Carlos Cirre combines impression X5, impression X4 and GT-1 FL to create a stunning party

The Bilbao Exhibition Centre (BEC) was dressed for a special occasion recently for the farewell concert party for Hertzainak, spread over two nights.

Hertzainak was a leading light in the movement known as ‘Basque radical rock’. Their first records combined the provocation of punk with the dance rhythms of reggae and ska, maintaining the political situation in the Basque Country as the context of their songs.

For such an auspicious occasion, the eminent lighting designer Carlos Cirre was commissioned to design a show that would transport the audience back to the purest style of the 80s and 90s and evoke a retro spirit recreated by 100 state-of-the-art fixtures from the catalogue of GLP. This included 35 of the new impression X5.

According to Cirre, “The entire stage ceiling was covered with X5 luminaires. Although it was a completely new experience for me, I think this was one of the great discoveries of the event, as it provided the effect we were looking for to recreate the old PAR/ACL type spotlights. In particular, I was looking for a fixture that would give me a great light output, with a versatile zoom I could play with in order to recreate those classic lights – and above all would offer us saturated, warm colours with correction capacity.”

This next generation of high-performance professional wash LEDs incorporates 19 unique and powerful 40W LEDs that provide enormous power and allow the fixture to penetrate even the most difficult lighting environments.

The X5 boasts an impressive zoom range and CRI thanks to the new iQ.Gamut algorithm. This includes perfectly calibrated white spectrum outputs with CRI 90 at 6,500 kelvin and the ability to select other fixed white points up to 3,200 kelvin while maintaining a high CRI of 85+. Colour temperature changes at the output, with homogeneous light distribution over its entire range and no ‘hotspot’.

To this, Carlos Cirre added 25 GLP GT-1 FL hybrid, functioning as both a Spot and a Beam. Cirre explains: “This is one of my favourite fixtures; it is extremely powerful and, most importantly, it is very light weight for the level of brightness it delivers. We mainly use the GT-1 to play with its gobos and different prism effects.”

In both Spot and Beam mode, this luminaire offers the highest levels of performance. Utilising a 470W high power discharge lamp, its high-quality optics deliver a beam of light with variable zoom ranging from 3.5° to 56.7°.

When in Spot mode, the GT-1 FL offers a wide range of effects, including CMY colour mixing, eight rotating gobos, 14 fixed-pattern gobos, additional beam reduction gobos and an interchangeable animation wheel – as well as three different rotating prisms, and a fixed colour wheel with CTO/CTB and Frost filters.

When in Beam mode, the GT-1 FL delivers a perfect 2.5° beam through its large 145 mm diameter front lens, which remains bright and constant at long distances.

To this Carlos added the ever popular and now long-established impression X4 and impression X4 Bar 20 batten – big staples for the designer, which he describes as “very powerful, with a very accurate zoom and even colour mix.”

He deployed 15 of the multiple award-winning X4 Bar 20 battens, each incorporating 20 x 15 W RGBW LED, with high quality optics. These were supported by 18 impression X4, featuring 19 high-power 15 W RGBW LEDs, with a zoom range of 7° to 50°.

Cirre believes that the GLP catalogue has more than met the requirements of both promoters and technical teams looking for versatility. This includes making them ideal for TV broadcast, with the way in which they read to camera – and most importantly suit the physical needs of the event in terms of weight and zoom performance, all to the highest level.

Santi Donoso, the event’s tech manager (and owner of rental company, Sonort, which recommended the inventory), agrees: “We chose GLP because we needed reliable equipment and colour consistency. Also, the size and weight of the GLP equipment made it easy for us to assemble and dismantle.”

These criteria were of paramount importance at the BEC, since this long-awaited reunion was broadcast by the Basque regional TV where the technical complexity of the GLP inventory met all broadcast requirements.