CSC - Great for Train Control Too!

The well known musical Starlight Express featuring singing and dancing racing trains has become a national tour in New Zealand. Featuring numerous voice overs by the young "Voice of Control", designers are always looking for a fast and simple method of programming and delivering these lines night after night. Designed primarily by Oceania audio in NZ, the team have adopted CSC to run on a dual computer system with a single custom built button for the operator to trigger the voice and associated sound effects. The rest of the system includes Yamaha PM5D consoles, Shure microphones and EV X-Line. http://www.starlightexpressnz.com/

Less of a Beast to Tour

Back out again for another UK tour , UK Productions' Beauty and the Beast has seen a large change in the sound system. Once comprising of a large analogue mixing desk, dual multi-track playback machines for click track, samplers for sound effects and computers for desk control, designer Glen Beckley has reduced FOH down considerably, now only needing to load in a PM1D and 2 racks at mix position. A dual tracking CSC system has been chosen to replace all the sampler and hard disk playback systems, and is being used to replay the multi-channel click tracks started by the MD, control the desk scenes and fire the numerous sound effects within the show. Not only does the system provide imense power and flexibily but makes moves a lot easier for the touring crew!

Art In Venice

Demonstrating how versatile CSC applications can be, the software has recently been installed in the British Pavillion for the 53rd Venice Biennale. Representing Britain is Steve McQueen and his specifically made film, Giardini. The film runs for 30 minutes and is split across 2 projection systems, syncronised together in a purpose built viewing area. The system is entirely controlled by CSC - including the lighting - using clock triggers to start the day off, telnet to talk to CTR's simple lighting controller and USB DMX interface, send 422 Sony 9-pin protocol messages to gang start the 2 video servers, time the whole sequence to bring the lights back up at the end of the film and automatically schedule the next lighting and film sequence based on further clock triggers. All on a single laptop!. http://venicebiennale.britishcouncil.org/

The Sponge Who Could Fly!

Direct from America, the UK sees the new tour of SpongeBob Squarepants - The Sponge who could fly! Aimed primarily at kids, but with whitty punchlines and intriguing sets and models to keep any adult amused, the SpongeBob tour kicked off its first previews in Hackney, London. Officially opening in March at the Hammersmith Apollo, CSC has been placed in charge of controlling the many music tracks, sound effects and voice overs, as well as controlling the M7CL desk. Another band-less show, the sound operators have greatly benefited from CSCs enhanced remote control support, being able to quickly fast forward and rewind multitrack music sequences during rehearsals to just "go from that point again please". The configuration includes 2 PCs both running CSC, tracking each other through the network, 16 channels of ADAT audio link to the desk and a full switchover system in case of emergency. http://www.spongebobtour.co.uk/

Fully in Charge During Panto Run

Becoming a firm standard in Pantomime production, CSCs use has being taken to new levels all over the country- in some cases being used to play back not only sound effects but also music tracks and control desk states. A rapid days training was all the shows operators needed to be up to speed with the software, inserting new sound effects and moving music cues around during rehearsals ready to be the sole sound source (apart from the actors voices, of course!) on opening night. The sense of live performance was retained by filling in the hotscene window with many spot sound effects and drum rolls to continue the standard "unrehearsed, unpredicted" comedy moments.

CSC Continues Autumn Run of Shows, warming up for Panto Season

Still finding no time to rest, CSC continues to be used on both National Touring Productions and West End Installations. Recent shows include: Witches of Eastwick National Tour featuring Marti Pellow; Cant Smile Without You, the Barry Manilow musical with Chesney Hawkes; Rogers and Hammerstein's classic Carousel, soon to have a West End transfer; La Cage Aux Folles at the Playhouse in Londons West End; the creepy White Devil at the Chocolate Factory designed by Keith Hutchinson (probably the first 'officially known' person to use his iPod to control and programme CSC!); French and Saunders at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane, filling in whilst Oliver fits up behind the scenes and Tons of Money, Alan Ayckbourn’s revised version of the famous Aldwych farce.

Essex brings Funfair to the Stage

Inspired by his debut Album, "All the Fun of the Fair", this new stage production sees David Essex starring as fairground owner Levi, and follows his life on the road amidst romantic interest from a newly divorced palm reader, the entangled love triangle created by his son and the not so happy father of the young college girl caught in the middle of it all. Featuring classic hits such as Winters Tale and Silver Dream Machine the show even features dodgems and motorbikes on stage. An extensive soundscape created by Steve Jonas and Seb Frost, merged with pre-recorded music tracks for this 'band-less' performance required the use of a flexible playback system, and CSC has been chosen to do just this. The studio recorded tracks were mixed in 5.1 and transferred to a 16-channel ADAT based dual CSC system for surround sound playback in the live venues, and the software also used to control the outboard effects and Yamaha M7CL. PA is D&B Q Series and Radio microphone systems are Zaxcom digital. The results from such a small setup are extraordinary and could well be the shape of things to come. http://www.allthefunofthefairmusical.com/

CSC Controls "Maniac" and much more...

Its back to the 80's for another film to stage transition, and this time its the turn of Flashdance, the 1983 film following the life of Alex, a welder by day and aspiring dancer by night whos dream it is to win a place at the Shipley Dance Academy. With musical classics such as "She's a Maniac", "I love Rock & Roll" and many new songs written for the show, the system design had to deal with all types of musical genres from the quiet ballads to the all-out 80's sound. PA is D&B Q Series and the system is based around a Digidesign Venue mixing system. Zaxcom digital radio mics are in use on stage, and CSC is running on dual-redundant tracking PC systems with over 300 cues for the desk (using CSC's unique MIDI memory state command), outboard and 8-channel sound FX.

From Film...To Broadway...To Manchester....

The 1998 film "The Wedding Singer" has been reaching new audiences since its adaption for the stage. Opening first in Broadway, and now touring the UK, this new production has set numerous challenges for the sound department. With a touring sound crew of only 2 and no additional production engineer, the system had to be easy to move and set up. After a hard week of tech in Manchester, the show finally opened to the public at the Palace Theatre and is set to tour many UK venues over the coming months. FOH consists of a Digidesign Venue console, with the "silent" band using the Venues PQ system for monitoring. There is also a heavy requirement of click track on the show. CSC has been chosen to run the multi-channel click tracks for the band, using the new trigger lists as control, as well as changing desk and reverb states and running the sound effects used throughout the show.

CSC Version 2.5 Available

This version has further enhanced the audio engine by updating the player count to 24, meaning the software is more readily able to deal with running click track as well as sound effects without running out of players. The Trigger lists have also been updated to allow multiple regions to enable button triggers to modify their actions mid show and loop specific parts of a list. A system command module is now available to automate many parts of the software previously operated under manual control only, as well as a new timer module and the ability to lock the workspace during intervals, etc.

Audience with the Mafia

Only a short run on Shaftesbury Avenue, CSC has been specified to run the sound for this new London production. The show provides a perfect time to fully roadtest CSC's trigger lists. According to the operator "The show contains a lot of AV material, but we had to be prepared for the loss of audio from the video feed. Every audio clip was loaded into CSC but not inlcuded as part of the cuelist. A button on the 8-way remote control was assigned to fire the triggerlist so I was ready at all times for audio loss. I always knew i was on the right point in the triggerlist due to the unique 'Advance list on failed entry' option, whereby if the audio had successfully run and I hadnt fired the trigger, it would move on automatically to cue up the next clip - A very useful feature not seen anywhere else".

Back to the 60's

Claire Sweeney and Su Pollard star in this swinging musical bringing back to the music of the 60's to the modern day theatre. Sound design by Gareth Owen for Orbital Sound, the compact FOH system consists of a Yamaha M7CL and CTR Electronics CSC Show Control running on Orbital's dedicated Audio Workstation's. CSC is providing the desk scene changes and sound effects all at the press of a button, keeping the FOH system as simple as possible, which is essential for the one-man sound crew to move in and out of venues as fast as possible. http://www.shoutthemusical.co.uk/

High School Musical Takes to the Stage

Disneys Smash-Hit Movie has taken to the stage and is entertaining the young and old alike across the country. Sound Designer Rick Clarke specified CSC to keep control of things at FOH position, the software keeping the show cuelist and sound effects in one easy to use workspace. The system is based around a Yamaha PM1D mixing system with various outboard and sound effects are replayed from CSC with a MOTU 2408 using an optical ADAT link for simplicity and crystal clear audio. The Show is set to begin a London run as well as a national tour in the summer. http://www.hsmonstage.co.uk/

A New Home on Broadway

Highlighting its use in modern theatre sound design, CTR Electronics is proud to learn of the use of CSC on the West End Transfer of Sunday in the Park with George to Studio 54 on Broadway. Designed by Seb Frost, CSC is in control of desk memory states, sound effects playback, interfacing to the lighting department, as well as controlling a LCS Matrix3 installed for its VRAS system. www.sundayintheparkonbroadway.com

CSC raises Pantomime Speed and Standards

Building on last years success, CSC has been deployed on over 12 major pantomimes this year nationwide. CSC was used not only as a sound effects playback platform, but also to control mixing desks, lighting desks, and in some cases click track playback too. The ability to make quick and easy changes right up until the performance allowed designers and operators to really push the envelope in terms of what can be achieved. The Production manager for First Family commented, “All the directors were very impressed with the speed and accuracy with which they were able to make changes to sound effects. It certainly beats burning hundreds of CDs every tech period – much cheaper too!”. Russell Godwin, sound number one for Sunderland, explained further, “CSC has so many unique features that just can’t be done in any other software package – the ability to offset MIDI cues, the onboard audio mixer, and even the ability to link cues to the system clock are all tools that we’d be hard pushed to get by without!”.

Rent Remixed....

With a newly revamped orchestration and style, Jonathan Larson's award winning musical has opened at the Duke Of York's Theatre in London's West End. The show has many new musical interpretations of the original songs, designed to bring the show to a younger, fresher audience. Much of the music in the show has been prerecorded as click, and this alone presented numerous problems for Orbitals In-house design team.

CSC has been chosen to control the Digidesign Profile mixing system as well as fire the various sound effects throughout the show. As a first for the West End, CSC's "multi-sync" feature has been employed to also run the 8 stereo tracks of click, remotely controlled via MIDI by the MD, who has the ability to select any track at any time from a custom made MIDI controller.

CSC 2.4.2 Free Edition released!

CTR Electronics is proud to announce the release of CSC Free Edition, great for low budget and amateur shows. All you need is a laptop, CSC Free Edition and a suitable speaker system to get up and running with great sound designs and MIDI control over external equipment such as digital mixing desks and lighting consoles. CSC Free edition is a perfect way to enter the world of computer based sound design and control to see just what it can do for you.

As a cut down version of the powerful and popular CSC Show Control system, the software based playback system can be run on any computer or laptop (Windows based or Intel based Mac running Bootcamp) and can effectively replace 4 CD or minidisc players, add an easy to edit workspace for editing and timing cues and allow perfect shows to be run night after night...all for Free! Download and try for yourself now and see what youve been missing.

A Dreamy Week in the Country

A country manor house with sculptured gardens. An English summers evening. Strawberries and champagne on the grass. A lively and excting intepretation of 'A Midsummer Nights Dream'.

For the 5th year running, CSC was chosen to be centre-place for the same team on the outdoor Shakespeare production held in Wiltshire, UK, by the Shakespeare Live group. Read how CSC made the event go with a breeze...

You're The One That I want!

After weeks of auditions and televised casting, the UK public finally chose their Danny and Sandy for the new London production of Grease. The show is running at the Picadilly Theatre and is booked well into next year.

CSC has been chosen to work alonside the Digico D5T, creating a centralised location for all Sound Effects and MIDI commands. The dual-computer system is controlling all external reverb changes, monitoring the Hard Disk Recorder's MTC output - which are providing over 20 sections of click - performing MMC Stop and Locate commands as well as playing the shows numerous sound effects, "radio" announcements, and interval and preshow music.

CSC Hits Las Vegas

In June 2007 the new show from Dutch magician Hans Klok opened in the Theatre for Performing Arts of the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas. In The Beauty of Magic, Hans is joined by guest star Pamela Anderson and his Divas of Magic.

One of the biggest proscenium theatres in North America, the venue has had its 7,000 seat capacity reduced to 2,500 to enhance the initimacy of the show. A 70 piece pre-recorded orchestra is replayed back from a 2-part Protools rig, whilst CSC is in control of the 70 manual samples fired throughout the show. The system also consists of a Digidesign Venue mixing system and Dolby Lake processing.

CSC version 2.4 released with groundbreaking new features...

As well as small cosmetic changes and several new features such as Global Rewind/Forward of all players, 8 Button Remote control support, Naming WavPlayers and more, CSC 2.4 boasts 2 new exciting features: For the show control world, a new External Events Trigger list has been added, and for rehearsal time, WavPlayer Snapshots. Read more...

Tradition!

Tradition returns to the Savoy Theatre on London's Strand this summer as Fiddler On The Roof arrives. Originally staged on Broadway in 1964 the show opens here on May 29 for a limited season.

The sound system includes a PM1D mixing console controlled by CSC. The software is also controlling the outboard effects processing, firing sound effects on two Akai S6000 samplers, and even relaying messages from the backstage sound technician to the FOH operator using CSCs networking and chat client system.

CSC Goes Full circle to revisit its roots...

Just over 4 years ago the first ever beta versions of CSC lite were unleased on a university level production of Fame! The Musical. Now, many revisions and much development later, the software is once again in control of the show, at the Shaftesbury Theatre in London's West End. The software is controlling a Digidesign Profile mixing console, an Akai S6000 sampler using MIDI sequences, and external effects processing. The installation sees the first major use of CSCs network tracking, enabling 2 computers to seamlessly track one another so they can be switched over in the event of system failure, even mid-show if necessary.

CSC Stays on Track with Touring Shows

CSC is being specified on an increasing number of shows as designers and operators alike are finding the rewards for including the software as part of their system setup. Recent shows reported to be using the software include 42nd Street UK Tour, Dancing on Ice tour and Acorn Antiques the Musical UK tour. If you know of any shows we would be interested in knowing about using CSC, let us know!

2nd CSC West End Installation Wrestles with the Big Plant....

CSC moved with Little Shop of Horrors into its new home at the Duke of Yorks theatre. The software is providing desk control of a Digidesign Profile mixing console, recalling external effects presets as well as providing all the spot sound effects, such as the dentists "teeth rip" sounds and "nitrous oxide" blasts.

The Profile surface has even been modified to include 4 remote buttons to control CSC, and this gives the operator Go, Stop, Previous and Next control over the system.

From Las Vegas to Leicester Square...

CSC is taking charge of all things sound in the new London production of Icons in London at the Venue, Leicester Square. Nearly 200 voice overs, a job which would have been impossible with traditional playback equipment, CSC is also in control of the Digidesign Profile mixing console, the 4 outboard effects unit, playing spot sound effects and is reading MIDI Timecode from the Protools playback system to send locate points at the end of each track to cue it for the next track, leaving the MD free to concentrate on playing the music, and just press Go at the appropriate time, confident the Protools session is cued to the right track. http://www.iconsinlondon.com/

Oh no it isnt... Its behind You...

As Christmas time approaches, pantomines around the UK are already seeing the benefit of CSC as a playback solution. The system enables far more control than the traditional 2-track methods previously employed. Rehearsals can happen a lot faster as new sounds can be inserted and moved around at the drop of a hat, and spontaneous sound effects such as the traditional fairy noises and comedy drum rolls can all be assigned to hotcues to allow instantaneous playback at any point in the show. With suitable MIDI controllers, the musicians can also trigger a series of backing tracks to support the musical numbers.

"Down on Skidrow..."

CSC continues taking control at the Menier Chocolate Factory in the hilariously brilliant new production of Little Shop. As a pre-West End producing house, the Chocolate Factory consistently provides new challenges, as well as being a useful venue for testing new techniques. The system currently comprises 3x 01V96 digital mixing desks, linked for both audio and control, acoustically triggered drum samplers and the new Zaxcom digital Radio Microphone system. With over 200 cues in the cuelist, CSC is responsible for scene changes on the 01V's, playing multichannel sound effects and even some click track triggered via MIDI Time Code by the MD using a custom designed MIDI controller.

New Improvements: v2.3, now including Serial/RS232 Control!

CSC v2.3 brings many new features and enhancements to an already great product. MIDI support is further extended with the inclusion of a Keyzone mapper, new Sequence Generator, and the ability to loop sequences (great for phone rings!). Serial/RS232 control is now availble, CSC being able to independantly control 4 serial ports on the computer to send commands to CD/MiniDisc/DVD players or any other devices which require serial control. Audio Fades can now be "completed" immediately to speed up rehearsals, and the cuelist can now be configured to view more detailed information about cues. See CSC Features for more details or download now!

CSC Gets Down and Dirty!

CSC has been installed as the Sound Playback System for the All-New London Production of Dirty Dancing at the Aldwych Theatre on the Strand. The show, which is pre-booked well into next year, contains many pre-recorded sound effects and music tracks, complimenting the live band with surround-sound style soundscapes. The software has enabled the sound team to program a variety of musical and sound effects sequences, all of which are easily triggered from the systems main Digico D5 console, and also sends commands to the lighting desk for time syncronized action.

Award Winning CSC!

CSC won the ABTT (Association of British Theatre Technicians) "Sound Product of the Year 2006" Award after being nominated by Orbital Sound at this years 2-day trade show in London. The group saw the software as being an opening for many smaller theatres and venues to move into the area of automated sound and show control systems in a previosuly unavailable price range. Read More... www.abtt.org.uk

CSC Kicks Into Touch at Breakfast

CSC has just been installed as the control program at the Menier Chocolate Factory, London, in the new production of Breakfast with Jonny Wilkinson. With over 120 cues generating a sports bar rugby atmosphere, CSC is controlling a Z8 sampler, 01V96 mixing console and providing preshow and interval music playback. www.menierchocolatefactory.com

CSC Takes on Rocky!

CSC was taken as system of choice on the new Rocky Horror Show UK 2006 Tour. CSC is being used to trigger desk scene changes on a PM1D mixing console, control outboard MIDI equipment including a TC Electronics 6000 reverb system, and fire multiple layered sound effects. www.rockyhorror.co.uk

CSC chosen for Little Britain and Mighty Boosh UK Comedy Tours

Even though it was still in beta testing, CSC was adopted as the sound playback system for one of the legends of British comedy, the Little Britain Live Tour. The ease of use during rehearsals and speed at which shows could be put together was an essential quality for this dynamic and busy sound design. www.littlebritain.info

Orbital Sound Ltd take on distribution of CSC Show Control

UK Theatre Sound Specialists, Orbital Sound, have taken on the distribution of CSC licensing. Full details of pricing, sales, and technical support for CSC can be obtained from Orbital. www.orbitalsound.co.uk