Installation

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Estonia - Robe DL7S Profile LED moving lights and PARFect 100 LED PARs have been specified and installed at the Estonian National Concert Hall (Eesti Kontsert), located in the heart of Tallinn and home to the Estonian National Orchestra (ENO).
The impressive Neoclassical building is shared between the Estonian National Opera and the Ballet Theatre Estonia. The Concert Hall is run by the Eesti Foundation, together with five other high profile concert hall venues – in the Estonian cities of Tartu, Parnu and Jõhvi - and St Petersburg, Russia.
The new lights were delivered by Tallinn based sales and installation company E&S, and were part of a much-needed technical upgrade that replace the previous lighting scheme which was fully ‘conventional’.
“We don’t just do concerts” explained Eesti Foundation director Jüri Leiten, “Although they are very im

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UK - Following a run at the Watermill Theatre, Newbury and a UK tour in 2016, satirical play The Wipers Times has arrived in the West End with a limited run at The Arts Theatre. Full technical service provider Hawthorn were chosen to provide lighting equipment for this dark comedy from the trenches.
A stage adaptation of their award-winning BBC film, The Wipers Times by Ian Hislop and Nick Newman, tells the true and extraordinary story of the satirical newspaper that was created in the mud and mayhem of the Somme.
The team at Hawthorn worked with lighting designer James Smith to provide lighting equipment for the production when it toured in 2016 and were delighted to be asked to be involved once again when it arrived in the West End.
Smith, explaining why he chose to get Hawthorn on board once again, said: “After seeing the success of how Hawthor

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UK - Bristol Music Trust (BMT) has revealed the next stages in its ambitious £48.8m redevelopment programme for Colston Hall, including a name change for the venue.
Louise Mitchell, chief executive of BMT, said: “We are on track with our transformation campaign and at this stage in the process, we can now focus on the detailed plans for the redeveloped Hall, including what its future name should be.
“The name Colston does not reflect the Trust’s values as a progressive, forward-thinking and open arts organisation. We want to look to the future and ensure the whole city is proud of its transformed concert hall and so, when we reopen the new building in 2020, it will be with a new name. This overall rebrand is part of transforming the Colston Hall we have today into the new National Centre for Music Entertainment, Education and Enterprise.”
With two-thir

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USA - Star power was out in force on 19 March, when the Geffen Playhouse hosted the 15th annual Backstage at the Geffen, a fundraiser that benefits the celebrated theatre’s artistic and community outreach programs. Quincy Jones and Mel Brooks were honoured; their awards presented respectively by Barbra Streisand and Rob Reiner. Aisha Tyler of the Emmy-winning CBS programme The Talk was the evening’s host. Bridesmaids director Paul Feig appeared, as did comedians Sarah Silverman and Dave Chappelle.
This star-studded list of honorees and participants notwithstanding, as a charity event, Backstage at the Geffen had to be run with an eye toward controlling operating costs. For lighting supervisor Darren Rezowalli, this meant creating a compact rig that could be set up quickly, yet still deliver the sharp effects and rich colours that such a glamor

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The Netherlands - Home to AFC Ajax, Amsterdam ArenA is a world class stadium and the preferred venue for the Dutch national football team’s international fixtures. As part of its ongoing upgrade, it recently installed a new audio solution based on the d&b Y-Series system.
Production manager at Amsterdam ArenA, Tim Oosterop comments, “Like our LED screens, or escalators, audio investment is not something you can charge for, it doesn’t translate directly into revenue, but it does see the audience come earlier and stay longer. If they’re here that’s good for revenue, and makes best use of the facilities.
“Ajax already has its own video production department and puts a lot
of work into the pre-show environment. Entertainment is the key component and quality audio is a big part of delivering that experience.”
Looking toward a new audio installati

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UK - Currently playing at the Salisbury Playhouse, Echo’s End tells the story of a young couple in 1915 Wilshire who find themselves caught up in the turmoil of troubled times. It is written by award-winning playwright and novelist Barney Norris, directed by Alice Hamilton and features a lighting design by Howard Hudson. White Light was called upon to provide the equipment.
Echo’s End marks Howard’s fifth production at the Salisbury Playhouse. He comments, “Salisbury is a great venue and this is a brilliant new play that tells a story about that part of the world. The entire play is set outside on the Salisbury Plain, so one of the main requirements was to achieve a sense of natural light and the epic undulating scale of that area at different times of day.”
As with most of his designs, Howard had to work closely alongside the set design, which

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USA - Lake Forest, California’s Saddleback Church, the host campus and broadcast site for the sizeable worship community led by Purpose Driven Life author Rick Warren, has been in its current location for nearly 25 years, but never had an audio system upgrade - until now. Seeking to improve intelligibility, the church turned to the installation division of Escondido-based Sound Image, which replaced the site’s ageing point-source system with a new L-Acoustics Kara array setup.
“There were all kinds of physical challenges,” recalls Sound Image’s Scott Coyle. “The room is basically a big square with about 200ft per side, and the back quarter of the space is bleacher-style seating. Plus, there are glass walls down each side measuring 30 feet high by 90 feet long, so we started out faced with a 2.2-second reverb time.”
“The previous PA was put in when the r

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Poland - The historical Olympic Stadium in Wroclaw, Poland has been sympathetically refurbished and modernised, under a redevelopment plan that included substantial new construction. The opportunity for the project came as a result of Wroclaw being awarded host city for the 2017 World Games.
Built in 1928, the listed-monument stadium was one of the many great sports complexes constructed across Germany in the 1920s, its location becoming a part of Poland after World War 2. Restored areas include the brick exterior of the original building, along with the old clock tower opposite the main grandstand. The largest transformation has been the building of a new main grandstand with covered seating. Additionally, the venue has improved hospitality areas and significantly better access for disabled sports fans.
The re-design of the 11,000-capacity stadium, which will host spe

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USA - Hard Rock Stadium is owned by, and home to, the NFL Miami Dolphins. It also hosts University of Miami football and major entertainment events throughout the year. As part of a three-year, facility-wide renovation, the re-named facility now boasts a massively upgraded sound system by Electro-Voice.
With the stadium’s addition of a roof and massive video displays, crowd noise levels are substantially higher than the original open-air design, making even coverage critical, both in terms of SPL and frequency response. In addition to the primary task of improving the fan experience through better audio, the sound system is also used for mass notification of life safety information. The Dolphins selected Diversified Systems to design and integrate the system, charging them with the task of overcoming increased levels due to roof reflections while delivering both vocal int

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Sweden - Located on a tree-lined avenue, restaurant Usine adds a touch of French industrial flair to the heart of Stockholm’s business district. Featuring a bistro, tapas bar, café/takeaway and conference facilities, a zoned Yamaha audio system blends seamlessly with the venue’s aesthetics.
Usine’s name comes from the French word for ‘factory’, which is reflected in its girders, overhead air ducts and other services being left exposed and made a feature of. AV specialist Watt & Volt was contracted to design and specify a zoned audio system, choosing Yamaha CIS products to deliver high quality audio in a challenging environment of hard, flat reflective surfaces.
Controlled by an MTX5-D matrix processor, the system is divided into nine zones and features 32 VXS8 full-range, surface mounted loudspeakers, plus two IS1112 subs in the main bar/dining area, two

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China - Nexo STM M28 has made its debut appearance in the great city of Shanghai, in a new entertainment venue that has become one of the main hotspots for both local and foreign visitors.
VShow, a five-year-old KTV brand, has recently made the leap into live music, commissioning the V Livehouse in the heart of Shanghai’s ‘club central’ on Huaihai Dong Lu, another sign that the Chinese nightclub and bar entertainment market is getting back on its feet. At V Livehouse, the band is the central attraction. The performance stage is embraced by high-end interior décor, superior food and beverage service, and top-class management.
For this environment, a high-specification front-of-house PA was essential. The STM M28 ‘omni’ cabinet was a perfect fit for the venue, offering high SPL from small unobtrusive cabinets. Three M28s per side were installed, fitted with 12

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UK - The Little Angel Theatre (LAT) in the heart of Islington, London, is a home for puppetry. Not only does the theatre serve to inspire and ignite the imaginations of young minds with its repertoire of productions but it also works to equip tomorrow's puppeteers with the tools they need to succeed. The LAT has a lively and imaginative education programme which works with local schools and community groups as well as providing training opportunities for puppeteers and puppet makers, helping to maintain this rare art form in the UK.
In 2014, the LAT took on a second building - a disused community centre behind Islington Town Hall. After a couple of years of using it for education and rehearsal space, David Duffy head of production, decided that it could be used to stage performances. With the support of the local council, the LAT made plans to install a lighting rig, sound s

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USA - Cowboys Saloon is the newest tenant at Syracuse, New York’s Destiny Mall, the largest mall in New York State and the sixth largest mall in the country. With its roots in Florida, Cowboys Saloon has opened strategic locations throughout the country, and the 13,000sq.ft Destiny location exemplifies the brand’s commitment to entertaining its patrons with a full-blooded country & western experience.
It has a live stage devoted mainly to country music, but with a healthy dose of rock music and DJ sets thrown in, and ample table and bar seating. In order to give Cowboys Saloon the most powerful sound reinforcement system possible on a constrained (and already stretched) budget, local AV integration firm Visual Technologies used 10 of Ashly Audio’s uniquely affordable, powerful, and reliable KLR-Series dual-channel amplifiers.
Rich Trombitas, regional sales &a

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UK - Boasting a wide range of high quality indoor and outdoor facilities, Salt Ayre is the largest community sports and leisure centre in the Lancaster district. Run by Lancaster City Council, as well as a swimming pool, sports hall, climbing wall and soft-play area, the centre boasts a state-of-the-art health and fitness suite.
Part of a recent £5m refurbishment and development project at the centre, the gym is a modern air-conditioned facility with an extensive range of exercise equipment. In a cutting-edge setting like Salt Ayre, high quality audio systems are essential to deliver the music that is an integral part of a contemporary exercise environment. During the redevelopment, Lancaster City Council contacted professional audio specialists, Audiogenics of Carnforth with a view to installing a new sound system at Salt Ayre's gym.
The brief was to provide a backgr

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Austria - Gerhard Scherer is a happy man since 24 x Robe DL7S Profiles and DL4S Profiles - 12 of each fixture – have been installed at the Theater Akzent Theatre in Vienna - a busy producing and receiving house located in the Wieden district of Austria’s capital city, famous for its culture and charm.
Head of lighting Gerhard has been working at Akzent since it was founded in 1989 in the grounds of the former Palais Nathaniel Rothschild. Its post-modern architecture was designed by Rudolf Jarosch and it offers a 455-seat main house, a studio that can accommodate 80 people and a 380-capacity event space.
When it came to the most recent technical upgrades for lighting, he was looking for powerful, refined profile LED fixtures with additive colour mixing, and Robe's DL range ticked all the boxes!
Also responsible for lighting 90 per cent of the incoming shows, t

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UK – Supporters and trustees of Backup - The Technical Entertainment Charity - gathered in London on Monday evening to help raise the profile of the charity’s new name and logo in entertainment industry. Around 80 guests attended the event, which included live entertainment from Jay Johnson.
Backup exists to provide financial support to technical professionals working in live events, theatre, TV and film, helping them to get back on their feet when their lives are disrupted by illness or injury to themselves or to family members. Previously known as Behind The Scenes UK, the charity changed its name to Backup in 2016.
Backup’s chairman, John Simpson, welcomed guests to The Hospital Club in London’s Covent Garden, which generously sponsored the event. He reiterated the purpose of the charity by highlighting some of its achievements to date. “We have helped a n

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Australia - The prestigious Robert Blackwood Hall at Melbourne’s Monash University has been equipped with a versatile inventory of Nexo sound reinforcement technologies, including a new Geo M6 compact line array as main PA.
Monash is a public research university based in Melbourne, one of the oldest in Australia. Named after its founding Chancellor, Sir Robert Blackwood, the Robert Blackwood Hall has become Melbourne’s most prestigious venue outside the Central Business District, now celebrating its 40th anniversary.
Group Technologies, the Melbourne-based design and installation company, was briefed to specify and supply new audio facilities appropriate for the Hall’s different uses. “Acoustically, it ranks with the best available in Australia,” explains GT director Mark Ladewig. “It has been the venue for numerous commercial recordings for the ABC, Melbou

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UK - An Avolites Arena console has been selected to control the custom designed, automated house rig on debut electronic dance music series Issue 001 at London's new, experimental cultural hub, Printworks. The 001 series sees some of the industry's most progressive electronic dance music promoters including Junction 2, Melt Festival and Knee Deep host top and emerging dance music talent.
The Arena was selected and installed alongside the rest of the event's lighting package by Poole-based lighting and rigging expert Wolf Lighting. The console is networked in the venue's 'crown jewel' event space; a 16.8m high, 120m x 30m area dubbed 'The Press Halls' on account of the original printing presses that still flank its sides.
"There was never a question of not using an Avolites console for the Printworks project," says Jonathan Oliver, director of Wolf Lighting. "We needed

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Israel - The wedding industry in Israel is a massive and highly competitive sector. When Nesher Edri teamed up with entrepreneur Yigal Ben Lulu and chef Zeev Tamarov to create his new enterprise LARA as “the ultimate wedding experience”, he specified 60 Robe VIVA LED spots.
High production values have underpinned the LARA concept, so the 60 x VIVA LED moving heads are right at the core of the lighting rig above the main dancefloor. “I simply wanted absolutely the best sound and lighting and so I chose Robe - I think it's the best,” he declared.
After acquiring the land at Kannot Junction, Nesher designed and built the venue from the ground up, fine-tuning the various details to ensure everything from the architecture to the feng shui of the space is perfect.
The VIVAs together with the rest of the lighting production were supplied by Danor Theatre & S

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USA - MGM Resorts International’s Park Theater is the newest jewel on the Las Vegas Strip as well as the city’s largest and most technologically advanced venue to address the latest trend in theatrical design - immersiveness.
Hosting an audience of 5,200 in its standard configuration, the $90m theatre, which is located adjacent to the Monte Carlo Resort and Casino, can flexibly be expanded to accommodate 5,800 and even up to 6,300 people at peak capacity. However, regardless of the configuration, every seat feels like it’s “fifth row centre” thanks, in large part, to an L-Acoustics K2 loudspeaker system specified by Montréal-based Scéno Plus and integrated by Solotech’s Las Vegas division.
Although the 150,000sq.ft performance space is roughly four times the size of the Lance Burton Theatre, which previously occupied the site, the Park Theatre feels remar

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UK - When Nitelites installed a permanent RCF HDL 20-A line array system in Sage Gateshead’s main 1700-capacity main room, it seemed only a matter of time before they returned to upgrade the smaller Sage Two.
Nearly two and a half years later and they have done precisely that. But given that the venue’s second room is a flexible, 10-sided auditorium, split over three levels and accommodating 430 (theatre style) or 600 for a full standing gig, the installation was going to be anything but straightforward.
Nitelites director and system designer, Andy Magee, opted for a pair of RCF’s TTL6-A as the centrepiece of the first phase upgrade, knowing that the subsequent arrival of the HDL6-A composite line array would then enable the two upper balconies to receive full 360° coverage.
“Sage Two’s sound system was falling short,” opined Magee. “The room stage

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USA - America’s third-oldest college, Yale University is perhaps as noted for its Gothic-flavoured architecture as for its history and academic achievements. So, when updating the AV systems in several of Yale’s existing spaces, as well as one of its newest ones, systems integrator North American Theatrix (NAT) turned to L-Acoustics.
“We’re a preferred vendor for Yale and have worked on their AV systems in the past, so when they asked us to find the best sound solution we could for these spaces, we naturally went with L-Acoustics,” says Pat Nelson, chief operating officer of NAT, which is also an L-Acoustics Certified Provider for Install (CPi).
“Theatre and auditorium spaces are one of our specialties, so product lines like Kiva and XT were sonically and visually ideal for Yale’s orchestra rehearsal room and a recital hall. But we were also dealing with

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Spain - The Musiluz Sound School, based in Malaga, has invested in Allen & Heath’s Qu-24 compact digital mixer as part of an update to the institute’s AV equipment.
Founded 10 years ago, Musiluz is a nationally renowned training centre for DJ and music production. The Qu-24 is not only used for the music production and live music courses but also post production audio for film and television.
“It is very important for us to have a compact, quality mixer that we can use in both the theory and practical classes. Our research showed that Allen & Heath had the system that best suited our needs for quality as well as functionality and integration with the most popular programs on the market,” comments Ruben Albendín, founder and director of Musiluz.
“The Qu-24 not only meets our expectations but has exceeded them! We are very impressed with the qua

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UK - A.C. Special Projects Ltd. (AC-SP) has specified, supplied, installed and programmed a versatile colour-changing performance and house lighting system for the Belle Shenkman Studio at the prestigious Royal College of Music (RCM), London.
The RCM is one of the world’s great conservatoires, training gifted musicians from more than 60 countries for international careers as performers, conductors and composers. Situated in South Kensington, the RCM's teaching and performance facilities are amongst the highest technical standards in the country for musicians studying at undergraduate, masters or doctoral level.
The project brief for AC-SP was to provide a multi-purpose lighting solution for the RCM's Belle Shenkman Studio, which is used by students to make video recordings of musical performances for their portfolios.
Up until now the college had been using por
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