The 20th Annual Parnelli Awards were held Friday, June 3 during the 2022 NAMM show, with both events taking a big, if asterisked, step toward pre-pandemic normalcy. On the “normal” side, there were plenty of attendees at both events, and everyone there relished the chance to meet up again, face to face, after being kept apart for way too long.
On the asterisked side, the impact of the Covid shutdown time meant that with so few live events in 2020 and 2021 — and so many event and touring pros out on the road in June — the Parnelli Awards forewent the ‘Best of the Year …’ awards and instead the plaudits focused on the three Parnelli honorees for Lifetime Achievement, Visionary, and Audio Innovator. There were also awards for the Parnelli NextGen, and the four Indispensable Technology product awards.
Then, at the very last minute, Covid had one more disheartening surprise: forcing Terry Lowe, Parnelli executive producer, to miss the show he had been looking forward to for so long as he self-isolated after a family member tested positive for the virus.
With Kevin Mitchell, Marshall Bissett, the rest of the Parnelli team at the ready, however, the show took off like the helicopter that everyone imagined as host Jammin’ Jay Lamont let loose with a truly astonishing array of vocal sound effects. And though he wasn’t there to hear it, Lowe drew a big laugh when, at the end of his video to welcome the attendees and thank the sponsors, he revealed that his professional attire did not extend below the waist.
The first of the three awards for career achievement went to Sam Berkow, the man behind SMAART, the real-time sound measurement software first developed in 1995 and still widely used by sound pros around the world. Although best known for his software creations, Berkow is, first and foremost, a lover of great music, and called the opportunity to work with Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center team was “the thrill of a lifetime.”
PLSN Co-Editors, Michael S. Eddy and Debi Moen then presented the Indispensable Technology (IT) Awards for Lighting (Avolites’ D9 console) and Video (ROE Visual’s Black Pearl BP2 V2 LED panel), followed by Michael Tait, winner of the first Parnelli Visionary Award in 2008, who presented this year’s Visionary honor to LD Peter Morse, joking about how Morse’s beautiful lighting “made my sets look to be worth the cost.”
Video tributes for Morse came in from Barbra Streisand, Lionel Richie, Dolly Parton, and Bette Midler, who commented that she “loved being bathed in his light.” And Morse’s quick reflexes were still apparent. At one point, he was interrupted by the only audio cue glitch of the evening, and without missing a beat, quipped “Audio gets me again.”
Morse dedicating his award to all the visionary programmers he’s worked with over the last 40 years, many of whom have become lighting designers themselves. The long list of programmer names included PLSN Editor Emeritus, Richard “Nook” Schoenfeld.
Lance “KC” Jackson, one of the co-founders of Roadies of Color United, then took the stage and presented the NextGen award to Arica Rust, a touring systems engineer, most recently out with Wilco, who recently joined L-Acoustics.
FOH editor George Petersen and Jammin’ Jay Lamont presenting the Audio IT award to Meyer Sound for its new Panther line array, which was accepted by Meyer Sound’s Engineering Director, Acoustical & Mechanical, Katharine (Katie) Murphy. The Staging & Effects IT award was presented to Look Solutions for its fog and haze systems.
It’s been a tough couple of years for the live event industry as a whole and there were a number of people who died since the last time we came together. After the presentation of the In Memoriam video, Bissett noted the recent passing of yet another industry icon, production manager and educator Doug Pope.
On a happier note, Bissett announced of the three honorees for career achievement for the next Parnelli Awards, to take place April 14, 2023. The honorees include Roy Lamb with the Lifetime Achievement Award; Keny Whitright as Visionary; and Marty Garcia as Audio Innovator.
The final honor of the evening was the Parnelli Lifetime Achievement award, which was presented by elder brother, and rock photographer, Joel Bernstein to Rock-it Global’s David Bernstein, a.k.a. The Great DCB. Accepting the honor, David Bernstein shared tales of all the “other pirates and pranksters” that he’s supported over the years on tours across the globe, going back to Parnelli namesake Rick “Parnelli” O’Brien and the original Rock in Rio concert in Brazil.
Then there was the tale of the epic fail of a Madonna show in Buenos Aires, where the fates conspired to force the cancellation of an event that was to be nationally televised, as well as attended by the president of Argentina and recorded for a documentary film.
After telling the crowd that he actually considers his family to be his “true lifetime achievement,” Bernstein cited inspiration from his dad Stanley as well as the credo from Galaxy Quest to cheer on those who have overcome the Covid shutdowns and all kinds of hurdles that will continue to face the live event production industry in the years ahead: “Never give up, never surrender!”
It was an apt motto for this year’s Parnelli Awards and the live event industry as a whole. We are all looking forward to seeing you all at next year’s Parnelli Awards in Anaheim, CA at the 2023 NAMM Show, April 14, 2023. For more information and photos, visit www.plsn.me/Parnelli-20 and www.parnelliawards.com