[Dixielandjazz] Recording Jazz, Live amplification

[Patrick Cooke]

To Rocky Ball.....
      Excellent!  I wish I could have expressed as well as you did!
      Pat Cooke

----- Original Message ----- 
From: <Bigbuttbnd at aol.com>
To: <dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com>
Sent: Thursday, January 29, 2004 11:36 AM
Subject: Re: [Dixielandjazz] Recording Jazz, Live amplification


> You're both right! You're both wrong! Hah!
>
> This thread keeps moving in 2 directions at once. Let's "isolate" the two.
>
> RECORDING: Why do the engineers want to isolate everyone in the studio?
For
> years the pet peeve of all recording musicians was to play a hot recording
and
> find that somebody (probably the clarinet player!) made a little mistake
on
> their part somewhere in the middle. If only we could go back in and fix
that one
> little note! Instead, EVERYONE has got to play it again.
>
> The second time maybe the clarinet got it right but the bass player
screwed
> up... and on and on it continues, retake after retake until the ultimate
> compromise is found... the one take that has the fewest mistakes... and
often that
> is NOT the one with the best energy or the best ideas... just the fewest
> mistakes. Then, finally, technology came to the rescue with the advent of
multitrack
> recorders. If we can isolate tracks from each other then we could have
kept
> all of those first performances from take 1 where the energy and tempo and
feel
> were so good and let the clarinet player go back and fix his one mistake.
> Then we have the best recording in 1 take... we've also saved 2 reels of
tape and
> 2 hours of frustration. We can record 4 more songs in those 2 hours! We're
> saving money! Without being isolated sonically that little clarinet miscue
would
> show up on everyone's track.
>
> With every technological innovation comes a new way of working. Those of
us
> who have done considerable studio work have learned to "see" with our
ears.
> Wearing headphones and listening carefully allows unbelievable clarity and
> understanding as to what the other musicians are doing and we can play
together just
> as tightly by listening as we ever could by watching and listening
together.
> It's a different way of working but just as effective.
>
> Someone on the list commented that they could hear a SONIC difference
between
> a modern multitrack recording and an older one recorded on 1 or 2 mics
live.
> Only if the engineer had his head up his butt! With the increased
opportunity
> for placement within the stereo audio field that modern technology allows
only
> a moron would mix a recording down that sounded FLATTER than something
done
> in the 30's or 40's... blame the engineer and not the process. Besides...
who
> should be MIXING your recording? YOU. Of course, you can't be in 2 places
at
> once... you can't play and mix live.. so multitrack recording allows YOU
(the
> leader) to record and then MIX your recording exactly the way you want it
to
> sound.  Too much bass or drum? YOU can fix it in the mix! Otherwise,
you're
> relying on the engineer (who probably never heard a dixieland recording in
his/her
> young life!) to mix your baby... bunk! Isolate your tracks and then mix it
to
> YOUR taste.
>
> As an aside, let me point out that with each new technological innovation
> someone always gets the idea to use the technology in ways that were not
thought
> of when developing the technology. EXAMPLE: Vinyl records were invented as
an
> analog method of reproducing the sound of a performance. No one imagined
that
> some kid in the future would take those vinyl discs and spin them by hand
on a
> record player, producing a SCRATCHY sound... and then use that sound as a
> percussive instrument either live or in another recording! That use
couldn't be
> anticipated. Yet today, as digital CDs have replaced vinyl, most kid's
only
> link to vinyl is seeing a dj "scratch" between 2 turntables!
>
> The same can be said for multitrack recording. Back in the day (and
probably
> currently for most of you) you arrived at the studio WELL REHEARSED. You
knew
> what songs in what keys and what arrangement you were going to play for
your
> recording session. Most of you in OKOM don't WRITE your own material. Most
of
> you have already played your material LIVE before recording it. That was
the
> way things were done before multitrack recording. This technology,
however, has
> spawned new uses that weren't anticipated in the beginning. Many recording
> artists use multitracking as a hi-tech notebook where they can try out
various
> ideas, write, arrange, experiment, etc. They can begin the recording
process
> before they know how it's going to end. They can begin to build the house
before
> the plans are drawn up, so to speak.
>
> Before you condemn this practice stop and think. This opens a whole new
door
> in creative thinking. In one application it allows creative people who may
> have wonderful ideas but have not developed POLISH in alot of areas to
make a
> contribution. This allows collaboration between folks with different
musical
> backgrounds and even expertise. And it also reaches across geographic
divides.
> Many recordings have been made with vocalists singing together that were
never
> together in the same room. (Heck, it allowed Natalie Cole to sing with Nat
King
> Cole!) The possibilities boggle the mind. The fact that most OKOM players
> don't take advantage of this technology speaks to more of a problem in the
OKOM
> community than in the modern recording community.
>
> LIVE SOUND AMPLIFICATION: As I said above... the perfect situation is for
YOU
> to mix YOUR own sound... after all, YOU know what it should sound like! If
> you can manipulate your own sound so you can MONITOR what the audience
hears (as
> Kash demonstrated in his posts) then you can mix your own sound
effectively
> from your position on the stage.
>
> The day will come, however, when you are in a venue where you MUST use the
> services of a sound man and all you can do is relent. In those situations,
when
> possible, speak to the sound man before the performance and explain the
nature
> of your group (ensemble followed by soloists followed by ensemble out,
etc.).
> Ask the sound man to set your sound so that each mic is set for the
loudest
> playing you will do. Then have your musicians "shade" themselves to their
mics
> based on the nuances of the performances... get closer when you need to be
> louder, back away when you need to be softer. Most OKOM players have
learned this
> and it is common practice... this keeps the sound man from having to
"ride"
> the faders constantly. Be sure and tell him/her that you're going to do
this...
> most of the time they will appreciate the heads up from you. This usually
> makes their job easier.
>
> This necessitates you having to adapt to what you will actually HEAR from
> your position on the stage. Sometimes the sound from the speakers will
bounce
> back at you with a volume that surprises you. Sometimes the delay in that
bounce
> can confuse you as to timekeeping. Sometimes the delayed sound coming back
to
> you is LOUDER than the sound you produce on the stage. Each musician/group
has
> different ways of handling it. I've played often in football stadiums,
before
> and during the games, without any monitors and you have to tell yourself
> ahead of time not to listen to your bounced sound. Sometimes the bounced
sound is
> louder than the other musicians standing next to me. It takes a lot of
> listening and concentration to play properly in those situations... and
the kind of
> concentration is not the same as the type I use when playing a jazz
concert for
> several hours. In a concert situation I would prefer a monitor that makes
it
> easier for me to hear myself (and everyone else) well. Although I've
played
> tunes in the football stadium setting without a monitor, it was not a
relaxed or
> even pleasant situation.... I think brother Steve Barbone would want a
> monitor under some conditions even though he may be quite comfortable
without one in
> other situations.
>
> Thankfully, sound technology has improved to the point that there are many
> options available for all of us both live and in the studio. Please don't
limit
> yourself to doing things the way they were done in 1925... because the
folks
> in 1925 were using the technology of their day to its fullest (it's a good
> thing, too... they produced recordings that can still be heard today!)
and, if
> living today, the stars of that era would be pushing today's envelope just
as
> they did in 1925.
>
> ~Rocky Ball
> Banjo
> Atlanta
>
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