To record this piece of music I used an XY pair, a stereo microphone technique where the microphones are in the same place but point in different directions, typically at a 90° angle[1]. This was most appropriate to the instrumentation as there was two instruments performed by separate people. I used the AKG 214 stereo microphone set, and positioned them as an XY pair with the cardioid[2] polar patterns overlapping.

In the first recording session the guitar was dominant in the recording, so I experimented with the distances of the guitar and vocal away from the microphones. When the levels of each instrument were right, the guitar sounded much further away with a lot of room reverb and the vocal was very close and clear. Due to the vocal being so much clearer there were unwanted pops in the recording. These sounds did not match up, even though the levels did. It also threw the 3D image out of balance as the instruments were so separate in each microphone after being panned. The room in which we recorded was not sound conditioned and most walls were bare, therefore the loud guitar strumming was reflected, creating phase cancellation in the recording. The room created a long, natural reverb on the voice which sounded appropriate, however it was over-powered by the guitar. For these reasons, it was decided that another recording session was needed in a different room.

For the second (and final) recording session, I recorded the track in a sound conditioned room. I used the AKG 414 stereo pair as opposed to the AKG 214 stereo pair due to availability. They are both large diaphragm condenser microphones, ideal for detailed recordings of female vocals and acoustic instruments with low sound pressure levels. The AKG 414 has nine polar pattern options[3], of which I chose hyper cardioid, to pick up a small amount of room sound. There were sound absorbing panels on some parts of the walls and ceiling to decrease reverberation, therefore giving a cleaner sound from both instruments. Now that the room reverb had been decreased, the instruments could be the same distance away from the microphone, balancing the 3D image. The guitar no longer drowned out the vocal when we recorded it in this room due to the sound absorbing panels. To help avoid loud ‘booming’ I put an 80Hz bass cut filter on both microphones to reduce the proximity effect of the guitar.

All the problems which were encountered in the first recording session were eliminated in the second. The spill was overcome by moving to a sound conditioned room with wave absorbing tiles. The reverberation was decreased by far, and what had been ‘noise’ before, was now controlled and became ambient. The ability to use a bass cut filter on the microphones also helped to decrease any unwanted bass in the guitar which did not sound appropriate with the female vocal in the song. Finally the hyper cardioid polar pattern of the AKG 414 helped pick up the instrumental sounds from the front and some of the room reverb from the back, to create a natural sound. Unfortunately the only problem that couldn't be solved was the sound of rain on the glass window which can be heard at the end of the recording. At this point we had no time to record the track again but the sound is so minimal and that it wasn't needed.

1. WILLIAMS, M. (2002). "The Stereophonic Zoom." [Online]. Available from: http://www.rycote.com/images/uploads/The_Stereophonic_Zoom.pdf. [Last accessed: 24th Jan 2014].
2.COLLINS, M. (2008). "AKG C214 - A mid-priced condenser mic that'll serve as a good studio all-rounder." [Online]. Available from: http://www.musicradar.com/reviews/tech/akg-c214-172209. [Last accessed: 24th Jan 2014].
3. "C414 XLS - Reference Multipattern Condenser Microphone." [Online]. Available from: http://www.akg.com/C414+XLS-1039.html?pid=1024. [Last accessed: 24th Jan 2014.


Stereo Recording of Captain and the Hourglass

This is my composition to go with a wildlife documentary trailer. Apologies for the sound quality and levels, they are Sibelius sounds!

Wildlife Composition

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/i2hx4eyl0rxwz89/AADYdv9xWcKIlQ-PbEn2tPHPa

"Don't Think Twice" Drum Mix

Annabelle, Beth, Chloe and Eleanor's 4-part harmony cover of Until I Found You by Stephen Sanchez, played as our Mum walked down the aisle 💗

Recorded and mixed by Annabelle.

Until I Found You - ABCE

A harmony experimentation I did for an assignment in my first year of university. 

Cohorresco

I wrote this track recently, recorded and mixed it for an assignment. This is not the finished song or mix, but hope you enjoy it as much as I did making it!

Stethoscope - Demo

Songwriter and singer - Annabelle Richmond
Co-writer and production - Pavlos Harakopoulos 

I wrote this song for a final year uni submission. Hope you enjoy listening to it as much as we did making it.

Urchin

Pretty old! This was my GCSE composition (so 2 years ago). Not my best stuff, but it's my stuff! 

Not Easily Lost

Just a little thing I wrote, not long at all but I love playing it. Thanks to Joseph McCann for recording!

Rivalry (Interlude)

This is my AS composition from last year! 