ATLANTA — Big Bad Voodoo Daddy (BBVD) is supporting the release of its latest album, How Big Can You Get? The Music of Cab Calloway on the road, bringing Earthworks’ High Definition Microphones along for the ride.
The swing band, which plays everything from large halls to outdoor venues, is also relying on the Earthworks PianoMic at each of its gigs.
The group’s touring ensemble includes a nine-piece instrument section consisting of horns and percussion, and having so many live instruments on stage can present unique challenges to live sound engineers, particularly around instrument bleed and feedback.
“Live sound reinforcement on a piano has always been a challenge because there is always so much noise onstage and a lot of noise rolling off the P.A. back onto the stage,” said Brian Stanley, BBVD tour manager. “Once we started using the PM40, we found we were able to run with the volumes we wanted to run at; the tone was amazing and it sounded like a piano. We didn’t have to work to get it to sound that way—you just put the mic in the piano and go.
“Before, we’d have to do drastic EQing and there were definitely compromises in terms of gain before feedback,” Stanley added. “You would either get it to sound good at a low volume, or get a good tone but with a lot of feedback. Gain before feedback is a very important consideration for us, because this is a loud show—we want to run at hot levels and not lose the tone we are after.”
The PianoMic mounts inside with no stands or booms, using two random incidence omni microphones.
“After almost giving up on our search for a system that would let us get a decent piano sound in both monitors and front of house, we found the Earthworks PianoMic and were truly amazed,” said Joshua Levy, pianist for BBVD . “It lets us dial in a remarkably natural sound with plenty of gain and little fuss, night after night, in even the most challenging settings. We love it!”
For more information, please visit www.earthworksaudio.com.
