TPi July 2015 - Issue 191

TOTAL PRODUCTION INTERNATIONAL

TOTAL PRODUCTION INTERNATIONAL

WWW.TPiMAGAZINE.COM JULY 2015

ISSUE 191

LIVE EVENT DESIGN & TECHNOLOGY • JULY 2015 • ISSUE 191

KENNY CHESNEY

NORTH AMERICA’S BIGGEST COUNTRY MUSIC TOUR STEPS OUT OF THE PACK WITH AN SSL AND NEXO CONSIGNMENT

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PARKLIFE • THE WHO LIVE FROM HYDE PARK • IN PROFILE: SKAN PA • MEYER SOUND DEMO LIVERPOOL SOUND CITY • MAROON 5 ON TOUR • FESTIVAL SPECIAL • IN THE SPOTLIGHT: TRIPLE E

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UNEXPECTED ADVENTURES It doesn’t seem like five minutes have past since we were going to print with our June issue, and yet here we are again. There’s barely been time for a decent cup of tea in recent weeks (and yet too much opportunity for decent vodka - more on that next time though) as I’ve not stopped visiting festivals, tours, engineers and designers in some of the world’s most beautiful and famous settings. What a privilege. 2015 is shaping up to be a really exciting summer season, so I can’t wait to see and hear what lies ahead. See the first of our summer festival specials on Pg. 56.

On Pg. 8 you’ll find two very tragic obituaries for our industry. Two bright young men, two lives lost. Showstars’ Micah Maxwell-Milne left us suddenly, as did Nexo’s Matthias Larrieu. It’s perhaps fitting that Matthias was a steering force in the R&D of the STM system. His craftsmanship graces our cover and his pro audio innovation will continue to be heard alongside his legacy.

And so, I’ll start by telling you about a little adventure on the East Coast of America which undoubtedly became one of my favourite work trips ever. Our May cover story is courtesy of an enormous amount of fun by way of Nexo, SSL and rental company, Morris Light & Sound. All three of whom played host to TPi during a trip stateside for what was the first country music show I’ve ever reported “What I didn’t quite expect on. Yes, me, really! Turn to Pg. 10 for the audio coverage from Pittsburgh’s Heinz Field Stadium. was the adventures I would Now, I expected that there would be some encounter post gig…” good conversation, a bottle or two of perfectly chosen red wine (I am of course pictured above with Ginny Goudy), and a lot of interesting tales about product development, backed up by end user comments. All of these assumptions were accurate. What I didn’t quite expect was the adventures I would encounter post gig. The city was experiencing some turbulent weather when we visited; one minute sun stroke temperature, the next the kind of downpour I thought only Manchester could experience in the height of summer. But, America doesn’t do things by halves, (unless its a concoction you’re putting in your coffee). Thus, the storm which ensued in Pennsylvania resulted in our being stranded in New York City.

The comedy saga saw us fly through lightening storm (ok, that bit wasn’t the funniest), grounded at JFK, finding the only bar open in NYC on a Sunday night (it is a city which does sleep, actually) and the funniest laughing fit a taxi driver from New Jersey has surely ever witnessed. Everything that could go wrong, absolutely went wrong. Oh, and I was having the kind of hayfever episode which would see even the toughest person taking a mortgage out on a pollen-free bubble. Did I mention it was my first ever time in NYC? It wasn’t exactly the circumstances I’d been day dreaming of when I thought about the Big Apple, but it did remind me that unexpected adventures can sometimes lead to unexpected friendships too.

Would I change my first experience of NYC? No, not a second, actually.

Kelly Murray Editor

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Editor Kelly Murray Tel: +44 (0)161 476 8371 Mobile: +44 (0)7738 154689 e-mail: k.murray@mondiale.co.uk Editorial Intern Matthew Jones Tel: +44 (0)161 476 5580 e-mail: tpiintern@mondiale.co.uk International Advertising & Sponsorship Hannah Eakins Tel: +44 (0)161 476 8363 Mobile: +44 (0)7760 485230 e-mail: h.eakins@mondiale.co.uk Advertising Sales Charlotte Goodlass Tel: +44 (0)161 476 9126 Mobile: +44 (0)788 0208 226 e-mail: c.goodlass@mondiale.co.uk Graphic Design & Production Dan Seaton: d.seaton@mondiale.co.uk Mel Robinson: m.robinson@mondiale.co.uk Accounts Donna Barlow / Sarah Miller: ar@mondiale.co.uk General Manager Justin Gawne Mondiale Group Chairman Damian Walsh www.tpimagazine.com • www.tpiawards.com Cover Photography Kenny Chesney - The Big Revival Tour by Brian Petersen Contributors Michael Baker, Simon Duff, Marcus Boocock

OBITUARIES 08

The sad loss of Nexo’s Matthias Larrieu and Showstars’ Micah Maxwell-Milne.

EVENT FOCUS 10 Kenny Chesney

Nexo, SSL and Morris Light & Sound pull off a stadium-worthy audio feat in Pittsburgh.

22 Knight of Illumination Awards

New judges are announced.

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24 Meyer Sound Leopard Demo

The big cat sounds out on British soil.

26 Liverpool Sound City

Michael Baker reports from the Northwest Docklands.

28 Protec Dubai

The Middle Eastern rental company opens a new Special Projects Division.

NEW

30 Painting With Light

The visual specialist opens a new office in Belgium.

32 IOSH at Glastonbury

The Institution of Occupational Safety and Health’s pre festival site visit with TESS.

34 Park Life

Jon Drape of Ground Control talks about the festival’s new on-site initiatives.

PRODUCTION PROFILE 38 The Who

Simon Duff reports from Hyde Park’s BST concert series.

48 Maroon 5

 37 HIGH POWER RGBW LEDs  NEW ULTRA FAST ZOOM  INTERNAL MACRO EFFECTS  INDIVIDUAL PIXEL CONTROL  BEAM-SHAPE

The American rockers hit UK arenas with SSE in support of their latest album.

Printed by Buxton Press Annual subscriptions (including P&P): £42 (UK), £60 (Europe), £78/$125 (RoW).

Subscription enquiries to: Subscriptions, Mondiale Publishing Limited, Waterloo Place, Watson Square, Stockport SK1 3AZ, UK. Tel: +44 (0)161 476 5580 Fax: +44 (0)161 476 0456 e-mail: subscriptions@mondiale.co.uk

FESTIVAL SPECIAL

Issue 191 / July 2015

76 Triple E launches the ModTruss at ABTT.

TOTAL PRODUCTION INTERNATIONAL is a controlled circulation magazine, published 12 times a year by Mondiale Publishing Limited under licence. ISSN 1461-3786 Copyright © 2015 Mondiale Publishing Limited. All contents of this publication are subject to worldwide copyright protection and reproduction in whole or part, in any form whatsoever, is expressly forbidden without the prior written consent of the Publishers. Every effort is taken to ensure accuracy in the preparation of this publication but neither Mondiale Publishing Ltd, nor the Editor, can be held responsible for its contents or any consequential loss or damage resulting from information published. The views expressed are not necessarily those of the Publishers or Editor. The Publishers accept no responsibility for the return of unsolicited manuscripts, photographs, illustrations, advertising materials or artwork.

Total Production International USPS: (ISSN 1461 3786) is published 12 times a year by Mondiale Publishing Limited United Kingdom. The 2015 US annual subscription price is 117USD. Airfreight and mailing in the USA by Agent named Air Business, C/O WorldNet Shipping USA Inc., 155-11 146th Avenue, Jamaica, New York, NY11434. Periodicals postage paid at Jamaica NY 11431.

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THE FAMILY

56 We round up the latest festival news from

Download, EDC, Isle of Wight Festival, Bonnaroo, Gottwood and Weather Festival.

NEW

COMPANY PROFILE 72 The story of audio rental company, Skan PA.

IN THE SPOTLIGHT CLOCKING OFF

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78 AC-ET want your help with a charity bike ride for

late colleague, Kevin Fitz-Simons.

MOVERS & SHAKERS 80 The latest industry appointments.

PSA 82 The first ‘Audible Concerns’ workshop takes place

in Leeds, UK.

VITAL STATS 86 Gordon Cooper of SES answers our questions.

07

OBITUARIES: Matthias Larrieu & Micah Maxwell-Milne

REMEMBERING MATTHIAS LARRIEU NEXO’S GINNY GOUDY PAYS HER RESPECTS The Nexo family is mourning the loss of one of its sons, the talented young loudspeaker designer Matthias Larrieu, who lost his life in a car accident in June. He was just 30 years old.

In his six years at Nexo, Matthias left a truly impressive mark. A core member of the design team that brought the company’s flagship STM Series modular line array into existence, he was also instrumental in the development of other ground-breaking Nexo products, notably the 45°N-12 inline stage monitor and the hugely popular RS sub-bass cabinets. His last project for Nexo was the STM M28 compact line array, which, in its first year on the market, is already set to become one of the company’s best-selling PA systems.

Nexo’s gentle giant, Matthias balanced his genius with great kindness and amiability. This most sociable of engineers liked

nothing better than explaining the intricacies of his work to potential users from all over the world, and seeing the light in their eyes when they understood just what he had achieved. His enthusiasm made him widely loved by both colleagues and customers. Nexo Director François Deffarges remembers the young Matthias, then aged just 23, putting perspective on the scale of an R&D challenge: “But François, if you can see the mountain, it is no longer an obstacle!”

Most engineers would take decades to achieve what Matthias did in his short life. With his many patents shaping future sound reinforcement technology, his real legacy can already be found on concert stages around the world, bringing music and pleasure to hundreds of thousands of people.

TPi www.nexo.fr

MICAH MAXWELL-MILNE MOURNING SHOWSTARS’ YOUNG TALENT

“It is with our deepest regret that we have to report the loss of Micah Maxwell-Milne,” a statement from Showstars read.

“Micah was killed in a car accident in Baku, Azerbaijan whilst working on the Opening and Closing Ceremonies for The European Games.

“There were three other technicians involved in the same accident who have since been airlifted to hospital in Turkey with what are thought to be serious injuries.

08

“Our thoughts and best wishes go out to all of the crash victims, their families and loved ones. In particular, to Micah’s parents Stuart and Max, his sister Saffron and his girlfriend Ezgi.”

TPi and the PSA sends heartfelt sympathies to Micah’s family, friends and colleagues at this difficult time.

We wish a speedy recovery for the three remaining victims.

TPi www.showstars.com

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NEXO SOLID STATE LOGIC AND THE KING OF COUNTRY

EVENT FOCUS: Kenny Chesney

KENNY CHESNEY LIVE FROM PITTSBURGH THE GENRE MAY NOT BE HUGE IN EUROPE, BUT COUNTRY MUSIC IS SERIOUSLY BIG BUSINESS IN THE US. ONE OF ITS MOST SUCCESSFUL MALE STARS, KENNY CHESNEY, IS PART WAY THROUGH HIS LARGEST TOUR TO DATE, THE BIG REVIVAL, AN IMPRESSIVE STADIUM FEAT ABLE TO LURE IN DEDICATED FANS AND NATIONAL PRESS IN EACH AND EVERY STATE IT VISITS, MEANING SOUND QUALITY MUST BE A HIGH-END AFFAIR. TPi’S KELLY MURRAY TRAVELLED TO THE HEINZ FIELD STADIUM IN PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA, TO HEAR THE SOLID STATE LOGIC AND NEXO COMBINATION ENABLING THE SINGER’S LIVE REPUTATION TO STAY AT THE TOP OF THE BILL. May 30, 2015. It’s my first time in the beautiful city of Pittsburgh, and, as one would correctly assume of many a Mancunian, also my first adventure in country music. I’m in good company though, as 55,000 revellers are lining the streets, and the city’s car parks - they have been for two days now [waiting for venue entry to be permitted]. Looking around at the kinship and endless flow of beer, I’m not entirely sure why tailgate parties have never caught on in Europe. Plus the threat of rain certainly isn’t putting these fans off, it’s merely encouraging the camaraderie of Chesney’s loyal army, further fuelled in part because tonight is a co-headline show with Eric Church, another of America’s most popular country performers. Things, I feel, are about to get fun.

The wonderfully stormy weather unleashes giant droplets of warm rain from the confusingly 12

blue sky, and inside the stadium gates, Chesney’s production crew are hard at work, preparing for what is clearly going to be an almighty party atmosphere. Yeehaah indeed.

In charge of supplying crew and all equipment to the show is Nashville-based Morris Light & Sound, a company which despite its relatively small size, is championing new products, paving the way for them in fact, and delivering flawless service to the tour. The products in question are Nexo’s latest release from its STM Series, the M28 and SSL’s new large format live console, the Live L500. Both are key audio elements trusted for a tour of this magnitude (five months, should you be curious).

Chesney has toured with a Nexo STM system before, but The Big Revival is the STM M28’s US tour debut, a decision which is proving the right one on the road. At the forefront of the welloiled Morris Light & Sound machine is President and CEO, David Haskell, who works very closely

with Production Manager, Ed Wannebo, a man who has gained an undisputed reputation as one of the most relaxed and professional PMs the industry has to offer.

During his career, Wannebo has received a Pernelli Award for Production Manager of the Year, a CMA (Country Music Association) Award with the same title and following that, a lifetime achievement from the Parnellis too.

“That was really something cool!” he smiled.

His story began in 1976, when he had a small lighting rental company in Portland, Oregon.

He worked with artist Randy Hanson who did a Jimmi Hendrix tribute show called Machine Gun. “Sometime in the late 70s, we wound up at the Old Waldorf in San Francisco, a club downtown,” said Wannebo. “In the audience was [Film Director] Francis Ford Coppola, and the next thing I know Randy is working on the soundtrack to Apocalypse Now and he’s in the credits to the film!” Wannebo then went

EVENT FOCUS: Kenny Chesney

Opposite: Kenny Chesney greeted 55,000 fans in Pittsburgh. Below: Nexo’s STM system was the PA of choice for rental company, Morris Light & Sound; The tailgating community; Chesney has had a touring career spanning two decades; Nexo loudspeakers were also configured for delay towers at the Heinz Field Stadium; FOH Engineer, Chris Rabold mixed the show on an SSL Live L500 console.

on to work with Van Halen, Hall and Oates, ZZ Top and David Bowie. It wasn’t until he got a call from Faith Hill and Tim McGraw that his country music debut began. “I took over as Tim’s Production Manager and Kenny Chesney opened for him in 2001. When the tour finished Kenny was ready to start headlining. 11 years went by and I’ve been with Kenny ever since,” Wannebo stated.

“What we have here is an interesting tour, in that we must prepare for a multitude of venues.

We play sheds, arenas and we play stadiums; it’s part of the design challenge.”

There’s certainly a special relationship between Wannebo and his preferred rental company, Morris. He continued: “They’re a small company, but they service us well. When we get through our design phase they’ve always come

through with whatever we’ve needed.”

Morris CEO Haskell added: “When you have a Production Manager who has already been inducted into the Hall of Fame, that helps everything run smoothly!”

Perhaps the success of Chesney’s touring productions is in part due to the longevity of the people who work for him. The notion of trust between these colleagues is not only

13

EVENT FOCUS: Kenny Chesney

Below: Award-winning Production Manager, Ed Wannebo; Morris Light & Sound is the first rental company in North America to have toured the full Nexo STM system and the SSL Live L500 in unison; Morris Light & Sound CEO, David Haskell with Nexo’s Ginny Goudy and Piers Plaskitt of Solid State Logic; Chris Rabold at FOH.

obvious, but also historical. “Morris started off as a management company; the founder, Dale Morris is an artist manager and I toured with the group Alabama - who Dale looked after - for 17 years. In the beginning instead of renting, Dale wanted to make sure he had the best gear possible and in order to do that, and control the environment each day, Alabama became the first country group that really toured with a full production,” explained Haskell.

The move enabled Haskell to concentrate on investing into some of the most powerful and reliable equipment in the current market place, namely the Nexo STM modular line array system and Solid State Logic’s mixing Live consoles.

Said Haskell: “The relationship we’ve had with Nexo since the beginning is a big part of STM being on a huge tour like this. We’re the first company to have taken the system out on tour in North America, so working

“Simply put, the throw of this system is unbelievable...”

- John Mills, System Engineer on Nexo’s STM.

“One thing led to another and we bought a PA and then got into lighting. Originally the company was set up as Morris Leasing, with the sole purpose of serving Dale’s artists. We were the in-house company that provided production for his management clients, then five years ago - it’s been a business almost 25 years - I took the company over. We’d amassed all of this equipment and I thought we should really make a go of the rental business outside of the camp.”

14

together was paramount. We had some R&D involvement because with every brand new system and brand new box, there has to be a dialogue that myself, John [Mills, Morris Light & Sound System Tech] and all of my engineers have. Francois [Deffarges, Nexo R&D Director] totally understood that, and it’s been very open, in real time as we’ve toured. Nexo have been very supportive and also very quick to act. Their service has been impeccable.”

Being a flagship rental company in the US for

the French manufacturer has been a key part to the success of this very high profile tour. The STM system has of course garnered a strong reputation in live concert sound in mainland Europe, but to take it out on what is essentially the biggest tour in North America is somewhat of a statement and a testament.

Continued Haskell: “We’ve very happy with the STM. I liked the way it sounded, but its versatility is what really got me - the modularity of it. Historically we’re a ‘big box’ company, but now whenever we finish a big tour, we can break the system up into pieces and place it on smaller shows.

“Kenny is so hands-on with everything in his life, not just the touring aspect. He looks at every part of the design, every lighting cue, video element and sound design. If he’s unhappy, trust me, I would be the first one to know!” he laughed.

THE FORTH ELEMENT Replacing talented System Engineer, Mark Bollenberg, who worked on 25 of The Big Revival shows, is the aforementioned Morris Light & Sound Director of Training and Development, John Mills. His job is to continue the smooth running of what Nexo itself describes as the ‘fourth element’ in the STM compatible loudspeaker modules, the M28 twoway loudspeaker cabinet. This latest piece of

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EVENT FOCUS: Kenny Chesney

Below: FOH Engineer Chris Rabold described Chesney’s show as one of the most fun he’s ever mixed.

the puzzle is what’s exciting the audio crew.

The M28 is the same width as an STM M46 main cabinet and can be arrayed as part of the existing loudspeakers or used independently.

In this case, it’s a welcome addition to the mammoth PA, and is used as downfill. “Scale through modulation; the beauty of this system is just that,” stated Mills. “Array length is going to change some of the lower frequencies and how much there is, but tonally it’s really great. It has so much high frequency power too that I can do whatever I want with it.

“When we first made the move from our previous rig to a Nexo system, we had 16 relay boxes, now we only have 12 and I’ve turned them down. Simply put, the throw of this system is unbelievable.

“We’ve done a few shows where we’ve got to throw 500ft back with no delays, and it does it - and still sounds fairly hi-fi at the back.

The vocal still sounds like it’s right in front of you; it’s pretty unreal. The physical flying of it is astronomically faster than almost anything out there too,” he added.

The main array (firing forward) comprises 44 Nexo M46’s, 44 B112’s and three M28’s. The Aux Array (aimed approximately 40 degrees off stage) comprises 30-36 M46’s (depending on venue), 30-36 B112’s and three M28’s. The 270 degree array (aimed 70-90 degrees off stage depending on venue) is made up of 24 M28’s.

Flown subs are 44 S118’s (deployed as one for front firing, one for rear firing per row, 12 rows deep, for cardioid pattern control). Ground subs are 16 RS18’s designed in stacks of two in cardioid mode. Aux fills (the video screen creates an obstacle for the 270 degree hang so this 16

ground stack cover the seats shadowed by the screen) are four Geo S12’s firing approximately 45-60 degrees offstage, again depending on venue. Front fills comprise 20 PS10R2’s and the two delay towers boast 12 M28’s on each tower.

The whole system is powered by NX4x4 amplifiers and six Lake LM44’s drive the system; two at FOH taking console inputs and distributing L / R, subs, fill signals via Dante / fibre to two LM44’s on each side of stage.

The first takes the LRSF info and routes to their respective outputs. The second drives the delay towers and two spare outputs.

Continued Mills: “The support from Nexo in France has been amazing. Any time we’ve had a question, they’ve been there with an answer.

Francois has personally called me in the middle of the night - his time - to make sure things are going okay.”

Renowned FOH Engineer, Chris Rabold - last seen in TPi mixing Lady Gaga’s recent world tour - is also a big fan of the STM system, and its new addition. “The M28 really is just an extension that’s voiced very similarly to the M46, it gives us that little extra bit at the bottom of the hang.

It’s very, very controllable too. Kenny spends the majority of his time in front of the PA so those boxes are in a critical zone. A change on this tour has been adding more subs, but I had to explain to people that we weren’t doing that to add more sub volume; we were doing that so that we could improve overall coverage, and really work on an arc to smooth it all out.”

SOLID STATE OF MIND As one of the world’s top touring sound engineers, Rabold is not a bad unofficial

spokesperson to have touring - and loving your products. From his own position of FOH - completely unphased by the relentless rain which is currently engulfing the stadium and turining it into more of an Olympic swimming pool - describes mixing Chesney’s show as “one of the most fun mixes I’ve ever been given the opportunity to do. It’s like mixing rock ‘n’ roll; a bunch of guitar solos which isn’t country music in a traditional sense.”

His desk on this occasion is of course the SSL Live L500, one of the most highly anticipated pro audio releases in recent years. Famous for world-class sound recording, SSL is now finding its place - quite comfortably - in the live sound environment, on some of the most high-profile tours of 2015 - Sam Smith, Ed Sheeran and now Kenny Chesney to name but a few.

“I don’t see how you could not have an interest if SSL put out a console for the live market,” said Rabold. “It’s such an exciting time in audio. I’ve turned a lot of my outboard off from using this desk. One place, for example, would be from the dynamics. I’m convinced SSL could sell the dynamics on this console as a standalone product! It’s just such an incredibly flexible desk. I find a lot of sound engineers will often list features for why they think a desk is superior and sound is somewhere around point six or seven. Where as with this thing, the bottom line is that it sounds phenomenal. And that’s what we’re getting paid to do - to provide audio for our clients and for the audience. SSL really does sound as good as you would expect, in fact, it sounds better than I’d hoped.

“Another great thing about this console is that there’s three ways to do everything. That

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18/06/2015 16:32

EVENT FOCUS: Kenny Chesney

Below: “Its versatility is what really got me - the modularity of it,” said CEO of Morris, David Haskell, on the Nexo STM modular line array system. Thanks to the addition of the smaller M28, seen here in a downfill configuration, the various STM components can now service a variety of tour sizes.

has actually been the biggest stumbling block for me because at first I would start to do something and then realise ‘oh God, there’s three different ways to do what I want!” he laughed.

Haskell also noted: “I’ve always been a fan of SSL. Morris has a recording studio too, so I’m very familiar with the SSL family of products.

When the rumblings came out that they were getting ready to do a live console, I thought it was amazing news. We saw it, we looked back and forth - as you do with every new piece of gear - but hands down, SSL has done it; there is no question. The architecture and sonic quality of this desk is unparalleled. It’s a piece of art. To date, we haven’t had any issues on the road and I see a lot more of their consoles in our future.”

And, just as Haskell and Mills expressed their gratitude to the support from Nexo, Rabold is able to echo the sentiment for SSL. “The support from SSL has been 24/7. I didn’t expect it to go as far as it did, but the level of service they provide is amazing. It exceeded my expectations, to the point where If have a curiosity question, I want to call the guys up because I know for a fact they’re going to call me back!”

THE LIVE TRANSITION Like the Nexo system, the artist, sound engineer and rental company are all happy with SSL and the way it’s handling the demands of a multi-venue, cross country tour. And, like Nexo and Morris, SSL is a relatively small company, which is able to provide top notch, handtailored quality to its clients. But how, exactly, did the most sought after and debatably most expensive mixing console in the world become a sound investment for the touring rental market?

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CEO of SSL US, Piers Plaskitt explained: “Since the 1980s, any manufacturer in the audio console business saw SSL as the company to beat.”

And Plaskitt should know - he’s worked in professional audio since the early ‘70s, when he was somewhat accidentally hired by The Beatles’ Apple Recording Studios in London.

“Six weeks into that job the chief engineer called me into his office and said, ‘we need to have a talk.’ I thought, ‘oh God, I’m fired’. But he said, ‘I’ve got good news and bad news - I’m leaving’, and I said, ‘is that the good news or the bad news?’ He said ‘well, I’ve recommended that you take over my position’.”

so the company’s progression on both sides of the Atlantic is in good hands.

“The real challenge,” said Plaskitt, “is to influence the influencers, and you do that by investing a considerable amount of time with them to understand their needs and get them comfortable with your product. Several years ago we became aware of an individual in London who was at Queen Mary University and had published a paper on automatic mixing, a concept that was very interesting to our R&D people. We had decided to get into the live business, and so we brought this individual in.

It turned out that in addition to being a brilliant scientist, he was also a FOH engineer who goes

“I’m convinced SSL could sell the dynamics on this console as a standalone product! It’s just such an incredibly flexible desk...”

- Chris Rabold, FOH Engineer From there on out, Plaskitt’s career in pro audio was cemented. He moved to an American studio, and was later hired by SSL. Even a four year stint at running his own diner couldn’t keep him out of the business for long. “When I rejoined the company in mid-2015 we were very fortunate to have Peter Gabriel as an owner as he not only understands the business but also uses our gear. His involvement in the company extends into suggesting features like Eyeconix on the Live console.”

Gabriel was a driving force in transitioning the brand into the touring world and Plaskitt admires him as both an artist and a businessman. His return to SSL was a no-brainer,

by the name of Enrique Perez Gonzales.

“Coincidentally, he also happened to grow up in his parents’ touring company. Enrique is a rather understated individual and impressed everyone SSL, especially our senior R&D people.

Shortly after the interview, we brought him on to help pioneer the development of the live console. He did a brilliant job, so soon after we promoted him to Head of R&D and later, to the board as Chief Technology Officer.”

Continued Plaskitt: “When we were nearly ready, we approached Morris Light & Sound. As a company, Morris is a thought- leader rather than a follower. They went to Chris Rabold and said ‘we really think that you should try this out

EVENT FOCUS: Kenny Chesney

Below: Chesney is one of the most popular touring acts in North America.

for the Kenny Chesney tour’, so we delivered a console to his house and let him play with it.

He gave us a tonne of really useful feedback but what I think really tempted him is that we deliver exceptional sound quality coupled with an intuitive user interface. We’re proud of the fact that we don’t require you to work in one particular fashion. You can do things your way, so it’s never learning from scratch,” explained Plaskitt.

KENNY LIKES IT THAT WAY… As dusk falls upon the stadium and the flood lights go out, the roar of Chesney’s ‘no shoes nation’ could surely be heard for miles around

20

the venue grounds. The singer appears via zip wire on a chair which enables him to get closer to his fans and the first track Drink It Up fires out over the mammoth STM system to great applause. The show is already a success.

Looking at his giant tour map, covered in a zigzag of geographical and stadium feats, in his backstage office, Production Manager, Ed Wannebo has the last word: “Everybody here, all of our crew chiefs and engineers are first rate. It’s nice to work with good people all the time and we’re blessed; it truly is a family. As big as this machine is, you can still pick up on the family vibe. Kenny likes it that way.”

The Pittsburgh show grossed over US $5m,

which is almost as impressive as there being zero complaints about the sound when 55,000 country fans had been partying for 48 hours in storm showers and summer heat. This audio formula it seems is working brilliantly for this touring family, and if the fans are happy whatever the weather - what more could the ‘People’s Superstar’ ask for?

TPi Photos: Brian Petersen www.kennychesney.com http://morrislightandsound.com http://nexo-sa.com www.solid-state-logic.com

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26/03/2015 12:00

EVENT FOCUS: 8th Knight of Illumination Awards Below: Financial Times arts pages production journalist, David Cheal and TPi Editor, Kelly Murray have been announced as new KOI Judges.

NEW SPONSORS, NEW JUDGES, NEW ORGANISERS & NEW CATEGORY, MOST EXCITING KOI TO DATE. This autumn, the Knight of Illumination Awards (KOI) returns to London’s glamorous art deco Troxy club for its annual glittering ceremony. Now in its eigth year, the crossindustry event is a celebration of the creative talents of international lighting and digital content designers working in the UK across TV, Theatre and Concert Touring and Events, and has swiftly become one of the most highly anticipated events in the industry calendar.

Each year KOI grows thanks to highprofile industry sponsors, record numbers of submissions and, as of last year, national media attention, with The Guardian newspaper hailing it as the lighting industry’s very own major awards event.

Speaking of prominent sponsors, KOI stalwarts OSRAM, Ambersphere Solutions, Hawthorn, Robert Juliat, Ayrton, MA Lighting and XL Video show their support year after year with the 2015 incarnation no exception.

And this year FIX8Group and Light Initiative will be joining the roster, having been brought on board by the event’s new manager, The Fifth Estate.

The team is working on behalf of the KOI committee, comprising lighting manufacturer Clay Paky, the STLD (Society of Television Lighting and Design), the ALD (Association of Lighting Designers) and award-winning Lighting Designer, Durham Marenghi and his partner Jennie.

So, new year, new sponsors, and for the first time ever the fresh recruits will be supporting the awards in a more creative vein, with Light Initiative and FIX8Group designing and manufacturing special elements of the event itself.

Controllable LED specialist Light Initiative has big plans for the table centrepieces on the night, details of which are very much under wraps until October rolls around, whilst innovative visual production house FIX8Group is working its magic on the awards presentation.

KOI 2015 also sees a shake-up of judging panels, with new faces added to the 2015 process. For Concert Touring and Events, Editor of live event technology publication, Total Production International (TPi), Kelly Murray, and Financial Times arts pages production journalist 22

David Cheal will join Coral Cooper, Scottie Sanderson, and Chairman Sarah Rushton-Read.

“I’m very pleased to have been asked to be a KOI judge alongside some leading industry names in order to award recognition to the designers who are truly enhancing our experience of live music,” said Murray. “I’m looking forward to seeing the bespoke and beautiful paths these creative experts and technological artists will take during the 2015 season.”

Echoing this sentiment is Cheal, who has been writing about music for more than 30 years. He began his career as a contributor to the weekly music paper Echoes in the 1980s before moving to The Daily Telegraph in 1990, where he spent 20 years contributing concert reviews, book reviews, features and interviews.

“I’m delighted to have been chosen as a judge for these awards. One of my first experiences of live music was, as a child, watching Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture with cannons and fireworks, which was a terrific introduction to the idea of a concert as a spectacle. I think the visual aspects of live music are vital to the whole experience, so this judging process will be a great chance to look more carefully at the importance of lighting.”

The Theatre category is also undergoing its biennial switch-up. Panels of senior critics from national newspapers and the leading specialist arts magazines serve a two year term, recommending the finest lighting work that they have seen personally up and down the country, under the guidance of Arts Desk critic and Chair David Benedict. This year Georgina Brown from The Mail on Sunday, Richard Fairman from The Financial Times and Mark Monaghan from The Daily Telegraph will be taking their turn, joining plays/musicals, opera and dance respectively.

As well as continually widening its judging panels, KOI continually broadens its scope of recognition. The KOI Awards has always prided itself on celebrating lighting designers of all styles and budgets, as Bernie Davis, TV category judge and member of the STLD explained of the TV lighting awards: “There are many different styles of lighting for camera, and when there is only one lighting award it will inevitably go to large budget highly produced drama or the block-busting entertainment event, whereas

most TV lighting designers do not work on that sort of production. With the inauguration of the Knight of Illumination Awards we were able to categorise more, separating out the eyecatching light entertainment series from the dayto-day small studio lighting, and the TV drama from the big one-off events. All these categories draw on different lighting skills and techniques, and are worthy of recognition.”

This recognition of that show design comes all in shapes and form was reinforced across KOI last year, with the introduction of a new video award in all three categories.

“This award is so important as the worlds of lighting and video design now often cross paths and in some cases merge,” said Executive Director of the ALD Ian Saunders. “This requires lighting and video/projection designers to create an understanding and language in order to successfully combine the two disciplines.”

And now the awards has a new club subcategory in Concert Touring and Events.

Aiming to celebrate the achievements of lighting designers at all stages of touring and proposed to the committee by Sarah Rushton-Read, the category will recognise lighting designers who are often touring with new bands. As new bands equal tight budgets, the LDs often have just a floor package and a venue’s house rig to make an impact with.

“Often these designers that are touring club style venues have to be extremely resourceful and inventive to make their design work in every space,” said Rushton-Read. “A well thought out floor package can be key to the design’s success.”

The new ‘club’ category in Concert Touring and Events is already shaping up to be a huge success, with submissions flooding in thick and fast. In fact, all three of the categories have been inundated with commendable shows, testament to the fact that KOI is the de facto ceremony for applauding the hard work and innovation of the entertainment lighting and video industry. Cross your fingers that an invite drops into your inbox as it’s going to be an unmissable night.

The Knight of Illumination Awards 2015 takes place on Sunday 4 October at the Troxy, London.

TPi www.knight-of-illumination.com/categories

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7/6/15 9:46 AM

EVENT FOCUS: Meyer Sound’s Leopard Demo

MEYER SOUND’S LEOPARD & 900-LFC OVER THE LAST TWO MONTHS MEYER SOUND HAS HELD A SERIES OF EUROPEAN DEMONSTRATIONS TO SHOWCASE ITS NEW LEOPARD ACTIVE LINE ARRAY & 900-LFC SYSTEM. THE UK EVENT WAS HELD IN THE KINGSGATE CONFERENCE CENTRE, PETERBOROUGH, FOR TWO WEEKS. SIMON DUFF REPORTS. At Prolight + Sound in April this year Meyer Sound unveiled the Leopard and 900-LFC, the newest members of Meyer Sound’s award-winning line array and low frequency series. The intention behind Leopard is to make it the UPA, one of Meyer Sound’s first sound reinforcement series, of line array and to complement the Leo and Lyon range.

Leopard is an active loudspeaker containing two nine-inch long-excursion LF drivers and one three-inch compression driver, coupled to a Constant Directivity horn through a patented Ribbon Emulation Manifold.

Each loudspeaker is 69cm long, 28cm high, and 56cm deep, weighs 34kg, and hosts three channels of open-loop Class D amplification. Leopard is complemented for low end enhancement by the Meyer Sound 900-LFC, which is a 64cm cube weighing 61kg, and has a range of 31Hz to 125Hz. A multi-purpose system, Leopard and 900-LFC is aimed at the mid-sized touring market, 24

live theatre, house of worship, and live performance installations from symphony music to heavy metal.

“Every element is brand new in the Leopard system,” said Roger Harpum, Sales Manager at Meyer Sound, UK and Ireland. “We get 10 times less distortion with significantly more power than similar products in the same class, but Leopard’s common ground with Leo and Lyon is that they all share the same sort of drivers.

They have the same tonal signature so they’re extremely able to blend with each other. The rigging is the same type, the transitions are well thought of - very seamless - and all of these horns have been designed with each other in mind.”

Harpum likewise extolled the virtues of the 900-LFC. “It is very similar to the Meyer Sound 1100-LFC, but it can be controlled a little higher up in the frequency, with a slightly extended upper range. The quality is the same; no one would accept the 900 just because it’s smaller

than the 1,100, without having optimum performance. It was a big challenge for our designers, but once again, Pablo Espinosa and his team in the RandD department did a great job.”

The KingsGate Conference is one of the largest and best equipped houses of worship and conference centres in the Midlands, with a 1,200 seater auditorium. The set up for the two-week demo run was a rig consisting of eight Leopards per side flown, four ground stacked 900-LFCs per side, and a Galileo Callisto 616 array processor. The venue’s own DiGiCo SD9 was used to mix FOH, with Meyer Sound technical support from sound engineers Oscar Meijer and Miguel Lourtie on hand for the two week run.

Harpum gave a short introduction at the start of the demonstration day, to explain the history and theory of Leopard, before moving into the auditorium. The listening session began with eight Leopards per side and one 900-LFC

EVENT FOCUS: Meyer Sound’s Leopard Demo

Opposite: Meyer Sound’s new Leopard line array at KingsGate Conference Centre, Peterborough. Below: Roger Harpum, Sales Manager at Meyer Sound; Meyer Sound’s new Leopard active line array system, complete with two 900-LCF subwoofers.

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initially used - all in native mode; the system flat with no EQ. A range of varying musical styles was used, from jazz to classical and EDM, played off CD and DVD. From Michael Buble singing, then Joshua Bell playing JS Bach, the early demo gave a very good idea of the natural range, dynamic, and power of Leopard. The remaining 900-LFC’s were then added and a choice selection of EDM played, including Daft Punk’s Doin’ it Right, then Goldfrapp and Propaganda. Participants were then invited to mix the on-stage drummer, Dave Charlton, who is closely associated with the venue.

The sound throughout the auditorium was nothing short of stunning and astounding.

Powerful, cohesive, detailed, stable across the frequency spectrum, and entirely natural sounding, providing exceptional phase coherence and consistent coverage.

Throughout, Harpum and his team ran the entire system flat with no EQ; it was all there.

Leopard 900-LFC is a game changer.

Leopard sales so far include notable purchases by Bright Norway AS and UK’s Sonalyst who have officially become the first companies to purchase Leopard. For Sonalyst, one UK’s leading production suppliers for comedy and theatre shows, Leopard’s powerto-size ratio and Sonalyst’s experience with the Leo products made its purchase decision a no-brainer. “Just when we thought that quality in audio production had reached its peak, Meyer Sound released a product representing a giant step forward for the industry,” said Rory Madden, owner of Sonalyst. “We were astonished when we first heard Leo and Lyon and we couldn’t be happier to become the first company to bring Leopard to the UK.” Harpum concluded: “People are very much

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impressed by the capabilities of the system, how musical it sounds, how powerful it is, with so much headroom. One box is 34kg, so you have an excellent power-to-weight ratio. Over the two weeks we have had over 40 industry stalwarts come to Peterborough. World class audio professionals have found it quite hard to believe that we have used no EQ on the system.

So really I advise people, just listen.”

TPi

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EVENT FOCUS: Liverpool Sound City

LIVERPOOL SOUND CITY: ALL LOUD ON THE NORTH WESTERN FRONT WHILE THE VACCINES PERFORMED SOME FRIENDLY TUNES FOR FRIENDLY PEOPLE ON LIVERPOOL SOUND CITY’S MAIN STAGE, WE WERE WATCHING SWANS WITH THE REST OF THE MASOCHISTS AND STRANGEHEADS. Headlining the festival’s Baltic Stage - a decayed and temporarily non-abandoned warehouse - Michael Gira and co. produced a two and a half hour wall of skeletal systemshattering noise in an apparent attempt to summon a nameless and primordial spider God. How we escaped without contracting terminal tinnitus still eludes me.

TPi hadn’t experienced a crowd like it before; one individual wandered in with a pained expression, hands sheltering ears, and stayed for the entire duration like that. Another sat cross-legged, eyes shut - microcosmic of how meditative the audience were as a whole.

Gira’s incantations - delivered in the style of a half witchdoctor, half drunken uncle coupled with the band’s abrasive aesthetic and hypnotic, monolithic arrangements, perfectly complemented Sound City’s new home at the Liverpool docklands.

Nathaniel Hanna, Managing Director of Stax Creations, was part of the team responsible for the site’s dystopian adornment: “We were 26

pulled in with the Liverpool Sound City project because they moved to a permanent, unique venue for the first time. They asked for our input so we proposed a post-apocalyptic theme, sort of Mad Max meets The Warriors. What we provided was a very rustic aesthetic, mainly manifested in a couple of stage backdrops, and a hangout zone by way of a New York block party, which makes sense due to the historical links between the two cities.

“We also installed an [artificial] atom bomb in the centre of the site, and did a lot of brand activation across the water. I think it’s important that a company like ours can provide a more immersive experience, which is what both customers and festival organisers are looking for now.”

As we walked around appreciating Stax Creations’ contribution to the site, drinking alcoholic beer and doing some swearing, we met with Liverpool Sound City CEO Dave Pichilingi and he was gracious enough to give us a few words on how the festival had been

received: “It’s been amazing. There isn’t another word for it really. We were nervous and excited in equal measures in the lead up to the event, but when I came down to the site on Friday you could really feel the atmosphere; it was busy and the crowds were flowing well. The response from people online and the audience has been overwhelmingly positive. The only real complaints we’ve received have been regarding the sound bleed between some of the smaller stages, and that we used a waste management company from Wiltshire instead of Liverpool.”

When I told him about the stillness of the Swans crowd and how intensely they were listening he agreed that Sound City’s audience tends to be more quietly appreciative, but added that: “They do go mad when they feel they should go mad.

THE IDIOSYNCRATIC CLARENCE CLARITY “We had the Tim Peaks Diner on the Baltic stage after The Flaming Lips had finished and they didn’t think it’d work in the space, as the largest

EVENT FOCUS: Liverpool Sound City

Opposite: Liverpool Sound City was a success again in 2015 due in part to its various locations and themes offering the crowds an abundance of choice.

Below: Stax Creations’ Chris Morris (left) and Nathaniel Hanna (right) with Tom Lawson of the UK Festival Awards.

gigs they’ve done in the past were for about 100 people tops. When I got there, there were about 700 people Northern Soul dancing around the warehouse. It was like a bizarre, trippy movie.”

Unfortunately we didn’t experience the festival’s conference sessions firsthand, which took place on the Thursday and Friday at the Titanic Hotel across the street, but Pichilingi asserted that they went off in a similarly phenomenal fashion. “Mark E. Smith turned up with his usual inimitable style. He had so much to say and was in a great mood. He talked about how his favourite thing to do nowadays is watch The X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent, and that

he’d love for The Fall to play the Eurovision Song Contest. Beyond that he gave some great insights into the journey of the band and how he feels his current line-up is the best they’ve ever had.

“Julian Cope and Wayne Coyne were amazing too, but what stole the conference in my opinion was the talk from Edwyn Collins and Grace Maxwell. The story of both their professional journey as artist and manager as well as their personal one as husband and wife was really captivating.

“We also had Joe Duddell, the Manchesterbased composer and professor, re-imagine three

of his songs with a four-piece string quartet at the end of his talk. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house.

“Some people might ask ‘What has all that got to do with understanding the music business?’ but I would argue it has everything to do with it. Putting those human stories to the forefront inspires people to go out and make music, start a record label, become a manager, do whatever,” concluded Pichilingi.

TPi www.liverpoolsoundcity.co.uk

27

EVENT FOCUS: Protec

PROTEC INTRODUCES ITS SPECIAL PROJECTS DIVISION AT THE MIDDLE EAST EVENT AWARDS 2015 THE DUBAI HEADQUARTERED COMPANY INCLUDES ROBOTICS AND MOTION TRACKING IN ITS NEW DIVISION

The Middle East’s largest event rental company introduced its latest expansion that promises to catapult the region’s events industry into a global influencer.

The company’s Special Projects will be a dedicated department operated by highly skilled professionals who will invent, innovate and devise new and exciting ways of using technology within the corporate events world and exhibitions.

Robotics and Motion Tracking are two of the new technologies that will fall under the wing of Protec Special Projects. Robotics will be the latest introduction to the Middle East’s events industry and its applications to creating unique and dynamic events will be profound. Special Projects will be developing different ideas and ways to use these technologies effectively for various live brand experiences (including exhibitions). Having already introduced its new 28

BlackTrax motion tracking solution that delivers 6D positioning in realtime to controllers for automated technologies into a few events in Dubai, the new department will now control its development to increase and enhance its use.

Protec exhibited its new robots together with BlackTrax at the recently held Middle East Events Show in Dubai. Integrating the two technologies created some unique effects at the exhibition. The company feels certain that this is the beginning of the future of the events industry. While the use of robotics, especially in the rock ’n’ roll industry, isn’t new, its integration with other new technologies in the corporate event world to create impactful experiences will be what drives this forward.

“Protec has been involved in thousands of memorable shows and has been a pioneer in its creative use of technology. Using technology imaginatively to support our clients’ creative

ideas has always been an important factor in determining the relationships we now share with our clients. Protec Special Projects is the result of channelling that creative zest into reality. It’s exciting times in our industry’s development and we’re proud to introduce and drive this new phase forward. This is also a new beginning for our clients, many of which are based overseas, who will now have a larger technological palette to work with when developing events for this region,” said Stephen Lakin, Protec’s Founder and CEO. Protec has been the cornerstone of the events industry in the region since 1999 and over the last decade; we’ve built our position as industry leaders on a solid foundation of innovation, creativity and an eye for the extraordinary. Protec’s existing departments which include Audio, Video, Lighting, Staging and Sets, Automation, Trussing, Backline, and

EVENT FOCUS: Protec

Below: Stephen Lakin, CEO and founder of Protec; The new division will offer robotics and motion tracking as new technologies.

Conference Solutions are already well established and equipped with the largest stocks of equipment available locally. “We strongly feel that this latest development will give our clients worldwide more opportunities to ensure their creativity is supported by our technology and take their events to the next level up”, he added.

“We look forward to another exciting stage of producing more creative and globally acclaimed events for our clients, and maintain our reputation for being one of the world’s largest and most reliable event rental companies offering total technical, and staging solutions.”

Protec was founded by industry heavyweight Stephen Lakin in 1999. It is his experience of over three decades, combined with his creativity and solid reputation that have propelled Protec to becoming one of the world’s largest and most reliable event rental companies offering total technical and staging solutions, from design, through planning, to implementation.

Protec has 13 highly experienced project managers ably supported by 114 full time staff, half of which are well respected professionals from the UK, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa, with decades of experience in the corporate and live entertainment industries across the world and within the region.

TPi www.productiontec.com

29

EVENT FOCUS: Painting With Light

A PRESTIGIOUS UNVEILING THE NEW PAINTING WITH LIGHT OFFICE IS OFFICIALLY OPENED BY THE MAYOR OF GENK Lighting and visual design practice, Painting With Light’s new office in the Paardenstallen (stables) at the C-MINE development in Genk, Belgium was officially opened by Genk Mayor, Wim Dries. The restoration of the listed building - once home to the Winterslag mine’s working ponies - has been a three year labour of love by Painting with Light founder and CEO Luc Peumans, working together with local architect Ruben Hermans. It also represents completion of the final element of Stage 1 of the wider C-MINE project - led by Genk City Council - to regenerate the site of the former mine, which is right at the heart of Genk’s rich industrial heritage.

Peumans, one of the best known show lighting and multimedia designers in Benelux said: “I was delighted with just how many people came to the event to share an incredibly proud moment in the company’s development and also a great personal landmark. It’s not just the opening of a new office, we are starting a new chapter in Painting with Light’s history.

The fact it’s also related to the overall C-MINE regeneration adds yet more resonance to the occasion so there are multiple exciting elements.”

For Peumans, the new office project actually 30

started in 2008 when he first acquired the building which he had always liked even when in a state of complete dereliction. “It had an amazing aura about it and a certain charisma that really appealed to me, so I just wanted to breathe a new life into it,” he explained.

The rebuilding and construction work was intense and started in 2011.

In addition to launching the new office, Painting With Light revealed its brand new corporate ID, including vibrant new logo and new look website. The vibrant logo suggests the colour, imagination and fun that Painting with Light can bring to any performance or entertainment concept. The new office launch event was so popular with invitees that the one night that was originally planned had to be expanded to two, to accommodate over 500 guests who rocked-up to celebrate with Peumans and his team of 11 full time staff.

After a lively speech by Wim Dries and a Q&A session between Peumans and TV presenter Cynthia Reekmans, guests were treated to a short video introducing Painting with Light and then a special visual show in the Paardenstallen Studio / event space, with lighting supplied by PRG EML and lasers from Laser Forum in The Netherlands. The laser

show featured a special narrative incorporating the story of the building, culminating in the presentation of the new Painting With Light logo in 3D with its strap line ‘Your link to dazzle and shine’.

The building’s permanent interior and exterior architectural lighting scheme - designed

by Peumans - was enhanced for the opening event evenings by four of PRG’s new Icon Beam fixtures, which were installed on the roof to light the way for guests. “The building - and the restoration project - has been a huge source of inspiration for all of us,” said Peumans, “Having an invigorating workspace for the team was always a fundamental part of my plan for moving the company forward. The space works perfectly as another complimentary element uniting the synergies and talents that make up Painting With Light”.

Peumans founded the company in 1999 and has designed lighting, video and stage sets for some of the most imaginatively ambitious music, theatre and television productions across Benelux and internationally. Plans for 2016 include focussing on increasing the international workbase and the opening of a new office in the Middle East.

TPi www.paintingwithlight.be

X-LINE ADVANCE Forward-thinking line-array design starts here.

The result of rigorous R&D, the introduction of the new X-Line Advance family sees Electro-Voice push the parameters of line-array performance to the next level.

X-Line Advance utilizes state-of-the-art EVengineered components and incorporates a range of innovative new features, all of which work together to surpass the capabilities of other line arrays, and all in a significantly more compact, flexible, and quickerto-set-up package.

KEY FEATURES: • An unprecedented performance-to-size ratio for installed and concert sound applications.

• Advanced audio quality and control via a host of new and exclusive EVengineered technologies, including next-generation Hydra wave-shaping devices, high-output transducers, and proprietary FIR-Drive optimization.

• New-look EV industrial design and new Integrated Rigging System combine streamlined appearance with simplified setup.

The first wave of X-Line Advance products includes two full-range elements (X1-212/90 & X2-212/90) and the X12-128 — the most powerful subwoofer EV has ever developed.

Designed, engineered, and tested for ultimate reliability by Electro-Voice in the USA. Learn more at: www.electrovoice.com/X-LineAdvance

EVENT FOCUS: IOSH at Glastonbury

THE IOSH AT GLASTONBURY ORGANISERS OF THE GLASTONBURY FESTIVAL DEMONSTRATED HOW THEY LOOK AFTER 135,000 MUSIC FANS AND STAFF TO MEMBERS OF THE INSTITUTION OF OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH (IOSH) DURING A SITE VISIT. IT IS HOPED THE INSTITUTION’S MEMBERS WILL BE ABLE TO TRANSFER WHAT THEY LEARNED TO EVENTS THAT THEY RUN. IOSH MEDIA OFFICER, MARCUS BOOCOCK, ATTENDED THE VISIT.

The Glastonbury Festival is over for another year. Around 135,000 music fans watched their favourite bands and witnessed a wide variety of performances over the five days, while millions more watched on TV. But while the festival is famed for the entertainment that is provided, what is less well-documented is the behind-the-scenes work that takes place to ensure all visitors, staff and volunteers are kept safe and healthy.

Tim Roberts, Operations Director at the festival, heads a team which has a responsibility for the smooth running of the event at Worthy Farm, Somerset. He admits that there is a common perception that Glastonbury Festival is a “crazy, unregulated environment” but says this could not be further from the truth. He said: 32

“The reality is very different. It is a professional operation that is in its 45th year of delivery.

We build, feed and entertain a city with no permanent infrastructure. If it wasn’t, we would not still be putting the festival on.”

FEW INCIDENTS Despite the many challenges that the organisers face, the number of serious incidents which happen at the festival is low. In 2014, there were four reports made under RIDDOR (Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations) guidelines.

Roberts spoke about how such figures are kept low during a visit to the site by members of the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health’s (IOSH) Sports Ground and Events group. The visit was organised to give group

members guidance which they could transfer to their own work.

Roberts, a committee member of the IOSH group, added: “We have 45,000 people working three-and-a-half million hours. When you add the public to that, you have 19.5 million hours on site. We believe that having four reports under RIDDOR in 2014 are impressive figures, especially when you consider we don’t have a permanent workforce.

“We are producing one of the greatest entertainment events on the planet out of rural Somerset, with a temporary workforce of many thousands. That is no easy task. We are very proud of our record here.”

But keeping so many people safe and healthy is no easy feat. There are many challenges which stand in the way of organisers.

EVENT FOCUS: IOSH at Glastonbury

Opposite and below: The site visit to Glastonbury was organised to give group members of the IOSH live event and festival production guidance which they could transfer to their own work.

CROWD MANAGEMENT Managing huge crowds on the huge 1,100-acre site inherently brings with it some risks. Roberts explained that the biggest concern is not when the main acts are performing on The Pyramid Stage in front of the majority of the crowd. It is between those times or after, when people are making their way to different areas.

To add to the risk has been the large amount of vehicles moving around the site at the same time and the lack or permanent infrastructure, including roads around the grounds.

Roberts said that this has been a top safety priority. To reduce the risk they have created traffic-only and pedestrian-only areas. They have also changed the way drainage is dealt with, to reduce the number of vehicles needed on site.

Structural safety is also a challenge, with huge amounts of temporary structures in place during the five-day event. This means crane operators being on site and the transfer of heavy equipment. Other challenges include fire safety, buried and overhead services, and the weather.

PLAN EARLY One of the main forms of overcoming such challenges is through planning, which has become a year-round process. Even before the gates opened this year, Roberts and his team from The Event Safety Shop Ltd (TESS) were already looking ahead to the 2016 festival.

Such planning must take into account not just the safety of the music fans, but of those who put the site together, the staff and volunteers who are there during the festival, and those who disassemble the structures to return the site to its normal use as an award-winning dairy farm.

In the two - three weeks before the festival, the workforce totals about 45,000. They are behind erecting the 65 stages, taking delivery of 8.2 million litres of water and keeping the fields clear of litter and waste.

Hannah Charlton, Health and Safety Coordinator, said: “We are planning for next year now. We are constantly learning and improving our safety management process. The TESS operational team bring back a huge volume of strategic and detailed notes, which are already being collated and fed back into risk assessment

reviews for future shows.”

As part of the planning, Charlton and her colleagues have early discussions with contractors - up to four months before the festival - to ensure they know what is required of them. During the construction they also have daily briefings to see who is working in which area.

The health and safety team’s work continues during the festival and also during the clearup operation. Charlton added: “This is an operational dairy farm, so we must hand it back just as we found it.”

Roberts said that by ensuring the welfare of the workforce is maintained as a priority many of them come back year after year, with some having been involved since the first Glastonbury Festival. He added: “Health and safety is woven into what we do. This has led to a significant reduction in the costs associated with accidents.”

TPi www.glastonburyfestivals.co.uk www.the-eventsafetyshop.co.uk www.iosh.co.uk 33

EVENT FOCUS: Parklife 2015

PARKLIFE 2015: PILLS, THRILLS, AND KEEPING THE PUNTERS SAFE BASED ON CONCERNS EXPRESSED BY LOCAL COUNCILLORS AND RESIDENTS IN THE AFTERMATH OF 2014’S FESTIVAL, PARKLIFE, A FESTIVAL HELD IN MANCHESTER, CONDUCTED A THOROUGH SELF-ASSESSMENT OF ITS COMMUNITY IMPACT POLICIES OVER THE PAST YEAR. FESTIVAL INSIGHTS’ MICHAEL BAKER REPORTS. Jon Drape, Parklife’s Event Director and MD for Ground Control (which handles the bulk of the festival’s production set-up) discussed his response to the concerns. “In 2013 - our first year at Heaton Park - we put into place what we considered to be a robust community impact plan, in which we’d taken lessons from previous shows held at the site. We received really positive feedback that time round, but last year the reaction was more mixed.”

The error in their ways, according to Drape, was approaching external, community responses as an event control issue. “In 2014 we simply threw more resources at it - doubled our security force and put out more toilets, but it didn’t work.” Due to the scale of the 70,000 capacity event, “internal matters took precedence over the surrounding area.

For instance: in an event control context, 34

somebody urinating against a resident’s wall is a pretty low-level issue, whereas to that resident it’s a markedly negative experience.”

As a remedy, Parklife this year established the Community Impact Taskforce as a standalone, offsite entity whose sole responsibility revolved around reducing the festival’s footprint on the immediate vicinity.

The move offsite marks a psychological and symbolic shift in the festival’s approach to community matters, backed up by the logistical choice of employing FGH Security to handle all matters external to the site, with Showsec overseeing the internal operations. “We’ve looked very carefully into how to deploy the FGH and Taskforce officers,” said Drape.

“They act as our eyes and ears on the ground, flagging issues as they see them so we can dispatch the correct response.”

In addition, the organisers hired separate

EVENT FOCUS: Parklife 2015

Opposite: Showsec deployed more than 2,000 staff over the weekend, handling security and logistics; Parklife attendees roamed Heaton Park for the event. Below: The line array deployed on the main stage was supplied by Audile.

cleansing contractors for on and offsite measures, had dedicated litter picking and jet washing teams, put out five times as many bins, and equipped many of the Taskforce officers with mountain bikes to increase mobility.

“Another big bugbear with local residents was parking,” said Drape.

“So we doubled the catchment area of our parking permit scheme in order to protect residential roads. Policies like these are only as good as their enforcement, however, so we’ve worked with both Manchester and Bury councils and their officers. We’re also putting road closures into effect around the egress phase, in response to further feedback we had after last year.”

In terms of noise, the festival collaborated with Vanguardia to offset noise pollution in the vicinity.

This was also helped in part by PA supplier, Audile. Complaints from those negatively affected by Parklife, in any way, could relay their woes via a variety of mediums. “We’re in the second largest Jewish community outside of

London and we fall on The Sabbath,” said Drape. “Orthodox Jews don’t use technology on that day so we have a physical front desk where they can discuss matters in person. There are also three phone operators in place, a dedicated email address for complaints, and a person managing our social media accounts. There’s a triage set-up to determine the immediacy of each issue, and then our Operations Manager orchestrates a response.” A full community impact report will be completed by September 2015.

As for on-site issues, Parklife conducted a full review of its security procedures owing to 2014’s rise in crime levels, most notoriously epitomised in the still-unsolved murder of Robert Hart.

The placement of the gates was redesigned for 2015, with Showsec adding one entrance and centring most of its planning on the ingress and egress phases. Its new queuing system involved separating the ticket scanning / wristband allocation element from the searching procedure. The

35

EVENT FOCUS: Parklife 2015

Below: Parklife’s capacity this year grew to 70,000.

latter aspect now comprised a pat-down and thorough pocket and bag search, followed by sniffer dogs and specially trained security guards deciding whether certain attendees required more extensive searching, for which there was a special tent provided by Greater Manchester Police. Each and every attendee had their image captured on CCTV, and was made aware of this fact via displays. The reasons for that were twofold, as Drape explained: “The first was to

and Showsec on security and logistics, the gates have worked incredibly well. We’ve had no negative feedback from customers about queuing. we loaded up the site really quickly, and we hit all of our flow rate targets. We’re really pleased by the new system.” A total of 55 arrests were made across the weekend, with no major incidents reported according to Greater Manchester Police - a testament to the effectiveness of these new policies.

“We’ve had no negative feedback from customers about queueing.

We loaded up the site really quickly, and we hit all of our flow rate targets...” - John Drape, Event Director

ensure that the majority of our audience felt more secure, and the second was to hopefully make potential wrongdoers think twice.”

Showsec deployed more than 2,000 staff across the three days, directed by Mark Logan, while Alan Wallace (Regional Manager North), Mark Wilcock (Area Manager for Greater Manchester) and Axel Fernandes (Operations Executive) were key members of the project management team.

“I must say,” Drape continued. “With the support from Ticketmaster doing the scanning 36

Last year Parklife won a UK Festival Award for its collaborative effort with The Loop, which provided on-site forensic analysis of both legal and illegal highs. Its remit also includes the dissemination of vital information, handing out free water and contraception, and providing a chill-out space for attendees.

“It’s been an incredibly useful tool to have,” said Drape. “Last year was the first time we had it onsite and it proved invaluable in quickly analysing particularly high purity substances such as MDMA. We could then issue health

warnings via social media for potential hazards.

“Without that immediate knowledge we would have had to rely on the medical centre, by which time it’s already too late for preemptive harm reduction. It’s not just useful for us from an organisational point of view, but it’s also useful for the police. Illegal and legal highs are both massive threats, and the issue with the latter is that new compounds are being synthesised all the time. Fortunately we haven’t found anything of great concern this year, and that has been reflected in the medical centre too. Moving forward we’ll look to gain more support from Public Health England, local public health services, and working with the police on FOH testing.”

FOH testing allows festivalgoers to drop off substances anonymously for forensic analysis, after which point they’ll be given a one-on-one session with a drugs advisor who can discuss with them the the mental and physical health implications of the exact substance they’ve handed in. “We’ve discussed adopting that approach with our partners and agencies, but it was too soon to implement at Parklife this year,” said Drape.

He concluded: “There’s no way we can entirely eradicate bad behaviour, but we can always respond more quickly and effectively.”

TPi Photos: Tom Lawson www.parklife.uk.com

PRODUCTION PROFILE: The Who

WHO ARE YOU? THE BARCLAYCARD BRITISH SUMMER TIME FESTVAL IN HYDE PARK CONTINUES ITS SUCCESS FOR AEG LIVE WITH A STELLAR LINE UP FOR 2015 INCLUDING THE STROKES, BLUR, KYLIE MINOGUE, TAYLOR SWIFT AND THE WHO. SIMON DUFF VISITS THE WHO’S CONCERT AND ITS PRODUCTION SUPPLIERS. The Who have spent much of 2015 on the road in North America and Europe on The Who Hits 50! tour, part of what Roger Daltrey describes is the band’s ‘long goodbye’. It should come as no surprise that the band have been at the very top of their game since the mid 60s. Their production values have always been cutting edge, both sonically and visually, and they remain so today.

FOH MIXING Mixing at FOH for The Who is the legendary Robert Collins (Eric Clapton, Steve Winwood, Pete Townshend) who has been with the band since 1987. Eighth Day Sound provide audio equipment for the current arena tour and for Hyde Park BST with audio which included 38

DiGiCo SD7 at both FOH and monitors.

Microphones on Zak Starkey’s drum kit included Audix Micro-D, with condenser clip ons for the six toms. For the two bass drums Collins has recently changed from a Shure Beta 91 A and Audix D 6 to the Shure Beta 52 A. On the snare top is a Shure Beta 56A and for snare bottom, a Shure Beta B 181. For Hi Hat is an AKG C 451 and each cymbal uses a DPA 4061. On bass and electric guitar amps it is Shure KSM32’s and 57’s. Pete Townshend uses Demeter DI boxes and for vocals it is the ever trusted Shure Beta 58 A. Collins uses some 64 channels from stage on the SD7. Collins mixes manually with no scene recalls. Choice of outboard includes two Summit Audio TLA100 tube levelling amplifier compressors for Roger Daltrey and

PRODUCTION PROFILE: The Who

Opposite: The Who were one of many high profile acts that played at this year’s British Summer Time in Hyde Park; The festival is sponsored by Barclaycard. Below: Martin Audio’s MLXs were the subs of choice; For the main stage, the PA inventory comprised two hangs of 16 MLA and one MLD Downfill per side; The band has been touring for much of 2015.

Pete Townshend’s vocals. For other vocal compression duties dbx160As are deployed, for reverbs and further processing a TC Electronic Music 6000 and a TC Electronic D-two digital delay are in place. Also used were a DN 360 Graphic EQ and Quantum 2 mastering processor. Collins’ right hand man from Eighth Day Sound and System Tech for the American and European tour dates is Chris Morrison.

MONITOR WORLD Monitor world mix engineers Bobby Pridden and Simon Higgs use a DiGiCo SD7 and Midas XL3. Outboard includes three Lexicon PCM60 Bricasti M7 reverb and a TC EQ station. d&b audiotechnik M4 and M2 wedges on stage are powered by d&b audiotechnik D12’s.

For the third consecutive year, Capital

Sound’s premium MLA PA system from Martin Audio was on duty at in Hyde Park over the 10 day run, to meet both the on, and offsite requirements of promoters AEG Live and sound consultants Vanguardia. But with a number of supplementary stages requiring coverage, in addition to the main Great Oak Stage, it was able to field the entire family of MLA multicellular solutions, including the smaller Compact and Mini versions.

With the site layout now firmly established in order to minimise neighbourhood noise pollution, Capital Sound was able to deploy a similar set-up as in 2014, with minor tweaks to the delay towers and a raising of the main side hangs to 12.5-metres from the stage.

Vanguardia Principal Consultant, Olly Creedy, confirmed that complaints on site had been “significantly reduced” again, believed to be

their lowest ever levels. He reported: “The sound has been consistently over 100dB for the headline acts and for The Who there was 30dB of attenuation in view of the wind, which we’ve never seen before at Hyde Park. This would enable sound levels of up to 105dB to be achieved at the desk while still restricting to 75dB offsite limits.”

For the main stage, the PA inventory comprised two hangs of 16 MLA and one MLD Downfill per side, with 12 MLA and one MLD Downfill for the sidehangs. The sub array consisted of 21 MLX in a broadside cardioid array, with a further 11 enclosures back facing. Additional W8LM line array enclosures provide front fills, while an array of LE1500 floor monitors were also provided for artist monitoring.

Martin Connolly, Capital Sound’s Project 39

PRODUCTION PROFILE: The Who

Below: The band are said to be saying a ‘long goodbye’ following a career which first caught the rock ‘n’ roll world’s attention in the 60s; Capital Sound supplied the extensive Martin Audio equipment to the show.

Manager for the main stage commented: “Although the decision to raise the trim height was made late in the day, one advantage was that [Martin Audio application engineers] Andy Davies and Chris Pyne could look at predictions and reoptimise this in the software, without needing to make any physical changes.”

each deployed eight MLA Compacts.

Martin Audio systems were also provided for two of the remaining four stages. On the second Barclaycard Stage, eight MLA Compacts were flown on each side with 16 WS218X subs in a broadside cardioid array, with four W8LC providing front fill sound reinforcement. The

“Optocore offers an elegant solution. Copper would have given us no end of problems, whereas with Optocore there is no signal loss whatsoever. It gives us complete signal transport reliability and it has become one of the best and most flexible tools at our disposal...”

- Martin Connolly, Capital Sound Project Manager

The area behind the FOH tower and barrier positions had been changed to improve sightlines, necessitating changes to the delay design. This was extended to four lines of in non-concentric arcs (occupying nine positions).

The main nine delays comprised seven MLA and a single MLD Downfill, supported by a total of 12 MLX subs, whilst delay positions 10 & 11 40

only indoor stage was the intimate 200-capacity Sony Unlimited Tent, which was serviced by Martin Audio’s tried and trusted package of four pole-mounted MLA Mini enclosures per side, atop an MSX power plant, covering the low end.

Paul Timmins, Capital Sound’s MD and responsible for the additional stages

added: “While the main stage was able to accommodate up to 65,000, the two indoor stages from previous years moved outdoors to become the Barclaycard Stage, holding an additional 5,000 people.”

Capital Sound also fielded a front line crew of 17 personnel, with Malcolm Giles as main stage crew boss. Others included the experienced System Tech Toby Donovan and the FOH Console Techs were the equally accomplished Chris Pyne and Trevor Gilligan.

“After three years, we have now evolved a successful formula to optimise the audience experience at Hyde Park,” summarised Timmins.

“Thanks to the unique functionality of MLA, historic problems with noise escape are now a thing of the past and it was nice to be back on this iconic site.”

Optocore converters have been frequent fixtures at Hyde Park over the past few summers, providing pristine, site wide digital signal transmission over optical fibre. The company’s expanding Optocore inventory was deployed by Capital Sound. All distributed from the FOH rack presided over by experienced system tech Toby Donovan.

Connolly explained that this year they would be using 14 interfaces in a redundant loop from the Avid Profile desks at FOH. “We’re running

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PRODUCTION PROFILE: The Who

Below: The look of the The Great Oak Stage was very much driven by a stage wide video screen by Video Design Limited.

end-to-end AES, and following an ergonomic route around the site over multi-mode cable loop. Optocore is now a proven science for us, we get different power at every position and one of the many advantages of fibre is it removes the possibility of earth loop as glass isn’t an electrical conductor; therefore hums and buzzes on delays are now a thing of the past.”

Connolly also commended the system’s flexibility: “For instance, we have been able to break out and convert to analogue midweek when there is a silent cinema, a festival of free films, at Hyde Park, where we are given old fashioned phonos for our input.” Summing up, he said: “Optocore offers an elegant solution. Copper would have given us no end of problems, whereas with Optocore there is no signal loss whatsoever. It gives us complete signal transport reliability and it has become one of the best and most flexible tools at our disposal.”

LIGHTING AND VIDEO Lighting for The Great Oak Stage for The Who was supplied by PRG mixed on an MA Lighting grandMA2. Set over the main ceiling trusses fixtures included 42 VL3000’s, 68 VL3500 and 18 VL2000 Washes from Vari-Lite, plus 24 42

Martin Professional Atomic 3000 DMX strobes, 20 8-lite molefays, 18 4-lite molefays (2x2) and 26 4-lite molefays. On the floor lighting included drum risers and stage wings with further Martin Professional Atomic strobes and Vari-Lite VL3500’s. Lighting Director for The Who is Tom Kenny.

himself, have all worked together previously for the Hyde Park concerts, beginning with the Rolling Stones in 2013 when AEG first took control of the Barclaycard Presents British Summer Time Hyde Park. “Jim King from AEG, knows us all and showed no hesitation in engaging Video Design for this year’s concerts,”

“Some 900 sq metres of LED screen on the main stage supported by a full high-definition multi-camera package and D3 video servers...”

- Video Design Limited CEO, Alex Leinster

The look of the The Great Oak Stage was very much driven by a stage wide video screen

by Video Design Limited. “This is a huge commitment of equipment from Video Design,” commented company CEO Alex Leinster. “Some 900 sqm of LED screen on the main stage supported by a full high-definition multi-camera package and D3 video servers.”

The team Leinster has assembled, including

added Leinster. “We fully support both content and live video throughout all the performances with Richard Shipman responsible for media, and Phil Jennings as in house camera director.

They are used particularly by the opening acts, but both men are permanently on hand to support artists with their own content material and live directors. If I say so myself, it’s a very slick operation.”

PRODUCTION PROFILE: The Who

Below: Built around a 25-metre Star Events’ VerTech platform, Es Devlin’s The Great Oak Stage design, introduced in 2013 for AEG Live’s first British Summer Time, has fast become synonymous with the festival; System Tech, Toby Donovan; Mixing at FOH, Robert Collins

Colour Sound Experiment supplied architectural lighting across the site. That included all site lighting towers and a huge amount of LED PAR floodlights throughout the site. VIP and guest areas included extensive use of IMS LED digital festoon which slowly changed colour. In the bar areas, Robe Robin 1200 LEDWashes were deployed and LED tape was used extensively, enabling different colour programming from the FOH position. This means any visiting lighting director is able to change lighting across the bar fronts and the entire site. To this end a ChamSys MQ60 lighting console was deployed at FOH control. Over the two weeks of BST Colour Sound Experiment had 22 staff working on site.

STAR EVENTS Built around a 25-metre Star Events’ VerTech platform, Es Devlin’s The Great Oak Stage design, introduced in 2013 for AEG Live’s first British Summer Time, has fast become 44

synonymous with the ‘festival’. Star Events, which has been working on Hyde Park summer shows since 1999, also supplied a 14-metre Orbit for the new Barclaycard Stage this year,

and wind restrictions on Devlin’s three trees were addressed by the VerTech roof, the strongest in the business, and a truss structural core from Star Events and set fabricators MDM

“We are pleased that even in challenging wind conditions we were still able to operate at levels unimaginable three years ago...”

- Jim King, Senior Vice President, Live Events, at AEG

together with other key elements across the site, including a hospitality VISTA structure, two FOH control towers, delay towers, perimeter gantries and the main entrance arches.

For The Great Oak Stage, the weight load

Props, with a similar design providing for the branches. Combined with 900 sqm of 9mm LED screen, Star put 50 tonnes across the front edge of the stage, accommodating a further 30 tonnes of British Summer Time production, with

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PRODUCTION PROFILE: The Who

Below: Capital Sound MD, Paul Timmins; Martin Connolly, Capital Sound Project Manager; Vanguardia’s Olly Creedy; Martin Audio’s Chris Pyne; Tez Sheals-Barrett of Star Events.

scope for even more.

The company also had to address the need to wrap the extended, angled stage wings with the floor-to-roof screen, not least to feed the VIP area stage left. There, Star Events has developed its VISTA grandstand system far beyond the typical Hyde Park hospitality finish, providing a quickly acclaimed facility with covered viewing areas, private air conditioned suites, modelled on facilities at The O2, and a decked roof terrace.

Situated at the north end of the site, to a tight footprint, the Barclaycard Stage married VerTech flat back wall technology to an Orbit platform. Tez Sheals-Barrett, Star Events’ Project Manager at BST, commented: “It’s a perfect concept when you don’t need a covered changeover area or when space is limited.” Star fitted the PA wings with VerTech masts, stage left and right, and supplied dressing detail to the proscenium arch.

The T tower delays were another new item 46

for 2015. Sheals-Barrett continued: “We have modified the design to change these from a 7.5 sq metre at 1.5-metre high footprint to a six-metre wide, 2.5-metre deep, at 500mm high. These improve sightlines amazingly and are really quick to install.” For BST, Star Events deploys some 70 trucks, 100 plus crew with a twelve day build and five day removal.

STANDING STRONG The Who’s set contained the hits, musical milestones and their sound remains both highly contemporary and relevant. Backed by spectacular video design content spread across all stage walls, documenting the band’s illustrious history and bold graphic design. The bands sound puts across a highly unusual rock, blues, power pop symphonic eclecticism with a gifted subtle detailed power mix from Collins.

Long may it run.

Final word to promoter Jim King, Senior Vice President, Live Events, at AEG. “We are pleased

that even in challenging wind conditions we were still able to operate at levels unimaginable three years ago. To achieve this and reduce local resident complaints for the third year running is a huge success for the event. The work undertaken by Capital and Martin Audio has again strengthened Hyde Park’s position as the best outdoor venue in the world.”

TPi Photos: Jess Gilbert and Nic Howden www.aeglive.co.uk www.thewho.com www.capital-sound.co.uk www.coloursound.co.uk www.8thdaysound.com www.martin-audio.com www.prg.com www.stareventsltd.com www.vanguardiaconsulting.co.uk www.video-design.co.uk

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PRODUCTION PROFILE: Maroon 5

MAROON 5 MAROON 5 ARE CURRENTLY IN THE MIDST OF A WORLD TOUR, PROMOTING CURRENT ALBUM V AND LATEST SINGLE THIS SUMMER’S GONNA HURT LIKE A MOTHERF***ER. FOUR UK ARENA SHOWS IN LATE MAY HELPED TO EASE THEIR PAIN, AS TPi FINDS OUT. Following on from the release of their latest album, the LA-based pop rock outfit began their current tour in the US with Southern Californian audio rental company, Sound Image. For the European leg, Sound Image called upon UK partner SSE Audio to provide the audio equipment and rigging services, enabling a smooth transition.

AUDIO “I go way back with SSE, to my time with FM and Wet Wet Wet,” said FOH Engineer Jim Ebdon. “Their standard of packaging, equipment and line systems are brilliant and their crews are always very professional. It’s a pleasure to work with them.”

The shows feature up to 12 K1 per side on the main hang, with six K2 underneath, plus side hangs of six K1 and six K2 each. There are 12 SB28 subs per side deployed in a traditional L-R configuration, with three on stage kicked 48

out 90º to spread the low end image. Rear hangs of 12 KARA per side ensure that seats can be sold past the 180º line, while six KARA lipfills and eight Kiva frontfills complete the system. It’s all powered by LA8 amplifiers, with system control via a Lake matrix. Two Lab.gruppen LM44 processors are located at FOH, with Dante going to LM44s and LM26s at stage left and right, connected to the LA8 amps via AES. The shows feature a 70 metre long runway and a B stage so, as SSE Project Manager Pete Russell explained: “We need to ensure that the main hangs don’t swamp the runway and B Stage. We use Soundvision, which has proved that the K2 cabinets gave us more control of the horizontal dispersion pattern.”

As well as equipment, SSE provided Sound Crew Chief Perttu Korteniemi and PA Techs Pete Hughes and Mark Pantlin.

“We’ve been using the widest 110° setting

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Maroon 5

Opposite: The tour’s audio department was supplied by Sound Image and its UK partner, SSE. Below: Maroon 5 frontman, Adam Levine.

on the K2 waveguides and have just used the array delta plate to slightly adjust the azimuth angle.

The results have been excellent, giving even coverage without any feedback issues from the vocal mics,” said Korteniemi.

“The only real challenge has been the need for good sightlines to the B stage, so there are no delays - we have had to make sure there are enough cabinets for the throw in the main hangs. But K1 does that really well, the transition between K1 and K2 is seamless and the sonic quality really consistent. Because the system has so much headroom we haven’t had any feedback, despite the B stage being well out in front of the PA.” “SSE’s L-Acoustics systems are great, they are tried and tested. I don’t have to do anything to them - I don’t even have to think about the daily deployment,” said Ebdon.

“I mixed the UK shows on the K2s because the FOH position was a little closer than I ideally wanted it to be, but because the sound is

so consistent between the K1 and K2 it wasn’t a problem. I could just get on and mix!”

Ebdon has used his trusted combination of the DiGiCo SD7 and Waves package since it was introduced, following his experience with DiGiCo’s first digital mixing console, the D5 Live.

“DiGiCo consoles don’t colour the sound in any way,” he said. “I find the SD7 the easiest digital desk to operate and most musical. I do like the fact that the surface has 52 faders!”

“I used to use a lot of snapshots and programming, but halfway through the last tour I realised that I wanted to mix because I like mixing. I can pretty much get my whole mix on the top fader bank, so I have a startup position using snapshots with a few mutes, but from then I’m mixing, changing EQ and doing what I’m paid to do. It’s more interesting, productive and more fun - the band play and I play the band, so I need to have some artistic sympathy and musical awareness. The console makes it 49

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Maroon 5

Below: Neg Earth provided the tour’s visual elements; Sound Crew Chief Perttu Korteniemi of SSE; The UK tour retained many of its previous suppliers; Ebdon’s DiGiCo SD7 from FOH.

an easy task.”

Ebdon principally uses the Waves plugins for subtle compression and other sweetening.

“I don’t go crazy with them, they are really just a little bit of tinsel on the top,” he said. “I’m also using a Focusrite ISA 430 on Adam’s voice, because I like to have analogue processing on the lead vocal, and a Sonic Farm Creamliner across the analogue mix just to warm it up.”

he said. “The whole system works really well.”

“The number one reason that I hold the SD7 in high regard is that it sounds the best. It’s a really musical sounding board and I don’t think anything’s better,” said Monitor Engineer Kevin Glendinning from behind the second DiGiCo console.

“I’ve been with Maroon 5 on and off for a long time and there used to be masses

“The number one reason that I hold the SD7 in high regard is that it sounds the best...” - Monitor Engineer Kevin Glendinning on DiGiCo

As well as the band microphones - a mixture of AKG, Royer, Sennheiser and Shure - Jim has a selection of audience mics as he records every night direct from the stage racks to Avid ProTools. “It’s very simple to do. I’m sometimes asked for a number of songs, fully mixed, within a few days, so I mix down the 64 ProTools tracks on the bus with a small pair of Genelecs,” 50

of wedges, side fills and subs - there was stuff everywhere. Nowadays it is a lot more streamlined - a combination of Sound Image wedges and Shure PSM1000 in-ears with JH Audio earpieces - but things have grown over the years and we’ve increased the number of inputs and outputs. We have 75 inputs now, which is a lot for monitors.”

Part of the increase is down to a comprehensive comms system, put together

by Sound Image Tech Marcus Douglas. “It’s as crucial as the monitor system. The days of hand signals have gone, we have talk mics that can supersede our listen buss,” says Kevin. “It’s a very effective way to do it, but it has built the numbers up because everyone has to double up on microphones.”

With a full SD-Rack, plus an SD-Mini Rack and utilising the SD7’s local inputs for talkback and other uses, the setup could get very complex. But things are kept as basic as possible.

“We try to keep it simple, the sound comes in, we EQ and do some dynamic work on it, then the sound goes out. I don’t do things just for the sake of being flashy. If I have to leave for any reason, Marcus can take over. It keeps our head straight and if there’s a problem it’s usually fixable,” said Glendinning.

“The DiGiCo sound is so natural, musical and pleasant. There’s no harshness to it, it’s very accurate and it just sounds right. I also like having the dual engines. It’s nice to have it in your back pocket if something happens.”

He continued: “The SD7 also has room to

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PRODUCTION PROFILE: Maroon 5

Below: L-Acoustics K1 & K2 was the sound system of choice in the UK; The band performed four UK dates as part of their tour; Jim Ebdon at FOH; Lighting Director Brian Jenkins also operated the lighting design on a grandMA2 console.

grow, if required. You don’t ever want to tell a client ‘no’, especially this band. They are all very music savvy and production oriented, which keeps me on my toes. But I think the cat’s out of the bag - they know the board can do anything!

I’m lucky to be able to work with these guys and do my job.”

Ebdon agreed: “It’s a great job, they’re a great band to work for, they’re fantastic guys and we are always busy.

LIGHTING This is Lighting Director and Programmer Brian Jenkins’ second tour with Maroon 5 and, like Ebdon, it’s a job he clearly enjoys. “I work with LeRoy Bennett on other shows, who was asked to do the production and lighting design for this tour. Roy has made a brilliant show with these guys and I’m more than pleased to be a part of the team,” he said.

“It’s a fun group of professionals to be around and a lot of that credit goes to Production Manager Alan Hornall. He works as hard as anyone and chooses a lot of his team members personally. Loyalty can be a hard thing to find in this industry, but thankfully there’s still a few good guys out there!”

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Lighting and video equipment for the entire tour is supplied by Upstaging, with rigging on the UK leg by Neg Earth. The rig includes 108 Clay Paky Mythos, 53 Philips Vari-Lite VL3500 Wash FXs, 24 Clay Paky Sharpy Wash 330s and eight Robe BMFL Spot moving heads, plus 216 Ayrton MagicBlade-R, 95 Robe Robin CycFX 8 and eight Robe Robin CycFX 4 moving LED strips.

of them filling the Plexiglas columns with fog at different points in the set.

Video is provided via four Barco 40K and four 26K projectors, with media delivered by five Green Hippo Hippotizer HD V3s, two Grasshoppers and two Chipmunks. A Tait Navigator system is used for the set’s moving elements. Control for the whole system is via a pair of MA Lighting grandMA MA2 consoles.

“SSE’s L-Acoustics systems are great, they are tried and tested...”

- FOH Engineer, Jim Ebdon

A total of 471 Upstaging Saber 1000 1m and three Saber 500 0.5m fixed LED strips are mounted around 19 Plexiglas columns, while 14 Truss Pods fitted with 28 NavHoists are used to automate the MagicBlade-R fixtures. 15 HES FQ-100 foggers, eight Le Maitre LSG hazers and four Reel EFX DF-50 hazers also feature, some

“With the multi-user environment - both with the real rig and the MA3D software - the MA2s have allowed us to work more efficiently when we’re up against a tough timetable, but without sacrificing creativity,” said Jenkins.

“Jason and I program in a similar fashion and the MA is what works best for us. We also

PRODUCTION PROFILE: Maroon 5

Below: Monitor Engineer, Kevin Glendinning and Sound Image Tech, Marcus Douglas.

receive incredible support from MA and (US distributor) ACT Lighting, which I think is the lynchpin of this crazy world we work in.”

“There have been a few productions that have surprised MA by pushing the console past the limits of its software, so a lot of kudos goes to the development teams for implementing these new ideas continually pushing forward useful software updates.”

He continued: “Upstaging, Clay Paky and all the other manufacturers and vendors have

services for the band and crew. With such a substantial tour in terms of crew numbers, there were plenty of hungry mouths to feed, and ETTB’s Chloe Whitehead led a dedicated team of caterers to serve up some mouthwatering dishes. Having catered for the band on numerous occasions, including the recent Overexposed tour in 2014, ETTB were delighted to be involved once more and look forward to the next advent in high-end tour cuisine.

“Upstaging, Clay Paky and all the other manufacturers and vendors have taken great care of us...” - Brian Jenkins, LD

taken great care of us. They all take great pride in their work and set the bar high for others to follow. For example, recently we had Clay Paky technicians come and visit our setup in Milan.

It’s great that, even half a world away, there’s that support and camaraderie.”

CATERING When Maroon 5 flew back to the UK leg of their tour, Eat To The Beat (ETTB) were on hand to provide top-notch catering 54

TRANSPORT McGuinness trucking supplied Maroon 5 with 18 trucks, and is also a vendor following on from the success of the last tour, further cementing long-term relationships. “They were very happy with us last time and so we got a call to come back on board again,” explained Managing Director, Frank McGuinness. “This tour has gone very well too, although we did have a slight complication when we came to do our load-in in Wembley, because a WW2 bomb

had been found on site that day!

“We’ve had a couple of situations this time.

There was an issue in France when we were arriving into Calais, due to problems at the border with migrants. It made the national headlines, and certainly caused us a problem, but we managed to come through various different ports and continue on with the tour smoothly.

“The Maroon 5 crew are great however; they’re very professional, happy people to work with. Production Manager Alan Hornall called us after this tour to say ‘thank you’ for our service, which was helped along nicely by our Lead Driver, Anthony ‘Swish’ Curtin.”

Bussing was supplied by Coach Service which began working with Maroon 5 over 15 years ago. For this tour the company supplied four crew buses and two band buses. “I’ve known their tour manager and former production manager for years,” stated Clemens Behle, Managing Director of Coach Service. ”They are a very experienced crew who are easy to work with - even when there’s last minute changes.”

TPi Photos: Perttu Korteniemi and Sarah James www.maroon5.com www.eattothebeat.com www.sseaudiogroup.com www.negearth.com www.coachservice.com www.mcguinness.eu

TPi FESTIVAL SPECIAL

FESTIVAL SPECIAL DOWNLOAD

CT & OGLE HOG Having regularly supplied British festivals since 1986, CT knows what makes for a great event - and is evolving its services accordingly.

With the first glimpse of the British summer, a season of festivals begins. Hundreds of thousands of people gather in fields across the isles kitted out in their wellies and cagoules whilst enjoying performances from the world’s most popular music acts.

International AV and technical services supplier Creative Technology (CT) has been a regular festival provider for the last 29 years.

This year is no exception, with the company supplying a large majority of festivals during a four-month period.

Although the large-scale LED screens typically seen either side or at the rear of the stage are a staple part of CT’s offering, they are just the beginning. In today’s increasingly technological world CT has recognised the audience’s desire to interact with the festival

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through social media. As well as raising the event’s online profile (much to the delight of the organisers), the audience are able to post their Tweets, Facebook statuses and Instagram photos to the screens through CT’s content services provision.

With its in-house dynamic data manager, known as Mercury, CT can integrate social media feeds, transport and weather updates and safety announcements with the festival’s own branding and display this on screen across the site - an effective way to relay important unforeseen information. Initially developed for live sporting events, CT is expanding this service into other sectors as the demand has emerged.

Another area CT has been focusing on is providing fast, seamless changeovers between bands. Using quick-change video technology different media server feeds can be picked up from different points simultaneously, allowing content to be mixed quickly and the next band to be prepped before their performance. In addition to its use at festivals, this has become a vital tool for some of the larger scale dance events and music TV shows CT also supplies.

One of CT’s first festivals of the season came in the form of three-day rock / heavy metal event, Download festival, for Live Nation; the second year CT has supplied its products. The company worked under the direction of Chris Saunders from broadcast and event video specialist, Ogle Hog, as one of his many video equipment suppliers. Saunders himself has worked for Download festival for 11 years and orchestrates a seamless video integration over the course of the weekend incorporating the festival’s live and broadcast requirements.

CT provided the LED screens installed on either side of both the A and B stages and the LCD TVs located in the press area. CT also provided content display services for these screens - notably, the moderation and posting of social media messages using Mercury.

Later in the season CT will be supplying a number of other festivals including Reading and Leeds for Festival Republic.

TPi Photo: Danny North http://downloadfestival.co.uk www.ct-group.com

FESTIVAL SPECIAL: Download

STS TOURING PRODUCTIONS

STS Touring Productions is the largest backline equipment rental company outside of London, and on the weekend of June 12, along with 50 other sets for various festivals around the UK, it supplied backline equipment for Download.

STS has worked with Download for 10 years, and it’s the biggest festival the company services, providing backline equipment across all four of its stages - with Stages 3 and 4 featuring their equipment exclusively along with technicians and stage managers. This year, 17 crew members were permanently on site over the weekend, and for the entire festival they supplied 40 Marshall stacks, 15 drum kits, 10 Ampeg bass rigs, and various keyboards to name a small selection.

For the main and second stage, STS is sent production advances by any act requiring

backline equipment, and from there it supplies and manages the stage for them.

Likewise, STS features in the production advance sent to the acts so that the artists can get in contact and specify equipment at any time in the run up to the festival.

STS also employs its own drivers and uses its own vehicles to supply transportation for equipment to and from the festival, including endorsement stock.

“It’s a challenging job and there are many last minute requests, but the team on site are used to the pressure and make sure everybody is catered for,” commented Pete Dutton, Managing Director at STS. Other festivals STS supply backline equipment for include Wireless and Ramblin Man. TPi Photo: Giles Smith http://downloadfestival.co.uk www.ststouring.co.uk

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FESTIVAL SPECIAL: Weather Festival

WEATHER FESTIVAL

HARMAN’S JBL As part of a major Harman package, over 100 JBL VTX V25 line array elements were deployed across five stages at the fourday Weather Festival of electronic music in Paris, France. Celebrating its third year, the promoters chose a 100,000 sq metre site in the Bois de Vincennes in order to pursue its mission of being a sustainable event. With environmental concerns as its main priority, this was considered a landmark event.

The festival brought together 70 artists over the four days and the crowds were treated to non-stop energy and high quality sound delivered by a JBL VTX system throughout.

The sound design was in the capable hands of Décisions Acoustiques, which also exercised environmental control across the five stages, maintaining coherence and consistency throughout. The system was sold through French distributor SCV. Under the expertise of Guillaume Reilbell, who calibrated the sound on the two large stages, and Wilfried Mautret, who was

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responsible for the other three, a total of 108 JBL VTX V25 line array elements were deployed, along with 84 flown VTX S28 subwoofers.

A further 14 JBL VRX932LA constant curvature loudspeakers were used as stage fills - and the entire system was powered by a combination of 14 Crown VRack systems housing I-Tech 12000HD amplifiers, and 24 VRack systems housing I-Tech 4x3500HD amps.

The 80 instrumental source inputs required for the opening electro performance, along with the classical orchestra, were managed and mixed in a Soundcraft Vi6 digital console. Also within the Harman stable, a large number of AKG’s classic C414 condenser microphones were used by artists, who included Jeff Mills, Derrick May, Nina Kraviz, Ricardo Villalobos, Lil Louis, Robert Hood, Ben Klock, Marcel Dettmann, DVS1 and many more.

Summarising the event, Florian Pancrazi, partner in Décisions Acoustiques, outlined the challenges. “With five stages assembled on the same site we had to design sound reinforcement

systems that would not bleed or interfere with the other zones, while maintaining effective low frequency sound that is essential to electro music programming,” he said. “We decided to use the same setup right across the board to maintain consistency for an audience that was travelling between the different stages.

“Once again we chose the VTX V25 systems, which had more than satisfied requirements at the previous edition, allowing us to achieve perfect optimisation in each case, through specific presets which were easily managed in JBL HiQnet Performance Manager software,” Pancrazi continued. “On the two large stages we hung the subwoofers in cardioid formation behind the V25’s. This resulted in a consistent performance, containing the sound and preventing spillage onto adjacent stages while at the same time limiting sound propagation to neighbouring homes to the maximum.”

TPi www.weatherfestival.fr www.harman.com

FESTIVAL SPECIAL: Isle of Wight Festival

ISLE OF WIGHT FESTIVAL

PRG AND XL VIDEO PRG has a healthy relationship with the Isle of Wight Festival, having been a supplier of lighting and rigging for more than 12 years.

Crew Chief Rich Gorrod is a regular and commented: “The Isle of Wight is exactly how a festival should be, well planned and organised without any unnecessary pressure, which results in a relaxed atmosphere on show days.”

Facilitating Lighting Designer Andy Hurst’s vision for the main stage, PRG Account Director Yvonne Donnelly Smith supplied a multifunctional lighting package of 46 Philips Vari-Lite VL3500 washes, 68 GLP impression X4’s and X4S’, 30 Martin Professional MAC Viper Profiles and 10 Clay Paky Alpha Profile 1200’s; all of which were hung from a total of eight trusses. Clay Paky Stormys were chosen as the house strobes, Gorrod continued: “Although they don’t have the rough look of an Atomic,

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they are far superior in terms of reliability and power consumption.” As part of the rigging package, PRG hung over 100 points, providing the infrastructure for the PA and video teams to hang their equipment.

The edge of the stage and truss surrounding the IMAG screens were trimmed with 44 8-Lite and 26 4-Lite molefays which served as audience blinders. Gorrod explained: “The number of lamps around the stage was phenomenal and meant we could flood the arena with a lot of light very quickly. Andy Hurst, who also designed the rig for The Prodigy, worked them very hard during the band’s headline set on Friday night, pulling over 450A per phase from the molefays alone at their peak.”

The side screens and video wall were supplied by XL Video. Project Manager, Paul McCauley said: “We used the ROE Visual MC-7

outdoor screen in high brightness mode for the two IMAG screens, each were 14 tiles wide and 16 high. We used our own graphics set up to give the IMAG screens a header and footer using artwork created by the festival. This created a framework within which we could display a 16:9 section of video, with custom graphics and a social media feed on the header and footer. We also supplied the Playback Pro media servers which played out advertisements and Isle of Wight Festival promotional content.

Onstage, we used around 380 tiles of MC-7 to form an upstage wall which was used by all the headline acts over the weekend.

TPi Photo: Callum Baker, courtesy of Solo www.isleofwightfestival.com www.prg.com www.xlvideo.com

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FESTIVAL SPECIAL: Isle of Wight Festival, EDC, Tomorrowland & Rock Werchter

STAGECO’S FESTIVAL SUMMER

As it continues to celebrate its 30th anniversary, Belgian event staging specialist, Stageco is enjoying another busy summer as the supplier of choice for large-scale tours and a wide range of other live events, including major festivals across the UK, Europe and North America.

Already working on international stadium tours with One Direction, AC/DC, The Rolling Stones, Taylor Swift and Foo Fighters, Stageco continued its long-running partnership with the Isle of Wight Festival in June, when the mighty Fleetwood Mac, Blur, The Prodigy and Pharrell Williams topped another impressive bill.

Stageco has been a regular partner of the event since it made its welcome return in 2002 - the company’s most recent package comprises a Boogdak XL stage with wings and a front of house mix structure.

For Stageco, it is a very straightforward project with only the elements posing any real challenge. “It’s very windy on the island so my

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team of 10 are constantly keeping their eyes on wind speeds,” said Crew Chief, Patrik Vonckx.

“But the biggest challenge is always getting the gear on and off the island, although I’m sure this is probably a bigger headache for the girl who books all the ferries!”

He added: “Ferries and wind aside, this is a gig we particularly enjoy. There’s always a nice vibe because it’s so well organised, and you’re guaranteed a great bill of artists.”

This year’s series of Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC) dance extravaganzas has kept Stageco busy in America - notably Las Vegas, where the main stage was massive 480ft wide and boasted 6,500 video tiles, 400 tonnes of steel, two waterfalls and a giant owl head. EDC’s British edition returns to Milton Keynes National Bowl on July 11 when it is set to feature Stageco’s 25-metre 4-Tower roof with additional stage wings and a large scaffolding structure for video.

Tomorrowland also hit the headlines this year

when, in May, its highly successful dance brand expanded into Brazil with a highly customised Stageco stage.

The 2015 edition of Belgium’s legendary Rock Werchter festival - the birthplace of Stageco saw the company provide its XXL Roof to crown the main stage for the third consecutive year. The firm also supplied steel grids for the marquee stages along with numerous side structures.

Also in Europe, Stageco’s run of established festivals included Graspop in Bessel, Belgium, which welcomed AC/DC as its headliner in mid-June; The Netherlands’ Pinkpop, the world’s longest-running annual festival, with Robbie Williams storming the stage on the second night.

TPi IOW photo: Callum Baker, courtesy of Solo www.electricdaisycarnival.com www.tomorrowland.com www.isleofwightfestival.com www.rockwerchter.be www.stageco.com

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Featuring the high quality faders and hardware you’ve come to expect from Avolites, the Quartz can go anywhere you can, ideal for life on the road.

Quartz networks with the entire Titan range to create a fully expandable control system, with no annoying restrictions.

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FESTIVAL SPECIAL: Electric Daisy Carnival

ELECTRIC DAISY CARNIVAL AIRWORKS

Airworks was delighted to be asked once more to contribute to what is one of the most grandiose dance events it has been involved with, the Electric Daisy Carnival.

The premiere in Las Vegas has a magical and surreal atmosphere, as day becomes night and beach wear in the desert early hours becomes the norm.

Jora Vision approached Airworks in December with a hugely ambitious design, a whole world on a single stage of over

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150-metres wide and 35-metres high.

“We focused on several components that we felt suited our specialism, and together with the design team at Jora we developed the pieces from their conceptual base to the smallest of details. At Airworks we design all our inflatable sculptures in cinema4d which is a comprehensive piece of 3D software. Patterns and textures are completed before a single piece of cloth is cut, this gives us the ability to produce scenic pieces that are not only

extremely highly detailed and complex, but also leave no surprises for the client as what you see at the design stage, in terms to geometry and printed finish, is to the millimetre accurate,” said Airworks’ Matthew Whitehead.

“We built three different elements of the stage. On stage right were the owl guardians, standing at 14-metre tall these two figures guarded the water gate. They had DMX controllable lights built into their eyes and in the crystals on their staffs. Being surrounded by

FESTIVAL SPECIAL: Electric Daisy Carnival

waterfalls and fountains made the install a refreshing challenge in the desert heat. Dominating the centre stage hung the crystal owl head, at 25-metres across this inflatable was constructed in seven pieces and put together in the scaffold like a jigsaw puzzle.”

The video curtain in the eyes was a new product, a flexible LED screen hung inside the inflatable with a transparent PVC section directly in front, giving the feeling of the lens of a real eye. On stage left were four dragon pieces positioned to give the feel of a complete animal. The tail was animated by stage hands, the head could move left and right and

open and close its mouth emitting smoke and light to give a fiery effect.

“The install was a surreal experience. We worked through the night, as temperatures of above 40 degrees during the day made it impossible to work, let alone touch the scaffolding which was hot enough to fry your hands on. We all enjoyed our Vegas experience, working with the extremely professional folks at insomniac was, as always, a pleasure and of course the event itself was a blast,” added Whitehead.

TPi www.electricdaisycarnival.com www.airworksinflatables.com

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FESTIVAL SPECIAL: Bonnaroo

BONNAROO BANDIT LITES

It was a weekend of pulsating beats of electronica, blaring bluegrass, hardcore rockers and uncontained laughter as over 125 bands and 20 comedians took to the stages at The Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Tennesee, USA. The diverse lineup of over 200 acts included Billy Joel, Mumford & Sons, Deadmau5, Tears for Fears, Slayer, Kendrick Lamar, Florence and the Machine, Robert Plant & The Sensational Space Shifters, and My Morning Jacket. Bandit Lites was again tasked by Hadden Hippsley of Lambda Productions to provide the lighting for the multiple stages.

Bandit supplied the lighting for the three day weekend that takes place in a 700 acre field affectionately known as ‘The Farm’ since its inception in 2002. With the event now hailed as ‘Disneyland for music lovers’, Bonnaroo boasts 90,000 camping ticket holders in attendance.

Billy Joel closed the weekend under the beams of Bandit lighting, the view from the stage was a sea of people. Pulling from over three decades of pop classics, the rock ‘n’ roll Hall of Famer ended the event with Uptown Girl, It’s Still Rock ‘n’ Roll to Me, Big Shot, and Only the Good Die Young.

For the main stage, Bandit supplied Robert Juliat Lycian M2 long throw spots, Philips Vari-Lite VL 3500 Spots, VL 3500 Washes, VL 3000 spots, Clay Paky Sharpys, Sharpy Washes, Martin Professional MAC Auras, and multiple MA Lighting grandMA2 full size consoles.

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Bonnaroo’s secondary stages featured VariLite VL2500 Spots, Bandit 5x5s, GRN moving washes, GRN 8-Lites, Martin Professional Atomic 3000 DMX strobes, and Clay Paky Sharpys.

Client rep and occasional designer for stages at Bonnaroo, Dizzy Gosnell said: “This festival is one of the highlights of the outdoor season for many audience members and bands alike. When you have the likes of Billy Joel, Elton John, Kanye West, Tom Petty and that newcomer chap Paul McCartney dropping by to play on your main stage in recent years, you know your festival is doing lots of things right. Hadden, Roger Piccone and Kit Blanchard

headed up the stages we worked with this year and really worked hard to give the best bang for the buck, and as always with Lambda folk, were consummate professionals.”

Bandit Chair, Michael T. Strickland stated: “Bandit Lites is very proud to be part of the phenomenal production team that Lambda Productions assembles every year. The entire event is first class and run like a well-oiled machine. We look forward to being part of this world class event for years to come.”

TPi www.bonnaroo.com www.banditlites.com

THURSDAY 26TH NOVEMBER THE ROUNDHOUSE, CAMDEN

Photographer: Carolina Faruolo @Bestival

HAVE YOU ENTERED?

www.festivalawards.com

FESTIVAL SPECIAL: Gottwood

GOTTWOOD

MARTIN AUDIO AND VME

Gottwood electronic and music festival - an intimate boutique event, set in an idyllic Welsh forest on the isle of Anglesey - has been running since 2010. It prides itself on presenting a DJ line up of ‘rising stars and established veterans’. Involved with promoters, Future Noise, from the beginning has been Creation Live’s, Tom Whittle, who in addition to working with Martin Audio’s Cheshire-based partners (and event production company) VME, is also the Festival’s Operations Manager.

He recalled that the potential of the site had been clear from his first visit back in September 2009. But it was only this year that the four-day festival could banish its noise pollution issues by adopting the magic control technology of Martin Audio’s MLA Compact sound system.

This not only contained the off-site perimeter sound, but at the same time boosted the SPL at the main FOH position to a level that serious dance music aficionados would expect.

The site is classed as an area of outstanding natural beauty and the stunning location is key to this unique festival’s success. But as Future Noise’s Tom Elkington emphasised, it comes with issues. “The ambient sound levels 68

are exceptionally low and for the surrounding houses, off-site sound has been a continuous battle.” The production team felt the volume restrictions imposed on them by the local authority were unacceptable. Whittle and VME’s General Manager, Ben Hyman, who also manages the site sound, proposed steering the sound intelligently by deploying VME’s Martin Audio’s MLA Compact. “We convinced the promoters that it would solve a large problem,” said Hyman.

With the attendance capped to 5,000, all outdoor stages used MLA Compact - four per side, with two MLX subs - in a groundstack configuration. “While the majority of our MLA deployments are typically to ensure even coverage across large areas for audiences of 10,000-plus, Gottwood presented new challenges to us as we needed to ensure that leakage was kept to a minimum. It was also potentially challenging to see how multiple stages using MLA would interact in this environment - it’s certainly not a situation we’re all used to, with main and delay hangs,” said Hyman.

In previous years, to stay within licence VME needed to run the systems at 95dB

(A) during the day but drop them close to 90-92dB (A) at certain times in the evening depending on the weather. “Anglesey is one of the quietest places in the UK, with a nighttime ambient background level of 32dB (A), so having six outdoor stages running until 4am playing electronic music, and residents within 800-metres from site gave us quite a challenge,” Hyman continued. “Historically, changes in pressure suddenly meant that we could hear vocal clearly from site, but no bass or top end, then an hour later it would just be bass that we could hear. It was constantly changing and we had to keep adapting levels to meet the licensing regulations.”

Martin Audio MLA Advocate, Simon Honywill, was brought in to advise. “It was the wish of the organisers that these stages should be as loud as possible while the local environmental health officers wanted it to be all but inaudible at the nearest houses, some seven or eight hundred metres away,” he confirmed.

“It was my job to make this happen. I needed to find a way of maintaining the integrity of the system’s acoustic performance, contain the sound to avoid smothering other stages and most importantly not upset the neighbours.”

FESTIVAL SPECIAL: Gottwood

Honywill believes the LF containment was down to “a combination of the directivity of the awesome MLX subs, helped in no small way by the efficacy of hay bales as low frequency absorbers.” As a result, he said: “The systems sounded fantastic. There was no doubt that from stage to stage, the amount of spill was more than acceptable, particularly at the lake, where the system fired directly across the water at the main chill-out zone on the lawn in front of the house.

“With all systems on the entire site playing to [the prescribed] level, we measured around 44-45dB (A) offsite - a perfect result!”

Hyman added: “Having worked with the MLA system for two years, I was confident that we could re-invent the audio systems across site, and utilise the controllability that MLA’s Display 2 software gives us to achieve even higher

onsite levels, while at the same time maintaining the lowest off site levels.

“We are indebted to Simon Honywill for his help. We also spoke extensively to local residents, and told them what MLA could potentially achieve. To top it all off, I received a phone call from one of the local residents on the Sunday morning, who had formally complained every year. He started his telephone call, ‘I’m the first person to complain, but I’m also the first person to compliment when you’ve done what you promised. We couldn’t hear Gottwood this year, and thanks to you and your team for making it happen’. This could not have been a better response, especially since he is one of the closest residents to site.”

Said promoter Tom Elkington, “Because Gottwood is so different from other festivals - with no main stage, no sponsors and music

focused on the niche end of electronic music we needed to preserve the event’s integrity. For five years we have achieved great results with VME with careful placement of stages, hay bale baffling and offsite weather monitoring. But we were really excited about trying out MLA this year and thankfully it proved to be the golden ticket we have been working towards.”

In summary, Honywill stated: “I left the festival site being once again surprised by the abilities of MLA systems to solve problems where others create them, a truly valuable asset for any company working events where noise restrictions can be a problem. I felt entirely buoyed by the whole experience.”

TPi Photo: Jake Davis www.gottwood.co.uk www.martin-audio.com www.vme-uk.com

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PERFORMANCE AND VENUE TECHNOLOGY SHOW Audio | Lighting | Video | Effects

12-14 SEPTEMBER 2015 THE NEC BIRMINGHAM UK OUR SPONSORS

PRO AUDIO DEMO SPACE Returning with an expansive new format for PRO 2015, the improved PRO Audio Demo Space will showcase the latest audio solutions from the industry’s most-renowned brands!

Hosted in a large space away from the busy show floor, this dedicated area is the ideal place to listen to and compare large-format sound systems. With products grouped into two categories – Live Sound and Install/Club Sound – the PRO Audio Demo Space is set to be more focussed than ever before, offering a visitor-brand experience like no other.

FX THEATRE Brilliant in its simplicity, the brand new FX Theatre will see companies showing off incredible effects in an exciting live environment. Pyros, CO2, laser demos will all be on the cards, allowing you to experience high-impact, stadium-sized theatrics and dramatic flame effects from the front row. Video footage and photos are not enough. The FX Theatre lets you see pioneering FX products first-hand, so you can make regret-free decisions on what’s best for you.

CHAUVET ARENA

While the immersive club atmosphere created inside is something to behold, the ARENA also gives visitors a chance to see audio, lighting, video and effects technology in action, showcasing the cutting-edge products that make it all possible! With events in the ARENA running all day, every day, there are loads of opportunities to see how the latest offerings from NEXO and Chauvet Professional shape up in a demanding live environment.

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Experiencing products first-hand is a key aspect of PRO. But so is the expansive range of sessions on offer. You can hear from other trade specialists and the people behind the products in a series of informative brand-led panel sessions, providing you with advice and knowledge that will heighten your professional aspirations. Many of these sessions will look at the evolution of technology in the audio, lighting, video and effects industry, exploring case studies from the world of entertainment, including high-profile live tours and inspirational European installs. PRO 2015 will also host a number of workshops on sound engineering, lighting design and FX safety, helping you hone your skills.

VISITPROSHOW

PRO SESSIONS

IN PROFILE: Skan PA

AUDIO KNOW-HOW FROM SKAN PA IN LAST MONTH’S ISSUE, TPi REPORTED ON TAKE THAT’S AMAZING TOUR. THIS MONTH, WE THOUGHT WE’D TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT THE COMPANY THAT HAS TAKEN ON THE TASK OF PROVIDING THE AUDIO FOR ANOTHER BEHEMOTH OF A SHOW FROM GARY BARLOW AND FRIENDS. Skan PA, a name that most of the touring industry will already know, was started in the 1970’s by the legendary Pete Howard. For the past 20 years, it has been in the very safe hands of Chris Fitch and Abby Llewellyn, co-directors, with a 50% share hold. TPi caught up with Chris Fitch to chat about the joys and challenges of running an audio rental company in an industry that has evolved, both commercially and technologically, at an incredible rate since he took over the reins.

“I first met Pete in 1988 at Southampton University where I was a student,” Fitch recalled. “Not long before, I had discovered the concept of a PA system and that it was a possible way to make a living.”

The right place, right time scenario is 72

not such an unusual tale in our industry and Fitch had found himself doing gigs in Southampton, where Howard was the local supplier. “It went from there,” said Fitch, smiling. “I started working in his warehouse and worked my way up, learning from Pete’s more senior techs; notably, Chris Barton, who really set me on the right track. Skan had a small rig that was used in the After Dark Club in Reading. Every week we’d go in there, and there would be a different problem with the equipment. I was the only face of Skan there, so it was my responsibility to not only make the system work, but to help all the engineers that came in.”

This, said Fitch, paved the way for how Skan PA is run today. “Our overriding desire is to do the best possible work we can and that comes directly from my experience in

IN PROFILE: Skan PA

Opposite: Skan PA is privilegded to work on such as profiles events as the Ryder Cup Gala Concert.

Below: The company describes DiGiCo consoles as faultless.

the late 80s and very early 90s in this particular nightclub. Of course any company is going to say they’re great and for many it’s true, but I think the real key to success is to not overstretch your capabilities. There’s no point in going out there, grabbing all the work you can and then trying to work out how you’re going to do it.

“At Skan, we attempt to modify the amount of work we’ve got to our staffing levels and the amount of equipment we own. It can be tricky to manage that, but we try to make sure that we’re working to about 90% capacity, rather than 115%, then if we get a long-standing client call up at short notice with a one-off gig or a B-rig requirement, the chances are we can deal with it without too much drama.

“We don’t work our equipment as hard as we could, that may be a failing commercially speaking, but it means that it’s in good condition. We also start preparing equipment a lot earlier than is usual, which gives us time to make sure that all our equipment is working correctly. It’s a slightly different philosophy to some other rental companies, but I can’t work another way and our customers appreciate that difference.”

Speaking of equipment, Fitch said that Skan

PA has no particular policy and some of the choices it has made are “just random good luck.”

The company’s console stock is a mixture of DiGiCo, Yamaha, Avid, Soundcraft and Midas and, although he still has a love of analogue, Fitch knows that embracing the digital workspace is essential. “In a nutshell, Skan tries to own what people will pay to rent,” he said.

are always in high demand. The SD7, SD10 and SD5 can’t be faulted. They’re a great piece of technology and such an easy sell for us. In addition the Yamaha desks have proven to be very reliable and great workhorses.”

Skan PA’s loudspeaker manufacturer of choice is d&b audiotechnik, which has, said Fitch, worked fantastically well for the company.

“We ended up buying a d&b system by default,

“Commercially we can’t fault the investment we’ve made; we’ve bought a dozen or so DiGiCo consoles in the last year alone and they are always in high demand. The SD7, SD10 and SD5 can’t be faulted.

They’re a great piece of technology and such an easy sell for us...”

- Chris Fitch, co-director of Skan PA

“The DiGiCo desks are a particular success,” he said. “I love the fact that DiGiCo is a UK company, that has set out its stall and stuck to it. Commercially we can’t fault the investment we’ve made; we’ve bought a dozen or so DiGiCo consoles in the last year alone and they

but it’s one of the best accidents that has happened to us. They’ve recently brought out a new ArrayProcessing function that optimises the tonal and level performance of a line array column and we’re running it for the first time on Take That, which worked exceptionally well with 73

IN PROFILE: Skan PA

Below: Skan PA caters for a variety of different events from stadiums to indoor arenas and everything in between.

the Sennheiser RF and DiGiCo SD7s. It’s a really interesting bit of technology further enhancing an already a hugely flexible system.”

As well as taking good care of its equipment, Skan PA also knows the value of crew welfare.

“There’s only so much money in the touring industry, so there is often pressure to deliver on price,” Fitch explained. “But we take our crew welfare very seriously and we always try to make sure that they are well looked after.

do, but I don’t necessarily how to do it anymore.

There’s a major difference to how things were in the past. You now need a network specialist on most tours. It’s not like just plugging an XLR and getting an analogue signal and it’s harder to find faults if they happen.

“The change in technology has made a massive difference to us. In some ways it’s got better. Certainly the predictability of loudspeaker arrays and the feedback you get

“We’re really lucky to work with some exceptional engineers and production managers in the concert touring market, as well as on large on-off events like the Ryder Cup Gala Concert, TV specials....”

- Chris Fitch, co-director of Skan PA

I’d rather not take a job if that aspect were compromised. That’s not just altruism; I want to get the best results out of the crew - if you treat them badly, you won’t get the best results out of your audio system.

Fitch noted that the world is changing very quickly both commercially and technically. “My function at Skan is as an owner and operations manager,” he said. “I know what everything can 74

from the amps has made a huge step forwards, but we’re very pleased that we’ve still got two XL4s out on Chemical Brothers and Muse - an account that we very publicly lost earlier in the year, but are delighted to be working with again - expect to move to an XL4 for their arena shows.”

Another potential blow for Skan in 2013 / 4 was an unsuccessful attempt to move premises.

“We had a purchase agreement in place for a building about half a mile from where we are now, but the building project manager we engaged noticed a big dip in the floor. We had tests done and found that the concrete floor was thinner than it should have been, there was no membrane underneath it and was built on what had been landfill - old bricks and hydrocarbons. The building is right next to a canal and the hydrocarbons were a potential environmental liability.”

With big costs and a three month delay, Skan PA decided to pull out of the deal. “We looked at another facility on the same site, but it proved impossible to close this deal. So we decided to stay where we are and once we’d had a bit of a tidy up, we wondered why we ever decided to move; at roughly 1,100 sqm our building can feel a little cramped but has a beautiful work flow from the storage area, into the prep rooms and then into the studio area where we generally prepare amps, and loudspeakers. We really like the area we’re in and staying here means we don’t risk losing the fantastic staff we have built up. We’re also close enough to London and the motorway network to keep us within the magic UK touring triangle of Bristol, London and Liverpool, but with over 60% of our work outside the UK, the reality is that location isn’t that important,” said Fitch.

Skan PA’s current roster of tours that take it

IN PROFILE: Skan PA

Below: Skan PA supplied a d&b audiotechnik rig to the stadium worthy Take That arena production.

around the world includes not only Take That, Muse, and The Chcmical Brothers, but Belle & Sebastian, Hot Chip, Elbow, Snoop Dogg, and Foals, who have just gone into rehearsals, as well as handling a busy festival season. “We’ve just come back from Download, where we were working on the Zippo Encore stage and we did The Other Stage at Glastonbury,” said Fitch.

“I’ve been personally involved in Glastonbury since 1989, which makes the festival our longest standing customer.

“We’re really lucky to work with some exceptional engineers and production managers in the concert touring market, as well as on large on-off events such as TV specials. We’re not so well known for them, but our experience means that we’re equally able to do these type of complex events.

“Many of the jobs we work on throw up challenges. This means we can put our skills to work to come up with bespoke solutions, many of which we can use again. For example, the Take That tour has been an enjoyable challenge, as well as a staggeringly good fun show - it’s two and a quarter hours of great entertainment that feels like half an hour. We use 150 in ear belt packs and the battery management needed some thought, so we’ve worked with Sennheiser to come up with a 40-way charging bay solution. That was an innovation for us and

it works so well we’re running the same system on Muse.

“We’re quite a big RF supplier; desk-top planning of RF is a discipline that I excel at and, with the support of our touring staff, RF has become one of our specialties. We’ve got over 400 Sennheiser in-ear belt packs on hire

straightforward with current digital mixers and it’s a huge benefit to engineers and artists alike - the engineers can work when they want and the artist can choose whether to soundcheck or not.”

It seems that Skan PA has got the magic commercial/technical formula: take on a

“...the Take That tour has been an enjoyable challenge, as well as a staggeringly good fun show - it’s two and a quarter hours of great entertainment that feels like half an hour...”

- Chris Fitch, co-director of Skan PA

at the moment. We also do a lot of multitrack recording as an added benefit for our clients, archiving every show we do. Muse did a 4K release from their Stadio Olimpico show in Rome recorded on Skan hardware, but mostly the recordings are used for virtual soundchecks.

“We’re moving towards a time where every desk will have some sort of multi-track record / playback capability. It’s generally

comfortable level of tours, add in some dry hire to keep the non-touring equipment busy; keep your kit in great working order and treat the staff well.

“Our balance sheet says we’re a profitable company,” smiled Fitch, “So we certainly seem to be doing something right.”

TPi www.skanpa.co.uk 75

IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Triple E

TRIPLE E LAUNCHES THE MODTRUSS AT ABTT TRIPLE E LAUNCHES ‘EEE-BUILD’ BRAND AT ABTT WITH TRULY GAME CHANGING CONSTRUCTION SOLUTION FOR UK MARKET. TPi SPEAKS TO MANAGING DIRECTOR, DAVID EDELSTEIN. Forward-thinking track expert Triple E has launched an industry-changing construction arm to its business, under the name ‘EEEBuild’, at ABTT. The first product released is an inspired new ‘universal building system’ best described as full size Meccano, set to revolutionise the theatre staging, set building, stage machinery, scenery, construction, and event markets.

Known as ModTruss, the system features lightweight aluminium construction and a repetitious hole pattern, meaning applications are practically unlimited. The ModTruss product line the endless configurations using standard accessories, plus it’s ability to carry heavy loads over long spans makes ideas that once took extensive custom design and fabrication to be constructed incredibly simple, easy, and quick.

The product was launched on an Art Deco-inspired theatre structure designed for Triple E by architect Konstantinos Korakakis, and constructed from the new ModTruss 76

product range. Triple E’s Managing Director, David Edelstein, said “ModTruss comes out of the American outdoor broadcast industry, it has been in use for over seven years and was launched as a product in its own right in 2014.”

The debut of ModTruss was at the ABTT Theatre Show at London’s Alexandra Palace from Wednesday 24 - Thursday 25 June this year. Edelstein commented, “The ABTT and Triple E have a long history together; winning the Product of the Year award in 1984 launched the company. The ABTT Theatre Show’s move to a new venue coincided with the timescale for launching the new product; it was appropriate for us to give the ABTT show a boost by providing the fly tower at Alexandra Palace.”

“This will be the most ambitious exhibition for a Triple E product since the company was formed in 1984,” said Edelstein, prior to the ModTruss unveiling. “We’re extremely excited about the possibilities of ModTruss - it really is rare to be able to offer a product of such

simplicity-yet-genius that has the power to truly change the way our industry approaches set building, design, machinery fabrication, and even complete building structures - think of it as full size 3D Meccano.”

ModTruss can be reused, repurposed, and recycled, and in the process reduce waste scenic materials, allowing designers, production managers and producers real cost savings coupled with enormous flexibility for creative design.

“There’s an unwelcome amount of wastage in our industry,” Edelstein continued.

“Using ModTruss as the backbone of scenic construction, and being able to re-assemble the components in a new configuration for the next show, is a totally new concept in our world. The product can serve for years as a kit of parts for building, supporting, and articulating successive shows for any size of stage or event. We believe that there is nothing else like it on the market.”

On the environmentally conscious aspect of

IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Triple E

Opposite and below: The ModTruss was launched at ABTT in June and promises to be a game-changing release for the staging industry.

ModTruss, Edelstein said: “ModTruss can be used many times and will have a lifespan of many years during which it will have been used for hundreds of different scenic effects. By reducing waste and offering greater flexibility to designers we are offering a win / win situation for the environment and ultimately reducing the physical cost of scenery.”

Example uses of the ModTruss include: construction of stage scenery, including multi level designs; stage machinery modules; complete modular fly tower / stage house construction; temporary structure design and construction; popup theatre construction indoor and outdoor; event stages indoor and outdoor; sporting event viewing platforms; broadcast commentary; camera positions.

ModTruss can also span long distances and maintain high point loads with laminated construction technique.

“Modtruss complements our existing product range, it uses the same design principles of simple robust components. It makes a perfect structure for attaching tracks especially when they need to carry heavy scenic pieces,” Edelstein concluded.

Triple E won the prize for Engineering Product of the Year at this year’s ABTT Awards.

TPi www.3-eee.com

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CLOCKING OFF: Fitz-Simons Challenge Below: Stuart Burdett on a previous charity cycle event.

AC-ET ANNOUNCE CHARITY CYCLE RIDE IN MEMORY OF THE LATE KEVIN FITZ-SIMONS A.C. Entertainment Technologies (AC-ET) is hosting a two-day charity cycle ride between their High Wycombe and Leeds sales offices on 18 - 19 July 2015, to raise money in remembrance of their beloved colleague, the late Kevin Fitz-Simons.

Kevin held an important senior role as Northern Lighting’s Sales Manager in ACET’s Leeds office. He was an extremely well liked and respected colleague, and a larger than life character. During his diverse career spanning over 30 years, Kevin built up an incredible number of customer relationships and friendships. He sadly passed away on 31 December 2013, aged 53.

This event - known as the ‘Fitz-Simons Challenge’ - is being organised by Stuart Burdett, Technical Sales Executive for AC-ET’s Video product division. It will raise funds for two great charities which would have met with Kevin’s approval, and aims to secure a minimum of £1,000 in sponsorships.

The charities are Shelter, which is dedicated to helping millions of people every year who struggle with poor housing 78

or homelessness; and WaterAid, an international charity whose vision is of a world where everyone has access to safe water and sanitation.

It is an untimed event aimed at Kevin’s industry friends and colleagues, suitable for both club and non-club riders. The cycle ride will start in Leeds on July 18 (8am), stopping overnight at a halfway point, and finish in High Wycombe on the July 19, covering a distance of approximately 180 miles.

Those participating in the event will be responsible for providing their own bicycle and all associated clothing / accessories.

Places are limited, and will therefore be allocated on a first come, first served basis.

TPi

To sign up for the event or request more information, please contact Stuart Burdett, Video Division stuart.burdett@ac-et.com To donate to the charities in memory of Kevin, please visit: justgiving.com/teams/Fitz-SimonsChallenge

MOVERS & SHAKERS Sponsored by www.interfacio.com • +44 208 986 5002

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Robe officially launched its latest subsidiary operation, Robe Lighting France, in Paris, unveiling the new offices with a fabulous party attended by around 150 people including major rental players and lighting designers from all sectors of the French production industry. Robe Lighting France is headed by CEO, Bruno Garros and CFO, Elie Battah. The company is fully operational and hits-the-ground-running with seven staff already in place including Executive Assistant, Messaouda Belarbi, After Sales and Technical Support Manager, Jerome Lambeau, and Communications Specialist, Jonathan Grimaux. They are joined by two technical sales engineers, Kevin Migeon, covering northern France and Franck Huyhn who is taking care of the south of the country.

Since its launch in 2010, Rigging Team has gone from strength to strength. To continue to build on this it has recently appointed Claire Gilligan in the role of Operations Manager. Gilligan has many years technical and administrative experience in the entertainment world and brings a wealth of knowledge to the role. She’ll soon have the opportunity to put her logistics skills to good use as the company are shortly to be moving into larger premises.

Director Adam Searle said, “I knew that we needed to expand our team and when the opportunity to work with Claire arose, I took it. She had been recommended to me and her skill set coupled with a friendly personality fitted perfectly with our needs for an Operations Manager. I am delighted she is joining Rigging Team”.

Blackburn UK based lighting and visuals rental specialist, HSL has appointed Mick Seddon as Group Financial Director and Strategist. Working closely HSL’s MD Simon Stuart, he will play a key role in HSL’s active 80

expansion over the next five years, and is one of a number of high level appointments to be announced by the company in the coming months. HSL and Seddon’s awardwinning accountancy practice have already been collaborating for several years. During that time, Mick has been instrumental for the management and co-ordination of several acquisitions by the HSL Group, including the purchase of Playlight, The Lighthouse and Production Services Ireland. Stuart stated: “We welcome Mick to his new role at HSL. His combination of foresight, financial savvy, and imagination will help shape our future and ensure that HSL remains a major force, as well as an adaptable and efficient business model that is in-tune with the ever-changing needs of a fast-moving industry. HSL is also delighted to announce that John Slevin has joined its lively and proactive management team based in the Blackburn HQ, as Technical Support Manager (Projects). SLevin brings his wealth of experience, great personality, and excellent communication skills to HSL on a full time basis having worked for the company as a crew chief and lighting technician regularly over the last 13 years.

RCF has announced a significant expansion of its UK operation, which will add new efficiencies and impetus to the company’s sales drive, as it continues to penetrate new market segments. Central to the change is the appointment of industry stalwart, Miles Brooke - who brings 20 years of experience in pro, commercial and consumer audio within the D&M Group. Taking up the newly created position of Regional Sales Manager (South) he will focus on Installed Sound/Commercial Audio and Rental & Touring Customers, while Mick Butler will continue to represent RCF in the

North of England and Scotland. After a career dedicated to brand building Denon and Marantz - latterly as National Sales and Marketing Manager with D&M Group’s Professional Division - Brooke brings the perfect pedigree.

Prior to the formation of D&M he worked with Denon distributors Hayden Laboratories, a company he joined in 1994. “RCF’s diverse brand portfolio offers exciting challenges in market segments with which I am already familiar - and I look forward to increasing their market share,” he stated.

His arrival will enable the long-serving Dean Davoile to step up to Director of Sales for RCF’s UK office. “We are delighted to have secured the services of Miles as part of this carefully considered restructure, which will not only enable us to give closer support to our customers and sales network, but consolidate in all our core markets,” said Davoile.

Davoile takes up the senior position as Phil Price, who originally set up the RCF UK operation exactly 25 years ago, takes up a new role as RCF International Sales (Voice Evacuation Systems).

Outline North America has announced the appointment of Joseph “Joe” Fustolo as the newest member of the Outline North America Team. “We were pleased to make this announcement at InfoComm 2015 as yet another facet of the continued growth and development of Outline in the US”, said Tom Bensen, Outline North America’s Sr. VP and Managing Director. “Joe is a great addition to the team with his experience and talents. We are confident that his impact will be immediate, and that he will hit the ground running”, he added.

Gallowglass Health & Safety has harnessed the additional firepower of health and safety

www.interfacio.com • +44 208 986 5002

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Opposite: Avolites’ US distributor, Group One Limited has revealed the appointment of Jim Hutchison to the post of sales and training for Avolites; The RCF team. Below: Simon Stuart and Mick Seddon of HSL; Robe’s new French HQ; Michael Anderson and Steve Kearney of Gallowglass H&S; Joeseph Fustolo is the newest member of the Outline North America team.

expert Michael Anderson during what is being described as ‘an exceptionally busy year’ for the consultancy. Anderson, who is also Director of independent consultancy Anderson Bradshaw, was previously Group Head of Health and Safety at EC&O Venues. He has been Chair of the Safety Advisors Group in Entertainment (SAGE) for the past 12 years, liaising with the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) in drafting guidelines for the implementation of the CDM Regulations for the Entertainment Sector. He also chairs the Association of British Theatre Technicians (ABTT) Safety Committee.

Avolites’ US distributor, Group One, has appointment Jim Hutchison to the post of sales

and training for Avolites. The announcement comes from Jack Kelly, Group One President.

Effective June 15, Hutchison is working directly with Brad White, Group One’s National Sales Manager for the brand, in interfacing with new and potential customers, providing product demos and training, and servicing existing users of Avolites’ products across America. Prior to joining Group One, Hutchison most recently served as Customer Engagement and Education Manager for Chauvet Professional, following several years spent as a Product Manager for CAST Software.

Adamson Systems Engineering has announced the appointment of MediaToolbox

Could you help us provide real inspiration?

as distributor for Adamson products in Switzerland and the Principality of Lichtenstein.

The announcement was made by Jochen Sommer, Director of European Operations for Adamson. “I am extremely pleased to represent Adamson and Lab.gruppen products in this region,” said Sven Gerber, Managing Director for MediaToolbox. “Adamson is very well respected and has a terrific reputation. The new S-Series - which we used recently at the Zermatt Unplugged festival - has proven to be another solid addition to their already notable product line.”

TPi www.tpimagazine.com/jobs/

J&C Joel the inspiration behind the performance

J&C Joel is a world leader in the manufacturer of flame retardant fabrics and flooring for the entertainment and event industries.

Through our international network, we have been providing bespoke theatre curtains, drapes, canvasses, backdrops and stage engineering services for stage shows, events and exhibitions for more than 35 years. Currently recruiting the following:

MARKETING COORDINATOR

UK SALES EXECUTIVE

EUROPEAN SALES EXECUTIVE

Based in Sowerby Bridge, West Yorks.

Looking for an experienced, passionate and energetic individual to join our team.

The successful candidate will be responsible for driving and managing both Marketing and PR initiatives within the business.

Based in Sowerby Bridge, West Yorks, with extensive travel across the UK & Ireland.

Looking for a self-motivated and driven individual to join our growing sales team, representing the business, selling our products and services to both new and existing customers.

Based in Sowerby Bridge, West Yorks, with extensive travel across Europe.

Looking for a self-motivated and driven individual to join our growing sales team, representing the business, selling our products and services to both new and existing customers.

Full job descriptions can be found at www.jcjoel.com/careers Please send C.V. and covering letter to HR@jcjoel.com no later than 31st July 2015

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THE BIGGER PICTURE

THE BIGGER PICTURE AUDIBLE CONCERNS This month, we hand over the reins to Annie Jamieson, a post doctoral researcher at the University of Leeds. Fortunately for us, Annie is currently developing a project on the history of hearing loss and hearing protection in the music and sound industries, called Audible Concerns. Here’s her report on the issue, the aims and a recent industry workshop.

“The very discriminating organs that make most possible profession and pleasure in popular music are those under threat by popular music.” From: George McKay, Shaking All Over: Popular Music and Disability, University of Michigan Press, 2013, p. 139 George McKay’s comment on the threat to hearing from popular music captures the inspiration behind my ‘Audible Concerns’ research project, at the University of Leeds, UK, which explores both the history and the current state of understanding of hearing risk and hearing protection in the sound and music industries. I focus on professional sound engineers and musicians because, although there is increasing public concern about the risk for audiences, much less attention has been given to professionals, who face a difficult dilemma in that their livelihood both relies on their hearing and is also a threat to it. The solution is not straightforward because views vary on whether or not currently available hearing protection is sufficiently transparent to allow critical listening without impairing the ability to perform at the highest level, either playing or mixing. (It goes without saying that workers in other aspects of production, such as lighting, face similar risks, but the potential solutions are less problematic where critical listening is not required).

The historical aspect of the project explores the development of our understanding of the potential for hearing damage through music.

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Since the 19th Century and even earlier we have been aware that loud noise, in foundries and factories for example, can be damaging but it was not until the late 1970s that the potential for damage through music was widely recognised.

I’m also interested in how technologies of live performance, such as developments in PA systems, for example, have affected the risk, for better or worse, and the development of solutions to reduce that risk.

The second strand of research explores the attitudes and behaviour of sound professionals and musicians around risk and protection and I ran a pilot survey to collect views on this in late 2014 / early 2015. One importantly novel aspect of my research is attention to sound engineers and other production workers, who have, on the whole, been neglected in previous studies, which tend to focus on musicians and, more often than not, those working in classical/orchestral situations.

On June 3 2015 the first Audible Concerns workshop was held at Opera North’s Howard Assembly Room in Leeds. This event brought together a wide range of people who are actively interested in these problems - from professional sound engineers and musicians, through hearing protection manufacturers and educators, orchestra managers, to music psychologists and audiologists who are exploring the ways in which music can damage hearing and ways to avoid or deal with this. The Musician’s Union were represented, as were Help Musicians UK and the Musical Impact research programme, based at the Royal Northern College of Music.

I opened the workshop by presenting some results of the pilot survey. 230 sound engineers and musicians responded to questions about their perceptions of risk to hearing through music and their attitudes towards, and use of, hearing protection. The results were both comforting and concerning. Whilst the vast majority of people (98%) believe that there is a risk to their hearing,

and that more should be done to encourage the use of hearing protection, only 11% feel that they can wear hearing protection all of the time they are working. 18% never use hearing protection and 71% wear it sometimes but feel that there are times when hearing protection would interfere with their ability to listen critically and so to work at their best. Most worrying of all, 68% of the sample report problems with their hearing - ranging from temporary or permanent tinnitus, through various forms of distortion and hypersensitivity to hearing loss sufficiently severe to require hearing aids and almost 1 in 7 say that their hearing issues affect their ability to work.

Some are able to adapt - by changing from live to studio work, or by relying more on measurement, for example - but others have had to leave the industry altogether.

Interestingly, of the 10% of people who thought that we shouldn’t do more to encourage use of hearing protection, the majority explained that this was because an emphasis on personal protection obscures the real root of the problem, which is a pervasive culture of excessive SPLs in music. Overall 20% of the total sample made similar comments and a number of people also remarked that poorly designed and badly operated sound systems are a large part of the problem. One person commented that: “Problems with sound levels occur because of cramped conditions, unsuitable repertoire for the venue and / or bad sound systems inexpertly operated.”

One area that deserves particular attention, and where there is real potential to make a difference, is in the under 21 age group. Whilst more than 80% of people in all other age groups use hearing protection at least some of the time, only 65% of under-21s do so. Despite the efforts of many universities and colleges to raise awareness, a lot of younger people remain reluctant to use hearing protection. Many respondents in all age groups are concerned about the cost of good

www.psa.org.uk Opposite: Annie Jamieson. Below: Researching into hearing loss and protection in the music and sound industries.

quality hearing protection, especially for students or those in the very early stages of their careers. In interviews, some students have told me that there is no point in using anything other than custommoulded hearing protection, so they prefer to go without until they can afford the best. Coupled with the familiar feeling of invulnerability in the young - deafness is something for older people to worry about - this is a potentially dangerous attitude. The workshop participants were firmly agreed that this group should be a focus for awareness campaigns and advertising. On a related note, there was a very strong, unanimous call for the importance of hearing awareness and protection to be taught in schools, just as healthy eating or the dangers of sun exposure are. Jono Heale of ACS Custom, in particular, is trying to makes inroads here but sadly, generally meets resistance. Not an easy problem to solve but it’s on our collective wish list for future attention.

Among the many interesting and important contributions, Nigel Hamilton of the charitable organisation Help Musicians UK also spoke about survey results. His organisation have recently surveyed almost 700 musicians on various aspects of health and well-being and have found that 66.5% have used hearing protection (though not all continue to use it) and of the third of respondents who haven’t tried it, more than half think that it is not necessary. 40.5% of

this sample report hearing loss. Though these surveys are not directly comparable because the questions were not identical, it is interesting that the incidence of self-reported hearing problems is significantly lower in musicians alone than in my survey, where more than two thirds of the respondents were sound engineers and other related professions.

Representing the production side, Fred Jackson, of ACS Custom and Fred Jackson Hearing Protection, gave us a very personal account of his own hearing issues - caused by crowd noise rather than by music directly in his case - and how this changed his career path and has led him to passionately promote the cause.

Another speaker who gave us much food for thought was freelance sound engineer, Shaun Trotter, who described how he changed his plan to become a professional brass musician, and instead moved to the production side of the industry after developing severe and lasting tinnitus in his late teens, after an especially loud session. The audience were all relieved to hear that, although the tinnitus lasted for a year, Shaun did eventually recover normal hearing although this is exceptionally rare after such a long period and his story graphically highlights how much people are at risk. Another freelance engineer, Lionel Miller, presented a view that appeared often in my survey when he eloquently

explained that, while he is very aware of the risks and takes all possible precautions to protect his hearing when not actively mixing, he feels that hearing protection would make him unable to detect the fine and subtle detail necessary for a good mix.

Overall, the workshop helped to raise awareness of a range of different perspectives on the problem of hearing risk and created a space for connections and future potential collaborations. It seems clear that the production industry and the people who work in it face a significant problem, which is not currently well addressed by research. The Audible Concerns project aims to address this imbalance.

Many thanks to Opera North and the Howard Assembly Room for providing the beautiful venue for the workshop, to the Cultural and Creative Industries Exchange at the University of Leeds for funding the event, to ACS Custom for help and advice and for sending Jono Heale and Fred Jackson along, to ProAudio Systems, Bradford for providing audio recording equipment and especially to all the participants for committing their valuable time and energy to make the event such a success.

TPi www.audibleconcerns.leeds.ac.uk A.K.Jamieson@leeds.ac.uk @audibleconcerns 83

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Gordon Cooper Profession: Group Director, SES Entertainment Services

Date & place of birth: July 1963, Old Windsor, UK. You started your career as an engineer... how did you become involved in the live production industry?

I started my working life as a Precision Engineer at a local engineering company.

Having passed my apprenticeship, it dawned on me that I would be spending the rest of my days in front of a grubby machine. As part of my college courses, I did six months working with electrics, which was certainly more inspiring than watching a machine turn relentlessly day-after-day, so I thought that a career change was on the cards. Not having any formal electrical qualifications, my options were limited. I found myself working for a Windsor-based company that provided electrical equipment for the construction industry. After seven years with them, my brother Mark and I decided to go it alone. After five years of supplying the construction industry, we dipped out toe into the world of entertainment, and to be honest have never looked back. Now recognised as one of the biggest suppliers in the industry, the company has grown year-on-year and is now represented in over five countries, and we have our own company based in the UAE which has tripled in size in the last 18 months.

What was the driving force behind starting the business with Mark?

I think the main reason for starting our business was that we could offer a service and product that was needed in the industry. It appeared that there were only a small number of true manufacturers and they only offered a very small selection of products. With our enthusiasm and desire to produce a high quality product and a top class service, we saw little point in doing it for someone else.

“We dipped our toe into the world of entertainment, and never looked back....”

Who were your first clients in the touring / live event world?

In the early days, we supplied lots of small production companies, studios, and film companies. Vari-Lite (for PRG) and Protec in the UAE were our first clients for 19-inch rack mount distribution, and the racks are still going strong today, which is a testament to our build quality. We now have products out on every continent in the world.

How has the industry changed during the time you’ve been a business owner?

Despite recessions, and financial changes in the world’s markets, I feel that the entertainment industry is fairly bomb proof. People will always find the money to see live acts and this of course has a very positive impact on our business. As one season finishes and those projects come to a close, a new one begins and other projects start, so we have found that there is no real downtime in our workshops. Taking into account our overseas business and partners, we now have a constant demand throughout the year. Our stock profile has had to change to meet those demands and we are constantly 86

increasing our range to meet further demands and indeed increase what our clients can purchase from us.

Training is a big part of the SES ethos. What can you tell us about the Academy?

We have always ensured that our staff are trained to as high a level as possible, firstly to ensure first class build quality and secondly, to ensure that our staff can answer any technical questions they may get asked. With health and safety being paramount, and more demands being put upon our customers, there didn’t appear to be anyone offering training courses that gave them the technical knowledge they need to be able to meet the requirements. We decided to launch the SES Academy with a clear vision of getting people trained to a high standard, and be accredited by City & Guilds. Running a wide range of standard and bespoke courses at two venues, and also being able to offer training at the clients premises, we can provide qualifications to freelancers, technicians and management alike.

How is SES developing in the Middle East?

SES Global FZC is now in its second year of trading and has grown beyond our expectations. Not only has our brand been used in the region for many years, but to have our own warehouse in Dubai, gives the region easy access to products. The re-stocking process has been a constant battle this year with the demand for product often out stripping the stock available, so we have had to increase the frequency of shipments to ensure product is available. We will also be increasing our stock profile in the region, to offer more items that often have to be shipped in, which is expensive. By having a very wide portfolio in the UAE, we have become a one-stop-shop for production companies not only looking for power products.

Where can we expect to see SES in action over the summer months?

Our kit powers almost every live event throughout the season in the UK but often its hidden away. We also provide an enormous amount of kit for TV, flm and studios, all of which are very busy at the moment, and with our ever-increasing list of clients, the SES brand is everywhere!

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