Curiosity, Bagpipes, and Audio Recording

[duchessofnc]

First of all... my process of thinking sometimes is obscure and makes absolutely no sense at all. For that.. I apologize. Back last year my business partner was borrowing some studio quality recording equipment from a neighbor who wanted to sell it.

He quoted my business partner a generous price and I got convinced to buy it. It might not be top of the line but it's a very, very, very nice little setup that records some very high quality sound.

And with the software... it's nice. Why would I ever do something like this? Well I had visions of podcasts and netcasts dancing in my head. Now I have a different ideas. But that really isn't appropriate for this forum. This isn't the 100 ways I can promote a business.

But as I was putting myself through the crash course on how to finally use this equipment... I had something creep into my mind. A friend of mine has a son that plays the bagpipe. I would of course do anything for my friend for free. I'm just like that.

But how would I record the bagpipe? How low would I need to set the microphone sensitivity... etc.. Or would it even be doable indoors. I know the bagpipe has quite a push for volume.

Curious thoughts to be sure.

[beloitpiper]

My friend, the recording engineer, recorded me for a father's day gift. Basically, he got a few ambient mics to pick up the general sound, two specifically for the drones, and one for the chanter. The room was sound-dampened, to minimize ringing and echo, and did a lot of post-recording work to polish it.

[michaelbeeman]

I wouldn't have the first idea, but good luck!

[auld argonian]

One of the most impressive recordings of a traditional instrument that I have ever heard is Andina by Dino Saluzzi...bandoneon and a little flute.

It's very obvious that the recording was done in a large, hard room (probably something like a dance rehersal studio) and was miked with only two mikes spaced and selected judiciously...microphone choice is a BIG factor in getting a premium recording. Senor Saluzzi was sitting on a wooden chair and you can hear the wood creak as he shifted his weight during quieter passages...some might consider that a flaw but it adds immeasurably to the ambience of the recording.

Thus, I say experiment. One of the nice things about this age of digital recording is that you're not going through reels of audio tape so that expense is eliminated.

Best

AA

[sharpdressedscot]

Wait, you have recording equipment?? What can you record? A full band?

[Nick the DSM]

well, sort of play with it a bit.

test and see if putting a mike closer or farther works better. in the concert band i played in we placed mikes farther away so we could get the "fullness" of the sound

for bagpipes, i'm not very sure. i think placing a mike farther away like 5 ft or so would be best and won't pick up extra frequencies or sounds. also make sure the room is good for acoustics and noise. find one that isn't too small that the music bounces everywhere nor too big that the music is lost in the space.

[drobin]

If your really into tech reading I'd suggest Yamaha's "big book of all things audio". Sorry really can't remember the name but I was trying to slog through it during a production. The choice of Mics is going to be one of the bigger decisions.
If you wanted to you could even record the drones and the chanter separately and then mix them together later.

[highlander_Daz]

remover the chanter and cork off the chanter stock

record the drones with 2 mics (overheads)

cork off the drones and record the chanter with a close mic and ambiant mic

mix

[pipe23]

It would help if you listed the setup you purchased. Recording capablities and to some extent techniques have changed over the years, what you're using makes a big difference. I'm not a recording engineer but have been recording pipes and live bands, mainly live recordings and some studio, for the past twenty years, and things have changed quite a bit.

mic

[sharpdressedscot]

Yeah, but digital doesn't compare to analog. But it's just easier to record with digital.


What kind of equipment did you get duchess? Brand? Like what Pipe23 said, we can help if you list the things you have.