New York, NY (February 14, 2018)—When the 60th Annual Grammy Awards was broadcast live on CBS recently, Shure wireless microphones, in-ear monitor systems and hardwired mics were on hand for the event, held at New York’s Madison Square Garden.
RF coordinator Vinny Siniscal used Shure Axient Digital as the default wireless microphones for artists on stage; meanwhile, 24 channels of Shure PSM 1000 in-ear monitoring delivered to performers on both stages.
The night’s big winner, Bruno Mars, used an Axient Digital handheld for his vocals, as did Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee in their performance of “Despacito.” The system was also central to several of the show’s signature events, including a Beta 58A version for the Chuck Berry tribute by Gary Clark Jr. and SM58 capsules for “Tears in Heaven,” featuring Maren Morris, Brothers Osborne and Eric Church.
“This was the first live-to-air show we’ve done with all digital mics, and this is a high-channel count show. I like the way Axient Digital performs; the RF performance is solid,” said Siniscal. “I especially love the rechargeable battery technology. The long battery life and ability to monitor the battery status gives us confidence throughout the show.”
One of the night’s biggest highlights was Kesha’s impassioned performance of “Praying,” addressing the issue of sexual abuse in society and the music industry. Kesha used her usual Shure UHF-R handheld wireless, while backing vocalists Andra Day, Cyndi Lauper, Julia Michaels and Camila Cabello used Axient Digital systems with classic SM58 mics.
Other performers on Axient Digital included Bono, Little Big Town, Childish Gambino, Logic, Shaggy, DJ Khaled, Broadway stars Patti Lupone and Ben Platt, Khalid, Dave Chappelle, Alessia Cara and SZA.
A crew of professionals led by audio coordinator Michael Abbott teamed up to meet the show’s sound requirements, with Firehouse Productions supplying the audio, RF and communications gear. Music Mix Mobile (M3) brought two full recording trucks for 5.1 surround music mixing.
Mix engineers included Tom Holmes in the main production truck delivering alternating mixes from Eric Schilling and Jon Harris in the two M3 trucks. For the live mix inside Madison Square Garden, Ron Reaves handled the music mixes, with Mikael Stewart in his accustomed role as program mixer. The two stages each hosted one monitor console, with those mixes performed by Tom Pesa and Simon Welch.
Additionally, all wireless microphones used on the red carpet for pre-broadcast interviews were Shure UHF-R with KSM9 mic capsules, and Axient was U2’s choice for vocals, bass and guitar wireless in the band’s pre-taped performance at the Statue of Liberty.
Shure • www.shure.com
