Details
UK - Reading- based lighting rental specialists Blinding Light is the first UK hire company to take delivery of the new Martin Professional SmartMAC luminaire.

"We bought these because we needed a small, fast, profile unit with a good stand-alone protocol that's robustly built and easy to maintain for the hire market," explains Blinding Light's Paddy Stacey.

The SmartMAC is designed for hotel, museum and exhibition work with its low power requirements and silent operation due to having no cooling fan. "The 150 Watt bulb is seriously bright and the gobo selection is extremely good for dance floor and mood lighting," continues Stacey, adding that the indexable gobo wheel is handy for applications like the projection of corporate logos and branding.

Blinding L

Details
Glastonbury organiser Michael Eavis says slow ticket sales in 2008 are due to terrible weather in previous years, not the choice of main headliner Jay-Z. It is the first time in recent memory that tickets have not sold out on the first day. 100,000 had sold by Sunday afternoon out of a total of 137,500. Michael Eavis said: "I think three years of mud may have taken their toll, but even so, 100,000 isn't bad." The Verve and Kings of Leon are also headlining the festival this summer, which takes place at Worthy Farm from 27-29 June.Tenor Luciano Pavarotti was miming during his last performance at the winter Olympics in Turin in 2006. Conductor Leone Magiera has revealed the singer's rendition of Nessun Dorma was pre-recorded, as a live performance would have been "too dangerous". Pavarotti, who died in September, was already suffering pain months before being dia

Details
UK - Reproduced Sound 24 - Immersive Audio, organised by the Electroacoustics group of the Institute of Acoustics in collaboration with ABTT, AES, APRS & ISCE, takes place 21-22 November 2008 at the Barceló Brighton Old Ship Hotel.

"Following on from the very successful conference held at The Sage, Gateshead in November of last year, the Reproduced Sound Conference returns to a hotel base this year, emphasizing the comfortable networking for which it is known. Brighton has all the ingredients for a successful conference and is easy to get to," says a spokesman.

"Reproduced Sound is a great opportunity for people with an interest in electro-acoustics and pro audio to come together, share ideas, push forward new concepts and technologies and meet with fellow industry professionals and talk about subjects close to our hearts. We propose to continue the trad

featured content

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

Details
Singapore - Clockaudio has opened a subsidiary sales office in Singapore, recruiting Robert Yeo, a well-known industry figure in the region, to head up the operation across Singapore and Malaysia. Yeo will be showcasing the Clockaudio portfolio of British-built microphone products for AV and conferencing applications at the forthcoming PALME show in Singapore next month.

Yeo has been in the audio industry for nearly 25 years, his first job as a service engineer for Singapore's nightclub scene. A founder member of TEAM 108, he helped build a well-known sales and installation operation dealing in both sound and lighting technologies. As success grew, Team 108 secured its first international distribution rights, and began to design and specify large turnkey projects, expanding into other sectors of the market such as broadcasting studios and hotel function suites.

In the late 90s

Details
The Azores - The Teatro Ribeiragrandense (Ribeira Grande town hall theatre) in the Azores island of São Miguel has recently been restored to its former glory with a little help from ETC. Portuguese dealer Luzeiro was the consultant on this project and specified a Congo jr with Master Playback Wing for the installation.

Maria Alexandra Pereira Bastos, commercial director at Luzeiro says: "We wanted a modern, uncomplicated and economical lighting system, and we immediately thought of ETC. We are so happy with the Congo jr desk, it has surpassed all expectations. Moreover, the support we have had from the ETC team has been exceptional."

The theatre opened in 1921 and for decades was the cultural centre of São Miguel, staging film screenings, musical acts, theatrical shows and operatic performances. The theatre even transformed into the Circo Equestre for the Po

Details
USA - Leona Lewis, who first sprung to fame while winning the 2006 edition of British television's biggest talent show, The X Factor, has just completed a whistle-stop visit to North America, singing on many prestigious TV shows, including The Oprah Winfrey Show and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. And she was accompanied all the way with a Sennheiser SKM 5200 radio microphone fitted with a Neumann KK105 capsule, and Sennheiser ew 300 G2 in ear monitors.

Dave Wooster has been Leona's front of house engineer since the very beginning of her career. He was there at every step of the American adventure. "From the outset of this project the brief has always been to use the best and to accept no compromise," he says. "So we had no option other than to use the Sennheiser 5200 with the Neumann KK105 head and the G2 in-ear system. We had been using a KM

Details
UK - A Catalyst V 4 digital media server is at the core of Paul Normandale's visual design for the 2008 James Blunt world tour. It replaces a previous digital media server and is being operated on tour by lighting director Glen Johnson, who is also running lights and overseeing all the design aspects of the show.

Normandale and Johnson have created a varied set of visual content which runs throughout the set, produced from a variety of sources including the Catalyst library, websites and selected and re-cut James Blunt videos, some of which have never been shown before.

"Using Catalyst allows daily onsite editing and scaling, and also the development of images for colour palette and the various media surfaces," says Normandale.

The tour was conceived for American arenas and has been scaled accordingly for the European section. The design had a regal theme using Blu

Details
UK - Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons sold 175 million records worldwide - all before they were 30. And now their story is being told in Jersey Boys at London's Prince Edward Theatre, with the help of lighting designer Howell Binkley and PRG Europe.

"This was a new production of the show which joins productions currently appearing on Broadway, in Chicago and Las Vegas, and is now off to Melbourne and on tour around the US," says Binkley. "For the London show, I was pleased to be working with Loz and Alan at PRG Europe once again.

"In addition to some 400 Source Fours, we used L&E and Altman MR11 strip lights under the show deck to illuminate the set pieces and Altman PAR 40 strips specifically to give a period feel to the 1950s scenes. We also used Philips ColorBlast and ColorBlaze LED luminaires for wash lighting, and over 75 ColorBlast 6 luminair

Details
Turkey - Selected as Europe's 'coolest' hotel by The Times newspaper in London, the Adam and Eve hotel in Belek in the southern Turkish province of Antalya, has just been bestowed with yet another award, that of World's Leading Design Hotel from WTA (World Travel Awards), considered the Oscars of the travel industry. It also boasts interior architect, Eren Talu's signature all-white composition and minimalist interior along with the world's largest pool and longest bar plus conference halls, restaurants, theatre, nightclub and poolside entertainment facilities.

Not surprisingly, the technical installations including the hotel-wide audio system, had to meet the exacting specifications demanded by such a prestigious venue. Crest Audio distributors, Telesine Sound & Lighting Systems A.S., who were involved with the project from the beginning, specified and installed a Crest

Details
Europe - Following the success of last year's Jands dealer conference, the lighting manufacturer is extending an invitation to a series of Vista open days organised in association with its European dealer network.

The open house days will provide the chance for visitors to receive a hands-on demonstration of the console, or spend more time familiarising themselves with it, as a step towards becoming one of the growing number of Vista people, says the company.

Taking place in relaxed environment, representatives from both the local Vista dealer as well as Jands product manager, Neil Vann, will be on hand to answer questions and provide demonstrations, including the latest addition to the range - the I3.

(Jim Evans)

Details
Germany - In 2008, for the third year running, the ADAC Group Berlin-Brandenburg held its gala ball in the Maritim Hotel. Whilst the 4,000 guests could also dance in the foyer and corridors, the organizers laid on a lavish programme of entertainment in the hotel's exquisitely decorated halls, featuring stars such as Echo award winner Roger Cicero and TV presenter Ulla Kock am Brink.

Berlin-based sound company TSE AG was responsible for the technical side of the event, deploying equipment from Electro-Voice.. For TSE's managing director, Marcel Fery, the choice was based primarily upon the high intelligibility and extreme reliability of EV systems. The team lead by project manager Adrian Carlin installed eight EV XLD line array elements to the right and left of the stage in the main hall of the hotel, with four more in the centre of the stage. The whole ensemble was driven by EV

Details
UK - Audio consultancy and equipment supplier KMR Audio has announced its Audio for Education service with a dedicated brochure and department within the company aimed at serving the educational community whether teachers, music colleges, universities or even primary schools.

KMR sales manager Keith Malin said, "We are regularly approached to provide music technology equipment for schools and colleges. These institutions often require a dedicated service to advise and organize the installation and training on the equipment so we have decided to ensure that we are prepared to deal with all enquiries in a totally professional manner."

KMR has taken on Gavin Beckwith, who has previously held various positions within the audio industry, as well as being a part time music technology teacher and running his own studio to head up the new department.

(Jim Evans)

Details
USA - The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) has announced that audio pioneer Prof. Dr. Fritz Sennheiser is to be inducted into its Consumer Electronics Hall of Fame. The 95-year-old founder of Sennheiser electronic GmbH & Co. KG is one of 12 honourees for 2008, and has been chosen by the expert jury in the category 'Founders and Inventors'.

"We are as excited about this announcement as Prof. Dr. Fritz Sennheiser himself," said Volker Bartels, speaker for the Sennheiser executive team. "Fritz Sennheiser still takes a keen interest in the company he founded, and feels very honoured by this recognition from the American consumer electronics industry."

Under the management of Fritz Sennheiser, who also taught RF wireless technology and electro-acoustics at Hanover University, the family-owned company designed many important innovations. These included the

Details
UK - Cirrus Research has introduced the CR:260A series of sound level meters. Suitable for a wide range of applications, from noise at work assessments to vehicle noise testing and environmental noise measurements, Cirrus' CR:260A sound level meters are easy to use, yet capable of meeting sophisticated modern noise measurement guidelines, says the company.

There are eight meters in the new series, all of which are operated with single function buttons. Each is capable of taking A and C weighted measurements for HML applications and machinery noise testing. Available in Class 1 or Class 2 accuracy Cirrus' CR:260A sound level meters comply with the latest IEC 61672 measurement standard as well as IEC 60651 and IEC 60804.

They include the option of data download to a PC via a USB connection, and the ability to take measurements which will help to identify the most appropriate hea

Details
USA - Rock & Republic is an American fashion brand featuring a couture line of clothing/accessories that includes high-end denim and handbags. Among the pinnacle of designer fashion, the progressive brand holds several fashion presentations each year, including fashion week in New York and Los Angeles to introduce their upcoming lines.

The Spring 2008 collection was modeled in early February in New York City. Lighting designer for the fashion show was Scott Chmielewski of Digital Media Designs who worked closely to implement the designs and concepts of the show's producer and production designer Matt Stoelt of Stoelt Productions.

"Rock & Republic is one of the most progressive fashion labels out there," Chmielewski states. "They are continually trying to push the technological envelope and aren't afraid to use the latest cutting edge equipment. Rock & Republic e

Details
The Netherlands - Midas Consoles Benelux has sold the fourth Midas XL8 Live Performance System into the region, together with its first Klark Teknik DN9696 hard disk recorder for the live market. Both went to Dutch rental company Triple Showtechniek, based in Purmerend near Amsterdam.

The day after Triple Showtechniek received the XL8 it was deployed on its first gig for Dutch band the Three J's, with FOH engineer with Marc Pardon at the helm. "We are responsible for some of the major Dutch artists like the Three J's, Jan Smit and Nick and Simon, says Triple Showtechniek owner, Rene Tielen. "These artists are highly critical of their own performance and expect the highest levels from us, so that's why we only invest in industry leaders like Midas."

Chief technical officer Marco Hovius adds: "I am responsible for these shows running smoothly and the Midas XL

Details
UK - For the second consecutive year, the Shure SM58 has won the MI Pro Retail Survey 'Best Live Microphone' award. With 45 percent of the votes cast by leading UK retailers, the Shure SM58 and the Shure PG58 beat several competitors to take first and second place, respectively, for the Best Live Microphone.

The survey was conducted through a series of interviews with 100 retailers, which included all major UK chains and leading independents.

Andy Barrett of MI Pro comments, "Shure has not only held onto its top slot for live microphones, but it has seen the PG microphone advance in the rankings to the second slot, giving it nearly 60 percent of the combined vote - which is quite staggering."

Paul Crognale of Shure Distribution UK commented, "We're really pleased with the survey results in MI Pro. It's vital for us to know what our retaile

Details
UK - Lighting designer Dan Hardiman used over 80sq.m of Chroma-Q Color Web 125 LED panels to provide the core element of his show design for the recent sold-out UB40 UK arena tour.

Hardiman and his company, THC Design, began their long association with UB40 at the band's 21st Anniversary show in their hometown of Birmingham, and have since gone on to design the show elements for the band's last four successive international tours.

The central point of Hardiman's design was a series of moving trusses providing the rig lighting positions, which he also wanted to make a scenic feature of, so decided this could be an interesting application for a video truss border.

Hardiman chose the Chroma-Q Color Web 125 LED display system after being impressed by its modular and lightweight design, and the band approved after seeing the results of his rendered fly throughs showing the panels

Details
UK - Hoist UK's award-winning ChainRunner product is now available to purchase online from the company's website. They have recently added the ability to have your ChainRunners in any annodised colour and also personalised with your company logo.

The Award Winning ChainRunner has been designed to provide a safe, off-the-shelf solution to the cable management problems faced every day within the touring event industry. The ChainRunner is used to manage power, control, audio and data cables associated with moving truss applications and thus eliminating the necessity for very expensive spring driven cable reels and eradicating the home-made gizmos that abound in the industry, say Hoist UK.

The ChainRunner range is available to fit the Verlinde, CM and Liftket chain hoists used in the entertainment industry. It is simple to fix, with no need to remove the chain or hook from the hoi

Details
USA - NSCA's slate of regional project management classes - including Project Management for Owners, Estimating of Systems Projects, and Advanced Project Management - will be taught in Anaheim, California, late April and early May 2008.

"We have been very impressed by NSCA's resources. We didn't have anyone with project management skills," said Dan Boylan, president of Southern Business Communications. "We were very impressed with Nadim. We contracted through NSCA to have him come down (and do training) and we tailored it to our business."

"Our project management classes are always popular," says senior director of professional development Norah Hammond. "You come away with skills you can put to immediate use, saving you precious company time and money."

(Jim Evans)

Details
UK - Independent event health and safety consultancy Stagesafe has issued a reminder to companies in the entertainment end events sector that two major pieces of legislation came into effect on 6 April. The Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005 applies to employers involved in the provision of live or recorded music in restaurants, bars, nightclubs etc.

Other sectors have had to comply with the regulations for the last two years, but this sector was given a two-year transitional period, which expired on 6 April. Employers will have a new responsibility to protect their employees' hearing and should consider conducting a noise risk assessment, taking steps to reduce noise where necessary and ensure the legal limits on noise exposure are not exceeded.

Employees must be informed of the changes and provided with hearing protection and checks where necessary. Employers may also

Page 2183 of 3465

Latest Issue. . .