CPL working as technical partners for event producers Bright, returned to the Mojo Active, Almondsbury site near Bristol for the annual OVO Energy Summer Party, an action-packed day of fun and entertainment for OVO employees, their friends and family …. Now in its fourth year.
The project included CPL’s delivery of audio, lighting, rigging and crew for two music stages – Main and Bar – featuring live bands and a lively DJ line-up respectively, and there were also a few ‘specials’ around the site, including flying an impressive one metre diameter glitter ball flown from the apex of one the conjoined tipis making up the Bar area.
The CPL team was led by Mike Radford, and they worked closely on site with Bright’s production manager Nick Diacre and their project leader, Annabel Harrison.
For the main stage, a d&b Y8 line array sound system was specified, with three flown Y8s a side accompanied by two ground-stacked V-SUBS per side, all controlled via a Yamaha CL5 console positioned side stage.
There is no FOH at this event to maintain sightlines, instead ‘FOH’ is mixed from the stage right monitor position. A wireless network is part of the audio package provided by CPL, so the systems engineer and any guest FOH engineers can tweak the system from anywhere around the arena using an iPad running the Yamaha StageMix app.
Mike and the crew installed additional RF antennas around the Main stage area this year so the wireless radio microphone signal would allow compere Rich Clarke – popular Heart Radio presenter and DJ – to roam the entire site with a radio mic, achieved using extra Shure UA870 antennas with switchable gain control and an antenna combiner which worked very efficiently, together with Shure UR4D receivers and UR2 hand-held mics.
They also utilised their new DPA wireless Core 4099 instrument mics and Sennheiser ME3N headset mics for Bath based samba aficionados Jamma de Samba who combined a promenade workshop – in amongst the audience – with their performance which kicked off the Main Stage live sessions for the day.
Run through Shure UR1 bodypack transmitters, this allowed Jamma de Samba to wander freely amidst the crowds engaging in a bit of samba training … and be clearly heard from everywhere.
The main stage bands were not all staff related, but Zaid Elgahmi, lead singer of hotly tipped post-hardcore punk headliners ‘Beyond Recall’ … is an OVO employee.
Backline and monitors for all performers was supplied by a separate company, and Main Stage lighting designer James Bunning was brought in as part of Bright’s production team, however he and CPL have also worked together on several projects.
For lighting, CPL suppled ARRI L5-C LED fresnels as key lights for the Main Stage and the rest was a mix of Martin Rush LED PARs, MAC Aura LED washes, Claypaky Sharpie beam lights and Philips Nitro strobes which also doubled as blinders.
Most of the bands played in daylight, but having the stage properly lit made a real difference to how everyone looked onstage through those daylight hours and avoided musicians disappearing into a big, dark black hole at the back of the stage!!!
The PARs and fresnels were all rigged off the stage structure, and the rest of the fixtures were on two truss totems and scaff outriggers deployed upstage.
An Avolites Quartz console, also at side stage, was supplied for lighting control.
For the Bar Stage – a plan B for the Main Stage in case of wet weather – some Prolyte trussing was flown from the tipi structure and rigged with ETC ColorSource PARs – chosen for their light weight and high-quality output, and these were complimented on the stage by MAC Auras, Sharpies and PAR Zooms, complete with another Avo Quartz for control.
The PA in the Bar comprised a d&b Y7P point source system and B4 subs … four of each with E8 monitors, all powered by D20 amps, hooked up to a Yamaha QL1 console, which was perfect for the DJ sets throughout the day and the evening … when the volume ramped upwards and the party really got started!
This year with the glorious and extraordinary summer weather being experienced in the UK, to everyone’s delight, the rain precautions were not needed!
Mike worked with four CPL crew for the in / out and three for the show – Andre Coulam, Jack Sykes, Robin Emery plus LD James Bunning.
Having worked the event on the same site for four years now, the degree of familiarity helped the workflow and efficiency together with good and detailed prepping and planning. Mike comments “We were extremely pleased to be part of delivering another high quality and very successful OVO event and it was fantastic to collaborate with Nick and Annabel and all of their crew. We thoroughly enjoyed some great teamwork”.
Photos : Bristol Picture
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