Mic Techniques for Classical/Opera

[a12izabal]

Hi All. Tomorrow evening I'm recording a new client. She is going to be singing classical/opera to a pre-recorded piano track.

I have been thinking about using an MA200 tube mic and/or one of the ribbon Mics available at the facility I use. Any suggestions on mic placement, or possible pairing techniques?

[albee1952]

I would not deviate much from "standard" vocal setup, other than to move the mic back from her a bit as classical singers can really put out VOLUME Hopefully you will have her in a well-treated space. If not, better grab some moving blankets and damp the space some as moving the mic back will give more room sound. With a singer that has a lot of dynamic range, you might split the Mojave into a pair of preamps and tracks(mute one of the tracks) and set one for several db lower gain. I might also track the ribbon(to a 3rd muted track

[musicman691]

Originally Posted by albee1952

I would not deviate much from "standard" vocal setup, other than to move the mic back from her a bit as classical singers can really put out VOLUME

With that being said I'd be a little nervous using the ribbon so the singer doesn't destroy the element. I remember the story that Rob Halford of Judas Priest tells about how he blew out the ribbon on a mic while recording.

[JCBigler]

What kind of facility is she singing in? Is it a studio? Or a performance venue or church?

[albee1952]

I would certainly keep a ribbon at a good 12-14" away(with a pop filter) and maybe somewhat off-axis too

[a12izabal]

So good news: the session was a huge success! Ended up attempting MS with the MA200 as the mid and a Fathead II ribbon on top. I figured, if together they didn't sound good, I could always just go with what the Tube mic captured. The blend ended up sounding fantastic. Hard panned the duplicate ribbon recording, flipped the phase, and blended to taste.

Here's the link to the recording. Added some artificial reverb, otherwise unedited.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/cbp7t945q9...02016.wav?dl=0

Also, some pics.

https://imgur.com/a/pInWP

Thanks so much for your help guys!