New York, NY (October 21, 2016)—Legendary Yes keyboardist Rick Wakeman is back on the road, touring with his new band ARW performing with fellow Yes members singer Jon Anderson and guitarist Trevor Rabin. Tying his considerable keyboard rig together is an Allen & Heath Qu-32 digital mixer.
Wakeman’s stage rig includes eleven new and vintage keyboards along with four sound modules in addition the Allen & Heath desk, with snapshots set to mix and route specific keyboards to the FOH desk along with DSP effects chosen to fit Wakeman’s performing style for each song.
Engineer Erik Jordan manages Wakeman’s rig using a complex, custom-designed MIDI system centered on a Sycologic M16 MIDI Patch Bay that acts as a master controller. As Wakeman performs, he uses a keypad to select a Sycologic setting. Each setting sends specific MIDI commands to Wakeman’s keyboards and to the Qu-32 in a complex dance that prepares his rig for the next song.
Jordan notes that Wakeman may change settings on the Sycologic during a song triggering a Qu-32 scene change. “On any sound source, and for any song,” he says, “we may adjust the Qu-32’s input gain and signal routing, its EQ, gates and compression and three or four different effects. So it’s critical that the mixer respond quickly and smoothly and the Qu-32 does this very well.”
Rick Wakeman commented, “The Qu-32 has become an important part of my rig. It gives me full control of the mix and shapes the sound like one of my instruments. This desk opens up new possibilities for my music.”
Allen & Heath USA
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