As well as recognising the best in British musical talent and airing on ITV to 3.3m viewers, the 2023 BRIT Awards gave two students from the BRIT school’s Production Arts course the opportunity to get involved in the process of delivering a large-scale event – from warehouse prep to load-in and set up at London’s 02 Arena, the live performances, de-rig, venue load-out and warehouse de-prep.
Britannia Row supplied a full DiGiCo control package, L-Acoustics PA sound system design, RF management and crew as managed by Britannia Row Director, Lez Dwight & Account Executive Tom Brown. Joining them were students Vinay Rana and Zena Tubmen.
‘I learnt so much from the two-week placement – it was amazing to see what goes into such a large-scale event,’ Tubmen says. ‘It was honestly one of the best experiences I’ve had. Everyone was friendly and very keen to help out and explain what they were working on.
‘Both of my parents are musicians, and they’ve been taking me to festivals since I was three. I love how happy and free people feel at these types of events, and I would love to be a part of the team that brings people so much joy.’
‘From my first day at Brit Row, I could feel the energetic atmosphere of some really clever people doing really cool stuff,’ Rana says. ‘There was a great level of professionalism between the staff too, and everyone was very welcoming and willing to share their knowledge and experience.
‘It was an incredibly insightful experience from start to finish, learning how to collate and set up all the equipment for a show of this calibre. For the PA, Brit Row had chosen the L-Acoustics range of cabinets due to their extended low-frequency response, punch and versatility. Thanks to the great skills of the systems engineers, they taught me how to rig and connect the system.’
‘While thinking about my next steps after college, I’m looking at Brit Row’s apprenticeship programme,’ Tubmen says. ‘It sounds like a great option to continue real world education. Seeing all of the high-quality equipment from Brit Row, and how it’s used at an event such as the BRIT Awards, was such a highlight.’
‘We’re very proud to have been able to assist the BRIT School in this experience,’ says Brit Row’s Dwight. Both Zena and Vinay did an exceptional job in helping our staff and freelance crew during the process from prep to show delivery. We were impressed with their approach to working life and professional demeanour on site. I am sure they each have long and bright futures in live event audio ahead of them.’
‘I particularly enjoyed dismantling the risers after each performance on the show night,’ Tubmen adds. ‘After the weeks we’d had learning and helping out, it really felt like we were part of the audio team.’
More: www.britanniarow.com
