AO Drones, a provider of drone light shows, recently delivered an airborne show for a video campaign promoting Motorola’s reimagination of its iconic Razr flip phone in Middle East, and more precisely in Dubai, and Africa. The resulting video quickly attracted over 200,000 views through Motorola’s social media channels.

Crédit photos : ©AO Technology

The teams from AO Drones and AO Creative, part of entertainment lighting visionary AO Technology, worked in collaboration with Motorola and netizency, the digital marketing agency, to design the visual content, including animated logos and brand names. AO Drones’ design team even created an animation of the Razr flip phone opening, closing and rotating in the sky.

Vinayak Shenoy, Head of Marketing, Middle East and Africa for Motorola’s parent company Lenovo, said of the Razr launch event, “We felt that this drone show symbolises what this product is all about – a great blend of technology and art . . . The beauty of 120 drones rising in the air all together, the whirring of the drones and the beautiful formations is something I’m going to remember for a very long time.”

AO’s founder and executive producer, Marco Niedermeier says: “From the beginning we asked, what was the intention? It was to create great content for social media and get maximum shares and engagement. So we looked after the whole production – the drone show, the film – but without an invited audience on-site.”

Specially developed for entertainment productions, the AO Drones fleet uses an advanced control platform to deliver flexible, efficient and safe shows. What’s more, the drones’ speed – up to 10 metres per second – and accuracy mean that their ‘visible’ time in the air is optimised, making these shows a viable option for event productions everywhere.

Adding a further dimension to the video, camera drones provided striking ‘fly-through’ footage, taking the viewer up and into the drone formation, even passing directly through the Motorola logo. “It’s not just filming a flat logo in the sky,” says Niedermeier. “This really is three-dimensional, dynamic show content.”

Motorola Razr Drone Launch in Dubai from GulfNewsTV on Vimeo.

He concludes, “We are very happy that Motorola chose to use a drone show for their product launch. Working with Motorola and netizency has been such a positive experience, and the result speaks for itself.”

For the launch of the new Motorola Razr, the AO Drones team worked with representatives from Motorola and the digital agency Netizency. Crédit photos : ©AO Technology

More info on AO Technology website

CenterStaging, Southern California’s leading rehearsal facility, has raised the bar by offering Meyer Sound loudspeakers in all of the facility’s 12 rooms including 24 LEOPARD systems each configured for optimum performance given the specific room volume and dimensions.

CenterStaging is a preferred rehearsal site for many of the entertainment industry’s elite programs and events, including the GRAMMY Awards, Academy Awards, American Music Awards, The Voice, American Idol and Dancing with the Stars, among many others. With such high-profile and demanding clientele, many of them working under extreme deadline pressure, CenterStaging could not afford to skimp on quality or reliability.

“We already had a good inventory of Meyer Sound wedges, but we decided to go ahead and standardize the side fill systems for all the same size rooms,” says CenterStaging General Manager James “Jimbo” Neal. “And now everybody is in love with the new systems. Having Meyer Sound exclusively makes it easy to move from one room to another, because you know it will sound the same and you can get comfortable right away. And, of course, all of the Meyer gear sounds great.”

A couple of Leopard lying on two 900 LFCs, the calm before the storm !

For Mitch Clark, co-owner of CenterStaging, making the move to an all-Meyer Sound facility was a common-sense business decision. “Maintaining good, strong relationships is vital to the success of any company in the entertainment business.
Meyer Sound has been a great company partner since my days as owner of [staging systems maker] TOMCAT Global. Meyer continues to produce the highest quality products backed by the best service in the industry. We expect nothing less because our clients expect nothing less.”

Meyer’s MJ-210 wedges…Let the fun begin !

Flexibility is another key element in tailoring audio needs to clients, as often systems need to be adapted or augmented with either different loudspeakers or additional loudspeakers.
In such scenarios, according to Neal, the Meyer Sound solution shines in comparison to its high-end direct competitors.

“Other companies have come in and tried to pitch us,” he says, “but the minute they roll in the amplifier racks I’d say, ‘Stop right now! We don’t buy power amps.’ Meyer’s self-powered systems make it easier when, for example, in the middle of the night somebody says they need another wedge. It’s easy. Grab the Meyer box, an XLR cable and a power cable, and you’re ready.”

In the audio configurations, the 12 studios at CenterStaging are equipped with a grand total of 200 Meyer Sound self-powered loudspeakers. For side fill tops, six of the larger studios deploy LEOPARD line array loudspeakers in short stacks of two per side.
Five other large to mid-size studios rely on UPQ-1P, UPQ-2P or JM-1P point source loudspeakers as the side fill tops. Deep bass power is supplied by appropriately matched 900-LFC and 750-LFC low-frequency control elements along with 600-HP and 700-HP subwoofers. Each studio is also provided with between six and twelve stage monitor wedges, either MJF-212A or MJF-210, or a mixture of the two.

Meyer’s Leopard 900-LFC magic combo. Remember to lock the weels.

For side fill tops in the intimate Studio 3, CenterStaging now offers a pair of Meyer Sound’s new ULTRA-X40 loudspeakers.

“The new ULTRA-X40 with the 750 subs is an amazing combination,” remarks Neal. “It’s just tearing that room up. For its size and weight, the ULTRA-X40 is an amazing box. I can see where it will be a game-changer for Meyer in small session rooms and the corporate world.”

Reliability and durability are two more critical qualities in this application, emphasizes Neal. “These systems take a lot of abuse, particularly the side fills with dance acts using heavy electronic music. They will push the subs really hard, but the Meyer Sound boxes just keep working. We’ve never had any complaints.”

As a veteran in the entertainment support industry, co-owner Clark understands what’s at stake. “There are no do-overs in live performance,” he says. “You have to get it right the first time because that’s the only shot you’ll get. Our clients know that we only partner with companies of like mind, and Meyer Sound has consistently proven when it’s ‘go’ time, they get it right every time.”

Each studio is equipped with an Avid SC48 desk and up to 200 Meyer speakers, let say, a choice among them !

CenterStaging’s California operation also provides standardized Avid SC48 digital mixing consoles, Shure wired microphones and Radial direct input boxes in every studio. CenterStaging LLC was established in 2009 by Mitch Clark and Scott Scovill. In addition to the Southern California rehearsal studios, CenterStaging Los Angeles and New York City also offer an extensive range of musical instruments for backline rental along with veteran technicians to support any event.

More on Center Staging website and on Meyer Sound website

Solotech, a world leader in audiovisual and entertainment technology with 13 locations across Canada, the US and Europe, expanded its lighting inventory last summer with the purchase of 150 Ayrton Khamsin-S LED profile luminaires and 108 Ayrton MagicBlade-FX fixtures from ACT Lighting, Inc., Ayrton’s exclusive distributor in North America.

The Khamsin-S units selected by Solotech are designed for scenic applications. The fixture is equipped with a new LED module delivering powerful metallic white light with a record-breaking output of 40,000 lumens and a colour temperature of 6500 K.
The MagicBlade-FX is the latest iteration of the popular MagicBlade-R. It features seven next-generation RGBW high-output LEDs than can be individually controlled to create airborne virtual scenery or to illuminate sets and performers.

“Ayrton is a well-known quality brand with impressive fixtures that are industry accepted and requested,” says Lee Moro, Vice President of Live Productions at Solotech. “Designers are asking for these fixtures more and more every day.”

Solotech already put the fixtures to work on the Jonas Brothers’ Happiness Begins world tour, which kicked off last summer in Miami and is due to wrap in Paris at the end of February. They also used the Khamsin units on Guy Laliberté’s PY1 Pyramid project through the new “Lune Rouge” production house.
“Their design team is very happy with the fixtures,” Moro reports. “The support we have received from ACT Lighting has been fantastic, as we have experienced throughout our long relationship,” he concludes.

– To read Lighting and Sound America’s full report on the Jonas Brothers tour visit the Lighting and Sound America

– More information on Ayrton Khamsin and MagicBlade-FX and the extensive portfolio of innovative Ayrton LED fixtures can be found on Ayrton website

– Ayrton is distributed exclusively in North America by ACT Lighting, Inc

L-Acoustics is closely following the developments of the COVID-19 pandemic relayed by the World Health Organization (WHO) and Center for Disease Control (CDC). As our industry faces an unprecedented challenge, we understand that preventing the spread of COVID-19 to populations at risk must be a global priority.

In response, we have implemented the action plan below in accordance with local health and safety recommendations with the following goals:
– Keeping all employees safe and informed
– Supporting our clients, engineers, and end-users
– Keeping our operations and supply chain running in a safe environment

Our Workforce and Operations

L-Acoustics has taken measures to ensure all our employees are safe and able to care for themselves and their families. We have implemented a work-from-home policy for all employees able to do so. In an abundance of caution, and in order to limit the spread of the virus in keeping with CDC’s level 3 guidelines, we have decided to suspend on-site operations at the following facilities until further notice:

– Marcoussis, France
– Keskastel, France
– Amboise, France
– Wenden, Germany
– London, United Kingdom
– Singapore, Singapore

L-Acoustics is in a solid financial position and, for the foreseeable future, will maintain our entire workforce’s full employment and salaries.

Shipping and Delivery

Following the suspension of our on-site activities, we are rescheduling all deliveries from Marcoussis to a later date. We will also reschedule all shipments from suppliers.
Our North American offices in California will remain open this week and will continue to deliver finished goods and service orders while respecting local public health and safety guidelines.

Trainings and Visits

We regret to have to cancel all on-site trainings and visits to our L-Acoustics facilities of Marcoussis, Westlake, New York, London, and Singapore until further notice.
However, in order to further support the live sound community through education, we are preparing a series of free online webinars which will cover multiple topics, including L-ISA, line source optimization, AVB, and P1/M1. We will share a separate announcement and schedule in the coming days.

Sales and Application Support

We are ceasing travel for our global Sales and Application team unless it is absolutely necessary and complies with local regulations.
Our team remains available globally, through phone and email to support your projects, discuss contingency, or simply if you want to talk to a friend.

Outlook

We believe the fastest way to get back to normalcy is to strictly observe local health recommendations. We all have a role in protecting populations at risk. We will continue to implement our action plan to ensure the safety of our employees, mitigate disruption to our supply chain, and support our clients.

We wish everyone health and resilience through these challenging times, and encourage you to stay connected virtually with us. We look forward to getting back to making your live events around the world sound spectacular.

With warm regards,

Laurent Vaissié – CEO L-Acoustics

Hervé Guillaume – CEO L-Acoustics Group

More information on the L-Acoustics website

North American touring version of the Broadway Tony Award-winning musical Wicked relies on a DiGiCo Quantum 7T console and its theatre-specific software to assure great performances night after night on the road.

Wicked, winner of multiple Tony, Drama Desk and Grammy Awards, has become a Broadway staple, poised to celebrate its 17th year on the Great White Way in October at its home at the Gershwin Theatre. The show’s nearly half-dozen licensed touring versions have drawn almost as many award accolades, including Best Musical, Score and Production Design trophies from the Touring Broadway Awards.

Allison Bailey on the left and Talia Suskauer in the North American touring production of Wicked (photo Joan Marcus).

The latest touring edition of the show is scheduled to hit 15 cities, from Baltimore to Vancouver. These shows put the musical’s canonical songs—hits like “Defying Gravity,” “Popular” and “For Good”—through a new DiGiCo Quantum 7T console.
Purchased through Milwaukee-based Clearwing Productions, the compact yet powerful audio desk features DiGiCo’s sophisticated theatre software, a package designed specifically to meet the demands of theatrical workflows, with features such as an Auto Update System, Aliases, the Players tool and a VCA programming map.
“We spent the better part of two years planning the upgrade for the touring show, and the DiGiCo was the obvious winner,” says Zach Williamson, current Associate Sound Designer for the Broadway and touring productions of Wicked. “We were looking for the console that will take us for the next 10 to 15 years on the road, and the Quantum 7T is it.”

On the road

The Broadway show continues to use the same analog console it has since day one, nearly 7,000 performances ago, but the touring version needed the kind of power and small footprint that the DiGiCo desk affords users. “The Quantum 7T is light to travel with and load in, and its reliability is exceptional, which is critical for a touring console,” says Williamson. Both he and Wicked Sound Designer Tony Meola have been impressed with the console’s performance for tours that have taken it from Seoul to Sao Paulo, as well as for extended “sit-down” runs in Mexico City and Tokyo.

“We like the sound of the console, and the Quantum engine gives us a lot of security, allowing us to actually eliminate the monitor console we had been using and take our monitoring feeds directly off of the front-of-house console for the Aviom monitors,” Williamson explains. “The Quantum processor can support that for our fairly high channel count, while the console’s theatre software gives us features such as aliases and profiles that track individual performers. And the 7T’s flexibility of layout means we can condense the entire production to layers on two fader banks and the master section.”

Drop the analog

FOH Engineer David Romich had been a fan of DiGiCo’s SD-Range for over a decade on various shows, but until recently, the Wicked tour was mixed on the same analog system used on Broadway. “It wasn’t an easy decision for our team to replace that,” he says. “It’s a reliable console with a trusted, musical quality.”
This production known colloquially as “Munchkinland,” it’s the second national touring company in the show’s long history was built in 2008 with emphasis on streamlining the original travel footprint. “The SD7T was always an option, but the dual-Quantum engine configuration gave us the power and redundancy we needed to make the move.”

On the left Wicked FOH Engineer David Romich and Assistant Sound Engineer James Wilcox at the tour’s new DiGiCo Quantum 7T console (photo Megan Loomis).

“We eliminated at least 1,500 pounds of console and outboard gear, with the 7T also taking on the load of onstage and orchestra monitor mixes,” Romich explains. “That alone was a huge savings.” But the console’s workflow improvements for the production were just as dramatic.

T for Theatre

Romich notes that the “T” theatre software made it possible to transpose and edit the show’s 300-plus cues from their original analog system, including MIDI commands, fader positions, plus dynamic channel and routing settings. “The theatre software allows us to operate the show with the same fluidity of analog, but allows every parameter to be recalled if we choose. ‘Channel Cues’ is an incredible powerful view that reveals every channel parameter for programming and troubleshooting.”
Wicked’s changeover from analog to Quantum 7T was ambitious. “Once programmed offline, the physical swap, rehearsals and debut happened within 48 hours; we never missed a show,” Romich says, adding that he and Assistant Sound Engineer James Wilcox operated shows and navigated the new 7T with ease. “The Quantum is a huge step forward and has all the features we need for a production like this.”

The digital sounds

But perhaps the single biggest shift of the move to the Quantum 7T is the enhancement of the show’s overall tonality, he feels. “With our 140-channel count, the Quantum engine handles grouping and summing transparently,” Romich explains. “Switching from analog, we revealed so much high frequency information, which really sparkles. We have so much more detail, and need less processing. There’s still so much to the 7T that we’re still discovering.”

For more info on the tour, visit the Wicked the musical website and more info on Quantum 7T

At the age of 16, Elliott Mountford launched Ti22 lighting design company with a view to providing lighting and video integration on live shows. Little more than a few months later he was handling his first arena show at Wembley.

@Luke Dyson

Nearly 100 JDC1 hybrid strobes zap Brixton Academy audience.

Now still only 19, and from a background in programming, Elliott has work fully as a lighting designer. Most recently he has been creating a lighting show with Charli XCX—with an armoury of GLP fixtures for company, supplied by Liteup.

“We had 34 X4 Bars and 34 JDC1 [hybrid strobes] on the European and USA tour, and then the show at Brixton Academy was a total upscale, with a total of 96 JDC1s and 36 X4 Bars,” he reveals. The rig comprised both the touring and Brixton package. “It needed to be bright, and be able to create a thousand different looks out of a single unit …and the JDC1 always smashes that.”

Elliott Mountford Goes Crazy with Charli XCX and GLP. @Luke Dyson

Elliott already has some experience in the field, having worked as an LD with Skepta, Ghetts, Chipmunk and a number of EDM acts (Including Ultra Music Festival, Lost Fre-quencies, Carl Cox and Solomun).
Earlier this year he programmed and tour LD’d rapper Santan Dave for LD Tim Routledge, an award-winning lighting show that helped him gain further recognition.

When Charli XCX was searching for a new LD she realised that Elliott, after operating several of her shows, would be a great match. He stepped up to take the lead role, and proposed a completely different conceptual approach, working alongside creative director, Jed Skrzypczak.

“Charli and Jed loved my work, and kept me on board for the festivals, and the US and European tour,” he continued. The lighting design came together organically, without a brief. “I’ve worked with Jed a few times now, and totally get his vibe. Charli’s future pop music needed to stand out. It was apparent that the Cubes, designed by Jed, were our central focus and so I needed a fixture that could produce a flat soft field of light, but was also easy to complement the rest of the rig.”

@Luke Dyson

The GLP fixtures were the key to ensure all objectives fulfilled. “I’ve used X4 Bars for a while, but JDC1 was a new strobe to me at the start of the year. After using a bunch with [San-tan] Dave, I knew it was a fixture for the future and I was interested to see how far we could push it this time.”

Utilising two JDC1’s per cube, and six X4 Bar 20s on the back (with all other JDC1s audi-ence facing), he quickly got his answer. Elliott ran all fixtures in full mode in order to have as much control as possible. “Every pixel is mapped, and I spent a lot of time putting them into layouts and grouping them in a cor-rect way to allow me to separate the backgrounds, pixels and strobe channels.

@Luke Dyson

“The channel modes are super helpful when cloning from JDC1’s to other in-house fixtures. The strobe plate easily clones to an in-house xenon strobe, and the background module clones perfectly to any LED strobe or fixture, with the correct strobe duration/rate etc.

“I also love the way the JDC allows me to separate the plate priority with the pixels, al-lowing effects to be overlaid on top of each other. There’s a really cool part of the show where we go from every strobe at full, to a very very low UV flicker. We strobed the plate module at a low intensity but fast rate, and kept the pixels on high intensity to give it the push.

“It really messes with your eyes because of the refresh rate effect that was applied. The previous song was very very bright and harsh LED xenon white, and this song was a very dark low light UV. Because of the way a human retina deals with light exposure you could still see the previous ‘white’ song while now witnessing a UV look onstage … super weird. It totally matched the song intro and was the perfect look myself, Jed and Charli were af-ter.”

As for Liteup, this is Elliott Mountford’s regular vendor. “I have always worked with Gordon [Torrington] and their techs are amazing. We had Cy Doitmant as the crew chief and Ben Beverley as system tech. Everyone worked super hard and I will keep using Liteup in the future.”
In summary, the LD says there are many elements that make the GLP fixtures so special. “Wherever I go I see the Bars—everyone has them even in the weirdest part of the world, and they always match. Their dimmer curve and colours are unmatched, and I feel like it’s a fixture I can use on every design.

@Luke Dyson

“The JDC1 is simply by far my favourite fixture of the last two years. I can make so many different looks out of one unit, and you really don’t need many to create something spe-cial. The tilt also makes it a genuinely hybrid strobe; I use it for back light a lot and then back into the audience. I also love the thin strobe look, where the source is just a thin line.

“In fact I don’t think there is another strobe on the market that does LED colour and strob-ing all in one, and that is so widely stocked around the world.”

Both Gordon Torrington and tour manager Wilkie Wilkinson had initially thought it was cra-zy having nearly 100 strobes facing straight towards the audience. “But once Wilkie saw it in rehearsals he realised it was not just a strobe, as we were using it as a pixel device, for a bunch of wipes and hits. And he was super impressed,” Elliott concludes.

Prolight + Sound will not be held in 2020. On 12 March, the Hessian Ministry for Social Affairs and Integration issued general decrees prohibiting large-scale events expected to attract more than 1,000 visitors. At the present time, it cannot be assumed that the current situation will have changed by the time the postponed event was to have been held. Therefore, Messe Frankfurt has decided to cancel the event.

It was not possible to hold Prolight + Sound 2020 on the dates originally planned in view of therestrictions introduced against the background of the rapid spread of SARS CoV-2 infections.
“We did everything we could to hold Prolight + Sound 2020 as soon as possible after the original dates and would like to extend our thanks to the response and support from numerous companies and organisations that said they wanted to join forces with us to do so.
We are very sorry to have to cancel the fair. However, we firmly believe that, under the current circumstances, this is unavoidable”, said Detlef Braun, Member of the Executive Board of Messe Frankfurt GmbH.

The next Prolight + Sound will be held from 13 to 16 April 2021

Further information can be found on Prolight+Sound website

Nine Trees Shanghai Future Art Centre, is the new crown jewel for arts and culture in China. The structure houses three theatre spaces equipped with Meyer Sound audio systems. The largest auditorium claims the first Constellation active acoustic system in China.

The Centre was conceived from the outset as a focal point for a wide spectrum of arts and entertainment performances, hosting both Chinese and international artists representing the global diversity of music, drama and dance. The task of designing and constructing venues suited to this brief was undertaken by Shanghai’s EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) agency, led by General Counsel Le Shengli and with lead technical assistance from Zhu Shijie, theatre director for the EPC.

The project principals surveyed a number of newer theatres in China and overseas, and soon determined that an active acoustic solution would best accommodate the desired diversity of performances. After evaluating available systems, they narrowed their focus to Constellation and initiated consultations with Meyer Sound’s Chinese distributor, Shanghai Broad Future Electro-Technology, Ltd.
“Constellation offers greater flexibility and convenience for future operations,” says Zhu Shijie, “and accommodates a broader spectrum of show programs. Also, when comparing to the alternatives, we thought that Constellation could bring over a purer and more involving listening experience than what the others could offer.”

The 1,200-seat main theatre, also made for hosting operas.

To confirm their decision, Mr. Le and Mr. Zhu traveled to the Meyer Sound headquarters in Berkeley, California to experience Constellation’s acoustical capabilities firsthand in the Pearson Theater and also to see how Constellation’s software, hardware and human design elements are seamlessly integrated. “This experience redefined my understanding of what an active acoustic system really is,” comments Mr. Zhu, “and explained the critical importance of precise installation to the success of the project.”

Constellation is installed in the main theatre, which accommodates 1,200 patrons on two levels. The balanced physical room acoustic, with a reverberation time of about 1.2 seconds, can be enhanced with times up to about seven seconds.
In addition, the subtle characteristics of the reverberation envelope can be altered by adjusting the warmth, strength and brightness. During commissioning and tuning, 11 presets were created for different performance requirements, with additional presets open for future needs.

The Main theatre whith a short RT made on purpose to fully allow Constellation to create the desired ambience. The hanged mics are visible.

The desired acoustical characteristics are created via a total of 160 self-powered, full-range loudspeakers (Ashby™-5C, Ashby-8C, UPM-1XP, and UPJunior-XP) mounted laterally and overhead, with the lowest octaves reproduced by 16 compact subwoofers (12 UMS-1XPSM and four MM-10XP).

To capture the acoustic ambience, 56 miniature condenser microphones are distributed throughout the space. In between the microphones and loudspeaker output, a D-Mitri® digital audio platform comprising 21 modules provides the sophisticated DSP and matrixing, with five modules — one for each reverberation zone — dedicated to hosting the patented VRAS acoustical algorithm. The theatre’s 30 meter-deep stage is served by a dedicated Constellation zone functioning as a virtual acoustic shell.

For direct sound reinforcement, the main theatre provides a system anchored by dual arrays of 13-each LEOPARD™ line array loudspeakers, with deep bass from four 1100-LFC low frequency control elements. Also deployed as subsystems for fills, delays and foldback are a total of four UPQ-1P, two UPQ-2P, two UPM-1P and 14 MM-4XP loudspeakers along with six MJF-210 stage monitors.
Mounted over the proscenium — concealed behind a scrim — is a left-center-right system configured with 12 JM-1P and four UPQ-1P loudspeakers for, respectively, far- and near-field coverage. Three Galileo® GALAXY™ 816 processors enable system drive and optimization.
Since opening, the Constellation system has been used for a variety of performance genres, including symphony orchestra, drama and musical theatre. The results, according to Operating Technical Manager Li Yiting, have been uniformly excellent.

“In addition to the available acoustic presets, we can fine-tune the parameters to suit the needs of the performers,” she reports. “We conclude that the operation of the system is stable, responsive, naturally reverberating and comfortable sounding. More importantly, you can’t perceive that the reverberation comes from electroacoustics. The best way to put it is that the applause from the audiences and the response from the performers demonstrate their satisfaction with the system.”

The 500-seat theatre featuring retractable stands and a Lina based PA.

Regarding the LEOPARD-based reinforcement system, Ms. Li comments that “though it is relatively compact and lightweight, it has tremendous power. It not only sounds clean, but it also enhances the intelligibility and clarity of the sound.”

The two smaller venues in the complex also are furnished with Meyer Sound reinforcement systems.
The 500-seat multi-functional theatre relies on a system based on 12 LINA line array loudspeakers and six 750-LFC low-frequency control elements that can be flown or ground stacked as needed for the event at hand. Completing the system here are two UPA-1P loudspeakers, six MJF-210 stage monitors and a GALAXY 816 processor.

The smallest yet able to welcome 300 patrons theatre.

The 300-seat theatre is covered by two CAL™ 64 loudspeakers with advanced beam steering for the main system, augmented by two 750-LFC elements, two UPJ-1P loudspeakers, six MJF-208 stage monitors and a GALAXY 816 processor.

Summing up the supporting role of the new technologies, EPC General Counsel Le Shengli says, “The goal is to make the theatres more international, more iconic and more artistic. We aim to make Nine Trees Shanghai Future Art Centre a place that belongs not only to the Fengxian District but to all of Shanghai and, more importantly, a home for artists from throughout the world.”

Overall design of the entire Centre was by the French firm Frederic Rolland International, with theatre design by Thomas Yee of San Francisco-based STUDIOS Architecture. Physical acoustics for the theatres — optimized for Constellation in the main auditorium — were designed by Joseph Myers, president of the renowned Kirkegaard acoustical consulting firm.

A short video to visit the Centre:

And Learn about Constellation here

Martin Audio’s busy start to the year sees no sign of slowing down having unveils a further five new products targeting commercial installation sector with in-ceiling and pendant loudspeakers joining the ADORN series at ISE 2020.
The ADORN commercial series of on-wall loudspeakers was first introduced in 2019. This has now been expanded by three in-ceiling loudspeakers and the company’s first ever pendant speaker, available in white or black as standard.

Martin Audio ADORN on-wall and ceiling loudspeakers bring class-leading performance, reliability and value to a wide range of commercial sound installations, from retail outlets, bars and restaurants to corporate offices. With Martin Audio’s signature sound characteristics, the ADORN series is the perfect choice for background and foreground systems which require superior sound quality from visually discreet, ultra-compact enclosures.
They also provide a seamless sonic transition within a multi-zone complex using larger Martin Audio systems such as CDD or BlacklineX. This ability helped the new ADORN family members win a Best of Show Award at ISE 2020.

All the new ceiling models have a nominal impedance of 16 ohms, enabling four or more speakers to be driven in parallel by one amplifier channel, thereby maximising efficiency and minimising cost. The new ceiling additions are also fitted with an internal high-quality 70V/100V multi-tap line transformer with a switch to select the output level. For full-bandwidth protection, the low and high frequency sections are individually protected against overload in all models.

Comprising a 4” (100mm) LF driver and a 0.75” (19mm) silk-dome tweeter, the ACS-40TS in-ceiling speaker produces 108 dB peak output at 1 m and its ported design delivers strong bass that extends down to 73 Hz. The very wide 180° conical coverage of the ACS-40TS makes it particularly suitable for low ceilings and reduces the number of speakers required for even coverage, leading to a reduction in installation cost. It features a shallow backcan for installation in ceilings with a minimum cavity depth.

Featuring a 5.25” (100mm) LF driver and a 0.75” (19mm) silk-dome tweeter, the ACS-55TS in-ceiling speaker produces 113 dB peak output at 1 m and its ported design delivers strong bass that extends down to 79 Hz. The wide 150° conical coverage of the ACS-55TS makes it particularly suitable for low ceilings with a shallow backcan for installation in ceilings with a minimum cavity depth.

The in-ceiling ACS-55T with a generous internal volume maximises low frequency output and delivers strong bass that extends down to 62 Hz. It also features a wide 150° conical coverage.
Finally, the ACP-55T pendant speaker features a 5.25” (100mm) LF driver and a 0.75” (19mm) silk-dome tweeter, produces 109 dB peak output at 1 m and delivers superb sound quality for both music and speech reproduction. Its stylish pendant enclosure is equipped with a single-point mounting system plus provision for attaching a safety cable. Available in black or white, it also features a wide 150° conical coverage.

You can hear the award-winning ADORN ceiling and pendant loudspeakers alongside the rest of the Martin Audio catalogue at the first of this year’s UK Open Days, taking place March 17-19 at our headquarters in High Wycombe.

More information on the Martin-Audio website

Kings of Floyd are a leading Pink Floyd tribute band based in Germany. FOH engineer, Howard Heckers is the band’s audio lynchpin in helping to produce the authentic Floyd sound. Central to his setup for Kings of Floyd is a DiGiGrid IOS unit.

Kings of Floyd on stage.

Led by Brit, Mark Gillespie, this assembly of international musicians regularly undertake national tours, playing popular theatre venues to sold out audiences. In order to replicate and do justice to the magic and majesty of Pink Floyd, Kings of Floyd and their experienced crew place audio quality high on their list of priorities.

The sound guru Howard Heckers with his double screen LV1 virtual desk.

Highly respected FOH engineer, Howard Heckers, notable for his work with Supertramp co-founder Roger Hodgson amongst many others, is the band’s audio lynchpin and his work in helping to produce the authentic Floyd sound is essential.
Central to his setup for Kings of Floyd is a DiGiGrid IOS unit, as he explains: “I’ve been a DiGiGrid user for a while now, having started touring with the Waves LV1 around three years ago. In two hundred-plus shows during that time, DiGiGrid products have never let me down.
I use the DiGiGrid IOS for front-of-house it’s the best option available with eight inputs, eight outputs, two headphone outputs and AES. It’s ideal for PA feeds and some local inputs like talkback and playback from a video stream for the show. I love the preamps very transparent and clear.”

Heckers, whose career credits also include Liza Minnelli, Melanie and Randy Newman, owns several DiGiGrid products: “I actually have three Waves LV1 setups for different tours. The Kings of Floyd gear stays in the truck but I use a similar setup for other tours.
I’ll be upgrading my IOS’s to IOS-XL as soon as I have a break in the current Kings of Floyd tour. I also use a DiGiGrid MGB (coaxial MADI interface) on another tour – this is my newest setup that deploys a DiGiCo rack on MADI to MGB on FOH and has an IOC at FOH.”

On the bottom screen the « desk » and on the top the desk « screen » showing one of the 8 possible plugs per channel.

With a strong reputation and more than twenty-five years of experience that has encompassed ten major world tours, Howard Heckers has heard and used almost every available console on the market but considers that using DiGiGrid with Waves LV1 is the option that best suits his requirements. He’s also an admirer of the units’ durability, describing them as “rock solid”.

DiGiGrid’s european product specialist Michael Maurer.

Kings of Floyd’s connection with DiGiGrid extends even beyond its use by their renowned FOH engineer.
When the demands on Howard Heckers’ time recently resulted in the need for a deputy to cover some dates on the band’s current tour, they called on the services of none other than DiGiGrid Product Specialist, Michael Mäurer, to take the hotseat.
An accomplished sound man in his own right, Mäurer enjoyed the experience adapting to the setup was certainly not a problem!

More on the Waves website and on the king of Floyd

Regarding the increasing number of cancelations among the Prolight + Sound 2020 attendants due to the spreading of virus Covid-19, you can find the list of the one that will not be present this year in this news updated in real time.

The list of the Brand you will meet again in 2021 :

Lighting: Artistic Licence, Adam Hall, Ayrton, Cast, Chauvet, ETC & High End, Lightpower, MDG, Nicolaudie, Robe, Robert Juliat, Strand, Vari-Lite, Artistic Licence
Sound: Adam Hall, Adamson, d&b audiotechnik, Coda Audio, L-Acoustics, Nexo, RCF, Yamaha

More info on here

An Allen & Heath dLive mixing system is used for one of the most successful ice-skating gala events in the world, Art on Ice, which celebrated its 25th anniversary this month with a series of shows taking place across Zurich, Lausanne, Basel and Davos.

Combining live performances from internationally acclaimed artists, world-class dancers and figure-skaters, including the 2018 Gold Olympic medallist Alina Zagitova, Art on Ice offers a unique and immersive storytelling experience.
Produced by Swiss AV production company, Habegger AG with Session Pro helping to supply gear, the full setup featured a dLive S7000 paired with a DM64 MixRack, fitted with a superMADI card for multi-track recording and a Waves V3 card for external plugins.

Sascha Kohl and his D7000 behind him.

Operated by long-time A&H user and FOH engineer, Sascha Kohl, dLive was used to handle all sources including the musicians, vocalists, presenter and playback.
The nature of the venues presented some challenges, as Kohl explains, “As the main part of the hall is a very large, highly reflective sheet of ice, I was never able to get into a really good listening position, which made getting the mix perfect a little tricky at times.
As the PA was set up for the crowd, having the possibility to do the VSC on my laptop, via dLive Director, and walk around the venue was absolutely essential.”

Kohl is also quick to praise dLive’s easy scene management, including the simple to use ‘relative’ and ‘absolute’ update functions, and the MCA control introduced in firmware V1.8, which allowed Kohl to easily run the entire show via one surface.

Art On Ice rink with dLive in Action .

“The music, video playback, band, singers and presenter work seamlessly together and it’s great to have one system that can handle anything thrown at it,” Kohl adds.
“I’ve been using dLive since the very beginning and before that I was a long-time user of iLive, so I’m totally into A&H consoles. dLive’s workflow is just quick and easy to use, and I love the additional DEEP processing available, such as the OptTronik, 16VU and 16T.”

More on the websites:

• Allen & Heath
• Habegger
• Art on Ice

Tommex Żebrowscy Sp. J. best known as Tommex has been appointed Polish distributor for RCF’s Installed Sound, Commercial Audio and Voice Alarm EN54 product lines, with effect from January 2020.

From left to right Marcin Zimny, Tommex Commercial Director, Marzena Wójtowicz, Tommex Sales support manager and Luca Ombrati, RCF International Sales Manager.

Tommex’s Commercial Director, Marcin Zimny, stated that the move resulted from changes in the ownership structure and distribution strategy of their existing long-term loudspeaker partner. “This meant we were looking for a new partner with a high-quality installation range, that could complement our portfolio; RCF provided a great opportunity and was an exact match.”
“The combination of 70 years of RCF history with 30 years of Tommex provided a compelling partnership”, he said. Over the years Tommex has equipped many sports venues from stadiums and sports halls, to entertainment arenas, swimming pools and ice rinks. They had also worked extensively in theatres, operas and culture houses, concert halls, schools and transportation hubs. As such, RCF was seen as a perfect fit, and would create synergies with other brands in their distribution portfolio.

Confirming the decision, RCF International Sales Manager, Luca Ombrati, stated, “We were one of the few brands able to fill all the missing product lines in Tommex’s product portfolio.
After negotiation I accepted their proposal because until then RCF had only been successful in the ‘entertainment’ market segment (Pro Audio and MI), thanks to our partner Arcade Audio, and they will continue as our exclusive distributor for TT+, Pro, Live, Mixing, Recording and Transducer product lines.

“But for RCF this provided an excellent opportunity to develop the ‘Installation’ market-segment in Poland, represented by a well establish distribution company in the specific field.” One range that looked particularly attractive to Tommex, he continued, was the new Business Line of products. “We also see great potential in the Compact and Compact-M series, the P series, the entire commercial sound catalogue and the DXT3000,” continued Marcin Zimny.
The company has wasted no time in marketing the brand. “We have already announced this to our customer base on social media, the trade press and other portals. We will introduce it further during trade exhibitions, seminars and demos.” Leading the sales mission will be Tommex Commercial Director Marcin Zimny, who will be personally responsible for the development of the RCF brand in Poland.

In closing, Mr Zimny said, “Our customers have been positively surprised and extremely excited by the news [of the RCF brand acquisition]. They are delighted that we can offer such great quality systems and are able to expand our product portfolio to offer such a wide range of systems and possibilities … quickly, and with excellent product availability and support.”
Luca Ombrati concluded, “We are confident that Tommex can develop this specific part of business for us and look forward to a healthy trading partnership.”

For further information visit Tommex website and RCF website