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Qatar - In what has been the largest broadcast project for Sennheiser in the Middle East, Al Jazeera, the Doha-based broadcaster, has utilized cutting-edge wireless microphone and in-ear monitoring systems at its studios in Qatar. The deployment enables Al Jazeera to deliver crystal clear audio for its viewers and will now serve as the standard template for all the broadcaster's major studios across the globe including those in London, Washington DC and the Balkans.

A highlight of the project was the use of Sennheiser's flagship Digital 9000, an all-digital wireless system that can transmit completely uncompressed audio, artifact-free and with superb dynamics. The system has been meticulously designed for the highest channel counts and operation in dense frequency environments.

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South Africa - Inspired Stages hosted their first Inspired Mentors programme from the 21 to 24 March at the GrandWest Casino. Ninety-two youngsters between the ages of 17 and 25 and who had previously been involved in Inspired Stages workshops, were trained up as mentors.

"Young adults from within the community with a passion and talent for music, dance, singing and performing were carefully sourced and identified through schools, colleges, community centres, youth groups and churches," explained Karen Burt, founder and facilitator of Inspired Stages. "They were nominated by teachers and peers as individuals who showed potential as both a performer and role model and who would be best suited to the mentorship opportunity.

"The programme was intensive," says Karen. "We went further than natural talent and passion. We trained the mentors in a fully comprehensive programme in

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UK - Making a welcome return to the Maidstone Studios, LD Chris Rigby, who picked up the Royal Television Society 'Lighting for Multicamera' Award for his work lighting Later, is once again adding some creative illumination to the wonderfully eclectic blend of performances featured in this, the 48th season of the BBC flagship music show.

Speaking about the show, Aurora project manager Ben Taylor says, "Later is an exciting project to be involved with - it's a show that is serious about music and Chris is an LD that is serious about lighting. The brief is to complement rather than over shadow the performances and creativity paramount throughout."

The main installation features over 100 automated fixtures, primarily Vari-Lite VL3000 and Martin MAC 575 heads which help maximize versatility and movement whilst providing the ability to quickly phase in different l

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Indochine X PixMob Fan Immersion

It's a bird! It's a plane! It's - 40 thousand LED pixels on a ceiling!!! Indochine's whirlwind tour transports fans to another level of the live experience - immersing them from floor to ceiling with PixMob's X4 wristbands, and an LED ceiling made entirely of its NOVA Minis! With the vision of Indochine's creative team, PixMob used its LED fan-technology to turn attendees and venues into an ocean of effects, and a starry sky of LED magic. Très très cool!

Read more about the Indochine tour in the latest issue of LSi

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Germany - When the multi-genre German artist who goes by the name Alligatoah took to the road recently prior to the summer festival season, his sound production company, Berlin-based Complete Audio, knew they had their hands full.

Operating under different persona, the German rapper, singer, producer and DJ would be covering a wide variety of venue sizes in a theatre style presentation.

But Complete Audio MD, André Rauhut, who has been working the artist since 2013, knew that once management had specified Martin Audio's award-winning MLA Multicellular Loudspeaker Array (and smaller MLA Compact) the show would be in safe hands - particularly since FOH engineer Claudio Malaguti was already familiar with the unique properties of the system.

"[Alligatoah] is supported by an unconventional five-piece backing band who are constantly switching instruments," André

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UK - The annual House of Fraser British Academy Television Awards was held at London's Royal Festival Hall on the Southbank and attended by some of TV's most well-known faces including Idris Elba, Tom Hiddleston & Mary Berry.

For the second year running appointed production company Light Motif created the settings for the pre-awards reception, dinner and after party. A series of moving mirrors were installed to reflect light beams across the ballroom creating a dream like canopy as guests enjoyed cuisine from caterers Rhubarb Food.

For the after party DJ's Rickie & Melvin spun the tunes into the small hours behind a giant TV screen decked with colourful florals from the creative Rebel Rebel.

Rob Mills, lead creative for Light Motif, said: "It has been an absolute pleasure once again to work with our wonderful clients at BAFTA together with some of the industries most t

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The Netherlands - Rigging Box, the rigging dry-hire company, has used the favourable conditions of the Truss Exchange Programme to further invest in Prolyte truss.

Rigging Box, part of the Ampco Flashlight Group, is a dry-hire rigging company with a wide range of truss, chain-hoists and other rigging equipment. Rigging Box started in 2004 and serves a large part of the Dutch market, as well as projects throughout Europe, like events, festivals, theatres or tours.

Rigging Box always has put a high emphasis of supplying well maintained and top quality products to its customers' base, just what you like to see in a rigging supplier. Although dry-hire is their main business, their outstanding service and support is what customers come back for.

Prolyte Group and the Rigging Box have worked together for a long time. A warehouse full of Prolyte truss, ranging from X30D truss

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UK - American singer and songwriter Halsey kicked off the European section of her Badlands tour at Glasgow's O2 Academy earlier this year.

Creative directors of production design company Okulus, Louis Oliver and James Scott, turned to Ayrton once again when creating an adaptable lighting design which could be modified to suit all of the venues in the European tour dates. The designers chose the clean lines and angular appearance of Ayrton MagicBlade-R and MagicPanel-R fixtures to illuminate Halsey's performance at Brixton Academy in February which formed a key part of a flexible system that could be easily adapted for the whole European leg of the tour.

"Halsey gave us only one key item of direction, that she wanted a set based on 'V' shapes," says Oliver. "We continued that visual element through the whole environment, starting with a V-shaped stage, three V-shaped upstag

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Canada - Forty years after their first hits climbed the charts, American rock band Heart teamed up with Joan Jett & the Blackhearts for a Queens of Sheba 2016 tour through Canada that saw the Wilson sisters performing their rock staple hits beneath an automated rig that included effects from Elation Professional's new ACL 360 Matrix LED moving panels.

Dale Doucette, who has been a freelance lighting and set designer for 35 years, working with a wide range of acts from Kitaro to New Kids on the Block, also served as lighting designer/director for the Wilson sisters for eleven years prior to becoming production manager just over a year ago.

On the Canada leg of the Queens of Sheba tour he worked with Gabrielle 'Gabi' Scheff, an up-and-coming designer with previous experience from East Coast Lighting & Production Services of Rhode Island. "I gave her the keys to the car so to

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France - Breton events company, Musical'Ré, recently invested in Allen & Heath's new dLive digital mixing system.

"I decided to take the leap and buy a brand new dLive. Its specs are impressive and I was really blown away during a demonstration at the JTSE tradeshow. I have a lot of experience of using Allen & Heath digital mixers, and this system is magnificent," says Bruno Damiani, owner of Musical'Ré. "Previously, when I wanted to make the transition from analogue to digital, I immediately turned to Allen & Heath and purchased GLD and iLive systems. Today, it's logical to continue this adventure by buying a dLive system. I really wanted to own the 'new baby' and take advantage of new technology."

Musical'Ré selected the S7000 control surface with DM48 MixRack. The company used the system for the first time as the main stage FOH console at the festiv

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UK - Eddie Izzard recently completed a hectic spring schedule, following up a four-week residency at London's Palace Theatre by completing a staggering 27 marathons in 27 days across South Africa.

Eddie is no stranger to Martin Audio sound systems, having been performing through their line array systems as far back as 2003's Sexie tour.

For this latest residency he revved up his previous Force Majeur show into a Force Majeur Reloaded version; Martin Audio's long-term Worcester-based partner, Intasound, were on hand to provide the PA, with proprietor Francis Dale dipping heavily into his inventory.

The opportunity came along following the 10-week run at the same venue by Derren Brown, at the suggestion of the artist's production manager Blair Halliday, who recommended them to Izzard's production man, James Kelly. And so as one Intasound system loaded out, the new Martin

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USA - For Selena Gomez's Revival Tour, TAIT Towers, the global company known for designing and fabricating live staging equipment and scenic design for world tours including The Rolling Stones, Taylor Swift, U2, Madonna and more, innovated stage design and set elements.

With ongoing relationships with Gomez's production management team and set designers, Robert 'Hydro' Mullin, Tamlyn Wright, Baz Halpin, and Chris Nyfield, TAIT executed stage designs and artistic set elements. To meet the production teams design, TAIT constructed a 49ft. rolling stage with band risers on both sides and a scissor lift behind the stage. TAIT provided a painted 32 ft. thrust performance deck which is painted to give the illusion of three runways immersing into the audience.

The thrust performance deck includes nine traps that drop into the underworld and house nine medicine ball trampolines fo

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UK - A club in London's Wood Green might seem like the unlikely setting for a group of US marines celebrating their final night before heading off to war, but when those 'marines' are students from the adjacent Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts (MATA), in a musical named Dogfight, the location makes much more sense. Sound engineer Chris Maniadakis chose DiGiCo's entry-level S21, supplied by Autograph Sales, to collar the production's sound.

Set in 1963, Dogfight is based around a group of young marines about to head off to Vietnam. They set up a cruel game dubbed a 'dogfight', where each sets out to bring the ugliest girl he can find to a party. Inevitably much awkwardness ensues, but the production ultimately pans out into a rather unlikely love story.

The MATA production took place in March at the nearby Karamel Club, the main performance on a stage in the

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Ireland - One of Ireland's foremost sound production companies has purchased a substantial amount of Martin Audio's MLA, MLA Compact and MLX high-powered loudspeaker arrays. In so doing Production House (NI) Ltd has become the first rental company in Ireland to invest in Martin Audio's award-winning MLA platform.

Production House (NI) Ltd managing director, John Willis, has announced the purchase of 48 x Martin Audio MLA, 24 x Martin Audio MLA Compact and 24 x Martin Audio MLX sub bass loudspeakers.

Asked what prompted Production House to choose Martin Audio MLA Willis replied that the decision was made after several successful listening tests and a visit to the factory to meet the Martin Audio team. "It was more to verify the products' ability to meet the need for a high quality, rider friendly system, with a successful future ahead of it - therefore giving us confidence

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UK - Nearly 100 Robe BMFL Spots are on tour with multi-award winning chart-topping singer / songwriter Adele's current Adele Live 2016 world tour, in a stylish and dramatic lighting concept developed by Patrick Woodroffe working with associate lighting designer Adam Basset from design practice Woodroffe Bassett Design (WBD).

The extensive tour follows the release of Adele's record-smashing third studio album, 25, in November 2015 which has established her as one of the most successful recording artists of all time.

Lighting operator / director on the road is Roland Greil, and the equipment for the UK and European legs of the tour is being supplied by west London based rental specialist, Neg Earth, while Upstaging will deliver the rig in the US.

Ninety BMFL Spots are rigged on a series of symmetrical overhead LX trusses above the A-stage, with another four units

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UK - Pro-audio provider The Warehouse Sound Services has been named the UK dealer for loudspeaker brand Adamson Systems Engineering. As one of the largest suppliers of pro-audio equipment in Scotland and North of England, The Warehouse has opened a third branch in Lancashire to support their new Adamson partnership. The Warehouse currently has offices in Glasgow and Edinburgh.

To further establish Adamson in the UK, The Warehouse has also employed former Bose national sales manager Craig Buckley as a dedicated brand and division manager alongside Paul Atherton who becomes business development manager. Buckley and Atherton will head up the new Lancashire office in Chorley.

"We are very excited to start working with Adamson," explains Derek Blair, director of The Warehouse. "The product line is very impressive - everyone who has worked on their PA has nothing but great thing

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Late Entry - Justin Timberlake will be performing at this year's Eurovision Song contest in Stockholm, Sweden. He will sing during the interval at the grand final on Saturday. In a statement, Sven Stojanovic, one of show's producers said, "This is a fantastic opportunity, we are very happy and excited that Justin Timberlake will perform his new song together with his band in our show. It makes it extra special that the Swedish songwriters Max Martin and Shellback have co-written and co-produced the song together with Justin Timberlake."

Flag Flying - Eurovision bosses have relaxed their flag rules, meaning the UK entry can fly a Welsh flag. It was originally included in a list of banned flags because its red dragon was considered a political statement. Previously only flags of contest members and UN states were allowed due to the event's non-political nature. The UK ent

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USA - Just a few years ago, using a five-watt, full-colour laser system was reserved for only large production companies with budgets big enough for large laser lighting rigs. Today, as laser technology has advanced and X-Laser's product development has evolved, a true five-watt RGB laser system exists at a price point that makes stunning laser beam and graphics displays accessible to more clients than ever, says the company. The Skywriter HPX Tour offers a solid build and high-quality laser sources to make it an option for both permanent installs and high-mileage touring acts.

"Our Skywriter HPX has been popular with clients who want an all-around, high-power laser system, and the HPX Tour brings that to a new level," said Adam Raugh, president of X-Laser USA. "We wanted to push the limits of dollars per watt, and we think the HPX Tour will become a standout performer in the

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UK - A selection of DPA microphones have been incorporated into a rig that is designed to bring recording facilities to three Birmingham-based musical bodies.

Richard Meredith, director of London-based pro audio and live sound specialists The Audio Dept., was charged with the task of specifying the rig, which is jointly utilised by the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (CBSO), the Birmingham Contemporary Music Group (BCMG) and Ex Cathedra.

Its portable nature means that it can be easily set up in several venues used by the groups, including Birmingham Town Hall, Birmingham Symphony Hall and The CBSO Centre, and used for other recording duties in the venues, too.

At the heart of the rig is a stereo pair of d:dicate 2011A Twin Diaphragm Cardioid Microphones. These are mounted on flown DPA UA0387 stereo bars, specifically chosen for the task by Meredith as they give v

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Australasia - Shure UHF-R Wireless microphones and PSM1000 in-ear monitoring systems (IEMs) performed an essential role for the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo when it toured Australia and New Zealand earlier this year.

A total of 60 channels of Shure UHF-R - the largest number of wireless mics ever used on a military display like this - were used in shows in Australia (where technical services and equipment were supplied by a 12-strong team from audio facilities company Norwest) and New Zealand (where UK company Wigwam Acoustics and Wellington's Western Audio Engineering were jointly responsible behind the scenes).

The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo, as its name suggests, began life as a geographically limited proposition, normally taking place in August in the grounds of the Scottish capital's castle, where it is typically viewed by around 220,000 people annually. In 20

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UK - Prism Sound is extending the reach of its Mic to Monitor educational seminars by holding three of its forthcoming events in conjunction with the Abbey Road Institute, which now has training centres in Paris, Melbourne, Berlin and London.

The 2016 Mic to Monitor tour kicked off on 11 April at the new Abbey Road Institute in Berlin, before moving to Los Angeles, USA, for its second event on 27 April. It will ultimately take in over 10 cities around the world, including Paris in June and Amsterdam in October, where it will be held at Abbey Road Institute's sixth centre, which is due to open later this year.

Targeted at music production students, hobbyists and professionals, Mic to Monitor aims to dispel the many myths surrounding the recording process. The events answer those all-important questions such as what makes great gear great, what does it take to become a succe

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