UK - ECT has been appointed by three separate installation companies to provide bespoke projection screens for installations into religious buildings. Each screen has to be large enough for all the audience to benefit, as well as fitting into the unique architecture of the older church. ECT had less than two weeks to technically advise on and manufacture a projection screen, which would fit snugly between two pillars. "Being given the chance to work on a screen suitable for such an atmospheric setting was an interesting challenge!" said Adam Flawn-Thomas, managing director.

One of the solutions used was to suspend the screen on hinges. The whole unit can then be swung into the wall when not required. Project Audio Visual installed another ECT screen into a church, making it the centre backdrop. A remote control unit allowed the screen to be slip quietly out of sight, r

UK - One of the latest compact line array products to hit the market, the X-Line Very Compact (XLVC) from Electro-Voice, has found its first UK home at the historic Café de Paris venue near London's Leicester Square. Following trials of the XLVC (straight off the production line in the US) and other systems during February and March, the Café de Paris' technical manager George 'Blu' Deakin finally opted for the Electro-Voice system, which was supplied via UK distributor Shuttlesound.

The system joins X-Line and XLC (X-Line Compact) systems in EV's line array family, and comes in two sizes - the XLD281 and XLE181. The former is a full-bandwidth 3-way line array cabinet (2 x 8" + 2 x 2"), which measures 9.9" (251mm) high by 28.58" (726mm) wide by 14.52" (369mm) in depth. The latter is a full-bandwidth 2-way version (1 x 8" + 2 x 2") which measu

Italy - Since February, veteran Italian artist Antonello Venditti has been touring Italy with the supergroup he assembled to record his latest album, 'Campus Live'. The show will visit indoor sports arenas on its first leg before moving outdoors for the summer. Rental firm RMS is supplying the production with Meyer Sound FOH and monitor loudspeaker systems.

From behind the show's Cadac R-type console, FOH engineer Piercarlo Penta explained that Venditti's recent tours have been just him on piano, and a sax player, but to tour with this 'supergroup', "we needed a system able to handle the group's energy, and the Meyer Sound set-up chosen [12 MILO high-power curvilinear array loudspeakers per side and 12 M3D-Subs] has proved a winner. As well as being compact, the MILO enclosures have a really beautiful sound and are very efficient."

While the majority of the indoor ar

USA - Sloppy Joe's Bar in Key West, Florida - once the favourite hangout of local resident Ernest Hemingway - recently installed a new main PA and monitor system from Martin Audio, as well as additional Martin Audio loudspeakers in the Backroom saloon located behind the stage and the upstairs Speak Easy bar. The famous club still features the original Cuban tiles floors and hosts festivals throughout the year including the Hemingway look-a-like contest. Named after the original owner Joe Russell, Sloppy Joe's has a reputation for hosting the best bands in the Keys and having the best party in town.

Unfortunately, the club's audio system was outdated and had been pieced together over the course of several years. "The last system install happened about twelve years ago," said Kevin 'Spyder' Wright, entertainment manager for the club. "When we decided to update the a

Australia - The popular Dreamland Karaoke Restaurant in Perth, Australia, recently upgraded both its lighting and audio equipment, which posed a problem; the venue is small and there was not enough room to install the extra power needed to spruce up the venue. The electrician looked at the cost and space required to install a new switchboard, which would also need dimmer circuits, and decided it was not a viable option. Fortunately, Andrew Newnham of Total Production Systems had recently seen the new EKO wall-mount installation dimmer from LSC Lighting and he suggested that this small, single-unit dimmer; with built-in RCD protection was all that would be required.

The EKO incorporates a cleverly designed installation frame that can be fixed in position without the dimmer being present. Load and control screw terminals on the frame allow for building wiring to be terminated in a

UK - Stagecraft has raised £5,000 for The Mayor of Salisbury's Appeal in aid of The Trussell Trust. The Salisbury based live events, lighting and sound company organized two musical comedy shows, More Tea, Vicar? and Pass the Port, starring Sue Flannery and Michael Lunts, which were held in the function room at Salisbury's Guildhall. "We were absolutely delighted with the success of our events and thanks must go to all our supporters. The Trussell Trust is an invaluable resource to Salisbury and the surrounding area and we hope that with the help of the appeal its projects will continue to flourish," said managing director of Stagecraft, David Goodrich.

Money raised at the events will help raise awareness of The Trussell Trust Food Bank, a community-based project which provides emergency food to people in short term crisis. Food given to The Food Bank by

UK - Entec Lighting continues its successful run of theatre productions, supplying lighting equipment for the national tour of Kim Gavin's Love Shack. The show stars Faye Tozer and Jon Lee (ex S-Club 7), Noel Sullivan (ex Hear'Say) and a lively collection of hits from the 1980s. Entec won the contract by offering an excellent package, and was also highly recommended by lighting designer Simon Tutchener to producer Tristan Baker. The show was programmed by Nigel Catmur, and Jeremy Duncan was asked onboard to operate on tour, and to oversee the re-lights.

Love Shack visits all the major receiving houses in the country. The schedule is tight, with a Monday morning get-in to be ready for a show that evening, followed by a full week of shows and a get out after curtain down on the Saturday. Entec's Noreen O'Riordan says: "Theatre is a relatively new discipline to u

Italy - Outline's Butterfly compact line array took part in a show on an impressive scale - the first Red Bull Flugtag - Un giorno con le ali - a competition for hand-made flying machines powered by just the contestants' muscles and creativity. Presented by Andrea Pellizzari of the popular TV show Le Iene, the event was staged in Milan Linate's Idroscalo, an artificial lake 2.6km long and up to 400m wide, located in a huge natural park.

,I>Red Bull Flugtag, the brainchild of Red Bull's owner Dietrich Mateschitz, is famous in many parts of the world as well as in Italy. It's staged in the USA, Germany, Sweden, Greece, Hungary, Israel and Slovakia. 30 teams participated in the Italian event held on 12 June, launching themselves off a 40m long, 6m high ramp and landing in the water of the Idroscalo, all under the watchful eyes of a jury, which assessed their perfo

UK - Vertigo Rigging has supplied the largest InMotion 3D / CyberHoist motion control system yet rigged in the UK, to provide special effects for the 50th anniversary production of the L'Oreal Color Trophy at London's Earls Court 2 arena on 16 May. The L'Oreal Colour Trophy, the most respected awards ceremony in the hair and fashion industry, tours the UK to find regional finalists before culminating in an exhilarating Grand Final in London. To mark its 50th anniversary, the production company that developed the event, Surrey-based CS Media staged a night to remember at Earls Court, with technical production management by MJK Productions.

The event included four hair shows (by hairdressers Charles Worthington, Antoinette Beenders, Trevor Sorbie and Toni & Guy), a three-course dinner, and an after-show party. The action took place on a main stage with an array of mobile and fixed

UK - When Metal Hammer Magazine held its annual Golden Gods Awards at London's Astoria recently, it was imperative that the stage was lit and dressed in the spirit of thrash metal. With so many logostyles on display, production reinforcement specialists PSL devised a clever means of front projection, using three Digital Projection Lightning 10gv 3-chip DLP projectors, fitted with short-throw lens - in conjunction with High End Systems' Catalyst software. The screen destinations comprised two inner and two outer 25ft by 5ft Trevera long rectangular drapes as the main projection surfaces, flanking a conventional 14ft x 10.5ft front projection screen.

PSL's project manager Mark Solomons worked closely alongside lighting designer, 'Luton' (Pete Hosier) to embellish a stage format he had originally developed with the band Killing Joke. Catalyst V3.3 software was running from a G5 Mac

USA - Color Kinetics Inc has announced the broad installation of its intelliWhite technology in a multiple store roll-out for Bostonian, the specialty men's footwear brand owned by Clarks Companies, NA. Bostonian and its sister brand Clarks operate a network of retail stores nationwide, at least 15 of which will apply iW Profile to light their display shelving.

This system was chosen as a low-maintenance and long-lasting alternative to Bostonian's existing fluorescent display lights, which required costly and frequent replacement. The retailer will design custom display fixtures that incorporate iW Profile to downlight each shelf. iW Profile also allows for different Kelvin temperatures to be set according to display location, for example, cooler shades of white for displays near store windows, and warmer shades towards the store's interior.

According to the US Department of E

Germany - Since 1943, when Walter Oehmichen and his wife Rose built a "puppet shrine" with their daughters and developed their first tiny puppet show for family and friends, the Augsburger Puppet Box has been the best-known marionette theatre in Germany. Germans young and old have an attachment to the puppets that is beyond nostalgia. Every year the theatre gives 440 performances, 98% of the time sold out, plus tours, guest appearances, and TV and film productions.

To keep up with this intense production rate, the Puppet Box must be able to depend on its technical systems, and Klaus Marschall, grandchild of the founder and now the owner of the theatre, is playing it safe with his lighting, choosing to install an ETC SmartFade 2496 as a DMX backup control console. The Augsburger puppeteers have long relied on their older Transtechnik T20 desk as their main console, with

Europe / USA - A.C. Lighting supplied a Jands Vista lighting console to Lite Alternative to control the largely Martin Pro rig for Keane's 2005 European and US tour.

Following a successful 2004 UK tour and the critical and commercial success of the band's debut album, Hopes and Fears, Keane extended its tour with a series of European and US dates throughout 2005. With extra production budget available for US shows, which were taking place in venues up to twice the capacity of the European dates, LD Paul Normandale decided to step up the production values for the US leg.

Having read about the Jands Vista lighting console's Generic Fixture Model, Normandale was keen to see if it could provide a solution to the lengthy process of re-plotting shows for varying venue sizes. After a demo from Jands' European and North American distributor A.C. Lighting, Normandale was impressed by t

UK - mm productions has a new owner. Martyn Hunt, who has been with the company for the past four years, and has run the company for the last two, has announced that he has purchased mm productions from the company's founder and owner John Hoskyns. Hunt, who has worked within the sound industry for 16 years, says he will continue to build on mm productions' reputation for quality sound design and hire.

Previous to him joining mm productions in November 2000, Hunt worked on many West End and touring productions; he has commissioned sound for Princess Cruises Los Angeles, worked for the BBC and Ulster Television, and spent time working in Germany and Palm Springs, California. His first full-time job in sound, however, was at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield. And it was whilst at the Crucible that Martyn became addicted to live performance sound.

"It is my real passion for mu

UK - With the coming summer season looking busier than ever, SDD Sound & Light has just taken delivery of another Midas Venice 320 and Midas 160 desk to cover the increased workload. This takes the company's stock of Venice desks to six, with a further two Venice 320 and another Verona 320/400 planned for the latter part of 2005.

The planned work programme for this year includes not only an increased number of dance and music events but a greater number of touring Shakespeare productions for the summer season. The Venice desks have proved a hit with the artists for their ability to tightly control vocals with warmth and clarity and are now being specified by the touring companies as standard.

"During the past few years it has become clear to us and our clients that the Midas desks have outperformed all of the other brands that we have used," said rental manager Howar

UK / Ireland - Harman Pro UK staged its highly successful Roadshow Presentation in Dublin, Manchester and London - demonstrating the fabulous range of new Harman technology launched at NAMM and Frankfurt. The show featured presentations from JBL Professional, Crown, dbx Professional, AKG, Lexicon, Soundcraft, BSS and Studer - the core of the Harman Group. Highlighting the new technology and audio solutions available from all these brands for a variety of professional applications, including live concert touring, portable PA, mobile disco and studio sound, the Harman Pro Roadshow has toured the US, France and Germany.

JBL's new VRX Series line array concept attracted much attention. Featuring the performance of high end line arrays in a compact, affordable and flexible 12" two-way format, VRX provides outstanding coverage and output coherence. VRX shares components with JBL'

UK - APR Audio showcased one of the biggest PA systems ever assembled in a dance tent, at the recent Homelands Festival in the south of England. Entirely comprising Electro-Voice and Klark Teknik/Midas products, the sound system in The Movement Tent was predominantly X-Line, as one would expect from APR, one of the UK's leading EV rental houses.

For a line-up that included some of the world's best drum 'n' bass DJs and MCs, APR provided a ground-stacked X-Line array system, "a massive wall of sound", according to APR's Pete Russell. Either side of a centre stage were eight Xvls 3-way line array cabinets, with 16 Xsubs. In the centre, four Xi1152 full-range cabinets provided fill, and for stage fill, another two Xb LF boxes and two Xn cabinets were used on each side. Completing the picture were XW15As for band monitoring.

APR Audio was repeating its success of 2004 in

UK - When Ian Croxall bought his Soundcraft Series 1 in 1978, he never dreamed he'd still be using it 25 years later. The console, built into a flightcase (believed to be the first such road-ready design to be produced in volume), has given sterling service for a quarter of a century on numerous live events, being used for recording as well as PA work. Now Croxall has traded his Series 1S in for one of Soundcraft's new GB4 desks, but only because of the channel count.

"There's still nothing wrong with the 1S," reports Croxall. "In all that time it's only ever had two small technical problems, and one of those was a blown fuse! The only reason I'm upgrading is that it has simply run out of channels to handle the sort of work we're doing these days."

Ian donated his Series 1S, complete with the original user guide, to Soundcraft, who intend to put it into a c

UK - The specialist entertainment industry recruitment company Taylor-Phillips has recently joined forces with the Cambridge Media Group (CMG), which comprises Entertainment Technology Press Ltd, Realnet Ltd (internet solution specialists) and another newly-acquired company, Liverpool Academic Press.

Taylor Phillips was established in 1999 after founder Julie Kirby spent a long period working in the lighting and sound industries; the success of the company is largely due to an understanding of the market and how this sector operates, says Kirby, who will continue with the company as the operation is expanded with a growing team base in Cambridge.

(Jane Cockburn)

China - Lighthouse Technologies in Hong Kong is supplying two of its indoor screens for the 8th Shanghai International Film Festival being held at the Shanghai Superbrand Mall. The company, in conjunction with Join Merit Media Holdings Limited and GP Batteries, is supporting Stellar Megamedia, a local entertainment and media company that is providing digital film services at this year's event. As such, Lighthouse has supplied one of its giant 4.48 x 3.36m R6 indoor display screens together with its new PopVision LED screen, measuring 1.28 x 0.64m. PopVision made its debut at the recent InfoComm show in Las Vegas.

The two screens will air coverage of film trailers, festival highlights, as well as new digital film content. The R6 will also serve as the main backdrop for the broadcasting of the festival's prestigious movie awards.Offering a 6mm pixel pitch, high definition imaging

UAE - Dubai-based Artes Audio Visual Rentals is one of the region's leading rental companies, with services ranging from dry hires to full event management. The latest addition to the company's armoury is a Midas Verona mixing console purchased from local distributor NMK Electronics Ent for mid-sized to large events. "The Verona delivers that high-quality sound you expect from a Midas but in a compact size, which allows us to use it frequently, and for many different scenarios, says Avril Rodrigues, head of audio at Artes. "This makes it a great investment for the company."

Chicco Hiranandani, product manager at NMK, adds: "I was approached by Artes before the Dubai Jazz Festival this year to provide a FOH mixing console. At that time, we'd received the new Verona console so I offered them to try it during the three-day event. When they were able to see and h

Italy - 29 May 2005, marked the seventh annual 'Cornetto Free Music Festival'. Sponsored by the ice cream maker Algida, the festival has become one of the best attended live festivals in Italy, drawing this year over 100,000 music fans to the piazza in front of Milan's magnificent cathedral despite temperatures of 35°C. The event, MC'd by Ambra Angiolini and Elio delle Storie Tese, featured international stars including Avril Lavigne, Black Eyed Peas and John Legend performing on a 50m x 14m stage, with two 20sq.m screens providing Imag.

The task of providing the sound reinforcement for the spectacle was entrusted to Milano Music Service (MMS), the renowned Milanese rental company, and both the client and the audience were delighted with the results. Supported by EVI Audio's Italian partners, Texim, MMS's engineers opted for a large Electro-Voice X-Line system along with EV amp

USA - Slipknot - one of the most visually theatrical and bizarre speed metal acts today - used Robe Colour Spot 1200 ATs to great effect on their Subliminal Verses tour as specified by lighting designer Jason Cain.

It was the first time that Cain has used Robe fixtures - but it certainly won't be the last he asserts, stating that next time he intends to use lots more Robe's on the rig! Gemini Stage Lighting of Dallas, Texas Lighting supplied equipment for the recently concluded two month US tour.

Cain used the ColorSpot 1200s for stunning beam and colour effects. "I like the brightness, strobe rate, pan/tilt and the gobo selection" says Cain, noting that you get the standard range of gobos plus ten additionals - all of which are inventive and different. He also likes the colour mixing properties and reckons that the 1200s are far brighter than similar comparab

UK - Legendary singer Ozzy Ozbourne's Black Sabbath headlined a bill featuring the worlds leading heavy rock acts ranging from Garbage, Feeder, MC5, Motorhead, Slayer, Slipknot and System of A Down.

Whilst the bands might have been screaming '666'; three was the magic number for Download Festival organizers this year: the festival now in its third year, with three stages and expanded to run over three days. It was also the third year that Simon Battersby led an experienced management team and 450 staff to look after the 50,000 fans who enjoyed the weekend.

Aside from the increased logistics to accommodate the larger crowd and 35,000 campers Showsec worked with officials from the SIA. Showsec had 48 SIA licensed staff and officials commented on the high level of organization and preparation in place meaning that no crisis management was ever called on during the weekend.

The

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