The Live Events Stage in Hall 6, sponsored by MA Lighting and organized by TPi Magazine editor Stew Hume, spent the past two days covering some of the pressing concerns in the live sound market, with more sessions set for today before the stage is turned over on Friday for the career-focused Production Futures takeover on Friday.
On Tuesday, the threat of counterfeit products across the industry was discussed by an expert panel that concluded that it can be combated through a combination of community-wide action, education and optimism. Day 1 also featured Hume’s interview with Adele’s production manager Paul English about sustainability at the pop star’s record-breaking August 2024 residency in Munich, which encompassed concerts and an immersive festival experience.
Yesterday’s topics included behind-the-scenes looks at both the Eurovision Song Contest and the Primavera Sound Festival, as well as discussions on managing the mounting demand for wireless solutions in live entertainment.
Some highlights from today’s schedule include:
- John ‘JP’ Partridge, head of production, Celestial; Matt Heap, senior project manager, BPMSFX; and Marc Webber, co-founder and managing director, ER Productions, take the audience into the dynamic world of special effects, sharing their experiences with pyrotechnics, lasers and drones.
- With stage productions becoming increasingly elaborate feats of engineering, Tait’s Toby Van Hay, VP, head of EMEA business development, and Tina Blakeney, principal, project development, explain what it takes to make veritable playgrounds for performing artists a reality, and reveal the challenges they face.
- The day ends with “Owning the Sound,” a session exploring how professional audio engineers are experimenting with new ways to control sound in outdoor environments that is hosted by Solotech’s Nick Lythgoe and Chris Jones and Aaron Holloway-Nahum of Southby Productions.
And though today is the last day of the Live Events Stage, Friday’s focus on careers, talent and how to get a job in AV is sure to be of interest to many ISE attendees. Production Futures has produced a program, part of ISE’s Fast Forward Friday initiative, that will offer career guidance for newcomers and provide a place for them to network with professionals to build connections and find industry jobs.
