video wall was delivered to replace an existing LCD video wall installed pre-pandemic during a major building-wide AV refresh, designed by AV consultants Hewshott and installed by Reflex Ltd, part of Aura. Leyard Europe was selected through an early process, consisting of comparison between five different LED brands.

As AV consultant Daniel Brooks explains, it “best met the client requirements, providing both quality and value and, thanks to Leyard’s European manufacturing facility, faster delivery than competitors. This benefitted the project timeline and reduced the environmental impact of international shipping

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20 August 2024

Fake News - Donald Trump appears to have falsely implied he has Taylor Swift's endorsement, posting fake images on social media of the singer and her fans supporting him. The Republican presidential candidate posted the message "I accept!" alongside the images, which were taken from other social media accounts. Many appear to have been created using artificial intelligence. The post sparked a backlash among Swift's fans who accused Trump of spreading misinformation. The singer has not endorsed a candidate in the 2024 election but backed the Democrats in 2020 and criticised Trump while he was president.

Giving Back - An East Sussex music festival is helping people through the cost-of-living crisis by launching a 'pay what you can afford' scheme. Boundary Brighton said the scheme comes "as a ‘thank you’ for seven years of support and in re

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19 August 2024

UK - The grounds of Eastnor Castle in Herefordshire hosted this month’s Lakefest 2024 where, once again, all seven stages at this popular festival featured Nexo sound systems.

Total Sound Solutions crossed the border from Swansea to rig the main stage with left and right hangs of 12 x Nexo Geo M12s and eight MSUB18s, plus two separate hangs of five Geo M12s for delays and a single hang of Geo M10 for the VIP side hang. Eight RS18 subs were deployed across the front of the stage with additional MSUB18s in a cardioid formation, with Nexo’s versatile P15 point source speakers used for front-fills.

Side-fill duties on the main stage were performed by a Nexo live sound veteran. “Artists and engineers were so pleased to see our Alpha E system on the stage,” reports Total Sound CEO Chris Hooke. “The fact that it’s 25 years old and still welcome

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19 August 2024

Poland - From 26 to 28 July, rental company Gondek Sound provided the audio infrastructure for the Łódź Summer Festival, held in the heart of the country. As one of Poland's largest festivals, it attracted an estimated 500,000 attendees, according to the organisers.

The massive crowd gathered to enjoy performances by both international and local stars, including Placebo, Milky Chance, Błażej Król, Smolasty, White 2115, Kukon, Krzysztof Zalewski, PRO8L3M, Beata and BAJM, Kizo, Young Leosia, and Röyksopp.

To meet the demands of this large and challenging gathering, Gondek Sound deployed a comprehensive array of Outline equipment. The FOH system featured 15 GTO line-source enclosures and two GTO-DF (down-fill) modules per side.

The setup also included three delay towers: the first was equipped with nine GTO enclosures per side, while the

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19 August 2024

UK - Work was recently completed on an ambitious project to provide a revitalised and upgraded learning environment for those studying a range of further education courses at Barrow Sixth Form College.

Made possible by funding from the Brilliant Barrow Town Deal, a grant from the Government’s Further Education Capital Transformation Fund, and investment from parent establishment, Furness College, the scheme included the renovation of existing classrooms as well as a refurbishment of the College’s 160-capacity theatre.

Colne-based audio-visual supply and installation specialist, SoVeryAPT, was engaged by architects and project managers HPA Chartered Architects of Lancaster, to deliver quality, robust AV systems for the theatre, which could comfortably cater for a wide range of campus events. SoVeryAPT had worked with HPA in the past on a number of

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19 August 2024

Denmark - Roskilde Festival, one of Europe’s longest-running music festivals, is known for pushing creative boundaries, made possible through collaboration with sound provider, Meyer Sound.

In 2024, Roskilde included a performance by Nordic experimental folk collective Heilung, powered by Meyer Sound’s Spacemap Go spatial sound design and mixing tool. Heilung draws from ancestral cultures dating back to the Iron Age. Performances evoke ancient pagan rituals, combining throat singing, field recordings, and instruments crafted from stones, animal skins, and bones to create the otherworldly music the group describes as “Amplified History”.

“Heilung is an immersive experience in terms of a sort of shamanistic ritual that already immerses the audience in a spiritual way,” says bandleader Christopher Juul. “What we wanted to do here was to br

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16 August 2024

Switzerland - The 58th Montreux Jazz Festival returned to the shores of Lake Geneva from 5-20 July. Since its beginnings in 1967, the festival has drawn legends of soul, jazz, and blues along with rock stars, rappers, and emerging artists of every genre.

For 38 years, sound for the Montreux Jazz Festival has been provided by Meyer Sound, innovation and strategic partner of the festival. “Our decades-spanning collaboration with the Montreux Jazz Festival is about a shared commitment to sonic excellence,” says Andy Davies, Meyer Sound’s director of product & services. “As the festival strives to provide the best concert experiences, it needs a partner that can deliver the best sonic experiences. We’re thrilled to be an integral part of the journey.”

For the first time, events took place entirely outside the Montreux Music and Convention

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16 August 2024

Croatia - Over 200 Robe moving lights graced the stage in a lighting scheme designed by Sven Kučinić of LumiLas LLC for a show by Serbian superstar Milica Pavlović at the Zagreb Arena.

Sven was asked to light the high-profile concert after Pavlović’s show producers saw his lightshow for Croatian artist Gibonni - the previous year at Belgrade Arena - and decided they wanted to work with him. They talked to the artist who also checked out Sven’s work for herself and was suitably impressed.

Sven, who has a busy schedule combining working as a commercial pilot with designing creative lightshows, was also contacted by the local show producers Ivan Jurić-Kaćunić, Katijan Knok and Goran Hucaluk, with whom he’s worked on other projects and was able to slot this one into his diary.

His starting point for the production lighting design was

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16 August 2024

UK - In another creative bid to engage young people with the production industries, Production Futures recently staged a brand activation at Bludfest, which took place at Milton Keynes Bowl on 11 August. The lineup, curated by singer-songwriter, Yungblud, attracted a diverse range of fans, including many young people for whom the Production Futures pop-up provided insights into possible careers in the production sector.

The Production Futures stand was located in the fan-zone entrance, and as well as providing information about the organisation’s upcoming On Tour shows, ran a series of popular competitions designed to attract the interest of young people with limited knowledge of the wide range of opportunities in the sector.

Representatives from some of Production Futures’ brand partners not only helped construct the stand but also made themselv

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16 August 2024

USA - The World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) brand is a global behemoth, with loyal fans in over one billion households throughout 180 countries. That’s largely because its events are among the most electrifying experiences in live entertainment, taking over the biggest and best-known sporting venues the world over and packing them to capacity on a weekly basis.

On occasion, WWE brings private events home to its new Stamford, Connecticut-based corporate headquarters, where it seeks to deliver the energy and excitement of a sold-out stadium bout at its sunlit atrium for a few hundred select invitees. That’s why the world leader in sports entertainment called in the team at OSA International to design and install a PK Sound T10 robotic line array system for the space. ACT Entertainment is the exclusive North American distributor of PK Sound products.

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16 August 2024

USA - Bandit Lites is supporting country music rising star Megan Moroney, who was recently named New Female Artist of the year at the 59th ACM Awards.

Bandit Lites founder Michael T. Strickland witnessed the raw potential and passion for music early in Moroney’s career saying, “I first saw Megan when she was just out of college and was not even a club act. After one show, you knew she had it. There are very few entertainers that have that magical combination of talent, songwriting, charm and charisma and they instantly draw you into their soul.”

Lighting designer Tim Keller crafted a supplemental package that would meet the size limitations of the truck pack, utilising Martin MAC Vipers and Cyc FX fixtures. With venue sizes ranging from intimate theatres to massive stadiums, simplicity has been the key to consistency.

I

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15 August 2024

USA - Before heading out on the road with Metallica for the M72 World Tour, live sound monitor engineers and technicians Mike ‘Mic’ Bollella and Robert ‘Bob’ Cowan looked to expand the band’s RF coverage with a full-spectrum solution that could be used worldwide.

Bollella and Cowan continually look for solutions that provide the best live experiences for artists and fans alike. To achieve this for the M72 tour, which is performed in the round, Bollella and Cowan worked with RF tech Stacey Handley to select Wisycom MTK982 Dual Wideband Transmitters.

“We needed to expand on the RF spectrum that we could use, and we also needed a solid RF-over-fibre system,” explains Bollella, who first discovered Wisycom through colleagues in the industry. “We came to the realisation that the Wisycom gear was really the next step forwa

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15 August 2024

Canada - The team at Onedot designed the lighting rig for Fuego Fuego, Canada’s largest Latin Music festival.

Held at Montreal’s Parc Olympique, the two-day event featured an impressive list of stars, including Maluma and Rauw Alejandro. The Onedot team’s goal was to put together a rig that was versatile enough to express the style of each artist. To do so, they had to summon their creative powers to overcome the limitations posed by their stage.

“The stage brought a good deal of challenges regarding limited rigging loads, rigging trims and wind bracing,” said Jean-Sebastien Guilmette of Onedot. “With a total trim height of 28ft, we had to be very conscious of every inch of the stage, and needed to ensure that small details were taken into account.”

Original thinking helped Guilmette and lighting director Louis-Xavier Bonneau co

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15 August 2024

Slovenia - The Lent Festival in Maribor (21-29 June) is the largest open-air festival in Slovenia and, each year, attracts tens of thousands of visitors to the former European Capital of Culture. National and international artists from all musical genres perform on the large and small stages, which are strewn about the city centre.

In order to cover the stylistic diversity in terms of event technology, the organisers - together with the numerous local service providers - once again relied on a wide range of Cameo lights and a Maila array system from LD Systems.

Top stars of the Slovenian and national music scene, including Magnifico and the vocal group Perpetuum Jazzile, performed on the Main Stage in the centre of Maribor. Lighting designer Matevz Giganovič relied on an almost identical setup to the previous year: Opus X Profile, Opus H5 IP65 beam-

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14 August 2024

France - Those who watched the Paris Olympics on Eurosport had their experience enriched by some extraordinary behind-the-scenes breakthroughs at the Warner Bros network’s studios.

Recently remodelled, the three Eurosport studios in Boulogne that broadcast coverage of the Paris Olympics employ the latest in TV technology. Designed and installed by Arkrys, working with Georges Krystkowiak (director of photography) and Baptiste Arnaud-Benaïs (gaffer), along with the TD of Eurosport France, Florent Marquer, the fully automated studios aired coverage throughout the Olympic sites with 10 commentary positions embedded in a virtual setting.

Controlling the lighting setups at the studios were the ChamSys MQ250M Stadium console, along with two GeNetix 10Scene Gateways and two 10Scene Wall Plates. The performance of the ChamSys products made the transition

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14 August 2024

USA - When veteran lighting designer Tom Kenny was called on to light a reimagined NHL Draft at the Las Vegas Sphere - the first live TV broadcast from the venue - he chose multi-dynamic Pulse Panel FX lights from Elation to back the all-important look.  

Evolving from a traditional convention-style draft to a 21st century show at arguably the most talked about venue in the US, the NHL dazzled players and fans 28-29 June with a visually striking broadcast.

“The NHL Draft at the Sphere was just amazing and out of this world,” Kenny enthused. “This was really a historical show and we needed a modern look for this new way to hold a draft. I knew I wanted something that was epic and futuristic looking in that main television shot, and even though you’re up against the biggest backlight in the world with its amazing content, the Pulse looked bea

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14 August 2024

Japan - The Shiki Theatre Company has been part of Japan’s entertainment scene since 1953 and has become one of the world’s largest theatre groups with 1,400 actors and team members. Sennheiser Japan has been a partner to the Shiki Theatre Company for many years. In the beginning, all their theatres were equipped with a combination of analogue Sennheiser 3000 series wireless receivers and 5000 series transmitters. After recognising the significant advantages of the Digital 6000 series, Shiki upgraded to the new audio system a few years ago.

Mr. Kaname Morishita from the sound and music department of the Shiki Theatre Company talks about how the new digital system got introduced: “The major turning point was a sound designer in the US implementing the Digital 6000 series when we were preparing to stage new international programmes at Shiki. For internat

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14 August 2024

USA - Newark Airport’s new Terminal A is now open. The one million square foot facility with 33 gates represents the largest single investment in New Jersey in the Port Authority’s history. The terminal boasts 21st-century technology, inspiring public art, world-renowned retailers, and locally inspired concessions.

Complementing the public art programme is an immersive digital journey that captivates passengers with the Garden State's renowned landmarks, art, and innovations through a series of permanent large-scale multimedia installations designed to prioritise the New Jersey sense of place that is distinct to the aesthetic and design of Terminal A.

Completed in 2023, Newark's Terminal A now joins LaGuardia's Terminal B as the only two airport terminals in North America awarded the highest Skytrax rating. The terminal served 15m passengers in i

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14 August 2024

China - Wilbur (Will) Pan, a Taiwanese American singer, songwriter, rapper, actor and entrepreneur, embarked on his 2024 Mad Love World Tour with the help of MaxTeam, one of the largest pop music performance service teams in China, and Chinese AV solutions provider EZPro, which provided the professional PA equipment at a variety of locations including Qingdao, Hangzhou, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Beijing, Nanchang, Hefei, Xi'an and Chengdu. This PA package included EAW ADAPTive Anya arrays and Otto subwoofers.

The Mad Love Tour kicked off earlier this year in Hangzhou, China at the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Centre Indoor Stadium, with a total of 24 EAW Anya enclosures (12 on each side) as the main PA system. The speakers were flown to a trim height of 13m, but easily covered the near and far seating using EAW’s Resolution 2 software to dictate st

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13 August 2024

UK/Paris - A UK-based lighting and events company has defied the odds to become Europe’s leading sporting broadcast lighting business as an Official Supporter of Broadcast Lighting and Rigging for the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games, despite challenges faced from Brexit and the pandemic. 

SLX provided its services to light up 29 outer Paris venues, including the specially built Aquatics Centre throughout the duration of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

Such is the scope of this project, SLX has had a dedicated team of 30 people working on the ground in Paris for the last 12 months. It has also opened a 25,000sq.ft space, equivalent to the size of two Olympic swimming pools, to store and supply the multiple venues with lighting, equipment, rigging and cabling to ensure competitors, spectators and media have the best visibility no matter the t

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13 August 2024

Poland - Founded over 15 years ago, I Am Music is a trusted supplier of audio, lighting and AV technology to the Polish events sector, and has worked with most major stars in the Polish music scene. The company recently made the decision to make a significant investment in its audio inventory and chose to add a Coda Audio system, supplied by Coda’s Polish distributor Tommex.
I Am Music purchased a system based on Coda Audio’s flagship AiRAY line array (16 units) supplemented by ViRAY (12 units) and SCP-F subs (12 units), complemented by two Linus T-Rack (12-channel touring rack with 3 x Linus 14D amplifiers) and a Linus M-Rack (compact four-channel touring rack with a single Linus14D amplifier). A further 4 x HOPS8T (high output point source) and Linus 12C amplifier provide excellent system expansion, completing a comprehensive solution that can cater for e

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13 August 2024

China/Germany - Interest in the 2024 UEFA European Football Championship (Euro 2024) extended far beyond the borders of Europe. Beijing-based programme organisers Hologram Jasmine used Disguise’s virtual production capabilities for CCTV’s Football Connections special telecast series spotlighting the tournament hosted by Germany on 14 June - 14 July.

Hologram Jasmine partnered with Disguise last year on live virtual production broadcasts related to the opening and closing ceremonies of the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China. Building on that relationship and working with a tight production schedule, the Hologram Jasmine team used striking visual effects to attract young viewers for events such as Euro 2024’s opening ceremony, creating an immersive and vibrant atmosphere for the audience.

Powered by Disguise’s virtual

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13 August 2024

USA - When The Muny, one of America’s most iconic outdoor venues, kicked off its 106th season, patrons were treated to an enhanced and immersive audio experience featuring brand-new Meyer Sound Panther large-format linear line array loudspeakers, provided by Masque Sound, a leading theatrical sound reinforcement, installation and design company.

This state-of-the-art Panther system was specified by resident co-sound designers John Shivers and David Patridge, bringing their creative visions to life with unprecedented clarity and impact.

“Over the course of 10 years as resident co-sound designers at The Muny, John (Shivers) and I had made all of the possible improvements with the audio package we could think of,” says Patridge. “Thankfully, Masque Sound has been an amazing partner and has allowed us to improve loudspeakers, consoles, radios and