The 2008 edition of L'International des feux Loto-Québec, the Montreal International Fireworks Competition, is becoming intense with two displays per week, large audience and great performances which make the judges' task much more complicated. The Australian entrant, Howard and Sons, winner of the Malaysian International Fireworks Competition in September 2007, did a second appearance in Montreal on July 19th, with a setup including 29 nautical platforms across the lake, in addition to the usual firing ramps.
The wide range and quality of pyrotechnic pieces were among the greatest aspects of the display. At the lowest level, the La Ronde audience enjoyed flames, strobes, fountains and various sequences of gerbs. At its highest point several multibreak shells were displayed. Original mines of dense comets bursting in fast and large go-getters were used, as well as shells of comets with rising tail effects bursting in different colours. The latter effect is a Japanese concept that loyal audience don't remember having seen in Montreal before. Howard and Sons manufactured a part of this arsenal, despite the explosion of one of its factories in December 2007.
Andrew Howard writes PyroPlanet, "We used product from Howard and Sons Pyrotechnics Manufacturing Australia, Panda-China, Yung Fen-China, Igual-Spain, A S Caballer-Spain, Panzerra-Italy, Santore-USA".
For the designer Stuart Bensley, the main difference with the show made in 2005 was the music. Whereas the first display had been a tribute to the jazz music, the new vintage was based on a set of 13 songs and music revisited by various singers and groups. However, that was not the one and only difference. In 2005, audience and critics were clearly unsatisfied with the late start of the pyrotechnic performance, which occured about two minutes after the official countdown due to a long narrative. Moreover, that narrative appeared several time throughout the display. This year, Bensley avoided all narrative and didn't lost time to launch the first shells of a larger setup. In addition to the 29 pontoons, the setup included 43 positions and 8 Silver Jet 6 Pointed Star Hubs on ramp 3 (along the lake), 27 positions on ramp 2 (the beach inside the park) and 20 positions on ramp 1 (along the river, behind the shell bunkers).
Howard and Sons used 170 32-cue Rail/2-Wire Fire One Modules totalling 5440 cues. "FireOne system performed beautifully we were very, very happy with the show performance technically and artistically. A little more breeze would have been perfect but the slight breeze was enough.", writes Andrew Howard.
Unfortunately, pyrotechnicians' work was more painful due to heavy rain the eve of the show. The ultimate tests were completed 30 minutes before the display, preventing some members of the Australian crew to appear on the stage during the official ceremony and the national anthem.
Furthermore, it was the Australian night in Quebec on Saturday, July 19th. In addition to Howard and Sons display in Montreal, Australia (represented by Foti) was the first country of the 2008 line-up of Les Grands Feux Loto-Québec, the international fireworks competition held in Quebec City since 1995.
The setup of the Australian team was larger than the one displayed in 2005. As it is often the case since a couple of years, floating platforms (the 5th ramp) were used. However, Howard and Sons used a record-breaking number of 29 of these nautical pontoons. All the stuff fired from this ramp was manufactured by Howard and Sons.
Emil Stojanovski, secretary at the Australian High Commission in Ottawa, delivered a speech to the audience during the official ceremony held before the show.
With the song ʺSparkling Diamondsʺ, the first segment opened suddenly as soon as the countdown has been ended with a barrage of shells and mines along the firing area. That is a dramatic contrast with the slow start of previous Howard and Sons performance.
On a more serene moment, several shells produced these Niagara Falls effects.
These fans of tourbillons were among the pieces fired from the several nautical platforms.
This set of whistles was cheered by the audience.
Along the front ramp, several 6-point stars, made of gerbs, came into life.
On the music of ʺOneʺ, the finale segment comprised several shells of comets which rose as they produced several clusters of stars, each cluster of a distinct colour. These pieces were manufactured in China following a Japanese concept. It was one of the most original feature of the Australian display.
Inside the Salon des artificiers just after the show, members of Howard and Sons team, including the designer Stuart Bensley in the centre, looked very satisfied of their performance.
For a comprehensive report, more photos, a full video and discussions, please visit Paul Marriott's website, montreal-fireworks.com. Info and comments in French are also available on Mylène Salvas' blog.
The soundtrack of each firework display is broadcast live on local radio station 105,7 FM. To listen the music on the web, click here and select "Radio en direct" on firework nights at 10:00pm Eastern Time.
Text and photos: Frédérick Bastien
