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Amplified Live Music
What do you need to do?
Layout and positioning
- The layout of performers on the stage can radically affect the levels of exposure from spill that musicians experience
- Careful planning of the stage layout may avoid the need for noise competition between monitor mixes and other noise sources
- The advice of monitor engineers is valuable
On-stage control measures include:
- Increasing the distance, isolation or shielding of noisier instruments where possible
- Positioning and angling guitar amplifier/speakers (guitar combos) for maximum ease of listening for the player. Raising a guitar combo on a flight-case could significantly reduce exposure for other players, have a marked reduction in overall stage noise and improve clarity for the player
- Positioning and mic'ing guitar combos in a separate area from the performance area
- Using risers to separate sections of the band, elevating noisy instruments above the heads of other performers - or move to front of the stage, particularly where very loud instruments may be used - brass, amplified guitar and snare drums can produce extremely high sound levels
- Altering the drum kit set-up to ensure cymbals etc are not at ear-height