American-born singer, songwriter and actor Marc Anthony — the best-selling tropical salsa artist of all time — kicked off his 2022 Pa’lla Voy tour to support his current album of the same name on Feb. 11 at New York’s Madison Square Garden. This was followed by arena dates throughout North America, wrapping up at the HEB Center at Cedar Park in the Austin, TX area on April 3, 2022. A European tour leg is set to follow.
Supporting the tour is Secaucus, NJ-based Technical Arts Group (TAG), who supplied an all-Meyer Sound rig consisting of LEO, Lyon and Leopard components.
The FOH View
FOH engineer Jose Rivera has been mixing on the Yamaha Rivage PM10 for approximately four years now. Making the move to the PM10 he says was easy because of his long history with Yamaha consoles. “The first Yamaha console I mixed on was the PM1000 in the early ‘80s. Subsequently, I mixed on the 2k, 3k, 4k, 5k, PM1D, PM5D, etc.”
In 2017, Yamaha reached out to Rivera via Jorge Solorzano (the tour’s stage manager/audio tech), and Rivera was invited to the Yamaha Pro Audio office in Mexico City to check out the PM10. “As I was very familiar with Yamaha digital consoles, I was expecting to listen to a very big, transparent, neutral sound and see an intuitive surface. Boy, was I surprised when I heard the console. In my opinion, it is the best analog sound on a digital console. There are so many features I enjoy, but what I love the most is the reliability of the system, the simplicity of the surface layout and the ‘Selected Channel’ function.”
As a fan of all the stock plug-ins on the Yamaha console, Rivera doesn’t use any external gear. “Although the stock plug-ins are amazing, I mainly use the channel EQ, Comp and Gate. I find them to be very musical. I do insert various stock plug-ins on select channels. For example 5045 and Dynamic EQ4 on vocals, EQ-1A on bass, EQ773 and U76 on electric guitars, Comp 754 on sub buses and a bit of the P2MB on the master stereo bus. I was so happy when Yamaha added the Bricasti Y7, Eventide SP2016 and H3000 Live as stock plug-ins — they sound amazing.”
The tour is using a Meyer Sound LEO rig this year. “It’s been the sound system of choice for Marc Anthony the last five tours,” Rivera says, adding he would look forward to mixing a show with Meyer Sound Space Map Go. “After demoing the system, I believe it opens up the world of immersive audio for live concerts.”
Rivera explained that mixing Anthony and his band is a different approach compared to other artists he’s mixed because it’s completely live. ”They don’t even use a click track. It’s a band of 16 musicians and background vocalists, 72 channels — with 34 channels of open mics just for the percussion section! I pay a lot of attention to the types of mics we use and their placements, which is so important to maintain consistency for both FOH and monitors. Mixing this genre, artist and band is an amazing experience. I’ve been able to tap into my experience in mixing live concerts from the pre-digital days, and combine it with today’s digital toys. It’s the best of both worlds.”
The Systems Approach
Pa’lla Voy marks systems engineer Frank Peoples’ fourth tour with Marc Anthony. “We’re using a Meyer Sound LEO system, consisting of a combination of LEO, Lyon, Leopard and 900-LFC which are flown and 1100-LFC for ground subs, with Ultra-X40 for our frontfills. Once we set up and align the P.A., I’ll roam the venue with a tablet to tune and adjust it, making sure that there’s even coverage and consistency in sound. I then make minor adjustments when Jose also roams the venue listening to the rig. During line and sound check, I’ll walk around the house again to make sure the mix is translating consistently around the venue.”
Monitorworld
Since the start of last year’s tour, monitor engineer Jimmy Ibañez has moved to a Yamaha Rivage PM5 mixing console. “For a long time, the previous engineer used an SD10, but I felt a need to move to a Rivage. I’ve been a big fan of Yamaha since the PM1D and PM5D days. Seeing Jose enjoy the PM10 so much and how roadworthy it’s been made a big impact on my decision. The PM5 surface is very user-friendly and the system in general is extremely warm and transparent. I chose the PM5 surface over the PM10 because, at least for me on monitors, it provides a more efficient workflow.”
Ibañez loves how clean the preamps are in combination with the Rivage’s DSP. “Mixing Marc and a band of 15 musicians, with about 70 inputs is a challenge. I am able to get full, dynamic mixes and maintain an attention to detail specific to each mix. The amount of energy on stage is incredible. Marc and the musicians really feed off each other, so maintaining those dynamics from the instrument all the way through to the in-ear is extremely important. It’s such a fun show to mix and I’m grateful to be able to contribute to that energy.”
Another reason Ibañez opted for the Rivage is its onboard Neve 5045 and Bricasti processing. “I’m not much for external gear or plug-ins, but I’d have to say those two units have been important parts of my mixes. Yamaha did an amazing job of modeling these units. I use four separate channels for Marc’s vocal, including spare channels. Each channel has a 5045 inserted. Between stage volume, arena reflections and crowd excitement, the 5045 is crucial in helping me maintain Marc’s voice above all else. I use Bricasti’s on trumpet, trombone and BGV reverbs. I would probably never carry that many external Bricasti’s but I have them, so yeah!”
The wireless systems — both IEM and handheld mics — are all Shure. “Marc uses Shure Axient Digital ADX2-FD sticks with Beta 58 capsules while our background vocalists use ADX2 sticks with KSM8 capsules. Our entire RF system is fully networked with Shure AXT600 Spectrum Manager and AD610 ShowLink Access Point. On this tour, I began transitioning the musicians to JH Audio IEM’s. We’ve been using the JH7 model. It’s a model that has stood the test of time and with their newest 7-pin connector, they can really take a beating on the road.”
Pa’lla Voy Tour 2022
AUDIO CREW
- Sound Company: Technical Arts Group (TAG)
- FOH Engineer: Jose Rivera
- Systems Engineer: Frank Peoples
- Monitor Engineer: Jimmy Ibañez
- Monitor Tech: Chris Rushin
- Audio Tech/Stage Manager: Jorge Solorzano
- P.A. Tech: Jess Hammersley
P.A. GEAR
- L/R Main Hang: Meyer Sound LEO/LYON/900-LFC
- Side Hang: Meyer Sound Leo/Lyon
- Rear Hang: Meyer Sound Leopard
- Ground Subs: Meyer Sound 1100-LFC
- Front Fills: Meyer Sound Ultra-X40
FOH GEAR
- FOH Console: Yamaha PM10
- Near-Fields: Meyer Sound Amie
- System Drive: Meyer Sound Galileo Galaxy
MON GEAR
- Monitor Console: Yamaha PM5
- Wedges: (4) Meyer Sound MJF-210
- Side Fills: d&b V8 (4/side, flown)
- IEM Hardware: Shure PSM1000
- Wireless Mics: Shure Axient Digital
- Wired Mics: Shure, DPA, E-V
More photos by Steve Jennings:
