The world of entertainment technology and music business is coming together at Prolight + Sound and Musikmesse in Frankfurt am Main from 2 to 5 April 2019.
For the first time since 2015, the two trade fairs are being held concurrently on all four days and, for visitors from the professional audio sector in particular, will offer a variety of new highlights and product innovations from the industry’s key players.
With a revised hall layout, Messe Frankfurt has located the entire ‘Audio, Sound + Recording’ product segment in Hall 8.0, the biggest ground-level exhibition hall at Frankfurt Fair and Exhibition Centre. Previously, companies from this segment were to be found in different halls. Now, key players, including Adam Hall, Adamson Europe, Allen & Heath, Amptown System Company, Audio-Technica, Bespeco Professional, Coda Audio, Craaft Audio, d&b audiotechnik, dBTechnologies, DiGiCo, ES-Pro-Audio, FBT Elettronica, Fohhn Audio, Funktion One, HK Audio, Kling & Freitag, Klotz, König & Meyer, KS Beschallungstechnik, L-Acoustics, Lawo, Link, Powersoft, Proel, Riedel, Sommer Cable, Valentini and Yamaha Music Europe, are concentrated together under the same roof.
Additionally, many companies are presenting their latest products on the outdoor exhibition area where ‘Live Sound Arenas’ enable visitors to listen to PA and line-array systems under realistic conditions. Among the brands represented are Audiofocus, Aura Audio, Axiom, dbTechnologies, Eastern Acoustic Works, Fohhn Audio, Funktion One, Harmonic Design, KV2 Audio, Loud Professional, RCF, SE Audiotechnik and Unker Sound. This segment is rounded off by special areas on DJing in Hall 4.
Also part of the two trade fairs is a wide-ranging complementary programme of events with more than ever before for professionals in the audio sector.
With new partners, future-oriented themes and attractive stages, Prolight + Sound and Musikmesse present a full programme of workshops, showcases and live demonstrations. Participation is free of charge for visitors.
A focal point of the complementary programme of events is the trend towards 3D and spatial audio. Launched successfully last year, the Immersive Technology Forum presents not only developments in the field of VR/AR, 3D-mapping and holography but also best-practice examples from manufacturers of innovative audio solutions. Additionally, d&b Audiotechnik, L-Acoustics and Meyer Sound are showing their immersive sound systems in their own demonstration areas. Visitors can also experience a unique sound installation in the Sound Dome on the outdoor exhibition area.
Another main theme is digital audio networks with a Dante Level 3 Training being offered by Audinate on the Tuesday (2 April). The all-day professional-development programme is aimed at audio engineers, systems integrators and other professionals and shows how they can exploit the potential of Dante environments to the full. Moreover, IP-based transmission technology is one of the main themes of the new CAVIS – Congress for Audio Visual Integrated Systems.
Following last year’s successful première, Advanced Audio + Application Exchange (A3E) is once again organising The Future of Audio + Music Technology programme (4 April), which covers subjects that are set to have an impact on the future of the music and event industry – from the use of mobile apps in studio and live settings, via blockchain technologies, to cloud-based DAWs.
For the first time, Prolight + Sound is cooperating with the organisers of the Sample Music Festival with brands, such as Akai, Denon DJ, RANE, Ortofon and Mixars, making presentations on a special area of the foyer of Hall 4.0. Other companies, such as Ableton and Native Instruments are showing their new products within the framework of workshops and product demonstrations. Well-known artists from the world of DJing, controllerism and turntablism, such as Beat Matazz, Clockwerk and S-Trix, will give visitors the chance to look over their shoulder at workshops and showcase. The official main sponsor of the ‘Sample Music Festival Area’ is Schenker Technologies.
With the Audio Makers Square, Prolight + Sound and Musikmesse are establishing a special area for the international DIY community. There, visitors will find everything for building audio equipment themselves and can take part in audio-builder workshops. The area is being organised by MakeProAudio GmbH and other partners.
DJCon is also being held again (Hall 4, ‘Saal Europa’). Organised by the German Disk Jockeys’ Association (Berufsverband Discjockey e.V. – BVD), DJCon offers a comprehensive programme of education especially for DJs with daily live demonstrations and show acts. Among the brands involved are Allen & Heath, Ape Labs, Audio Technica, Chauvet DJ, Denon DJ, IMG Stageline, Numark, Pyromagic, Reloop and Red Bull as Cooperation Partner.
In the Sound & Recording Lounge in Hall 8.0, visitors can interact with internationally successful producers and engineers, take part in practice-oriented workshops and presentations and expand their networks. Additionally, several exhibitors are showing interesting new products and there is a café for discussions about issues of interest to recording specialists.
Another première is the collaboration with the organisers of the Music Tech Fest. The programme includes an ‘Innovation Masterclass’ with award-winning composer Reeps One and the ‘MTF Labs’ where innovation leaders in the field of music production pass on their knowledge. Rounding off the programme is a 24-hour ‘Trackathon’ at which up-and-coming young people produce and perform songs. The ‘Trackathon’ is hosted by composer, producer and multi-instrumentalist Martine-Nicole Rojina.
A world première for visitors to Prolight + Sound and Musikmesse is the Vintage Concert Audio Show with milestones of concert PA systems from four decades. Over 200 exhibits on a special area in Forum.0 will show what PA systems from the sixties, seventies, eighties and nineties looked and sounded like. Many of the vintage systems will be shown in action: on all days of the event, there will be a decade-linked audio panel discussion at which sound-engineers from that period explain the equipment used at that time and answer visitors’ questions. They include ex-Prince studio engineer Hans-Martin Buff, Jon Caffery (Joy Division, Sex Pistols, Die Toten Hosen) and Michael Baur (Rammstein).
