UK - Glastonbury once again proved a major hit for Robe moving lights - over 600 of which were deployed on a multiplicity of stages site-wide, including Arcadia's giant spider spectacular show and legendary underground dance destination, Block 9.

Lighting equipment for both these areas was delivered by Colour Sound Experiment, who joined several different rental companies involved in supplying Robe products, including the South West Group, which lit the trendy Park Stage and BBC Introducing showcasing lots of rising talent, and DPL who took care of lighting at the West Holts stage.

Locally based Enlightened Lighting from Bath, took care of lighting a number of areas all using a backbone of Robe kit including the moving and grooving Sonic Stage in the Silver Hayes dance area, the multi-dimensional Mavericks venue with poetry and the spoken word during the day and essential caba

USA - Having already created hit songs for Jake Owen, Rascal Flatts, and the Eli Young Band, Eric Paslay has become an artist in his own right, having embarked on his first headlining tour Make Every Night a Friday Night. With performances scheduled throughout the United States, tour manager Steve Bryan and lighting designer Mike Marcario wanted to give fans of the soulful Texan a special concert experience. To do so, they would have to rely upon a tour provider who could offer the best lighting gear and support to make it happen, and they found that relationship in Elite Multimedia.

"With this tour we really wanted to bring some excitement to the show with our first full lighting rig," began Bryan. "As an artist, Eric is pretty open to the design elements we present to him, so we wanted the fans to truly experience the essence of every song. With the light

UK - Artistic Licence is enjoying a particularly busy 2015, with various new product lines are now in production.

Most recently in stock is daliSwitch, a six-channel DALI controlled mains relay with some ingenious features. Each relay simulates an independent ballast, enabling the relays to be controlled with the standard DALI commands - for example, the relays can be switched individually or as a group, or respond to a scene or broadcast command.

A particularly useful feature is the 'Non-Com' warning LED: this lights up if daliSwitch detects that the circuit has not been commissioned, potentially saving the installer hours of unnecessary troubleshooting time. Each individual relay also has an activity indicator light, enabling the user to see at a glance the status of the device.

Also now available in stock is versaSplit mini. This multi-functional modular DMX distribution

USA - Colby College is a long way from Hollywood (3,165.4 miles to be exact), but that didn't keep film legend Robert Redford from journeying to the historic Maine school to address its 483 graduates and other guests at the 2015 commencement ceremony held outdoors on its picturesque campus. As befits a New England college graduation ceremony, the sun was shining very brightly that day. Still, visitors who couldn't get a good view of the movie star on stage were able to see him clearly on the two large video walls that flanked the stage, thanks to the brightness of the MVP Ta8 Curve video panel from CHauvet Professional.

"Kevin Gary of K Systems invited us on board to do the video walls for the baccalaureate and commencement ceremonies at Colby College," said Darren Lussier, president of Image Production Services. "We selected the MVP Ta8 Curve because its output i

UK - Bristol-based lighting and visuals specialist Fineline Lighting renewed their long term working relationship with Glastonbury - at least 24 years to date - and supplied lighting for the Acoustic Stage, Astrolabe Theatre, Cabaret and Circus venues and also the WOW stage in the Silver Hays dance area, featuring some of the best underground DJs.

Says MD Rob Sangwell, "We all love working on Glastonbury and imbibing the spirit of the festival, and are very proud of our history with the event. I have seen many changes over the years, all for the better. The excellent line-ups plus the clamour to perform and be part of the community makes it even more special."

Fineline has built up the décor element of the Acoustic Stage over the years and especially more recently to include lush red drapes, and masking around the stage and in the ceiling, which really enhance

UK - White Light has started in its role as the production service partner at Central Hall Westminster, the largest conference venue in Central London. Situated opposite Westminster Abbey and adjacent to the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben, the venue features Europe's largest domed roof along with several other unique and flexible event spaces.

White Light's role will involve delivering the technical production for any event held in this historic location, whether these are concerts, corporate or private parties. Over the next year, White Light will be investing in new audio-visual and lighting equipment which will be permanently installed in a number of rooms; ensuring that every event can utilise the very latest technology. Along with these installations, White Light is also adding three on-site staff members so that every technical aspect will be covered.

Amongst those joi

UK - Armed with an artic full of gear, Aurora Lighting Hire entered into the festival spirit to support lighting director Oli Richards and gaffer Sam Madden as chosen BBC broadcast partners during Glastonbury 2015.

With set-ups across the Worthy Farm site, the Aurora team took control of the studio and link interviews and, along with some welcome support from Barry Dennison at ELP, worked throughout the weekend to help keep things looking good during the BBC's extensive coverage.

Alex Pocock and Paul Evans handled the console operating duties, running Avolites Pearl Experts to maintain the look and feel of the broadcast. Meanwhile, in the studio area LD Oli Richards dressed the set using festoon and Mole Richardson Mole Fay's to both add a touch of tungsten warmth to the set and to provide added eye candy to camera. Martin Rush PARs provided a dash of extra colour and Aurora p

UK - The University of Derby's College of Engineering has partnered with Cloudbass Limited to launch a new undergraduate degree in Broadcast Engineering and Live Event Technology.

The University of Derby is the first UK University to partner with Cloudbass Limited.

Based in the East Midlands, outside broadcast specialist Cloudbass Limited provided filming facilities and crew for the 2012 London Olympics. Previous and current clients include the BBC, BBC Sport, Eurosport and Sky Sports.

The BSc (Hons) Broadcast Engineering and Live Event Technology will start in September 2016. The three year course will prepare aspiring engineers for a career in broadcast engineering and live event technology by teaching them broadcast and engineering techniques, and developing their knowledge of sound technology, analogue and digital electronics.

The course will be taught at the Universit

UK - Lighting designer Rob Sinclair and programmer Louisa Smurthwaite used a Jands Vista L5 lighting console to deliver a memorable performance for Florence + The Machine's Friday night headlining slot on the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury Festival.

When Florence + The Machine were promoted to top of the bill just one week before the show, after an injury to Dave Grohl forced the Foo Fighters to pull out, Rob and Louisa were faced with the challenge of completely re-designing the show to incorporate the production values of a headliner slot - with only two extra days of production rehearsals available.

Willo Perron's innovative overall show concept and set design for the band's current How Big 2015 international tour, along with Rob's elegant lighting design, formed the basis for the Glastonbury performance's production values. The band's brief was to come up with a timel

The Netherlands - Stagelight is a leading Dutch technical production and rental company headed by the charismatic Jacco van der Heijden, and one of a growing number of Dutch companies investing in Robe's BMFL moving lights.

Walking into Stagelight's substantial HQ in Den Bosch is like entering the portals of some funky nightclub or restaurant destination, surrounded by gleaming metal reclaimed brick and restored wood surfaces, full of interesting proto-industrial shapes and objects, and optimised to allow natural light to flood into its rooms and workshops.

Jacco - who founded the company in 1987 - believes that a 'visual experience' should permeate all areas of working and living environments and so considerable thought went into designing a cool inspirational space where his team spend their office or warehouse time.

Stagelight first started buying Robe products in 2011 wi

UK - In April Durham Cathedral hosted Darkness to Light, an event of words and music, to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Bergen Belsen. The link to Durham? In 1945, the Durham Light Infantry formed part of the forces that liberated the camp.

Presented by InterOpera, the concert included readings by Dame Esther Rantzen, actor Kevin Whately, poetry recitals from Emma Hignett and first-hand accounts from some of those veterans who were present on the day of liberation. Musically, there was a broad range of performances: from the local, award winning, Reg Vardy Brass Band and a 120-strong choir to operatic excerpts sung by soprano Penelope Randall-Davis and tenor James Edwards. A specially commissioned piece by local composer Will Todd, with lyrics added by Ben Dunwell completed the evening.

The task of lighting this event, effectively, sensitively and

UK - The renowned PLASA Professional Development Programme will once again bring global experts together to share their insight and experience at the 2015 PLASA Show, which takes place at London's ExCel from 4-6 October. The first tranche of seminar sessions has just been announced, featuring a wide range of fascinating and thought-provoking subjects.

One of the PLASA Show's new initiatives for 2015 is a sector-specific zoned layout, which will make navigation around the show easier than in previous years. The show's seminars feature a similarly zoned theme, with sector-specific stages hosting over 150 speakers throughout the three days, highlighting case studies and advice on Lighting, AV, Audio, Broadcast and Staging.

The first 16 sessions have subjects ranging from high profile productions and technical best practice

USA - Zac Brown Band launched their Jekyll + Hyde North American stadium tour presented by BAI earlier this summer and will play nine stadium shows among many additional arenas and amphitheatres nationwide this summer. Production designers Louis Oliver and James Scott from Creative Outfit, Okulus worked with Special Event Services (SES) to provide Clay Paky Mythos, B-EYE K20 and Sharpy fixtures for the tour.

Zac Brown Band kicked off the tour, in support their album Jekyll + Hyde at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville on 1 May. The band's Grammy Award wins include Best New Artist in 2010 and Best Country Album, for Uncaged in 2013.

With offices in Winston-Salem, North Carolina and Nashville, Tennessee, SES is marking its 28th year offering full production services, audio, video and lighting equipment. It has been providing lighting for Zac Brown Band for more than

USA - Clay Paky Mythos fixtures played a dual role at Cleveland's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum recently when they formed part of the new lighting truss in the lobby and enhanced the Induction Eve VIP party prior to the ceremony honouring new members. A.C.T Lighting, Inc. is the exclusive distributor of Clay Paky fixtures in North America.

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum's mission is to engage, teach and inspire through the power of rock and roll. It gives voice to the stories of the people, artefacts and events that shaped rock and roll and made its impact felt around the world. The 30th Annual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony was held in Cleveland's Public Hall; the Induction Eve VIP party at the Rock Hall was scheduled the night before the ceremony, which honoured Ringo Starr, Bill Withers, Lou Reed, Stevie Ray Vaughan and other iconic artists.<

Chile - W-DMX by Wireless Solution Sweden AB recently set sail with W-DMX distributor Iluminacion Profesional Valook SA. based in Santiago, Chile. The Valdivia boat parade takes place annually in the south of Chile to celebrate the birth of Valdivia City. Over 150,000 visitors come to see the fireworks and spectacular boat parade over the Calle Calle River.

For the backdrop lighting of this stunning event, lighting designer Toni Amoros used 10 W-DMX WhiteBox F-1 G4 Transceivers to send signal to 45 Searchlight Xenon 4Kw placed on one side of the river with the console placed 350m away on the other side. On the fixture side of the river, the signal was then distributed over 1 km to all of the searchlights. Valook supervised and supplied all W-DMX equipment.

Francisco Yanez Valdivia, trainer & product manager for Valook explains, "This project would have been impossible wit

USA - Chicago-based Performance Lighting is another leading US company to recently invest in Robe - with the purchase of 30 x BMFL Spots and 12 x Pointes.

The busy design and rental facility supplies lighting to all sectors - from corporate and industrial to music festivals, concert tours, TV and theatre productions - and this year Performance celebrates its landmark 30th anniversary.

Performance Lighting's president Russ Armentrout emphasizes the fact that this is the first - but certainly won't be the last - Robe purchase.

CEO and company founder Douglas Peterson decided to invest big in BMFL after doing a light-metered shootout at his shop against well known 'competitor' products.

"In my opinion, the BMFL overwhelmed the others, and its feature set was so rich that I knew it could replace any light on any rider request, as well as be an awesome tool for my own LDs.

USA - More than 90,000 music lovers turned out for another weekend of music in The Woodlands at The Firefly Music Festival. Bandit Lites provided the festival lighting for the stages which featured performances by The Killers, Foster the People, Snoop Dogg, Paul McCartney, Morrissey, and Zedd.

"A part of The Killers' look is the use of truss spots on either side of the stage, instead of having fixtures downstage," said project manager Matt King. "For the rest of the bands, we needed to provide some downstage wash light. Dizzy Gosnell loaded a downstage truss with VL 3500 Washes to handle this task. Another addition that Diz made was to add fixtures above and below the video screens in the wings. This helped make the stage bigger and integrate the audience into the show."

Equipment for the main stage included VL 2500 Spots, Bandit 5x5s, Clay Paky Sharpys, GR

South Africa - The move to IP is arguably the biggest shift in recent film and broadcast history, making it a key focus at Mediatech Africa, set for 15-17 July at the TicketPro Dome at Northgate, Johannesburg.

While a new global survey has revealed that the transition to IP broadcast infrastructure will take up to 10 years to complete for the majority of broadcasters, local film and media producers and distributors are already considering what the move to media over IP will mean for their infrastructures.

Steve Alves, managing director at Concilium Technologies, says: "All the major innovations in this space right now are IP-based. But for many stakeholders, there is a major investment in analogue infrastructure to consider too. At Mediatech Africa 2015, we will showcase solutions to enable a hybrid environment that allow you to start moving to IP, and control and manage

USA - Elation Professional has launched a new luminaire in its Colour Series of colour-changing LED luminaires, the Colour Pendant, a highly versatile wash light that allows for dynamic control of stage or house lighting levels in an energy-efficient intelligent downlighting fixture.

The Colour Pendant houses 36 long-life 3W RGBW LEDs for fully blended colour transformations or projections of variable shades of white light. The RGBW LED is capable of emitting a wide palette of colours from saturates to more subtle pastels. Its uniform flat-field output, 3,100 lumens of power and 41° beam angle make for a highly effective wash luminaire whether flooding a stage or studio in hues of colour or functionally washing a house of worship or other venue in shades of white light. Full range dimming with selectable dimming curves, strobe and colour macro effects enhance its dynamic cap

UK - Lighting designer, Tim Routledge, has employed a quantity of Ayrton MagicBlade-R and MagicPanel-R LED fixtures on Take That's Live 2015 tour.

One hundred and twenty-eight Ayrton MagicBlade-R LED fixtures and 54 MagicPanel-R units play a vital role in Routledge's design where they form an inherent part of the rig, delineating the outlines of production designer Misty Buckley's creative set design and providing a spectacular and versatile backdrop to the band centre stage.

Creative director, Kim Gavin, devised a show that exhibits a high degree of theatricality with artists performing across a large multi-level main stage that loops right out into the arena. Routledge's brief was to produce a very theatrical look in keeping with the design but overlaid with a huge "pop punch". "The MagicBlades certainly gave me this," he says.

Routledge outlined the ou

USA - When lighting designer Mike Marcario got the call to work on up-and-coming country star Eric Paslay's Make Every Night A Friday Night Tour he was told his rig and programming needed to meet two requirements: it had to be versatile enough to work in a variety of venues, and it had to have the punch to stand out in daylight for some of the tour's outdoor stops. Bearing this dual dictum in mind and appreciative of the redheaded bearded Texan's passionate musical style, Marcario knew that he needed to have a rig that was fast, powerful and capable of quick dimming and colour changes. Epix Strip 2.0 units from Chauvet Professional fit his plan perfectly.

"The Chauvet ÉPIX Strips, paired with software from ArKaos, were especially helpful to me because of their many features and the flexibility they gave me. If I needed a solid, saturated colour or a bunch of m

The Glastonbury Effect - Lionel Richie says he has Glastonbury to thank for bagging his first number one album in the charts in more than two decades. The veteran saw The Definitive Collection By Lionel Richie & The Commodores hit the top spot. The album only reached number 10 when it was released back in 2003, but jumped up 103 places following his widely praised performance at Worthy Farm. It is the 66-year-old's first UK number one album since Back To Front 23 years ago. "I was overwhelmed performing at Glastonbury in front of all those people and for the fans to make the album number one is unbelievable," he said.

Live and Licking - The Grateful Dead have given what they say will be their last group performance in front of 70,000 fans, some in tears, in Chicago.The four surviving members of the band ended their 50-year run this weekend with thr

UK - White Light recently provided its lighting services for a series of concert tours featuring two long established names in the music industry. Both Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons and Gladys Knight are currently touring the UK, with both playing the Royal Albert Hall before visiting venues in Manchester, Birmingham, Glasgow and Leeds. Each tour has been organised by concert and tour promoters Kennedy Street, who approached White Light to provide the lighting, rigging and crew in order to create an unforgettable experience for audiences across Britain.

Jim Colson, production manager at Kennedy Street, states, "Both Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons and Gladys Knight are absolute icons in the music industry. The fact that they are both still in such demand after so many years indicates the impact their music has made and how their already huge fan-bases continue to grow&q

UK - Take That, are currently promoting their seventh studio album,III, on their Live 2015 tour with seven Robert Juliat followspots playing major roles in highlighting the artists and the many theatrical antics that surround them.

Creative director, Kim Gavin, has devised a show that involves a high degree of theatricality with acts, including aerial stunts, taking place across a large set, designed by Misty Buckley, that loops out into the arena from a multi-level dynamic main stage.

Lighting designer, Tim Routledge was briefed to produce a design with "a very theatrical look, but with a huge pop punch over the top". His enormous lighting rig contains a large number of powerful moving light fixtures and LED video screens. Routledge therefore needed followspots that would punch through the sheer amount of lighting and video and cope with the long throw distan

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