If you haven't already started, it's Christmas production planning time.
There's generally more for the sound person to deal with—more mics, more inputs, more mic cues, following the action in a script, cueing music playback, additional wireless systems—and all sorts of things to take a sound operator out of their comfort zone. Good pre-production planning and preparation and the use of performance-proven best practices and techniques can alleviate most, if not all, anxiety. Confidence is what we need as we tackle what is likely the year's most challenging production. So let's get to it.
Many Christmas productions have theatrical elements to them and many churches utilize techniques employed by theatrical sound designers to mic up their productions. Chris Lyons, Shure's manager, technical and educational communications, notes, “There are two approaches. One is direct mic'ing of an individual performer, and the other is mic'ing an area. Which you choose depends on how many players there are, and their relative importance to each other. For most dramatic presentations people are doing a combination of both, so the trick is figuring out who absolutely must be directly mic'd, and then who else can be covered by area mics.”
Two Options to Know
For situations where the performers are directly mic'd, there are basically two options: a wireless bodypack fitted with either a lavalier mic, or a head-worn or ear-worn microphone. A subminiature, omnidirectional lavalier mic can be hidden in a number of places including in the costume, in a hat or hairpiece, under the hairline, or even on the side of the face. If attached to clothing, care must be taken to minimize any noise from the material rubbing against the mic element. Positioning the mic on the actor's face or head has the benefit of keeping the distance of the mic to the mouth of the performer consistent through all ranges of movement, which in turn helps to keep the sound consistent. These can be affixed with hypoallergenic medical tape and concealed with makeup.
Keeping the mic-to-source distance optimum and consistent is an advantage of a head set or ear set mic, as James Lamb, president of Point Source Audio, notes, “An ear-worn solution puts the mic at the sound source and moves with the user. Two major considerations for a sound designer are visual (is the microphone obvious to the audience) and contact from other performers (is a performer making face contact with someone, like when hugging). Ear worn mics are made to be unobtrusive and colored to blend into skin tones. So at 20 to 30 feet away, the mic disappears.”
Often for a Christmas production churches will supplement their exiting wireless microphone systems with additional units to accommodate the presentation. Steve Savanyu, director of educational services for Audio-Technica, says, “Sometimes for budgetary reasons, a church will borrow an assortment of mismatched wireless mics from other churches, the youth band, etc. Be careful when doing this: it's essential to make certain that all the systems are compatible with each other. As you add more wireless systems, this can become a daunting task. Remember to test the system at the same time of day the drama takes place just to be certain no one else nearby is using the same wireless frequencies. Sometimes, renting a pre-coordinated wireless package from a reputable rental house can save hours of aggravation. If you are using wireless intercoms for the stage crew, or your pit orchestra/praise band is using wireless ear-monitor systems, make certain to take them into account when figuring out the number of wireless channels needed. Although these systems are typically on different bands than the wireless microphones, they are a potential source of interference.”
Acoustics and Other Considerations
In an environment with good, controlled acoustics, area mics positioned across the front edge of the stage can work well for picking up the chorus or ensemble dialog, though things like noisy air handling systems, loudspeakers in close proximity to the stage, or an acoustically live room can limit their effectiveness. Lyons advises, “Typically a directional boundary mic is the way to go there. And the other thing we try to remind people, most of the important action happens at or near center stage, so you're best off choosing an odd number of area mics. Put one at the front center of the stage, flanked by one to the left and one to the right.” Area mics can also be strategically placed on a set piece or prop to pick up incidental dialog.
Though making sure your source is good and robust is probably the best place to start, as Robb Blumenreder,?channel manager at Sennheiser Professional Systems, Neumann USA, says, “The most effective mic'ing technique for a dramatic presentation actually starts without a single ounce of electronics. Start with proper technique, and by reminding your actors that they should project to the back of the room, as if they didn't have a mic at all; this will help to avoid pushing your gain structure up to the point of feedback, trying to make up for a soft spoken actor.”
