One of the groups I record may let me accompany them to China next year. I
have the usual list of travel gotchas (shots, papers, etc.) What audio
concerns do I have aside from power?

I know I'll need sturdier racks and better boxes for mic stands, etc.

The issues you will face will have little to do with audio
except for the usual things associated with
concert/performance recording situations (assuming you are
recording in a concert environment.

If the group is choral and orchestral, be prepared to deal
with house sound systems that are optimized for Chinese
opera-type programs, and for the Chinese ear. The house
sound people will have little exposure to Western music and
unless you speak technical Chinese fluently, you are going
to have to deal with it through whatever translator you have
handy. (If you're lucky enough to have a translator.) More
than likely, you're going to be throwing up your hands
(figuratively), and taking what you can get. Don't count on
board feeds. The places I encountered have equipment ranging
from old Peavey, Behringer, names I couldn't pronounce,
names I could even read. Speakers tend to be MI stacks.
Their theatres can be magnificent, and you may encounter
stage lighting consisting of several hundred 5k - 10 BPs at
100 percent. One of the bassists with the orchestra I toured
with refused to play at one place because the light
intensity was such that it was melting the finish on
$250,000 bass.

(My wife says my omelet is ready ... more later.)



TM

Carey Carlan wrote:

One of the groups I record may let me accompany them to China next year. I
have the usual list of travel gotchas (shots, papers, etc.) What audio
concerns do I have aside from power?

I know I'll need sturdier racks and better boxes for mic stands, etc.

T Maki wrote in
:

If the group is choral and orchestral, be prepared to deal
with house sound systems that are optimized for Chinese
opera-type programs, and for the Chinese ear.

The group will be about 60-80 members of a 100 piece orchestra (depending
on who can come). They need little or no support from house sound. I
typically set up mic stands on stage or in the audience first few rows.

Is there anything comparable to the American union setup, where I can't set
up or use my own gear in some halls?

(continuing..)

If you plan on setting up in normal concert recording style,
be prepared to deal with the amplified sound. You will
likely not be able to convince them to not amplify. I repeat
- YOU will not have any say over it. A Chinese with the tour
may be able to convince them, if you can communicate to
them.

Be prepared for audiences at least as rude as any you've
ever experienced here. You will endure cell phone
conversations, cigarette smoke that will put you on the
floor, crying, laughing, burping, farting, and whatever
other environmental noises. Did I mention the lighting
systems? Those millions of watts of power are controlled
through dimmers. They hum, they have fans.

You will most likely not have any trouble with stage crews,
especially if you have a helpful attitude. The guys and gals
on stage want to learn, and if you make an effort to deal
with them as fellow professionals, and show them something
they might not know (make something up if you have to - show
them the proper way to coil a cable or something), you will
make friends. Keep your eyes open for opportunities to help.
If possible, do a walk-thru ahead of time wherever you can.
More than likely, your buses will arrive 1 hour before
curtain, and you will have no time to set up, let alone
argue with the house personnel. Just get in there, set up
your stuff, and roll tape. You're not going to have an
opportunity to do rehearsal tests. You'd better be able to
scope out a room, stage, and setup in the time it takes to
carry your equipment across the stage. They will not allow
the show to start late. You will be awestricken by some of
their theatres.

If you can, try not to rely on house power. If you can't run
all your gear on batteries that you take with you, you will
be in my prayers. Determine the number of batteries that you
think you can get by with. Triple that number.

Do not under any circumstances allow your equipment to get
out of your hands or out of your sight. DO NOT.

Assume nothing. Do not assume that you will have any kind of
load in or load out help. Do not assume that anything is
going to work the way you expect. Do not demand anything.
You have to have the attitude that what happens, happens;
that what you get is what you get.

Take four times the amount of money you think you will need.
Do not take Amex travelers checks. Take US cash. Do not get
fleeced at the money exchange counters. Look for the best
exchange rates. Be careful of taking old Yuan as against new
Yuan. Old Yuan is worthless, but you will have it pushed at
you. It may not appear obvious to you or the people on your
tour, but the Chinese will have no trouble recognizing you
as a tourist. Learn the details of the Chinese monetary
system - as much of the currency denominations as will fit
in your brain. Be prepared to do the math for lots of people
on the tour. (Just how hard is it to figure out that eight
Yuan is a dollar? Two Yuan is a quarter - figure it out...)
You will have those experiences, especially with the
sourvenir booths at The Great Wall or The Temple of Heaven.

Remember that you will be going to a Communist country. You
will have no rights there. Do not push your luck with any
police or other official. You must have a "Please, Sir;
Excuse me, Sir; Thank you, Sir; Whatever you say, Sir"
attitude.

Make excellent color copies of your passport and put a copy
in every piece of luggage and every equipment case. (I
scanned mine and printed it - almost looked real). If at all
possible, DO NOT allow your passport out of your sight. If
you have to surrender your passport, know exactly who has it
and when you will get it back.

If you fly domestically, be prepared to be fleeced for
extraordinary overweight baggage charges. I nearly had to
pay $300.00 for a case not much bigger than an Anvil
briefcase and two collapsed mic stands in plastic tubes.

Do not fail to fill out Customs Form 4457 for all pieces of
your equipment. If you are not able to prove that you owned
it before you came into the country, you will either have to
pay duty (and possibly fines) on it, but may also face
confiscation. Get the form at the Customs desk at your US
departure airport.

Remind the women on your tour that the Chinese are very
conservative in dress. Any show of skin on stage (short
skirts, sleeveless or low necklines, bare mid-riffs, even
shoes without toes) are disrespectful. Anyone wearing
questionable clothing may be asked to leave the stage, and
may jeopardize the gig.

Last, but certainly not least - and there are gobs of other
things - try not to pick an airplane that's going to crash.
An incident like that can ruin your travel experience. If
you like aggressive flying, you're gonna love the way those
Chinese military pilots handle an airplane - "Yeah, Baby!"

Of course, your tour might be perfect, and none of this will
apply. I hope that's the case.



TM





Carey Carlan wrote:

One of the groups I record may let me accompany them to China next year. I
have the usual list of travel gotchas (shots, papers, etc.) What audio
concerns do I have aside from power?

T Maki wrote in
:

(continuing..)

If you plan on setting up in normal concert recording style,
be prepared to deal with the amplified sound. You will
likely not be able to convince them to not amplify. I repeat
- YOU will not have any say over it. A Chinese with the tour
may be able to convince them, if you can communicate to
them.

Several members of the group claim to speak Chinese. No word yet on which
dialect.

Be prepared for audiences at least as rude as any you've
ever experienced here. You will endure cell phone
conversations, cigarette smoke that will put you on the
floor, crying, laughing, burping, farting, and whatever
other environmental noises. Did I mention the lighting
systems? Those millions of watts of power are controlled
through dimmers. They hum, they have fans.

Shucks, I get those here.

You will most likely not have any trouble with stage crews,
especially if you have a helpful attitude. The guys and gals
on stage want to learn, and if you make an effort to deal
with them as fellow professionals, and show them something
they might not know (make something up if you have to - show
them the proper way to coil a cable or something), you will
make friends. Keep your eyes open for opportunities to help.
If possible, do a walk-thru ahead of time wherever you can.
More than likely, your buses will arrive 1 hour before
curtain, and you will have no time to set up, let alone
argue with the house personnel. Just get in there, set up
your stuff, and roll tape. You're not going to have an
opportunity to do rehearsal tests. You'd better be able to
scope out a room, stage, and setup in the time it takes to
carry your equipment across the stage. They will not allow
the show to start late. You will be awestricken by some of
their theatres.

Setting up blind is a skill I have aquired over the decades. Setup on my
own can take only moments.

If you can, try not to rely on house power. If you can't run
all your gear on batteries that you take with you, you will
be in my prayers. Determine the number of batteries that you
think you can get by with. Triple that number.

Everything electrical is in one rack.
Triple that number? No charging available?

Do not under any circumstances allow your equipment to get
out of your hands or out of your sight. DO NOT.

No armed guards allowed, huh?

Assume nothing. Do not assume that you will have any kind of
load in or load out help. Do not assume that anything is
going to work the way you expect. Do not demand anything.
You have to have the attitude that what happens, happens;
that what you get is what you get.

My gear in and out will be small time by comparison to the orchestra. 4
double basses, full complement of percussion, 50 or so music stands. I
suppose we'll have to carry chairs as well.

snip currency notes
snip deportment notes
snip passport notes

If you fly domestically, be prepared to be fleeced for
extraordinary overweight baggage charges. I nearly had to
pay $300.00 for a case not much bigger than an Anvil
briefcase and two collapsed mic stands in plastic tubes.

Once again, they will need some significant transport. I'll be
piggybacking on that.

Do not fail to fill out Customs Form 4457 for all pieces of
your equipment. If you are not able to prove that you owned
it before you came into the country, you will either have to
pay duty (and possibly fines) on it, but may also face
confiscation. Get the form at the Customs desk at your US
departure airport.

I need to check on insurance coverage.

snip dress code notes
snip airplane notes

Of course, your tour might be perfect, and none of this will
apply. I hope that's the case.

I'm traveling with a group of high schoolers and their keepers. I suspect
they'll have us all on a very short leash.

Carey Carlan wrote:

Everything electrical is in one rack.
Triple that number? No charging available?

As long as you're prepared with the proper adapters. Most
modern hotels will be able to accomodate the several
different outlet types.

Do not under any circumstances allow your equipment to get
out of your hands or out of your sight. DO NOT.

No armed guards allowed, huh?

You planning on bringing some? :-)
There are armed guards, but they won't be watching your
stuff. They'll be watching you.

Assume nothing. Do not assume that you will have any kind of
load in or load out help. Do not assume that anything is
going to work the way you expect. Do not demand anything.
You have to have the attitude that what happens, happens;
that what you get is what you get.

My gear in and out will be small time by comparison to the orchestra. 4
double basses, full complement of percussion, 50 or so music stands. I
suppose we'll have to carry chairs as well.

I travelled with 140 musicians, full orchestra and chorus.
The stages were preset. One place, the instruments, the
luggage, and my recording gear didn't show up until 20
minutes into the show. Several extraordinarily talented
musicians improvised with piano and violins until the stuff
arrived. Be prepared for anything.


they will need some significant transport. I'll be
piggybacking on that.

Good luck.


I'm traveling with a group of high schoolers and their keepers. I suspect
they'll have us all on a very short leash.

A couple of other cultural notes:

Discourage as much as possible any questioning of your
Chinese national guides on issues of politics or government.
As well, don't pry too much into their personal lives. If
you travel in Beijing, and visit Tienamen Square, keep your
mouth shut and let them tell what they are allowed to tell
you, and don't press them for more, and certainly don't
comment or offer an American opinion.

And of course, tip your bus drivers well. When you see the
traffic there, and what they have to do to get around in
those cities, they will appear as gods to you. They like US
dollars - be generous, especially if you have the same
driver(s) through the whole tour. Make sure you have someone
on each bus that speaks Chinese.



TM

Just curious, when were you last in China?

Al

On Sat, 02 Apr 2005 20:47:36 GMT, T Maki wrote:

(continuing..)

If you plan on setting up in normal concert recording style,
be prepared to deal with the amplified sound. You will
likely not be able to convince them to not amplify. I repeat
- YOU will not have any say over it. A Chinese with the tour
may be able to convince them, if you can communicate to
them.

Be prepared for audiences at least as rude as any you've
ever experienced here. You will endure cell phone
conversations, cigarette smoke that will put you on the
floor, crying, laughing, burping, farting, and whatever
other environmental noises. Did I mention the lighting
systems? Those millions of watts of power are controlled
through dimmers. They hum, they have fans.

You will most likely not have any trouble with stage crews,
especially if you have a helpful attitude. The guys and gals
on stage want to learn, and if you make an effort to deal
with them as fellow professionals, and show them something
they might not know (make something up if you have to - show
them the proper way to coil a cable or something), you will
make friends. Keep your eyes open for opportunities to help.
If possible, do a walk-thru ahead of time wherever you can.
More than likely, your buses will arrive 1 hour before
curtain, and you will have no time to set up, let alone
argue with the house personnel. Just get in there, set up
your stuff, and roll tape. You're not going to have an
opportunity to do rehearsal tests. You'd better be able to
scope out a room, stage, and setup in the time it takes to
carry your equipment across the stage. They will not allow
the show to start late. You will be awestricken by some of
their theatres.

If you can, try not to rely on house power. If you can't run
all your gear on batteries that you take with you, you will
be in my prayers. Determine the number of batteries that you
think you can get by with. Triple that number.

Do not under any circumstances allow your equipment to get
out of your hands or out of your sight. DO NOT.

Assume nothing. Do not assume that you will have any kind of
load in or load out help. Do not assume that anything is
going to work the way you expect. Do not demand anything.
You have to have the attitude that what happens, happens;
that what you get is what you get.

Take four times the amount of money you think you will need.
Do not take Amex travelers checks. Take US cash. Do not get
fleeced at the money exchange counters. Look for the best
exchange rates. Be careful of taking old Yuan as against new
Yuan. Old Yuan is worthless, but you will have it pushed at
you. It may not appear obvious to you or the people on your
tour, but the Chinese will have no trouble recognizing you
as a tourist. Learn the details of the Chinese monetary
system - as much of the currency denominations as will fit
in your brain. Be prepared to do the math for lots of people
on the tour. (Just how hard is it to figure out that eight
Yuan is a dollar? Two Yuan is a quarter - figure it out...)
You will have those experiences, especially with the
sourvenir booths at The Great Wall or The Temple of Heaven.

Remember that you will be going to a Communist country. You
will have no rights there. Do not push your luck with any
police or other official. You must have a "Please, Sir;
Excuse me, Sir; Thank you, Sir; Whatever you say, Sir"
attitude.

Make excellent color copies of your passport and put a copy
in every piece of luggage and every equipment case. (I
scanned mine and printed it - almost looked real). If at all
possible, DO NOT allow your passport out of your sight. If
you have to surrender your passport, know exactly who has it
and when you will get it back.

If you fly domestically, be prepared to be fleeced for
extraordinary overweight baggage charges. I nearly had to
pay $300.00 for a case not much bigger than an Anvil
briefcase and two collapsed mic stands in plastic tubes.

Do not fail to fill out Customs Form 4457 for all pieces of
your equipment. If you are not able to prove that you owned
it before you came into the country, you will either have to
pay duty (and possibly fines) on it, but may also face
confiscation. Get the form at the Customs desk at your US
departure airport.

Remind the women on your tour that the Chinese are very
conservative in dress. Any show of skin on stage (short
skirts, sleeveless or low necklines, bare mid-riffs, even
shoes without toes) are disrespectful. Anyone wearing
questionable clothing may be asked to leave the stage, and
may jeopardize the gig.

Last, but certainly not least - and there are gobs of other
things - try not to pick an airplane that's going to crash.
An incident like that can ruin your travel experience. If
you like aggressive flying, you're gonna love the way those
Chinese military pilots handle an airplane - "Yeah, Baby!"

Of course, your tour might be perfect, and none of this will
apply. I hope that's the case.



TM





Carey Carlan wrote:

One of the groups I record may let me accompany them to China next year. I
have the usual list of travel gotchas (shots, papers, etc.) What audio
concerns do I have aside from power?

This past September/October



TM

playon wrote:

Just curious, when were you last in China?

Al

On Sat, 02 Apr 2005 20:47:36 GMT, T Maki wrote:

(continuing..)

If you plan on setting up in normal concert recording style,
be prepared to deal with the amplified sound. You will
likely not be able to convince them to not amplify. I repeat
- YOU will not have any say over it. A Chinese with the tour
may be able to convince them, if you can communicate to
them.

Be prepared for audiences at least as rude as any you've
ever experienced here. You will endure cell phone
conversations, cigarette smoke that will put you on the
floor, crying, laughing, burping, farting, and whatever
other environmental noises. Did I mention the lighting
systems? Those millions of watts of power are controlled
through dimmers. They hum, they have fans.

You will most likely not have any trouble with stage crews,
especially if you have a helpful attitude. The guys and gals
on stage want to learn, and if you make an effort to deal
with them as fellow professionals, and show them something
they might not know (make something up if you have to - show
them the proper way to coil a cable or something), you will
make friends. Keep your eyes open for opportunities to help.
If possible, do a walk-thru ahead of time wherever you can.
More than likely, your buses will arrive 1 hour before
curtain, and you will have no time to set up, let alone
argue with the house personnel. Just get in there, set up
your stuff, and roll tape. You're not going to have an
opportunity to do rehearsal tests. You'd better be able to
scope out a room, stage, and setup in the time it takes to
carry your equipment across the stage. They will not allow
the show to start late. You will be awestricken by some of
their theatres.

If you can, try not to rely on house power. If you can't run
all your gear on batteries that you take with you, you will
be in my prayers. Determine the number of batteries that you
think you can get by with. Triple that number.

Do not under any circumstances allow your equipment to get
out of your hands or out of your sight. DO NOT.

Assume nothing. Do not assume that you will have any kind of
load in or load out help. Do not assume that anything is
going to work the way you expect. Do not demand anything.
You have to have the attitude that what happens, happens;
that what you get is what you get.

Take four times the amount of money you think you will need.
Do not take Amex travelers checks. Take US cash. Do not get
fleeced at the money exchange counters. Look for the best
exchange rates. Be careful of taking old Yuan as against new
Yuan. Old Yuan is worthless, but you will have it pushed at
you. It may not appear obvious to you or the people on your
tour, but the Chinese will have no trouble recognizing you
as a tourist. Learn the details of the Chinese monetary
system - as much of the currency denominations as will fit
in your brain. Be prepared to do the math for lots of people
on the tour. (Just how hard is it to figure out that eight
Yuan is a dollar? Two Yuan is a quarter - figure it out...)
You will have those experiences, especially with the
sourvenir booths at The Great Wall or The Temple of Heaven.

Remember that you will be going to a Communist country. You
will have no rights there. Do not push your luck with any
police or other official. You must have a "Please, Sir;
Excuse me, Sir; Thank you, Sir; Whatever you say, Sir"
attitude.

Make excellent color copies of your passport and put a copy
in every piece of luggage and every equipment case. (I
scanned mine and printed it - almost looked real). If at all
possible, DO NOT allow your passport out of your sight. If
you have to surrender your passport, know exactly who has it
and when you will get it back.

If you fly domestically, be prepared to be fleeced for
extraordinary overweight baggage charges. I nearly had to
pay $300.00 for a case not much bigger than an Anvil
briefcase and two collapsed mic stands in plastic tubes.

Do not fail to fill out Customs Form 4457 for all pieces of
your equipment. If you are not able to prove that you owned
it before you came into the country, you will either have to
pay duty (and possibly fines) on it, but may also face
confiscation. Get the form at the Customs desk at your US
departure airport.

Remind the women on your tour that the Chinese are very
conservative in dress. Any show of skin on stage (short
skirts, sleeveless or low necklines, bare mid-riffs, even
shoes without toes) are disrespectful. Anyone wearing
questionable clothing may be asked to leave the stage, and
may jeopardize the gig.

Last, but certainly not least - and there are gobs of other
things - try not to pick an airplane that's going to crash.
An incident like that can ruin your travel experience. If
you like aggressive flying, you're gonna love the way those
Chinese military pilots handle an airplane - "Yeah, Baby!"

Of course, your tour might be perfect, and none of this will
apply. I hope that's the case.



TM





Carey Carlan wrote:

One of the groups I record may let me accompany them to China next year. I
have the usual list of travel gotchas (shots, papers, etc.) What audio
concerns do I have aside from power?

Perfect advice all around. My contributions:

- Be prepared that things will NEVER go as you think they should, so you
need to relax and accept the **** happens rule.
- Make sure you have a GSM phone, and you can buy a phone card there to
activate minutes. Even grown ups get lost.
- Make a laminated visual list of "crucial sound items" like cables,
connectors, adaptors, equipment, stands, blah, blah, which you can just show
someone on site and say "Wo yow zigga!! ("I want this!", and hold up the
appropriate number of fingers. Fast clear communication.)" Easier than
trying to communicate through a translator (if you get one)
- Try to get it communicated that you need to set up early in the morning
regardless of what the organizers tell you "is plenty of time." This will
buy you the extra hours you need to almost get it right.
- Remember that nothing happens during lunch time and dinner time. Food is
the #1 priority.
- Tell the local guys to take you out for some drinking and fun. (Your
treat, but will be lots of fun)
- Enjoy the cheap massages, great food, and $1 DVDs.

"Carey Carlan" wrote in message
. 191
One of the groups I record may let me accompany them to China next
year. I have the usual list of travel gotchas (shots, papers, etc.)
What audio concerns do I have aside from power?

I know I'll need sturdier racks and better boxes for mic stands,
etc.

You might want to try asking this question over in
alt.audio.pro.live-sound.

I know a guy that was in China 4 years ago playing with a rock band.
They were given specific dos and don'ts by the agency that set up their
itinerary, and were going to be there about three months, and make a
lot of money. I don't know exactly what happened , but the bass player
ended up doing 15 months in jail for fraternizing with some local
girls, something he was specifically told they could not do.