Mic Ideal Solution for Unique Performance by The Swell Season
AUSTIN, TX, JANUARY 19, 2009 — For over 33 years the PBS series, “Austin City Limits” has presented viewers with intimate access to some of the industry’s top musical talent. During its recent taping of The Swell Season (the musical group featured in the independent film, Once), the veteran crew faced a unique recording challenge that could have taken away from the intimate feel of the performance. Holophone®’s H2-PRO surround microphone, however, was able to maintain the true-to-life feeling that these broadcasts are known for — all in true-to-life surround sound.
Taped on a soundstage at the KLRU studio in Austin, TX and broadcast in 5.1 using a Dolby-E stream, the crew typically has less than one day to set up audio and perform a sound check for the concert/taping. The main goal of each “Austin City Limits” production is to uphold the authenticity of the live concert. The crew even goes to such extremes as to tape over the studio camera lights so the artists play to the audience, instead of the camera. However, in the case of taping for The Swell Season concert, there was an element of the live show that was difficult to transcend to a television broadcast.
“At the end of our sound check, [lead singer] Glen Hansard dropped a huge surprise on us. He walked to the edge of the stage, away from the local microphone range, and said ‘oh, by the way, I have this one song that I do without the PA, without the microphones and I just play to the crowd,’” says David Hough, audio director for “Austin City Limits.” “Everyone looked at me and said ‘well, do you have a microphone that we can use to pick up Glen’s performance?’ I contacted Omega Broadcast Group and was able to secure a Holophone H2-PRO and installed it quite quickly. It was perfect for this situation.”
The H2-PRO was hung from the lighting grid and was situated at front row center. The mic was positioned at the proper vantage point to receive exactly what the audience was hearing. Through the mic’s patented design its eight elements are set up to capture audio the same way the human head does. As a result, the H2-PRO’s 5.1 capabilities were able to capture the true feeling of Hansard’s performance.
“What’s interesting about the recordings from the Holophone is that they were very much as if I were sitting there in the middle of the room,” Hough continues. “I heard everything and the imaging was remarkable. That’s the trick, to just have the image fall right into place, right out of the box.”
The Swell Season “Austin City Limits” broadcast will air on PBS January 31.
About Holophone
Holophone is committed to developing and commercializing products that use patented 3-D audio technology to bring the physical experience of “really being there” to a new level for all audio and visual productions by professionals and hobbyists. Holophone provides customers and business partners with industry-leading product and service quality. Holophone is firmly dedicated to providing outstanding value, excellence in service, and product performance.
Holophone® surround-sound microphones are patented audio recording devices designed specifically to address the challenges audio professionals face in capturing, recording and broadcasting multichannel surround sound. Developed by Rising Sun Productions in Toronto, Canada, Holophone systems effortlessly capture discrete signals that are ultra-realistic and provide the most accurate spatiality, audio imaging, and directionality of any recording device. Entirely compatible with all audio mixing, encoding, and playback systems, Holophone also enhances mono and stereo mixes. Holophone systems provide the perfect front end for all professional and consumer audio applications including HDTV broadcasting, standard broadcasting of live sporting and music events, feature film location recording, and studio recording for music, films, and worship applications. Holophone surround sound technology has been used for numerous national and international broadcasts, including the Grammy Awards and NFL Super Bowl. As a scalable system, Holophone technology is also available for license to the consumer electronics industry.
