USA - For the 13th year in a row, a broad range of Audio-Technica microphones was selected to outfit the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony. A-T supplied over 50 mics to capture the audio for this widely celebrated musical event, which took place at New York's Waldorf Astoria.

The 25th annual induction ceremony of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame was held on 15 March, 2010, with inductees including ABBA, Genesis, The Hollies, Jimmy Cliff, The Stooges and non-performers David Geffen, Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil, Elie Greenwich and Jeff Barry, Jesse Stone, Mort Shuman and Otis Blackwell. The show was broadcast live on Fuse and www.fuse.tv.

Audio-Technica's Artist Elite 5000 Series UHF Wireless System was used with the AEW-T5400 handheld microphone/transmitter for frontline vocals on performances by inductees Jimmy Cliff, and the Hollies (Graham Nash, Allan Clarke and Te

Hungary - Budapest-based Interton Electroacoustics has recently completed the installation of a Community Professional Loudspeakers PA system at the City Stadium in Nyíregyháza.

Nyíregyháza is situated near the border with Ukraine, Slovakia and Romania and is the seventh largest city in Hungary. It is also one of the most prosperous, being both an educational centre and a popular tourist destination.

The 6,000 capacity Nyíregyháza City Stadium has been a venue for major international events and is also home to the local soccer team, Nyíregyháza Spartacus, which plays in Hungary's top professional league, the NB1. In a project that commenced in August 2009, the 50 year old stadium has undergone much reconstruction and a complete refurbishment to bring it up to modern international standards. The works have included the renewal of the grandstands, athletic field and buil

UK - In a world first for the entertainment rigging industry, PLASA Events has announced the launch of the PLASA International Rigging Conference, to be held alongside two days of PLASA 2010, at Earls Court, London on Monday 13 and Tuesday 14 September.

The aim of the conference, the first of its kind in the world, is to provide a unique specialist forum that will bring together entertainment rigging companies, riggers, venue operators, tour and event production managers and more. It is the latest industry-specific forum to be presented by PLASA Events and reflects the PLASA organisation's stated intent to reinvest in the entertainment and installation technology industries and deliver bespoke industry relevant events.

Chris Higgs of Total Solutions Group, consultant on the conference, comments: "This is one of those ideas that when you mention it, everyone says 'what a f

USA - Lighthouse, TS Sports and the Pawtucket Red Sox are set to provide PawSox fans with a major league video experience from the comfortable minor league atmosphere of Pawtucket's McCoy Stadium.

The incoming Lighthouse LED video screen is two-and-one-half times the size of the outgoing board, and will provide the PawSox faithful with a video experience generally reserved for watching Boston Red Sox games on NESN.

"Lighthouse is pleased to be a part of McCoy Stadium's continuing improvements," said Ed Whitaker, Lighthouse N.A.S.A director of sales. "Our LED video technology and experience is a perfect match for the Pawtucket organization's tradition of excellence."

Completely overhauled in 1999, McCoy Stadium is now considered by minor league insiders as perhaps the most fan-friendly minor league park in the country. Lighthouse's new Pi20-FRA 20mm LED vi

USA - Doug Short, FOH engineer for Megadeth is using a Midas PRO6 desk for the first leg of the band's promotional tour for the new Endgame album.

"I had done some training on Midas digital up in Minnesota over a year ago. But when Megadeth started up, my bid list required a Midas XL4 at front of house," relates Short. "The plan was to carry control gear from Thunder Audio - consoles and processing. Basically, Paul Owen, Thunder Audio principal, saw my bid list, called me and said tempted me to give the PRO6 a shot. I figured a five-week promotional tour was the perfect opportunity. As Paul says, 'Hey, instead of taking out 1,168 pounds of XL4, why not give the Pro6 a shot?' I mean, it is a Midas, right?"

The final step was to complete Doug Short's basic training on the new desk. "Erik Rogers from Thunder was the guy who made it happen," he

UK - While the Government is taking steps to 'divvy-up' the airwaves in the face of strong opposition, it keeps thinking of reasons not to fully compensate the little-guys being booted-out. Save Our Sound UK asks 'why the inconsistency in political will?'

In an unprecedented move last week, the Government sought approval from Parliament to tell the regulator Ofcom how to cut the spectrum cake, which the Government has referred to as the 'billion pound prize'. Meanwhile, the same Government has found a number of obscure barriers to delivering what Save Our Sound UK believes is needed to prevent a major setback to the live events and entertainment industries.

The eviction of the Programme Making and Special Events (PMSE) sector from the airwaves in question will generate a massive windfall for the Treasury. Just to make sure that it is allocated in the right way, the Government

USA - In February 2010, a team of world-class instructors and about 60 participants from all over the United States and Canada travelled to Midland, Texas to attend Tomcat's Hoist and Truss workshop or the Rigging and Truss workshop.

The Hoist and Truss workshop featured the disassembly and reassembly of a one ton Lodestar, a Prostar as well as advanced troubleshooting with Dave Carmack of Columbus McKinnon. Dave Sowa (ETCP certified electrician and formerly of Tomcat USA) led a discussion on control systems and conducted demonstrations of load testing. Instruction was rounded out by Dana Bartholomew of Fisher Technical Services, who gave instruction and demonstrations on automation.

G. Anthony Phillips, of RigRider Rigging Services and ETCP certified rigger and instructor taught safe rigging practices and principles while Morgan Neff gave instruction on fall protection practi

UK - The second biennial conference of the Schools' Theatre Support Group (STSG) was held on Saturday 20 February at Rugby School in Warwickshire. The STSG was founded in 2005 for technicians, designers, managers and teachers working in school or college theatres. The Group has over 100 members from independent and state schools, colleges and universities around the country, allowing members to share ideas and problems, as well as raising awareness of school theatre work amongst fellow professionals.

The conference was organised by Paul Durose of The Leys School, Cambridge, and was hosted by Rugby School. The event was generously sponsored by White Light, Philips Selecon, Showcomms, A.C. Entertainment Technologies, Zero 88 and Stage Electrics, with workshops run by KV2 Audio, Philips Selecon and Showcomms.

Brian Attwood of The Stage newspaper chaired an open?forum session, in

Belgium / USA - Barco has acquired the products, intellectual property (IP) rights and know-how of Element Labs, an LED video systems expert based in Santa Clara, California. With a focus on mid-end market requirements in rental, staging and fixed installations, the Element Labs products complement Barco's existing high-end product range.

Through this transaction, Barco strengthens its position as a leading provider of LED, projection, image processing and lighting products. This comprehensive product portfolio allows Barco to serve customers with different budget levels in the media and entertainment market. Barco will not book any goodwill on this transaction.

"This expands Barco's portfolio for the mid-range markets," Eric Van Zele, Barco's president and CEO, comments. "Element Labs' products in these markets have proven their worth on many occasions and perf

Canada - Montreal City Hall has modernized its conference systems, but adopted a 'no compromises' policy toward the building's distinctive and historic style.

Montreal's City Hall, which was re-built in 1922 within the shell of its original walls after the original structure was destroyed by fire, is modelled after the city hall of the French city of Tours, and is designated a National Historic Site of Canada.

The two contradictory objectives were reconciled thanks to the efforts of Grant Ritchie, Mike Davidson and Mark Dunn of Contact Distribution, who demonstrated Iconyx IC7 Steerable Arrays from Renkus-Heinz to the building's engineering staff. IC7s are cost-effective self-powered linear arrays that use individual driver control to deliver precisely shaped beams of sound with factory-programmed pre-sets.

The City of Montreal has acquired six IC7s for use in the Hall of Ho

Germany - DPA 4006 omnidirectional microphones have been used to record the organ at Passau, Germany, the world's largest cathedral organ, for a charity SACD in aid of the German Heart Foundation. The performance, by cardiologist Dr Hans-Joachim Trappe of Ruhr-Universität Bochum, was recorded in stereo as well as in surround sound.

The giant instrument, which is split into five sections throughout the baroque basilica, was a challenge for recording engineer and Tonmeister Ulrich Lorscheider, from German specialist classical recording company Aeolus. He chose to use mainly DPA 4006 and 4006-TL microphones for the recording, having worked with them in the past.

"Here at Aeolus we are able to run two full surround recording setups simultaneously," says Lorscheider. "For this reason we own a large number of DPA 4006s as it is our main microphone of choice for this

UK - Lighting rental company HSL and automation specialist Kinesys recently collaborated to stage a two-day Technical Training Workshop on Kinesys' systems at HSL's HQ in Blackburn.

Designed to work as a one or two day course to suit all levels of interest, the response was "extremely positive", and all the places were filled predominantly with working riggers. Some also had lighting experience and were keen to further their knowledge of the system from a creative production angle so automation can be worked in to future visual designs.

HSL's Mike Oates was delighted with the results. "We'll definitely be running further Kinesys training in the future. The demand for knowledge is certainly there and we could have filled this course over again with no problem. I also feel very confident that I now have access to a pool of crew who understand the workings and capa

USA - Audinate has joined the AVnu Alliance as a Promoter Member. The AVnu Alliance is an industry organisation that is dedicated to the advancement of professional quality audio and video networking via the adoption of the emerging IEEE Audio/Video Bridging (AVB) standards. AVB is a developing standard for media networking that employs elements such as IEEE 802.1as Clock Synchronization, IEEE 802.1Qav quality of service, and 802.1Qat traffic shaping, to improve the transport performance of audio and video across standard Ethernet networks.

The AVnu Alliance is leading efforts to promote and support the creation and implementation of compliance test procedures and processes that provide interoperability of AVB-enabled networked products for the professional A/V, automotive, and consumer electronics markets.

"Since our inception, Audinate has used standards to develop a co

UK - As football mania descends on the UK in advance of the World Cup, Arcstream AV is working with various clients to develop World Cup focussed interactive technologies, including a new virtual football game.

Neil Dickinson, managing director of Arcstream AV comments, "The World Cup means that people are looking to create fun promotions that engage clients, as well as the obligatory big screen in the office and pub. We have combined two of our most popular products, the interactive wall and floor to create a 'virtual penalty shoot out'. People are invited to kick the virtual football on the interactive floor, while a goalie projected on the wall dives for the ball."

The technology uses interactive cameras to monitor the accuracy and velocity of the kick and determine the player's skills. Dickinson adds, "This is a fun use of interactive technology and you can

USA - Electronic rock and worship group David Crowder*Band from Waco, Texas recently completed their Church Music Tour beneath a Martin rig with a Maxxyz PC/MaxModule control setup.

"I have always been very interested in the Maxxyz consoles and had some hands on with the full size Maxxyz a few years back at Daystar television network. I loved how the console programmed and ran," stated Cory Fournier of Dallas, Texas, who at only 19 was hired as the tour's lighting director and also handled programming and lighting op duties on the tour.

Fournier LDed for the band during the summer of 2009 and came across many of the industry's top lighting consoles on that tour including Martin's Maxxyz Compact.

"I used them all and they did the job just fine but the Maxxyz stood out the most," he said. "We had been planning for the fall tour and I decided to

USA - Belfast-based lighting rental company Production Services Ireland (PSI) has made its first investment in Vari*Lite moving lights with the purchase of 12 VL2500 Spots.

These were specified by LD John Gallagher for the All Ireland Talent Show, the second series of which is being shot on Stage B at Ardmore Studios outside Dublin and broadcast live every Sunday evening on Ireland's RTE1.

PSI had been considering Vari*Lites for some time explains PSI's Brian Reilly, due to an increasing number of requests for them from designers. "As a premium brand, we wanted to start building a stock, so when John specified them for the Talent Show, it made sense rather than cross-hiring." He adds that he thinks that Vari*Lites will also compliment their existing extensive stock of Robe moving lights very well

Many features have impressed him about Vari*Lites, in p

UK - David Atkinson Lighting Design (DALD) picked up two awards at the 2010 Lighting Design Awards, for projects that were supplied by A.C. Special Projects

DALD won the Lighting for Leisure award for The British Music Experience (BME) at The O2 in London. A.C. Special Projects assisted DALD with the specification and supply of the exhibition's theatrical based lighting fixtures and a cutting-edge lighting control system for the immersive exit show; a virtual concert featuring performances from some of the biggest UK acts.

DALD won the Low Carbon award for the Centre of the Cell at Whitechapel in London, an interactive science education centre housed inside a giant orange 'pod'. The centre offers children and teenagers an insight into what scientists actually do and how their work influences real life, through a series of exciting interactive games. A.C. Special Project

USA - Weighing 225,000 gross registered tons with 16 decks and a 5,400-passenger capacity, Oasis of the Seas has been making waves since Royal Caribbean International first announced plans to build this $1.4 billion ship. Oasis boasts a long list of 'firsts' such as double-deck loft cabins, a park the size of a football field, a zip line extending nine decks above an atrium, and an AquaTheatre that's a pool by day and dazzling water-show theatre at night. Even its layout is like nothing ever seen aboard a cruise ship, comprised of 7 distinct 'neighbourhoods' with names like Central Park, Boardwalk and Entertainment Place.

A ship of this size and imagination required lighting that could accommodate its visionary design and range of attractions, while delivering the low-maintenance reliability and performance demanded by 24/7, indoor/outdoor use. Seeking this balance of features,

USA - Apogee Electronics has announced the implementation of a German-language website. At www.apogeedigital.com/de, visitors can now find all the latest, most up-to-date Apogee product information and contact info for technical support.

The complete site will eventually include local dealer locations and servicing centres, translated artist features, and a variety of videos for the Apogee enthusiast, says the company.

(Jim Evans)

UK - Although still thought of by some as a supplier of theatre lighting, London-based White Light continues to demonstrate that its work now spans every area of entertainment lighting with the recent installation of a dramatic new LED-based lighting scheme for London's Natural History Museum.

Designed by Martin Valentine of AECOM's Lighting Group, the new scheme replaces 64 Philips Arena Vision metal halide floods with 32 Philips/Color Kinetics ColorReach Powercore LED fixtures. The fixtures can re-create - and actually improve on - the white light of the previous lighting scheme, bringing to life the landmark building's dramatic Romanesque architecture. However, the colour-mixing fixtures also provide many other lighting options which can be exploited by the museum's staff on a seasonal basis or for special events.

White Light undertook the installation on behalf of AECOM, A

UK - An MA Lighting grandMA2 light console and three MA NPUs (Network Processing Units) are being used to control 18 universes of DMX running all the lighting and a Catalyst media server for the 2010 Strictly Come Dancing Live UK arena tour. The tour's lighting has been designed by Mark Kenyon, who also lights the high profile BBC TV series which has constantly topped the ratings and is one of the most popular programmes in recent history.

The grandMA2 light was programmed during production and technical rehearsals in Manchester Arena by David Bishop, and is being operated on the tour by lighting director Alex Murphy, who very much pushed to go with grandMA, having used a grandMA 'series 1' on U2's seminal 360 tour in 2009. He has been a firm fan of the desk ever since.

All lighting equipment for the Strictly Live tour is being supplied by south Wales-based Sonal

UK - The Prime Minister has given his full support for the build of the £13 million National Skills Academy for Creative & Cultural Skills in Thurrock. This state-of-the-art building, set within the Royal Opera House Production Park, will deliver industry-led training for the creative sector, addressing an anticipated need for 30,000 skilled backstage and technical theatre staff by 2017. It will also provide technical accreditation and professional development for the existing workforce.

This announcement confirms the finance required from the Homes and Communities Agency to start work on the building. This investment complements the £5 million already committed by the Learning and Skills Council. Work will commence on the building in November 2010, ready for a 2012 opening.

The Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, said: "Today's announcement is positive news for the

UK - A series of training weekends for engineers, producers and all other creative audio enthusiasts will get underway in May, 2010, thanks to a joint initiative involving high end recording and broadcast equipment manufacturer Prism Sound/SADiE and JAMES, the education arm of the Music Producers Guild (MPG), the Association of Professional Recording Services (APRS), and the UK Screen Association.

Billed as the Mic To Master Series, these two-day recording technique, mixing and mastering masterlasses and seminars will run at various colleges around the UK, with the first taking place at Deep Blue Sound in Plymouth on 7 and 8 May 2010.

Each event will feature keynote-style lectures addressing specific topics, masterclasses with renowned producers and listening sessions where participants can play some of their own work and discuss techniques to overcome specific problems

USA - The Hawks basketball team of Saint Joseph's University, Philadelphia have a long, proud history dating back several generations. The team has called the Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse home since 1949, and has won more than 80% of the games they've played there. Now, after a multi-million dollar expansion and renovation, the Fieldhouse has been reborn as the Michael J. Hagan Arena, with seating for 4200 fans and a powerful new sound system designed by Maryland-based RJC Designs.

The new system features 52 of Community Professional Loudspeakers' Solutions-Series SLS920 horn-loaded systems, arrayed in a distributed cluster configuration, with low-frequency punch provided by 28 VLF212 dual 12-inch subwoofers. Near-field coverage was augmented with six Community iBOX i2W8 systems. The system is powered by QSC amplification, with a pair of Rane RPM88 processors providing system DSP.

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