Hardstyle as a secret weapon. That was exactly what gave the Dutch fireworks company Caffero Event Fireworks the victory during the prestigious World Fireworks Conference in China. While most participants opted for classical or film music, pounding kicks and energetic dance music echoed through the desert of Zhongwei.
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Hardstyle as the key to victory
The company is no stranger to the hardstyle scene: this year Caffero already provided the fireworks shows at Harmony of Hardcore and 7th Sunday. But in China, they turned that experience into a victory at the very highest level.
“Where is the Netherlands proud of? Of the festival scene, dance music. Think of DJs like Martin Garrix and major festivals like Defqon.1,” Roeland Weijenburg told Brabants Dagblad, show creator and owner of Caffero. “We included that in the show and it was received super well.” The eight-minute show started with light trance and house, and ended with hardstyle. Among the tracks blasting through the desert were ‘Refuse to Speak’ by Sub Zero Project and ‘Legends’ by Showtek & Sub Zero Project. “And that’s what sets us apart from others,” says Weijenburg.
3,000 effects, beats, and breathing space
The team spent weeks preparing. “We design it with a software program. You can see the result in 3D,” Weijenburg explains. “It takes a while to manually add three thousand firework effects. That’s just a lot of work, that’s where most of the time goes.”
The winning show carried the theme Colors of Connection, symbolizing the bond between the Netherlands and China. Caffero chose a performance that didn’t just go full throttle, but also left room to breathe. “We find it important to give a show breathing space. There are quiet moments in it and moments where we go full blast,” he says.
The World Fireworks Conference attracted more than 20,000 visitors per day. For Weijenburg, the victory was a dream come true. “That was unbelievable. China is of course the country of fireworks, and for small Netherlands to come first there is almost impossible to comprehend,” he says. “This is the greatest achievement of our company so far.”
