Independent Lighting Designer Joel Reiff has tapped 28 Ayrton Domino Profiles as his “workhorse” fixture for Counting Crows’ 56-date summer tour across the country, which he programmed on a grandMA3 console. ACT Entertainment is the exclusive distributor of Ayrton fixtures and MA lighting products in North America.
The band, with guests Dashboard Confessional, kicked off their “Banshee Season Tour” in June in Omaha and will wrap with a show at the famed Red Rocks Amphitheater in Colorado on September 25. Upstaging provided the Dominos and grandMA3 consoles for the tour.
“I like to emphasize the music in my lighting design and not take the audience’s eyes away from what the band is doing on stage and what they’re hearing,” says Aiken, South Carolina-based Reiff. “As my spot fixtures the Dominos get the brunt of the looks and take the majority of the punch. Eight are on the downstage for key lighting with the rest mid- and upstage to light the stage.”
The “Banshee Season Tour” marks Reiff’s first time using Dominos. “Upstaging introduced me to the fixture, and I trusted them when they said these lights will work for you. They are doing very well on the tour, and I will consider using them in future.”
When Counting Crows performs the song “Miami” the Dominos really take center stage to showcase the music. “It’s the biggest song of the night, very frenetic, so the Dominos flash a bit and move – they get a chance to shine!” says Reiff. “Most of the show is more low key, but ‘Miami’ lets us spread our wings and go a little crazy.”
Reiff is a longtime grandMA user and has a pair of grandMA3 light consoles on the tour as active and back up systems. He programmed the show’s lighting and Sceptron video elements on a grandMA3 light.
“grandMA is my console of choice, the one I’ve been most comfortable with since I started using the original console,” Reiff explains. “I loved the grandMA2 and now the grandMA3 is a natural progression of the system with better hardware and screens. ACT has always offered me great support, and I’m always picking up new things and learning about grandMA no matter what model console I’m using. It serves every purpose I need.”
He gives kudos to Upstaging where John Bahnick, Rich Locklin and Tony Thompson were his chief contacts. “Upstaging is a great company, and I try to work with them whenever I can,” he says. “It’s always a pleasure doing business with them, and they always take the best care of me.”
