Doek & Slay
Harare, Zimbabwe
No warm-up required for COSMO at Doek & Slay
When Divine Concert Sound became the first rental company in southern Africa to invest in HK Audio’s flagship COSMO line array system, the Zimbabwean production specialist wasted no time putting its new purchase to work.
The system’s first outing came at the recent Harare edition of Doek & Slay, a travelling festival that has become one of Zimbabwe’s most popular live events. Hosted at the Glamis Arena, the open-air show welcomed an audience of 25,000 women for a day of music and celebration, featuring performances from some of the country’s biggest artists including Winky D, Killer T, Oriyano and the Travellers Band, alongside a surprise appearance from Atenda Chinx.
One of Zimbabwe’s busiest and best-known production companies, Divine Concert Sound has worked with HK Audio systems for many years. Its inventory already included the manufacturer’s COHEDRA line array, but the latest investment sees the company add COSMO, alongside CONTOUR X point source loudspeakers and C Sub subwoofers, as it continues to expand its capabilities for large-scale events.
“We are proud to be the first rental company in southern Africa to invest in COSMO,” says David Mwale, owner of Divine Concert Sound. “We have always been fans of the premium sound and German build quality that you get from HK Audio loudspeakers, and this latest investment just builds on that.”
For HK Audio Application Support Engineer Karel Noon, Divine Concert Sound’s existing experience with HK Audio systems helped make the transition to COSMO a straightforward one. “The company were already HK Audio users and were familiar with the Lab.gruppen amps and Lake controller, so it was easy for them to adapt to the new system,” he explains.
As one of Zimbabwe’s highest-profile live events, Doek & Slay also provided the perfect opportunity to showcase COSMO’s capabilities to the wider industry. “A lot of other technicians were expected to visit the event, so it was a great opportunity to put the system in front of people,” says Noon.
To ensure that Divine Concert Sound got the most from its investment, Noon joined HK Audio International Sales Manager for Africa David Leonhard in Zimbabwe to provide training and support ahead of the event. While introducing a brand-new flagship system on a major show can often feel like a leap into the unknown, the event quickly proved what COSMO was capable of.
As planning progressed, the event grew significantly beyond its original scope, placing additional demands on the system. “The event grew substantially from the first plans, making the COSMO configuration a tight fit,” recalls Noon. “But thanks to the system’s headroom and well-designed limiters, it delivered crystal-clear sound throughout the day.”
With tight timescales and a major outdoor production to deliver, the practical advantages of the system proved valuable behind the scenes. COSMO’s compact footprint and straightforward rigging process helped the team get everything in place efficiently.
“Setup time and logistics were also a challenge, but the easy rigging and compact dimensions of COSMO helped get everything ready on time and with fewer people than would have been required with other systems,” he adds.
Coverage presented another challenge. With the audience area stretching further than originally anticipated, maintaining clarity across the site was essential. “The area was a lot longer than planned,” says Noon. “The double HF drivers of the COSMO 10 really helped cut through the 60 metres to front of house and the cheering of the crowd.”
For Mwale, the event established exactly why Divine Concert Sound chose to invest in the system. “Doek & Slay is a popular event that attracts a big crowd,” he says. “It was important for us to deliver the kind of sound that reflects the scale of the show and COSMO ensured that we could do that.”
The successful deployment marked an important milestone not only for Divine Concert Sound, but also for HK Audio in the region. As the first COSMO user in southern Africa, the company has helped introduce the system to a new market while demonstrating its capabilities on one of Zimbabwe’s largest live events. “I’m delighted with how it went and I can’t wait to see the rig out on more events in the future,” concludes Mwale.
