Introduction 

The purpose of this guide is to provide all you need as a music director to get you started with recording and amplifying your orchestras. For the purpose of this guide, an Orchestra refers to an ensemble made up primarily of “string” instruments.

The guide is broken down into two sections, each with three Tiers to help you get started regardless of the equipment you may have or plan to get. Since most Orchestras perform concerts, the main focus will be on capturing and recording your ensembles regardless of where they may be performing. However, occasionally there are situations where you need to amplify your ensemble such as an outdoor performance or festival, this guide will also help you get started with amplifying your ensemble. 

At the bottom of this guide you will also find suggestions for recording and amplifying specialty orchestras such as quartets and full symphony orchestras.

Recording

As music directors, we all understand how much work it takes to put a concert cycle together. There's finding the right repertoire for your students, score study and preparation, and of course the countless hours both you and your ensemble have put in both in and out of rehearsal to get there. What better way to immortalize such a culmination of work than with a recording, you can share it with your students, their families, archive it, and of course use it as a teaching tool to help you all improve. The best part, it's easier than you might think. 

All tiers of recording involve having a “main array” that is placed towards the front of the ensemble, usually close to where the conductor stands. As the tiers progress, additional mics are added to better capture the ensemble. One thing to note is that orchestras are omnidirectional compared to wind ensembles and choirs. Because of that, most of the mic placement suggestions will encourage you to have enough space between the ensemble and the microphones in order to allow the individual sounds to blend together. 

Tier 2

Tier 2 uses more common stereo recording techniques as the main array is recorded to a mixer board, audio interface or external recorder. 

Equipment:

• Audio Mixer

• Audio interface (min 2in/2out)

• External Recorder (min 2 XLR inputs)

• Microphones (omni or cardioid depending on the technique used) 

Techniques and Placement

XY (Coincident)

XY is a great way of recording small to medium sized ensembles. You get both a focused ensemble center while still recording the left and right sides of the ensembles. For this method you will:

• Need two Cardioid microphones angled 90 degrees toward each other

  • (Can be mounted on two separate stands or on one stand using a stereo bar)

• Place the array a few feet back from the conductor which would be about six feet back from the orchestra.

• Place the array 10-12 feet in the air

• Aim the microphones toward the middle of the ensemble

*A high quality recorder such as the Zoom H4n or H6 can be used for XY configurations as well.

** This method can also be flown/suspended if you want a more permanent solution. 

Blumlein Array (Coincident)

A Blumlein Array uses two crossed microphones angled 90 degrees similar to XY but uses bidirectional microphones instead of Cardioid microphones. Blumlein arrays are great as they capture both the ensemble as well as the reflections of the room they are in. The bass response can be adjusted as well by moving them closer or further to the orchestra. For this method you will:

• Need two bi-directional or “figure-8” microphones

• Mount them so that the capsules are crossing at a 90 degree angle.

• Place them 10-12 feet in the air

• Adjust the distance from the conductor in accordance with how much bass or “warmth” you want

** This method can also be flown/suspended if you want a more permanent solution. 

ORTF(Near Coincident) 

ORTF is one of the most common near coincident methods for recording. It resembles an XY array in that the two directional microphones cross but instead of 90 degrees, they are angled 110 degrees. This method most closely resembles the human ear and allows for the instruments to appear in the sound field the same way they would before you. For this method you will:

• Need two Cardioid microphones angled 110 degrees apart.  

• Suspend microphones 10-12 feet in the air.

• Place the array a few feet behind the conductor

• Aim the microphones at the center of the ensemble.

** This method can also be flown/suspended if you want a more permanent solution. 

Tier 3

Tier 3 uses more than just two microphones in an effort to more accurately capture the ensemble. Like in tier 2, you will need to run these mics and record them to an audio mixer, audio interface or external recording device.

Equipment

• Audio Mixer

• Audio interface (min 4in)

• External Recorder (min 4 XLR inputs)

• Microphones (omni or cardioid depending on the technique used) 

Techniques and Placement

XY (Coincident)

Exactly the same thing used in Tier 2 but can be expanded with outriggers (side microphones) in order to get a wider stereo field. In order to do this, you will need:

• Additional two cardioid microphones  

• Each outrigger is placed on its own stand 

• Outriggers are placed at the same height as the main XY and 6-10 feet in both directions from the main array.

• Aim the microphones toward the middle of the ensemble and pan hard left and hard right.

*A high quality recorder such as the Zoom H4n or H6 can be used for XY configurations as well, with additional microphones added.

** This method can also be flown/suspended if you want a more permanent solution. 

Blumlein Array (Coincident)

Follow all steps indicated in Tier 2, with the addition of two outriggers. 

• Add one omnidirectional microphone at each side of the main array

• Place them all at the same height as the main array

• Place them 10-12 feet in the air

• Adjust the distance from the conductor in accordance with how much bass or “warmth” you want

** This method can also be flown/suspended if you want a more permanent solution.