Update: Session review

How did it go?

Did I achieve what I wanted?

Now that my recording session has finished it is time to assess and to see if the work we did in my session was what I planned to do and weather I am happy with it, the plan for the session was straight forward as it was to record the drum tracks via protools to a standard that I am very happy with that I can then work with and place into my track. The session started well and we set everything up at a lightning pace ready for levelling the audio, the pace continued through out the session as we swiftly moved on to the recording after the levelling done by our engineer, fortunately there were no problems with the inputs like we had in previous weeks when levelling audio for the track.

In regards to the actual recording of my track my performer, Alex Ross, was very competent and after a few run throughs, some without recording and some with, we finally got the complete solid recording that I was looking for from the out set, nothing to flashy that detracts from the piece and nothing too simple either. The plan with that was to play my backing track when Alex was performing thereby giving him an idea of what I wanted as well as to hear the section changes, rather than getting him to record a predetermined drum track that I had decided upon beforehand, this is because as I am not a drummer I do not really have the necessary experience when creating a realistic and more importantly complimentary drum track that can be added to my piece to add the finishing touches, therefore utilising our performers more superior experience in this situation. The only time when I stepped in to offer some guidance to what I wanted was at the ending, I felt the one that Alex had done was lacking something and it needed more emphasis, this small section was recorded in and as a result I had one really solid take that I was extremely happy and an ending that was recorded adjacent to the take, we did this rather than to punch record strait over the old one was be cause it gave me the option of choosing between the two at a later date, this is because at a later date when i come work further on the piece I may find that I originally preferred the first.

Edit: I believe the microphone choice and placement was good with only one exception, I would change the Shure Beta52A for the AKG D112, this is because the Shure Beta52A did not work out quite as planned with it giving me the crisp punch that I wanted from it due to its heightened response times when it is closer to the source, instead the recording for the kick drum was a bit flat and muddy which will require me to spend more time in the EQ stage to get it to sound right, therefore the use of the D112 would have been the better option as it would have provided a much clear recording from the start. The position for the snare and toms worked especially in conjunction with the overheads making it sound a bit more crisp but even with the position that I thought would minimize the bleed over from the rest of the kit there was still a bit which remained, therefore required more work on it reducing it through EQ to a point in which it can no longer be heard. Finally the positioning of the overheads worked well as there was no problems with the stereo balance or any problems with phasing and once it is panned into each ear it really helps to fill out the entire sound and capturing the best of the rooms ambiance.

During the session we were extremely fortunate as we encountered little to no problems at all with the whole process, from getting there and setting up to dismantling and leaving, we even managed to a avoid delays in regards to the illusive microphone clips that are always hiding in different more hard to find areas, which again helped as it reduced any potential delays that might have arose. The only real problem that we encountered and it is really more of a silly mistake that a problem was that when it came to bounce out the separate drum tracks at the end of the session there was not enough space on my memory stick to hold all of them, so to get around this I borrowed my performers memory stick so i could then place all of the recordings on the computers hard drive in the Mac room.

Was health and safety met?

We were very resolute about health and safety that it had to be a priority, so therefore we made sure that all of the wires from the microphones we the right length for the microphone, for example using longer XLR cables for the overhead microphones as they are high up and further out of the way and a short XLR cable for the Kick drum as it the closest to the patch bay at the wall. Continuing on from that we made sure that any cables, especially the longer ones, were properly wrapped around the stands which reduces the excess that could be laying on the floor that could be a potential tripping hazard, along these lines we also place any wires that had no option to being on the floor out of the way so that no one would walk around them, again reducing tripping hazards, we felt there was no need to duct tape any cables down as it would be over kill and that they were already take care of.

I made sure that there was no food or drink inside the live or control room as spillages can happen as well as again causing hazards if it was to spill on the laminate flooring as it can get slippery. When moving any of the heaver instruments or amps in the live room to make space for the drum kit I made sure that anything lifted was done properly so there is no injuries. Finally we made sure that our drummer had a good pair of headphones on that helped to reduce some of the loudness from the drum kit as we wanted him to not permanently damage his hearing.

How well did the others do?

Engineer - Alex Dudley
As the engineer Alex was more than up to the task at hand and was able to set up the computer in the control room and protools with ease with no errors which is, apart from the physical setting up of the drum kit plus microphones, the key process that allowed us to continue with such a good progressive pace that allowed us to get recording that much more quickly. Alex was polite and professional and handled any work or change of situation thrown at him to a very high degree, which helped to make my role easier as it meant that I did not have to go into any great lengths to describe what I wanted he understood and just did what I asked which defiantly saves time and reduces any consequences of miscommunication.

Producer - Me
I believe I did a good job as I was able to make sure that what I wanted to express and get out of the session that I had planed for previously, which is all down to good communication and team working skills as without them the group could not function and in the end nothing would get done. Overall, as the producer I believe that i had a good professional attitude and was able to get the best out of my team on that day as well as to take any criticism and advice from different angles that I had not thought of before from people about my track and to take them on board for the future, as we heard it many times while Alex Ross was either recording or just having a run through. I also helped to set up along with Dan as it was the best thing to do as well as it saving time which could be invested elsewhere

Assistant - Dan Burrows
As an assistant Dan was excellent when setting up it was almost like muscle memory and that he knew exactly where to place each and every microphone as well as have good communication with our performer, so when setting up he could make sure that it is in the best possible position for Alex Ross and best suited to his style of playing, which therefore means that the more optimal position the better the performance with less interruptions for incremental changes as one thing is in the wrong place, for example. Dan was hard working and very active when setting up anything we needed him to do, from setting up microphones to hunting down microphone clips, Dan really helped to reduce any potential problems as he did what was asked of him ease and efficiency.

Performer - Alex Ross

As a performer Alex was fantastic in his role and very professional, he was able to perform at the best of his ability as well as applying his one knowledge and experience to the recording as while he was performing, following the backing track as a guide he as able to create a better more complimentary drum track for the song which allowed for some good improvisation especially when doing fills. He also had excellent communication skills with all involve, from setting up the kit with Dan to talking through the talk back microphone that we had set up with Alex between takes, but more so I feel with me as he showed me some different techniques of playing that I might be interested in for the piece for different sections which really added to the piece because of how it variates from the rest of the track.

How well did we work as a team?

Overall I feel like as a team we were highly motivated and had a great work ethic and knew what they were doing from the start which really shows through, the work that we produced was excellent and proves how professional we can be when we work together as a team, like with previous sessions, there were great team working skills being utilised with positivity radiating outwards which created an excellent working environment, with everyone working collectively towards one end goal. I feel like if there were any serious problems that would have arisen that we as a team would find a solution relatively quickly with a positive attitude that it could be resolved not matter what it would entail.

Main strengths of the session?

The main strength of the session is clearly our chemistry when in a team collectively working towards a target as it really shows our skills as well as our ability to stay cool under pressure. Another strength that is more in tune with what we did during this session is that as a group our collective pool of knowledge and experience has expanded in relation to setting up the drum kit as well as microphone placement, or any instruments really, has allowed us to get an edge that means we reduce any time wasted with could be invested elsewhere. Finally a strength that is specific to this session is that we were incredibly fortunate to only run into one minor problem which was resolved with ease, which was the issue with a memory stick, this allowed us to save so much time and effort and actually contributed to the relatively stress free and positive work environment as everyone just knew what they were doing it allowed them to just get on with it.

Thanks
Dan