2 mics. No compressor. How'd I do?

  • Thread starter Thread starter drstawl
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drstawl

drstawl

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This is a jazz quartet thingy recorded at the drummer's place. Kevin's tune. Fairly dead room but fairly small space as well. Just a snippet from a 10 minute jam, but high quality. I wish I could've had individual mics on the instruments and a mixer quiet enough to make that worthwhile. I actually pointed my Rodents AWAY from the drums! All the percussion you hear is off axis bleed! Amazing.

#15 in the MP3 Gallery

http://members.home.net/drstawl/midi.html
 
I like it. Have you heard the album "Outside" by David Bowie? I think you'd really like it; very similar to the piano's approach in this snippet. I'd like to hear more of it, if we may.

May we?
 
drstawl,

Sounds great! It appears that you and I are the only jazz cats on this board. On my last post you responded with a request to hear us doing "On Green Dolphin Street" and "Corcovado" at 192kbps. How did you know that these are two of the tunes on our full-length CD? E-mail my box directly with your address and I'll mail you one of our CDs.

Mark Siltamaki
 
Thank You! I've heard your stuff and your appraisal warms my heart. Had no idea about those two tunes. Don't claim any psychic powers, but you gotta love Paulhino da Costa's percussion on Corcovado on the Joe Pass album "Tudo Bem".
Love to do an album exchange. My address on the way.
And Kelly: I'll have to get these guys warmed up to the idea. They're shy.
 
Hey, I'm a jazz guy too! Among other things...

drstawl, the sound was beautiful. It's amazing sometimes what works. I'd like to hear more too... You said it was Kevin's tune, but when the drums came in just before the fadeout, it sounded like one of the tunes on the Maiden Voyage album (Herbie Hancock)? Maybe it was just a similar phrase that caught my ear...

-AlChuck
 
I finally got the bass player to listen to the cut and he said the tune is called "Rainwatch" and yes the Herbie Hancock and McCoy Tyner influences are strongly felt.
 
Awesome, doc!
Any chance that you'll post the whole thing? I'd love to hear the entire jam. It sounds incredible! Lots of talent in that little, dead room. :)
BTW, "Cat Brains" still rules! It's one of my faves. ;)

...Buck
 
Yeah, Cat Brains rules. Was thinking about your cat "influence" (similary influenced). Couldn't help but think that "I Found Out" was about an alleycat sneaking in for a piece of TCP (sorrys to TCP if "she" is a he!).

If that WASN'T a cat story, perhaps a song or two chronicling their adventures is appropriate, no? Maybe "Tomcat in the Carboy (Tomboy is a Carcat)."

hehe. would love to hear it!
 
ROTFLMAO! Thanks.
No- "I Found Out" was about something else, but you are right on the money in how it could be interpreted and come to think of it I think your version is more cheerful. :)
I've been lucky so far. She's strictly an indoor pussy.
And Buck- I'll be working the guys hard to release the whole jam, but I'm up against the author who I somehow rub the wrong way.
I wish I had cool pics of TCP's dad, Maynerd lurking on the carboys. Or her brothers and sister doing tag team wrestling in the kitchen. Only pics I've got are on 8mm video.
 
Okay. Paradox, of sorts...

Jazz is born of the moment, is it not? Whether a chord progression (un-authorable) is determined at the outset or not, how can there be an author? Did they play something along these lines earlier, just to re-play (and re-interpret) when you were recording? I don't get it.

Not a big JazzHead... closest I've really related to was Martin, Medeski, and Wood (BTW: ALSO thanks to you). I do hope you hear "OUTSIDE" by David Bowie, a great album, you'll hear the piano parts pre-mentioned off the bat.

Off track, I have some re-discovered tracks from my SY-77 that have your name written all over them. Some are quantisized (everybody wants to know, do you?), some are not. One beauty that I'd love to get your take on will be in your mailbox sometime this weekend.

What style of jazz is that, BTW? That has always been my favorite (piano odd-interval chord overlays w/ supporting others), and would like more references to similarly styled artists.

Thanks, Doc. Can dig.
 
Doc, great sound! Dito on hearing the rest of the tune. I could listen to that all day.
 
Kelly: This Rainwatch tune is completely written out from end to end, (I've seen the score handwritten by Kevin) it just has long improvisational passages.
And I'd love to run your sequences through my Canvas.
 
Excellent recording quality.

Do this type of acoustic recording really benefit from compressors? That Audiophile buffs would kill you if you compressed. :)
 
I sure would like to know the answer to that one. If I was to use more than two mics and attempt to achieve more track isolation, I'd have to get the mics closer to their respective sources and I'm thinking that the kick and the bass would benefit from some light compression under those circumstances. I'm planning on trying to record this group in an old church with no other noises happening. In the day it's a very busy restaurant. And it's a very bouncy room. One big open space (cathedral ceilings don't ya know) with hardwood floors and stained glass filling most of the walls.

Sometimes not having gear can improve your recordings. :)
 
Excellent! Do whatever it takes, but I gotta hear the rest of this one!

BTW, can you give me a little more info?

I'd like to know more about the positioning of the mics and the positioning of the instruments in relationship to each other. I guess what I want is a verbal diagram.

I am especially curious about the bass, as I've been trying to figure out the best way to record an acoustic upright.

Also, what particular models of Rode are you using? 1,2,3,TV?

Anyway, great playing, and in my book, great recording (sort of has that old ECM Records feeling, if anyone knows what I mean). My only criticism, and a small one at that, is that I personally could have done without the wood wind chime thing (can't think of what there called at the moment)
in the beginning.

Keep 'em coming! I'd buy a CD full of that kind of stuff anyday.
 
Thanks CardiodP. I'll try to describe the layout. The baby-grand piano was in one corner of this small room (player with back to the wall) and the drummer set up in the opposite corner. Maybe 5 feet of open space between the drum set and the right side of the piano. The bassist (Jason) was playing a stand-up with a pick-up through a small amp that was facing the wall on the drummer's side of the room. Jason was standing on the opposite side of the piano from the pianist in the corner opposite the guitarist playing a semi-hollow jazz guitar through a small amp facing the center of the room. The mics (NT-1's) were pointed toward the guitar amp and the piano on low stands in front of the drummer.
As to the wind-chimey sounds- the drummer was tasteful enough to lay off that through the majority of this piece, I used this sample because it caught the dynamics of their performance best. So it might've seemed overused in this clip.
 
I liked it...and yeah it was a tickler to just hear a tad....kinda like you where just starting to get the band going..but the recording quality is what you wanted us to hear, I suppose...and it was Very Good given your setup. The high mp3 bit rate explained why it took two weeks for me to download, but worth it, I imagine. This is so much more different from another *something* I listened to of yours...a blues rock and roll solo thingy....and this is leagues above that. great job.
 
I thought the sound was really cool..personally I like the minimal micing of jazz anyway..great job.
 
Hey Doc,

You get a chance to listen to any of that Bowie stuff? I tried, not sure how much ended up in your ears...

And how about the rest of the song?! We all wanna hear it, and most of us would be willing to buy it...
 
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