[Harp-L] Re: Soundman

[Richard Hunter <turtlehill@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

"D Berger" wrote:
<A soundman can mess you up with more than volume!<
<
<When playing through a vocal mike they often try to
<"enhance " the sound . I want it to sound "like it is".

Nothing that comes through a mic and an amplifier sounds "like it is." 
The mic and the amp always color the tone.  If you want the harp to 
sound a certain way, you have to be very explicit with the soundman 
about what you want.

I talk to the soundman at every gig if I have the chance to do so.  If 
I'm going for an acoustic sound, I ask for a mic that's capable of 
reproducing a wide range of frequencies, (i.e., NOT a bullet type mic), 
or ask if I can use my own mic (Fireball with V element), and I tell him 
to roll off a couple of dBs above 8 kHz, and all the frequencies below 
80 hZ.

If I'm using an amp or an amp modeler, I ask the soundman to treat the 
harp the way he would treat an amped guitar.  Most tube amps don't 
project a lot of requencies above 6 kHz anyway.

If the soundman is using reverb, I tell him to cut it way back for the 
harp, and I tell him I'll set my own delays and effects if I want them.

In general, my experience is that professional sound people are 
delighted to collaborate with the player on what kind of sound is 
desired.  I mean delighted literally; these guys don't get a lot of 
attention from most of the musicians they work with, and they're very 
happy to talk about sound.

Where I have problems is in tiny little clubs where the sound guy is a 
reject from the pro leagues.  (The Rainbow Room in Ottawa, Canada comes 
to mind.)  In those cases, I just remind myself that murder is still 
illegal in just about every country in the world, and that I'm not 
playing that joint very often.

Regards, Richard Hunter
hunterharp.com
harmonica blog at http://myspace.com/richardhunterharp
Latest mp3s always at http://broadjam.com/rhunter