BLACKBURN, UK – HSL supplied LD Neil Carson with full lighting production for Brit Award winning singer-songwriter Emeli Sandé’s most recent UK tour, together with a ‘specials’ package for the European section. Sande most recently performed for both opening and closing ceremonies at the Summer Olympics in London.
More details from HSL (http://www.hslgroup.com):
BLACKBURN, UK – Blackburn UK based lighting and visuals company HSL supplied lighting designer Neil Carson with full lighting production for Brit Award winning singer-songwriter Emeli Sandé’s most recent UK tour, together with a ‘specials’ package for the European section.
Carson – who has worked with HSL on several previous projects including Chase & Status – was instrumental in getting the company on-board, where the account was project managed by Mike Oates.
Says Carson, “I wanted a lighting supplier that I knew could deliver the best quality kit, crew and attitude – HSL was my first choice.”
Sandé’s career trajectory which includes some number one singles and a performance at both opening and closing ceremonies of the Summer Olympics in London.
Mike Oates comments, “It was great to work with Neil again on another new and exciting artist. As usual, he came up with a stylish design fusing quirkiness and simplicity that looked really cool!”
The design was based on three trusses and primarily Robe moving lights – a combination of Robin 600E Spots and Washes – 35 in total, which were spread across the trusses, together with seven of Robe’s ColorWash 750E AT Tungstens.
Using these fixtures, especially the smaller, lighter brighter Robins, enabled Carson to use smaller trussing, which all helped in saving space for a challenging truck pack.
Carson’s initial brief was that the lighting should help make the show more personal, intimate and focused on Sandé and her captivating performance. It was important to avoid visual distractions, with the raw emotion of her music at the center of attention.
The ColorWash 750E AT Tungstens were rigged on the front truss and used to key light Sandé and the six-piece band.
On the deck, Carson positioned eight Martin MAC Viper profiles along the back of the stage, plus six GLP Impression LED washes, used for side lighting Sande and adding low level cross-stage general coloring.
There were also eight single floor PARs dotted around to augment the side lighting, all run in open white adding a flourish of tungsten warmth.
Right upstage were three Nova Flower effects – used for specific accents and punctuation points – and behind these, the back comprised a custom drape bearing Sandé’s name.
A total of 21 vertically oriented Showtec active Sunstrips were strategically placed across the three trusses adding architecture and form to the stage look and used for lifts and punches.
Boosting the ambience were 30 individual over-size light bulbs, each attached to a different length run of TRS hanging down ‘randomly’ from two of the trusses via outrigged drop-bars.
HSL also supplied two Robert Juliat Ivanhoe followspots, and Carson was joined on the road by HSL technicians Mark Callaghan and Steve Bliss. “They were brilliant,” he comments.
Carson controlled the lighting on a Chamsys MagicQ 100 desk with a Wing, which he found great for doing the daily cloning and morphing of moving lights when using house rigs in Europe.
For these European shows – a mixture of clubs and theatres – the only space available for any lighting kit to be carried was a corner of the backline trailer, just enough to accommodate the 30 hanging bulbs, a small dimmer and the console. These were added in to whatever house system was available at each venue.
Says Carson, “HSL did a fantastic job! The company is large enough to have all the kit you might want and personal enough to have real integrity and care. Mike’s passion for the job and the industry is truly amazing!”
