USA - Willow Creek Community Church in Chicago recently celebrated its 40th anniversary at the 20,500-seat United Centre in Chicago. Audio production was a major undertaking, deploying nearly 350x Nexo STM modules, used in the round - the largest single use of STM in the US to date, and the first use of the new Yamaha Rivage PM10.

Audio production was spearheaded by the light and sound division of Morris Light & Sound (Nashville, TN) with the assistance of Reach Communications (Champlin, MN), TC Furlong (Lake Forest, IL), and Yamaha Professional Audio, headquartered in Buena Park, CA.

With all of the requirements for this huge task, company crews were on hand to assist, measure, test, and train staff when necessary. Fusion Productions, Inc. of Algonquin, IL, handled the production under the direction of company owner Todd Elliott, who acted as production manager for the annive

The Netherlands - Robe moving lights have been installed at the new Doornroosje (Sleeping Beauty) live music venue in Nijmegen.

Originally founded around 1968 and since 1970 operating out of a disused school building in the south suburbs of the city, the club became a popular hippy hangout in the 1970s, and through 40 years at the cutting edge of live music and entertainment, legendary for showcasing ground-breaking artists on the cusp of success and popularity from Pink Floyd to the Gaslight Anthem. It also hosts Holland's longest running club night, Planet Rose.

As well as being renowned for some of the best techno sounds in the country, Doornroosje was also well known in the day as one of the first places in the Netherlands where marijuana was openly available.

Now housed in a new building right downtown, sandwiched between central station on one side and the police const

Italy - After a string of concerts throughout Italy, Eros Ramazzotti (one of the most successful Italian artists abroad) brought his Perfetto World Tour 2015 to Europe with a series of 14 live dates.

EVO, the new D.T.S. moving head, was chosen for the tour. 30 units were mounted vertically beside the large central LED wall and on the ground behind the platforms of the musicians.

"The EVOs create remarkable backlight effects, and energetic extra-bright beam projections. The exclusive Dyna Prism (D.T.S. Patent Pending) is also very effective, enhancing with spectacular animations any gobo projection," says DTS.

Lighting operator for the tour was Nicola Tallino, whilst Agorà was the rental company.

UK - PRG XL Video supplied video elements for the larger shows on popular drum 'n' bass massive Rudimental's 2015 tour, which started in March and culminated in a characteristically energetic performance at London's Alexandra Palace, complete with a vibrant visual design by Jonny Gaskell.

For this show, the company supplied LED screen and Catalyst media server control, a side projection system plus IMAG cameras and PPU.

The fundamental concept of Rudimental's full design was to make the stage an interactive and theatrical environment with several contrasting visual layers which peeled back as the all-action set developed, revealing more depth and new eye-candy every few songs. The space was defined by several impressive scenic pieces including a large replica of the Hackney Central (London, E8) railway bridge, and a tabbed double-sided back cloth which was in for the first few

Denmark - Following the news last week that lighting manufacturer SGM had filed for bankruptcy, the company has announced that it has "restructured" with "further investments".

"To maintain SGM as the absolute leader of intelligent LED light, further investments were needed. After a period of disagreement between shareholders about the future capital structure, the board of directors had no other option than to apply for a proceeding aiming to restructure the company. On 9 November at 18:00, SGM was completely re-established with its new shareholder and capital. The management ascertains that SGM will continue as before without any changes - and stronger than ever."

The company says that all elements of its business remain unchanged, and that the entire team, the worldwide distributor network and all warranty commitments remain identical to before

USA - Located in North East, Maryland, the Milburn Stone Theatre at Cecil College is one of the region's premier theatrical houses. Proactive in fostering an appreciation of the arts, the company recently produced Bring It On: The Musical set in the high stakes world of competitive high school cheerleading.

To create the lighting design for the explosive musical comedy, freelance designer William Price worked with Philips Entertainment to bring in a winning combination of his own that included Showline SL BEAM 300 FX, SL BAR 640, and SL NITRO 510 LED luminaires, along with Philips Vari-Lite VL4000 Spot luminaires and Philips Selecon PLCYC1 LED luminaires.

"When I was initially asked to create the lighting design for Bring It On, I wanted to pay homage to the original Broadway design by Jason Lyons," began Price. "Understanding the high-impact lighting de

Austria - The laser show at this year's Lake Festival in Austria was spectacular. Laserfabrik used four RTI NANO RGB 30 laser systems together with Lasergraph DSP controllers for covering the whole venue and creating spectacularly coloured effects.

The German Laserworld company Ray Technologies GmbH, located in Valley next to Munich, manufactures high end show laser light equipment, especially for demanding applications like touring, cruise ships and multimedia shows. The RTI NANO RGB 30 laser systems were especially developed for well-colour-balanced high power applications. Due to them being waterproof IP 65, they are the main choice of many pro laser show companies like Laserfabrik.

"The major challenges at this event were the various changes in requirements from the organizer's side. Due to our many years of experience it was no problem to get a spectacular show going

New Zealand - Pacific Simulators, a flight simulator design and manufacturing company based in Christchurch, New Zealand, has adopted Allen & Heath's compact ZED-10 and ZED-14 analogue mixers as standard in its products.

As part of the company's ongoing research and development, it recently underwent an audio design upgrade, which included the Allen and Heath mixers.

The company's training simulators, certified as official flight crew training machines in many countries, use the ZED-14 mixers, where 2 auxiliary sends are required to facilitate authentic flight crew training. Meanwhile ZED-10 mixers are now installed in the commercial 'Flight Experience' simulators, available from the company's global store network, which aim to provide a realistic experience of flying a passenger jet.

"Prior to working at Pacific Simulators, I was a sound and recording engineer for 30 y

USA - Seven standards are posted for public review on the PLASA North America's TSP website at http://tsp.plasa.org/tsp/documents/public_review_docs.php.

Some are reaffirmations of existing standards, some are withdrawals of existing standards, and some (the BSRs) are drafts of new standards. Comments are due before the end of the day on the date shown.

ANSI E1.3 - 2001 (R201x), Entertainment Technology - Lighting Control Systems - 0 to 10V Analog Control Specification. The standard describes a method of controlling current-sink devices and equipment by means of an analogue control voltage in the nominal range from zero to 10 volts positive, with the control signal current sourced from the controller. It is primarily intended for theatrical lighting controllers and controlled devices (e.g., dimmers), but any device could use this control method. The working group propos

South Africa - The annual On the Night fundraising event, staged by St John's College in Houghton on the 10 October, attracted 7000 thousand patrons and featured Mi Casa performing with the school choir, and finalists from Last Band Standing, an inter school band competition.

The sky was ablaze with a magnificent fireworks display and eight powerful Robe BMFLs, which created Hollywood beams and washed the old school in colour. A further 78 Robe fixtures were used, four Showline Nitro 510 added intense burst of light, Clay Paky Sharpy fixtures were faithful as always, and control was on a grandMA2 light.

Lior Manelis and his team from Pristine Moods Productions headed up the technical aspects of the outside production, held on the school grounds, for the second consecutive year. They trusted MJ Event Gear for additional support. Marius Marais from Audio Logic provided PA

China - Created by famed director Franco Dragone, The Han Show in Wuhan, China is thrilling capacity audiences of 2,000 with water-based spectacles supported by a massive and complex Meyer Sound system.

Designed by Vikram Kirby of California's Thinkwell Group, the system comprises 359 self-powered loudspeakers that are processed, distributed, and matrixed by the largest D-Mitri digital audio platform assembled to date, comprising 53 frames.

The system is inordinately complex because, in addition to requirements dictated by a world-class entertainment spectacular, the loudspeaker configurations must adapt to a dual-mode auditorium. During the performance, the upper seating area drops down and the lower seating area splits and rotates to the sides to reveal a vast pool for the water-based elements of the show. Because the entire seating layout changes, the show requires t

UK - The latest Bond movie, Spectre, received a sumptuous World Premiere at London's Royal Albert Hall (RAH) in the presence of their Royal Highnesses the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry on Monday 26October.

Sony Pictures Releasing (UK), the films distributors hired event specialists Andy Peat Associates to manage the auditorium transformation and Nibbs Events to produce the 'Red Carpet', press and VIP arrivals on the South Steps. These two companies, who worked together successfully on the previous Bond films Die Another Day and Skyfall (that also had their World and Royal premieres at the Royal Albert Hall) had a very tight time frame in which to work, given the fact that Bob Dylan performed in the Hall the night before.

Technical director Andy Peat explained, "The film's producers Michael G Wilson and Barbara Brocolli are very clear

Austria - AV Stumpfl, manufacturer of show control, multimedia and screen technology, has announced a programme of "unprecedented global growth and product development".

"The industry recognises us for our reputation in engineering design, innovation and return on investment," says Tobias Stumpfl, CEO. "Our aim is to become the preferred supplier to more companies, in more regions and in new markets. To achieve this, we need to be faster to deliver products to market, offer even higher levels of localized support and well as offer the industry's best technologies, expertise and manufacturing."

Ambitious plans for global growth have resulted in the opening of the AV Stumpfl Campus. The campus accommodates growing staff numbers within the company. AV Stumpfl has invested more than 7m Euro. The official opening took place on 30-31 October 2015 and wa

Germany - Close to 400 participants embraced the recent dot2 days hosted by MA Lighting's German distribution partner Lightpower.

Lightpower's sales director Herbert Marx was delighted with this success - "We were expecting good feedback because of the huge interest and response of the market to the dot2 however the final result was astonishing. It underlined that the market has received the dot2 with open arms and that MA is following the right concept with the console. Easy and flexible to use, comfortable to travel and based on the powerful MA DNA - the dot2 has already built a large user community across all the different segments."

During its dot2 days, Lightpower introduced the range in detail in Cologne, Hamburg, Berlin and Munich. Hardware and software features were explained, the first steps of programming the console were demonstrated and a whole bunch of t

UK - In March 2015, Battersea Arts Centre's Grand Hall was severely damaged by a fire that also affected the technical stores and offices based beneath the space. Whereas the front third of the building re-opened to the public the following day, an extensive capital project went underway for the rest of the venue. From the moment the fire occurred eight months ago, up until the present day, White Light has worked closely with Battersea Arts Centre to help rebuild its lighting set-up, ensuring that its extensive programme of work remains as unaffected as possible.

Battersea Arts Centre is a public space where people come together to be creative, see a show, explore the local heritage, play or relax. Matt O'Leary, Battersea Arts Centre's technical manager, comments, "The fire was obviously a big shock to us all. One of the biggest issues though was how to move forward in the

UK - Sound Technology has announced its appointment as distributor of Tempest wireless intercom products in the UK and ROI. Tempest systems are designed for broadcast, live sound production, theatre, sports coaching and installed audio applications.

Tempest is designed to offer a wired-intercom feature set with the convenience, flexibility and freedom of wireless operation. Tempest is fully compatible with all major 2-Wire and Matrix intercom systems and provides a transparent, reliable RF interface to the wired world.

The Tempest 2400-EU system operates in the 2.4GHz ISM band. Advanced digital wireless transmission technologies allow users the ability to operate up to 11 BaseStations and 55 full-duplex BeltStations in the same RF space at the same time with no license requirements and no frequency coordination.

Gary Rosen, global manager for Tempest, commented on the announ

UK - Students studying music and audio production at the University of Westminster now have access to a new recording facility that incorporates some of the most technologically advanced pro audio equipment on the market today all exclusively connected using Van Damme cable and assemblies from VDC Trading..

After careful planning and budgeting, the new facility on the University's Harrow campus finally opened in July and was put through rigorous testing over the summer prior to the start of the new academic year.

Alan Fisher, previously acting Dean and head of the university's Music Department, and now consultant, says, "Our philosophy is to only introduce students to equipment that is industry standard. We realised some years ago that we needed an acoustically accurate recording studio that was of sufficient size to accommodate a large group of students. It has taken fiv

USA - Wireless lighting controls manufacturer LumenRadio has presented A.C. Lighting Inc. with its Distributor of the Year Award for outstanding performance in 2015. A.C. Lighting Inc. is the exclusive LumenRadio distributor to the North American market and provides the full product portfolio to its extensive customer base. Since being appointed in August 2014, the company has firmly established LumenRadio in its sales territory.

"We knew when we started that the products LumenRadio manufacture would be well received by our customers, who expect nothing but high quality technology solutions. We are very proud to receive this award, but we are only getting started," says Fred Mikeska, VP of U.S. sales & marketing at A.C. Lighting Inc.

Marcus Bengtsson, international sales manager at LumenRadio, adds, "Since day one, A.C. Lighting has impressed us with its knowled

USA - After 12 years of being sponsored by Toyota, the Today show's popular musical performances at Rockefeller Centre began a new life as The Citi Concert Series.

It isn't every day that such an iconic piece of American TV culture changes sponsors, so it wasn't surprising that the rechristened programme, which is now sponsored by global banking giant Citi, debuted with a bang. From the high-powered superstar on stage, the charismatic Selena Gomez, to the dazzling lighting array made with Nexus 4x4 LED panels and Next NXT-1 moving fixtures from Chauvet Professional, everything about the inaugural concert conveyed the excitement of the moment.

Dressed in a stylish black cutout jumpsuit, Gomez captivated the audience (both live and TV) with a blend of old and new hits, along with some supple choreography, all set against a glittering background of richly coloured l

Italy - The Rock The Lahn Festival celebrated its tenth anniversary this year. The stars of the 2015 edition were Limp Bizkit, led by the extrovert Fred Durst and champions of the nu metal and rapcore movements, along with the Broilers, a punk rock group active on the German music scene.

The Festival has become a must-see event in this region in just a few years. The recent editions have fully achieved the organizers' goal of attracting hundreds and thousands of young partying visitors to this summer event, which offers alternative music, fun and a space for reflection on some social issues such as the co-existence of different language groups, migrations and anti-fascism.

Norbert Hofer is the owner of Alpha Concept, the company that dealt with all the technical production aspects of the event.

"Hosting bands like Limp Bizkit was a big challenge for us," says Hofer

Germany - Working with video designer, Ingi Bekk, PRG XL Video supplied a video technology solution for a Hamburg theatre production of Reisende auf einem Bein (Travelling On One Leg), based on the novel by Nobel-prize winning author, Herta Müller.

Adapted for the stage by British theatre director Katie Mitchell OBE, and adviser Rita Thiele, and directed by Mitchell, the production incorporates a multimedia approach to theatre by the use of live cameras on the actors, the feeds from which are then cut live and projected on to screens above, creating the effect that a movie is being made live on stage.

Many of Katie Mitchell's productions use multimedia, and this is used to explore the theme of detachment which is present in many of the plays she stages. In Reisende auf einem Bein the main character Irene, played by Julia Wieninger, begins life in Romania, but th

Italy - A 40,000-strong crowd recently filled the huge square in front of Milan cathedral for a concert staged on the church's steps, featuring the 500-member Italian Gospel Choir, the 12-piece Italian Big Orchestra, guest director US songwriter, producer, composer and recording artist Donald Lawrence and Scots MC Malcolm Charlton (aka Nick the Nightfly), one of Italian FM radio's top personalities, a recording artist on his own right and artistic director of Milan's Blue Note Club.

To ensure the inspired music's intelligibility for the crowd, audio, lighting and stage/support system contractor Cipiesse s.r.l. of Rezzato (Brescia) deployed a setup comprising two main hangs of 12 Outline Butterfly enclosures, flown one on either side of the 50m wide 'set' and 16 Outline Eidos positioned along the cathedral steps (which doubled as main stage) on front-fill duty. Four Outline Subte

Brazil - Barco has teamed up with virtual reality company Sensorama to create Brazil's newest amusement attraction - the first of its kind in Latin America - providing 4K ultra-high resolution projectors that deliver breathtaking cinematic content for a simulated underwater journey.

Immersion rides that plunge visitors into a virtually surreal world have largely been the purview of giant theme parks. However, they are now beginning to emerge as standalone entertainment experiences in public venues around the world. Sensorama is a frontrunner in this trend with the development of VIX: a 24-person ride taking passengers on an underwater voyage at the Shopping Praia de Costa in Wila Velha, Brazil, a centre boasting more than 225 world-class shops and attractions.

The simulation experience is designed for families and thrill seekers alike, allowing passengers to travel through an

Bulgaria - HB-Laser equipped the flowstone cave in Ledenika, Bulgaria, with advanced multimedia technology: video, laser, sound, LED lighting, fog and water screens have been implemented to add additional attraction and explanatory media to the cave. The European Union supported this project with subsidies, and HB-Laser was chosen as project partner for the implementation, together with their local partner Factor in Sofia.

Making a large scale, complex multimedia installation of this scale is very difficult: The high humidity and in some cases direct water spray requires highly protected equipment, which applies for the video technology, lighting equipment, lasers as well as speaker systems.

HB-Laser not only implemented the technical equipment, but was also responsible for the complete multimedia control and wiring of the whole installation. Five main control boxes were insta

Latest Issue. . .