Moving lighting fixtures around at a festival often requires some careful logistics. Moving crews around calls for considerable skill too. George Cannon got a first hand view of both recently when he was hired by Harford Sound to be the “house LD” at the THAT tent at Bonnaroo.
“Harford Sound was responsible for the THAT tent and the THIS stage at the festival,” said Cannon. “They had morning and night shift crews that would tag off around 6-7 PM.
We stayed at an Air B and B about 30 minutes away from site. So logistics alone for all those crew was a lot. Harford Sound and Rock the House AV did a great job making this project rock. The job everyone involved did was amazing.”
Tasked with providing audio, lighting and full staffing for both stages from 8am to 3am daily, Harford Sound broke the project into two shifts. With a crew 18 deep, the company furnished skilled teams to keep the stages running nearly 24 hours a day.
Over at the THAT stage, Cannon looked after the lighting rig, working with LD Myles Wong to ensure that dynamic light shows were delivered for the likes of The Pixies, Rebelution, Noah Kahn, Sylvan Esso, Big Wild, and J.I.D.
Helping to make this possible was a punchy and versatile rig that featured 60 CHAUVET Professional fixtures. “We had a really versatile rig and everything was prepped in the warehouse,” said Cannon. “That made things a lot easier.”
Anchoring the rig were 24 Maverick Storm 4 fixtures, as well as 12 Color STRIKE M motorized strobes, 16 STRIKE 2 blinders, and eight Rogue units, plus two Amhaze Stadium foggers.
These fixtures were positioned on the truss structures that created the tent’s triangular roof. From this vantage point, the intense output of the Storm and STRIKE fixtures created crowd-stirring audience lighting. Collectively, the fixtures were also used to conjure up a diverse range of engaging looks and color changes to reflect the music and personality of each artist.
“This wasn’t your typical stage with straight trusses, but its triangular configuration did make running chases and symmetrical effects very fun,” said Cannon. “The fixture configuration that the Harford Sound team provided was really very cool. It made the tent seem larger, which was really a nice effect.”
Cannon lit many of the early acts himself, and appreciated the versatility of the rig. For the visiting LDs, he kept a chart at FOH to help with cloning. “It was a very LD-friendly rig,” he said “Not the biggest, but very tasteful, and really perfect for the space.”
