Klarinet Archive - Posting 000179.txt from 1999/10

From: "Benjamin Maas" <benmaas@-----.com>
Subj: RE: [kl] VPO at Carnegie Hall--Sound Explanations
Date: Thu, 7 Oct 1999 16:46:02 -0400

Hey everybody!

Alright, I'll bite.... Unfortunately, I did not get a chance to see this
broadcast, so keep this in mind with my response.... I saw the NY Phil
broadcast and from what you are saying, it sounds like there are a lot of
similarities.

As an engineer often you are presented with problems that are beyond your
control. In a situation where video is concerned, the camera-people never
want to see a microphone. Hence the use of mics where you can locate the
capsule away from the body of the mic (see pictures of the 3 Tenors-- Those
microphone bodies are sitting on the ground, only the capsule is in front).
Often in these situations you may need to put out extra mics to get a good
pickup.

The other thing they have to deal with is that it is a television broadcast.
What sort of setup are 95% of the people going to listen on? That's right a
2 inch mono television speaker that has the frequency response of a
telephone. This affects how you are going to mix the show. In such a
situation, you can't always mix (or mic) for subtlety...

As for the compression of the show, that is most likely the TV station that
did that, not the engineers. The FCC has a set of requirements for dynamic
range on broadcasts. Classical music far exceeds those allowable levels.
Every TV and Radio station also takes the attitude that the background noise
that most people listen at is high enough that softs have to be brought
up.... (Most people listen to radio in the car) Going back to the speakers
used--Most TV speakers can't take the dynamics either, hence another need
for compression. The compressor used in these situations is called an
optimod, and it sounds hideous. I have done a lot of broadcast engineering,
and this is what we get dealt. Ironically, the more dynamic range in our
recordings, the more the optimod jumps in to squash the sound.

Now, many engineers have differing opinions as to what the recorded sound
should be like. Some believe that you need to extensively mic everything
(listen to any Sony Classical Recording), others take a more minimalist
approach with the attitude that 2 ears equal 2 microphones (Dorian and some
other "audiophile" labels). I personally fall in the middle. What you have
to remember is that any recording is an inherent lie. It is not a realistic
representation of what we hear in the hall. The closest representation to
what we hear is a binaural recording that you listen to using high-end
headphones ONLY. Every step of the process changes the sound that we hear
(microphone, preamp, tape machine, amplifier, speaker, etc...). It is the
engineer's job to decide which lie is the best for the given situation.

Somebody in the course of this conversation mentioned the old RCA Chicago
Symphony recordings and the old Mercury Living Presence recordings. There
is a little bit of misinformation here. Mercury did use 2 RCA 44 or 77
microphones for many of their recordings or sometimes they would use a
Neumann M 49 or M50 tube microphone. RCA was one of the pioneers in
multi-mic techniques in their Living Stereo recordings.

This is a short description of RCA's technique. For a better description,
get a book called "The RCA Bible, A compendium of Opinion of RCA Living
Stereo Records" by Jonathan Valin. Pub. The Music Lovers Press, Cincinnati,
OH. There is a lot of Audiophile BS in here, but the whole beginning is a
description of RCA's techniques.

Mono recordings with one microphone were out quite early on. By the late
1930s, Bell Labs was experimenting with 3 channel recordings.
(Left-Center-Right) By the early 1950s, stereo was fast approaching. For
Orchestra recordings in 1954 (the Chicago symphony's Also Sprach Recording),
RCA began stereo experiments using 2 spaced omni-directional microphones
(Neumann M-50s) with a "helper" mic (RCA 77 ribbon) in front of the brass
section. They eventually evolved to a stereo tube mic in the center with 2
omnis flanking the orchestra. 2 spots were also put on the woodwinds. If
necessary, another spot mic or two were sometimes added. All the mics used
were either Neumann Tube Mics or RCA ribbon mics. The preamps were all
tubes and the tape was analog. Minimal EQ was used. This is why the
recorded sound is so good.

WHen I go out and record, I use enough to get a good balance, but not too
many to disrupt the sound. The standard large orchestra uses about 8-10
microphones. I have an array across the front, 2 on the woodwinds, and
timpani, harp and celesta spots if needed. I then use a digital console to
mix, and I put a delay on all spot microphones to have the signals
time-aligned. This helps preserve the depth of the ensemble.

Well, I have babbled enough. Hope everybody finds this interesting and I
hope I have cleared up some misconceptions some of you had out there.

--Ben

Benjamin Maas
Freelance Clarinetist and Recording Engineer
Los Angeles, CA
benmaas@-----.com
http://www.fifthcircle.com

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