Klarinet Archive - Posting 000105.txt from 2010/09

From: "Bill Hausmann" <bhausmann1@-----.net>
Subj: Re: [kl] breathing problems
Date: Mon, 06 Sep 2010 20:45:12 -0400


> -----Original Message-----
> From: Jennifer Jones =

> Subject: Re: [kl] breathing problems
> =

> >> The bonades I saw were all inverted with a plate. =A0I guess the plate
> >> could be placed by the screw to make it non-inverted. =A0Dodn't know
> the
> >> Gigliotti.
> >
> > They are actually rails. =A0The non-inverted variety has them on the
> screw
> > side.
> =

> I was looking at a plate.

Then we are not talking about a Benade. Some Rovners have a plate,
particularly the Eddie Daniels model (now called something else, but
otherwise identical). I think it is possible to remove and reverse the
screw mechanism on the Rovners to make them "left-handed."

> >
> > The band I play in mics ALL players. =A0It actually louses us up for
> soloing,
> > since, in order for the saxes to stand and solo, they would have to
> adjust
> > the mics. =A0So we just stay seated. =A0The trumpets and 'bones stand a=
ll
> the
> > time, so it doesn't matter to them.
> =

> How does that louse things up for soloing? In your case, the sound
> mixer should be able to shift the balance so that the soloist stands
> out; soloing doesn't require standing up.
> =

> Besides, when everybody gets a solo, what is the need for the
> recognition? OTOH, could result in poorer solo quality as nobody has
> recognition to work for. There has to be something else to work for.
> =

> Presumably since everyone is miked, you record? If you produce
> recordings, then there is the name on the CD case liner which serves
> as a form of recognition.

Our "sound mixer" is the leader, who is also playing lead trumpet and may or
may not boost the soloist, or bring the mic back down when we are done. We
just lean into the mic a bit and blow a little harder. Not everybody gets
to solo; some even prefer not to. Some gigs, the mics are primarily to feed
the monitors. It depends on the venue.

The only recording we do is a live pickup with my little Zoom H4 digital
recorder. It does a tremendous job, by the way, and is highly recommended.
(Disclaimer: Yes, the store I work for DOES sell them, but I am not on
commission anyway.) I make them up with labels and liners for my own
purposes, and DO include a personnel list.

> > My point is that, acoustically speaking, the sax is a loud
> instrument.
> =

> Of course, it is hard for a clarinet to outblow a saxophone. My
> physical chemistry instructor in high school said that it was absurd
> to march flutes. Which was annoying because it meant that a whole
> batch of people in our band would be left out. Our flute section was
> heard on the field, so it is quite possible for them to be audible.
> Room just has to be made. Maybe I need to get a saxophone and
> practice playing pp and piu p.

Piccolos carry much better than flutes, but march enough flutes and they
will be heard. I marched clarinet and made plenty of sound, but not more
than a sax, which was purposely designed to be louder than other woodwinds
to compete more equally with the brass.

> =

> So, why have more than one mike for a band?

Why even one? A 15-piece band should be able to carry the load even in a
fairly large venue.

> > If it needs amplification to cut
> > through the din of the background, the problem is not the sax, but
> the
> > background.
> =

> Not necessarily. Whether everyone else should be quiet for a soloist
> depends upon whether the time for the solo is appropriate in the view
> of the group. This could lead to conflict the soloist may need to
> make an argument to convince the group that it is appropriate for them
> to solo.

??? The solo occurs where it SAYS it does in the chart, and the bandstand
is no place to argue about it. Anybody playing backgrounds should KNOW that
and adjust accordingly, or find another group.

> =

> =

> >=A0Back in olden times, the big bands had a mic for the vocalist.
> > Everybody else was expected to manage for themselves, and the folks
> playing
> > the background riffs backed it down so the solo could be heard.
> =

> I guess my band was a hybrid. We had one mike in the front.
> Depending upon the piece, that was for the singer, instrumental
> soloist or everyone.

That was done, too, especially for radio broadcasts.

> What about saxophones vs. trumpets?

What about them? When a trumpet solos, the saxes tone down; when a sax
solos, the trumpets need to back off. If a trumpet can't be heard over the
backgrounds, you have a BIG problem!

Bill Hausmann

If you have to mic a saxophone, the rest of the band is TOO LOUD!

_______________________________________________
Klarinet mailing list
Klarinet@-----.com
To do darn near anything to your subscription, go to:
http://klarinet-list.serve-music.com