Business

Details
UK - A trio of Midas consoles provided by Britannia Row Productions was used at a charity concert commemorating the 80th birthday of Mikhail Gorbachev at London's Royal Albert Hall. An XL8, a PRO6 and a Heritage 3000 handled FOH from three adjacent boxes overlooking the star-studded event, while a second XL8 provided onstage monitor duties. Broadcast feeds were also provided as the event was being recorded for Russian TV.

Celebrating the former Soviet leader's life from childhood through to high office, the reforms of Perestroika, his international peace efforts and the charitable work of the Gorbachev Foundation, the event relied on Midas' networking abilities to facilitate its smooth running. As well as numerous guest speakers and VT playback, many artists from East and West performed in an evening hosted by Sharon Stone and Kevin Spacey and attended by a long list of internat

Details
Singapore - JM Rental and Showtec Group started working together for the first time during IDEX 2009, International Defense Exhibition and Conference, by providing more than 700 panels of Lighthouse R16 and again in IDEX 2011 by using R7-ER panels.

After the success of IDEX 2011, the show sentiment has led to a new collaboration talk between JM Rental and Showtec Group. Showtec Group decided to spend their investment budget on R7-ER from JM Rental which creates market expansion and a stronger bond between two companies.

"The image quality of R7-ER is more than just outstanding. There's no way to select any other outdoor panels besides R7-ER." Henry Ang, managing director and the founder of Showtech Group, explained. "We actually didn't just invest 70sq.m. to keep in our stock. Together with JM Rental, we have approximately 700sq.m R7-ER available which is actual

Details
UK - How do you imagine colours that don't exist? Tanya Burns, lighting designer at global communications agency Imagination, knows after inventing five new colours for LEE Filters, one of the world's leading manufacturer of lighting and camera filters.

Tanya was invited to the LEE Filters factory in Andover, Hampshire to work alongside LEE's R&D team to create her own unique range of colours.

The colours have now been added to the LEE Designer Series and were launched at the the recent Prolight&Sound exhibition.

Tanya's inspiration came from her days working in theatre and opera. Over the years she has been mentally storing ideas of colours she wished existed for certain projects, without having to layer gels and lose light to create the effect, says Imagination.

"In lighting, colour is one of the most important elements. Everyone uses light fixtures, but it's how yo

Details
UK - The Pioneer Lighting and Sound Activists page on Facebook - run by John Lethbridge and Iain Price-Smith - aims to develop and maintain contacts between lighting and sound professionals both past and present who have worked in the entertainment technology industry from the 1960s to the present day. The P.L.A.S.A page aims to help users search for old colleagues who have left the industry and re-establish contact.

"We are also seeking to look back and celebrate the technical developments and the designers behind them as we moved forward from being a cottage industry in the early days of lighting and sound, to the super sophistication of today's technology," comments Price-Smith.

Be sure to "Like" the Pioneers page if you've ever wondered what became of your long lost industry contacts and to ad

Details
UK - DB Systems has revised all prices and "committed itself to further investing in new technology during 2011/12".

DB Systems undertook a full review of prices and inventory earlier this year and decided to make the changes in order to further enhance its service and standing as an IT & AV rental company capable of providing bespoke solutions on a global scale, says the company.

Oliver Richardson, DB's sales & marketing director said, "The new pricing is targeted at stand builders and design agencies but will of course benefit the whole supply chain. In terms of equipment, our monitor inventory, which is already in excess of 2,000 units, will be added to this year, particularly with units of between 24" and 32.

"Meanwhile, all non HD & 4:3 monitors will be phased out as their demand drops off. The Intel Core i7 laptops already form the core our fle

Details
UK - WiSE (Women in Stage Entertainment), will be gracing the show floor at PLASA Focus 2011 with its own stand which will be lit by GDS LED up-lighters and decorated with WiSE sponsor logos.

This year's WiSE sponsors include: Lee Filters, Charcoalblue Theatre Consultants, White Light, Rosco and Avolites, which between them are gorgeously, fabulously and wonderfully generous. (WiSE is not being sycophantic here, these words describe the various sponsorship levels. This means, for a relatively small donation, you too could be labelled gorgeous, fabulous or wonderful! If this is something you aspire to and you would like more information about how WiSE will spend your money please see WiSE fundraising co-ordinator Caz Williamson on stand.)

Accompanying Williamson will be co-founder of WiSE, Sarah Rushton-Read. Both will be on hand - at stand RA-C7, just to the left of the PLASA informa

Details
UK - BECTU has strengthened the group public liability insurance cover which freelance members can choose to access. From 1 May the policy will provide cover for accidental damage to third party property which is in the member's custody and control.

Discussions in recent weeks have highlighted increasing incidence of employers requiring freelance staff to hold this additional element of cover.

The limit on the cover for custody and control claims will be £25,000 for any one claim and £100,000 for all claims in any one period (ie one year) of insurance. The extension to the policy will be provided without additional cost to members.

Overall, the union's policy provides public liability insurance cover for accidental damage to third party property up to £5million per claim.

New freelance members can opt to be covered by the policy without additional charge

Details
Europe - Recovering from the recession in 2008/9 to achieve its best ever performance in 2010, Creative Technology has invested heavily in both people and equipment and re-established its position as the premier high end AV specialist in the UK and Europe, says the company.

In response to changing market requirements in their core AV business in the Netherlands, CT's sister company, JVR recently announced a significant restructuring resulting in the formation of new trading division, CT Holland.

Based in Roosendaal, CT Holland is supported by Creative Technology's operations in London and Germany and is led by Jeroen Jongenelen heading a core team comprising Jeroen Boere, Willem Battes and Marion Cormaux.

JVR will continue to service the full service corporate and broadcast markets from Roosendaal and the two businesses will proceed to support and assist one another.

The i

Details
Qatar - Nicolas Kyvernitis Electronics Enterprises, distribution centre for Shure in the Gulf has recently supplied Doha based rental firm Qatar Vision with wireless microphone systems. The deal includes receivers and transmitters from UHF-R series. Qatar Vision has purchased the new UR4D+ receiver, which allows them to cascade up to 10 units without the use of an antenna distribution system.

"Qatar Vision isone of the most prominent rental firms in Qatar, they have already used the new system on a number of high profile shows within a short span of time," commented Richie Hiranandani, marketing manager. "With over 200 channels of the system in the market, the UHF-R is clearly the industry standard."

(Jim Evans)

Details
UK - Black Light has stepped in to help one of Scotland's most iconic theatres come back to life. The company has provided practical sponsorship support to the Cottier Theatre, which re-opened its doors in March, after a five-year break for restoration.

To help the Cottier launch its 2011 come-back season, Black Light provided the theatre with a ground support truss system. This assistance underlines Black Light's support for small- and medium-scale, innovative venues.

"Black light have always been a great supporter of Scottish theatre, now they are helping us to reopen a great Scottish theatre," says Pete Sneddon technical director from SCENEgineering, who is the Cottier's venue manger and artistic director. "The Cottier is a venue like no other and holds a special place in Scottish theatre's heart. It's not just the physical, nuts and bolts help from Black Lig

Details
UAE - Melody House, distributors of HK Audio speaker systems in the United Arab Emirates has recently supplied Dubai based rental firm Clean Edge Design with the new Elements speaker system. The rental firm has been using the system for various corporate events around the city with an overwhelming response from both clients and attendees to their functions.

Although Clean Edge Design is a relatively new company which established itself in the beginning of 2009, it has quickly grown to become a successful organization that focuses on delivering smart, cost effective solutions while maintaining the client's vision. Already in its second year the company continues to invest in new technology to support its involvement in numerous corporate and private functions.

"The immediate reaction people have when they see the Elements system is its small footprint, once they hear the s

Details
Oman - Roland Professional distributors in the region, Nicolas Kyvernitis Electronics Enterprises has recently hosted the first Roland Roadshow in Muscat, Oman. The event, which attracted professionals from the AV industry included individuals from installation companies, live sound rental firms and broadcast integrators.

"The response to our first Roland Roadshow has been clearly positive with the many attendees that participated during the one day event," commented Richie Hiranandani, marketing manager. "With the introduction of video in our portfolio, this opened new doors for us."

(Jim Evans)

Picture Caption: "NMK's Moswain Antao, Roland Video Specialist during one of the three sessions"

Details
The Netherlands - dBTechnologies' DVA line array was the loudspeaker system used at the indoor Supercross Championships at Zeelandhalls, Goes this year. The event's sound technology was organised by Post Audio, an event management company which has an 18 year history with the Zeeland Motorsport Foundation.

Owner of Post Audio, Michel Kamphius reports, "This was the first time we had used dBTechnologies gear for this particular event. You can imagine the unbelievable sound these motorbikes make in the hall, so it was imperative that we find a compact and flexible system that would be able to deliver a constant SPL of 106dB across the three banks of seating. I'm pleased to say, the dBTechnologies system handled it really well and the organisers were really impressed with its performance."

Reputed to be one of the biggest indoor motocross events in Europe, the Supercros

Details
Sweden/UK - Two years ago, EM Acoustics announced the appointment of leading Danish professional audio distribution company, Alfa Audio, as EM Acoustics' exclusive distribution partner for Denmark and Finland. In the wake of the considerable success of Alfa Audio in those territories, the agreement is to extend into Sweden with the support of Alfa Audio's parent company, Arva Trading.

According to EM Acoustics' operations director, Mike Wheeler, having proved themselves in the Danish and Finnish markets, Alfa Audio was the logical choice to extend operations into Sweden. "They've done a great job for us so far," said Wheeler. "It's been beneficial for us to be a part of the impressive roster of top quality pro audio brands in their portfolio, and Alfa Audio has benefitted from representing EM Acoustics as it has broadened their field of application and enabled the

Details
Germany - LumenRadio reports that it broke the company's previous attendance records at this year's Prolight+Sound in Frankfurt with several thousand German and international visitors to the stand; part of German CRMX distributor LMP's extremely busy village.

Two new products and a dozen new OEM and project partners, among them some of the largest players in the lighting industry, were revealed in conjunction with the show. Over 1200 new catalogues with new reference installations and projects were distributed to lighting professionals, manufacturers, distributors, and partners during the four day exhibition.

An example of wireless OEM products on display at the show was Philips Entertainment's new Vari-Lite and Selecon fixtures. Philips has developed a solution that makes it possible to add LumenRadio's CRMX wireless DMX and RDM capabilities to any of their new fixtures. The

Details
UK - SweetSpot Group has confirmed Sharp Electronics as Official Broadcast Sponsors for The Tour of Britain's ITV coverage this September.

Following on from their partnership in 2010, Sharp will also continue as Official Electronics Partner to The Tour of Britain, the UK's biggest professional cycle race and largest free-to-spectate sporting event, and The Halfords Tour Series.

Paul Hide, Sharp managing director, commented, "The last 18 months have seen us establish our position in UK pro-cycling, and we are now looking to build on that. As the premier UK pro event, The Tour of Britain is the perfect platform for us, and we'll be looking to bring our technological expertise to the race this year, providing insights that can deepen the fans' enjoyment and engagement."

As a part of the deal Sharp will showcase their technological excellence to a wide audience across

Details
UK - Saville Audio Visual provided the staging, production and AV facilities for the inaugural Masquerade Ball, a spectacular charity event in aid of the KiDs of Bolton.

The charity was set up by Premiership footballer Kevin Davies, team captain of Bolton Wanderers, aimed at youngsters under the age of 18 living in and around the Bolton area. His wish is to help local children develop skills, confidence, self-esteem and discipline by creating opportunities that otherwise would not be available to them.

This was their first major fundraising event since gaining Charity status only weeks beforehand and was staged in the Premier Suite of De Vere Venues Whites hotel at the Reebok Stadium. The charity and the event is backed by some very prominent Boltonians, some of whom were lending their talents on the night. The evening was headlined by McFly and supported by Britain'

Details
UK - A.C. Entertainment Technologies rigging division has delivered a new flexible, portable Out Board motor control solution to the NEC Group in Birmingham, which will be utilised primarily throughout the International Conference Centre - one of the busiest conference facilities in the country, hosting numerous high profile international events.

The NEC Birmingham encompasses 19 halls of premium conference and exhibition space along with the LG Arena venue.

The sale involves eight flight cased Out Board DV8 8-channel direct motor controllers and three RC16 remote control handsets with 50m extensions, which are cased up as three 16-way racks and two eight-way single racks - all in Five Star Cases' Industrial grade rack sleeves. It was co-ordinated between the NEC's resource manager for rigging, Rob O'Donnell, and A.C. Rigging's Matt Millward in the Leeds office.

This latest

Details
UAE - Part of an internationally successful chain, the Club Se7en opened its doors recently after around 12 months' intensive construction and installation activity. Like those of the Ratsky III and Mood Nightclub II, two of Dubai's other top clubs, Club Se7en's operators opted for a complete Dynacord sound system.

The installation was the responsibility of the Dubai-based sound company Phoenix LAS, whose MD, Mark Legaspi reports, "We've long been diehard fans of Dynacord because its products are reliable, extremely efficient and represent outstanding value for money. Also, the support from Tony Sawyer, Dynacord technical support manager, and distributor AVL Electronics is outstanding."

The sound system is built around VariLine loudspeakers reinforced by Sub 18 cabinets to provide maximum sound pressure at the bottom end of the frequency range. The requisite power is

Details
Australia - With a previous installation at the Riverside Theatre, Sydney, a second Australian theatre has now embraced the audio qualities of Alcons loudspeakers. The Playhouse is a 618 seat venue in the Canberra Theatre Centre. A three-level theatre with proscenium arch, it is used for a wide variety of productions.

Alcons was specified for the job by one of Australia's leading theatre sound design companies, Notsui Consulting.

"A test system was then taken to Canberra to give the head of audio a listen, and we were awarded the contract straight away," says David Betterridge of system installers Loud And Clear.

For this installation, eight LR14 are flown as a centre cluster, with three LR14B flown above. Two pairs of VR12 and VR12M per side provide balcony and stalls side-fill, with two BF302 providing a full-bodied sub-bass. The system is powered by seven ALC2 a

Details
UK - Launched by musician Kate Nash in London's Trafalgar Square at the beginning of March, the BME on Tour project - in the form of one of London's much beloved, but now retired, Route Master red buses - is set to take the British Music Experience out on the road, reaching thousands of children and young adults across the country who may never have had access to modern music equipment, bespoke music education masterclasses or visited the museum.

As part of its commitment to education, Sennheiser UK has been a sponsor of the British Music Experience since its launch in March 2009 working in conjunction with the museum to host a series of Education Days and Masterclasses.

"Sennheiser UK's interest in the British Music Experience was first piqued because the timeline they proposed displaying more or less mirrored the timeline of the history of Sennheiser, the company

Details
Italy - Three of Italy's leading audio, lighting and staging rental companies have joined forces to create All Access s.r.l. - and have opened their account by making a massive investment in Martin Audio's Multi-cellular Loudspeaker Array (MLA). The three companies involved are Fumasoli Service from Aosta (Valle D'Aosta), Electra Service s.n.c. from Mantova (Lombardia) and Amandla Production s.a.s. (from Lucca Toscana). The founding partners decided to form All Access during the first demo of the MLA, organised by Audiosales s.r.l., the Martin Audio distributor in Italy, following their stunned reaction to the system. Since the three companies have always used Martin Audio's systems - from the old modular system, to the RS800, the F1, the W8, the W8L Longbow, the W8LC and the W8LM - the recommendation had been proposed by head of Audiosales, Stefano Rocchi, who could see the obvio

Details
Poland - Lauda-Audio has won the contract to fit a substantial Nexo Geo S8 sound reinforcement system into one of the country's most famous church buildings, St John's in the city of Gdansk.

The massive Gothic interior of this former house of worship in the heart of Gdansk's main town is now a spectacular venue, administered by the Baltic Sea Culture Centre as an exhibition space and auditorium, showcasing everything from classical concerts to world music. On Lauda-Audio's advice, an all-Nexospec has been drawn up; Adam Adamowicz explains why.

"As a prominent historical monument, the St John's Church is protected by law, and any modifications to the building are conducted under strict scrutiny. We faced quite a challenge to install so many speakers and still meet the curator's standards.

"The Geo S8 is a small cabinet but very effective. The venue management places

Details
Germany - Seen for the very first time at PLASA 2010 in September, the SR-16 is a brand new remotely-controllable 16-in/16-out EtherSound stagebox from Innovason. Based on the proven technology behind Digigram's AQONDA device, SR-16 offers high quality audio control with state-of-the-art mic preamps in a compact and cost-effective 2U format.

SR-16 is capable of transforming up to 16 analog audio channels into as many EtherSound signals and injecting them into an EtherSound network (any topology). All of the components are of extremely high quality to ensure that audio quality remains uncompromised throughout, says the company.

Compatible with all existing EtherSound set-ups including ES-100 and ES-Giga, SR-16 is naturally fully controllable via Eclipse - channel assignment is performed from the Nova 2.0 GUI, and there is direct access for preamp gain and PH48V activation from

  1. Tarm Lasers light Burj Khalifa
  2. Robe stages international distributor conference
  3. Nordic Rentals joins L-Acoustics network
  4. Santa Maria convert to iLive
  5. Lugano lakeside centre converts to Nexo
  6. Al Laith calls heads in Dubai Cup spectacular
Page 1261 of 1813

Latest Issue. . .