Good People Come Together to Benefit Touring Pros
The pandemic has affected nearly every person on the planet, but sometimes, good people can come together for the good of all, and this is exactly the scenario in the case of the upcoming global broadcast of the Virtual Big Love Benefit Concert to aid Musical Industry Professionals to air Jan. 23, 2021.
Big Love Benefit Concerts is a production entity that was created in Feb. 2020 by singer/songwriter Lauren Monroe and Def Leppard drummer Rick Allen. The goal is to raise funds for charity foundations, 501(c)3’s and organizations worldwide that serve, educate and empower people in crisis.
Beginnings
“Def Leppard was with Sound Image for more than 20 years, and Rick and Lauren heard we were putting a soundstage together,” says George Edwards, the general manager for Sound Image Productions, a division of Sound Image that is located in the San Francisco Bay Area.
As it turns out, what they heard was true. Months before, with an increased demand for streaming and video services, Edwards converted some unused warehouse space into a well-equipped soundstage with lighting, LED screens, P.A. and monitoring, along with audio tie lines to Diablo Digital (diablodigital.com), a digital multi-track recording services company run by world-class FOH engineers Brad Madix and Greg Price. And Diablo Digital just happens to be located within the Sound Image Productions complex.
Suddenly, everything seemed to click, and Edwards set up a meeting with Allen and Monroe. “I talked to them about Loving Hands for Stagehands. I told them I heard that 10 of our industry brothers had committed suicide, and the pressure of the current situation is taking its toll — financially and emotionally,” Edwards recalls. “I said: ‘Why don’t we do something to give back to our crews?’ Rick told me what Def Leppard has done for its crew, through PPP’s and such. Unfortunately, not everyone is as grateful for their crew — or has the financial ability to take care of their crew. We wanted to do something to help and called all the artists we knew, then called all the vendors we knew, and using this space, we’ve created a concert series to give it all back.”
The Plan Unfolds
The plan was to shoot a number of segments in mid-November under carefully monitored Covid-compliant conditions, with in-person tickets available to a small number of socially distanced attendees to watch the rehearsals and final performances. In addition to the footage shot at Sound Image Productions with Monroe/Allen, Clayton Q and other artists, additional performers — among them Matt Sorum, Myles Kennedy, Wynonna Judd, Billy Idol, Tommy Shaw and the Allman Betts band — heard about the project and wanted to contribute video performances from various locations around the country to be added to the final version and future virtual concerts.
Although well-known as an FOH engineer, Price served as video director and producer of the multi-camera shoot. Meanwhile, his Diablo Digital partner, Brad Madix, handled the audio capture, sound editing and a low-volume P.A. mix for those in attendance.
Given the relatively small space, a compact P.A. rig was the right choice, with Vue Audiotechnik powered H-8 top cabinets set up over HS-20 dual-10 ACM subwoofers that added plenty of punch without overwhelming the stage sound. Most of the musicians were on in-ears.
Mixing for Streaming and Live
Madix mixed FOH and recorded audio on an Avid S6L 32D console with a 192-channel engine, three HDX cards and 48 inputs. “Although,” Madix explains, “we’re not using a fraction of its capacity. We’re gain sharing with a single shared stage rack with Kyle Thomas mixing monitors on an Avid S6L 24D monitor console with a 144-channel engine.”
The setup was different from doing arenas and stadiums with Rush or Linkin Park, says the Parnelli Award-winning Madix, adding that “streaming is pretty new for me, but I can’t think of anything technically that’s much different from television, except possibly how you master it.”
Another key difference involves perspective. “With streaming or broadcast, you’re mixing to the picture as opposed to an audience in a live setting. A lot of what you’d use to mix a record is applicable, but you need to be aware of where the camera is focused and make adjustments for that,” he explains. “For example, if the camera is focused on the background vocalists, you appropriately bump them up a little bit. It can be weird if the camera turns on someone and they’re not clear or they’re buried in the mix. So you do what’s appropriate for the texture of the song and have to adjust for the camera shots.”
Come Together
The project is all for a good cause. “We partnered with Sound Image Presents and Sweet Relief Musicians Fund to set up a virtual concert benefiting those whose jobs have been affected,” says Monroe. “Without our music venues and these wonderful people, we wouldn’t have the music experience that we need and that brings us all together. This event is for them!”
Not surprisingly, a spirit of cooperation prevailed throughout the production process. “Everyone — artists and crew — all worked together flawlessly,” says Edwards. “On Wednesday, when we started rehearsals, it was a bunch of different people together. By Friday, everyone was all warm and fuzzy, and by Sunday, we were like a family who knew everyone our whole lives.”
The Virtual Big Love Concert to Aid Musical Industry Professionals benefit will stream to the world on Jan. 23 at 9 p.m. EST on www.NUGS.net. A charity auction of music memorabilia is also planned.
PRODUCTION CREW
- Sound Company: Sound Image Productions
- General Manager: George Edwards
- Operations Manager: Vince Edwards
- FOH/Recording Engineer: Brad Madix
- Monitor Engineer: Kyle Thomas
- Audio Stage/RF Tech: Kyle Anderson
- Director/Producer/Audio: Greg Price
- COVID Compliance: John Del Rio/AJ Fardella
- Lighting Designer: Allen Pettebone
- Video Director: Skip Twitchell
- Video Engineer: Geoffrey Linder
- Video Content/Editor: Michael “Badass” Brown
- Camera Operator: John “Fuki” Fukushima
- Camera Operator: Gerald Rogers
- Backstage Coordinator: Martha Heckman
- Hair and Make Up: Grace Lee
- Drum Tech: Jeff Diffner
- Backline Tech: Paul Monteiro
For tickets or info, visit https://2nu.gs/biglove
More Big Love benefit concert photos by Steve Jennings:
