How to mic small orchestra for film score recording

[wuubb]

Hello everyone,
I am recording a film score I wrote for a film music competition, and I've managed to get together a group of musician friends to record it. The actual instrumentation calls for about 40, but Since I don't have as many strings and winds, this is what I currently have:

Reeds/woodwinds –
1st player: flute/piccolo
2nd player: soprano saxophone/flute
3rd player: alto saxophone/clarinet
4th player: tenor saxophone/clarinet

Brass –
2 horns
3 trumpets
2 trombones

Rhythm section –
2 keyboard players (one is a grand piano, the other is my Yamaha S90ES keyboard)
1 guitar (both electric and acoustic)
1 acoustic (upright) bass
1 drum set player

1 percussion player who plays the following instruments: timpani (standard set of 4 timpani: 32", 29", 26", 23"), bongos,
woodblocks, shaker and suspended cymbals

Strings-
6 violins, 2 violas, 2 celli, 1 double bass

I was able to get permission to use my school's auditorium to record this, and both me and my friends are contributing equipment (mostly mics and cables). I've googled on "how to mic an orchestra", but alot of whats coming up pertains to studio recording with lots of equipment, and isolated this and that, which we have neither. I have my Steinberg UR44 interface, my friend has a 16 channel mixer, and we have 8 mics plus we're allowed to borrow ones from the school. The guitar and bass players are bringing their own amps.

Basically what I'm trying to find out is what's the best way to mic the ensemble to get a good recording that I can go back and either overdub the missing parts to or fill them in with virtual instruments? Would we run all of the mics back to the mixer and connect the mixer to my computer or to my audio interface, then the computer? I've never had to record something of this size and usually I have plenty of I/O on my interface?

Sorry for the huge post, but I wanted to give as much info as I could. If anyone has any suggestions they would be most welcome!
Wuubb

[wuubb]

Sorry, and one more question: whenever I see pictures of a recording session, how do they manage to give everyone headphones and the click? My interface only has 2 headphone outs for example, so how do you do that with big groups....

[Bob Bickerton]

My approach to recording orchestra would be to use a miking configuration based on the fact that the piece has been well written and the orchestra is being well balanced by a conductor. In which case I'd use a nice ORTF pair plus SDC omni outriggers to capture the orchestra as a whole and then add spot mics to suit. This is assuming the acoustic space is suitable.

The strings look pretty light and obviously you'd need to consider spot miking instruments like acoustic guitar.

Have you started rehearsing yet and if so is it largely balanced? Is it really necessary to play to a click?

Bob

[Tomás Mulcahy]

Guitar bass and drums will drown out the rest, so record them first and overdub the others as one group. You could wear headphones and conduct? Recording as a group will get the best sound because the performers will "mix" themselves, and we assume your hall sounds nice...

Stereo miking is the way to go as has been already pointed out, with spot mics for soloists.

You might want to double or triple track your ensemble to get a bigger sound. If you want to try that I suggest you move people around for each take so it's a "different" ensemble.

There are some articles in the magazine written by Hugh Robjohns that you should read also, about ensemble recording.

[Hugh Robjohns]

This sounds like a job where you should seriously consider hiring someone with the appropriate gear and experience, leaving you to concentrate on the music, rather than the technicalities.

I don't know what role the strings play in your piece, but that tiny section is going to be completely drowned by the brass, wind and rhythm sections, so most of your eight mics will go in having to close-mic the strings before you even get started on anything else.

Film music tends not to be recorded in the same way as traditional classical orchestral -- simple stereo arrays tend not to cut it because the orchestra is rarely self-balancing and the music usually calls for an unnatural balance anyway, with emphasis on percussion and bass strings, in particular. Close miking, discrete tracking of each section and solo/lead instruments, and careful remixing is the usual order of the day.

Seriously -- find someone who offers a mobile 24-track recording operation to get the raw tracks down. You can then add any overdubs yourself later and mic to get the desired effect.

H

[Aural Reject]

I'm with Hugh on this if you want it to sound 'filmic'....the channel counts can easily double (or more!) relative to a 'standard' orchestral balance.

[Hugh Robjohns]

...how do they manage to give everyone headphones and the click? My interface only has 2 headphone outs for example, so how do you do that with big groups....

With headphone distribution amplifiers...

H

[wuubb]

I appreciate all the things you guys are suggesting, but I don't think I have the resources to do some of the things you guys are suggesting

The only mics we have are a bunch of Shure SM57/58's and I don't have any money to hire anybody to do this, I'm just an 18 year old high school student trying to organize this all by myself. Like I said, the instrumentation in the strings is supposed to be much more balanced than what I have, but I only have the musicians I have to work with.

I did a film scoring workshop at NYU/ASCAP and we gave all the principal/section leaders the click (including the conductor of course), but I never had to set up the recording session (that was part of the fee for doing the workshop). We haven't rehearsed yet (although I sent everyone the music 3 days ago), this is taking place on June 8th, as that was the only time I could get everyone together in one space and also get a space to fit that many people.

I will close mic the strings for sure and try the "moving everyone around" technique when I do this.

I'm sorry I don't want to appear helpless or all pessimistic about this, I just don't have the ability to do some of the things that would normally be required for something like this, I'm trying to make the best of what I've got.

Wuubb

[Hugh Robjohns]

You could try approaching a local college that runs music technology courses to see if their students would like to help out as a recording project.

H

[wuubb]

You could try approaching a local college that runs music technology courses to see if their students would like to help out as a recording project.

H

I will try that, thank you Hugh.

[Tomás Mulcahy]

Looks to me like the best option is NOT to get everyone together on the same day, but to do it as overdubs on different days.

Good point about making it "filmic"- overdubbing will help that.