Business

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14 March 2016

In a year of unprecedented theatre renovations in Russia, one of the most ambitious has been the £7.5m restoration of the Mikhailovsky Theatre of Opera and Ballet in St Petersburg. In just four months, the theatre renovated the hall, stage, lobby, orchestra pit, plumbing, heating and electrical systems, plus the building's roof and façade, all in time to kick off its new season. At the same time, the Mikhailovsky overhauled its lighting system, outfitting its stage with equipment from ETC.

In Moscow, The new multi-purpose ballroom and conference facility at the Ho

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14 March 2016

With offices in Madrid, Bilbao and Barcelona, PGN Audiovisual is one of the leading AV systems integration and rental companies in Spain. The company numbers several prestigious installations in its portfolio including the Hard Rock Cafe in Barcelona, Banco ING Direct in Madrid, SEAT's (premier Spanish automotive company) private auditorium, and many more.

For Hotel Alexandra, PGN opted for a Tannoy Di5T system boosted by TS Series s

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14 March 2016

Head lighting designer Mikhail Mekler chose an ETC Congo control system. "Congo has the ability to control conventional theatrical luminaires and modern, complex concert equipment," says Mekler. "This type of system configuration is especially important in musical theatre. That's why Congo is also used in St Petersburg theatres such as the Mariinsky. With Congo,

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14 March 2016

Something of a national icon in Germany by virtue of his controversial lyrics and colourful live presence, Bushido has recently finished a sold-out tour supplied by premier German live production specialists, Complete Audio, Berlin. The rider specified a Martin Audio line array driven by Crest Audio Pro8200 and 9200 amplifiers.

Bushido has been working with Complete Audio for all his recent tours. According to Complete Audio'

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14 March 2016

"Other big players in the Indian market settled for different consoles, mainly due to financial constraints. Indeed, we also looked at other consoles which were much cheaper, but we couldn't convince ourselves to make such a compromise," says Bestt Sound System founder Amiel Best.

"Looking at all the options, the DiGiCo D5-112 Live EX won hands down, because it is widely used, features fibre optic connectivity, is extremely flexible and, most importantly, user friendly. We also purchased the D-TuBe remote digital tube mic preamp module to add a further dimension

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14 March 2016

The Stadthalle Bielefeld (the Bielefeld Convention Centre), with its highly modern design, has made a name for itself in Germany as a first-class congress and events centre, and has become the focus of the cultural scene and events infrastructure in eastern Westphalia.

The eye-catching all-white structure has a semi-circular façade facing the city centre. Through its extensive glass frontage, the hall's light-flooded interior foyers and galleries is in full view of people passing outside, making the movements of all visitors inside part of the character of this public building.

The Centre can accommodate up to 4,500 people, staging a wide range of events in two auditoria. The smaller o

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14 March 2016

The main system is a left/right Kiva line source array system comprised of six Kiva elements and two Kilo low frequency extension enclosures per side. The main system is completed with four ground-stacked SB118 subwoofers and the complete system is driven and controlled by three LA4 amplified controllers. The installation also features L-Acoustics self-powered speakers, namely two108P for stage side-fills for the audience, and six 112P enclosures for stage monitors and side-fills.

Opened almost 24 hours a day, this new Club has quickly become one of the trendiest place to be in Istanbul, and recently won 'The Best Place in Istanbul' award.

L-Acoustics' distributor for Turkey

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14 March 2016

The company is to replace the fleet of vans that undertake regular deliveries from its Wimbledon base into London's Theatreland with an efficient, low fuel consumption, and very friendly horse and cart. "This transportation system has been used by the local Young's Brewery for many years," notes White Light's managing director, Bryan Raven.

"When we learnt that they were to phase it out we realised what a great opportunity this was for us. Our many theatre and corporate event clients mean that we have to make regular deliveries into central London, and rising fuel costs make this increasingly expensive.

"The horses, on the other hand, will pa

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14 March 2016

Sydney-based Showtime Promotions and Productions was awarded the contract to supply the system and chose the Turbosound TCS Compact range.

To ensure even coverage, Showtime opted for a distributed system, comprising eight TCS-081C and two TCS-101C spread evenly around the venue, complemented by a front of house style system for DJ and band performances. This comprises four TCS-121C, flown two per side, with a pair of TSB-212 subs installed under the stage.

The system is powered by 16 channels of Lab.gruppen C-Series amplifiers and managed by a Peavey MediaMatrix NION nX32 system with wall panel touch controls.

"The Turbosound TCS Compact series is popular with my clients as they are unobtrusive but sound deceivingly large," says Rob Runko fro

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14 March 2016

Part of the second wave of employers to achieve Awarding Body status, PLASA has been working with the QCA to conform to the rigorous standards set to become a QCA accredited awarding body.

The development of a Level 1 Trainee Rigger programme for 'new entrants' into the industry will start in the summer of 2008 and will cover the core skills required for rigging in any sector and provide a pathway for someone trying to reach the Level 2 certificate. This w

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14 March 2016

ASL's UK distributor recommended dealer A.C. Audio to BAE Systems, who were quick to assist in the modernisation of the existing 25 year old comms system. Enabling instant and clear communications between three rooms over two independent channels, the new configuration provides BAE's Simulation Department with technology that meets with their stringent requirements.

BAE's senior simulation engineer Liam Murphy commented: "Following pilot comments during simulation assessments on the poor audio quality of our existing bespoke intercom system, a new system was deemed essential for future work. Having already installed a similar system within Simulation Department, A.C. Lighting were asked to design a system for the Motion Dome Simulator.

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14 March 2016

The show featured Akon, Chris Brown, Kelly Rowland and Craig David and was the first of its kind to be staged by the BBC's popular digital urban music channel. It was broadcast live on 1XTRA and recorded for a BBC 2 live special and BBC Digital's Red Button channel.

Jevons was brought onboard by producer Dave McColmont of Angel Music, following his many ground-breaking designs integrating video and lighting for the BBC's One Big Weekend events. All lighting and rigging was supplied by Blackburn-based HSL, with visuals and control from Electric Fly, and screens from

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14 March 2016

The acquisition marks a new chapter in the histories of both businesses. The SADiE brand has long been held in high regard by the pro audio and broadcast industries for the quality and performance of its PC-based digital audio workstation products. Prism Sound is best known by this market for its high end A/D and D/A converters for mastering, tracking and post production.

Prism Sound directors Graham Boswell and Ian Dennis negotiated the deal after learning that SADiE Studio Audio & Video Ltd had gone into administration in February.

"Along with many people in the industry, we were very saddened to hear that SADiE had run into problems," says Graham Bos

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14 March 2016

"The acquisition of Allen & Heath is a strong complement to our Calrec and D&M Pro brands," said chairman and chief executive officer Eric C. Evans. "This acquisition broadens our product offerings to our longstanding DJ customer base and expands our business in the professional market into installed live sound."

Founded in 1969, Cornwall-based Allen & Heath will continue to be led by Glenn Rogers and its current management team. The company will continue to expand its digital portfolio to meet the growing demand for digital mixers.

"We're adding another dimension to our position in the professional audio marketplace with this acquisition," said Evans. "Allen & Heath is a strong brand in the professional live sound performance market an

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14 March 2016

"The XLD delivers remarkable performance for its size," says Ben Blomander, owner, PB Pro-Audio & Lighting, "balancing sonic intelligibility and precise coverage with plenty of power handling when needed.

"For the opening ceremony, about 3000 kids came out onto the ice, past the main stage area," Blomander adds, "effectively doubling the size of the space we needed to cover; we needed to cover the ice and the first tier seating area as well as the m

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14 March 2016

One of the oldest business organizations in the United Arab Emirates, the Dutco Group of Companies has enjoyed a long and distinguished history since its foundation in 1947 by the late Yousuf Baker. Dutco Tennant is the Group's principal trading operation, with a sound reputation in the UAE and other Gulf States for its commitment and marketing abilities.

George Puthenkulam, general manager of Dutco Tennant, says: "Robert Juliat has long been recognised as a pioneer in the lighting industry and we are determined to bring as much extra value in our promotion of the Robert Juliat brand as possible.

"We want not only to supply the product, but to provide customers with the level of support that reflects the manufact

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14 March 2016

This distribution collaboration forms part of Lightpower's earlier announcement that it has opened the LED competence centre Germany, which will see the company distribute some of the foremost creative and low-res LED products available on the market today, including Element Labs' Versa TUBE, Stealth and Helix G75 products.

A joint statement says: "The announcement of the strategic collaboration between Element Labs and Lightpower represents a natural progression for two leading companies that both have a strong background in the lighting industry and who's paths have often crossed on concert tours where both provided products that worked together to deliver the visual

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14 March 2016

Dilley is based in Cambridge and enjoys a close affiliation with University College Chapel choirs. "The purchase of the surround system was driven by the fact that we are seeing more demand for live recordings and DVD productions where we are trying to capture the whole atmosphere of the occasion," he says. "The S5 does this in a very elegant fashion. It looks great and is easy to fly, keeping out of the way of the visuals whilst the 4006-TL capsules ensure that the multiple mics don't increase the noise floor in the way that some multi capsule surround solutions seem to."

Supplementary spots in the form of DPA 4028 wid

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14 March 2016

Richard Wolpert's brainchild was Pedaling to Benefit Behind the Scenes, a 754 mile, 12 day bicycle trip from Springfield, MO to Houston, TX in time for the USITT Conference. Riding at an average speed of 12 mph and covering as much as 78 miles in a day. He was joined for the first 72 miles by Rob Schraft and for the last 274 miles by Jeni Lyn Anderson.

On 15 March 15, the Mount Vernon High School Chapter of USITT held its second annual Short Reach Short Riders Tricycle Ride for Behind the Scenes. A cold and wet morning greeted the 38 high school riders as they competed in relays, sprints, and

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14 March 2016

The new company is formed under the managing directorship of Simon Curtis and director Clare Powell. Cloud Electronics Ltd will continue to trade as before and all day-to-day operations will be maintained as usual and without change.

Millington and Colley will adopt the role of consultants for Cloud Electronics, supporting Curtis and the internal management team.

Roy Millington comments, "We are very pleased that our legacy will be continued by Simon and are totally confident in the future success of the company. The injection of Simon's youth,

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14 March 2016

Lighting director and designer is Marcello Jazzetti with video/projection direction by Cristina Redini. Rental company IMMAGINI of Soresina has supplied the video and lighting gear for the tour.

Twelve mid-stage positioned Martin LC Series LED panels are used as lateral screens for text, image and graphics projection. Jazzetti, who specified the LC panels because of their familiarity, finds the LC Series "exceptional and technologically advanced".

His initial thoughts were to use the LC Series for primary stage lighting but eventually decided to incorporate image and graphics projection as well. Marcello report

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14 March 2016

The Civic Trust Awards aim to promote the positive impact that good building and urban development can have on society. It's currently one of the largest and most respected award schemes of its kind in Europe.

Jack Tilbury, project director for Charcoalblue and The Roundhouse project, said: "We're delighted that the Roundhouse has received the 2008 Civic Trust Special Award for Access. We worked very c

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14 March 2016

"I am happy to join forces with Infocomm and the NSCA Education Foundation to support the Industry Charity Golf Tournament, hosted by Atlas Sound and IED," said Loyd Ivey, CEO of Atlas Sound/IED. "We can tee up a striking event for two great causes, industry education and juvenile diabetes. Both of these causes are very dear to my heart. I look forward to everyone coming out and playing their best round of golf ever, for these two important needs."

"The NSCA Foundation is extremely excited to have Atlas Sound/IED as the host sponsor for this year's event," said Tom Frericks, pr

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14 March 2016

The REV wireless systems were complemented by an EV RE-1 system with N/D967 handheld, as well as wired N/D967's on keyboard and bass vocals.

"I love working with these guys; they sound great, look great, and always draw a big crowd," adds Webb, "and adding EV equipment to the mix makes the whole presentation even better."

(Jim Evans)