12.21.09

OUR NEW YAMAHA LS9-32 ARRIVES.

We have an increasing need for live sound. We decided to invest in a new digital mixer for live sound. Its features are overwhelming and the manual is 300 pages long. But this mixer sounds incredible. I look forward to using it every time I can.

11.21.09

MASERATI OF SACRAMENTO, SACRAMENTO.

The new Gran Tourismo S Convertible was making its tour around the world. There was only one in the world, and it was here. We were doing sound and lighting for the new car launch party. It was a spectacular event with a lot of people and great food. We projected the Maserati gobo on the wall, set up both truss towers outside and had a multi speaker set up inside. This was a memorable unveiling.

11.18.09

NIELLO PORSCHE, BEST OF SACRAMENTO DISPLAY, SACRAMENTO CONVENTION CENTER.

The Niello Company has won every year this category has been voted on by Sacramento voters. Best Place To Buy Your Dream Car. This year, Niello chose their brand Porsche to occupy the space. This was in perfect time to show the new Porsche Panamera. This full sized sports car had to be lit, and with all the booth competition at the event, it had to be high. We produced a video to present on a rear projection screen that was 18 feet off the ground on top of the trussing. It was also shown on the 46" LCD at the back of the display. I came up with a truss structure that was free standing and would fit within the boundries this booth was allowed. We also had the advantage of a wall so we projected the Porsche gobo on the wall. We covered the back with 20 feet of pipe and drape. With all the lighting and projector, we used 120 amps of power. It was well received by the crowd. The design allowed us to run all cables in the trussing so there was nothing on the floor. This structure required the use of our industrial lift. It took us almost 8 hours to set this up in two different days. It only took 2 hours to bring it down with the use of both lifts. We learned a lot on this build. The group picture is of Megan from the Niello Company, me, Alan and Mike. I wonder what we are going to do next year..

11.14.09

JIM AND ERINNE WEDDING, SAN FRANCISCO.

Jim is a long time work associate. He and Erinne were getting married in the oldest church in San Francisco. Literally, there is a historical marker and everything. The place was wonderfully intimate and warm. Who would have thought dancing would take place in such a humble, yet beautiful location. Well, sometimes, the crowd just needs to move, and boy did they. It was one of those nights where everything fell right into place. Photos taken by the always wonderful to work with, Teresa K.

10.04.09

NIELLO CONCOURS AT SERRANO, EL DORADO HILLS.

The Niello Company is a major contributor to the Concours at Serrano every year. It's a car show with incredibly valuable cars. This year was an Italian theme. Lot's of Ferrari's, Lamborghini's and of course Maserati. Maserati of Sacramento hired us to help make their Maserati and Ferrari display shine. We hired Paul for this event. We went to the location the day before to set up the trussing arch and arrange the flag mounts on the top. Talitha and I then had a wedding to do late into the night that evening. The next morning, we met with Paul and drove to the location. We arrived around 6 am. We had a huge amount of work ahead of us. We had to mount both 46" LCD's high on the trussing. e had flags to place and and Italian flag had to be secured to the building. We also ran two speakers to play low level music. The day started at 6 am and we drove out around 6 pm. It was a great day. The weather was perfect and the crowd was fun. In the front of the booth was a Ferrari Enzo which has a value of around $1.5 million. I am really glad the trussing stayed in place.

08.26.09

NIELLO LAND ROVER, RANGE ROVER LAUNCH, SACRAMENTO.

The Niello Company has two Land Rover Dealerships. One in Rocklin and one shares the building with Jaguar Sacramento. This event was to welcome the new Range Rover into the family. The General Manager wanted to display the car inside the dealership with lighting. We also did two light towers with two 46" LCD's mounted for playback of a Land Rover video. We provided speakers inside and outside. We also had two additional light towers on the patio. They also wanted a band that could play world beat type music. I hired a friend of mine named Alex Jenkins. He is one of the best percussionists I have ever heard. His band was awesome and set the perfect tone for a Land Rover style evening. The dealership did not have enough power for our sound and lighting, so we brought in a 100 amp generator. Alan and I set up and ran the evening, and Mike was called in the help with the take down. Our goal is get our equipment out of the building as quickly as possible so the dealership can close.

08.22.09

NIELLO APPRECIATION CELEBRATION, SACRAMENTO ZOO.

I was in Lake County DJing for a family friend. Talitha and Alan took on this job at the zoo. 950 Niello employees and family members were at this event. Music had to be consistant through out the picnic space without disturbing the animals. We had two site visits prior to to the event to lock down a design plan for the sound. We knew where the power was, where the speakers were going and where they would set up the trussing arch. Everything went without a single problem. Talitha got a lot of compliments on the music.

08.22.09

LINDSEY AND CASEY WEDDING, PADDLE BOAT, CLEAR LAKE.

A long time family friend was having her wedding reception on a family members paddle boat on Clear Lake. Great idea! The boat was beautiful, but the dancing was on the third deck. Dinner was on 2nd and 3rd decks. Some of my family was there which made it even more fun. The only thing missing was Talitha. She was at the Sacramento Zoo with Alan DJing for the Niello Appreciation event on the same night. Once again, the wife shines.

08.17.09

NIELLO AUDI QUATTRO CUP, NORTHRIDGE COUNTRY CLUB, FAIR OAKS.

This was the Third Annual Niello Audi Quattro Cup. A day full of fun golf tournament, dinner, and auction. There were about 120 participants. Mark S. Allen from Good Morning Sacramento was the MC for the dinner and auction portion. This event is always a lot of fun. We did sound in two locations and then video projection.

06.27.09

ANGELICA DEBUTANTE BALL, MARRIOTT HOTEL, RANCHO CORDOVA.

This is the largest production we have done for a non corporate event. I came in the hotel the night before and used two chain lifts to hang 16 feet of trussing with 8 par 64's, an ellipsoidal with Angelica's initial projcted, all the power cables and light control boxes. It took about 2 hours to find access in the ceiling and complete the task. I came back the next day with Talitha, and Alan. We had a lot to do. We set up 4 speakers, two subs, projection screen, and both 11 foot truss towers with 8 intelligent lights. We went into this event nearly totally blind. We didn't have the 40 page script the night had in store for us. We did sound for some instruments and a few vocals through out the night. I had met with Angelica's friends and family a few months prior to film interviews so I could produce the video that would play during the night. The event ran for nearly 5 hours and was nearly solid presentations, ceremony, choreographed dance numbers and music numbers. It was a huge night with a lot going on. I hired my friend Paul Pardue to take the fantastic photos during the evening.

04.26.09

REACH WALK/RUN, SANTA ROSA AIRPORT.

This was our 7th year participating in this fundraiser. This event raises money for the Dr. John MacDonald Paramedic Scholarship Fund. The event starts around 7:30 AM. This year was a record setting one. They had over 500 participants. The event seems to get bigger each year.

04.05.09

NIELLO VW RANCH RUN, LOOMIS.

This is an annual fundraiser we love to be a part of. Ride to Walk is a ranch in Loomis that does therapy with children with developmental disabilities, using animals. Niello VW has a special relationship with the ranch and holds an annual gathering of VW owners. the event begins at Niello VW in Sacramento and all 400+ VW vehicles caravan out to the ranch. The line of cars is usually about 3 miles long and is escorted by the CHP. We are responsible for the live sound at the main stage and playing music between bands. This year they had close to 1300 people in attendance and raised over $20,000 for the ranch.

02.20.09

FIREFIGHTER RETIREMENT CELEBRATION, PETALUMA.

John Lords is retiring from the Petaluma Fire Department and what a legacy he is leaving. He has been a firefighting Paramedic since 1975. There was close to 180 people at this event and it was a blast start to finish. He got on stage and played a few songs with his friends and guitar. And then my good friend Demian and his wife did a few songs with some people. The headlining band is called 5 Alarm. They do rock/reggae and are amazing. One of the best things was, the room this event was in had an awesome stage set up, and the walls have all been sound treated to avoid echo. I hired Alan to help with this event and we both had a great time. I finally figured out how to get that concert sounding kick drum sound I have been trying to fine tune for years. I was also asked to play music during the dinner portion of the evening. I set up both of my laptops. One with the music and the other with my Real Time Analyzing software running to keep track of excited frequencies. I can't wait to do sound for 5 Alarm again.

02.07.09

JON AND ELIZABETH WEDDING, OFFICERS CLUB, SAN FRANCISCO PRESIDIO.

I had the honor of performing at many culturally diverse events, but this one was a topper. Jon is of Mexican heritage, and Elizabeth is of Persian heritage. The couple got married at the base chapel a few blocks away. At the conclusion of the ceremony, a 12 piece Mariachi Band would escort everyone to the Officers Club. The weather was beautiful, and it was cool to hear a Mariachi Band 2 blocks away escorting 160 people. The venue was really nice and so were the folks who worked there. When everyone arrived, a Persian Wedding Ceremony Alter had been set up on the stage and the 12 members of the band took their place around it and played Mexican music for over an hour. It was great. The event also had guests in full Chinese ceremonial attire, and a group of people from India. It was a really fun event that was a huge success. Congratulations Jon and Elizabeth!

01.31.09

LIBERTY TAX SERVICE, MARCH OF DIMES FUNDRAISER, ROCKLIN.

I found an ad on Craigslist from Liberty Tax Service looking for a free DJ to play music at their March of Dimes Fundraiser, in trade for doing our taxes. I sent an email, got a reply, and it was booked. The weather could not have been more perfect. The crowd was small, but very friendly and fun. The event was a hit and we all had a great time.

01.16.09

MARRIOTT HOTEL EMPLOYEE PARTY, RANCHO CORDOVA

Every year, the hotel throws a company party. Ralph Suda was the previous General Manager and he simply rocked the house. He valued the employee's and rewarded them. The banquets department has some talented musicians in it and they enjoy playing for the employees. Richard Watts is one of the banquet managers and his two sons, and nephew have a band called 61 Trees. They were the other act to play that night. I set up two truss towers with lighting, subs, full stage monitors etc. We all had a great time and the audience seemed to appreciate it. They had another DJ there who plays for free every year. The hotel asked him to provide Karaoke service and the administration was all excited about it. 5 total people did the Karaoke, only one of which was an actual employee. This is one of the reasons I do not do Karaoke.