Elite Multimedia works with Cour Design to simplify LED entertainment lighting and rig for singer David Nail

Specializing in the creation of innovative designs that run themselves for touring productions, Nashville-based Cour Design is opening the door for artists to tour as never before. By implementing a show that triggers its own lighting and video cues from a backing track, it is now possible for bands to hit the road with fewer technicians, but more gear. So as the David Nail tour was preparing the hit the road, they turned to Cour Design to help them create their first ever tour lighting rig, and Cour Design turned to Elite Multimedia to provide them with an LED entertainment lighting system and gear for the tour.

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“Cour Design was built on the idea of designing efficient and cost-effective touring packages for bands who will be headlining in clubs and performing as the opening act for arena tours,” began Gordon Droitcour, Cour Design co-founder and programmer. “Since most bands want to have the big live show, we developed a system to automate touring productions giving them the big show they desire on the budget they need. When the production manager for David Nail heard we had found a way to make this happen, he reached out about their upcoming tour and we got to work.”

As Cour Design held their initial production meetings with David Nail and his team, they began the same as they always do; by getting to know the artist and how he likes to perform.

Droitcour continued, “We like to think of ourselves as both production designers and tour coordinators helping to deal with all the logistics of the tour. We really like to get to know the artist and understand what they want to see in their show. Once we get a sense of what the artist is all about, we then start to look at the budget, the venues to be played, and the number of crew members who will be going out on the road.”

With an understanding of all the tour logistics and design needs, Cour Design now needed to enlist the assistance of a tour vendor. Knowing there one was one vendor who could supply them with not only the best gear possible, but also the best customer support, they called Elite Multimedia as they have done many times before.

“We’ve worked with Elite Multimedia on all our projects at Cour Design so far because their customer service is excellent,” explained Droitcour. “They are a large company with a small company atmosphere and we’ve been able to establish a great relationship with everyone on their live event production team. They are very good at helping us come up with the best solution for whatever project we may be working on no matter how big or small.”

Working with Elite Multimedia, Cour Design started to further breakdown where the tour would play and what they needed the LED entertainment lighting to accomplish night after night. Not knowing exactly which fixtures they would use to make this happen, Cour Design was sure they would be able to find the exact fixtures needed through the diverse inventory held by Elite Multimedia.

Droitcour continued, “With the David Nail tour, we knew they would be opening for artists such as Little Big Town and Darius Rucker throughout the year in different arenas, but then the rig also had to fit into clubs when David headlined his own show. The same rig had to give the same impact in all the different venues, but it also had to fit in one trailer. I like that Elite Multimedia carries a lot of different lighting fixtures from a multitude of manufacturers. While we certainly could bid out our projects to other companies, we choose to continue working with Elite Multimedia because they have the innovative equipment we need and their expertise makes the design process very easy.”

Completing the design process, Cour Design and Elite Multimedia agreed on an LED entertainment lighting package that included Elation Cuepix Panels and Clay Paky A.Leda Wash K10 luminaires. Through the combination of these two product lines, they could give the tour all the design elements desired while still making the transition from arena to club with ease.

“As an artist, David likes a lot of silhouettes and saturated colors, but he doesn’t necessarily want a lot of flashing onstage,” added Droitcour. “We chose the Elation Cuepix panels because with their 25 RGBW LEDs on each panel they give a big look and can create a variety of pixel mapping effects. We then chose the Clay Paky A.Leda K10 fixtures because the tour also wanted some movement on stage and these gave us the same pixel mapping options as the Cuepix panels. Plus, their zoom capabilities gave us another layer to the design and they worked perfect for both the arena and club setups.”

To simplify the load-in process, Cour Design then created lighting carts on which the rig would travel. Once on site, crew members could easily roll the carts into place, use a drill to raise them to the exact height needed, and then plug them into the self-triggering visual package.

“Because we use a self-contained and triggered visual system, our lighting rigs typically go out with no dedicated lighting technicians,” concluded Droitcour. “Before a tour goes out we will spend time with the crew to really explain how it all works and go over the maintenance process for the instruments with them. Having gear that arrives in the best condition possible is an absolute necessity and that is exactly what we get with gear provided by Elite Multimedia.”

Based in Nashville, TN, Elite Multimedia is a privately-owned, leading supplier of the most up-to-date audio, video and lighting technologies today. With a combined 85 years of industry experience, our team of dedicated professionals knows how to pair the right technology with your vision whether partnering with you in a rental, systems installation, or sales relationship. Through an unconditional desire to make your production or project a complete success, our passion and knowledge to innovate knows no bounds. For more information on how Elite Multimedia is the right partner for you, visit our website, follow us on Twitter at @EliteMultimedia or find us on Facebook.