LAS VEGAS – Legends In Concert, celebrating its 25th year, is the longest running independently owned production show on the Las Vegas Strip. This international award-winning stage spectacular is a live musical celebration featuring the world’s greatest celebrity tribute artists. Behind the scenes, the musicians and sound engineers at the Imperial Palace Hotel & Casino turns to Aviom.
Several years ago when the Legends crew decided to upgrade its aging analog console with a new Yamaha DM2000 mixing console, it added the Aviom 16/o-Y1 A-Net Card. The engineers connected five A-16II Personal Mixers, one for each band member, and kept a sixth unit on hand to accommodate an extra player who may join in for the night.
Since they have been installed, the Aviom mixers have been helping the team run a smooth operation night after night. According to front of house engineer Craig Palcisko, they have been working so well, the crew is looking to expand its use of Aviom gear to go beyond just the band members (featuring a musical director/sax player, bass player, drummer, keyboard player, and guitarist) to include background singers as well. Palcisko currently only handles monitor mixing for the singers. The flexibility of having the band members control their own mixes provides Palcisko with freedom he never experienced before as an audio engineer.
“It allows me to concentrate on the audio for guests that are coming to see the show, instead of worrying about what’s happening on stage with the musicians,” he says. “That’s one of the greatest assets of the Aviom gear; it allows the musicians to control their own sound instead of me having to do it for them. This is something new for me that I welcome.”
For Musical Director Joe Escriba, the ability to program preset mixes has made a world of difference in his performance as a musical director and as a saxophone player.
Eliminating the need to adjust monitor mixes to suit individual singers and musical styles is especially important in a show that features such a broad range of musical artists. “At any given moment, we could have a Garth Brooks impersonator on stage, then a Madonna, a Michael Jackson or Blues Brothers,” Escriba says. “Given all of those styles and different instrumentations, it’s nice to be able to have each style mixed differently. A modern pop mix would be something completely different than an Elvis upright bass, jazz snare and guitar trio. Each musician on stage has full control of the mix he’s hearing in his ears. It just makes the job so much easier.”
Guitarist Jim Buck has come to enjoy the freedom the A-16II provides as well. “I play in a number of shows in Las Vegas, as well as with my own band, and I always enjoy when I can use the personal mixer,” he says. “It really helps as you move from venue to venue to ensure that you always have a clean monitor mix. I play Legends several nights a week, and I’ve gotten so used to the mixer. The time I appreciate it most is when I don’t have it and I miss the ability to mix my own sound. It’s a big time saver when you’re setting up and sound checking. The engineer doesn’t have to spend time worrying about your monitor mix, and it’s always right.”
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