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Success was on the agenda for Sanctuary Mobiles at the annual Royal Television Society Craft and Design Awards held at the London Park Lane Hilton late last year. Director Tim Summerhayes swapped his more customary jeans for a tuxedo to collect the award for Best Sound for Culture and Non Drama Productions for BBC2’s classical drama, The Marriage of Figaro. The award went to Tim and John Middleton for the production, part of the BBC Music Live five-day festival last summer. The opera was staged at Kirtlington Manor in Oxfordshire, and Tim was drafted in to handle the broadcast sound and to record the production, created for TV in association with the City of Birmingham Touring Opera and directed by Trevor Hampton and Matthew Richardson. Tim Summerhayes and John Middleton are pictured

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In a move that has been agreed by all parties involved, Showcom Audio is to hand over distribution of the Camco amplifier range to UK pro audio distributor, Fuzion. Commenting on the decision, Showcom’s Richard Willis explained that over the last year Showcom Audio’s resale and installation support activities have increased significantly with the prospect of this becoming even more pronounced in the future. He said: "Showcom Audio has chosen to concentrate exclusively on the added-value direct sales opportunities, as this seems to be the more profitable route for our future. We are becoming more and more focussed on providing dedicated sound reinforcement solutions for our highly varied client base which is growing daily." He continued: "I am satisfied that Fuzion will represent the line as it deserves to be represented in the UK, and at the same time will give

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PCM has added a new webbing ladder to its inventory of professional rigging accessories. The new product replaces conventional, bulky ring and tube-style ladders with streamlined rods of carbon or glass fibre. The rods are inserted into tubular braid sleeves made from synthetic fibre which are sewn into side members of the same material for maximum strength. The product is ideal for all entertainment industry applications - theatrical, performance, industrial, live event, touring, television and film. The ladder is available in standard lengths of 10, 15 and 20 metres, and custom lengths can be produced as required.
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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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The latest product to be available from ASL is the VAR-4 Digital Audio Router. This unit uses digital signal processing to provide a self-contained Public Address/Voice Alarm control system and includes built-in digital message storage for emergency or routine announcements. It allows connection of up to six audio inputs routed to four outputs and for the monitoring and control of up to 64 amplifier mainframes (V400) and associated amplifier interface card/surveillance units. Each mainframe connects to the VAR-4 via an Audio-CAN serial data network and audio monitor bus. The router includes digital storage for 2 x 32-second emergency messages and 2 x 10-second test messages, and provides four microphone inputs, typically for two fire microphones and two general purpose paging microphones. Two connections are provided for background music sources, either of which can be selected for routi

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For the third consecutive year ESS Australia was chosen by Accolade Events to provide structures for the Australian Day Celebrations on 26th January. The 30-minute performance was watched by an estimated audience of 240,000 people. This continues to build on ESS' success. Last year ESS Australia was appointed to provide staging for the opening and closing ceremonies at the Sydney Olympics and Paralympics. This year's Australia Day concept involved four 12m x 8m screens positioned on a barge in the centre of Darling Harbour. In addition, Accolade Events asked ESS to come up with a solution that enabled them to place the PA system on the outside of the structure, rather than hanging it from a central position. The versatility of the ESS Lite truss meant that ESS were able to provide a solution. After running an engineering check, the ESS team was able to bolt on some more LT tower truss so

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The planned auction of the Dome’s contents may possibly die before it even gets going if Legacy plc’s bid for the site is not concluded on 14 February as intended. It appears that the Government and Legacy cannot agree terms, and, as a result, the New Millennium Experience Company has reviewed plans to postpone indefinitely the £10m auction, which is scheduled to start at the end of February. We understand that they may, however, proceed with the sale of some of the site’s assets. If the Legacy bid does fall through, it will mean that other potential bidders, including the Dome's chief executive, Pierre-Yves Gerbeau, who has struck an alliance with James Palumbo, property firm Pilton Group and the pop impresario Harvey Goldsmith, may have their wish to keep the venue entertainment-based rather than the business park proposal that was at the heart of the Legacy plan.

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beyerdynamic has been appointed exclusive UK distributor for the full line manufactured by AudioControl Industrial - a US-based specialist in audio measurement and analysis systems. The company’s key products include the SA-3052 Real Time Spectrum Analyser; a one-third octave Spectrum Analyser that includes a pink noise generator, six memory snap-shots configured in a ‘Point and Shoot’ characteristic that requires no PC, parameter setting or complex menu commands making it simple, practical and easy to use. A printer can be used and the display is a high brightness 9 x 31 LED matrix that can display measurement results in a variety of formats at selectable decay times. Supplied with a measurement grade calibrated microphone the SA-3052 is a rugged device packaged in a practical and easy to handle steel enclosure. Available for immediate delivery, the SA-3052 is the firs

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Over 20,000 people celebrated the New Year in Nottingham’s market square. The centre of attention was the Nottingham Council House, an imposing town hall, which provided the canvas for a stunning lightshow by NJD. Images of Robin Hood (Nottingham’s millennium symbol) were projected onto the building using NJD’s Predator HX scanners, whilst eight Datamoons were positioned on columns down the centre of the town square, providing sound activated light beams whose movement and colour was synchronised to the music played through NJD’s 20,000W sound system.

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A disused soap factory formerly owned by Kone Ab lies in the heart of the old city of Helsinki. Not unattractive, the factory building, though squat and angular, is made from softly textured sandstone. It is barely a hundred years old, yet has just recently undergone extensive renovation.

The reason? It’s been taken over as the new home for the State Theatre School. A major project, the fifth floor of the North Wing is home to 11 large dance studios, while downstairs, surrounding two sides of a roofed courtyard, are five separate, though admittedly small, theatres. Other facilities include lecture halls, a gym, make-up room - just about every possible theatrical discipline is catered for - as well as admin functions being contained within the factory’s ample interior. The funding is all from the government, as is the full digital TV studio just installed at the Helsinki Uni

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A 15-year old girl has died in Sydney’s Concorde Hospital, following a crush at the Big Day Out festival in Sydney, Australia, last Friday. The girl is reported to have suffered a cardiac arrest at the time of the crush, and died peacefully in hospital on Wednesday. Friday’s crush occurred when the crowd surged forward during a performance by Limp Bizkit. The band’s lead singer Fred Durst pleaded for calm, and wanted to stop the show altogether, but was later persuaded to continue with the set in the light of police fears of a riot if the show were stopped. Limp Bizkit later pulled out of the touring festival, saying they had no confidence in its organisers. Other acts on the bill included Coldplay, PJ Harvey, At The Drive In and Queens of The Stone Age.

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On March 6th Stagetec Distribution is holding a Product Day on the Compulite and LSC product ranges to be held at The Centre in Slough from 10.00am to 6.00pm. The full range of products from both companies will be on show. This will include pre-release versions of two completely new consoles from LSC which are scheduled to be launched later this year. On show from Compulite will be the new flight cased/touring version of the CompuDIM 2000 digital dimmer, version 2.0 of the CompuCAD 3D lighting design software, the new architectural features for the 4D range and the CompuCAL telephone interface.Anybody interested in attending can register at the website below.

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February’s complete website re-design ushers in a new phase of PLASA’s online development.

At the start of February 2001, PLASA’s brand new website went online at www.plasa.org. The new site, developed over the past three months, represents the latest phase of PLASA’s online presence and continues the organisation’s aim to provide the premier online resource for the entertainment, presentation, event and installation technology industry worldwide.

The new site has been re-designed and re-built from the ground up, taking into account the changing face of PLASA as a diverse organisation, encompassing the trade association, the leading trade show, a successful publishing division, a busy technical standards office, and a wealth of industry-related information resources.

The greater part of the site remains committed to providing useful information, free

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The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) saw the five year Centenary Project of redevelopment and refurbishment come to fruition at the end of last year when the new facility was opened by HM The Queen alongside a host of celebrity guests, politicians and past students. Andy Wood talks to head of sound Colin Brown.

The scheme for the re-development of RADA - one of the premier training establishments for theatre arts and technology - was made possible thanks to a £22.7m grant from the Arts Council Lottery Board, along with £8m of self-generated capital donations. RADA includes a new Jerwood Vanbrugh Theatre, George Bernard Shaw (GBS) Theatre, John Gielgud Studio Theatre, a recording studio and three control rooms, all of which are linked by a state-of-the-art sound, video and communications systems which allow complete synergy between the performance spaces.

Education is naturally

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Martin Professional’s head of Latin American operations, Peter Hald, has moved his headquarters from Miami, Florida to Buenos Aires, Argentina in order to be closer to the main Latin American markets. Hald says: "Miami is the gateway to Latin America, but by establishing a base in one of the most advanced markets in Latin America, we feel confident that we can raise the Martin presence here to a new level."

Martin Professional recently entered into an agreement with the owners of its two Argentinean distributors to establish a joint company in Buenos Aires - Martin Professional Argentina SA, which will handle distribution and service of the group’s products. The move is seen as a natural development in the light of this joint venture. Hald says: "We will be closer to some of the biggest and most important markets in Latin America where the opportunities for d

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The venue for the Professional Lighting and Sound Association’s 2001 AGM and Industry Dinner has been confirmed as Coombe Abbey, near Birmingham. This beautiful 12th century Cistercian Abbey, set in 500 acres of parkland, is now a stunning hotel and conference venue which promises to provide ‘no ordinary experience’.

The AGM and Industry Dinner will both take place on Thursday 14th June - allowing members to attend both events without taking two days out of the office - and offer the ideal opportunity to discover more about the Association and to meet with other members. Details of the guest speaker for the dinner will be revealed nearer the time.

This will be the fifth annual Industry Dinner, and the evening has always proved highly popular in the past, with guest speakers including Sir Ranulph Fiennes, Richard Noble and Frances Edmonds. We would like to urge all P

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Ronan Keating’s solo material was showcased at the end of last year - and an arena tour has already been announced for this Spring. Mike Mann reports.

Though LD Paul Normandale’s design (based around a couple of 40ft trusses and a 33ft diameter semi-circular Tomcat MD stacking truss) was essentially traditional, the eagle-eyed lamp-spotter would have picked out a quartet of new luminaires in the rig - Normandale was putting the MAC 2000s through their paces for the first time. "This is really an early trial for me," he explained, "and Martin have been very supportive. I never go to tradeshows, and I don’t like trying anything out in the warehouse." Though the 1200W HMI unit is, says Normandale, better suited to arena shows, the more intimate environment of the Keating tour gave him a chance to see more clearly what the MAC 2000 is capable of. &quo

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Yet more significant news from the Martin Professional camp. Torben Johansen, the company’s production director, has left the company. A brief statement posted on the company’s website says that Johansen has resigned and that until a successor is appointed his role will be taken on by CEO Kristain Kolding. The management thus consists of CEO Kristian Kolding and group director Lars Dige.

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Britain’s first free database of business grants has gone on-line - with the aim of putting the country’s businesses in touch with more than £100 million going begging because of lack of awareness and red tape.

The cash is part of a potential annual multi-million pound grants’ pot, designed to help Britain’s 3.7 million companies flourish. But many businesses which could benefit from the money simply don’t know they can claim it, or are put off by the confusion, complexity and time involved in finding out what is available.

The new website offers a free grant search service that gives results in seconds. Sophisticated technology means a search takes just seconds to complete and searchers can link immediately through to grants providers with applications.

The site contains information on around 5,000 capital (‘hard cash’) grants. These ran

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Avanti Television, one of the largest-growing independent production companies in Wales, has recently launched an all-digital facility - The Pop Factory.

The new operation, located in Porth near Cardiff, is sited in the former Corona Pop Works and will become home to a weekly live music programme that will be seen on the digital platform BBC Choice Wales. It also houses A3 Records and a brand new 48 track recording studio and rehearsal complex, complete with on-line and off-line editing facilities, called The Welsh Hills Works.

The multi-purpose broadcast centre is, according to Avanti’s founder and MD Emyr Afan, the most important development in Welsh broadcasting this decade. "There is a new confidence in Wales. More and more high-tech companies are locating here. With The Pop Factory, we are proud to be bringing London-quality facilities to South Wales and creating a fo

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On 1st February 2001, PLASA went online with its brand new website at www.plasa.org. The new site is the latest development in the six-year history of PLASA’s online presence, and continues the organisation’s aim to provide the premier online resource for the entertainment, presentation and event technology industry worldwide.

The new site further develops the extensive and freely-available information resources offered to the industry by PLASA. Now available are fully-searchable databases allowing fast, easy and flexible access to the full listing of 450+ PLASA members; 1,500 industry news items in the online news archive; a comprehensive calendar of industry events, and over 100 titles in PLASA’s Technical Book Service.

PLASA’s Managing Director Matthew Griffiths comments: "Aside from the great new look of the site, I’m especially pleased with the

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Hollywood recently celebrated its biggest party - the Golden Globes - held in the International Ballroom at the Beverly Hilton. Production Resource Group companies Fourth Phase, ProMix and LSD/Fourth Phase were on hand to help. ProMix Burbank provided all of the audio equipment for the event, which included the press audio and video feeds to the worldwide press audience. All presenters and award recipients were heard through the propriety ProMix ‘pop-up mic’, a robotic system. Front-of-house console was a Yamaha PM4000, driving Apogee speakers and Crest amplifiers. Sound designer for the event was Gary Hardesty with his team consisting of audio supervisor Bruce Burns, system engineer Andrew Fletcher, press liaison engineer Steve Cohen, with Mark King on broadcast audio mix and Randy Faustino on house audio mix.

The interior lighting was designed by Lee Rose of Design Partne

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