Cliff Richard Looking at Lights
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Price where purchased UK £1.40 USA $2.25 SEPTEMBER 1990 VOL.1 ISSUE 3 I I I CLIFF RICHARD LOOKING AT LIGHTS SPECIAL PRODUCTS PREVIEW ISSUE NEW FORUM FOR LIGHTING DESIGN Strand Lighting SPOTLIGHT ONUS NEWS IN BRIEF ssue of Lights’ u5my 3 FROM RUSSIA A ducts introduced this Autumn and reviews the progress and applica- tion of many others introduced since WITH LUFF IN THIS the Spectacular’ ‘Strand event of three hen the English National Opera years ago. Once again there are several set off from its London base for milestone products. a tour of Russia, the company ISSUE Whereas Cantata with its new 1.2kw did so in the knowledge that Strand lamp and unique rotating gate set new technology was travelling there and 3 TELEVISION standards for professional luminaires, back with them — courtesy of Strand ITN snaps-up EC9O today the new Quartet stands set to dealer Luff Light and Sound. follow its illustrious Patt and Pattern 23 Luff supplied two Galaxy 2 systems. 123 predecessors as a distinctive design in specially-constructed rugged flight for the more compact 4 INTERVIEW venues. cases. The Galaxys themselves were Strand’s new MX control desk pack adapted to ensure they could withstand Lighting forum formed ages surface mount electronics within heavy-duty use on the tour. a sleek injection moulded casing, creat The ENO divided its technical group ing a quality mark bench for memory into two teams. Playing venues at desks that are well within the budget of 6 PREVIEW Moscow, Leningrad and Kiev; one team most stage or studio venues. A MIDI in remained with the Company, while the Premiere — first word in terface enables musicians to call up other went on to set up the next show. architectural lighting their own lighting cues. Strand’s Premiere control system now gives the architectural designer a 8 INTERVIEW sophisticated programmable solution to GEMINI 2+ dynamic lighting within the built en How the new Quartet vironment. And we chart the progress ince its introduction at PLASA range was designed of EC9O, a true digital dimmer, as it last September, Gemini 2+ with begins to enter service with the major S its new Plus features has gone television companies and theatres. from strength to strength. More Gemini Our — 11 PREVIEW technical feature looks at SMX consoles have been installed this year a new digital communications protocol, than in any other in its history, in See the full range of which will be the essential link between cluding such prestigious venues as the Strand architectural the control desk, dimmers and lumin Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, Lon lighting aires with the increasing deployment of don, four systems into Canel Plus, Paris, distributed intelligence. Also, we have Ballet Opera De Lyon and BBC Studios not forgotten the importance of student in Manchester and Birmingham. 12 PREVIEW drama with productions and installa Key to this recent success are Gemini tions at schools and news from dance 2 + ‘s new features: 340 control chan Designing-in reliability and theatre to round off this issue. nels, dual colour video displays, in for MX finally Lights!, once again is able to creased system memory, non-dim bring special offers to its readers in the assignment in patch and others. A full form of stencils for lighting designers colour brochure and specifications are 14 FEATURE and a repeat of our popular sweatshirt available from your local Strand agent. offer. See page 15 for details. • See Dancing The Light Away p.10. SMX — the new lighting protocol SPECIAL OFFERS! CLIFF SAYS: LOOK AT THE LIGHTS PLUS — your Strand ho better to open this year’s Cliff will open the exhibition at Olym contacts worldwide PLASA exhibition in London pia at noon on Monday, September 10, W than that ageless performer followed by a ‘walkabout’. The exhibi Cliff Richard? During his time as a sin tion actually opens on Sunday the 9th, ger, film, stage and TV star he must have and runs until Wednesday 12th. (Photo seen more light changes than most. by Sue Andrews) Lights! is the official journal of Strand Lighting Limited, Grant \Thv, Svon Lane, lsleworth, Middlesex, TW7 5QD, England. Editorial adviser: David Brooks, RSc., cfng, MIff, DMS. Telephone: 081-560 3171. Fax: 081-568 2103. Edited, designed and produced by: Ledger Bennett Communications Group, Telex: 27976. © 1990 Strand Lighting Ltd. HayWoOd House, Lake Street, Leighton Buzzard, Beds., LU7 8RS, England. Vol.1, Issue . ISSX 0958.’217 Printed in England. 2 HERE IS THE NEWS ...ITN HAS INSTALLED AN EC9O trand’s revolutionary EC9O and just push a button in the back-up dimming system, reported ex control station and there would be a D tensivelv in the last issue of pre-set fade for them.’ Lights! has taken off in a big way, with But the Strand involvement did not the first major order going to Indepen stop at merely providing and installing dent Television News for its new studios the necessary hardware. For with in central London. Strand’s in-house expertise, the com The studio, on the site of the former pany was able to assist ITN’s own Times building in Grays Inn Road, is engineers in designing the new studios, due to open on Christmas Eve. The and worked closely to devise the layout move from ITN’s existing four sites and technical configuration. around Wells Street marks the dawn of The changeover from the present a new era for the company, which is studios at Wells Street to Grays Inn Road now committed to becoming ‘much will be a masterpiece of organisation. more commercial’ in its business ap Throughout the move, the ITN bulletins proach. This means that the company’s •Jutia Somerville — as seen on screen. will keep on the air at regular intervals. studios have to be of a sufficiently high ITN’s existing Galaxy 2 system is be standard to allow them to be hired out ‘Very often when they start running the ing up-graded to a Galaxy 3, with a fault for independent productions. news they do not know how it is going reporting facility. This allows the Within the new complex, ITN will to finish, if a late news item comes in. Galaxy to receive a constant up-date have four studios, two of them both This presents problems which need a from EC9O about faults, should they oc 260m2 in area. ITN already uses a rapid response, since it is live cur anywhere in the lighting system. Galaxy 3 system and an M24 and is television.’ The existing PTM dimmers, installed by committed to a policy of continuing up There are enormous changes ahead Strand in 1968, have been up-graded. grading of facilities. in the broadcasting environment with Jim Mitchell explained, ‘The whole Given that the basic business of ITN the passing of the Broadcasting Bill. approach to lighting has changed in re is gathering and presenting news, heavy ITN will be a profit centre and is confi cent years. The younger ones who are investment in a system such as EC9O dent that it will continue to be the main far more adventurous are coming to the may, on the face of it, seem excessive. supplier of the news for ITV. fore now. The change has come about Yet when you consider the scope of Jim Mitchell, who is overseeing the in the last 18 months and it is mainly problems the production team is likely new technical installation, said, ‘We due to the fact that new technology to face, it quickly slips into perspective. have just got to run as a commercial gives lighting designers new ideas. enterprise. The philosophy is that if we ‘As far as EC9O is concerned, there is ‘WE ARE IN THE BUSINESS have a studio, then we will use it.’ no doubt that it is revolutionary. We OF LIVE TELEVISION AND In ITN’s case it was a question of were absolutely staggered by it.’ ALL THE ATTENDANT PROBLEMS perfect timing that presented the op The first programme to go on air us THAT BRINGS portunity for EC9O. The company was ing the EC9O system will be Channel 4 in the process of concluding a new con news at 7p.m. on December 24th. ITN employs about 1000 people and tract for PIP dimmers but because EC9O in addition to its central London head was at that time in an advanced stage of quarters, has bureaux in the United development by Strand R + D engineers, States and Moscow. Strand’s Alan Luxford suggested that it Project engineer Phil Holland ex might be more suitable. plained, ‘The very nature of news means that you never know in advance ‘THERE IS NO DOUBT THAT who is coming in for an interview. This EC9O IS REVOLUTIONARY. WE presents a host of technical problems WERE STAGGERED BY ITJ which have to be dealt with. ‘For example, we do not know until Working at such a frantic pace, ITN’s the last minute if the people coming in most urgent problem is the lack of time are black, white, bald or what colour for experimenting with lighting levels. clothes they are wearing. We are in the Any alterations to the lighting often business of live television and all the at need to be immediate and exact, which tendant problems that brings. During is where EC9O comes into its own. the course of a day, across the network, Phil Holland explained, ‘The beauty we are presenting a total of eight hours of the EC9O system is that, for example, of live television.’ if there was a news flash, then someone • New orders for EC9O systems have now The point was expanded by Building could walk into the studio without been received from London Weekend Services Manager Jim Mitchell.