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#1 2006-12-14 05:41:33
- anomalous
- Member
- Registered: 2006-11-22
- Posts: 1
Live mic'd shakuhachi, outdoor venue
Hi folks,
Wondering what experience people have with mic'ing up a shakuhachi in an outdoor setting- in particular dealing with ambient noise, wind, feedback, and getting a good clean sound with decent low end.
my experiments so far all seem to end up with the shakuhachi sounding very thin and breathy, and with the quiet parts too quiet and the loud parts too loud. ive tried a mic near the bottom of the flute, a headset mic (tho not a particularly good one) and at someone's suggestion, a clip on mic attached so that it sat on the rear of the flute, about an inch up from the back hole, just out from the flute.
the event is outside, and the shakuhachi will be part of a larger soundscape, possibly emerging from the background for a short, simple, slow honkyoku style solo. the sound will be running through a 5k PA, being used fairly gently.
ive not done any mic'd up performances like this before, so not sure what i'm going to run into. Ive done recordings, but acoustic and usually in quiet places.
oh - and i'll be using a 2.4 flute.
any suggestions and ideas much appreciated.
cheers,
ben
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#2 2006-12-14 06:12:01
- waryr
- Member
- From: Leesburg Florida
- Registered: 2005-10-10
- Posts: 70
Re: Live mic'd shakuhachi, outdoor venue
In the past I have used a lapel mike adjusted close to the utaguchi, but turned to the side to cancel breath noise. It was affixed with one of the small plastic hair clasps from the Dollar Store, you know the ones with several fingers to grip the hair. I saw this on a Japanese website dealing with Shakuhachi accessories and it showed the lapel mike fixed in position. The clasp of the lapel mike will grip one of the ears used to manipulate the spring closure, and the circular shape of the clasp will fit around the barrel of the Shakuhachi. Use a small lapel mike with a windscreen for best results.
Coincidentally, the flute I was using at the time was a 2.4. Have also used it with a 3.0.
I currently carry several of these with me when performing, and they work on Hopi, Anasazi and other native american flutes as well.
Hope this helps.
If you understand, things are just as they are, if you don't understand, things are just as they are.
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#3 2007-01-29 18:54:17
Re: Live mic'd shakuhachi, outdoor venue
Hello Ben,
I've never used a lapel mic clipped to my shakuhachi yet. I hear the company "countryman" makes pretty nice mics suited for shakuhachi, but I've never tried them. For outdoor performance, I usually use a condensor mic on a stand and place it near the utaguchi which is where most of the sound emanates. Just adjust volume as a singer does by adjusting your distance to the mic. If you have a sound engineer he/she can help you control the ambient sounds around. If not, don't worry about it. It's all part of the atmosphere.
Have a good show.
Alcvin
www.bamboo-in.com
I live a shakuhachi life.
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#4 2007-01-30 19:30:41
Re: Live mic'd shakuhachi, outdoor venue
the Countryman mic is very good, but its expensive (350$)..so its not worth it to buy if you don`t perform a lot.
The plastic hair clasps sound like a great idea..
But, a good condensor mic will do the job great.
You need a good EQ & little reverb and will sound great.
peace.
G
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