Barber Shop Quartet

[ChuckS]

A few months ago I recorded a High School Choir Concert. For one of the songs 4 of the boys formed a barber shop quartet and sang Sweet Mary Lou. This was the fun song compared to the formality of the rest of the concert.

Most of my gear was set up for the large choirs and the quartet was positioned down from the steps / risers and closer to the audience so I used what mics I had a left; a pair of Line Audio CM3 going into a Metric Halo ULN-8 for preamps and conversion.

Here's a link to my cloud storage; Wav file can be played directly or downloaded:

https://1drv.ms/u/s!ArPFBNX3leKChR-_...Bcu6t?e=stnWfr

[AcousticDreams]

Thoroughly enjoyed this! The song portrays an innocence of time long forgotten.

" Hello Mary Lou " is a song written by U.S. singer Gene Pitney first recorded by Johnny Duncan in 1960, and later by Ricky Nelson in 1961

Those CM3's are such a great bargain. How far away from the Choir did you place those mics. I am still in Kentucky and listening on poor monitor screen speakers, but the sound came across smooth, smooth, smooth.

As I dive into the realm of symphonic midi programs, I am seeing more and more programs placing high values on including several sets of micing positions. Close, far, room.

[DupleMeter]

really nice performance, and recording.

If I were being nitpicky, there's a little "hole in the center" thing happening. Typical of having the stereo pair spaced too wide for the group size.

[ChuckS]

Originally Posted by Knives&Guitars

Thoroughly enjoyed this! The song portrays an innocence of time long forgotten.

" Hello Mary Lou " is a song written by U.S. singer Gene Pitney first recorded by Johnny Duncan in 1960, and later by Ricky Nelson in 1961

Those CM3's are such a great bargain. How far away from the Choir did you place those mics. I am still in Kentucky and listening on poor monitor screen speakers, but the sound came across smooth, smooth, smooth.

As I dive into the realm of symphonic midi programs, I am seeing more and more programs placing high values on including several sets of micing positions. Close, far, room.

Thanks for listening. It is a "makes you feel good" type of song.

The rest of the concert was choirs, ranging in size from 30 to about 120 members. For those songs I had a center main pair and outriggers on high stands, plus a pair on the piano, and a pair for the hall ambience. The choirs were on the steps leading up to the church sanctuary and on risers in the sanctuary.

The quartet was located in front of the steps (same level as pews) and so much more forward than where the choirs were located. So, I couldn't use the same mics as the choir. For the quartet, the CM3's were in a near coincident arrangement, I think it was EBS (90-degree mic angle and 25cm spacing). The singers were in an arc, and I think they were back around 4-5' from the mics.

[ChuckS]

Originally Posted by DupleMeter

really nice performance, and recording.

If I were being nitpicky, there's a little "hole in the center" thing happening. Typical of having the stereo pair spaced too wide for the group size.

Thanks Steve, especially for the comment on how this could have been improved. The location of the quartet was a last-minute thing and I believe they were positioned a bit closer to the mics during the concert compared to a quick rehearsal just before the concert. I wanted to capture a fairly wide stereo field so I'd get separation/localization of the voices, but I guess I should have been a bit more conservative in setting up for the width.

[DupleMeter]

Originally Posted by ChuckS

Thanks Steve, especially for the comment on how this could have been improved. The location of the quartet was a last-minute thing and I believe they were positioned a bit closer to the mics during the concert compared to a quick rehearsal just before the concert. I wanted to capture a fairly wide stereo field so I'd get separation/localization of the voices, but I guess I should have been a bit more conservative in setting up for the width.

It’s hard when things start moving around after rehearsal/setup.

What was your setup. It wasn’t X/Y, so I was just wondering.

[ChuckS]

Originally Posted by DupleMeter

It’s hard when things start moving around after rehearsal/setup.

What was your setup. It wasn’t X/Y, so I was just wondering.

I used a near-coincident pair at 90-degree mic angle and 25cm spacing (EBS). The CM3 are a wide cardioid. I was ‘targeting’ for about a 70% stereo width.