What was the goal in the development of Evolution Wireless Digital? The initial goal was to develop a product that would be capable of carrying over the strong product line of EW-D into a new decade. We are currently in a time when criteria such as user experience design and smart connectivity matter just as much as the classical performance criteria like RF reliability and pristine audio. What features will professional audio engineers find appealing? Professional audio engineers will love the fact that they are getting rock- solid digital wireless in the UHF spectrum for the first time at an…
Author: James Robertson
Over the past decade, the on-stage environment has seen a radical change as more and more musicians have traded wedges and side fills for in-ear monitoring systems – and according to the team at KLANG:technologies, the story doesn’t end there. For the past six years, the company has been pushing the agenda that stereo in-ear mixes are limiting for the artist, and there is a much more elegant solution that creates a more realistic audio environment for musicians on stage. “When we first came into the market, we spent several years explaining to people the benefits of immersive mixes for…
Automotive pioneer Henry Ford hated market research. When explaining why, he supposedly said: “If I asked customers what they wanted when I started, they would have said ‘a faster horse.’” More than a century after Ford launched his namesake company, his quip would lend its name to one of country music’s highest profile festivals. With the exception of last year, the Faster Horses Festival has been held every summer at the Michigan International Speedway, about 70 miles from where Ford built his empire. After the COVID hiatus, the anticipation level at the three day event was sky high this year,…
“Renaissance” is a beautiful word, believes Gerardo Urbán y Fernández, not just for the promising future it represents, but also for the struggles that preceded it. The director of the Orquesta Filarmónica de Toluca (Toluca Philharmonic), he expressed the complex meaning of the word this way: “Rebirth means to die first, and that was a bit what happened last year. Somehow we all suffered not only losses but we had this need to see many things from our past. Now is the time to start over, to do better, bigger, and more beautiful things, because the experience we lived through…
NEP Group has launched a new virtual production business segment, to be called NEP Virtual Studios, bringing on board industry leaders in real-time production with the acquisition of Prysm Collective, Lux Machina and Halon Entertainment. As part of this new venture, NEP welcomes a group of experts and world-class talent, including entertainment industry veteran Cliff Plumer to lead this new segment, Jeff Ruggels as SVP of Finance and Operations, Phil Galler and Zach Alexander as co-Presidents of the Lux Machina NEP Business Unit, and Daniel Gregoire and Chris Ferriter as Executive Creative Director and President, respectively, of the Halon NEP…
On 24 June 2021, Kyle Bell found himself tasked with lighting shows by the multi-platinum band Warrant and their fellow metal-mashers, the award-winning Firehouse at the iconic Lava Cantina-The Colony live music venue. “It was a last minute type of thing,” said Bell. “I had very little time to program. I did create some scenes, but most of the two shows were busked. Good thing for me that I was a longtime fan of both bands. That helped with the FX part of my show, which was very important.” Familiarity with the two bands wasn’t the only thing Bell had…
Vintage Martin Audio modular stacks have helped support an experimental work at the acclaimed Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) in central London. It is fitting that as the manufacturer celebrates its 50th year, Alex Czechowski of Ace Vintage Systems should be commissioned to provide a classic Martin Audio rig from yesteryear, exemplifying its formidable history. Created and performed by influential dance and performance artist, Samir Kennedy, it was show designer, Simon Vincenzi, who came up with the idea of using speakers to create a ‘portal’ or proscenium for The Misery Portal. Simon is a London-based theatre director, choreographer and designer…
Powersoft appointed Akira Mochimaru to serve as its new global marketing director. His duties in this role will be to connect dots between customers, technology, products, communication, and distribution through strategic business planning and guiding implementation. Based in the US, he will also coordinate with Powersoft’s operations in New Jersey to help growing the company’s presence in the install market through his knowledge and network of contacts. Mochimaru has made his move to Powersoft permanent after serving as a consultant for three months. He comes with an outstanding pedigree and track record extending over 38 years in the pro audio…
London’s Royal Opera House opened its doors to the lighting industry from 26-27 July, as a series of manufacturers were given a rare chance to show off their latest kit. The ROH, which would usually be in the peak of its summer season, is still largely on hold for in-person performances, but has been live streaming shows for several months. This quiet period in the venue’s calendar offered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the lighting industry to take over one of the UK’s most historic stages. The high ceilings and dramatic red/gold interior of the Opera House served as an impressive…
Shure have announced its 2021 pro audio roadshow. The company previously committed to free training and continued education for the live performance, production, AV rental, film and location sound professionals, as the industry gets back on its feet. The pro audio roadshow is an extension of support to the industry after a challenging past 18 months. The team will be visiting several different locations across the country to offer some hands-on experience with Shure systems and face to face time with the Shure experts. The roadshow will offer refresher training on RF, answer any questions about equipment or wireless training…
Doughty Engineering and PSI have teamed up to deliver the design and installation of specialist infrastructure at the Grand Opera House in Belfast. PSI were contracted by Tracey Brothers to facilitate the design and installation on the project which included a complete rewire of the production lighting and control, dimmers, audio, comms, stage management desks, show relay, foyer paging as well as providing a new house lighting system and additional elements to the in-house stage engineering system. All packages were specified by Charcoalblue. PSI, who are dealers for Doughty in both Northern Ireland and Ireland, brought Doughty on board very…
HARMAN Professional Solutions unveils its latest addition to the JBL Professional PRX Column Portable PA family, the PRX ONE all-in-one portable PA. JBL Professional also introduced the all new, universal JBL Pro Connect app for simplified management of the PRX ONE system. PRX ONE meets the needs of a broad range of portable and installed applications, delivering unmatched power, acoustic performance and functionality in a sleek, compact package weighing just 56 pounds. The system delivers a stunning 130 dB of wide, full bandwidth SPL with consistent front-to-back throw, thanks to its custom-engineered, 12-tweeter column array, featuring JBL A.I.M. (Array Inumbration…
Multiple Grammy award winning Kelly Clarkson has rocked the foundations and redefined daytime talk show television with her award-winning, high impact The Kelly Clarkson Show (TKCS). The one hour syndicated daytime show produced by NBCUniversal Syndication Studios is an energetic mash up of chat, stories, opinions, humour, and surprises involving an array of interesting guests, personalities, and celebrities. The pleasure and the pressures of lighting this dynamic and ever-shifting environment recorded on Universal Studios in LA’s Stage 1, has been down to Darren Langer of DCLighting, a lighting design and direction practice also based in LA, specialising in television and…
Graeme Stevenson has been appointed as Production Manager for Belgium-based pro AV manufacturer, APEX. “We’re excited to bring Graeme on board to strengthen our manufacturing operations,” says APEX Managing Director, Paul Van Hees. “We are seeing strong growth in demand, particularly for our CloudPower installation amplifiers and Liviau touchscreen AV controllers. Graeme’s experience and drive will ensure that we can scale to meet this demand while maintaining the reliability and flexibility that our customers expect from APEX.” Originally from the United Kingdom, Stevenson is no stranger to pro audio, having spent nine years as an audio technician with fellow Belgian…
Collaborative Creations, a provider of creative business development and PR services for the events industry, has made a series of new appointments as it enters a period of expansion. Stuart Wood (pictured left) joins as the company’s new Content Manager and will be overseeing its PR and editorial output. Stuart joins from event industry publisher Mash Media, where he was Deputy Editor. Mash Media is the publisher of a wide portfolio of magazines and websites dedicated to events, including Access All Areas, Exhibition News and Conference News. Stuart will be applying his experience from the world of journalism to help…
Luminex has revealed its latest LumiNode and LumiCore firmware (release v2.3.0) – offering KiNet protocol support, Chinese language support and advanced networking features to both product lines. User feedback taught us that AVL professionals were looking for a solution that could have full control of lighting data and without being disrupted by unwanted or irrelevant data from different network stakeholders. However, it was not a simple task, especially with a large IT network like TV studio’s. After thoroughly analyzing the needs, Luminex developed the advanced network configuration features for LumiCore, which offers three scenarios allowing network separation to match your…
SES have announced that they are moving from their Datchet base to a new facility in Colnbrook. Having continuously expanded over the last few years, SES have taken the decision to move to much larger facilities which will enable the company to expand further over the next few years. Gordon Cooper, Group Director commented: “Our new home enables us to have all our manufacturing, design and production under one roof, and allows us to continue to develop industry leading products and facilitate customers requirements in a more efficient manner. The space that we will have will allow us to purchase…
The past lives in the present. Although the experiences that shaped earlier years may fade with time, their echoes can still be heard in the current moment, endowing it with a new sense of depth and meaning. Crt Birsa of Blackout Lighting Design knew this full well when he designed a compelling lightshow for Bosnian stars Dubioza Kolektiv at Arsenal Fest 2021. Birsa began lighting the genre-smashing band in late 2010 and soon after that he had bought his first ChamSys PC Wing. In all the years since, he has built on this experience with every single Dubioza Kolektiv show.…
