REASON PIANOS MANUAL
3
Introduction
Acoustic piano recording is a true art form. Every engineer has his own favorite
methods and every style of music requires its own unique approach. For exam-
ple, rock piano is typically recorded by placing the mics inside the open piano lid
- close to where the hammers hit the strings - as this produces a bright and per-
cussive sound. For jazz piano, on the other hand, you'll want a more mellow and
warm tone - therefore you move away from the hammers and instead focus on
the rear of the piano and the soundboard, perhaps including a bit of room ambi-
ence as well.
Since the recording method is largely dictated by the type of music, sampling a
piano presents a dilemma: You can't squeeze a rock or pop piano sound out of
samples recorded with a jazz piano approach, and vice versa. One could of
course sample the piano employing two or three of the more common mic place-
ments, but again this limits the control and flexibility, and the end user will have
to use EQ:ing and other tweaks to approximate the desired sound - whereas the
engineer in the live recording situation would simply switch to other mics or po-
sition them differently.
Our solution was to record the pianos using ten microphones, covering practi-
cally every way in which a piano might be recorded. This allows you to be the en-
gineer and to pick and mix your favorite microphone combinations. We opted for
two mono mics and four stereo pairs: Two tube mics close to the hammers, two
pressure zone mics on the floor, two vintage tube mics capturing the room ambi-
ence, two vintage tube mics in the traditional "jazz mic" positions, one dynamic
mic under the soundboard bottom and one ribbon mic placed five feet out from
the waist of the grand piano (or the back of the upright piano).
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Summary of Contents for Reason Refill Series
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