Microphones

[I must here put in a word for my own instrument, equally as important as the piano in the making of a record. --The Producer]

The ear hears differently than the microphone, and all microphones have their own qualities, making a piano sound more wooden, more iron-like, richer, thinner, so the choice and placement of microphones is the most critical contribution of the producer, entirely out of the hands of the musician, and either abets or stands between the sound the pianist is producing and the sound the listener hears on the disc. The pianist gets the credit or blame, but has no control over the choice of microphones or producer.

    Microphones are colored or left untouched by microphone preamplifiers, which can ruin or make the sound. Recording consoles add or detract further from the sound, but are generally not used in the field, due to their enormous size. Being able to bypass them is preferable in any case, as they add one more link to the recording chain, thus removing the sound one more step from reality.

    More information about mics and microphone preamplifiers can be found on the web site, himalayasessions.com.