ATLANTA, GEORGIA: Poised for a future playoff berth with a hopeful mixture of youth and experience, the Atlanta Braves finished the 2009 season with a respectable record and much to look forward to. more

NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE: Blackbird Studio in Nashville houses one of the finest collections of recording equipment anywhere, including an impressive assortment of API analog mixing consoles. Having already installed a 48-channel API Legacy Plus featuring 96 inputs in Studio B, and the largest API Legacy Plus console ever built – with 96 channels and 192 inputs – in Studio D, Blackbird has opened its brand new Studio H with an API 1608 discrete analog console.

The API console in Studio H joins two other API 1608 desks on the premises, according to Vance Powell, Blackbird’s Grammy-winning Chief Engineer. “We have three API 1608s, and two 16-channel expanders,” he explains. “One of the 1608s, with a 16-channel expander, is installed in Studio E. Another 1608 is in our new room, Studio H, an overdub/edit/mix suite. The 1608 is the centerpiece of that room for monitoring, more

NEW YORK, NEW YORK: As one of the three major players in theater sound in the US, Sound Associates has provided sound reinforcement support and rentals to Broadway for over sixty years. At any given time, some twenty shows are using the company’s equipment, which includes over 4,000 channels of high-end Sennheiser wireless transmitters and receivers. For what amounts to hundreds of thousands of dollars of wireless channels per show in the most demanding theatrical applications on the planet, Sound Associates provides open-architecture SymNet DSP units that have been customized to provide real-time audio monitoring from up to four locations using AMX touch-panel interfaces.

Sound Associates provides audio for shows that typically require between thirty and seventy channels of Sennheiser wireless. The company combines various lavalier microphones with Sennheiser SK 5212 body pack transmitters and Sennheiser’s new 3732 receivers. “Sennheiser has a <!–more–><!–more–><!–more–>long more

HOPEWELL JUNCTION, NEW YORK: Founder of 1980s English progressive rock sensation, It Bites, Francis Dunnery has maintained a busy schedule of solo work, production, and engineering in the nearly two decades since It Bites dissolved. Regular touring and recording with Robert Plant Lauryn Hill, Ian Brown, Carlos Santana and the creation of his own Aquarian Nation record label to “help support and maintain artistic integrity” have cemented Dunnery’s position as a venerated member of the musical intelligencia, in both the UK and America. His recently released album, “There’s a Whole New World Out There,” is a clever reworking of his favorite material from his early years. Like everything Dunnery has worked on in the past two years, the new album was recorded entirely through a Metric Halo 2882 converter and interface. Metric Halo has a sound that he has never been able to more

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – OCTOBER 2009: Butler University’s Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis is the antithesis of the modern NBA showplace. It’s gritty. It’s not air-conditioned. The seats, or rather bleachers, are uncomfortable at best. But with an 80-year history at the epicenter of both high school and college basketball in a state that is practically synonymous with the sport, Hinkle is very well-loved. In fact, it is the architectural inspiration for both Conseco Fieldhouse (Indiana Pacers) and Lucas Oil Stadium (Indianapolis Colts). The spirit of aspiration that is so bound up with Indiana basketball was documented in the film “Hoosiers,” the climax of which was filmed in Hinkle and recounts an epic underdog story that actually unfolded at Hinkle in 1954.

But age and grit of the Hinkle variety, though they may warm the heart of a true fan, seldom come with good, more

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – DECEMBER 2009: The historic Henry Miller’s Theatre in the heart of Manhattan has been invented and reinvented, purposed and repurposed, respected and disrespected. Built in 1918 for the famous actor/producer, it spent the first half of its life hosting critically-acclaimed shows such as “Journey’s End,” “Our Town” and “Witness for the Prosecution.” As it closes in on its 100th birthday, a new lease on life promises to carry the Henry Miller’s Theatre past the tumult of recent decades – when it was a club, and an “adult” theater by another name – and back into the limelight of Broadway’s celebrated productions. Keeping the facade and significant structural artifacts, Bank of America raised and rebuilt the theater at the same site, now below their new 57-story headquarters. Along with an elegant and LEED-certified structure, the 1,055-seat theater received a more

Brea, CA – December 2009… As a non-profit theatre organization dedicated to building a strong and rewarding future for young people in the arts, Stagelight Family Productions focuses on producing high production quality musicals with large casts featuring non-professional actors drawn from the community. These performances consistently sell out and receive rave reviews. Projecting a performer’s voice is an ongoing challenge in any theatrical environments and, with Stagelight’s budding actors, the issue is further compounded. That’s why the theatre group recently invested in a new wireless microphone setup from Lectrosonics.

  

Brea, CA-based TheatreSHOTS, which supplies theatrical/event photography and A/V services to the communities of North Orange County California, was brought in to assist Stagelight Family Productions with its recent production of the Broadway classic Beauty and the Beast. Bill Warshaw, who with his wife Diane operates TheatreSHOTS, discussed the more

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ONTARIO, CANADA ― Holophone’s H2-PRO takes first place for “Truth in 24,� an NFL Films production created on behalf of car manufacturer, Audi. Centered around France’s annual 24-hour car race, 24 Hours of Le Mans (24 Heures du Mans), sound mixer Kyle Hartigan chronicled Audi’s journey toward winning the trophy again, after taking the grand prize home a total of seven times. Hartigan took Holophone’s H2-PRO to the track to record a real surround sound mix for the project’s soundtrack.

The full-length film was shot in high definition and features a surround sound mix of the event, which also included several pre-event races in Sebring, Florida; Long Beach, California and Monza, Italy before the big day in Le Mans, Sarthe, France. Holophone was tasked with creating the surround sound mix for the main event in France. more

Leading Audio Post-Production Facility Now Offers Stereo-to-5.1

Pictured in Smart Post Sound’s new Penteo-equipped Dubbing Stage 3 are (L-R) Smart Post’s President Joe Melody, Executive VP Sales Matt Preble, Re-recording Mixer Tamara Johnson; Penteo’s CMO Chris Stone and COO Sasha Owen. In the foreground is the Penteo/RT(tm) processor for conversion of stereo to 5.1 surround. Photo by David Goggin.

Smart Post Sound, industry leader in progressive audio for more than 30 years, has opened its third film and television dubbing stage. Each stage is equipped with Penteo Surround, the new process for converting stereo recordings into 5.1 surround sound.

First used in Warner Bros. “Watchmen,” the Penteo process was also utilized in Quentin Tarantino’s blockbuster “Inglourious Basterds.” Penteo is also featured in the upcoming post-apocalyptic thriller “Book of Eli,” starring Denzel Washington, opening January 15, 2010.
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