grandMA on Electric Daisy Carnival
By David Steinberg | Live Design
August 18, 2010
Held over two days in Los Angeles' Exposition Park and Memorial Coliseum, the Electric Daisy Carnival boasted festival artists Deadmau5, Moby, Z-Trip, Basement Jaxx, MSTRKRFT, Will.i.am and more. Performances were non-stop over five stages, which meant control had to be both versatile and rugged. The MA Lighting grandMA completed this task with ease. A.C.T Lighting is the exclusive North American distributor for MA Lighting.
Show designer and director Stephen Lieberman explains why he chose the MA Lighting grandMA for the event. "The versatility of the MA console makes programming a twenty-universe show extremely efficient. The ability to import and merge data from other showfiles has been a tool I've been using for years. These kinds of live environments force the user to be very creative in laying out their desk. Nothing is scripted, so the operator has to have fast access to functions at all times with minimal key-presses. I was able to dial in 180 moving lights plus another 500+ LED's, blinders, strobes and other effects in about six hours."
Running an event over five stages simultaneously meant Lieberman had to bring in additional programmers to cover the massive event. Each stage was controlled by an MA Lighting grandMA full-size, with an additional MA Lighting grandMA full-size for backup. Programming the other four stages were grandMA veterans Patrick Dierson, Joe Cabrera II, Demfis Fyssicopulos and Christopher Dumapias.
Elaborating on the event, Dierson states, "My start in the business of automated lighting came from working the underground raves at abandoned warehouses in New York during the early '90s. Almost two decades later, EDC shows just how far the genre of electronic music has come and it was a treat to be able to take a break from the world of concert tours and broadcast television shows and go back to my roots for a fun, lost weekend with 180,000 of your closest friends."
Additional crew for the event included Andrew Gumper (AG Lead), James Watral (ME - Kinetic Field), Brian Karol (Lead & ME of Felix Lighting - Circuit Grounds) and Steve Rose (ME - Cosmic Meadow).
Gear was provided through AG Lighting, Felix Lighting (Dave McKinnon) and PRG Los Angeles (Julian Edwards). Electric Daisy Carnival is produced by Insomniac Events and is held in various regions throughout the year.
A leading importer and distributor of lighting products, A.C.T Lighting, Inc. strives to identify future trends and cutting-edge products, and stock, sell and support their inventory. The company provides superior customer service and value for money to all of its clients. Their product range includes the MA Lighting grandMA, MDG smoke, fog & haze generators, and the GDS LightWare range.