Recording a choir....well sort of?

[DoctorStar]

Good evening,

 

So the background is, I need to record a virtual choir.....we are late on that train I know! We are live in a school but can only record a few children at a time in their bubbles. I have not done audio recording before.

 

So my plan is.....two mics.....into audio interface....into Pro-Tools First. This works on the desk, at least for me droning into a mic.

 

Then, play backing track, record bubble 1, save, repeat for bubble two, wash, rinse, repeat until all student groups are recorded. Check alignment.....mix a bit....bounce.....voila! We are shooting a separate video so sound and vision do not need to match.

 

So I guess I'm asking one question and begging a second.

 

1. Should I play the backing track from Pro-Tools through the audio interface and into a monitor speaker or from a separate source through a monitor speaker or try and get the 1 in 10 out headphone splitter to work and go full on Band Aid. Will it make a difference?

 

2. Experienced heads.......am I missing anything? I'm learning this on the hoof and will probably only get one chance. Any useful tips?

 

 

In my head I'm already preparing to record the best few students 3 times each and make the choir out of a multitrack.

 

KR and BW

 

Doc

[Junior8]

I'm sure it will work after a fashion but what on earth is the point of all this work for something that is entirely synthetic? Edited November 30, 2020 by Junior8

[TomHoward]

We've been doing this plenty. If you put the backing track in the Tools session, and play it out from there as you record, then with any luck your recording will align up with your backing track and you won't have to align it afterwards.

Create enough tracks for all the bubbles you need to record before you start, and you can record them all into the same Tools file and you won't have to do any importing etc.

 

We've found if you keep the monitor low enough, use a single monitor in the middle and space the mics wider away from it the spill from the monitor into the recording isn't too bad. Especially if you are putting the backing track back in in the end - if it's a guide track that isn't intended to be used in the final mix/bounce then it might be more of a problem. Headphones are more of a Covid headache anyway sharing them between bubbles.

 

It helps if you are recording in a fairly dead room, or put some curtains or a soft surface behind them, so the sound of the backing track being directed toward the singers is somewhat absorbed rather than being reflected back into the mics.

[DoctorStar]

Thank you Tom,

 

Good advice on the monitoring.....just what I needed.

 

BW

 

Doc

[ninjadingle]

Bit of a plug for a project a friend of mine has been working on - Choirless. Takes the individual takes of choir recordings and mixes it together, including video. Also does funky stuff like panning the channels depending on where the video is on the screen.

 

Currently in Beta but looking for new testers - send them a message!