Article

Thursday, January 12, 2012

Working Sound Reinforcement In The Wonderful World Of Celtic Music

As this genre grows in popularity, more and more audio engineers will be exposed to it for the first time, so it's helpful to know what to expect and how to approach Celtic music

It is not usual to encounter an entirely new musical genre, nor is it unusual not to have a clue what to do with it.

And that’s exactly what some in the live audio community are encountering with the burgeoning Celtic music scene.

Historically, Celtic music has been around a lot longer than America itself. In fact, Celtic music is the roots of bluegrass.

Irish and Scottish immigrants brought their traditional folk music with them and several generations later, it morphed into bluegrass in Appalachia and spread all over the south and east.

Somehow, most folks missed the fact that it came from across the water and assumed it was born here.

All that is changing, as is Celtic music itself. The Celtic community has always had its traditional folk music but only small samplings of it ever leaked out into the general public.

The change started in the British Isles with the folk revival of the mid 1970s and finally made its way to the US when, in 1995, Riverdance exploded onto the scene. The American public had never heard (or seen) anything like that before and tens of thousands of people really, really loved it.

It captured the imaginations of young girls who flocked to the dance studios to learn how to step dance. But more importantly, it gave musicians all over America something new and fresh, which they’ve now taken to their hearts and made their own.

There is something for everyone in the Celtic genre, which I break down into five categories: traditional folk music, bluegrass, balladeers, rock, and pipes and drums.

WHAT TO EXPECT
As these festivals multiply, it becomes more and more likely that audio engineers will be exposed to it for the first time, and thus it might be helpful to know what to expect and how to approach Celtic music.

We worked our first Celtic festival in November of 2001, when we were hired to do their main music stage because we had a reputation within the regional bluegrass community for knowing the difference between electric and acoustic instruments.

The festival was a real eye opener for us. There were a number of instruments we’d never seen or even heard of before. And how the heck do you mic a bagpipe?

But it was immediately evident that this music is predominately acoustic… except for the wailing rock bands.

The review of our work at the end of the festival was immediate. We were hired for the next year, to do all four stages.

In fact, we’ve regularly added new Celtic festivals in the region.

The musicians within the Celtic community are a tight-knit group and word gets around quickly which festivals have “the good sound.”

The festival coordinators really care what the music sounds like because, unlike most run-of-the-mill festivals, the public comes specifically to hear the music and they have a critical ear. They actually sit in chairs and listen.

And more than once, I’ve seen them confront the boisterous Guinness drinkers and tell them to move on or shut up.

This community is becoming aware that they don’t have to put up with inappropriate sound for their festivals.

It is amazing how many musicians have complimented us by saying, “Thank you for not mixing us like a rock band.” That is the prime key to successfully providing production for one of these events.

Flutes, mandolins, concertinas, violins and the like have to be treated with artistic finesse, because that’s the way these musicians approach their craft.

Don’t get me wrong – there’s plenty of room for rock ‘n’ roll – and I’ll get there in a bit.

Several things have struck me since we’ve been working in this market.

First, we never (and I actually mean that) encounter ‘wannabees’ on our stages. No matter which festival we’re working, every artist on every stage is proficient. I can’t say that in any other genre in which we work. The level of artistry is superb.

In fact, I have determined that the best fiddle players in the world are women in the Celtic market. We work with excellent fiddle players every week of the year in our regular gigs, but we are continually amazed at the female fiddle players we encounter at the Celtic festivals. Check out Eileen Ivers, Natalie McMasters or Bonnie Rideout for examples.

Second, you will encounter every instrument you can think of, and a few you’ve never even imagined. There’s room for everything in the Celtic scene, including every bluegrass instrument and a profusion of percussion – particularly the bodhran, or Irish hand drum – hurdy gurdys, six or seven different styles of accordion, and even Australian didgeridoos, as well as dozens of stringed instruments of various descriptions.

Even on the smaller festivals, I will typically fill my 40 input channels and usually double or triple up the instruments on them. Then guess what; one musician may play upwards of three of four instruments, changing from fiddle to bouzouki or bodhran in mid song – and maybe back again!

Another thing that typically occurs is that the festival coordinators will cram the schedule with acts.

Their challenge is that more artists want to perform than they have available slots for.

You will also usually see the same band perform more than once a day on your stage and usually on consecutive days as well, so you should be prepared to chart your consoles, as there is almost no concept of 30-minute set changes.

These shows require very hard work, but they’re an immense amount of fun and the performers are so appreciative of ‘good sound’ that it’s well worth the effort.

STYLES OF CELTIC MUSIC
As I stated earlier, I divide the genre into traditional folk, bluegrass, balladeers, rock, and pipes and drums.

The first group is almost always completely acoustic. Every year, thankfully, we find more and more artists installing pick-ups in their instruments but you’ll still encounter a healthy proportion of instruments you have to mic.

For these groups, it is wise to have a large number of condenser mics available. You’ll find everything from solo guitarists to seven or eight-piece ensembles with almost everyone singing. You’ll rarely see a drum kit but often there will be a bodhran (sometimes two or three) or other hand drum.

Loud is not an adjective to apply to these artists and generally, every musician is a soloist at some point.

That also presents the problem that you really have to be paying attention. There is no set-it-and-forget-it. The musicians will expect you to highlight each soloist as his or her turn comes.

The bluegrass groups are pretty straight forward as far as instrumentation. There are lots of upright basses, banjos, accordions, fiddles, guitars and vocals, as well as the occasional drum kit, but not often.

These groups are mostly just down-home fun. They are generally booked on the smaller stages of the festivals, and the engineer’s biggest challenge is to contain their exuberance to the venue. Banjos are just plain loud and it can be difficult to get a balanced mix without having the whole thing get out of control.

The balladeers are the singers of the traditional pub songs, nowadays mixed in with modern folk type ballads. Think Peter, Paul and Mary. The words are not incidental – they are essential.

If you dare mix the guitar, fiddle, flute or stand-up bass too loud and drown out the crystal clear vocals, you will certainly hear about it from musicians and audience alike.

Celtic rock is the newest aspect of this genre and it has won my heart. The first time I heard a Celtic rock band, my jaw hit the floor. In my mind, rock ‘n’ roll died the final death in 1995.

But I was wrong. It simply went underground, and now I’ve found it again but with such an unexpected twist. I had no idea bagpipes and fiddles could rock out so hard! The variety is incredible and I’ve heard influences from the Beatles to Pink Floyd.

To be fair, the Celtic rock bands spill easily over into the World Music category. It’s fresh, lyrical and driving and this is where you really can ‘mix ‘em like a rock band,’ because that’s exactly what they are.

But don’t kid yourselves. These guys have just as much musical talent and savvy as any traditional fiddle player. Indeed, after the festival you will most likely find them in the hotel bar taking an equal seat in the ceili circle with the rest of the musicians.

“What’s a ceili?” you might ask. On the evening before a festival begins, and each evening during the event, you will almost always find a rather large group of the performers (and some avid attendees) gathered together in the nearest drinking hole having a grand old jam session.

It’s a great place to sit back and listen to some wonderful totally acoustic Celtic music without having to work.

Lest I forget, the fifth category would be pipes and drums. You really don’t have to worry about what to do with them. A chorus of bagpipes speaks for itself.

It’s amazing, however, at how many people will flock to a performance of a group of pipers and stay for the entire set.

A FAMILY AFFAIR
Celtic festivals are almost unanimously family affairs and should be approached with children in mind, because they will be everywhere. The production company that dresses badly, comes with an attitude and isn’t flexible won’t be asked back.

On the other hand, if you’re looking for a challenge and lots of fun, and exercise your skills at mixing, you’ll win the hearts of the musicians and word will get around.

Our biggest festival is the North Texas Irish Festival, held the first weekend in March at Fair Park in Dallas. It’s reputed to be the largest (and they proudly say the best) Celtic festival west of the Mississippi.

It lasts three days, with Saturday being the big attendance day, and has seven music and dance stages. We’ve had 20,000 pass through the gates on a Saturday alone.

My point is that these really are viable festival events and if you like mixing great music in a congenial atmosphere, this is an excellent genre to get into as long as you have the right people with the right skills to service them.

And for the women in our readership, men really do look great in kilts!

Teri Hogan is co-owner of Sound Services Inc., a sound company based in Texas. Also be sure to check out Teri’s related article, Accordions & Didgeridoos: Microphone Techniques For “Exotic” Instruments

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