Braxtin Pieper went through an array of different looks to support the freewheeling Red Dirt music of Shane Smith & The Saints when the band appeared at Red Rocks Amphitheatre recently. Moving seamlessly from soft monochromatic color washes, accented by a touch of fog, to intense strobing effects and blinders, he utilized every inch of his rig in different ways, depending on the mood of the music in the 30-song set.
At least one thing was consistent though, throughout the concert, the beautiful sandstone rock formation behind the stage was always there enhancing his design. “I have to appreciate the venue,” Pieper said of Red Rocks. “The upstage rocks are such a key part of the red rocks design. I love the tungsten backlight, but also the element of lighting the ‘trees,’ or the rocks for this show, gave it another level of color that I strive to have in my creations.”
Pieper evoked mountain imagery during his show with the help of 29 CHAUVET Professional Strike Array 4 fixtures, which, like the rest of his rig, were supplied by Hoopty Lights. Other than six of the units which were flown over the downstage deck, the rest of the Strike units were positioned upstage in an up-and-down wave pattern that suggested the rising and falling formation of the upstage rocks. “I used the Strike Array 4s for many things,” said Pieper. “One of them was to create mountain peaks and angles in the air as well as the ground that surrounded the band. I also relied on them to deliver big crowd blinder looks.”
Joining the Strike Array 4 units, were 16 Color Strike M motorized wash-blinders, eight of which were positioned on the upstage deck, while the remainder were flown throughout the rig. “The Strike fixtures on the upstage floor up-lit on the rocks, so fans could absorb the mood of the venue. I had to run them around 30-percent as they’re so punchy. I also would flip the Strike Ms around to use their white tubes for strobe effects and hits during our heavier hitting songs. I used the flown Strike Ms mainly for crowd blinder and above head glow for the band.”
Pieper, who is quick to thank the support he received from the Hoppity team and his mentors, Josh Peikert, and Richard Whitley and Matt Row, also relied on the Maverick Force S Spot and COLORado 72 Tour batten to create dynamic colorized look throughout the stage and on its deck. “The Force S Spots are a great deck package fixture, because they’re such a small compact and punchy all-around spot that helps me achieve any look I need! I used the COLORado battens as footlight so the performers could be lit when they went to the apron area.”
The Maverick Force S Spot played a big role in creating one of Pieper’s favorite looks, which happened during the song “Quite Like You”. “The spots project a deep pink, while the Strike Arrays are doing a dotty low intensity effect,” he said. “This achieved the backlit look that Shane loves.” That look was definitely enhanced by what Pieper calls a “color and the tungsten glow” effect… and then, of course, there was also the magic of the famous rock formation.
Further information about CHAUVET Professional: www.chauvetprofessional.com
