Harman Brings All-Star Prince Tribute To Life In Minneapolis

Slamhammer recently deployed a host of Martin by HARMAN fixtures to elevate "PRINCE: Live on the Big Screen", a live tribute concert that was held at Target Center arena in Minneapolis.

The centerpiece of a four-day celebration of Prince's life, the show took place on April 20th, 2018 at the 20,000-seat Target Center. The performance featured an all-star cast of musical collaborators from throughout the legendary musician's career, playing alongside multi-track recordings and live concert footage. Paisley Park hired sound and lighting provider Slamhammer to create a versatile lighting rig for former Prince Lighting Designer Charles Ford. In order to deliver stunning visuals that would complement the video footage, Slamhammer selected an arsenal of Martin MAC Axiom Hybrid, MAC Viper Profile, MAC Aura, MAC Quantum Profile, and MAC Quantum Wash fixtures.

"On the anniversary of Prince's death, the Paisley Park folks try to do something unique every year," said Peter Skujins, Owner and President of Slamhammer. "They invited Charles Ford, who's worked as a Lighting Designer for Prince, to design the show, and he worked closely with the video crew. We knew we needed to provide a versatile lighting rig that would allow Charles to achieve a wide range of looks and compliment the video footage, so we put together a lighting package featuring our favorite Martin fixtures. They tend to make designers smile, so why would we not use them every time?"

The stage was set up at one end of the arena, with the musicians arranged in front of the main screen. Two sets of trusses equipped with MAC Viper Profile and MAC Quantum Wash fixtures were deployed at 30° angles around the musicians, which allowed for better side coverage. The team mounted Martin MAC Axiom Hybrid Axiom Hybrids on two high trusses on either side of the stage for beam, spot and wash effects. Auras on a downstage truss provided an even front wash, and MAC Quantum Profiles on the floor kept the individual musicians In Focus. Ford's lighting design utilized the full spectrum of the MAC fixtures' smooth color mixing and variety of effects, saving the obligatory purple for the most climactic moments.

"The cues were on point for the whole show," said Marty Lesmeister, Lighting Department Manager at Slamhammer. "There are a lot of times when you get in a tough spot and you definitely need a fixture to land right in this one place, and there's all kinds of truss diagonals and things in your way. The MAC Quantum line is super flexible for being able to get a light right where you need it to be. One of the things about Martin's line-it's always been consistent. You always know what you're getting, and that's why it's so rider-friendly for everybody."

ABOUT HARMAN

HARMAN (harman.com) designs and engineers connected products and solutions for automakers, consumers, and enterprises worldwide, including connected car systems, audio and visual products, enterprise automation solutions; and services supporting the Internet of Things. With leading brands including AKG, Harman Kardon, Infinity, JBL, Lexicon, Mark Levinson and Revel, HARMAN is admired by audiophiles, musicians and the entertainment venues where they perform around the world. More than 50 million automobiles on the road today are equipped with HARMAN audio and connected car systems. Our software services power billions of mobile devices and systems that are connected, integrated and secure across all platforms, from work and home to car and mobile. HARMAN has a workforce of approximately 30,000 people across the Americas, Europe, and Asia. In March 2017, HARMAN became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.