A good friend asked me to help record a live performance his percussion group was putting on at the Chicago Symphony Center. Their vision was to swap out their instruments and rearrange their stage positions multiple times during the performance, so we came up with a plan to spot mic the ensemble across three separate setups to maintain consistency.

To achieve this, I used a wide stereo pair of Schoeps CMIT 5U shotguns in addition to the x/y stereo pair of Shure KSM-137’s center stage. I used AKG-414’s set to different pickup patterns to spot mic single or multiple instruments wherever possible. I ran everything into a digital stagebox connected to a Dante network which I used to send the mics to a Sound Devices Scorpio recorder for a multi-track record, a vocal mix out to the house PA and the full mix to a livestream.

As someone who spends most of their time at work mixing and recording voices, I’m always looking for opportunities to mix live sound; if you’re looking to record a live performance, get in touch!