UK - An Allen & Heath iLive digital mixing system has been installed in London's exclusive Arts Club. Managing FOH and monitor audio in the live performance room, the modular system comprises an iDR10 MixRack and iLive-112 surface and fulfils the venue's need for a fully-spec'd pro mixer installed in an extremely compact control area.

Founded in 1863 by Charles Dickens, Anthony Trollope and Lord Leighton, the members-only venue attracts a top-end clientele, hosting gigs, art and fashion events, and private parties. Visiting sound engineer, Dave McDonald, took on the role of audio consultant at the venue, recommending iLive to replace the original FOH mixing console. Having used a similar system on tour with acts such as Adele, Florence & The Machine and AIR, the main reason for the change is that McDonald wanted to better meet the audio requirements of visiting artists.

He exp

Austria - A staggering 14,000 SGM LB-100 360° LED Balls - the largest deployment ever - recently combined to produce two giant circular overhead displays up in the Austrian Tyrol.

The occasion was the annual Kitzbuehel World Ski Cup - a major event in the Alpine ski calendar. Production company Light and Sound.at has been servicing the event every year since 2001 - providing reinforcement on the main stage in the mediaeval town centre, as well as the VIP tent.

It was in the VIP tent that the production company was seeking a special solution. Familiar with SGM's LED products having used the LED Par Zoom, they already had the concept of using 360° balls festooned on strings when they were introduced to Thorsten Sattler, co-MD of SGM Germany.

"We wanted to produce a very special show for the guests in the tent, and at the stage in town. As soon as Thorsten introduc

The Netherlands - Advantech, the embedded platform and integration services specialist has announced that Ingram Micro has joined its European sales network from January 2013, specifically for the ProAV market in Europe. Ingram Micro Inc., a Fortune 100 company, is the world's largest wholesale technology distributor and a global leader in IT supply-chain, mobile device lifecycle services and logistics solutions.

Ingram Micro's ProAV Division serves IT and AV customer needs across Europe whilst offering complete product solutions as well as Services. Fabrizio del Maffeo, Advantech sales director intelligent services comments, "Ingram Micro's comprehensive set of knowledge and skills complements Advantech's digital signage product portfolio, fostering new business opportunities and driving higher growth in this evolving ProAV market. Together with Ingram Micro, we will expan

UK- Liverpool based Adlib Solutions' lighting division, working for London based technical & creative production company LarMac LIVE, supplied lighting equipment, full production rigging, trussing and motors plus crew for the recent Donny & Marie Osmond UK arena tour.

The tour saw the popular duo take their hugely successful long running Vegas show on the road to the delight of UK fans.

Adlib Lighting's Pete Abraham worked closely with the tour's lighting designer Joseph Eddy to replicate his specification, while Andy Rowe crew chiefed it for Adlib on the road, working alongside technicians Michael Summerfield and Chris Neary. Production rigger James Heath installed approximately 50 points each day depending on the venue.

The lighting rig was based on two U-shaped trusses (rear and mid) and a straight front truss.

The moving lights included Adlib's brand new Martin MAC Vip

USA - Located in Hollywood, Catalina Bar & Grill has been a revered fixture on the West Coast jazz scene for over 25 years. Legendary performers like Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis have played there, a tradition that owner Catalina Popescu continues by booking today's top jazz artists. With a full kitchen, elegant dining room and perfect sight lines, every effort is made to honor the club's legacy of hosting incredible performances in an intimate space.

Recently, Catalina decided to upgrade its sound system with StageSource loudspeakers from Line 6. "When we heard how beautiful they sound, with such great clarity, we knew it would make a big difference to finally make the sound as good as the view for our customers," says Catalina Popescu.

"The installation was done by Sound Image. They have always done all our sound," says Catalina technical manager Dan C

USA - Community Professional Loudspeakers has announced the appointment of Timothy Dorwart as CEO. Dorwart brings over 30 years of sales, manufacturing and management experience in the pro audio and music industries. In his new role, Dorwart is tasked with overseeing the company's overall business and sales strategies, and leading Community into a new era of exceptional growth.

Dorwart's previous roles have included director and VP positions with Bose Corporation and DMX Music. Since 2007, he led the Stanton Group through a successful turnaround a

s their CEO. Dorwart joins Community from Gibson Guitar Corporation where he held the position of general manager, pro audio.

"I am delighted to join Community at a pivotal time in their history," said Dorwart. "The company is poised for considerable expansion and I look forward to leading the company into the future

UK - Sound rental company Wigwam Acoustics has confirmed its purchase of a Nexo STM Series modular line array system, after two years of involvement in its development.

In STM terminology, Wigwam's package is 48 sets; 48 x M46 main cabinets, 48 x B112 bass cabinets and 48 x S118 sub bass units. The system specification is identical to that ordered by London rental company Capital Sound Hire earlier this year.

The main criteria for the new system, according to Wigwam's Chris Hill, was, will it sound good ? will it be flexible and quick to rig?

Together with Capital Sound, Wigwam has been working closely with Nexo to inform what they, as rental companies, wanted from a new PA system. "Nexo's engineers really listened, went away and came up with the STM concept rather than just bringing out another cabinet design that none of us really wanted."

"They have a dif

USA - Cadac has announced it has appointed LIFT Distribution in the US to distribute its full production console range into the professional audio retail, installer and sound-hire channels.

Seattle based LIFT Distribution joins with Broadway sound specialist RF Pro in distributing Cadac in the US. RF Pro's Tom Bensen has a long and renowned association with the company, and remains responsible for the sale of bespoke console systems into the musical theatre, and large scale sound touring and event sectors. The appointment of LIFT Distribution is the direct result of demand for the latest Cadac compact analogue and digital consoles, and the requirement to service these via a general trade distributor, addressing the wider professional audio market.

Commenting on the new appointment, Cadac international sales manager Ben Millson explains, "Good independent audio distributor

UK - Newbury based Skan PA has placed an order with SES for several of its second generation 19" rack mount distribution units for use on a major world tour.

Chris Fitch, MD at Skan commented, "We have always trusted the build quality and longevity that SES power distribution offers, and we needed to ensure that these racks worked first time every time on this lengthy tour. When Mark Cooper form SES offered me the newly announced second generation rack system, it was an easy decision to make".

SES says it strives to continuously improve its build quality, and the second generation is no exception. "With the inclusion of smarter metering, upgraded earth leakage sensors and our new engraving system, SES remain the market leader in 19" power distribution," says the company.

(Jim Evans)

UK - Black Light's Open Day is now established as a key event for anyone in the Scottish AV, sound, lighting and stage industry.

"Our Open Day brings together all the latest AV, sound, lighting and stage technology under one roof," says Black Light's head of company development, Phil Haldane. "We're inviting everyone to come along and help us celebrate 30 years in the business."

Black Light has already got over 30 of the biggest names in the industry confirmed. That means that the 2013 Open Day will be the most exciting yet, says the company. It will be a great chance for everyone to come and see the hottest new equipment in action, quiz the experts and, of course, meet friends and colleagues.

The Open Day will take place on 15 March. As in previous years, the event will feature a wide range of exhibitor stands at which visitors will be able to talk to ma

WarChild Benefit - Muse warmed up for their appearance at this week's Brit Awards by headlining an intimate benefit gig in aid of WarChild UK. The band performed for almost two hours in front of 2,000 fans at London's Shepherd's Bush Empire. Speaking from the stage, front man Matt Bellamy said: "This is a nice vibe, we should do a tour like this."

The concert - an intimate affair compared to Muse's usual stadium-headlining shows - saw them tone down their show to fit the theatre surroundings. Before the gig bass player Chris Wolstenholme told BBC's Newsbeat, "You don't want to be spending all the money on pyramids and flashing lights - that's money that could be going to charity."

Awards News - Opera magazine is to have its first annual international awards, presented at a ceremony in London on 22 April. The Operas, the brainchild of th

The Netherlands - Adjoining the famous Escape Club on Amsterdam's fashionable Rembrandtplein, and also owned by experienced entrepreneurs, Ton and Dick Poppes, the new Kitchen & Bar Van Rijn has opened in the style of a grand café, with a terrace and upstairs area.

Inspired by the beauty and the masterpieces of Rembrandt van Rijn, following a substantial investment, guests can enjoy authentic Dutch cuisine in a cosmopolitan atmosphere with open kitchen, whole listening to music through a premium RCF sound reinforcement system.

In fact premium is the watchword, since installer Mike Ho, of locally based service company 24/7 Audio, specified a TTL11-A active steerable column array, requiring only two systems with two presets to service all the requirements - literally 24/7 (including live music and a DJ on weekends).

"I first heard this system under demo at RCF's he

Germany - The 13 halls of prolight+sound and Musikmesse can be a nightmare to negotiate, vectoring between the split levels would tax the skills of Geradus Mercator, the father of maps. It was exactly this sort of three dimensional dilemma that d&b audiotechnik had in mind when it came to addressing the mapping of mixed audio systems; that is line arrays and point sources. Not to mention the importance of navigating the way to the d&b stand 8.0 J46A where the latest loudspeakers from the veritable V-Series stable also make their debut.

Though the laws affecting the behaviour of sound are immutable, environment and loudspeaker design are all too variable. This is why d&b has developed ArrayCalc V7, precisely to accommodate not only line array but point source designs or a combination of both into a single hybrid system design. It also offers a new printout section for any of thes

Korea - In 2012, a DiGiCo SD7 was installed in Jiguchon Church in South Korea's Bundang New City. Such was its success that four more of the company's mixers have now been installed in another church in the city, demonstrating how DiGiCo mixing consoles are making significant inroads into the country's house of worship market.

The new Manna Methodist Church has a seating capacity of 4,000, with around 10,000 worshippers attending each week. Services feature a live band, choir, organ and orchestra, so the audio system needed a high input channel count, as well as facilities to mix live audio for broadcast on its own Internet channel.

The church consulted DiGiCo's South Korean distributor Soundus Corporation, who supplied and installed an SD7 console at Front of House, with four SD-Racks and an SD8-24 to take care of the live broadcast mix. In addition, Soundus supplied an SD9 f

UK - Roland Systems Group (RSG) has announced the appointment of Leisuretec Distribution as a 'professional trade only distributor' for their expanding pro audio and video product range, effective January 2013.

Leisuretec, a leading supplier to the trade community, will be offering Roland's professional range of video products. As a new venture for the company this enhances their product offering and further broadens their profile, says the company.

Cliff Dounting, commercial director for Leisuretec Distribution commented, "After a successful year in 2012, we were looking to further broaden the choice we can offer our customers with unique specialist products. As a result, we are delighted to have formed a working relationship with Roland Systems Group.

"Roland's high profile and professional reputation fits perfectly with Leisuretec's technical expertise and commi

Switzerland - Schertler introduces GIULIA, the latest addition to its Classic acoustic amplifier series. Ideal for small venues, home studios and for practice, the single-channel 50W (bi-amplified) GIULIA has the same sound, intuitive control surface and robust construction as its larger two- and three-channel siblings, DAVID and UNICO.

GIULIA is equipped with a 1" dome tweeter and 5" woofer. The amp's flexible input channel can accommodate both XLR and ¼" Jack connectors, making it suitable for use with a wide range of microphones including Schertler's own DYN and STAT series, or the BASIK pickup. Phantom power (48V and 10V) is supplied. The input can also be used for a guitar or other high level line source, with the amplifier's intelligent electronics automatically adapting to suit. The channel has 3-band EQ and Warm low-pass filter to produce a warmer sound w

France - The Palais Omnisports Marseille Grand-Est is the latest and most modern competition venue in a city known for its love of sporting entertainment. Spreading over a site some 20,000 sq.m in extent to the east of the city centre, the complex offers facilities for a variety of different sports - notably ice skating, for which a 5,600-seater stadium has been provided.

Marseille-based Objectif Plus was commissioned to design and install the stadium's sound reinforcement system. The highest acoustic hurdle here - and one most ice rinks share - is the hall's long reverberation time. "Obtaining clearly intelligible sound under such conditions posed a real challenge," admits Jean Marandet, product & service manager with EVI Audio France, "especially since the budget for the project was relatively modest. It was necessary, therefore, to find a solution capable of pr

Denmark / USA - The ability to move from venue to venue and achieve the same sound regardless of the acoustics or the PA system is the main reason why sound engineer Raul Mendez chooses DPA Microphones.

"I have been using DPA microphones for a long time now and they are always my first choice of microphone because they give me the sound I want without any feedback problems," Mendez says. "Whether I am miking an acoustic instrument, voices for an event or a musical, I know these microphones will work perfectly every time and in all of these different areas of performance."

Raul Mendez is currently using a selection of DPA microphones to capture the sound of legendary guitarist, composer, dramatist and producer Paco Peña. Over a career spanning more than four decades, Peña has expanded the possibilities of flamenco and changed perceptions of the art form by

UK - When the celebrated American jazz pianist-composer Ahmad Jamal played to a sell-out audience at the Barbican Centre in London on Friday 8 February, he insisted on a full Bose RoomMatch system being installed especially for the concert, the first in the UK for four years.

Ahmad Jamal has been praised as one of the greatest jazz innovators over his exceptionally long career, and joins other world renowned artistes and musicians who have performed at the Barbican, Europe's largest multi-arts and conference venue presenting a diverse range of art, music, theatre, dance, film and creative learning events. It is also home to the London Symphony Orchestra.

Considering his four piece ensemble 'an orchestra', Mr Jamal wanted a system that would deliver the most lifelike venue-filling sound to every member of the audience, and previous experience of Bose made the RoomMatch system t

UK - Orbital Sound has announced that its 2013 Sound Fundamentals for Theatre training course will take place from 2-5 April, representing the 12th consecutive year that the Easter training week has been staged. Among the confirmed elements will be hands-on training sessions from d&b audiotechnik, Shure and Yamaha Commercial Audio, as well as the chance for students to go backstage on a West End production.

Orbital's Richard Carter and Alex Waddle are this year's course leaders, tutoring up to 24 students at its well-equipped training facility in Brixton, south London. Among the modules are dedicated sessions on show control, radio microphones, video communications and networking, reflecting the emphasis on the range of practical and technical disciplines that form the backbone of today's live sound applications.

The annual Easter Sound Fundamentals for Theatre w

UK - Confirming the show's position as the premier event for entertainment technology in the north of England, PLASA Events is delighted to report that all exhibitor stands for PLASA Focus: Leeds 2013, taking place on Tuesday 30 April and Wednesday 1 May at the Royal Armouries in Leeds, are now sold out.

In a further indication that this year's show will be the best yet, organisers report a 30% increase in visitor registrations. New exhibitors joining the show this year include Autograph Sales, HD Pro Audio, Pearce Hire and Unusual Rigging, among others. A full list of exhibitors and details of the Professional Development Programme can be found on the PLASA Focus website.

Another exciting new development is the first ever PLASA Riggers' Forum for the North, which will take place on Tuesday 30 April. Building on the success of the PLASA Riggers' Forum in London in September, t

Italy - Founded in the early 80s, Elio e Le Storie Tese (which translates roughly to "Elio and the Tense Situations") is an Italian pop/rock band that evolved from the underground Zappa-esque "Rock demenziale" scene of the late 70s.

Their music is a blend of different genres, where cheeky and often insolent lyrics contrast sharply with complex musical arrangements: Elio e le Storie Tese are widely considered to be amongst the best musicians in Italy.

Claudio Scavazza is the P.A. technician on Elio's latest tour, Enlarge . . ..

Claudio has been working with Elio and the audio rental company Sonique - who provide the systems for the tour - for many years. During this time he has witnessed the evolution of Sonique's JBL Vertec system which was recently beefed up with the addition of Powersoft K Series amplifiers.

"Up until recently the system w

UK - After a live try-out of DPA's d:facto vocal microphone at London's Royal Festival Hall, sound production and rental company RNSS was so impressed with their performance that it has placed an order for six of the new d:facto II vocal microphones.

RNSS specified DPA d:facto vocal microphones as part of the audio equipment for the London Jazz Festival, an annual event produced in association with BBC Radio 3. Hailed as the capital's biggest pan-city music festival, The London Jazz Festival featured artists such as Herbie Hancock and Lucinda Williams.

Richard Nowell, director of RNSS, says, "We have had a long association with DPA Microphones and already carry a large stock of the company's products. I was intrigued by the new d:facto Vocal Microphone and was keen to try it out. The Jazz Festival gave us the perfect opportunity to put it through its paces. We borrowed tw

UK - Entec, one of the UK's longest established lighting and sound companies, has put its faith in Lake after adding a number of LM 44 digital audio system processors to its extensive inventory.

The company works across a huge diversity of events, including concert tours, live events, corporate shows, exhibitions, television, theatres and open air festivals, branding exercises, sporting and equestrian shows, military bands, religious gatherings and such like. Recently, they have looked after acts like Blur, Gorillaz, Slayer, Bootleg Beatles, Skunk Anansie, and many more.

Ed Hammond, technical engineer at Entec Sound, commented, "As a company, we are involved in a lot of different events, so any kit we invest in has to be both flexible and reliable. The graphic interface in the Lake Controller has always been amazing, and from the beginning, it's that interface that people

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