Feast of Emotions
Designed by and soundtrack by Jorge Márquez FireOne firing with 2500 cues
For their second participation in Montreal, (the 1st being in 2007 with the theme Chocolate), the team from Lux Pirotecnia were presented with a perfect summer’s evening with warm temperatures and a cooperative gentle breeze to move the smoke away. There was clearly a large contingent of fans in the audience who could be heard singing along with the Mexican national anthem during the presentation of the team.
The display began serenely with well synchronized fountains on ramp 3. The music, probably unfamiliar to many in the audience, was quite serene. and the flame effects on ramp 3 fitted well, though, later in the show, were really too small / far from the audience to be effective. A lot of use was made of slice and other cakes on ramp 3 and these were well synchronized to the music. It was a bit of a surprise in the first laser segment to see nautical flares fired as well as a large set piece in the shape of the crescent moon (which relates to the “Son of the Moon” theme of the first piece of music (Hijo de la Luna). After the lasers ended two other set pieces in the shape of skulls lit up – these were absolutely dazzlingly bright – overwhelming the brightness of the other effects above.
The soundtrack was well done, though it’s a pity Beethoven’s Ode to Joy was used as the second laser intermission rather than part of the pyromusical. In general, the soundtrack was well put together, but sometimes the fireworks finished before the music or there were periods of quite dramatic music but nothing firing. Later we learned there had been a technical issue towards the end of the show, but these dark periods earlier on seem to have been scripted.
There also appeared to be some mistakes in the shells used from ramp 2 with transpositions of effects, leading to an untidy look sometimes. Also, there were quite a few shells that had low breaks, leading to an unexpected asymmetry in the design from time to time. The range of effects was quite good, especially the studata and other multi-break style of shells, but I found the colour palette to be limited to largely gold and silver, with the notable exception of some good blue to white ghost shells, though these were fired so they overlapped. Also some of the breaks were a bit uneven. I did like the range of effects used, though, with tourbillions and whistles. These went very well with the music and were augmented by similar effects from cakes and candles below. One simple effect, but done well, was a left-to-centre and right-to-centre sequence of fast spinning wheels that shot from the ends of ramp 3 to the centre. Ramp 5 was less used than other displays, largely due to the presence of the three large set pieces. It’s a shame that the flame projectors could not have been placed there.
I knew in advance the final piece of music would have a faux finale, but the first part started of a bit anticlimatic (partly due to the firing issues) and because it started a bit too weakly for the music. Then it built to a great intensity, leading the audience to think the display was over (as we were already past the 30 minute mark), then a pause in firing and a resumption of the real finale. To my taste, the second part was not as strong as the first, though, together, it was a good finale overall.
In general terms, the firing patterns used were fairly simple, but the emotions created were very well done due to the build-up of the fireworks with the music, leading to the display having a very enjoyable overall feeling. It also shows that a well designed display can be achieved without a massive arsenal of one-shots. The audience gave the team a well deserved standing ovation, as some fires still burned on ramp 3 and the occasional shots could be heard for a few minutes after the show.
At this point in the competition, I would say that Lux Pirotecnia are in second position, just behind La Rosa (who had a broader arsenal of products and a wider colour palette, but a weaker emotional feel to the display). The next two displays will definitely determine who is on the podium!
