So you’re loading into a small theater for a gig and a remote truck pulls into the loading area. You’re thinking, “Oh wow, So and So must be recording their show here tomorrow.” You start speaking with the guys from the remote recording company and find out they are there to record tonight’s show to multitrack. But management forgot to send you the memo. After you’re done swearing at the intern who didn’t pull you into the email trail, your blood pressure drops below 200 and you figure it’s time to get to work. So exactly what do you need to do?
Who’s On First?
Start by ensuring that everyone on site has a detailed schedule for the day including times for load-in, sound check, doors, support acts (if applicable) and breaks for meals. Post it everywhere (!)
Whether you’re the house engineer or the touring engineer, you’ll need an input list. Touring engineers should carry the input list, be it on paper or in your computer (it’s astonishing how often I see an input list from 2005. Where do these come from?). It’s probably not a bad idea to have the input list and stage plot floating in the cloud as a backup measure.
Discuss with the recording engineer whether the normal input list sufficiently covers the needs of the remix that will take place in a few weeks. As Fernando Lodeiro, engineer for Remote Recording (remoterecording.com) explains, “I’ll ask for the input list and microphone list used by the FOH and monitor engineers so I can determine if I’ll need to add any extra mics for the recording.”
For example, perhaps the input list doesn’t have a mic for the ride cymbal. You don’t want to be in a situation where you wish you’d have placed a ride cymbal microphone, so add it to the list. If the guitar rig(s) are using amp simulators via DI, add mics to the cabinets as a backup (and consider vice versa). It’s also a good idea to take an unprocessed direct guitar signal so that re-amping the guitar is an option if you need it.
Who’s Who?
Don’t expect people not associated with the band to know which guitar rig belongs to Harry and which guitar rig is Sam’s. Stick a piece of tape on the cabinet so there’s no confusion. Any recording engineer will tell you that it is absolutely critical to correctly label tracks before recording, so that the audio files can be identified.
Steve Remote, president of Aura-Sonic Ltd. (aurasonicltd.com) states that he’ll “ask for the band’s tech rider, which includes their stage plot and input list. Knowing their backline needs is an important part of the capture process for me. I have a better shot at making microphone and DI decisions when I know exactly what they’re using for the live performance.”
For Remote, the next items on the list include “finding out the location of technical power for the recording (truck or portable) rig, where the house stage box is situated, and who provides the microphone splitter (house, band or record).”
Lodeiro adds, “Where will my recording station be located? How far is the run to the splitter? Where can I get power for my equipment and how far is that run?” Obviously, there’s less patch work if the house has a transformer-isolated split with a recording feed, but — since audio quality for the recording is more critical than that for the house P.A. — it has to be determined whether or not the split is of sufficient quality to meet the demands of recording.
Public Safety
When there’s a sound truck involved in the process, Remote’s additional concerns include “parking, leveling the vehicle, permits and running feeder cable to the power source. Running your audio, video, and communication feeds to their destinations is an important task, because the cables come from outside into the building, and the public’s safety must be on the top of the list.”
What Exactly Are We Doing Here?
Fernando reveals that it’s very important for him to understand the purpose of the recording so he “can determine what sample rate to use. I also need to know if they will be recording video as well, and if so, who will generate time code.” These are important issues that must be addressed to ensure that the audio recording will later synchronize and lock reliably to video. While audio-only productions typically record at a sample rate of 44.1 (or occasionally 88.2) kHz, most audio-for-video production employs a sample rate of 48 kHz. To avoid sample-rate conversion in the future, that decision should be made before recording begins.
As a band’s FOH engineer, you are the liaison between the band and the production team. One thing you can do to facilitate a high-quality recording is to ask the band to keep down their stage volume (good luck with that). It can help reduce the amount of leakage from guitar, bass and drums into the vocal microphones. Although drum isolation shields or amplifier baffles can greatly reduce bleed into vocal microphones, a live recording is not the time to start experimenting — the band’s comfort level trumps everything, because if they’re comfortable, they’ll perform well.
Comfort includes ensuring time for a proper sound check/rehearsal — part of which should be coordination of all wireless frequencies. “I like to exchange information about all wireless (RF) frequencies,” elaborates Remote, “so we don’t have any train wrecks between the technical, recording, house and touring systems during their live performance, This IMHO, is seriously important and sometimes missed.”
An Ounce of Prevention…
As with all live productions, day of show is made easier when projects are properly advanced. “In the pre-production stage,” Steve says, “I usually talk to the band’s management — which includes their tour and production managers, and of course their FOH (and sometimes monitor) engineers. If applicable, I also contact the band’s producer, and even the band directly if there’s a connection beyond the standard work relationship.” Lodeiro also stresses the importance of finding out if it’s a union venue so that you can be aware of any mandatory dark stage time, meal breaks, or overtime requirements. All of which makes for a smoother day.
