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UK - Design practice KBA has been commissioned to create a luxury hotel on the site of a former Standard Life office in the centre of Edinburgh. The hotel is the brainchild of Montpeliers (Edinburgh), the award-winning style bar, hotel and restaurant operator.

The development, yet to be named, is located within an imposing five storey Georgian townhouse at the west end of Edinburgh's stylish shopping district. The building will offer 33 bedrooms, including deluxe suites, a restaurant, bars and private members lounge.

Kerr Blyth, managing director of KBA comments, "Montpeliers has long been a supporter of our integrated design approach. I am delighted that we have been commissioned to bring this landmark project to fruition, all the way through from developing the brief to the final product.

KBA celebrates its third birthday this year. Its portfolio of completed projects

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USA - High-end wireless technology manufacturer Lectrosonics is introducing what it claims to be the world's smallest professional audio wireless transmitter.

Scheduled to be unveiled at NAB 2005 in Las Vegas, SM (Super Mini), this transmitter is said to delivering 107dB signal-to-noise ratio and flat frequency response to 20kHz. Lectrosonics' Digital Hybrid Wireless technology uses both 24-bit digital audio and analogue FM signal transmission methods to encode a digital signal into a robust analogue format for transmission over a UHF FM carrier.

The SM's receiver captures the signal and DSP circuitry recreates the original digital audio. Says Lectrosonics, "This unique system represents the best of both wireless worlds: exceptional digital audio qualitycombined with the spectrum efficiency and long range of highly-optimised FM wireless systems."

Larry Fisher, Lect

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UK - Taking less than four hours per line to install, the DGS steelband counterweight drive from Hall Stage promises "powered flying at highly affordable prices".

The first operational units - a DGS 250 & a DGS 500 - are working in the Milton Keynes Theatre and will be touring the UK and Europe over the next few months, supporting Hall Stages 2005 Exhibition schedule.

"Once installed, the venue saves the time and effort involved in loading and unloading counterweight cradles," says Hall Stage director Phil Wells.

DGS installations are designed to "massively reduce" the time taken on fit-ups and show rigging. A bar is available immediately as required and can be loaded and flown in minutes, without the need for re-weighting. "Although not currently illegal as such, various aspects of the tasks involved are definitely inhumane and the practic

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UK - Forty years ago LAMDA, the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, recognized that its Stage Management course needed updating as the job of stage management and the technology available backstage evolved. The college's principle, Michael MacOwan, turned to Richard Pilbrow, the leading technical theatre practitioner of the day, for advice. With help from Pilbrow, his company Theatre Projects and his stage management mentor Robert Stanton, LAMDA's new Stage Management and Technical Theatre Course was born.

Forty years later, Pilbrow returned to LAMDA to help celebrate the course's anniversary, with an afternoon's conversation with the college's current students, a selection of alumni and a variety of other industry practitioners. Entitled 'Two Conversations', the afternoon firstly saw Richard describe the conversation with Michael MacOwan that led to the formation of the c

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UK - Architectural lighting specialist Lighting Technology Projects has specified and supplied a tasteful fibre optic feature lighting installation at the Transco Gas Substation building in Swiss Cottage. The steel clad building - designed by Gustafson Porter - is an integral part of Camden Council's current urban regeneration project in the area, and lighting it required some lateral and unconventional application of the art and science of illumination.

LTP's Terry Reeves was contacted by the project's lighting designer Martin Richmon to help specify the scheme - the two having worked together on a myriad of previous projects. The substation is comprised of two structural elements. The rear portion which deals with distributing the actual gas, and the front 'market stall' area, which is prominent, highly visible and directly on the pavement and main vehicle and pedestrian route

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UAE - The new Emirates Palace Hotel is Abu Dhabi's only 7-star hotel. UK-based LSI Projects provided the lighting and stage engineering systems for this truly unique complex. The company first became involved in 2001, and in 2003 won the international tender for Package 13b, the production lighting and stage engineering systems. These are located in the magnificent art deco auditorium centrally housed in the entertainment complex, strategically placed between the two lavishly equipped hotels. The whole project has been rumoured to have cost £2 billion and officially opened on 7 March 2005.

The technical specification was prepared by Jerry Godden and his team at Theatre Projects Consultants. The brief was to provide conference and theatre facilities that would enable large corporate clients to stage international conferences, product launches as well as providing local facilitie

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UK - Summit Steel provided production rigging for the opening ceremony event which launched HCA2005 - the ongoing bicentennial celebration of the birth of legendary Danish storyteller and poet, Hans Christian Andersen.

The two hour Once Upon A Time event was staged in in front of a live audience of 35,000 at Copenhagen's massive Parken Stadium, and starred a cast of over 300 international artists and celebrities including Jean Michele Jarre, who staged a special live performance interpretation of the fairytale The Shadow.

The show was commissioned by the Danish Broadcasting Company (DR) in conjunction with British production company Initial, and was broadcast live on DR1 and to the rest of Europe via the European Broadcasting Union. The production brief was to transform the stadium into an enchanting fairytale universe. Equipment was supplied by several UK compan

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UK - Just a year ago, the Seville-based touring and events company Apogee SA opened a branch in London, and the venture has got off to a great start. "We are absolutely fully booked," says managing director, Oscar Fragio. "We have met all our targets. Things could hardly be better."

As grounds for the expansion of an Andalusian firm into the colder reaches of Northern Europe, he cited "a desire for closer contact with our customers and for the company to grow. We had noticed that many of our customers frequently worked in London, so London was the logical location for our first foreign branch." It is unlikely to be the last Apogee branch outside Spain. "We want to expand," says Fragio, "and extend our services to all Europe . . .", the ultimate goal being "at least one branch in every European country."

To meet its am

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UK - The Association of British Theatre Technicians will launch its annual Summer School 2005 at the A.C. Lighting North Trade Show being held at the Royal Armouries Museum in Leeds on 26 and 27 April.

ABTT Summer School 2005 will be held at Warwick Arts Centre, Coventry. Four Awards are being offered this summer. In addition to its Bronze for Stage Technicians, this year sees the launch of a Silver Award for Stage Technicians, a Silver Award for Sound Technicians and a Silver Award for Stage Electricians. For the first time, these Awards will have full accreditation from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, making the ABTT Awards the first accredited courses for technical and production practitioners in theatre.

The Bronze Award is five intensive days taking the following subjects: Electrical Fundamentals, Portable Appliance Testing, Knots & Spl

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USA - A wireless four-channel Lectrosonics Venue Receiver System, including 16 MM400B miniature belt-pack transmitters, has been installed at SeaWorld San Diego for the water park's new sea lion and otter show. Clyde and Seamore in Deep, Deep Trouble is a marine-themed adventure that features California sea lions, river otters, animal trainers and theatrical performers in search of a mythical sea creature and treasure.

Key to SeaWorld's decision to purchase the Lectrosonics system was the introduction of the latest version of the company's waterproof miniature belt-pack transmitter, the MM400B. Previous versions of the MM400 did not feature a power switch and could only be turned off by removing the battery. The new MM400B features a waterproof power switch and allows that switch to be programmed as an audio mute.

This new feature of the Digital Hybrid Wireless transmit

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UK - The ABTT Theatre Show 2005 (15-16 June, Royal Horticultural Halls, London) will present a variety of advanced products designed to enable safe working at heights, say the organizers. The new Work at Height Regulations apply the same restrictions to working at heights below two metres as have long been required at greater heights. Over two thirds of all injuries from falls are from heights below two metres, and to ignore the risks of falling, no matter the distance, potentially puts theatre technicians in serious breach of health and safety regulations.

The ABTT (the Association of British Theatre Technicians) has embraced the issue and will launch its draft for consultation of its Code of Safe Practice when Working at Height at the ABTT Theatre Show in June. Chairman of the ABTT's Safety Committee, David Adams explains: "Whilst designers can achieve much to reduce the

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UK - Stage Technologies has been working with prominent French company ECA2 and the world-renowned Canadian based company Cirque Éloize to realize an aerial performance for the Toyota Group's central show at the Aichi 2005 World Fair in Japan, which started on 25 March. The fair is oriented towards the future, and will be based on major issues including nature, the environment, durable growth and new technologies. For this event, founder of ECA2, Yves Pépin and his team have designed and produced a huge multimedia show, which will take place 14 times a day, everyday for a six month period, both a human and technological challenge.

The automation equipment was initially set up at the Cirque Éoize venue in Canada to enable the shows' creative team to experiment with its ideas and allow the performers to become accustomed to the equipment. Working closely with performance riggin

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Venezuela - Audio Valencia of Valencia, Venezuela is one of the latest sound providers to become an Adamson Y-Axis Partner, purchasing a complete system comprised of 16 Adamson Y-Axis Y18s and four Y10s. The sale was arranged through Abba Trading Corporation of Fort Lauderdale, Florida - Adamson's distributor for Latin America.

Since taking delivery, Audio Valencia has used its new Adamson Y-Axis system for all of its A-list events, which has included recent Venezuelan concert dates by the Italian tenor Luciano Pavarotti, and Spanish superstar Miguel Bosé.

Sound engineer Daniel Fernandez provided technical training on the new system for the Audio Valencia staff; and assisted Luciano Pavarotti's FOH engineer John Pellowe for the 2 March concert date at Teatro Teresa Carreño in Caracas, Venezuela.

"For the Pavarotti concert, we used an array of eight Y18s and two Y10s p

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UAE - PALME - the Middle East's premier professional sound, light, music, audio visual and systems integration exhibition, which runs from 24-26 April 2005 in Dubai, will feature a series of master classes and industry seminars specifically designed to help those involved in AV installation and event management keep up to speed with the latest products, services and solutions available, say the organizers, IIR. Held over the three days of the event, the sessions will be hosted by leading experts including leading architectural lighting designers Jonathan Speirs and Paul Gregory, renowned for international lighting design projects that include the Burj Al Arab and Golden Gate Bridge.

Jonathan Speirs' masterclasses at PALME 2005 will focus on three RIBA Stirling Prize (the UK Building of the Year award) projects, profiling the Swiss Re Tower by Foster and Partners, London, The Gat

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UK - Allen & Heath showed the latest designs from its award-winning Xone range of DJ products at the Pro Light & Sound exhibition in Frankfurt last week. The Xone:S6 - a sister product to the audiophile valve rotary Xone:V6 mixer - made its debut. Offering an almost identical feature set, fitted with the same top quality components and offering equal sonic performance, the S6 is an accessible alternative to the top of the range V6, say Allen & Heath. Adopted by the leading clubs Fabric and Ministry of Sound, and the top DJ/producers Louie Vega, Sasha, Eric Morillo and Sander Kleinenberg, the Xone:V6 has set a new standard in DJ mixing since its launch in 2002, say the company.

Built to the same standard as the V6, the S6 retains key features including the six dual stereo channels with high pass filters and insert points on every channel, accurate signal level metering, "int

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UK - Energy giant BP has operated on a 13-hectare site at Sunbury for the past 80 years, but at the start of the new millennium plans were put in place to re-develop this into a brand new Business Park. The Park integrates BP's business, commercial and technology activities and is the base for some 3,000 staff.

Part of this integration involved relocating some of the resources from offices in central London and recognized the need for a series of 11 meeting rooms to be equipped with multimedia and videoconferencing support. Located in Building B - where some of the company's Gas, Power and Renewables businesses are located - each would be differently configured but with a standard template and control. Given the number of staff on site the rooms could expect little down time.

All have now been equipped by Pendax UK, and the largest - The Willow Room - utilizes two dnp 84in New

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UK - Astronaut features as part of this year's BITE season at the Barbican Pit and is the third Theatre O production to have been co-commissioned by BITE.

Theatre O's distinctive style pushes boundaries using, dance and comedy, mime and gesture, live and recorded music and sound. Their performances are minutely choreographed chaos, with even the most frenetic movement synchronized in perfect precision. The result is an exquisitely layered experience that combines the power of storytelling with the drama of theatre.

Based on a short story by Andrea Vales, Astronaut's eclectic soundtrack was co-jointly created by sound designer Gareth Fry and artistic director, Joseph Alford. The creative use of sound plays a major role in the world of Astronaut. By simultaneously using sound in both naturalistic and abstract ways, it allows the story to jump-cut through tim

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UK - Jim Griffiths is the director of the acoustics division of Capita Symonds, which has worked on noise issues at hundreds of events and venues for many years. L&SI spoke to him about the issues concerning event licensing . . .

"Over the years, PA systems have become higher quality and increasingly powerful - and therefore potentially louder. Whilst that may be what the dancers want in their club, or the rock fans want from their favourite band, local residents will probably have a contrary view, and a balance needs to be struck. Local councils are caught in the middle of these parties and have to appease the rights of residents, whilst hopefully allowing the leisure and events industry to earn a living . . . We find ourselves very busy working with promoters, venues, event organizers and councils to find acceptable solutions.

"The environmental impact from any ven

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The Netherlands - The new Formula Sound FF-6000 DJ mixer previewed at last year's PLASA show put into use at the prestigious Jimmy Woo club in Amsterdam recently. Formula Sound designed the FF-6000 mixer in conjunction with leading UK loudspeaker manufacturer Funktion-One and a panel of European DJs, and the Amsterdam event represented the mixer's official European launch.

The event, which was hosted by leading Dutch audio promotions company PB Audio, drew a huge crowd to the exclusive nightspot to see the new FF-6000 mixer put through its paces. Heading the list of artists who entertained the crowd on the night were DJ Roog (a.k.a. Hardsoul), and, underlining the versatility of the FF-6000 mixer, Hybrid Sessions, an act that mixes DJ skills with drum machines and a live sax player.

"We feel strongly that the Formula Sound FF-6000 is absolutely the best-sounding mixer the

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UK - Engineer Dave Wooster recently purchased a selection of DPA microphones, including a DPA 3521 complete stereo kit including two 4021 compact cardioid microphones, two DPA IMK4061 kits featuring a DPA 4061 miniature omnidirectional mic with instrument mounting accessories, and a DPA 4088 compact cardioid headband mic. Wooster is using the new mics in both his Kool World studio, and on the road. He is currently touring with Latin jazz ensemble Matt Bianco, bringing together their original lineup of Mark Reilly (vocals), Basia Trzetrzelewska (vocals) and Danny White (keyboards) for the first time in 20 years. The 4061 miniatures are being used for close miking the cymbals, attached to the stands with DPA's magnetic mounts.

"The 4061's dynamic response and ability to handle the vast dynamic range that the band's drummer can generate never ceases to amaze," he says. &q

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New Zealand - Anyone who plugs in a plug and switches a switch in a theatre, opera house or performance space should be mindful of the energy being consumed and of the bill that arrives every month. Balancing venue profitability with the need for lighting and effects that audiences and performers have come to expect can be a problem.

With such considerations in mind, Selecon's Pacific 80V Power System is the result of over three years' R&D aimed at developing better solutions for the entertainment lighting industry. Combining a quality light output (the 80V 1200W lamp delivers as much light on to the stage as a traditional 2.0/2.5kW luminaire, say Selecon) with significant energy savings (as much as 40-50%), the fixture offers an important new tool for designers and venues, say the company. For example, a front-of-house lighting bridge equipped with 40 2.5kW profiles will consum

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UK - How important are the leaders of a company to its financial performance? According to industry analysts Plimsoll Publishing Ltd, we are about to find out, as one in six UK sound equipment company directors will be aged over 60 by the end of 2005. Plimsoll's latest study is an analysis of the UK's top 238 sound equipment companies and the 495 company directors that are responsible for them. David Pattison, senior analyst at Plimsoll, comments, "The reason for most concern is that of the 249 directors that have been in office for over eight years, 26% will be aged 60 or more by the end of 2005. Is the industry facing an experience 'timebomb' as these veterans near retirement age?"

The full 443 paged analysis of the UK sound equipment industry includes an examination of the age and time in office of directors at the top 238 companies. It assesses how their decisions

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USA - When Mercedes Benz wanted to create an impact for the world première of its Mercedes Benz M-class at the 17th North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit, it enlisted the help of media concept planning agency, TLD Planungsgruppe GmbH. TLD, which has a long established relationship with DaimlerChrysler AG, Mercedes Benz and Manufaktur Maybach brands, was given an open brief for the project. Aside from launching the M-class, TLD was also responsible for showcasing all the other Mercedes Benz vehicles on the stand, plus three cars on the Manufaktur Maybach stand.

A total of 20 vehicles had to be put in to perspective in only 2000sq.m. "Presenting so many different models on the stand provided a challenge as we had to define the separate identity of each model," said chief lighting designer Richard Profe. To maintain this distinction, a huge architectu

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Worldwide - Bandit Lites is supplying full lighting production to Mark Knopfler's Shangri La world tour, once again working with lighting designer Simon Tutchener. Bandit UK has invested in a new MA Lighting grandMA lighting console - their first - especially for the tour, complete with an MA Light for backup, as this was Tutchener's console of choice. Tutchener re-visited his theatrical roots for part of the design's inspiration. He decided at the outset that the moving lights would be used sparingly, only visibly moving at a few specific, punctuating points in the set.

"Mark's extremely specific about what he likes and dislikes," says Tutchener. "Any distractions to him and his music are a definite no-no!", so that ruled out a whole raft of lighting staples including gobo projections onto the backdrop, rotating gobos, etc. Needless to say, when light

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