Leading music festival, top nightclub powered by MACs, Atomic Colors

Posted Sunday, May 23, 2004

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There’s no doubt the Latin populace is known for its passion. Add in a mix of energizing Martin lighting effects and hot electronic music by top DJs Sasha, Danny Howels and Hernan Cattaneo and the result can be positively explosive.

On April 16th one of Argentina’s leading electronic music festivals, Southfest, kicked off under a stable of Martin gear. Lighting design, programming and operation for the event was by Walter G. Buchholz one of Argentina’s key lighting designers and the chief lighting designer at nearly all major electronic music events in Argentina, among them Southfest, Creamfields, Moonpark and Pacha Buenos Aires (Clubland).

Freelance lighting designer and operator Ignacio "Iñaki" Rosenberg, who often has the opportunity to experience Walter’s designs, commented, “Walter is a great designer and a fantastic operator who does most of these gigs ‘live’. As always, all the Martin gear worked flawlessly and provided a very important layer in the big mix of visual and sound images created.” On the Southfest rig were 12 MAC 2000 Profiles and 10 MAC 500 profile spots with 20 MAC 600 providing color wash.

Walter Buchholz has also been the regular lighting designer at Clubland Pacha since 1994. With over 4000 clubbers each night, Pacha is Argentina's top nightclub and arguably one of the best clubs in the world. The club requires a lighting rig as up-to-date and versatile as its enthusiastic patrons, therefore the rig changes weekly and often involves moving trusses and plenty of automated lighting. Walter reports that plenty of Martin equipment has seen its way onto the Pacha rig over the years from MiniMacs to MAC 2000s.

Iñaki comments, “I had big shoes to fill as Walter Buchholz was unavailable one weekend. It was an honor for me to do lighting there. I used the Atomic 3000 with Atomic Colors and fell in love with them. They've become a regular item in my riders now. They really opened up the spectrum of how I use strobes, and they're incredibly bright. In red I had to use them at 50% or they would wash out the rest. Amazing! Walter’s rider included four MAC 300 and eight 575 fixtures as well.”

A Martin Magnum Pro 2000 smoke machine adds to Pacha’s steamy atmosphere. Lighting supply for Clubland Pacha was from Martin Pro Shop Argentina with supply for Southfest from Buenos Aires Live Show.