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UK - It's not unusual for a lighting company to be supplying equipment to pantomime productions at this time of year. However, Scottish lighting specialist black light has just supplied a panto job with a big difference - it was in Ghana, Africa!

In the UK, audiences are used to pantomimes being staged in drafty halls and chilly theatres. In stark contrast, the International Players production of Cinders (a characteristically loose interpretation of the Cinderella story) was staged at the Ghana International School's outside stage in high temperatures. Although there is a roof over the stage and auditorium, its purpose is to provide shelter in case of tropical storms!

The panto was left high and dry when another UK-based lighting supplier failed to respond to its order. So, with a fairly tight turnaround time for the lighting to be shipped out via sea freight, the Players tur

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UK - Leading British electronic music act Way Out West has selected Allen & Heath's MIDI-enabled Xone:92 DJ mixer for use on its new, and highly acclaimed album 'Don't Look Now' (Distinct'ive), and promotional tour. The bonus mix CD which accompanies the 'Don't Look Now' album was mixed live on the Xone:92 at Way Out West's studio in Bristol, and the mixer was used throughout an intensive live tour of North America, which took place during November 2004.

"The Xone:92 is wonderful and I love it," says Jody Wisternoff. "I was really happy that we were able to use it for the 'Don't Look Now' mix CD - every track went through it, and it warmed up everything. It's definitely the best sounding DJ mixer I've ever heard and I've been playing around with the MIDI functions. The Xone:92 is studio quality - Allen & Heath don't mess around. I've played records at home throug

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UK - Producer Jim Lowe looked to Mackie when he decided he needed a cost-effective desk that could be used to record bands during rehearsal sessions. Lowe, who has recently produced and engineered a new album for the Stereophonics, said: "I was looking for an easy and affordable way to record bands in rehearsal situations, without having to compromise on quality. Mackie desks are renowned for their good EQ and mic amps, so the company's range was an obvious place to begin my search."

Lowe chose an Onyx 1640 with FireWire option. This 16-channel small-format analogue mixer is the flagship of Mackie's new Onyx range, with features including an innovative 24-bit/96khz FireWire 1/0 option that allows it to stream multi-channel audio directly into a laptop or desktop computer.

"The FireWire option was a must-have because I use a G4 laptop and I needed a quick and e

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UK - The launch of Ethos VA Array at the PLASA show in 2004 had a dramatic effect on Logic System's standing in the live sound industry. While system sales have been achieved in Asia, Europe and Scandinavia, UK demand has been running at an unprecedented level, say the company. To cope with the production demands in the run up to Christmas the Logic factory has been operating an additional night shift to cope. The availability of a cost effective installation version of the array has also not been lost on Logic Systems installation customers and as a result it has been specified on a number of new installations coming on line in the next few months.

The first of these is the newly refurbished Odeon in Leicester. Built as a cinema in the 1940's the decaying Art Deco interior has been lovingly restored to its former glory and the tiered seating replaced by six raised balconies ena

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The Netherlands - For Dutch superstar Frans Bauer's three sell-out 28,000 capacity Christmas shows at the Arnhem Gelredome, he and his design team decided to push their innovative use of video to record breaking levels. The single location and spectacular venue allowed a level of production which would be all but impossible on a touring show. The 'set' was a video screen - similar in proportions to the system on U2's legendary Popmart tour, this screen was not a low-resolution, background effect, but 500sq.m of Barco's D7 outdoor product assembled into arguably the largest and highest resolution display ever built Europe and even worldwide if fixed installations are discounted.

Dutch video specialist JVR (an Avesco plc company), an established supplier to Bauer's extravaganzas, supplied the screen. Sales director Jeroen Jongenelen commented. "The Barco D7 is the only syste

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UK - The latest issue of British Harlequin house magazine Harlequinade carries stories from around the globe including the magnificent new Copenhagen Opera House, the impressive Centre de la Danse in Paris and the Bolshoi Ballet in Moscow.

From America news of Harlequin's largest ever installation of Liberty Sprung floors at Florida State University in Tallahassee, as well as a special installation at the Lincoln Center in New York. Elsewhere in the issue Rachel Rist, president of IADMS writes a timely warning on the risks of dancing on the 'wrong type' of dance floor, a subject also highlighted in a recent House of Commons Report.

Anyone involved in dance who would like to receive a free copy of Harlequinade can sign up via the contact details below.

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UK - Over 20 specialist suppliers to the audio industry have accepted invitations to exhibit at ISCEx 2005 being held at the Watford Moat House Hotel on Tuesday, February 22nd. They include ADS Worldwide, AK Barns, Ampetronic, BC Technology, Brahler, Canford Audio, CIE, Clockaudio, Communications Technology, Current Thinking, DNH Worldwide, Ikon AVS, LOUD, MEDC, RCF, RK Sound, RW Salt, Shuttlesound, SigNET, and TOA. There are more in the pipeline, and already this looks like being an even bigger and better specialist exhibition for this important segment of the sound industry.

Running alongside the commercial interest will be a full packed technical programme with expert speakers covering a myriad of topics including audio over TCP/IP (Michael Harrison), fibre optics (Anthony Smith), wireless microphones (Paul Mason), an up-date on loop induction systems (Leon Pieters), and test

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Italy - December saw an Outline sound reinforcement system installed in the 400-seat multi-function room of Iveco SpA, a member company of the Fiat Group and one of the world's largest manufacturers of diesel engines and goods vehicles. The audio system - comprising three Spectra II 9075 loudspeaker enclosures, a Topsub Plus and two Micra II, powered by Outline T4 and T44 digital power amplifiers - is regularly used for conferences by Iveco's management, but also by public bodies such as Brescia's municipal and provincial authorities, and various important trade associations. In line with the philosophy of a multi-function room, as well as these applications, the room is also used by the Group's staff and their families, who greatly appreciate the sophisticated AV technology installed, particularly for the screening of films in 5.1 Dolby Surround.

The audio equipment was insta

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UK - Being based in one of the world's most renowned cities for New Year's Eve celebrations does have its down side. Six black light employees - led by projects manager Paul McGreal - found themselves resolutely sober and working hard as 2004 turned over into 2005.

Scotland is legendary for leading the UK's celebrations, with Edinburgh's Hogmanay events as much a municipal highlight as the city's infamous Festival Fringe in August. So it's unsurprising that black light is at the heart of both. As the celebrations take place in the centre of the city, the set up has to be done during the small hours. So the black light team worked overnight on 29 - 30 December to install the equipment, and on 31 December to run it (avoiding drunken revellers wherever possible). They began breaking down at 2am on 1 January, with all safely back at the black light warehouse by 8am that day.

Unlik

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UK - Mixing the sound for a broad range of frontline television spectaculars, Plus 4 Audio's Stew Chaney knows the value of having a maximum number of inputs in a minimum amount of flexible retail estate, that can be transported and sited discretely.

For the past two years he has supported the Yamaha digital platform, and like his colleague Fred Jackson (of Jackson Post) with whom he often shares mixing duties - their preferred supplier is Marquee Audio.

Last month Marquee supplied Plus 4 Audio with the new PM5D-RH - and Chaney returned from mxing the sound for Miss World in China to go straight into The London Studios on the South Bank, to join Jackson on the new board for ITV's Record of the Year show, where the full complement of internal pre-amps, FX and stereo returns were in use.

Chaney had been looking for a step up from the DM2000 for around a year on shows which req

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USA - This years' Christmas Celebration Tour by Mannheim Steamroller was mixed by Rande Ferguson, who added a Mackie Digital X Bus console to the show's audio arsenal. Ferguson has served as sound engineer for Mannheim Steamroller, during their traditional touring months of November and December, for the past 16 years. For the other 10 months of the year, Ferguson is a design/build contractor in Omaha, Nebraska with Audio Support Group.

He says: "In this job I'm able to stay well-versed in new audio products and technologies," said Ferguson. "In fact, this is how I first became aware of Mackie's new digital console. It was my good friend and sales rep, Tim Eakins of Eakins-Bernstein & Associates, that suggested that the new Digital X Bus might be just what I needed for the Mannheim Steamroller tour."

Ferguson adds: "Chip [Davies] has been writing in

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UK - 15 December saw the West End premiere of the stage production of Mary Poppins - incorporating a mixture of large format projection and video projection created as a collaborative effort between DHA Lighting, the expert in the fields of gobos and projected imagery, and sister company Scene Change, the digital media specialist.

A musical based on the stories of P.L. Travers and the Walt Disney film, Mary Poppins is produced by Disney and Cameron Mackintosh. The show made its debut at the Bristol Hippodrome in September, playing a short season there before transferring to London. The DHA and Scene Change teams were led by Wyatt Enever, bringing his long experience in creating and pre-distorting projected artwork for stage productions into the world of projected video, together with Scene Change's Nigel Sadler. Enever, Sadler, DHA and Scene Change were selected to

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Australia - Nova Multimedia, Canberra's oldest and leading independent production house, and Specifics, a relatively young technical management and specialist audio equipment supplier, have merged. The merger, which took effect from Monday 10 January 2004 - sees Specifics cease trading and become part of Nova Multimedia - makes Nova Multimedia the largest supplier of event technical management, production and installation services in Canberra.

"We're thrilled and excited to be joining forces with Specifics," Nova director Nick Nonas says of the merger. "With Specifics joining us, we can offer our clients an even broader range of equipment and expertise."

"With the addition of Specifics' broadcast and boutique studio hire equipment, and our own recent upgrade to our Nexo Geo S and PS15 systems, we now have an inventory to be envied', says Nova directo

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USA - Wicked, is the little-known "back story" of the Wicked Witch of the West and Glenda the Good Witch - characters from The Wizard of Oz. The show features music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz from a book by Winnie Holzman. This Tony award-winning musical, based on the best-selling novel by Gregory Maguire, took Broadway by storm in 2003 and it is soon to go on its North American tour.

Wicked Tour Productions asked Tomcat USA to make some custom items for the tour. The company designed and manufactured a 132' span of electric truss - based on a custom version of the EDDY Award winning TOMCAT Swing Wing Truss. The span was designed to come in three sections, each measuring 36" x 30" X 44'.

In addition, Tomcat was also asked to build four sets of lighting towers, as well as a cyc boom and cyc trusses. Each tower is 25" x 30", with h

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Norway - An annual fixture each December in Norway's Oslo, the Nobel Peace Prize Concert. This is the climax of a series of celebratory events centred around the presentation of the Nobel Peace Prize. 2004's recipient was Kenyan environmentalist Wangari Maathai for her contribution to sustainable development, democracy and peace. As in previous years, Norwegian audio company AVAB CAC provided the sound system for the event, which featured DiGiCo D5 Live and D1 Live digital mixing consoles.

The event, which is also produced for television and distributed to 48 nations world-wide, is hosted by Tom Cruise and Oprah Winfrey, saw a stellar cast perform at Oslo Spektrum including Andrea Bocelli, Tony Bennett, Diana Krall, Cindy Lauper, Joss Stone and Patti LaBelle. With three stages set across the arena, the artists performed alternately on the left and right stages, whilst the Norweg

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Australia - Robe recessed ColorSpot 170 ATs have been installed at Melbas on the Park, a popular landmark restaurant, bar and nightclub in Surfer's Paradise on Australia's Gold Coast. Melbas recently extended and renovated its cocktail bar which is complete with Robe Recessed 170 AT fixtures illuminating the dancefloor.

Robe's Australian distributors ULA supplied these to installers Venue Technologies Australia. ULA has been supplying sound, lighting and AV technology to its clients at Melbas for 20 years. The lighting scheme for the new bar was designed by Mick James and programmed by Luke Hall, who explained that the Robe ColorSpot 170 ATs were chosen for the dancefloor because of the venue's low ceiling height. This needed an extremely neat, tidy and unobtrusive fixture - and they fitted the bill perfectly. The ceiling is painted with cloud effects, so it was vital that the l

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Canada - Adamson Systems Engineering has moved to a new head office in Port Perry, Ontario. The company advises that as of Monday 17 January there will no longer be support staff at the former Ajax location, and that all mailings, couriers and shipments should now be sent to the address below, and staff may be contacted at the new telephone and fax numbers. The company can now be contacted at 1401 Scugog Line 6, Port Perry, Ontario, Canada. L9L 1B2. Tel +1 (905) 982-0520, Fax +1 (905) 982-0609.

(Lee Baldock)

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Ireland - Waterford has finally got a club and live venue that any cosmopolitan city would envy. TEN at 10 John Street, owned by local entrepreneurs, Bob Tweedy and Willie Hanrahan, is designed by the John Duffy Design Group in Dublin and is married with sound, lighting and video specified and installed by Irish AV contractors, Dublin-based AVL Systems Ltd. At the heart of it all is an EAW sound system selected for its power and versatility.

TEN has rapidly become home to some of the biggest nights out in Waterford including Resistance, featuring names such as Steve Lawler, Mylo, French techno-wizard, Laurent Garnier and Resistance resident Phil Kieran; Ulysses, with an equally stellar line-up; and is soon to play host to MTV and Radio One superstar, Trevor Nelson and his Rhythm Nation tour. A number of live acts have also played the venue including Ian Brown, Ocean Colour Scene

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UK - In November, 30,000 runners took to the streets of London for the fourth annual Nike Run London event. This was the first time the 10km run had taken place at night. "We organized a night run as it's something new, a first for the UK," says Nike's Carolyn Small. "The idea also came from the fact that if you like to run, you are more than likely to encounter wet, rain, cold and dark if you are running in the UK. The idea was to replicate conditions like that and also to act as a motivator so people don't stay in and hibernate on their sofas during the winter - to get up and go nocturnal, so to speak."

Making sure all the runners knew exactly where they were was lighting specialist Airstar, which provided its distinctive lighting balloons at each kilometre mark and the finish line. Airstar deployed two of its Crystal lighting balloons at each stage. Sport

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UK - TPA 05 - the Graduate Exhibition and Trade Show of the Technical and Production Arts department of the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (RSAMD) will take place on 22-23 March 2005. Once again, Graduating students from the BA Technical and Production Arts course will be showing their work over the past three years in the Academy's Chandler Studio Theatre. Supporting this in the New Athenaeum, the RSAMD's main house, the industry supporters of the course will be showing a large range of production equipment.

Triple E and Black Light have joined the list of course sponsors this year and will exhibiting alongside PRG Europe, Le Mark, Rosco, Rope Assemblies, White Light, Zero 88, Autograph Sales and Hall Stage. Also new to the show will be Lift, Turn, Move and Learn 2B Safe, as well as several industry organizations such as the ABTT, SMA, PSA, PLASA and the ALD, many o

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USA - Texan root rockers, Los Lonely Boys, recently partnered up with Audio-Technica, to ensure the band's sound on tour lives up to the energy, flair and virtuosity of their performances. The group, which recorded its platinum selling debut album at Willie Nelson's Pedernales Studios, by personal invitation, comprises brothers Henry Garza on guitar, Jojo Garza on bass and Ringo Garza on drums.

Bobby Filarowicz, currently monitor engineer on the road with Los Lonely Boys, discovered long ago that Audio-Technica mics make his job easier, and his bands sound better. A-T microphones are amazing and true," he says. "The A-T microphones sound great flat and give me an accurate picture of what the band on stage is hearing. The gain before feedback performance of all of the microphones is incredible, which also makes my job easier and the band's onstage sound better."

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China - Beijing's prestigious new Club Tango has been equipped with an elaborate Turbosound-based sound system. Predominantly featuring Turbosound QLight products, plus the company's TSW low-frequency enclosures, the installation utilizes 50 Turbosound loudspeakers in the club's dance-floor area, and a further 16 in the adjoining Mango Bar. Designed and installed by Hong Kong-based Phoenix Audio and Lighting Technology (Turbosound's exclusive distributor for the Chinese territories) the Club Tango project also includes TXD-121 units as DJ monitors, plus TCS-12M loudspeakers for stage monitoring.

Club Tango set out to be Beijing's leading nightclub, with a need for a best-quality sound system to match its up-market image. Already attracting top-name DJs and acts from around the world, including DJ Sasha as part of his Asian Tour, Club Tango offers its clientele up-to-the-minute

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UK - According to company valuation specialist Plimsoll, there is good news for the UK sound equipment industry as we begin 2005. According to Plimsolll, 47% of companies in the industry have seen their values increase in the last 12 months, some by as much as 50%. David Pattison, senior snalyst at Plimsoll, maintains: "Having valued many companies in the UK sound equipment industry in the last two years, I am amazed that despite poor margins and low growth being commonplace in the market, so many of them have managed to increase in value. While 11% of companies saw no change, only 42% of the industry suffered a fall in value."

Pattison believes that the key to improving the value of a company in a highly aggressive marketplace is to get the fundamentals right: "In 2004, many companies in the industry focused solely on increasing sales at all costs. Ironically, i

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UK - International seating suppliers Arena Seating installed three grandstands into the Mauritius National Tennis Centre (MNTC). The centre is located at Phoenix on the island's central plateaux. Although it was already an excellent facility, the centre was not equipped to cater for major events. To accommodate such events, grandstands were needed around the central court, bringing it to a standard suitable to host world class tennis events.

Kamil Patel, one of the centre's founders and a member of the Africa Tennis Tour (ATT), has long felt that the global game needed events on the African continent that features top players from all over the world. Having attracted the first open tournament to Mauritius the need to increase spectator viewing facilities had to be addressed.

An internet search led Patel to Arena Seating, as the compnay's track record includes installing seatin

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  2. Audio Pro and d&b at ISE 2005
  3. Another Grand order for Stage Technologies
  4. Bandit and XL with R.E.M.
  5. Cats with V-Dosc
  6. JVR supplies record-breaking screen
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