Guest artists this year included Foo Fighters, Alicia Keys, Tony Bennett, Duane Eddy, Norah Jones, NeilYoung, Sergio Mendes, James Taylorand Diana Krall. British comedianand actor Eddie Izzard hosted theshow, which kicked off with a performanceby the Cirque du Soleiltroupe. As in previous years, the Los Angeles Convention Center hosted the gala, which was held two days before the Grammy Awards ceremony at the neighboring Staples Center. Due to high ticket demand, the main stage—divided into three performance areas—was set back as far as possible in order to accommodate 300 tables for the 3,000 attendees.

The first challenge, according to Smoother Smyth, owner of Delicate Productions and audio project manager for the event, was the 240-foot distance between the downstage lip and the mix position “We didn’t want to add extensions to the standard 100m coaxial snake runs,” he commented. “The best option was to drop down from the stage to the nearest access point to the parking garage below the hall. We then went through the garage to the nearest access point back into the hall and to the FOH mix position. The runs were so tight that we ended up cutting holes in the left and right stage wings and made it to the stage racks with only inches to spare.”

This year, Delicate elected to use a Martin Audio MLA multi-cellulr array for the first time. “This is a powered cabinet incorporating six dedicated Class-D amplifier channels per enclosure for individual poweringand DSP control of individual cells; this basically equated to a smooth, even coverage throughout the room,” said Smyth “Due to the low ceiling and a viewable stage area of 160 feet wide by 35 feet high, it was necessary for sightline purposes to restrict the length of the main left and right flown arrays and to hang two delay arrays,” he said. The main stage system included seven MLA boxes plus one Martin Audio MLD flown per side, with delays comprising another six MLAs per side. Martin Audio W8LM, EM26 and WT2 cabinets provided fill where necessary. “The convention center has severe weight restrictions, but we were also able to hang four Martin Audio MLX sub-bass cabinets and stack two, per side,” he added. NARAS decided to add a 24-foot diameter revolving stage in the middle of the venue to better engage the audience at the back of the hall. “Due to weight restrictions, a small dynamic PA was required for this stage and sub-bass could not be flown or stacked,” said Smyth. “Artists performing on this stage were asked to perform without drums or heavy bass accompaniment.” Alison Krauss & Union Station, Katy Perry and Coldplay were happy to oblige, he noted. Six arrays of six W8LM cabinets, each with one W8LMD for down fill,
provided 360-degree coverage at the satellite stage.

McCartney’s FOH mixer, Pab Boothroyd, and his crew brought in their Clair touring FOH control and monitor systems. In addition to Mc-Cartney’s Avid Venue Profile, FOH consoles included two 96-input Venue Profiles and Foo Fighters’ DiGiCo D5. Brad Madix handled house mix responsibilities. With each guest performing only one song each, said Smyth, “That made it quite a challenge, going from an artist performing on the McCartney consoles to the Delicate consoles, and from the main stage to the second stage. Brennan Houser [MLA/ FOH audio tech] was responsible for executing the changeovers on a Yamaha DME64N digital matrix.”

At monitors, McCartney’s Midas Heritage console, two 96/24 Venue Profiles and a Midas Pro6 drove an assortment of wedges, including 16 Martin Audio LE12Js and eightLE2100s; 12 Clair SRMs (used by McCartney, Keys and Eddy); a dozen d&b Audiotechnik M2s (Foo Fighters); four d&b M2s at the satellite stage (Coldplay); and two Martin Audio WT3 full-range cabinets for Neil Young. A total of 12 Sennheiser G3 IEM systems and 24 beltpacks were also available.

“The MLA system was simply amazing,” Smyth reported. “The venue actually sounded more like a Las Vegas dinner theater. The fact that nobody was critical of the audio or referred to the venue as a convention center spoke volumes to me.”

taken from prosoundnetwork.com/apr2012. By Steve Harvey

Sean Leo, a seasoned veteran of the production and special events industry, has been named Director of Sales of Delicate Productions, Inc. Leo joins the company from AVT Event Technologies, a leading provider of in-house audiovisual, staging and production services to hotels and resorts around the world.

In his new role, Leo is responsible for creating and managing strategic relationships and developing new business opportunities and potential areas of growth for Delicate Productions. He brings nearly 20 years’ experience in sales, encompassing automotive product launches, press events, live broadcast sporting events, network broadcast specials, outdoor festivals, corporate business theatre and trade show environments.

“Having Sean join us is an important step in the continued growth of Delicate Productions,” said Smoother Smyth, Delicate Productions CFO and co-founder. “His extensive background in live event sales will be a tremendous asset for the development of new clients, his proven expertise in successfully prospecting and on-site production management, will be of enormous benefit to the company and our clients.”

Most recently he served as Senior Sales Manager of AVT Event Technologies, a Freeman company at the newly opened Ritz Carlton, JW Marriott Hotel Los Angeles at L.A. Live.

Prior to AVT Event Technologies, Leo worked in sales for numerous leading rental houses including CTLA, AVHQ Staging, XL Video, Impact Video and Videocam.

Leo holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication Leadership from University of Hartford. He has served on the board for the Advisory Committee of PLSN, a trade magazine, and was a speaker for its platform news conference in 2005.

George Edwards – General Manager - george@delicate.com

Gabe Nahshon - Account Executive – gabe@delicate.com

Nico Vonk – Shop Manager - nico@delicate.com

Kyle Bjordahl – Video Department – kyle@delicate.com

Javier Alcaraz – Audio Department – javier@delicate.com

• Barco
• Christie
• Sayno
• Pandora’s Box
• AXON
• Pioneer
• LG
• Panasonic
• AJA
• Kramer
• SONY

• Pro Can
• ETC
• Chromlech JARAG
• Comer
• Pixeline
• Martin
• High End Systems
• MA Lighting
• ProPower D

• Martin Audio
• d&b audiotechnik:
• Digidesign
• Yamaha
• DigiCo
• Midas
• LAKE
• BSS
• AKG
• Audio-Technica
• Beyer
• Countryman
• JBL
• Ramsa
• Electro-Voice
• Neumann
• Sennheiser
• Shure
• Lab Gruppen
• Crest
• Crown
• Clear Com
• Telex Wireless
• Whirlwind MASS Systems
• Pro Power AC Distros