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UK - TAO Group companies TAO Productions, TAO Fire, TAO Misc and TAO Medical recently joined forces to supply event production, safety planning, services and personnel to the launch of BT's Imoca 60 Yacht at HMS President on London's River Thames.

The event was a celebration of BT's sponsorship of music and sport and featured the Sugababes performing on the bow of the yacht as it sailed under Tower Bridge, signifying BT's sponsorship of the 2008 Isle of Wight Festival. The sporting side was represented by the naming of the BT Open 60 yacht, The Artimis Transat, crewed by Dame Ellen Macarthur, Globe Vendee participant Seb Josse and BT Extreme 40 Skipper Nick Moloney. The naming was held 14 days prior to the yacht's maiden race; a solo transatlantic crossing.

TAO Production

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The Netherlands - A selected group of rigging experts, manufacturers and consultants attended the Rigging Day in Utrecht organised by the VPT (Dutch organisation for Stage Technology) earlier this month.

During the programme, the CWA 25 regulation was presented by one of the workgroup members, Gert Jan Brouwer of Frontline Rigging. For more than two years, an international group of entertainment industry experts have worked on the European code of practice for stage machinery and load bearing structures, which is officially titled Lifting and load-bearing equipment for stages and other production areas within the entertainment industry.

The CEN Workshop Agreement (CWA) will be the first stage in the process to build a Europe-wide consensus community. The initial objective of the workshop will be to make an inventory of standards and standard-like documents, as well as l

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Israel - Tomorrow, 25 September, Paul McCartney will deliver a historic performance in the Israeli city of Tel Aviv, nearly 43 years after the Israeli government banned The Beatles' show in 1965 for being too subversive. The highly anticipated occasion will be held at the city's Hayarkon Park, the site of concerts by Michael Jackson, U2, and Elton John. Slovenia-based Festival Novo Mesto and Israel's Kilim Electronics will provide a Meyer Sound system for the event.

The main system comprises two hangs of 14 Milo line array loudspeakers each, augmented by two side-fill arrays of 10 more Milo boxes each and several UPA-1P loudspeakers for front-fill. Forty-eight 700-HP subwoofers cover the low frequency and two towers of ten Mica line array loudspeakers each serve as delays.

"Paul's very much a live rock and roll player, and he approaches the songs from a very straightforwa

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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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UK - For the fifth consecutive year Stage Electrics' Welsh trade show is being held at the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama in Cardiff on Thursday 16 October.

Allen & Heath, Avolites, ETC, Le Maitre, Lee, MA Lighting, Martin, Pulsar, RCF, Roland, Rosco, Selecon, Sennheiser, Strand, Yamaha & Zero 88 will be exhibiting their latest products, offering demonstrations and providing product advice.

Other products on display include Qmaxz Moving Lights, the Xenonspot follow spot, Altair wireless intercom system, Apollo Right Arm and an array of products from Edirol. PLASA will be joining the event this year. PLASA and representatives will be there to answer questions and to discuss the benefits of membership.

New to this year's show are three Training Taster Sessions, which aim to give an insight into the industry training Stage Electrics offers. Training sessions include Worki

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UK - Robert Juliat reports that PLASA08 has confirmed still further the high level of interest that exists in the Victor 1800W HMI followspot and the multi-functional Le Cin'k spotlight.

The Victor was launched at PLASA 07 and provides a light output in excess of many 2500W follow spot light sources combined with the optical and ergonomic excellence associated with Robert Juliat, wrapped up in a compact, stylish unit.

Le Cin'k meanwhile offers a choice of interchangeable lamp bases allowing options of 2500W tungsten, 5000W tungsten, 1200W discharge or 2500W discharge lamps - ensuring a single spotlight to undergo rapid transformations according to requirements. This is particularly useful to rental houses and multipurpose venues and studios, says the company.

In addition to these products, the fully automated version of the Lancelot 4000W HTI followspot modules, Noria and Ch

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USA - Community Professional Loudspeakers has appointed JMS Marketing to its network of manufacturer's representatives and distributors across the United States and overseas.

Founded in 1975 by industry veteran Joe Martin, JMS Marketing is an established service-oriented rep firm. JMS will represent Community in the states of Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and most of Texas, with Martin based in the company's main offices in Austin, and sales Representatives Mick Anderson, John McDowell, Brad Sellars and Brian Hays covering the field.

"We're very pleased to welcome JMS Marketing as our new sales representative," remarked Rod Falconer, Community's regional manager in the Western US and Canada. "Their reputation as an established and accomplished sales team is a perfect fit with Community's continued growth and expansion as an industry leader."

Joe Martin

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USA - At 125th AES Convention in San Francisco next month, TiMax will feature the latest evolution of its audio matrix systems, TiMax2 SoundHub and TiMax Tracker - a range of audio showcontrol and systems integrator products.

In its SoundHub-S audio showcontrol guise, the TiMax2 control software is configured specifically for programming and running live shows and events with cue-driven level, delay, EQ, matrixing, mixing and audio playback.

The SoundHub-R systems integrator version is optimised for more mainstream AV installations needing similar comprehensive audio processing, networking and remote control resources but with less focus on real-time showcontrol or audio animation.

Also demonstrated at AES will be the new TiMax Tracker showcontrol automation product, which uses UWB radar tracking technology.

TiMax Tracker has recently enhanced the sound reinforcement of se

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UK - Goboland was "delighted" to be awarded a PLASA Silver Award for Innovation for its Black Steel Gobos at PLASA 08. The PLASA Award is the second for the Goboland Black Steel Gobos which were awarded the LDI Best Debuting Product in November 2007.

"PLASA is always a good opportunity to catch up with clients and for networking. We received very good feedback at the show about Goboland's services and have already had new customers contact us following recommendations from people bumping into each other at the show," says Goboland's UK head of operations, Vicky Fairall.

"Our Pin Cushion Distortion Correction has gone down very well and has confirmed our reputation as a company which is good at solving more tricky gobos problems. We are proud to be known to offer our customers extra services such as Black Holes, Tweakers, Pin Cushion Correction and Keys

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USA - Central Baptist Church (CBC), located in St. Louis, Missouri, has installed two Allen & Heath iLive-80 digital console systems to handle FOH/monitors and broadcast needs. The 750-capacity facility is a dynamic musical church, which, in addition to various weekly services, hosts a number of events including theatrical, musical, and dance performances, community events, guest speakers, workshops and educational sessions. The installation was managed by Drainer Albright & Associates with system integration by Modern Communications and Output Unlimited.

"The church is undergoing a transformation to meet the needs of a media savvy generation," says Michael Drainer of Drainer Albright & Associates. "The iLive system has exceeded CBC's expectations and has been the perfect solution because of its superior user friendliness, flexibility, and functionality."

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Korea - Cadac Electronics reports that its Korean distributor, Dreamsound, has supplied a 52-input Cadac J-Type Live Production Console to the Kei Myung Artcenter, which formally opens this month.

Located on the Kei Myung University's Seongseo campus in Daegu, the Kei Myung Artcenter has a 1900-capacity auditorium, acting principally as a music and performing arts student facility, as well as hosting a variety of medium and large-scale visiting productions. Involving a total investment of some US $80m, the project commenced in January 2005, and has been operational since February this year.

Following the gala opening, the first major production will be the Korean musical The Last Empress, featuring lyrics by In Ja Yang, music by Hui Gap Kim, and sound design by the celebrated local sound director, Ki Young Kim. The musical Mamma Mia! is also scheduled to run towa

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UK - The Chemical Brothers We Are The Night tour has just finished its second summer run - back by popular demand on the international festival and touring circuit this year, after enjoying massive success in 2007.

The show is renowned for its visuals - created by Adam Smith and stored and played back via a Catalyst digital media server.

Digital media specialists Projected Image Digital (PID) spoke to the Chemical Bros 2008 tour show programmer Matthew Button about his media server of choice. He sought a lightweight, fully portable solution for visuals storage and playback. Both he and lighting tech Toby Dennis invested in Mac Book Pros to which they fitted the latest 32Gb Mtron 2.5 inch solid state hard drives and installed the latest version of Catalyst. The Mtron is turbo-charged to give super-quick video access time.

The visuals show was originally programmed on a

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UK - Six enthusiastic members of Prism Sound/SADiE's staff gave up their Sunday morning lie-in on 21 September to take part in the 10-mile Chariots of Fire charity race, an annual event that follows in the footsteps of the famous film, taking its scenic route through the streets and colleges of Cambridge.

A total of 408 teams of six took part, with each team member running 1.7 miles. The Prism Sound team gave themselves the challenge of finishing in the top half of the field and they succeeded with a position of 171 and a time of 1:15:43, which averages out at just under 7.5 minutes per mile.

Prism Sound's sales and marketing manager Jody Thorne says: "We were really pleased with our time and are looking forward to bettering it next year. Our thanks go to everyone who sponsored us - and to Prism Sound for paying our registration fees."

The recipients of the

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UK - Hollywood actor Josh Hartnett makes his West End debut as Charlie Babbitt in the moving stage adaptation of the iconic film Rain Man. The production opened on 19 September at the Apollo Theatre, Shaftesbury Avenue and is produced by Nica Burns for Nimax Theatres and Jane Walmsley and Michael Braham for Jam Pictures. Josh Hartnett is joined on stage by Olivier nominated British actor Adam Godley as his autistic brother Raymond. The original 1988 film Rain Man, starred Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman and dominated the Academy Awards.

Stage Electrics has supplied a selection of moving lights to the production including 14 Vari-Lite VL1000TS Units and six Martin Professional MAC TW1 80v Units. A further 100+ generic lanterns have been provided along with control from a Strand 520I Console. The lighting designer is Jason Taylor who is joined by programmer John Tapste

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UK - After 10 years of retirement from the entertainment lighting industry on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean and as far north as Scotland, Joe Thornley felt the time was right to reminisce about his life before, and throughout, his long career in entertainment lighting.

Joe's autobiography is an interesting and amusing account of life as an electrical engineer, lighting equipment innovator and author. His story takes us through his childhood in London during the Second World War, his training as a bound apprentice, followed by an account of his time spent in North Africa during his National Service in the 1950s.

Most significantly, he describes his life-long experiences as a designer of entertainment lighting equipment for Mole Richardson, Berkey Colortran, Rank Strand and Lee Lighting.

Joe's easy-flowing, light-hearted style provides us with a look behind the lights of fi

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UK - Dale Hanson took time off the road to handle eight different acts at The Bedford in London and mixed the evening away on a Soundcraft Si3. Along with the other Si3 beta testers covering theatre, touring and house of worship applications in Europe and the USA, Hanson has taken the Si3 through its test paces.

"The show was a bit like live TV with eight acts performing a couple of songs each during the evening without any change over time at all really. Not many digital consoles can cope with that type of challenge but the Si3 worked really well. I found that you can use so many different functions at the same time to be very useful. Having control of EQ, dynamics, bus sends and effects without having to reassign anything was great."

The Si3 is Soundcraft's latest 'mid range' addition to its growing digital family. It follows the Studer Vista 5 SR (Tours including:

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UK White Light has continued its long-established collaboration with the Motley Design Course, once again supplying lighting equipment to the Course's annual exhibition of this year's students' work.

Founded in 1966 by Stephen Arlen, then managing director of Sadler's Wells Opera, and Margaret 'Percy' Harris, then the company's resident designer, the course was first known as the Sadler's Well Design Course. The course subsequently became the Theatre Design Course of the English National Opera until 1981, and after some time at the Riverside Studios, the Almeida Theatre and the Royal National Theatre Studio, the course acquired the name Motley and took up residence at its present home, the Theatre Royal Drury Lane.

Every year the course selects up to 12 postgraduate-level students who wish to specialise in theatre design. The one-year course is project based, featuring five or

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UK - With 40-ton tanks clashing in daily battle in the Dorset countryside, an Electro-Voice sound system has been drafted in to overcome the noise of combat and deliver a clear and intelligible commentary to spectators. Complete Production Solutions (CPS) has just completed the PA installation for a new outdoor demonstration area at The Tank Museum in Bovington, Dorset, which boasts the world's finest and most historically significant collection of tanks in the world.

Featuring tank and armoured vehicle displays, simulated combat and occasional performances by the Light Cavalry Band, the new visitor attraction stages up to three shows a day in the April to September season. For the audience in the public viewing area, EV's weatherproof SX300 and ZX1 loudspeakers deliver a realistic, almost interactive sound experience.

Simon White, installation manager for CPS, has been involv

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France - Jérôme Quadri from Avignon, France, is the winner of the Sennheiser Sound Logo Contest. The international jury and the public voted the 31-year-old's sound logo the best of over 2,000 entries.

Sennheiser launched the competition in January. Since then, more than 600 entrants sent in sonic logos and a total of 2,300 people chose their favourites in an online vote.

"Jérôme Quadri's sound logo perfectly reflects the characteristics of the Sennheiser brand," said Susanne Seidel, president of global marketing at Sennheiser. "It is outstandingly clear, instantly recognisable and has great potential for variation."

"I'm absolutely thrilled that I was able to convince the jury and the public with my sound logo," said Quadri on hearing that he had won. "I had a very clear idea of what the name Sennheiser means for me and wha

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UK - While the heavyweight likes of Metallica, Rage Against The Machine, The Killers, the Manic Street Preachers and The Cribs were rocking out on the Main and NME stages at this year's Reading and Leeds festivals, three other stages at the twin events featured considerably longer daily line-ups of talent. And key elements were Yamaha digital consoles supplied by Entertainment Sound Specialists (ESS).

Reading and Leeds festivals take place over the three-day August bank holiday weekend. All the acts that play at one site perform at the other on a different day of the weekend. And while the acts playing on the Festival Republic, BBC Introducing and Alternative stages may not have quite the global pulling-power of those on the biggest stages, the sheer amount of different performers make them an essential stopping point for festival goers.

At both Reading and Leeds sites ESS sup

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UK - Following the recent partnership between A.C. Rigging and Out Board Electronics, the University of Derby's Sound, Light & Live Event Technology BSc programme has become one of the first beneficiaries of this collaboration.

The University of Derby approached A.C. Rigging for a solution to improve students' hands-on experience in this specialised field of entertainment technology.

Specified by A.C. Rigging sales executive, Paul Hadfield, the university opted for a powered rigging system to add to its existing manual version. Hadfield states, "It was felt that the electrical system would better equip students with the experience and knowledge current in today's market, which they would ultimately be entering into. The University of Derby is renowned for providing highly qualified and highly sought after graduates to our industry and A.C. is proud to be associated with a

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UK - One of the hottest topics in the lighting world at the moment is the green issue. Is tungsten dead? Is it possible to have a carbon neutral TV studio? Can you run theatre lighting on a wind turbine? The discussion that such topics generate will be just one of many at the 2009 Showlight event which takes place in Glasgow next May.

The Green issues will be debated by a panel of speakers that includes Fred Foster, CEO of ETC; at the other end of the spectrum Alex Wardle of Arup venue consulting will be taking a backward look to stage lighting in 1750, when the bleached beeswax candle was cutting edge, as he discusses how he re-created the feel of a candle-lit stage without actually using a naked flame.

The venue for 2009's Showlight is BBC Scotland's new state of the art headquarters, which boasts the latest broadcast technology. It is the biggest TV recording space to be bu

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