Having spent nearly 50 years gracing some of the world’s biggest stages, you may be familiar with Le Maitre’s expertise and pioneering work in pyrotechnics and special effects. The company developed the Pyroflash system, considered the world’s first professional indoor pyrotechnic effect, and remains a global supplier of multiple markets, with offices on both sides of the Pond. Still under the same family ownership as when it was founded in 1977, Le Maitre has built a reputation for innovation and reliability. What is far less well known, however, is that in the early 1980s, Le Maitre had its own in-house record label.
In 1982, Le Maitre Music released Fools Are Friendly by Xclusiv – a disco-synth-pop track performed by sisters Karen and Maxine Berlinski, who today continue to run the family business. More than four decades later, the track has been rediscovered and reissued by Erol Alkan on his Phantasy Sound label, introducing it to a new audience.
With expertise on both sides of the curtain, Maxine, who works in the company’s accounts department and has previously overseen credit control and sales, and her sister Karen – originally financial director, formerly marketing and events director, and managing director since 2012 – both attended stage school before entering the family business.
Stints with dance group, Second Generation for Maxine, and acting roles as the lead part in a TV series for two years for Karen, and a joint cabaret act followed for the sisters before entering the music business. “We worked in the creative field from 15 to 21, then joined the family company at Le Maitre with our father, founder Harold Berlinski and my husband, Rick Wilson, the co-founder. However, it’s far from a 9-to-5 job,” Maxine recalled, speaking to TPi alongside her sister. “Once you’ve been in show business, it’s hard to transition to an office role, but we have never felt creatively restricted at Le Maitre,” she commented.
Alkan initially contacted Le Maitre enquiring about the company’s little-known music label. “I emailed him and asked for more information, and he told me he had been playing our record in clubs in the US, and it was going down a storm. He wanted to get in touch with one of the founders, and I informed him that I was one of the artists, and he was blown away,” Maxine explained. “It progressed from there. I had the master tapes of the records and found them. He wanted to digitise them without changing the arrangement, while adding a few additional elements, and release them on his record label, Phantasy. He is such a lovely guy. It’s been so much fun. We’ve had quite a lot of radio airplay and streams, and that’s all down to Erol.”
Before Alkan got in touch, two people had contacted the company about the record during the previous five years. One had traced the various labels Xclusiv had worked with – from BMG to Sony – to locate the duo.
“We even had record partners in Germany, as we had a number two hit with a disco cover of The Animals’ 1964 hit, The House of the Rising Sun, in Germany in the 1970s. The reason we ended up releasing music on our own record label was that we wanted our independence and creative freedom,” Karen added, looking back fondly.
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REINVENTION AMID ADVERSITY
Creativity at Le Maitre looks a little different these days. Following the devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the live events and touring sector, the company has sharpened its focus on manufacturing, research and development, while continuing to support clients across Europe and North America.
“It’s been a great opportunity to change so many aspects of the company and focus on developing new products with a larger R&D department, enhancing the professional side of the market and coming up with new products,” Karen explained. Take the Pyroflash range, for example. “Years ago, pyro was seen as an additional element; now it’s a prerequisite on large-scale projects, providing a ‘wow’ factor. Live pyro – the smell, the sound, the colour – is unlike anything else,” Karen remarked.
The growth of the company’s US operation has also helped shape its trajectory, opening doors to an increasing number of North American projects and productions. “We have patented several new innovative products in pyrotechnics, and they have been received wonderfully in the marketplace,” Karen explained. “One of the things we are exploring is drones. We collaborate with partners and drone companies across the globe to develop the size and calibre of products, creating longer lasting and larger drones that would work well on the right projects.”
At the time of writing, Le Maitre is preparing to launch a new low-smoke fog machine that requires no CO₂. “The output is brilliant and this one leaves no residue on the floor, so it can be used on ice rinks. Ballet companies are using it, and we have a new pyro line coming out in the coming months, with new colours of smoke pyro set to be released in time for summer, as well as a 50ft colour jet, which people have been craving. We are also building contacts in other markets while maintaining the decade-long relationships within the touring industry,” Karen revealed.
The company is also continuing to expand into new markets while maintaining the long-standing relationships that have underpinned its success in the touring sector for decades. There are fewer proudly independent pyrotechnics companies operating at scale today, but Le Maitre shows no signs of slowing down. “I feel like we still have a lot to achieve and a whole new generation coming in, including our daughters, Georgia and Jamie, with a vision for the company,” Karen stated proudly.
“Everyone in the company and among the younger family members has been surprised by this chapter of our lives. We never expected it to be of any interest this many years later, yet it has created a lot of buzz around the company. Our father, who founded the label, sadly passed away in 2017, and it’s nice to think he’s looking down fondly after all these years.”
For the Berlinski sisters, the unexpected revival of a record made more than 40 years ago has provided a rare opportunity to reconnect with a formative chapter of their lives, while introducing their music to a new generation of listeners. Maxine, who still sings with a local community choir and dances regularly, concluded: “It has been a lot of fun revisiting this era. There is another record that he might decide to re-release…”
Meanwhile, Xclusiv by Fools Are Friendly [PH151] is available for purchase on the Phantasy Sound website: https://shop.phantasysound.co.uk/collections/9-product-homepage/products/xclusiv-fools-are-friendly-ph151
Words: Jacob Waite
Photos: Le Maitre
