The Sydney Conservatorium of Music has added an MA Lighting grandMA3 onPC Command Wing XT to its inventory, making it the University of Sydney’s third MA console.
“Our MA2 onPC systems had served us well, but they were reaching the end of their lifecycle, so we began assessing replacement options to pair with an upgrade of Music Workshop’s house lighting,” commented Jarrad Salmon, Technical Facilities Manager for the University. “Gareth at Show Technology provided valuable advice throughout that process, arranging demonstrations, connecting us with industry users and specialised training.”
Jarrad adds that the grandMA3 onPC Command Wing XT stood out as the best fit for their venues, particularly because of its integrated computer, removing the reliance on the University’s ICT department for software maintenance.”
Jarrad adds that the switch to an MA3 model was not challenging and the differences were simple.
“Ergonomically, there are a few layout changes with the positioning of buttons, which took a minute to get used to but were ultimately an improvement to workflow,” he said. “There are more executors, and therefore more functionality. As far as busking is concerned, the phasers obviously replace the effects, and that’s been a key feature that a lot of our operators have been very keen to get their hands on in our contemporary performances.”
The Conservatorium’s lighting needs range from illuminating a little black dot on a white piece of paper, and that takes full priority in classical performances, all the way up to full-scale theatrical productions. Consequently, they needed a console that could handle that range, as well as the different levels of experience among the lighting operators.
“What I find with the MA3 is you can set them up in a particular way that is quite intuitive for somebody that’s new to lighting, like having our main looks on several executors to crossfade, with the 3D view reflecting what is happening in the rig,” remarked Jarrad. “This is a great starting point for new operators. From there, they can take the showfile, load it onto their own computer, and develop their programming skills with simulation offline. Flipside, a lot of seasoned theatre programmers get up to speed with the command-line entry easily.”
Jarrad also notes that the MA3 swipe gestures (also called “swipeys”) are proving very popular as they provide fast, direct access to common object functions like assign, label, move, copy, and delete straight from the multi-touch screen
“Look, I’m probably showing my age here, but I’m more of a push-the-button type of guy, not touching the screen!” he said. “I guess that’s the way I was brought up. But I’m starting to find my workflow changing and adapting to that, mostly because it’s quicker.”
Jarrad says that the grandMA3 onPC Command Wing XT has proved very popular with all operators, even the theatre ones who always viewed MA as a busking console.
“When they drill down and get a bit more involved, they like how far you can actually program things and how theatre-compatible it actually is,” he said. “The syntax philosophy of object>action>target aspect is more or less still there, but I feel it is evolving towards an English sentence, like store>this>there. Won’t be long until we are talking to it.”
The University’s venues have little downtime hosting back-to-back events, and with grandMA3 onPC Command Wing XTs also in the Music Workshop and Verbrugghen Hall, console reliability is never a concern.
“We’ll be opening a new venue in Parramatta soon, and that will also have a grandMA3 onPC Command Wing XT,” Jarrad continued. “Every console is set up a particular way to suit the venue’s core use. But what I find with the MA3 is that a base showfile suits almost any operator despite the venue’s physical differences. New users can be presented with a familiar workflow to get up and running quickly, while experienced programmers have the tools they need to build more complex shows. From an operational perspective, it also helps us standardise our systems and significantly speeds up the development of our operators.”
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