In this issue, we cover such disparate issues as the Brit Awards and the history of Pink Floyd as a touring musical institution, but Pink Floyd and the Spice Girls (winners of two Brit awards) have a lot more in common than you might imagine, specifically the importance of visual presentation. Nobody goes to a major concert, or a pub gig for that matter, just to listen to good music — you can hear technically better music by turning your CD player on — people go to gigs to see an act. Sure the music and the sound balance is very important, but in this era of multimedia, the visuals, the showmanship, the costume, the lighting, all combine to produce that magic we know as entertainment.

In Sound on Stage, we are mainly concerned with the audio aspect of live performance, be it PA, backline, effects or whatever, but we reserve the right to stray outside these perceived boundaries, when circumstances demand. After all, our article on how to get more gigs (last month) wasn't purely to do with sound, but the information it contained was important to the gigging musician.

Over the past two or three decades, pop and rock concerts have evolved from being just a band on stage to full theatrical productions, and as live performance evolves, so must we. Regular readers will have noticed that SOStage covers major theatrical shows and musicals, some of which appear to be technically very complex, but the dividing lines between major rock concerts and theatrical events are being steadily eroded. The complex sets, pyrotechnics, and lighting systems used in today's rock concerts have largely evolved from a theatrical background, and as technology becomes even more affordable, it'll be interesting to see how much of this percolates down to the gigging band. Even so, technology will never be a substitute for stagecraft, and we have more plans for articles on that vitally important subject in the very near future. Perhaps the next legacy from the theatre will be rock musicians at drama school?