during the fair: the boundaries between the acoustic and electronic
worlds are becoming blurred, e.g., high-grade e-pianos are imitating
the sound of concert grand with increasing precision, the feeling of
playing a digital drum set is now closer than ever to a real drum kit,
electric string instruments offer the opportunity to practice using
headphones. Music apps are now also more than just a gimmick and
are even arousing the interest of music professionals.
With the many new events and information services, the fair was
a magnet for both trade visitors and music aficionados. At the
new Business Academy, retailers and distributors learnt how
digitalization processes can be used for their own business model.
At the very popular Drum Camp, musicians and music lovers
experienced performan ces by world-famous drummers, received tips
for perfect sound enhancement in the Club Forum and increased their
knowledge of keyboard instruments at the Piano Lounge. Outdoors,
there was a festive atmosphere – the Musikmesse Street Food Session
presented culinary reflections on musical themes while well-known
artists provided the right sound on several stages. Numerous stars
were to be seen and heard within the framework of the musical
program. They included electro-musician Schiller, Ärzte bassist
Rodrigo González, pop-rocker Jupiter Jones, Bon Jovi’s guitarist Phil
X, The Dead Daisies all-star band and singer-songwriter Konstantin
Wecker who was presented with the ‘Pianist of the Year’ Award.
Musikmesse also expanded its commitment to young musicians.
Thus, the long established Music4Kidz participatory exhibition
helped spark children’s interest in active music making and, this
year, presented a new compilation of extraordinary instruments,
interactive sound sculptures and creative sound experiments. For
the first time, the European Final of the world’s biggest band contest,
Emergenza, was held at Frankfurt Fair and Exhibition Centre.
At SchoolJam, young talents competed for the title of ‘Germany’s
best school band’, which went to the ‘Aber Hallo!’ rap rockers from
Regensburg.
Over recent years, the impressive pace of development in the event-
technology industry has led to a growing demand for highly trained
employees. For this reason, Prolight + Sound has further expanded its
range of professional-development facilities. An extensive seminar
program with over 70 lectures by top speakers communicated both
basic and expert knowledge on technological trends, progressive
event management and safety and security issues in the event
industry. With the new ‘Future Talents Day’ on the Tuesday,
Prolight + Sound offered for the first time a targeted program for
students and trainees in the event sector. Thus, newcomers had the
chance to find out about career scenarios in the event industry, to
take part in match-making events and attend special workshops and
lectures. “The extensive conference programme at Prolight + Sound
included interesting events for both beginners and ‘old hands’ and
this alone would be a good reason for making the trip to Frankfurt”,
said Joachim König, President of the European Association of Event
Centers (Europäischer Verband der Veranstaltungs-Centren –
EVVC). “Once again, Prolight + Sound demonstrated its unrivalled
position as the leading trade fair for event technology.”
The next editions of Musikmesse and Prolight + Sound will be held at
the beginning of April 2017.
Further information about Musikmesse and Prolight + Sound can be
found at www.musikmesse.com and www.prolight-sound.com.
The
Score Magazine
www.thescoremagazine.com
47