 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: John Morton
Date: 2013-06-08 23:53
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My search for a microphone that works well in a band is over, at least for the time being. The problem has been that the clarinet requires close proximity in a noisy setting, and that the source of sound moves up and down the instrument, making it hard to stay on mic as you play.
I saw Anat Cohen perform in a quartet, and barely noticed a slender wire trailing from around the center joint. And then noticed that when she talked to the audience she held the center joint up to her mouth (which meant this was not a piezoelectric device).
After the show Anat kindly took me backstage and gave me a tour of her setup, which is a DPA miniature omni condenser mic clipped to the hinge posts of the LH side keys. The mic is very close to the tube.
http://www.dpamicrophones.com/en/mic-guide.aspx?c=Item&item=24071
This kits costs around $450, but I figured this is the best endorsement I could get, considering that I play similar music in similar situations (only about 1/100 as well!). She also has the optional alligator clip and considers it essential.
The mic arrived and I installed it with some difficulty - the clip wants to slip off the post. I took the setup to my sound guy, who observed the levels over the scale. There were major peaks in the middle of each register, clearly unacceptable. I had feared this, but after hearing that setup on stage I had thought that Anat had somehow gotten around the problem.
I started messing with the location, looking for a place that evened things out without getting too far from the instrument. Moving the mic to the underside looked promising, so I fashioned an attachment for testing. It consists of a steel strip taped to the tube, extending down about 5" from a spot 1.5" below the thumbrest. The tape I use is black gaffer's tape, which is removable and leaves no residue. The mic kit comes an optional magnetic holder - that attaches to the steel, the clip attaches to the holder, and the mic to the clip. I pulled the mic out as far from the tube as seemed reasonable, about 2".
Moving the mic up and down I found that all positions were fairly even over the scale, but a spot well down towards the bell boosted the lowest notes nicely without attenuating anything else. Last night I played a gig and was delighted to hear it all working perfectly! Of course the clip-on mic makes it impossible to modulate volume my moving around, but my impression now is that overall this works far better for me.
Post Edited (2013-06-08 23:56)
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