grandMA2 has proved to be a good bet for Casino Rama, Ontario’s only First Nations commercial casino, which stages 150 shows a year featuring top names in music and comedy. First Nations is a term that collectively refers to various Aboriginal peoples in Canada who are neither Inuit nor Métis. Casino Rama invested in a grandMA2 full-size late last year, and it has quickly become their “console of choice,” reports lighting designer and programmer Derek Noble.

Production Designer Manfred Voss, prefers not to play games when it comes to his lighting and control. He plays a winning hand by using High End Systems, a Barco company, products. For 20 years, Voss has been with the popular German TV game show, “Wetten, dass..?” (which translates as “Wanna bet that...?”)  counts on ordinary people performing outlandish tasks for its entertainment value.

EMF is providing the technical services for the new entertainment show on TF1: The Voice, la plus belle voix. From the OB truck XL1 to sets L1 and L2 at the Lendit studios, with the management of thirty or so personnel and 16 cameras (including 2 camera booms and 1 Steadicam - Mathieu Caudroy), Euro Media France is providing Shine France with the best of its know-how.

DPA’s new d:fineTM headset microphones have been used for the musical Lelies, a Judas Theaterproducties production at the Antwerp Fakkeltheater.

For the second consecutive year, Dreamsets provided the full technical production for Miss South Africa and Miss Teen held at Sun City’s Superbowl venue. Lighting Designer from the company, Mauritz Jacobs, has worked on the show at least five times before, and for this year’s edition, he used a grandMA2 full-size as well as an MA VPU plus (Video Processing Unit).

Katy Perry’s engineering team relies on DPA Microphones’ 4088 cardioid headsets for all the pop superstar’s live performances, including her current California Dreams world tour. With the fast-paced, high-action set mechanics of the tour, Perry’s front-of-house engineer Peter Keppler needed a mic that could adapt to any situation. The smooth design of the DPA 4088, which makes the mic almost invisible, combined with its ability to eliminate feedback and background noise, make it the ideal choice for a high-octane tour like Perry’s.

The EBU announces today that the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest will take place at the newly constructed Baku Crystal Hall. The Eurovision Song Contest Reference Group, the governing body of the Contest on behalf of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), approved the venue proposed by the Host Broadcaster, Ictimai TV.

December saw the chance for over 100 up-and-coming bands to reach a potentially huge audience as London’s O2 ran its December Sessions music programme, giving music fans the opportunity to enjoy 20 nights of live music at no cost. With Sennheiser equipment featuring on every show, one unique performance saw the company unusually embracing the sound of silence.

When Brixton Academy was built in art deco style during the cinema boom of the late 1920’s it never expected to be hosting high-octane rock bands like American supergroup, Chickenfoot (led by former Van Halen legend Sammy Hagar).

When cinematographer Bill Berner began to gear up for the new season of the multi-camera comedy “Are We There Yet?” he said it was a no brainer, that Vinten, a Vitec Group brand, would be his support of choice.

grandMA2 took on a Spanish accent for the 12th Annual Latin Grammy Awards telecast live on the Univision Network from the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas. Pennsylvania-based Atomic Lighting provided 3 x grandMA2 light consoles with 3 x grandMA2 fader wings to control the show’s lighting and another 2 x grandMA2 full-size consoles to run 16 universes of Art-Net for the video content. Fifty Clay Paky Sharpy formed part of the lighting inventory. Carlos Colina was the lighting designer of the show.

The “45th Annual CMA Awards” was a star-studded, spectacular event that saw 21-year-old singer / songwriter and all around music phenomenon Taylor Swift walk off with the show’s top award: Entertainer of the Year. But before the actual awards show, there was the “CMA Red Carpet Special” on CMT.

After the major success of X-Factor 2010, the German version of the popular talent show has just completed its second season, which ran between 30th August and 6th December.

DTS, a leader in high-definition audio, will make its debut on booth #9443 in Central Hall at CES 2012, taking place 10 – 13 January in Las Vegas. Booth visitors will enjoy an array of exhibits showcasing high-quality audio technology demonstrations and previews, with the opportunity to learn about DTS’ latest industry partnerships.

Celtic punk band Flogging Molly is currently touring the world with HARMAN’s Soundcraft Vi1 as its monitor console. For nearly 15 years, Flogging Molly has played its blend of traditional Irish sounds, hard-edged punk and thoughtful, socially conscious lyrics to millions across the globe.