Known as “The King of Country” and considered one of the most influential and popular recording artists of all time, George Strait keeps going and going. While he officially retired from touring after his 2012-2014 Cowboy Rides Away tour, Strait—who has amassed a total of 60 number-one hits, giving him more chart toppers than any other artist in any genre of music—still does plenty of live shows. Most recently, he was one of the first headliners at Fort Worth’s new Dickies Arena, playing two back-to-back, sold-out shows in late November. With those shows and others now being mixed on a…
Author: James Robertson
CODA Audio recently gave a beta release to its brand new state-of-the-art 3D prediction software for CODA systems in the installed and live event arenas. The CODA System Optimiser, currently under continued development with the company’s R&D team, will eventually be compatible with the entire CODA loudspeaker range but is now available to customers for selected key lines. The CODA team sees the release as an important move in directly involving its customers in the development process, something essential to the fine-tuning of the product and which allows early hands-on experience of its incredible speed and accuracy. David Webster, Global…
Although Louisville residents have long associated the term “Triple Crown” with Kentucky Derby thoroughbred horse racing at their own Churchill Downs, this year’s “Trifesta” may well pose a legitimate threat to that reigning royal trio title. Produced by Los Angeles-based Danny Wimmer Presents (DWP)—the concert promoter behind popular US music festivals like Sacramento’s Aftershock, Columbus’ Sonic Temple and Charlotte’s Epicenter—a Trifesta pass served as the golden ticket to get into three large Louisville music festivals held on consecutive weekends during September, each of which utilized an L-Acoustics K Series loudspeaker system deployed by Brown Note Productions (BNP) of Thornton, Colorado.…
Every October for the past five years, over a thousand musicians have gathered together in Italy to perform as the ‘biggest rock band in the world’. Yamaha digital mixing has featured each time, with a RIVAGE PM10 digital mixing system making its debut in 2018. This year the event moved to Linate Airport, Milan, where a RIVAGE PM7 system was added for the first time. The first Rockin’ 1000 That’s Live was held to get the attention of Foo Fighters and convince them to play a gig in Cesena, Italy – a mission which proved successful. But it proved so…
Absen celebrated a major milestone this month as its globally-recognised ACE Training Programme reached its centenary. The 100th training session took place at Absen’s North American headquarters in Orlando, USA, on 3-5 December 2019. The Absen Certified Engineer (ACE) Programme is a dedicated training course for partners and customers involved in the installation, configuration and maintenance of Absen LED products – ensuring end users get the most from their LED deployments by having access to the largest pool of professionally trained LED engineers in the world. This industry’s first and most widespread LED training programme reached its centenary milestone this…
Anna Valley has announced their purchase of over 500 square meters of 3.9mm Unilumin LED, making the AV and entertainment technology company one of the biggest, if not the biggest, supplier of single-batch high-resolution LED in the United Kingdom. The purchase was motivated by increased demand for super-sized screens for projects like “X Factor: Celebrity 2019” where 200 square meters of Anna Valley’s new stock was used to create the digital backdrop for the live final at the SSE Arena, Wembley at the weekend. The improvement in LED resolution and the increase in the computing capability of video processors and…
64 Audio has announced it will feature its popular N8 customisable in-ear monitor during the 2020 NAMM Show, held in Anaheim, California. January 16-19 at the Anaheim Convention Center, booth # 11230. The N8 has been nominated for a 35th Annual NAMM Technical Excellence & Creativity (TEC) Award in the Headphone/Earpiece Technology category. The winner will be announced during the NAMM Show. “We’re honoured to be recognized by The NAMM Foundation,” said Vitaliy Belonozhko, 64 Audio founder and chief sound designer. “It’s been my vision from the early days of 64 Audio to challenge traditional audio designs and bring truly…
Twenty-four Astera AX1 LED battery powered wireless ‘pixel tubes’ played their part onstage with rock band Muse during their action-packed “Simulation Theory” world tour, which has just played its final show in Chile, having been on the road since February. The AX1s were used in just one song – ‘Algorithm’ – for maximum impact. They were placed in custom angled holders on the sides of a long runway / thrust during the blackout, and at the start of the song formed 12 illuminated pillars of light behind lead singer / guitarist Matt Bellamy, who was playing keyboards on the B…
The largest jazz festival in East Asia has selected Amadeus’ newest speaker Series including DIVA M², MAESTRO II, as well as bespoke stage monitors which are to be released in 2020. SSL Live L500 consoles were featured at the event as well—‘a superb sonic partner for Amadeus speakers.’ The Jarasum Festival has hosted over 2-million attendees since its inception in 2004 and featured performers from 55 countries on its stage. Over 200,000 spectators attended the 16th Jarasum Jazz Festival on October 4-6, 2019. Elan Tech is the South Korea-based production company in charge of both sound equipment and technical production…
Pioneering space-rockers, Hawkwind are a much-loved British institution with an enduring, devoted fanbase. And it’s thanks to this hardcore following that the band celebrates its 50thanniversary this year, releasing its 32nd album and embarking on a tour that culminated in a sold-out show at London’s Royal Albert Hall in November, supported by an Allen & Heath dLive mixing system. With special guests including Eric Clapton and Motörhead’s Phil Campbell joining the band on stage along the way, the tour saw long-time Hawkwind FOH engineer Rik Elliss behind the dLive surface. “I’ve been an Allen & Heath fan for many years…
American rock band ZZ Top recently wrapped up a tour celebrating their 50th year as a band with a lighting package provided by Bandit Lites. Comprised of Billy Gibbons, Frank Beard and Dusty Hill, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band formed in 1969 and have sold more than 50 million albums worldwide. Lighting designer John Lucksinger conceived a classic par can rig made up of moving lights to give the band the authentic rock look of yester-years. “It’s been a fun time,” said Lucksinger. “Three guys on stage. No real frills. Just guys playing great music. It has…
Global entertainment lighting, LED video and effects equipment manufacturer ADJ has announced a new distribution partnership with the ULA Group for Australia and New Zealand. This strategic alliance will increase the availability of ADJ’s expansive range of products in the region, backed by a well-established company with a knowledgeable team of sales and support staff. Established in 1992, the ULA Group’s extensive experience in professional lighting, LED screen technology, architectural lighting, visual media and content management systems has set the company apart as a market leader in Australasia. ULA supplies rental houses of all sizes as well as supporting major…
For the UK tour marking the 40th anniversary of Gary Numan’s career as a solo artist, lighting designer Luke Edwards called on the power and clarity of the VL2600 Profile luminaire from Vari-Lite, a Signify entertainment lighting brand. The tour, which completed at the end of October, played 24 UK venues. “Although this tour was to celebrate the fact that Gary has been touring for 40 years, he is still very much an artist in the present,” said Edwards. “So we’re using the newest technology, with a large video wall and stage set design for the size of venues we…
American rapper Logic toured 26 cities across North America on his The Confessions of a Dangerous Mind Tour with lighting design by Mitchell Schellenger and lighting supply by Volt Lites of Burbank, California. Schellenger employed a rig of Elation Professional Artiste Monet moving heads as the workhorse fixture in his design and says the powerful, multi-purpose LED profile was just what he was looking for. Seeking a fresh look for the artist’s on-stage performances, Logic’s manager contacted Schellenger after seeing an Imagine Dragons performance and liking what he saw. Schellenger has designed lighting for Imagine Dragons since 2018. That led…
The winners have been announced at the second annual Knight of Illumination Awards USA (KOI-USA) ceremony, which took place at The Joint in The Hard Rock Hotel, Las Vegas on 22 November. This year, underlining the immediate popularity of the KOI-USA ceremony, attendance was increased by a third following the inaugural event in 2018, with almost 400 industry professionals gathering to celebrate the creative talents of lighting and video designers’ work produced in the United States over the calendar year. https://issuu.com/mondiale/docs/tpidec19_digitallr/14 Photos: KOI-USA www.knightofilluminationawards.com
Created back in 2002, KV2 was founded under one principle: sound quality is everything. Seventeen years later, as TPi met the various faces that make up the wider KV2 family, it was clear that this passion for audio perfection has not been extinguished. https://issuu.com/mondiale/docs/tpidec19_digitallr/18 Photo: KV2 Audio & TPi www.kv2audio.com
It’s such a thrill to see how far Production Futures has come in the past four years. Conceived to create a platform for the next generation of live events professionals, the annual event has grown year on year,with more rental houses, manufacturers, educational institutions and crewmembers from some of the world’s biggest tours all on-site to impart their knowledge and give their unique perspectives to the eager youngsters turning out at Fly By Nite Studios on 13 November. https://issuu.com/mondiale/docs/tpidec19_digitallr/76 Photos: TPi www.productionfutures.co.uk
On 13 November, Björk kicked off the European portion of her critically acclaimed Cornucopia tour, deploying a d&b Soundscape Immersive sound system as the show scaled up dramatically from its debut in New York’s new arts centre, The Shed, to a comprehensive run of large-scale arena dates including London’s O2 Arena. https://issuu.com/mondiale/docs/tpidec19_digitallr/16 Photos: d&b audiotechnik www.dbaudio.com
