Hey everyone,

OK, so this morning I got into a standard problem that happens
not terribly often but still quite regularly. We were doing a
sound check of a couple of drama people with lav mics, and it
was time to check the mic for Drama Player #1. OK, Drama
Player #1, time to check your mic...

DP #1: "check, check"
[ silence ]
[ more silence ]
me: "keep talking"
DP #1: "check"
[ you guessed, it silence ]
[ and now, just to round things out, a tad more silence ]

Since outbursts of "IF YOU DON'T TALK, DAMMIT, HOW CAN I HEAR HOW
YOUR VOICE SOUNDS THROUGH THE MIC?!" are probably inappropriate
(especially in church), what can be done?

Experienced performers I've known often are able to make up
something (even if it's boring, like "check, check, check, check,
check, check, 1 2 3, check, 1 2 3, check check check check check"),
but apparently some folks just don't have it in 'em.

I've tried asking things like "What was the worst car you ever
owned?", which works better, but still not that great.

Any ideas?

- Logan

Since outbursts of "IF YOU DON'T TALK, DAMMIT, HOW CAN I HEAR HOW
YOUR VOICE SOUNDS THROUGH THE MIC?!" are probably inappropriate
(especially in church), what can be done?

\
ask them to read for you
in church reading scripture works well
George

Logan wrote
I've tried asking things like "What was the worst car you ever
owned?", which works better, but still not that great.
Any ideas?

Asking them to tell you about there worst car is not the best thing to request.
How about asking them to start going over some of there lines? That is what
your going to be doing in the show right?
Don't try and make things harder than they already are, keep it simple.

I ask the talent lots of questions like "what did you have for breakfast" or
"did you have trouble finding a parking space?" etc., anything to keep them
relaxed and engaged. I also have them read any text that may be in front of
them.

If the talent has headphones , make sure they have good sound in their cans.
People like to hear themselves talk, so if they cant hear themselves, they
wont
be as talkative. Same goes for the talkback mic, if they cant hear you well,
then
things get choppy.

"Logan Shaw" wrote in message
...
Hey everyone,

OK, so this morning I got into a standard problem that happens
not terribly often but still quite regularly. We were doing a
sound check of a couple of drama people with lav mics, and it
was time to check the mic for Drama Player #1. OK, Drama
Player #1, time to check your mic...

DP #1: "check, check"
[ silence ]
[ more silence ]
me: "keep talking"
DP #1: "check"
[ you guessed, it silence ]
[ and now, just to round things out, a tad more silence ]

Since outbursts of "IF YOU DON'T TALK, DAMMIT, HOW CAN I HEAR HOW
YOUR VOICE SOUNDS THROUGH THE MIC?!" are probably inappropriate
(especially in church), what can be done?

Experienced performers I've known often are able to make up
something (even if it's boring, like "check, check, check, check,
check, check, 1 2 3, check, 1 2 3, check check check check check"),
but apparently some folks just don't have it in 'em.

I've tried asking things like "What was the worst car you ever
owned?", which works better, but still not that great.

Any ideas?

- Logan

"George" wrote in message
ask them to read for you
in church reading scripture works well
George

yeah, but then you'd prolly get this lovely monotone voice to go with it.

Adair

"Adair Winter" wrote in message
m...
"George" wrote in message
ask them to read for you
in church reading scripture works well
George

yeah, but then you'd prolly get this lovely monotone voice to go with it.

Adair

Um, if they're drama players, why not have them recite lines?

Matt Leonhardt

Logan Shaw wrote in message
...

I've tried asking things like "What was the worst car you ever
owned?", which works better, but still not that great.

I've always had good luck asking people to describe what they had for
breakfast that morning. Except for the unfortunate souls who don't eat
breakfast, that works most of the time.

Peace,
Paul

Logan Shaw wrote:

OK, so this morning I got into a standard problem that happens
not terribly often but still quite regularly. We were doing a
sound check of a couple of drama people with lav mics, and it
was time to check the mic for Drama Player #1. OK, Drama
Player #1, time to check your mic...

DP #1: "check, check"
[ silence ]
[ more silence ]
me: "keep talking"
DP #1: "check"
[ you guessed, it silence ]
[ and now, just to round things out, a tad more silence ]

Since outbursts of "IF YOU DON'T TALK, DAMMIT, HOW CAN I HEAR HOW
YOUR VOICE SOUNDS THROUGH THE MIC?!" are probably inappropriate
(especially in church), what can be done?

You do the same thing that one would do if mic checking for a singer:
you ask them to read some of their material into the mic. It really is
that easy. You act like you're in charge and that you expect them to
help get this show on the road.

--
ha

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NNTP-Posting-Date: Mon, 01 Mar 2004 19:46:48 EST
Date: Tue, 02 Mar 2004 00:46:48 GMT
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On 2004-03-01 (Raymond) said:
I've tried asking things like "What was the worst car you ever
owned?", which works better, but still not that great.
Any ideas?
Asking them to tell you about there worst car is not the best thing
to request. How about asking them to start going over some of there
lines? That is what your going to be doing in the show right?
Don't try and make things harder than they already are, keep it
simple.

Amen brother. ASk the performer or presenter to just rehearse through
whatever it is they're going to do once.

DUring sessions where I'm trying to dial in a drum sound I'll ask the
drummer to play down the first tune the ensemble plans to record.

I don't have any trouble there. THe trouble I have is with the person
who should be an accustomed public speaker who won't use the
microphone properly. hmmm gonna have to work on our new interim
pastor on that at church. I'm part of the church choir, and after
years of loud bandstands etc. I lose her if she leaves the mic. I
only can hear her at all during the sermons if she stays on mic
because I get a little bit off the back of the speaker cab on the
choir loft side. WHen she did her audition she was right down in the
aisle in front of the front pew and I commented that our choir is
mostly older folks and some of us might have hearing difficulties if
she left the mic.

Just encourage them to do what they're going to do during the
performance or presentation. THey might appreciate a dry run of a
difficult passage.

THis frame of mind has helped me with performers of all types to get
comfortable. THe one that gets me is the convention where you've got
the local mayor senator etc. who's supposed to speak to the assemblage
and goes off mic as soon as he can hear himself. IT's amazing how
many folks who are regular public speakers don't have a clue how sound
reinforcement is supposed to work.

A few years ago I did a fundraiser run for a local chapter of the
American Cancer society back in the midwest. A local dignitary was
supposed to read the names of cancer victims from the area who had
died over the last year. Occasionally during the ceremony a local
singer would sing to prerecorded backing tracks on tape. I had to
back up and regroup and mix monitors from foh by the time of this
final ceremony and that made things interesting. My original plan was
to have my lady dealing with monitors and the tape deck while I just
dealt with foh.

THe long and short of it: THe dignitary would fade off mic as soon as
he could hear himself in the front wedges. SInce I was running
monitors off a post fader aux I had to drop that level every time the
dignitary did his thing and quickly reset it for mister entertainer
when he sang along with his cassette tape. Mr. dignitary would let
himself be heard by everybody in this football stadium in a natural
bowl as long as he couldn't hear himself through the stage monitors.




Richard Webb
Electric Spider Productions
REplace anything before the @ symbol with elspider for real email

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