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OPUS 3 - Philosophy
Depth of
Image
So accustomed are we to three-dimensional vision, that we
never really think about it. But we need only shut one eye
for our judgement of distances to be reduced and our
three-dimensional vision to disappear: we need both eyes and
the relation between them in order for see three -
dimensionally. Much the same is true of our hearing.
Our brain and auditory system "process" the sound-waves
reaching each ear, with regard to level, direction, time and
frequency content. The signal is further "analysed" by our
brain and auditory system, and the differences between
signals coming from our two ears tell us, for example, about
distance to the different sound sources and their relative
positions. We experience ìDepth of Image": for
example, the different instruments of the orchestra in a
concert hall are differently placed, not only from left to
right but also in depth, together with the size and
acoustics of the concert hall.
By "collecting" the total sound at one single point with
a stereo microphone -that is, a microphone with its capsules
as close together as possible -we obtain a strict relation
between the direct sound and the reflected sound (the
diffused sound field), and this gives our brain and auditory
system important information for building up an illusion of
"reality" - the concert hall, the church or the jazz club.
It is also very important for the direct and the reflected
sound to have an exact acoustic connection with the
sound-waves from each instrument. In traditional recording
studios, there is, basically, one microphone (or sometimes
even more) per instrument, and these are then mixed together
electrically. This is not real stereo, it is just
panned mono.
Since, moreover, the microphones are usually placed very
close to each instrument in an acoustically dead studio, all
one gets is the direct sound of the instrument, and so
artificial reverberation has to be "added on" electrically
afterwards.
Timbre
By timbre we mean the specific character of an acoustic
musical instrument - meaning, for example, what makes it
possible for us to tell one instrument from another.
The timbre of a musical instrument is a combination of
its significant spectral distribution, i.e. the relation
between notes and their harmonics and each relative level
and frequency distribution, and last but not least, the way
in which the sound-waves radiate from the body of the
instrument.
All our acoustic instruments are designed to be played in
some form of concert hall, i.e. in a place where you hear
both the direct sound of the instrument and the
reverberation of the environment. If, like Opus 3, you are
aiming for as natural an instrumental timbre as possible, it
is vitally important that acoustic instruments can also be
recorded in the type of surroundings they were originally
designed to be played in, but also with longer microphone
distances, so as also to capture the sound radiating from
the whole sounding body of the instrument. The short
microphone distances normally used also make the timbre
unnatural, and so it has to be "restored" artificially,
using various equalizers etc. We mustn't forget that when
our acoustic musical instruments were created, a long time
ago, neither electricity, microphones or recording studios
existed!
Dynamics
The dynamic range of a musical instrument is the
difference between the loudest and the softest sound level
it is capable of producing. Like timbre, the dynamics of a
musical instrument depend, not only on how it is built but
also on how it is used by the composer and performer.
Dynamics in this sense are used to create a large number and
variety of musical effects, changes of emotion, mood and
expression etc., etc. The dynamic properties of a musical
instrument are also very much affected by the way in which
it is recorded. The short microphone distances used for
multi-microphone recording in traditional studios also
exaggerate the recorded dynamics. Just like timbre, the
dynamic balance then has to be artificially "restored",
using compressors, limiters and so on.
Discussions of sound nowadays tend to be very much
preoccupied with the digital links of the sound reproduction
chain, especially where gramophone recordings are concerned.
Attention very often focuses exclusively on the type of A/D
converter used, how many bits, the amount of oversampling,
how the equipment is specially modified, and so on and so
forth.
When Opus 3 started at the end of 1976, there was far
more talk about the way in which the actual recording was
done purely in terms of recording technique or philosophy -
that is, the methodology employed (multi- mike versus twin
microphone technique etc.) and the type of recording
situation chosen - natural environments or traditional
studio technique, and so on.
Whatever the technical apparatus, it is still the actual,
recording philosophy that does most to decide what a
recording will sound like - a fact which has been virtually
lost sight of in the discussion of sound today. The quantity
of electronics used in a recording is also highly important.
In the type of mixer consoles commonly used in a studio
nowadays, the acoustic signal passes through a very large
number of amplifier stages - between thirty and forty or
more is not unusual! The Opus 3 electronics, which are
mainly tube-equipped and which we have partly developed
ourselves, seldom include more than three of four amplifier
stages between microphone and storage medium.
Opus 3's recording technique has been specially developed
for acoustic music and is based on using the natural
acoustics of authentic environments such as churches,
concert halls, jazz clubs and so on. We match the venue to
the music, so to speak, as opposed to the common studio
practice of adding an artificial reverberation afterwards
and so on. The positioning of the microphone in the
recording room and the positioning of the musicians in
relation to the microphone are also extremely important.
From the very outset we have used what is known as the
coincident or X/Y recording technique, mainly employing the
special configuration of crossed figure of eights, also
known as the Blumlein technique, after Alan Dower Blumlein,
the British radar engineer who developed the technique way
back in 1934.
Bo Hansson and Jan-Eric Persson - Opus
3 Records
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