Baby Grand Piano Recording - Results

Aim of exp: To find out the best miking techniques for a Jazz piece which provides the most balanced and natural sound.

Experiments done: 1) Un-parallel AB set up (Inside frame) VS AB setup (Outside frame)

2) (Additional exp) Spaced miking above the lid (opened with the shorter stick) + A dynamic mic placed under the piano.

1) Un-parallel AB setup (inside frame)

- We set this pair of mics up initially with one facing towards the plate near the treble bridge and the other one towards the tail of the bass strings. We then realised that the mic could not pick up much of the strings from the plate (obvs), therefore, we moved it more towards the strings while the one at the tail remained at that position. The lid was opened with the longer stick.

- We first tried out with using omni pick-up pattern for both mics to test out the sound.

- To avoid producing sound that is "over-resonated" and muddy, I tried my best to control the pedalling to avoid that.

- As a result, we were told from the control room that the mics are not picking up the best sounding off the piano as it still sounded mushy and lack of clarity.

- Therefore, we tried out the cardioid pattern and it worked a little better.

- We miked this pair up around 50cm away the piano but still facing towards directly to the sound source.

We first tried out using the cardioid pattern.

In addition, since we had extra time to experiment more, we decided to use the existing dynamic mic (Sennheiser MD421) in the room that time (without a stand due to technical issues) and used it to mike under the piano while the spaced pair mics remained at its original positions from the previous setup, except that the lid was only opened with the shorter stick. Unfortunately, we couldn't take a picture of that setup because I was playing the piano and JC was under the piano holding the mic (unprofessional, we know). However, we did ended up getting a good recording, or the best in my opinion, as it has the most clarity which is essential for a recording/main instrument to cut through the mix. This recording was a combination of a spaced pair (with lid mostly closed) with a dynamic mic under the piano.