Turbosound installations

Monarck

Venue: Monarck
Location: Denver, USA
Venue-type: Nightclub
Loudspeaker systems:
TXD series

Dozens of successful nightlife venues from the fancy ultra-lounge to the big bangin' party have drawn a steady stream of DJs, promoters and dance music aficionados to think maybe there is intelligent nightlife between the two coasts.
Impresario Francois Safieddine and his Lotus Entertainment Group are in no small way responsible for this shift. Since 1994, Safieddine - whose careful attention to detail has gotten him "banned from the drafting table," according to his interior designer - masterminded six independent nightclubs in Denver. It was a good time to start an empire. "In the early '90s, the city was giving tax credits to businesses to develop downtown. Now we have three major sports fields, an endless number of luxury lofts going up and tons of restaurants and bars," said Safieddine. "Our current mayor [John Hickenlooper] used to own a few restaurants downtown, so he knows what we need to keep the balance of entertainment, residential and business. It works."

Safieddine's first club, now closed, was the Purple Martini. Successful elements of the space - like a custom color palette and long, narrow spaces encouraging natural mingling - exist in many of his successive projects. Lotus/Karma (2005 Club World Award nominee for Best New Club) is the one-two punch of big nightclub, and bottle service lounge nestled snugly within. Blue 67 is a jazzy martini lounge, and Mynt recently underwent a remix to become a mojito bar, the feminine next door neighbor to the Group's newest: Monarck, another bold step forward in the Lotus Entertainment Group portfolio. It's a lounge for "everybody else."

Symbolically Solid
Safieddine defines the untapped group that Monarck pursues as "a mature crowd, not traditional clubgoers," downtown, professional, and dominantly male. And to attract them, he "wanted a mix of the traditional and the high-tech" in his 3,000-square-foot space.

Enter Jeff Elliot, president of Jeffrey P. Elliot Interior Design, who has been designing clubs for Safieddine since graduating from the Interior Design Institute of Denver in 1994. "When we did Lotus, it was high impact, like Vegas, but I added this Asian theme to give it a personality," he said. "[Monarck] is a different market - it's like a steakhouse without the food. What attracts those types of people?"

Elliot had never designed for such a demo before, but settled on strong, masculine features in warm, enveloping colors and symbolically solid materials like dark wood, stone and leather. "I was really wracking my brain about it, but then I said, 'If I think too hard, I will be over-thinking the whole thing,' which is how we ended up with the Chesterfield sofas and Williamsburg chandeliers."

"In essence, it's a little more junky, a little more 'what people want.' Like the pink river rock slab bar top. We were walking around looking at things and, well, everybody and his brother is doing onyx. Francois said 'Look at that weird stuff,' and we ended up going with it."

How does a savvy nightclub designer enter the mindset of a young buck only beginning to see beyond plastic beer logos and pool tables as obvious signs of a successful evening out? "That's a good question," said Elliot, who says that he gets his own inspiration by devouring design mags. "I have this formula, a simple how-to. The chandeliers might not be my style, but their repeating, and change of scale, definitely is. In doing this, I can deal with elements that aren't my thing but still feel good about the result."

One happy accident with the Monarck project was Elliot's decision to install a library of fake books, bound in papers made to match the interior for the back VIP room. Recessed and framed by brass wall sconces, it's equal parts austere parlor and haunted house; the perfect nook for beautiful folks to cozy up and chatter about the Brontë sisters. "It's a huge success, probably for its warmth, its busy quality and because it is unexpected for a club environment," said Elliot. "I didn't even plan for it. I just needed something to go in that corner, and I drew the bookshelves into the plans on a whim."

Safiedenne's "high-tech" aspect comes in the form of Color Kinetics LED-loaded Plexiglas tables, fabricated by Denver-based A.I.A. Plastics. These work as undulating focal points, while the continuously alternating floor glows purple and blue. Safieddine said that this softness brings in another element, as "girls like color."

Bit By Bit
No one likes a system too big for its britches, which is why Kostas Kouremenos, entertainment director for Safiedenne's Lotus Entertainment Group (which manages all four venues), and the man in charge of Monarck's Speed Of Sound-installed sound rig, characterizes it as, "small, maybe six fills and one cabinet up front, and three subs and six two-ways in the back. All Turbosound." Lights, installed by REX Lighting? "No moving ones, just the [Color Kinetics] changers." Two Eiki EIP1 LCD projectors, controlled from the DJ booth by Edirol's V-4 mixer, toss images onto walls, and eight Sharp Aquos LC-20E1U 20" LCD screens add extra video ambience to the space. For a 3,000-square-footer, that's still a lot of flash.

"Since I opened my first club, I always bring in advanced products," said Safieddine. "I mix them with traditional things, things people know. That's how people in Denver learn to love the new. One thing at a time."
Speakers
Front:
2 - Turbosound TXD-121 two-ways
1 - Turbosound TXD-115 subwoofer

Fill:
4 - Turbosound TXD-081 two-ways

Back:
4 - Turbosound TXD-151 two-ways
2 - Turbosound TXD-118 subwoofers

Booth
1 - Turbosound TXD-121 two-way monitor

	Monarck

	Venue: Monarck Location: Denver, USA Venue-type: Nightclub Loudspeaker systems: TXD series

	Dozens of successful nightlife venues from the fancy ultra-lounge to the big bangin' party have drawn a steady stream of DJs, promoters and dance music aficionados to think maybe there is intelligent nightlife between the two coasts. Impresario Francois Safieddine and his Lotus Entertainment Group are in no small way responsible for this shift. Since 1994, Safieddine - whose careful attention to detail has gotten him "banned from the drafting table," according to his interior designer - masterminded six independent nightclubs in Denver. It was a good time to start an empire. "In the early '90s, the city was giving tax credits to businesses to develop downtown. Now we have three major sports fields, an endless number of luxury lofts going up and tons of restaurants and bars," said Safieddine. "Our current mayor [John Hickenlooper] used to own a few restaurants downtown, so he knows what we need to keep the balance of entertainment, residential and business. It works." Safieddine's first club, now closed, was the Purple Martini. Successful elements of the space - like a custom color palette and long, narrow spaces encouraging natural mingling - exist in many of his successive projects. Lotus/Karma (2005 Club World Award nominee for Best New Club) is the one-two punch of big nightclub, and bottle service lounge nestled snugly within. Blue 67 is a jazzy martini lounge, and Mynt recently underwent a remix to become a mojito bar, the feminine next door neighbor to the Group's newest: Monarck, another bold step forward in the Lotus Entertainment Group portfolio. It's a lounge for "everybody else." Symbolically Solid Safieddine defines the untapped group that Monarck pursues as "a mature crowd, not traditional clubgoers," downtown, professional, and dominantly male. And to attract them, he "wanted a mix of the traditional and the high-tech" in his 3,000-square-foot space. Enter Jeff Elliot, president of Jeffrey P. Elliot Interior Design, who has been designing clubs for Safieddine since graduating from the Interior Design Institute of Denver in 1994. "When we did Lotus, it was high impact, like Vegas, but I added this Asian theme to give it a personality," he said. "[Monarck] is a different market - it's like a steakhouse without the food. What attracts those types of people?" Elliot had never designed for such a demo before, but settled on strong, masculine features in warm, enveloping colors and symbolically solid materials like dark wood, stone and leather. "I was really wracking my brain about it, but then I said, 'If I think too hard, I will be over-thinking the whole thing,' which is how we ended up with the Chesterfield sofas and Williamsburg chandeliers." "In essence, it's a little more junky, a little more 'what people want.' Like the pink river rock slab bar top. We were walking around looking at things and, well, everybody and his brother is doing onyx. Francois said 'Look at that weird stuff,' and we ended up going with it." How does a savvy nightclub designer enter the mindset of a young buck only beginning to see beyond plastic beer logos and pool tables as obvious signs of a successful evening out? "That's a good question," said Elliot, who says that he gets his own inspiration by devouring design mags. "I have this formula, a simple how-to. The chandeliers might not be my style, but their repeating, and change of scale, definitely is. In doing this, I can deal with elements that aren't my thing but still feel good about the result." One happy accident with the Monarck project was Elliot's decision to install a library of fake books, bound in papers made to match the interior for the back VIP room. Recessed and framed by brass wall sconces, it's equal parts austere parlor and haunted house; the perfect nook for beautiful folks to cozy up and chatter about the Brontë sisters. "It's a huge success, probably for its warmth, its busy quality and because it is unexpected for a club environment," said Elliot. "I didn't even plan for it. I just needed something to go in that corner, and I drew the bookshelves into the plans on a whim." Safiedenne's "high-tech" aspect comes in the form of Color Kinetics LED-loaded Plexiglas tables, fabricated by Denver-based A.I.A. Plastics. These work as undulating focal points, while the continuously alternating floor glows purple and blue. Safieddine said that this softness brings in another element, as "girls like color." Bit By Bit No one likes a system too big for its britches, which is why Kostas Kouremenos, entertainment director for Safiedenne's Lotus Entertainment Group (which manages all four venues), and the man in charge of Monarck's Speed Of Sound-installed sound rig, characterizes it as, "small, maybe six fills and one cabinet up front, and three subs and six two-ways in the back. All Turbosound." Lights, installed by REX Lighting? "No moving ones, just the [Color Kinetics] changers." Two Eiki EIP1 LCD projectors, controlled from the DJ booth by Edirol's V-4 mixer, toss images onto walls, and eight Sharp Aquos LC-20E1U 20" LCD screens add extra video ambience to the space. For a 3,000-square-footer, that's still a lot of flash. "Since I opened my first club, I always bring in advanced products," said Safieddine. "I mix them with traditional things, things people know. That's how people in Denver learn to love the new. One thing at a time." Speakers Front: 2 - Turbosound TXD-121 two-ways 1 - Turbosound TXD-115 subwoofer Fill: 4 - Turbosound TXD-081 two-ways Back: 4 - Turbosound TXD-151 two-ways 2 - Turbosound TXD-118 subwoofers Booth 1 - Turbosound TXD-121 two-way monitor