Best Practice

Mrdanga Clinic with the Mayapuris
Brisbane 22 October 3pm - 5pm
Sydney Temple 28 October 3pm - 5pm
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Updated to version 3 on Friday 4th September, additional kirtans added, some fixes applied. Still work in progress.

Here are some lavish chord charts for the 7 kirtans for harmonium, bass, and guitar that I published the other day.

• Kirtans 2009 Chord Charts PDF Version

Here are some photos:

I first did chord charts like this in 2005. You can see my (re)post of some basic kirtans arranged for harmonium here.

With this one I upgraded it to have color coding for the different chords. In this version I hid the line that goes under the mantra, which is a facility for putting in the notes of the vocal melody. Once that goes in, the book is basically complete in itself.

If you like it, feel free to send me something to encourage me to do more - it can be some feedback, a contribution in kind of chord charts for other kirtans, a video of you doing kirtan after learning from this, or whatever.

I will post the ods/xls source file for this when I get back from Sydney. About to catch a plane... laters!

ISKCON Cartal Overload refers to the widespread tendency of ISKCON kirtans to have excessive cartals in them. This means both in number and (both consequently and independently) in volume.

Unfortunately this has become a cultural norm. What people accept as a "normal kirtan" actually has too much cartal in it. When you listen to recordings it becomes clearer - turn the volume down and the chanting disappears, while a huge wash of cartals remains.

I'm thinking that the ISKCON cartal overload can be dealt with by close miking everything and the liberal but sensible use of compression.

I've been thinking about it, and my motto for kirtan recording is:

"Better than being there"

The cartals are too loud in most kirtan recordings because the cartals are too loud in most kirtans. In the kirtans at my place we have trained cartal players who used tuned cartals that are appropriate for the space and the tone of the kirtan, and play appropriately for the level of the kirtan.

Unfortunately, such trained cartal players are few and far between. Cartals are superficially the easiest instrument to pick up and play, so there are a lot of "enthusiastic amateurs" - who can totally destroy a kirtan recording - not only this, but they are detracting from the experience of the kirtan for many people and can even cause physical damage to hearing.

Through education, policing, and the use of appropriate technological counter-measures when these two fail, the goal is to produce kirtans that sound at least as good as being there, and in most cases better.

I'll get together with some good cartal players and post some videos of their technique.

This is adapted from the chapter "Piano Miking Techniques" in Mike Stavrou's book "Mixing with your mind"

I've struggled with getting a good harmonium sound "on tape". On Saturday we did some recording and the sound was ok, but on Sunday night I read more on microphone techniques for recording. Today I put some of it into practice and I wanted to share the results with you.

The principle to remember is this:

There is a science to everything, understanding which one can develop the feel needed for the art.

Science, folks. It works. Do it systematically, and take notes while you are learning, to turn your experimentation into systematic exploration.

The most obvious, and probably wrong, way to mike up a harmonium

The most obvious way to mic up a harmonium is to put a mic directly over the reeds, pointing down on them.

This is the most immediately obvious thing to do for a beginner (and what I did until today) - I mean, that's where the sound comes from, right? And you want to record the sound of the harmonium, right?

This is where you will get the brightest, hottest sound. However, it's also the most treble, because you are essentially recording the "metal" of the harmonium - the reeds.

To attenuate that treble you will have to cut the treble end of the EQ. The result is that you will get either a harsh, cutting sound (with no EQ), or else a muddy, indistinct one (if you attenuate the treble).

What you want to do is record the "wood" of the harmonium, the resonance of the box - especially if it is a good one.

If you get a rich, resonant bassy sound you can boost the treble via EQ and you'll boost the harmonic overtones. The reverse is not true - if you record the reeds you have no bass to boost via low-end EQ.

Do you want it to look right, or sound good?

Where you put the mic is not a function of how it looks. It's a function of how it sounds.

To discover where to put the mic:

• Set up your mic and put on your headphones
• Turn up the mic so that the sound in your headphones is louder than the room sound
• Have someone play the harmonium while you move the microphone around it, finding zones of resonance and character. Make a mental note of any interesting areas
• When you find an area with a smooth, resonant sound, lock off the microphone and get ready to roll to tape (or to disk, more probably these days)

No substitute for hearing

There is no substitute for experimenting and hearing what it sounds like. The atmosphere, the player's technique, the size and shape of the room, standing waves created by other instruments being played in an ensemble - all of these conspire to make each recording session a unique experience.

At the same time, you'll get some idea of where to mike up a particular harmonium if you use it regularly.

Example

Here is my example. Today I did a few test runs with a couple of mics in different places around the harmonium. I didn't have an assistant to play while I checked, so I just did some different position. There is really no substitute for moving the mic around while someone is playing though, and getting an accurate picture of the three dimensional sound field around the harmonium.

The first mic I used was the Shure SM 57, a dynamic mic that is a staple for live sound miking of instruments.

The second mic was the Behringer B2Pro, a dual diaphragm condenser mic. I had the bass cut set to level, attentuation to 0db, and polarity pattern set to cardioid.

I boosted some of the recordings by 8-10dB, to try to get a similar relative level between them. Frequency analysis was done before boosting.

01. SM57 directly overhead
First off the ranks, the Shure SM 57 directly over the reeds:

A frequency analysis is useful for EQ'ing purposes, and when you are trying to find out which instruments occupy which frequency bands. Here's an frequency analysis of the resultant recording:

Here's an mp3 of the recording:
01. Shure SM57 directly over head

02. SM57 rear lower corner
For the next take I tried in the rear lower corner, where it was particularly resonant:

Here's an frequency analysis of the resultant recording:

Here's an mp3 of the recording:
02. Shure SM57 rear lower corner

03. SM57 side over the clasp hole
Next I tried it over the hole in the side where the clasps are:

Here's an frequency analysis of the resultant recording:

Here's an mp3 of the recording:
03. Shure SM57 side over the clasp hole

04. SM57 side front lower corner
Next I tried it on the side, toward the front and at the bottom. It's all about capturing the resonance of the cabinet:

Here's an frequency analysis of the resultant recording:

It can be amplified and EQ'd later. The main thing is to find a spot where it has good resonance and tone.

Here's an mp3 of the recording:
04. Shure SM57 front lower corner

05. SM57 directly in front
This one would be difficult for someone to play, but I tried it to get an idea of the sound possibilities:

Here's an frequency analysis of the resultant recording:

Here's an mp3 of the recording:
05. Shure SM57 rear lower corner

06. SM57 front side lower corner
I kinda liked the sound on the front, so I tried a mic position that would be easier to play with:

Here's an frequency analysis of the resultant recording:

Here's an mp3 of the recording:
06. Shure SM57 front side lower corner

07. B2Pro directly overhead
Now we move on to the B2Pro, starting with the obvious overhead position:

Here's an frequency analysis of the resultant recording:

Here's an mp3 of the recording:
07. Behringer B2Pro directly overhead

08. B2Pro rear lower corner
This was kind of in the middle actually, but pointing down, at the back.

Here's an frequency analysis of the resultant recording:

Here's an mp3 of the recording:
08. Behringer B2Pro rear lower corner

09. B2Pro front side lower corner
Now on the front, in the lower side corner:

Here's an frequency analysis of the resultant recording:

Here's an mp3 of the recording:
09. Behringer B2Pro front side lower corner

10. B2Pro side midway bottom
And finally, midway along the side, pointing down:

Here's an frequency analysis of the resultant recording:

Here's an mp3 of the recording:
10. Behringer B2Pro side midway bottom

Conclusion

To be honest with you, I like the sound when it's miked up directly in front. That's probably not practical for recording.

The SM57 is pretty bottom heavy. The B2Pro, as a condenser, has a greater frequency response, and I'd probably go with that for recording the harmonium, depending on what else is going in the mix. To fill out the bottom end in a recording with not much else down there I'd use the SM57.

My favorite sound overall was the last one, number 10. That's where I'll start from in our next recording session.

What do you think?

Which one do you like best? Got any further tips for recording harmonium?

Let me know your thoughts.

Levels, like alcohol, are best enjoyed responsibly

- Mixing Audio: Concepts, Practices and Tools, Roey Izhaki

Currently studying the art and science of audio mixing. I'll add a category to my posts to share what I'm learning in this area of kirtan science.

[Oh, by the way, I don't drink alcohol at all, and haven't for over a decade. Since I adopted the spiritual disciplines of a Hare Krishna lifestyle I've found it unnecessary and undesirable. The point of this quote is to point out that sound levels should not be overindulged in - i.e: take it easy on the loud music! In Izhaki's analogy the familiar example used (about alcohol being used responsibly) is a positive (descriptive) one from popular contemporary culture and should be understood in that context, rather than being taken as a normative (prescriptive) statement about alcohol use. I guess you could say that by acknowledging it he agrees with and reinforces it. In that case, I also think it should be used responsibly - that means different things for different people. For me it means not at all, thus breaking the analogy by making it say that sound levels for me should be zero. Doh! Anyway, I think you get the point he's trying to make. I hope.]

Today I joined a mrdanga forum over at Gauravani.com. There I discovered a remix of the first section of my 2001 book The Art and Science of Harinam Sankirtan Yajna.

Rock!

It's attractively formatted and has had some material added to it.

I release my material under a Creative Commons Share Alike-Attribution license, as noted at the bottom of my website. My purpose in doing this is to allow others to remix, reuse, and to build on my material.

I don't use the "Non-commercial" clause of the Creative Commons license. If someone can figure out a way to make money out of it then "good on them", I say. Of course, due to the license anything that is produced from the original material must be released under the same license - that's the meaning of the "Share Alike" clause.

Here's the remix. It has "(c) 2008" on the front page, but the correct license is CC 2.5 SA-BY, so you can remix, reuse, and redistribute this to your heart's content, including commercial use. Enjoy!

• The Art and Science of Harinam Sankirtan Yajna 2008 remix

In mrdanga playing power is good, endurance is great, but precision is king.

If you have power and endurance people will notice you. If you have precision you can become invisible - the kirtan will rock so hard that people will forget you're there.

And that's the goal.

To develop precision you need to practice with a metronome. It's a form of hasta-sadhana ("finger practice") that involves subordinating yourself to Krishna in His form of time (kalo 'smi). It can be hard on the mind, but that's what it's all about - conquering the mind and becoming a faithful and useful servant of the kirtan.

After I shot this video I had a realisation about muscle fibres. You see, I've been practicing with a metronome for 30 - 60 minutes a day, and my precision is pretty high. However, I've been noticing that while my power and endurance have been going up with my new physical training program, my precision has been disappearing.

Here's my theory as to why: the precision is not simply in the brain, it's also in the muscle fibres. High speed mrdanga playing uses reflex actions. These reflexes are stored in the muscle memory. As you add new muscle you need to retrain it to make it precise in mrdanga playing. So it's back to the metronome and hasta-sadhana for me, otherwise all this power and endurance is just for show.

Vrajadhama in form on the mrdanga in a kirtan at Atma one evening.

This is a video that I shot of Gaura Hari das, mentioned in H.H. Indradyumna Swami's recent diary entry, while he was here performing with Maharaja and his spiritual circus.

This is a good solid style of playing that is quite representative of modern ISKCON kirtan.

As for the ladies dancing in the background - have you noticed how all the computer-based media players (such as WinAmp, Kaffeine, MPlayer, etc.) got "visualizations" a few years ago?

People just get bored listening - they have to see something too. So this is the transcendental equivalent of the visualizations. Personally I always turn those things off, but I can appreciate by their existence that there must be demand for them.

If those ladies weren't dancing there then the audience would tire of the chanting much quicker than they do. They program is expert, actually, in how it balances these different factors.

See what all the fuss is about - H.H. Indradyumna Swami's dancing white elephants. Does sex attraction bring people to Krishna? Clearly yes. (I don't know how many of the young men who come, come because of an attractive young lady they met on sankirtan. Honestly, I've lost count.)

O good soul, does not a thing, applied therapeutically, cure a disease which was caused by that very same thing?

- Srimad Bhagavatam 1.5.33