FMYA 2019

This was the first time we had worked on the event and also our first job for production company Vive Events, but not for Vive MD Nick Sprake, with whom we have enjoyed a long working relationship.

Our brief required us to provide a system that included sound for a choir of 12 vocalists split across four podiums across the width of the Great Room, a band supplying music for the winners’ walkup stings, speech reinforcement, video playback, a communications system (wired and wireless) and a localised dancefloor system for the post-awards party.

The production layout needed clear lines of communication between the show producer, show caller, MD, musicians and singers. We linked the production team’s RTS wired comms system with the Clearcom wireless system, with the producer and show caller’s shout mics feeding the MD’s headphones for his cues. A separate input from the MD’s microphone was then inputted into the comms system and in turn fed the musicians’ Sennheiser IEM packs.

Control for front of house and monitors was provided by a pair of Digico SD8 desks, with QLab used for the incidental playback and announcements.

Due to height restrictions in the Great Room, we flew four stacks of L-Acoustics Kiva II (two main hangs of six and two side hangs of four), teamed with four SB18 subs and 12 X8 stage front fills (four on the main stage and two on each of the four vocalist podiums).

The system for the post-awards party needed to be powerful enough for the dancefloor without making it difficult for guests to network throughout the rest of the Great Room. We used a separate ground-stacked L-Acoustics SB18 and Kara system to bring the DJ music down to a more localised dancefloor area.

Loading restrictions for the Grosvenor Great Room required us to load in the day before and store the equipment on site, ready to start rigging early on the morning of the event. This gave us approximately eight hours to build and test the install prior to the first sound-check of the band and choir and with a team of two operators and four stage crew, this was easily achieved.

Due to our usual process of building and testing the rig in full back at the warehouse prior to delivery, there were no on-site issues and, following the success of the event, we’d like to thank Nick Sprake and the team at Vive Event Production.