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An open sound reinforcement approach in
defiance of “land-locked” audio laws
By Gary Baldassari
T
he “Jazz Cruise” has been producing floating jazz parties
for 20 years, beginning onboard the S/S Norway, and now
on the Holland America line. The annual presentation,
originally created by Anita Berry, offers a combination of top-
name jazz entertainment and exotic ports of call that has proven
very successful.
At the same time, providing sound reinforcement for the Jazz
Cruise has presented challenges. In addition to diverse and some-
times very difficult venues, the mix engineers aren’t jazz aficiona-
dos, and with three stages providing a minimum of 12 hours of
jazz per day over the course of 10 days, this problem is magnified.
Many mixers seem to lose the drive to do their best long before
their shift is up. However, the music director for the most recent
cruise, Cherrie Scheets, helped improve the situation by booking
a more diverse mix of entertainers, which seemed to lessen the
usual psychosis that occurs after 10 days of mixing.
Departing the port at Fort Lauderdale, Florida aboard the ms
Maasdam, with a lot of jazz and open seas ahead, the sound rein-
forcement team realized that if we didn’t follow the so-called laws
,
of “ballroom acoustic physics” it could really be an interesting gig.
And why not? After all, we were at sea! Thus it was agreed to put
away our tightly shaped microphone and loudspeaker plans that
had always worked well in the past. Instead, we opted to open up
the entire field by using mostly omnidirectional and wide-pattern
cardioid microphones, coupled with conical loudspeaker disper-
sion - all in defiance of “land-locked” audio laws!
The three main showrooms hosting the performances were
very diverse. Thus while our mic designs and approaches could
be, and in fact were, very similar for each stage, the sound rein-
forcement approach for each room was quite different.
Photos by Nils Warren
May 2003 Live Sound International 43
SIMPLE METHODS
The Rembrandt Lounge offers a classic
theatre design, seating about 500, and
the space presents a good acoustic sig-
nature without a sound system.
Nonetheless, a house system was nec-
essary and indeed deployed, anchored
by Meyer Sound UPA full-range loud-
speakers installed in the proscenium
arch and hung in a center cluster.
Compact UM-1P ultra-compact loud-
speakers, employed for delay and spot
needs, proved more than adequate.
No supplemental system was needed.
The large musical groups - each
with more than 20 members - featured
in this venue included the Count Basie Frank Capp and Juggernaut at the Rembrandt.
Orchestra, directed by Grover Mitchell
and featuring Butch Miles on drums, as
well as Frank Capp and the Juggernaut 1250 Flamingo stands left and right, wide cardioid (it uses the same cap-
with vocalist Barbara Morrison. Several nicely and fully captured the entire sule as the DPA standard 4015 mic), so
new DPA microphone capsules were blend of band. the single mic was able to capture the
used at the stage. Two DPA 4023 com- We decided to mic the big band as entire piano sound. As the system was
pact cardioid mics, placed on DPA CAP an orchestra. The same blending phi- mono, the ORTF approach, though it
losophy applies and saves a sounded wonderful, was unnecessary.
lot of time in the changeover. The lid on the piano was off for Count
In addition, this was much Basie, and opened on its short stick
simpler than putting a mic on for Frank Capp. The 4028 didn’t care.
every single player/instru- For certain other acts, new DPA
ment, and the results proved 4041 large diaphragm mics worked
pleasing. very well in capturing overall sound
With the Count Basie on stage. Specifically, we noted that
Orchestra, solo mics were 4041 offers two noted advantages; it
positioned out front, while for intensifies the sound without equal-
Frank Capp, a solo mic was ization and also homogenizes the
placed in each instrument sec- sound without compression. It’s a
tion. A side note is that the characteristic that must be heard to be
Flamingo stands (both 1250 understood. If you place a single 4041
and model 750, which is small- into a mic grid, these attributes
er) offer a high-tech yet ele- become apparent.
gant look, and it never hurts to Other than a pair of equalizers for
be aesthetically - in addition to the wedge monitors that we supplied,
sonically - pleasing. and a spare use of the reverb unit in
For capturing the Yamaha the ship’s system, we used no exotic
grand piano, the initial processing. The console here was the
approach was two DPA 4028 ship’s equipment, including a Gamble
compact wide cardioids EX 56-input console.
placed on a pair of Flamingo
1250 stands in ORTF stereo IS THIS THING ON?
mode, six inches off the The Ocean Bar, asymmetrical in
strings and 12 inches back shape, stands in sharp contrast to the
from the hammers, as well as Rembrandt Lounge, with plenty of
parallel to them. But we real- marble and alabaster surfaces creating
ized early on that only one a “reverb chamber” effect. With a
4028 was needed to cover the capacity of 150, it’s a relatively open
Flamingo mic stands with DPA 4028's on a Leslie cabinet. entire piano. The 4028 is a space. The groups playing here were
44 Live Sound International May 2003
never more than a septet in size. We
decided to stick our necks out a bit by
electing to use Tannoy i6 MP powered
Dual Concentric loudspeakers for
both front of house and stage monitor
applications.
The i6 MP is a fixed "contractor
based" product, offering a 90-degree
conical pattern and using the same
drivers as the Tannoy System 600 stu-
dio monitor. They're not really intend-
ed as a portable sound reinforcement
speaker, and were new to us in this
application. One i6 MP was set stage
right on a mic stand, another was set on
a little wall running upstage left to near-
ly center stage, covering the “center” of
the room, and the third was facing from A look at the more open stage micing approach.
stage left to that part of the room. The
intended effect, largely attained, was of
a listening room with perfect articula-
Recording the Eric Allison Quartet at the Crow’s Nest tion. No subs were deemed necessary.
These loudspeakers worked quite
by Gary Faller well in this application, with their 90-
The recording of the Eric Allison Quartet, produced by Allison and the group, was degrees conical dispersion completely
done live over a three-day period. The quartet used the following mic placement into covering the listening area, while the
a Midas Venice 240 console: response, as desired for an often sub-
Piano: DPA 4003 with DPA preamp line out to the Midas tle form like jazz, proved clear and
Bass: BSS AR-133 active direct box for pickup, DPA 4015 accurate. This system sailed through
wide cardioid placed two feet away peaks while also being capable of
Drums: DPA 4015 between the snare, rack tom, and floor tom attaining a very intimate and dynamic
Saxophone: DPA 4021 cardioid sound. After a few minutes of mixing,
Vocals and Flute: DPA 4011 A-B stereo recording with a pair of they blended so well with the live
DPA 4004s (took the line out of the DPA 130-volt instruments that one couldn’t really
preamp into the Midas) tell they were providing output.
I placed the A-B record mics halfway between the ceiling and floor, with the left The mic complement on stage
4004 directed at the piano and the right 4004 focused on the drum kit. Aux 1 and 2 included a DPA 4004 omni on another
busses were used prefader to feed the DAT recorder. (Allison carries a DAT on the road Yamaha grand piano with its lid wide
and records as many live performances as possible for archival and material review. open. We used a Rowi clamp to attach
Some material makes it to CD release.) this mic to the frame of the piano on
The live A-B stereo record was done while all of the DPA mics were in a full FOH the bass string side, three quarters of
mix. The depth and stereo image from the A-B DPA 4004s provided 80 percent of the the way to the end of the piano, shoot-
record mix. Very minor amounts of the close mics and Yamaha reverb return were ing across the bass and mid strings at
used, and only to tweak the record mix. This was due to the lower ceiling of the room the high string area. Two DPA 4011s
and its ambient noise. The arrangement produced a stellar recording of the band and were used on the front line for trum-
even pick up of the audience. pet, trombone, and vocal. New DPA
4015 wide cardioid mics were selected
Sound Reinforcement Crew For Jazz Cruise for all reeds, where they proved to
Gary Faller (Crow’s Nest mixing engineer) have very good reach from distances
Nils Warren (systems engineer) of one meter from the sources.
Jim Fay (Rembrandt Room, mixing engineer) The 4015 has the normal proximity
Morten Støve (Rembrandt Room mixing engineer, co-owner of DPA Microphones) boost that usually occurs at 10 cen-
Charlie Bertini (stage assistant) timeters instead of from one meter
Gary Baldassari (Ocean Bar mixing engineer) away. This allows two musicians to
share a mic and blend naturally. These
May 2003 Live Sound International 45
mics “warmed and fattened” the sax
sound, including alto and soprano,
while not muddying up the house mix.
The response of the tenor sax with this
mic was astonishing. (Note that if
you’re using monitors, be aware of the
bass boost that the 4015 produces.)
With only a single monitor for
vocals needed on this stage (thanks to
the live acoustics), we didn’t hear
enough to be able to elaborate on the
effect the 4015 has on monitors for
brass. An interesting side note is that
certain brass players, such as Art A compact, stand-mounted Tannoy i6 MP, doing its thing.
Hoyle, Houston Perso and Terell
Stafford, discovered the value of this
room’s acoustic phenomena and esting contrast with the Ocean Bar. processor on the mic channels. The
played into it very effectively, produc- Groups ranged from trios to quintets, Gold Foil Plate preset of this unit
ing a sound akin to a plate reverb. and more on jam nights, or as guest helped overcome the acoustic dead-
The console here was an Allen & performers would pop in. There was ness, opening up sound a bit more to
Heath WZ16:2DX, with equalization a lot of cross-pollination as the per- give it a very natural signature.
from dbx dual parametrics and a sin- formers would occasionally drift Two Tannoy i6 MPs were used for
gle TC Electronic M2000 effects between the venues when they monitors, one on the floor on a short
processor for a hint of “verb”. weren’t otherwise engaged and sit in. heavy-based mic stand pointing up, like
Two DPA 4011s were positioned a wedge, and one on top of the bass rig,
INTERESTING CONTRASTS for high and low brass downstage used as needed for the rear of stage.
The third venue, the Crow's Nest, with center left and right on stands with Again, a gutsy premise. Both the sound
a capacity of about 250, is probably boom arms moved as needed, with a team and artists using these monitors,
best described as an anachoic cham- single DPA 4015 for wind instruments. including Carrie Smith, Marlena Shaw
ber with glass windows. The room's Results were very similar to those and Mary Stallings, really appreciated
signature is dead and tight. We used a found with the Ocean Bar, with the their clarity and the fact that their wider
very similar mic complement and exception of the insertion of a TC dispersion allows a singer to move
approach, which presented an inter- Electronic M2000 studio effects more freely about the stage while still
receiving a present signal. Just a bit of
equalization was needed for stability,
and that was it. The console here was a
Midas Venice 240. Other speakers
included Mackie SRM450s.
We’ve already finished specifying
the systems for next year’s Jazz Cruise
on Holland America, this time to be
held on the ms Zaandam, departing in
early January from Port Canaveral,
Florida. Two more stages will be
added, for a grand total of five, includ-
ing the 217-seat Wajang Theatre. It’ll
require more audio crew, and, of
course, more gear! ■
Gary Baldassari is a studio, live sound, and broadcast
recording engineer with particular expertise in sur-
round sound recording and broadcast audio. He’s also
a consultant for DPA Microphones. Nils Warren con-
tributed to this report and supplied the photos. Also,
The audio crew relaxing at a stop in Oocho Rios, Jamaica. Left to right – Gary Baldassari, Gary our thanks to Charles Conte of Big Media Circus for his
Faller, Nils Warren, Morten Stove. help with this article.
46 Live Sound International May 2003
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