[Trevor]

"Fran Guidry" wrote in message
news:5315390.492.1334373325820.JavaMail.geo-discussion-forums@vbxy18...
Apart from the hygiene aspects, why do so many singers have their mouths
right
up against the microphones when they sing?

In at least some cases, because the engineer running the PA instructs them
to do so, and that same engineer EQs and gain stages things to require
that technique.

Well it's easier to cope with singers right on the mic in a live concert.
than it is when they sing 3 foot from the mic at a whisper, and expect the
sound guy to just turn it up. Apart from feedback you have to cope with
sound bleed from everything else on stage making it more difficult to get
the balance right.
Worse still is the ones who constantly move on and off the mic when they
shouldn't. A proper professional knows when to adjust the distance as
appropriate, and not simply rely on a compressor or sound guy to fix it for
them.

As for hygiene, I'm often amazed at how few singers bring their own mics. I
don't get too many guitarists expecting me to provide a guitar for them, but
a microphone of their own is a lot easier to carry. I do use anti-bacterial
wipes on the vocal mics in any case though. They're just as likly to catch
something from an audience member when signing CD's.

Trevor.