Any tips for recording an opera singer and pianist?

R

Rich b

New member
What would be the best way to record an opera singer and a pianist? The recital is being held in a music school and apparently the room has great accoustics. I'm going to try and do this mainly for experience because i'm only just starting out really, so some tips would be very helpful..

My idea was to have a mic over the piano and another maybe half a metre from the singer. Then hopefully catch the natural reverb in between. Does this sound in any way feesable?? or am I barking up the wrong tree??

Very grateful for any tips
Cheers
 
this is my bread and butter, so....what sort of mics do you have??What pre, etc?

do a stereo pair right in front of them.,,,no need to mic them seperately.

get back to me with what mics you have and well go from there.
 
I got rode NT1's and beringher pre. They're probably not the most suitable but I have to start somewhere!..and also i'm not charging anything...

Does the singer usually stand next to the piano or infront?

Thanks for your help
 
in front of the piano. If I were you, I would do the ORTF technique, the basic configuration uses a pair of cardioid microphones with a mutual angle of 110°, spaced about 17cm apart.

Images really well, and I think it will suit you very well. My first choice for anything classical is jecklin disc but you dont have omnis so...

try ORTF, about 5-6 feet up on the stand and about 10-15 feet from them. In this sort of ultra dynamic situation, DONT ride the levels too hard. If you are recording at 24 bit, have your peaks around 10db or so. and if 16 bit, have your peaks around 3-5 db. I just did a recording like this two days ago. Operatic voices will bite you really quick if you let em.
 
Is this a formal recital, complete with audience? Is this recording at their request?

If the answer is "yes" to both those questions, get them in for a trial run BEFORE the recital. Bring some artist's tape and put a "T" of tape on the floor where you want the singer to stand, once you find the best balance between the singer and the piano.

Listen to what BigRay said and use that as your starting point. Singer a little too soft compared to the piano? Move the mics in a bit, or move the singer forward.

If they object to the microphones or stands blocking the view, you can also set the mics near floor level, aimed up toward them. It's not as good as the other way, but it's an alternative that will work okay.

But really try to get a rehearsal and be set up well in advance of the actual recital. Make sure all cables are taped down and out of the way - out of everybody's way.
 
Thanks so much for your advice guys-learnt so much already!. The recital is taking place at a music school and so I don't think there will be an audience,although maybe I should check that out.
After reading a bit about the orft technique It seems that i'm going to be using maybe the wrong type of mic, would there be a HUGE difference? would they serve for the soprano's first ever FREE recording? Also, will I have to be outside the room to be able to monitor the recording through the headphones?

Thanks!
 
Just a thought.... if I eventually got into this, what kind of price would I charge? Per session? per hour? etc

Thanks again
 
Rich b said:
Thanks so much for your advice guys-learnt so much already!. The recital is taking place at a music school and so I don't think there will be an audience,although maybe I should check that out.
After reading a bit about the orft technique It seems that i'm going to be using maybe the wrong type of mic, would there be a HUGE difference? would they serve for the soprano's first ever FREE recording? Also, will I have to be outside the room to be able to monitor the recording through the headphones?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

The requirement for ORTF is that you use cardiod microphones. You have cardiod microphones.so yes, you have the right mics... Try the ORTF out, and use it as a baseline to experiement from. I always monitor in the same room on the front row, right where my rig sits. I have a good pair of isolation earphones(etymotics er4) which give me great isolation, so I do fine. I think you will be just fine. Remember , have fun and experiment. There is no magic bullet, no one answer. Whatever works for you.

Teddy
 
Rich b said:
Just a thought.... if I eventually got into this, what kind of price would I charge? Per session? per hour? etc

Thanks again
Click to expand...

DIfferent People charge different ways...but first things first. Get familiar with your gear and learn about acoustics, mic techniques, etc. Record whatever you can, be anxious to work for free. Record in churches, schools, anywhere you can. Listen to good classical recordings(decca label, telarc label, chesky label) and find out what techniques they used....most of all experiment.

some good books

The New Stereo Soundbook
The Handbook of Recording Engineering
Sound Recording
Mastering Audio
On Location recording techniques

I read all of those religiously.They all have very good info on classical recording and the physics of sound..
 
Be interested in hearing the follow up of how it went, and possibly an excerpt if you do manage to get a good recording... :) Possible?
 
I'll certainly try and post a clip if it turns out well!.
Another area i've been thinking about is effects...I'm assuming that the room will have lots of natural reverb and so extra reverb not necessary, but will I need to use anything else? gate or compression etc?? also on the DAW im thinking of using 4tracks, 2 assigned LEFT( mic input left) and 2 RIGHT(mic input right), any good?

Please feel free to ask me a question, about anything! Living in Spain, being a teacher, how Nick Drake tuned his guitar (god knows) or whatever. I feel a bit selfish asking all the questions..

Cheers all
 
Leave the recording alone, dont screw it up with processing. One of the greatest things about Classical/Acoustic performances is the Dynamic Range and the capturing the acoustics naturally.

You are thinking too complicated. Stereo Pair, ORTF, record, add track marks.Dont do anything else to it.

Any effects done with this type of work can be added with mic placement, and selection...Read some of the material I showed you.

2 mics= 2 ears=2 tracks why use 4?? :confused:


Anything extra and you are taking away from the performance. I HATE hearing classical performances that have been destroyed by processing. Minimalism is king here.
teddy
 
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