As we delve deeper into making recordings for Octave Records some interesting observations have surfaced.
For one thing, achieving a great room sound doesn't always involve perfectly capturing the room despite the fact that seems rather intuitive. If we place a stereo set of microphones at a distance from the performers we do indeed get a great room sound. However, this comes at the expense of intimacy. What we hoped for was an intimate recording that feels as if the musicians are in the room.
It turns out that in order to achieve both the in-room experience and a sense of intimacy with the musicians, we need a combination of close-miking and more distant stereo microphones.
In the past, I've heard wonderful recordings from Keith Johnson that combined room, as well as intimacy, which he achieved with a stereo microphone and careful proximity to that microphone.
As we might have guessed, there's plenty of recording techniques available to us.
The secret to great recordings turns out to be the same as the secret to designing great audio gear.
One has to listen.
