& perhaps more importantly a steinway sounds like a steinway but Gould on a
steinway sounds like no one else on a steinway. The human element proves the
limitations of the science over & over again &, imo, always will - thankfully.
--- In "Avocet" <> wrote:
>
> > We know the source material, we know what a Steinway Grand should
> > sound like, we know a good room when we hear it. The more recitals
> > we have been to, the more we form our own idealised sonic result and
> > the easier this task of discrimination gets.
>
> Robin,
>
> I like the analogy of a Steinway. We know what it sounds like to our
> ears, but you don't get this sound by pointing a stereo mic at it any
> more than you get an orchestra with a mic in the "perfect place" just
> behind the conductor's head as was taught many years ago. The result
> is just not acceptable. I'm a regular listener to the BBC Prom
> Concerts and the sound mix acceptable to modern ears sounds nothing
> like the Albert Hall which has an acoustic all of its own. You have to
> be there to enjoy it even though you often can't hear the harp.
>
> Interestingly, the Proms Radio mix is done separately from the TV
> sound mix and is distinctly different using separate control rooms. No
> headphones there. :-)
>
> My minimum rig for a solo Steinway was five mics, necessarily mixed on
> headphones. My current rig for wildlife is only a stereo pair, but the
> placing is important. I record "long" then listen back and select
> using various mic positions I have found satisfactory for birds,
> ambience and reverb.
>
> I tweak my recordings without apology, with special attention given to
> the second dimension of distance, and the end result is better
> than can be heard by my ears if only because my ears are often in bed
> when my best stuff has come in. :-)
>
> The end result is my interpretation, as it was with Steinways, folk
> groups and best of all, marching brass bands. I usually took these to
> match the camers image, bearing in mind that they would be edited to
> bits later by someone else. Tubas going past in stereo is great fun.
>
> David
>
> David Brinicombe
> North Devon, UK
> Cogito cogito ergo cogito sum - Ambrose Bierce
>
|