This was quite an enjoyable edition to the Montreal Fireworks Competition. I was quite happy to see a boost in attendance on Notre-Dame and de Lorimier streets, relative to the much lower numbers featured by last year and in 2022 on most fireworks evenings. The weather was largely good this year, too, and despite a very confusing schedule for 2024, the inclusion of two Saturdays seemingly really helped matters.
Ultimately, it is wonderful to see the competition surviving for yet another year, despite, among other aspects, the challenges that presented themselves during the forest fire situation in early-Summer 2023. The displays were all engaging and entertaining in their own ways, and we were, once again, able to witness a nice range of creativity/complexity. However, much like last year, it was quite surprising to see that themes used this year across displays were fairly light and broadly outlined.
As mentioned, the weather pattern was quite interesting in itself, but under a very different direction relative to last year. Whereas 2023 favored a high density of shows spent with some amount of rainfall, this year reverted to 2022’s drier tendency for fireworks days/evenings. However, this year was also signature for smoke interception at La Ronde. Indeed, only three of the displays (Austria, Mexico and France) largely to completely avoided smoke accumulations. As such, often-times, the displays appeared hazy, and the colors subsequently faded faster than intended – the Canadian display being most affected. With the exception of the opening, all fireworks evenings further carried with them high to very high humidity, causing smoke accumulations to regularly be vast this year. Thankfully, though, no display suffered from calm winds, and the introduction of consistent laser segments this year did serve to help clear the smoke whenever smoke accumulation became more of an issue (notably in the Italian and Canadian shows). The opening show also led to the coldest conditions during a fireworks evening since the opening of 2016. Conversely, the closing show is likely to be the warmest and most humid one for 2024. Further, while only one display experienced some (modest) rainfall towards the end (Canada), the Japanese show had an evening with some convective rainfall in the area, including a distant thunderstorm around Lachute near the very end of the display and narrowly post-display. Prior to the Austrian show, the remnants of Hurricane Beryl additionally presented many challenges for setup, with 79 mm of rainfall observed on July 10th at YUL alone (lesser amounts farther East into downtown but still very significant (59 mm at the McTavish station that day)). This extensive rainfall apparently caused some issues for the Austrian show.
I would again like take this opportunity to thank Paul for keeping this forum/website alive and well, as well as for taking the time to provide us with very interesting inside information concerning each display through interviews. I similarly extend my thanks to Mylene for all of her work to provide in-depth information concerning the displays. Much thanks to Fred, too, for kindly sharing with us his full-length videos, once again, and to everyone altogether for sharing their (thorough) reviews/comments of the displays (and in other discussions). Finally, I would like to thank all organizers and setup crews for their diligent and hard work to prepare all displays for us to see every fireworks evening.
Below is a brief synthesis of what I thought were the strengths and weaknesses of each of the six in-competition displays. This is then followed by my jury predictions and personal choices for the winners, and then miscellaneous rankings for other display attributes.
Country: Japan
Company: Omagari Hanabi Display Team
Date of presentation: July 4th, 2024
Considerably warmer and more humid conditions settled into the region, in sharp contrast to the quite cool and dry situation during the opening. Winds were 11-13 km/h, allowing the smoke to displace towards mostly right-hand sections of the La Ronde audience, with the highest-altitude smoke moving somewhat more directly overhead towards the right-hand and modestly adjacent central sections. A display time temperature of 27 C was also observed under high humidity. Shortly after the display, lightning could occasionally be seen flashing in the distant NW horizon due to a small family of thunderstorms in the Lachute area.
Great display by the Japanese team, with plenty of high-quality products, and a good range of enjoyable music accompanied by vivid colors to enhance the technical design. Good synchronization, overall, with some interesting sequences. That said, the conceptual framework, I thought, was more limited in its delivery, with the theme (“Feast of Emotions”) not always being so clear in this display in terms of transitions and musical choice. There was also a sense of imbalance with the music, as many songs endured for extended periods, and there were many moments of lighter activity that did not seem to fit the intricacies in rhythm and pace in some songs. The finale itself started well but needed to be longer.
Overall, the display was well received, but it lacked the complexity for a more explorative approach with such a theme, and I think that a more traditional direction might have worked better here.
Country: Italy
Company: La Rosa S.R.L.
Date of presentation: July 7th, 2024
This show’s weather conditions featured a continuation of the very warm and humid pattern with gradually clearing skies. That said, the WSW flow (8-11 km/h) guided rapidly accumulating smoke towards right-hand and central sections of the La Ronde audience. The display temperature was 25-26 C under high humidity.
This was one of the more exciting displays this year, often filled with many energetic moments and keeping the sky active, including within segments. The frequent appearance of shell-of-shells and multi-breaks really enhanced this notion. Much like Japan, though, the theme was broad and not always so clear, so conceptually, it was lacking despite effective and often clean transitions. There were also moments of asymmetry and periods where pauses were random, or during times of fireworks continuing after a segment ended (presumably technical issues in both cases). Color palettes were decent, although the smoke dimmed their brilliance. Good finale, but too brief as a result of being broken up, and much too monochrome.
Country: Austria
Company: Steyrfire
Date of presentation: July 11th, 2024
The remnants of Hurricane Beryl became the dominant issue for this display, releasing 79.2 mm of rainfall at YUL on July 10th alone, and ongoing smaller contributions through early-July 11th. Although improving display day, the Austrian team was faced with almost damp, saturated air and a fairly low stratiform cloud deck. In addition, with this saturation effect occurring with a display time temperature of 20 C, the humidity was very high, prompting vast accumulations of smoke at times. The Northerly to NNW flow directed the smoke accumulations towards the bridge. The light (9 km/h) winds mostly displaced the smoke quickly enough to see most of the display, but the vast accumulations often covered left sections of the space.
The Austrian team’s return showcased a really good improvement from their previous display. The show actually carried the most tenacious thematic connections to a display this year, often well represented from one moment to the next. That said, the show suffered from technical issues that were likely weather-related, and these were shown through periods of asymmetry and random moments of silence. Redundancy was also still fairly evident through horsetails/drooping effects, though less than their previous entry. Furthermore, the display had the most reserved selection of color among all displays this year (not helped with the damper air), and it was overall the least energetic show. There were also a few moments of cliff-hangers, where the end of a segment would end much too quietly. The finale was good but stood out more because of the generally quieter nature of this show.
Country: Mexico
Company: Lux Pirotechnia
Date of presentation: July 14th, 2024
This display had the most favorable wind direction (SSW). At light speeds (9-12 km/h), the smoke advanced clear to the right of the La Ronde audience (including more narrowly at higher altitudes). This was accompanied by a temperature of 26 C during display time combined with high humidity (Humidex of 33 C).
This was a very good effort by the Mexican team. Their theme, “Feast of Emotions”, was largely obvious in this show, leading to one of the better and faithful thematic connections exhibited this year. The color range was fair, but I felt like there needed be more intricate mixtures to represent the musical selection. To that end, the music was not always effective in the sense that some songs were too lengthy, as stressed previously for the Japanese and Italian displays. Some effects, such as the brilliantly highlighted skulls, also seemed out of place to really showcase the clarity of the music being used. The serene moments were also a bit too quiet, which, I think, led to many missed opportunities to truly illustrate signature components of quieter soundtrack. Ultimately, this affected the overall technical design, as well as conceptually. Great finale (my third favorite this year), but I think the real finale was much too short (lasting only seconds). All that said, this display offered many engaging and energetic moments, so I still enjoyed the how aplenty. Also learning that the show used 100% Mexican products was quite remarkable!
Country: Canada
Company: Fireworks Spectaculars
Date of presentation: July 20th, 2024
The only display to observe rainfall during it – in modest amounts during the final minutes of the show. Indeed, a late-afternoon significant cold front encouraged scattered convective rainfall, and sparse non-severe thunderstorms among these (one appearing in Salaberry-de-Valleyfield). Following this convective rainfall, humidification left the air quite moist. Furthermore, the winds were in the form of light WNW (5-8 km/h), and with saturated air, a display-time temperature of 20 C appeared and corresponding Humidex of 27 C. This meant many periods of thick smoke accumulations directed often slowly at central and left-hand sections of the La Ronde audience.
This was my most favorite display for energy. It was propelled by very engaging segments that really coordinated well with the pyrotechnics. The color scheme was among the best this year, though it is a pity that the smoke often spoiled the color richness from La Ronde’s vantage point. This display was also the most nautically-rich, featuring several surprising sequences comprised of interesting firing angles, which in itself made could use of the available space. Massive nautical shells during the end were quite memorable. Laser segments were also integrated more creatively, too, but it was also beneficial to allow the smoke to clear (temporarily). The theme, “Extraordinary Journey”, was not always evident in the display, and the purpose behind some songs used to articulate its critical components was elusive. I think the display would have also benefitted from more attempts at note-tight choreography, as shown in their previous displays, although it did raise the bar at this point in the competition this year in that regard. The display also featured my most favorite finale of 2024, which suitably eclipsed the faux finale.
Country: France
Company: Arteventia
Date of presentation: July 27th, 2024
One of the few displays to enjoy the closest to perfect weather conditions. For the French team, a temperature of 26 C, along with a Humidex of 30 C, was present. Winds were light, at 9 km/h, but from the SW to gradually SSW as the show progressed. This allowed the smoke to drift to the far right-hand side of the La Ronde audience, though more directly in that direction at the highest altitude(s).
While Canada offered very enjoyable sequences and numerous exciting moments, France was the most complete display, overall. This show by the debuting French team really augmented the level of creativity observed this year. The color richness was absolutely spectacular and made sense in relation to the theme. Synchronization was very tight, and this was the first time that we saw such interactive and “playful” segments this year. Very interesting firing patterns, and good use was made among all available spaces while sustaining balance between all altitudes. The structures further worked better than expected, especially the central ring and its sequences. Fantastic real and faux finales, too, although Canada’s were more intense and enduring. My only negative points were that the last 33% of the theme seemed to be more disconnected through the music, and perhaps a bit too much of an anti-climactic opening piece. Also, the drooping effects became a little redundant.
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Overall, the French display really stood out as the strongest one this year, and one of the more complex and exciting displays despite having a generally light theme. All participants, though, had simplistic thematic frameworks that, for me, diminished the conceptual design of the shows. Shows that were characteristic of particularly strong themes together with high technical designs were, for example, Italy 2013 and Philippines 2018 (or the British display in 2007). The Canadian show this year was really thrilling, too, especially from Notre-Dame Street with minimal interference from smoke. I also thoroughly enjoyed Mexico and Italy.
As such, my jury predictions and personal choices for the winners look like the following:
Trav’s jury prediction:
1st: France
2nd: Canada
3rd: Italy
Trav’s personal choice:
1st: France
2nd: Canada
3rd: Mexico
Green Achievement Award: ?
Best choice of music:
1. France
2. Austria
3. Canada
Most intriguing effects:
1. France
2. Canada
3. Mexico
Best quality products:
1. France
2. Canada
3. Japan
Highest color richness:
1. France
2. Canada
3. Japan
Best devised and represented theme:
1. Austria
2. Mexico
3. France
Best sequences:
1. France
2. Canada
3. Italy
Most powerful/energetic displays:
1. Canada
2. France
3. Mexico
Best opening segment:
1. Canada
2. Austria
3. Japan
Best laser usage:
1. Canada
2. France
3. Austria
Top finales:
1. Canada
2. France
3. Austria
Trav. |
