Objections to Mic Stands from Directors, Conductors, Managers, or Producers

[NorseHorse]

I'm arranging a DVD recording tonight for a community opera troupe. Set all the audio up this morning. Just got a call from the director - she can absolutely NOT have a tall stand in the audience. Aside from the fact that I'm now an hour away - there was no possibiliy of flying mics in this hall (high school) and I can't put a microphone off the lip of the stage... cause that's where the director is standing as she sings along.

I spoke with her on the phone, and it was rather unpleasant. I explained that if she wanted to sacrifice recording quality we could move it (she suggested on the left side of the hall ) but cost wouldn't change. I told my video guy to put the mic (SASS) ON the stage floor just in front of the director, but it sounds like she is now OK with the mic being put back where it was but brought all the way down to audience seat height. (Which now means the body of the mic will now be blocking people's view, instead of just the skinny stand.)

Have I just been lucky to not encounter people like this thus far? I'd love to hear your stories, so I can brace for impact.

(EDIT: Just to clarify, the audio wasn't in conflict with video at all. I was in charge of both, and the stand wasn't in either camera view. It was the show director who was having a hard time.)

[rumleymusic]

I think you have been lucky. The way it goes for me is the vast majority of performing groups I have dealt are is exited about having a recording until I mention a mic stand. Then the reaction is. "ewww, yeaah....let me check on that." A few days later I will get an email. "We are going to have you set up in the back of the hall. We have some patrons going to this event and we can't have a mic stand obstructing their view."

One time I had a hot shot production assistant who had a Zoom H4 and the PC version of Logic (so obviously he is a recording expert) tell me the mics should be in the back of the hall because the sound will have time to "meld" and that would sound better.

On one occasion, I suggested flying the mics and I requested time with the union stage crew to set up (because I am not allowed to do anything without the union crew). Then when I arrive at the event, the crew has just arrived, and there is 30 minutes till rehearsal so the crew it busy setting up the orchestra. I can't setup during rehearsal and when rehearsal is over the crew goes on break until the concert. (and no one is allowed to be in the hall without the crew ) Long story short, I set up in the back of the hall right next to the wall.

It seems that the music directors don't care where the mics are, but the administration including the executive directors care much more about minor aesthetic issues than the sound quality of a recording.

[5flagsaudio]

These things must be worked out prior to going to the venue. If stands aren't acceptable and flying mics isn't an option, I pass on the job. My name goes on all my recordings. If I cannot associate my name with a product that I am satisfied with, then I cannot do the job.

I think those sorts are clients are also the ones that tend to want to nickel and dime you to death. Keeping the rates up tends to keep that sort of behavior at bay.

[rumleymusic]

If stands aren't acceptable and flying mics isn't an option, I pass on the job. My name goes on all my recordings. If I cannot associate my name with a product that I am satisfied with, then I cannot do the job.

I wouldn't walk out on a paying client. Though on one occasion I have asked for my name to be removed from the recording credits. That was a very frustrating situation.

[joelpatterson]

I don't see what the whole big problem is. What if you pointed out the audience members would be highly disturbed to see big, hulking video cameras all around?

Can I strangle someone? I'd like to.

[surflounge]

hang a stereo SCHOEPS CMXY 4V Ig

[David Spearritt]

Flying mics should be assumed to be the normal config for live concerts. After all the concert and the paying audience are the main event, not the recording. It should be part of the recordists skill and reason for hire, that ability to hang mics quickly and securely in the correct positions.

[5flagsaudio]

Originally Posted by David Spearritt

Flying mics should be assumed to be the normal config for live concerts. After all the concert and the paying audience are the main event, not the recording. It should be part of the recordists skill and reason for hire, that ability to hang mics quickly and securely in the correct positions.

In an ideal world, I would agree with this statement. The reality of my area is quite a bit different. Most of the performances in this area take place in churches. There is no structural ability for flying mics in most of them.

[Corran]

Flying mics should be the norm? Have you been to many high school auditoriums? There isn't such thing as catwalks over the audience for any HS auditorium I've been in.

Audience members and music directors should understand a recording doesn't happen out of thin air. Yes Norse I think you have been lucky so far to not run in to this. Get used it it and find a setup that you can fly easily with one drop (ORTF pair, etc). I've personally found a great way to easily run an omni A-B setup though - I just throw my Earthworks straight down and it's done, since they have very minimal change in the off-axis frequency response so I don't worry if they are pointing "down" rather than "forward."

The suggestion of the single-point Schoeps X-Y mic is great but that's quite an investment for occasional no-stands-allowed instances.

However I will say that I have done some recordings at audience-level (ORTF pair in my hand direct into the H4) and other than crowd noise it sounds fine. I'd say it might not be as big a deal as it seems like at first. If they don't like the crowd noise tell them it's their fault!

[Ozpeter]

Most of the performances in this area take place in churches. There is no structural ability for flying mics in most of them.

Nothing that a big drill and some substantial bolts screwed into the wall wouldn't fix. "You want no stands? Well howzabout THAT then?"

However I will say that I have done some recordings at audience-level (ORTF pair in my hand direct into the H4) and other than crowd noise it sounds fine. I'd say it might not be as big a deal as it seems like at first.

We've had some management issues with a hall here concerning placing mic stands (brand new hall constructed without any means of suspending mics...) and I've suggested only half-seriously that a suitable mic pair on a stand on a seat a the same height that a head would be, with some kind of felt head-shape cutout of a head to screen it from the person sitting behind might do the trick. Not necessarily a dummy head recording as such but a recording involving a dummy head. But maybe some more experiences of that kind of arrangement would be good to hear about. Results would no doubt depend very much on circumstances.

[slaphappygarry]

Someone on here once said "in six months, she wont care that it looks slightly odd, she will if it sounds bad".

Been in your exact position and lost and ended up with a bad product. Just be sure to say "this is whats gonna happen if I do this, and when you complain about that, this is the conversation I am going to remind you about"

G

[Thomas W. Bethe]

I don't want to name names but.....there are two halls around here that simply have NO CLUE. In one hall we were asked to put our cameras and our microphones in the last row of the theater so we would not block patrons views. There is NO space in the back row and nothing behind the back row to place tripods or cameras. When I asked the fellow who was their "audio visual technician" (he looked to be about 14) how we were suppose to set up professional tripods and cameras in the same row as the videographer he said "well I guess you will have to hand hold the cameras" I went to the director of the choir we were filming and basically told her about the problem and told her the options (which were few) She called the hall's manager and in a couple of minutes we were given "permission" to use the back two rows but only in the middle of the house and we could not rope off the entire row. She would NOT allow us to put our microphones where they needed to be citing fire codes as the reason. The video came off OK and the audio was very bad. Another time, working in this hall, we had a sit down lunch with the manager and were promised many things that everyone agreed on. When we got to the hall the staff said they had never been told of the meeting and were going on their normal game plan which was "to make life as impossible as possible for anyone outside the venue staff". This was a classical concert and the venue's "audio engineer" at that time had on blue jeans and a shirt that said "Fuxk everyone as often as you can" and both his jeans and his shirt had more holes than cloth. He was less than helpful and was more egotistical than you can possible imagine. The manager of the hall that we had the meeting with could not be reached because it was a Sunday and she was on an all day retreat. I called her on Monday to ask why their crew had not been told about what we agreed upon and she said "but they were told in a meeting and I gave them specific notes and my cell phone number in case their were any problems" Someone was not being very truthful with us. <As an aside that whole AV crew was eventually fired for doing this same thing to almost everyone who rented the hall.>

In another venue we were "assigned" a space to set up our cameras and audio equipment. It was on a bench next to the audio console in the hall. When we got to the hall the bench was full of equipment racks and cables. I asked the manager if it was going to be cleared soon. He looked shocked that we were even asking about this and said "I have other things I need to do right now and that will have to wait until later" 30 minutes later and still no space to setup. I again went to him and asked to have the equipment removed since we were about 30 minutes from the start of the concert. He again told me "I am busy and will get to it when I can" I asked if we could at least move the equipment off the table so we could set up and was told "no!". I went to the director of the chorus we were recording and she went to talk to the manager. He finally came over and told two of his employees to take down the equipment. 15 minutes before the start of the show we finally got to get set up. Half way through the show the audio board operator pulled our audio feed saying that he had hum problems and that we were causing the problem. We had to do the rest of the show with the camera microphones.

I think Norsehorse you have been VERY lucky! if you have not run into this problem before. Today most venues are staffed by children who know nothing about what they are doing but are given the idea that they are "in charge" and some of them have EGOs as big as the "super sized" audio console they are sitting in front of. They sometimes will make decisions based on which way the wind is blowing or how raging their hormones are at a particular moment. In some cases there are no managers or even adults in attendance that can make decisions that are rational or thoughtful and even if you have worked things out in advance with the managers of the venue the student "managers" may not even be aware of what you discussed with their boss or may not care.

I always get the person who is paying me involved with the whole process early on so they know what is going on and what options I have. If there is a problem many times they have leverages that I could only dream of including not paying for the hall or not coming back next year. I suggest you do the same and let the people that are paying you work things out.

Best of luck!

[joelpatterson]

Originally Posted by slaphappygarry

... and ended up with a bad product....

In grade school, I can remember a teacher questioning me-- after a colleague had goaded a few of us into some manner of misbehavior-- "If he told you to jump off a cliff, would you?"

When I see the specter of a "bad product" looming, I remember these words of wisdom.

[Thomas W. Bethe]

Originally Posted by slaphappygarry

Someone on here once said "in six months, she wont care that it looks slightly odd, she will if it sounds bad".

Been in your exact position and lost and ended up with a bad product. Just be sure to say "this is whats gonna happen if I do this, and when you complain about that, this is the conversation I am going to remind you about"

G

Many people have very short memories for this kind of conversation or they remember what they want to remember and it maybe very different from what the truth is. Best to send a follow up email after the event and remind them of the conversation so there are no problems with them remembering down the road. Of course even with the followup email/letter they will probably be upset if the sound is not perfect.

Today many people have been raised on Spiderman/Star Wars/Transformer movies and think there is nothing that can not be done with CG/FX and computers. They also have no idea of the cost of CG/FX and just assume that if it can be done in the movies it must be able to be done "locally" by the videographer or audio engineer. We are use to seeing and hearing everything done perfectly in a movie so why is it so difficult for a local person to have perfect sound and visuals even if they cannot put their microphones and cameras in prime locations. I had a conductor ask me why we had to have our microphone stand in between him and the audience and why we could not have the microphones somewhere else and just "fix it in post?" I did not even want to go there but obviously when he used the word "post" he must have at least read about post production and what it can do. I simply said that if he wanted the best sound that that is where the microphones needed to be and if I had to move them "somewhere else" he would not get the best sound for the ensemble and that I did not have the technology to "fix it in post".

[slaphappygarry]

Originally Posted by joelpatterson

In grade school, I can remember a teacher questioning me-- after a colleague had goaded a few of us into some manner of misbehavior-- "If he told you to jump off a cliff, would you?"

When I see the specter of a "bad product" looming, I remember these words of wisdom.

So, are you suggesting I go against the clients wish and put the decca where it should go rather than where he wants it?

Many people have very short memories for this kind of conversation or they remember what they want to remember and it maybe very different from what the truth is.

I agree. So long as they appreciate the fact that, from that point on, they are making decision which will greatly impact on the product and its quality, you will be covered. My experience is from smaller budget shows than you are perhaps used to but I think we are saying basically the same thing.



G

[joelpatterson]

I don't think there's any easy way to talk a client/customer out of their foolish ideas...

But I do know that it's suicidal to "go along" with the thought in the back of your mind that however substandard it all turns out that "it's not my fault" and you'll have e-mails and everything to prove it.

When you get to the Pearly Gates and St. Peter slaps a CD into his heavenly boombox and it sounds like garbage and he says, "Somebody told me you had a hand in this, is it true?"
best to change the subject entirely, talk about your work with troubled teens and your charitable attitude towards homeless kittens, and tell him he has you confused with somebody else...

[videoteque]

Can stupidity be managed with inteligence?? Or it's better to answer stupidity with even more stupidity???

Tom advice to let know who pays you of the problems one is having and to try to have something written are good ones. But when you are dealing with people who wants a recording, without the hassles of a recording, what can you do??

Is not the problem that it would be 1000x easier to make recordings on recording dates instead of concert dates?????

[Remoteness]

Anytime a client or guest engineer has a foolish request which has to be accomplished we get them to sign-off on it. I mean, we write up a quick memo that they acknowledge and sign. It's the only way it can be done in my book.

Remember, we're the one credited for the audio capture.




On a slightly different note:
I remember being on a fairly big video shoot and the director/producer wanted us to (on the eleventh hour) tie into a different power source that was smack in the middle of the backstage egress. I tried to explain how dangerous it was, but they were adamant about it. We said we will do it only if they sign-off on any liability on Aura-Sonic's part. They signed our memo and the power tie-in was moved as per their request. We covered the entire panel with cardboard and gaffer's tape and marked it up with all sorts of warnings. The show went off without a hitch.

[fifthcircle]

How is the group set up? There have been a number of threads on opera recording techniques. Did this group have a pit with musicians? Was it fully staged? With the opera groups I have worked with, microphones had to be invisible to the audience or completely unobtrusive. Desk stands were used across the front, high (chorus) mics were inside the proscenium and the pit was mic'd seperately.

Here is a thread I started some time back that has a lot of great info:
Opera Recording Techniques

--Ben

[Corran]

Originally Posted by videoteque

Is not the problem that it would be 1000x easier to make recordings on recording dates instead of concert dates?????

You're right it would be easier. Also twice as expensive since you have to pay the musicians again.

[chris319]

Well Christian, now you know why I was obsessing about boom stands back in April/May before my debut as an Official Symphony Recording Engineer.

Some of these "audio visual" experts watch videos on YouTube of concerts recorded with built-in camcorder mics from the back of the house and it probably sounds OK to them. So if it works for the people whose videos are on YouTube, it should work for you.

You see, mic placement doesn't really matter in this day and age. We are in the miracle age of digital. Everything can be fixed in post with computers. You could put your mics in the nearest sewer pipe and fix everything with VST plugins and make it all sound just dandy. Nowadays, thanks to digital, it's Garbage In, Filet Mignon out, all because of digital magic.

Now, for those of you who don't have access to the right VST fix-all plugins, have I got a deal for you! It's my anti-gravity wireless mic. DIGITAL wireless! It literally floats in thin air. You position it with your finger like on My Favorite Martian. And it's digital, so the audio is always perfect all the time. It's just what you need for your next gig.

+100 to what Thomas says. That is so spot on and so typical. Now you know why I used the phrase "local yokel" a while back. In small-time operations there is always a resident genius/expert/know-it-all with delusions of grandeur and the temperance of Rasputin who "wasn't at the meeting" or "didn't get the memo". You reach an agreement with management to put your mics there. Day of, Rasputin comes along and says you can't put your mics there -- or there, or there or there. And the conductor doesn't want you putting your mics over there, either. It's 30 minutes to downbeat and you don't have your mics set up.

Here's an idea. If you have a client with whom you no longer wish to do business and who makes you put your mics in the men's room or some place equally useless, go through the motions and record the concert. If the finished product turns out to be garbage, tell the client that the finished product is not up to even the most minimal standards and you refuse to release it. And don't charge them. No money changes hands, no product changes hands. That'll freak them out.

One idea that arose from all my obsessing over boom stands was to bring a tall stand and a VERY long boom arm. Put your coincident pair at the end of the boom arm and place the stand all the way upstage, behind the orchestra. Extend your boom arm downstage over the orchestra to as close to the conductor as it will reach. Not ideal but better than the men's room.

If that won't do, bring a pillow, nestle your mic in the pillow and put it any old place. The recording will likely sound rather muffled. When the client complains that the recording sounds muffled, tell them that inasmuch as you couldn't put your mics in a satisfactory location, it was the recording you got when you placed your mics in your, um, hind quarters.

[rumleymusic]

If that won't do, bring a pillow, nestle your mic in the pillow and put it any old place. The recording will likely sound rather muffled. When the client complains that the recording sounds muffled, tell them that inasmuch as you couldn't put your mics in a satisfactory location, it was the recording you got when you placed your mics in your, um, hind quarters.

Maybe create a special helmet for the conductor to wear with an ORTF pair attached.

I seem to remember that 15-20 years ago no one would complain about a mic stand, it was just expected.

There seems to be a shift in attitudes toward recording professionals. I would never argue with my butcher about a cut of meat, it doesn't seem logical why people need to second guess and engineer about the way to achieve a good recording. Personally, I think it has to do with the massive influx of "converts" to the recording field. Ex-musicians who start their own recording company but don't really bother to learn the craft. I have met many clients who have used very poor engineers who turn out a massively inferior product and charge far too much (some of these engineers come recommended or even have a positive reputation, can't see how that happened, nepotism probably). I leads them to be suspicious of the industry.

[Thomas W. Bethe]

Originally Posted by rumleymusic

Maybe create a special helmet for the conductor to wear with an ORTF pair attached.

I seem to remember that 15-20 years ago no one would complain about a mic stand, it was just expected.

There seems to be a shift in attitudes toward recording professionals. I would never argue with my butcher about a cut of meat, it doesn't seem logical why people need to second guess and engineer about the way to achieve a good recording. Personally, I think it has to do with the massive influx of "converts" to the recording field. Ex-musicians who start their own recording company but don't really bother to learn the craft. I have met many clients who have used very poor engineers who turn out a massively inferior product and charge far too much (some of these engineers come recommended or even have a positive reputation, can't see how that happened, nepotism probably). I leads them to be suspicious of the industry.

I think it is the DIY mentality that is sweeping the music business. No one wants to go to a studio to record - they do it in their bedroom or basement. No one wants to go to a mastering engineer - they do it in the same basement or bedroom. Everyone has become an "expert" at doing everything. They play their music, they record their music. They mix their music and the master their music. They also do the cover design for their CD and do the Music Video both shooting it and editing it. The same thing goes on in classical. A while back we were asked to record a classical concert but it was a rush request and the conductor said if we could not do it he could do "just as good a job" with his Zoom card recorder.

We have another conductor who tries very hard to mess up any recording we do for him. We did a recording of his choir and we used an ORTF setup in the middle of the choir. So where does he put his soloist??? on opposite sides of the proscenium and so far down stage that they are on the wrong side of the microphones When we mentioned it to him before the concert he was not a happy camper and said that it was our problem to fix not his. I asked if the two soloist could move more to the middle of the stage he looked upset and said "yes if that will help I will do it but it will not be what I want to do". I have heard a couple of his recordings of the choir and they are "interesting" to say the least.

Today it is all about being an expert on everything and I guess the more tasks you try and do yourself the better it is for your ego. At one concert a parent came up to me and told me that we had the microphones in the wrong place to capture her son's solo and asked if she could move them to a better spot. I said no and then she went to the director of the orchestra and raised a fuss. (I have been doing classical recordings for over 40 years and have done over 3000 concerts and I think by now I know how to mic an orchestra or choir.) The director said to set up another microphone near her son if we had one but it was up to me if I had it plugged into anything. This was done to appease the parent and afterward, when the parent heard the concert recording , she emailed me that she was glad I did what she told me to do (even though the microphone we set up went nowhere except into the snake.)

Interesting topic....

[boojum]

Originally Posted by Thomas W. Bethe

This was done to appease the parent and afterward, when the parent heard the concert recording , she emailed me that she was glad I did what she told me to do (even though the microphone we set up went nowhere except into the snake.)
Interesting topic....

Reminds me of the question, "Do you know the difference between stupidity and genius?"

Answer: There are limits to genius. ;o)


What would like be without kibitzers?

[rumleymusic]

This was done to appease the parent and afterward, when the parent heard the concert recording , she emailed me that she was glad I did what she told me to do (even though the microphone we set up went nowhere except into the snake.)

I've been in the Youth Orchestra field all my life in some way or another. That describes quite a few of the parents I've had to deal with quite well.

I do hope you gave her a nice email back with something like. "Well, actually,...(bomb shell)...I'm glad you enjoyed the recording"

I'm with you on that DIY thing. That is just another example of lack of knowledge, education and experience, invading a highly skilled area of the market.

My house recently flooded, and is now undergoing a renovation (thank God for insurance). I had recently built a dividing wall in a bedroom, and laid down some pergo flooring. After the flood I cut down the water heater (which was the source of the flood) and had the contractors survey the damage. As I was showing them around the house, they pointed out some flaws in my work. "Did the person who did the floor just leave the threshold like that?" Me; "ummm...I guess so". Later. "Who ever cut down the water heater should have pluged up that pipe so it wouldn't keep dripping." Me: "oh...yeah...". That went on for a while.

Lesson. If you are not a pro, you are definitely not a pro.

[audibell]

I've had the youth orchestra husband trying to duct tape his Zoom H4 to my main mast (WTF's that bumping?), "just in case your recording doesn't come out" Well they must have tried some doofus whose recording apparently didn't come out. The frightened six year-old soloist who barely whispers into the hypercard inches away from her mouth; honey, look at me, can you sing baa baa black sheep together with me? There, it's easy, see. The video father who DEMANDS an audio feed. "I was told you were supposed to give me sound!!" as he hands me a mono RCA male. Buddy, I don't even have a Mackie mxr here! "I need a longer cable, I'm back over there!" Buddy, Radio Shack closes at 9, ask the kid for a 25 ft TS to RCA. "Huh?" I carry splitters anyway, so it comes in useful for isolating the video fascists. Now my new friend at XXXXX-U, he comes all prepared and apologetic for bothering me - no prob, man - he called and asked first and made up HIS OWN harness to mate with my 2 TRS outs from the interface. (ex-Air Force W.E.T.)

The mic stands thing is variable. The symphony don't want cables annoying the fire marshall or tripping the oldsters - fair enough, so it's M/S or NOS, plus close flankers on an AEA long spreader; soloist is hypercard bolted lower on the same stand and hope the conductor doesn't humm along too much . The main mast is thankfully not an issue; neither is WW spot or choral Tenor/Bass sections, if I have the chance to attend rehearsal.

I played around with a lectrosonics and lavallier hanging from a helium balon cluster during a rehearsal - sounded great tethered right behind the podium and 15 feet up. Until the a/c came back on. No proof of concept.
We used to use a really big stand with a loooong boom and 75 pounds of lead pellet bags. Set the stand at 2/3 stage left (soloists usually stage right) and angle the boom over and up, with the main pair pretty much where they would be with a stand right behind the conductor. You have to use a protractor and eyeball the angles so that when it's in position, the L/R are level and not drooping. The stand rusted during katrina, gone now.

I have noticed that if I use the nickel switchcrafts, the video people are more likely to complain about lines of sight, so I use the black ones out front now. Otherwise, when tearing down, if it's nickel, it's mine; if it's black and not turquoise inside, it's someone else's.
Having had it end in tears with mega church A/V volunteers and their fear of changing anything on the big board, I take splits at the floor pocket. No, sunshine, that nice box with Swedish on it, is not your's!

Trying to stay in touch with the stage handlers at the convention center and the theatres is definitely time well spent if you want cooperation with hanging and dangling arrays, before the downbeat.

[John Willett]

Originally Posted by Thomas W. Bethe

At one concert a parent came up to me and told me that we had the microphones in the wrong place to capture her son's solo and asked if she could move them to a better spot. I said no and then she went to the director of the orchestra and raised a fuss. (I have been doing classical recordings for over 40 years and have done over 3000 concerts and I think by now I know how to mic an orchestra or choir.) The director said to set up another microphone near her son if we had one but it was up to me if I had it plugged into anything. This was done to appease the parent and afterward, when the parent heard the concert recording , she emailed me that she was glad I did what she told me to do (even though the microphone we set up went nowhere except into the snake.)

Interesting topic....

I have heard a story like this before - from a well known recording engineer in his early days and a very well known conductor.

[chris319]

In the realm of youth orchestras, do you suppose it's possible that parents who are benefactors feel they have the right to come into a concert and have their way in terms of making recordings and ordering people around and placing their gear wherever they want because their monetary contributions give them a sense of entitlement? In other words, because they've donated money they feel they own the place?

My retort to the guy who insisted on a special mic for his son would have been, "Sir, I don't know what your occupation is, but I don't presume to tell you how to do your job and I'll thank you not to tell me how to do mine."

See, those infinity dB attenuators have their place and they're so easy to make, too. Just solder a 150-ohm resistor across XLR pins 2 and 3.

Speaking of donations, this past weekend the orchestra I work with gave an outdoor concert. Afterwards, a total stranger came up to the conductor and handed her a check for $1,000 (let's hope it clears).

[Thomas W. Bethe]

Originally Posted by audibell

I've had the youth orchestra husband trying to duct tape his Zoom H4 to my main mast (WTF's that bumping?), "just in case your recording doesn't come out" Well they must have tried some doofus whose recording apparently didn't come out. The frightened six year-old soloist who barely whispers into the hypercard inches away from her mouth; honey, look at me, can you sing baa baa black sheep together with me? There, it's easy, see. The video father who DEMANDS an audio feed. "I was told you were supposed to give me sound!!" as he hands me a mono RCA male. Buddy, I don't even have a Mackie mxr here! "I need a longer cable, I'm back over there!" Buddy, Radio Shack closes at 9, ask the kid for a 25 ft TS to RCA. "Huh?" I carry splitters anyway, so it comes in useful for isolating the video fascists. Now my new friend at XXXXX-U, he comes all prepared and apologetic for bothering me - no prob, man - he called and asked first and made up HIS OWN harness to mate with my 2 TRS outs from the interface. (ex-Air Force W.E.T.)

The mic stands thing is variable. The symphony don't want cables annoying the fire marshall or tripping the oldsters - fair enough, so it's M/S or NOS, plus close flankers on an AEA long spreader; soloist is hypercard bolted lower on the same stand and hope the conductor doesn't humm along too much . The main mast is thankfully not an issue; neither is WW spot or choral Tenor/Bass sections, if I have the chance to attend rehearsal.

I played around with a lectrosonics and lavallier hanging from a helium balon cluster during a rehearsal - sounded great tethered right behind the podium and 15 feet up. Until the a/c came back on. No proof of concept.
We used to use a really big stand with a loooong boom and 75 pounds of lead pellet bags. Set the stand at 2/3 stage left (soloists usually stage right) and angle the boom over and up, with the main pair pretty much where they would be with a stand right behind the conductor. You have to use a protractor and eyeball the angles so that when it's in position, the L/R are level and not drooping. The stand rusted during katrina, gone now.

I have noticed that if I use the nickel switchcrafts, the video people are more likely to complain about lines of sight, so I use the black ones out front now. Otherwise, when tearing down, if it's nickel, it's mine; if it's black and not turquoise inside, it's someone else's.
Having had it end in tears with mega church A/V volunteers and their fear of changing anything on the big board, I take splits at the floor pocket. No, sunshine, that nice box with Swedish on it, is not your's!

Trying to stay in touch with the stage handlers at the convention center and the theatres is definitely time well spent if you want cooperation with hanging and dangling arrays, before the downbeat.

We must be doing the same concerts and working with the same parents.

I have a grandfather who keeps trying to record the concerts. He has offered his services for free and after viewing a couple of his videos his services are worth everything he charges for them. He too tried to tape his Zoom recorder to my main mike stand. I saw him doing it, walked over to him and took it down and handed it back to him saying I did not want to be responsible for the unit if it fell off one of my stands. At one point he demanded a clean audio copy of the whole concert for his uses. I politely refused. Then he wanted an AVI of the whole concert which I also refused. He finally purchased the DVD of the concert and I have still have no idea of why he wanted an audio copy or a video copy of the concert since he was taping it that day as well but I can only assume he wanted to blend our stuff with his.

I too get asked for audio feeds and they usually wait until five minutes before the concert starts. When possible I try and give them a feed but we only have one set of extra outputs and if that is in use to another parent they are out of luck. I am not going to carry an extra splitter.

I also get the occasional parent who thinks they are Cecil B. DeMille and start suggesting where we put our cameras to capture their son or daughter's solos.

One parent upon viewing our DVD of the event said that they had a better shot of their child doing the solo and could we splice in their footage so their child would be more prominent in the video. We shoot in HD with good quality professional cameras. This parent had shot the concert in HI8 analog and the quality was terrible.

I guess you need the "professionals" to show that what you do normally is pretty darn good. As my video engineer friend is found of saying "a while back I could not spell enganeer...now I are one!

[chris319]

This parent had shot the concert in HI8 analog and the quality was terrible.

And your cameras are on sticks and his was handheld and all wiggly and jiggly, right?

I'm waiting for the parent who says "Schoeps? Neumann? Hmmph. Never heard of them. I don't use those off-brand mics, I use genuine Realistic by Radio Shack." (Or Calrad for those of us who were around in the '60s).