An Outline sound system was used for the Music Party in memory of top Italian singer Alex Baroni (who recently died following a motorbike accident), held at Rome’s Imperial Forums on Sunday 23 June 2002. The show, presented by Fabrizio Frizzi and Angelo Baiguini (RTL 102.5) was transmitted live via radio by RTL 102.5 and included performances by artists of the calibre of Fiorello, Renato Zero, Max Gazzé, Giorgia, Eugenio Finardi, Alexia, Dirotta su Cuba, Paola Turci, Paola & Chiara, Marina Rei, Alex Britti, Massimo di Cataldo, Michele Zarrillo, Rossana Casale, Tosca, Paola Cortellesi and many more.

The event was also covered by all the national TV newsreels. The Outline F.O.H. system - helmed by Marco Covaccioli (Alex Baroni’s sound engineer) and Enrico Chiarioni - was made up of twelve Tripla II and 12 Victor Live subwoofers, backed up by three Tripla II on near-field dut

As part of the refurbishment of The Florence Hall, The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) appointed Paul Gillieron Acoustics (PGA) to investigate a way of improving the speech intelligibility of the venue. This unique space is a restaurant by day and by night becomes the venue for product launches, corporate presentations and of course RIBA’s own seminars and award ceremonies.

The challenge that faced the consultants was not only the difficult acoustic (RT > 3 sec) but also finding a solution that would have the minimum visual impact. Extensive acoustic treatment was not possible as the finishes in the room are listed. This listed status also meant that installing a distributed system was impossible. So, as a result of this, PGA decided to investigate an AXYS Intellivox solution and a demonstration quickly followed. The performance of the system coupled with its unobtru

One of the few modern ballet companies recognised worldwide, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater has just visited the renowned Sadlers Wells in London as part of its ongoing European tour. Known not only for dance, but for the lighting of dance, Ailey chooses ETC equipment to light his shows.

The company has an intense schedule - touring eight months a year, two to three of which are overseas - more overseas than any other modern dance company. Over its 44-year history, the company has performed in 48 American states and 67 countries worldwide. "We are constantly moving," says Al Crawford, lighting director for the company. "This year is big internationally, including Spain, Germany, Austria, England and Italy." The lighting equipment that Ailey uses must be ultra-durable, reliable and flexible. What they can’t bring with them, they count on getting locally and

The decision by leading entertainment lighting distributor A.C. Lighting Ltd, to invest and restructure, is well and truly paying off, the company reports. Latest figures up to May show a turnover increase of six percent over the same period last year, and the indications are that this growth will continue. Substantial investments made at A.C. Lighting, in terms of facilities and systems, are reaching their target objectives to streamline the organisation, enhance customer service, and gain new business from around the globe.

Whilst organizational changes have played their part in the company’s success, the investment in personnel with the necessary skills and dedication has also been a major factor. The recent addition of the sound department has also contributed to the increase in turnover, and reinforces A.C.’s position as being a ‘one stop shop’ for entertai

A major networked installation has been completed at Sandown Park Racecourse in Esher, Surrey, by Racecourse Technical Services Ltd (RaceTech). The scale of the contract - which has been completed over an 18-month period - can be measured by the fact that it involved five BSS Audio Soundweb 9088LLs to set up the digital network across 36 sound zones, as part of an overall audio contract which will run to around £150,000 when complete.

Running parallel with the upgrade at the Racecourse’s bars, restaurants, function rooms, private boxes, conference and exhibition facilities, was the construction of a new stand. But Race-Tech’s head of sound, Robin Dibble, noted that the entire complex - including all the bars and leisure areas - had been refurbished. "It’s been overhauled from the ground up," he said. The audio system replaces what he describes as a 'home b

International Leisure Industry Week (8-10 October, NEC, Birmingham) has announced the keynote sessions for the free seminar programme at this year's show. The programme will feature high profile speakers addressing the industry's key issues and concerns, and sharing best practice and business innovation.

Speakers include Peter Alvarez of Virgin Atlantic Airways, who will tackle issues surrounding the service-profit chain; the relationship between staff retention and customer loyalty, and share tips on best practise for the service industry. Simon Sprowell of Hilton Hotels UK & Ireland will offer insight into combining mission and vision to ensure your brand values are reflected throughout the entire organisation. Graham Abbey of easyJet will address the challenging task of developing a corporate culture that reflects your company's personality. Abbey will focus on easyJet case historie

A leading global consumer brand recently asked international production company, Imagination, to create the ultimate wow factor for the 3,000 attending its annual meeting - held at New York’s Madison Square Garden.

Imagination’s Chris Slingsby, who conceived the innovative set, turned to Creative Technology to draw on its inventory of audio-visual support equipment, anchored at equipment locations throughout the US and UK. In London, Dave Herd (who co-project managed the event with Joe Conway) worked closely with Imagination, ensuring that all software would be compatible with the various screen resolutions and aspect ratios. The result was one of the most elaborate stage sets ever designed, involving no fewer than 552 panels of Barco’s iLite 6mm LED panels and 318 panels of their iLite 10.

Presenters Charlie Rose and Donald Sutherland - along with fellow guests inc

Edwin Shirley Staging (ESS), the international staging and structures specialist headquartered in London, has successfully achieved the ISO 9001:2000 Quality Assurance (QA) standard. This award caps over 12 months of work within the business to overhaul its procedures and systems and bring them into line with the internationally-recognised organisational standard.

The company embarked on the process after discussing with clients what key properties would provide assurances to them regarding working with businesses in the future. It became apparent from this research that a growing number of clients from the private and public sectors, based in the UK as well as the other international markets served by ESS, that the ISO QA standard provides an acceptable objective measure of how a business deploys its services. As with all ISO-accredited businesses, ESS will undergo regular audits by a

Audio-Technica has revamped its European website, adding a number of new sections and features to make its online presence even more user friendly. The new site, which can be found at the address given below, includes a comprehensive library of product information, a guide to discontinued products and an easy to use ‘UK stockist locator’ facility, which lists over 1000 dealers and provides on-line maps and directions.

Visitors to the new site will also be treated to a dynamic magazine service, which delivers breaking news of product launches and high profile applications of A-T products direct to their desktops. Other features of the site include a monthly competition to win A-T products, a technical help desk, a comprehensive product review section and a new area entitled ‘Out There’ which lists the artists and bands who are using A-T products either in the stu

The organisers of the Showman’s Show 2002 (Newbury Showground, 16-17 October) have announced that Europe’s largest exhibition for outdoor event professionals is getting bigger this year. Following the success of the 2001 show at Newbury and the inaugural Northern Showman’s Show at the North Yorkshire Showground earlier this year, the interest for the 2002 show is already very strong. In one of the busiest years seen in the outdoor event marketplace in recent years, the show organisers, Lance Publications Ltd, are looking towards incorporating new developments and responding to industry trends.

"We will be making a few changes to the layout of the showground," said organiser Stephen Lance. "These are in part being made to accommodate increased demand for space and partly to make the show more effective for visitors and exhibitors. Even after all these ye

Prolyte distributor Aerial Rigging Inc recently delivered the first Prolyte ST-roofsystem in its maximum configuration of 77’ 55"x 51’ 2"x 48’ 2" to Pro Stage West for its Las Vegas office. Pro Stage immediately put the system into use - the first set-up was at Sam Boyd Stadium at UNLV in Las Vegas in conjunction with Xtreme 107.5. The concert featured a total of 15 acts, including Cypress Hill and Alice in Chains.

Aerial Rigging also supplied Pro Stage of America earlier this year an MPT-roofsystem of 47' 4" x 42' x 30' 5" (12 x 10). Blake Ferry, president of Pro Stage West and Pro Stage of America commented: "We have been working with Prolyte truss for some years now. We have become very spoiled because the truss using conical connectors goes together so quickly, which has saved me a lot of time and money on the set up of a production.

CP Sound, the Middlesex-based creative sound and lighting designer and installer, has just completed its latest club installation - at Square 11 in Northampton. This intimate new nightspot is independently owned by Carl and Paul Bennymore. The interior design is clean looking and straightforward and the musical policy is aimed at a broad clientele. CP Sound’s Colin Pattenden again chose the familiar combination of JBL speakers and MAD lighting fixtures. "We have had many successes with this kit, especially in clubs - it’s a formula that works," he says.

The club is split into two floors. Downstairs, Colin placed JBL Control 28 speakers and SB2 subs in the walk-in area, with more of both speakers at the far end of the bar. This section of the club is a heavy-duty wine bar, open every night of the week. It has a small dancefloor, lit with MAD Scans and MAD QStars, a

With over three months still to go until the show opening, the first Music China - the International Trade Fair for musical instruments and services - is completely sold out. Over 260 companies from all over the world have signed up to be a part of China’s first major international event for the musical instrument industry in Shanghai, the commercial heart of the world’s fastest developing nation. They will cover 15,000 square metres of exhibition space.

"We are in the enviable position of simply having no space left to sell, but the applications are still coming in," says Cordelia von Gymnich, vice-president of Communications & Leisure Fairs for Messe Frankfurt, co-organiser of the show with Intex Shanghai and the China Musical Instruments Association (CMIA). "It is unprecedented to have a waiting list for a debut international event in China. The overwhelmi

Lamba plc, the UK distributor of Stanton products, provided 520SK cartridges for all the DJ decks at Glastonbury’s Glade Arena. The cartridges were specified by Glade’s production manager Biff, of dance event specialists Future Underground Nation, working with Glastonbury’s area co-ordinator, Luke Piper. Biff has been closely associated with this area, which is part of the Field of Avalon, over the past three years. This year, between 4,000 and 5,000 assembled at the Glade’s orbital outdoor stage, where Eat Static headlined on the Friday, Dreadzone on the Saturday, with Alex Patterson and Steve Hillage’s Loophead topping the bill on the Sunday.

"I wanted a diversity of electronics, and Stanton fitted three sets of decks in three locations - the main arena, the Dome café and the Backstage bar," he said. "These cartridges performed flawlessly

Screenco provided a 28sq.m Barco Dlite 10 LED display to Bloomberg, the international information media company, for use at a combined World Cup and evening film event at their Finsbury Square facility in London. The display was rigged under a temporary curved dome, erected to provide protection for the viewers from the typical English summer weather. Using a mixture of Barco 3 x 2 and 2 x 2 fast set-up rental structures, a display of 14 tiles wide by 10 tiles high was constructed. Terrestrial feeds for both the BBC and ITV provided the daytime World Cup football coverage, and in the evening the screen was used in a traditional cinema environment running well-known feature films from a DVD source.

Graham Filmer, Screenco director and general manager said: "We chose the Barco Dlite 10 for this high profile and prestigious event with Bloomberg because we wanted to offer the client

Edwin Shirley Staging (ESS), the international staging and structures specialist, is one of four organisations sponsoring the current 'Private' contemporary art installation, taking place at the Aldgate Pump House in the City of London. The other sponsors are City North PLC, Cobra Beer and westside design and print.

The exhibition is curated by Swapna Tamhane and introduces the work of the artists Zeyad Dajani, Anthony Gross, David Gyscek and Seema Rao. The artists have come together to produce a series of site-specific works that explore the dialogue between the individual and the public. The venue offers visitors an intrusive view into a piece of London’s Victorian history.

ESS’s Stephen Court told us: "We were approached to provide support for the exhibition by Seema, one of the artists, and Swapna, the curator. We were able to assist the event by providing practi

The Audio Resources Group is to launch a fully-equipped demonstration and training suite at Unit 62, Mochdre Enterprise Park, Newtown to pass on their expertise. Audio Resources will also sell a specific range of loudspeaker systems to professional end-users, some of which are designed and manufactured by Shermann Pro Audio, together with sound equipment from other companies.

"We are encouraging agency agreements on various products so that we can put together complete sound systems, but with the type of support that retail outlets seem unable to offer," explained Mark Astley, MD of Audio Resources. "To us, support is just as important as making the sale, therefore the new facility will not be a basic music shop or audio supermarket. We want customers to come along and visit our demonstration and training suite. The emphasis will be supply of the correct gear for a custo

Sabine manufacturer of the patented FBX Feedback Exterminator and the innovative new 2.4 GHz Spread Spectrum Wireless Systems, has appointed Audio-Technica Limited, of Leeds, England, as it’s exclusive distributor for the United Kingdom. Audio-Technica Limited will distribute all of Sabine’s professional audio and wireless products.

"We have admired Sabine equipment for some time," said Paul Maher, managing director of Audio-Technica Ltd, "and we are very excited to include Sabine DSP products within the product range that we offer."

Sabine’s president, Doran Oster, added: "Partnership is the key element in this agreement. Audio-Technica is an undisputed leader in the microphone world . . . Our customers in the UK will benefit from the synergy of this new situation."

(Lee Baldock)

Kylie Minogue’s current ‘Fever’ tour is being heard through a Meyer Sound line array PA system from Capital Sound, featuring XTA digital signal processing throughout. Capital Sound is providing a combination of Meyer Sound M3D and the new, compact M2D line array systems, along with Meyer M3D line array subwoofers, UPAs for front-fills and barrier fills and a combination of Meyer UPM1Ps and UPA1Ps for fills on the large central stage thrust.

All the Meyer cabinets are self-powered, and are configured into various zones. The system consists of two main left and right hangs, followed by two further 90° dispersion side hangs (all a combination of M3D and M2D) designed to extend clear reproduction all the way round, since all of the shows are completely sold out. For the Manchester and Wembley shows a third hang supplemented the central rear area coverage. Capital’s

Three North Wales companies are the latest to join the Welsh Development Agency’s prestigious Commitment to Innovation (CTI) programme. Apple Dynamics Ltd of Mold (the training division of PLASA member company Apple Sound, specialising in audio and acoustics), Clogau Gold of Bodelwyddan, and NWP Electrical Ltd of Kinmel Bay, have each joined the programme, which is designed to build a core group of the most go-ahead organizations in Wales as exemplars of what can be achieved by innovative business practices.

Members of CTI commit themselves to innovation in their corporate strategies and business plans and to implement innovation in their daily businesses practices. As a result they have been able to prove that innovation has helped strengthen their business, secure new orders, create new employment and provide new investment opportunities. To date, 113 companies from throughout

Following a year of testing at the National Theatre in London, IES sine wave dimmers were recently used for the first time at a public performance in the UK. Paul Pyant’s lighting design for the play Frozen, which opened at the Cottesloe Theatre on 3 July, includes two rows of five 12V Par 56 battens - famed for their powerful light-curtain effect, but notorious for the buzzing of the lamp filaments. Two of the battens, which comprise nine 12V 500W lamps in series, are typically connected in pairs to create a 216V load and powered from a 5kW dimmer which has been trimmed-down to give a suitable voltage. However, the pulsing waveform of a triac dimmer causes the filaments to resonate audibly, and this can be distracting in a silent drama theatre setting.

Mike Atkinson, senior project manager at The National Theatre, said: "We had tried triac dimmers before, but the noi

Lamba plc has appointed Marquee Audio as a Stanton distributor to the specialist nightclub trade. Speaking of the new development, Marquee’s managing director Spencer Brooks said: "We have been observing Stanton’s steady evolution while at the same time seeking to consolidate a front end for our club installations. What really triggered this alliance was when Stanton launched their digital output turntable (STR8-100) and the digital VRM-10 mixer - and now Final Scratch is the icing on the cake." He added: "With the aid of our digital pro demonstration facilities, we believed we could create added exposure for Stanton at the top end of the club market."

Gerry Frost, Lamba’s sales director, also felt the timing of the move could hardly have been better for his company. "This is an opportunity for Lamba to build on its long relationship with Mar

Marquee Audio recently installed the entire sound system in the new Oyster Quay bar and grill at Poole Quay, Dorset, which opened at the end of May. With sister venue Toko already successfully established in Bournemouth, this is the latest brand from holding company, Richard Carr’s Future 3000, which also owns the dance venue The Opera House, the dance brand Slinky, and restaurant, Bliss, in Bournemouth.

Overlooking Poole Quay, the new bar was developed at a cost of £1.6m and designed by world-renowned architect and designer Stuart Jones of Design Mode. Stuart has blended soft nautical themes with up to date, modern architecture and interior styling, and, with a capacity of nearly 1000, Oyster Quay is now proving to be the new place to be seen in Poole. Divided into five zones, the exquisite venue is centred round a circular bar, which features an 80-gallon aquarium, and is comp

Amek and Soundcraft have merged their operations to form a much stronger console group with a wide-ranging portfolio. Soundcraft sales director Adrian Curtis takes overall responsibility for sales of Amek and DAR, in addition to Soundcraft, with his existing team of Jon Ridel (Middle East and Asia), Karl Chapman (Europe) and Trevor Coley (UK and Ireland) heading up regional sales for the three brands. Inder Biant joins the team as product specialist and there are plans to strengthen the team further with new market and product specialists. All marketing activities for the group come under David Neal.

The combined portfolio means that the group has a much wider range of products and solutions for their existing markets. Manufacturing and production of the current portfolio of Amek and DAR products is being integrated into the Potters Bar facilities that already house Soundcraft and BSS

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