Recording the piano.

In this article, we explore different techniques used by our studio to record the grand and the upright pianos.

A funny comparison in the audio engineering world is between recording the piano and the drums. We can spend so much time tinkering with mic positions to capture different sounds from the instruments. Even after recording pianos for a very long time, capturing the essence of each instrument is still a fun challenge.

Upright and grand pianos are recorded in very different ways. Here are some of our favorite methods to capture your music honestly and beautifully. Note that one of these techniques is probably what we will use if we record you.

For the grand piano, if the space allows it, we like to place microphones on stands like the following graphic:

Top view of a grand piano, with a graphical representation of recording techniques with microphone placements. A pair on the tail side of the microphone is titled B, and another pair perpendicular to the case of the piano is titled A.

The microphone pair titled (A) tends to give us the best representation of the instrument's sound as the distance from the instrument (3-6 feet) allows the sound to develop before reaching the microphones. The tail microphones, titled (B), are also very useful, giving us a direct piano sound without any felt noise. Blending these two sets of microphones can result in a beautiful and gentle piano sound. Unfortunately, we don't frequently use this technique, as many of the rooms we record are not good-sounding rooms. On top of that, many living rooms don't have enough space to accommodate this space-hungry technique.

For this, we utilize close miking of the soundboard and the strings under the lid, as the following graphic demonstrates:

Graphical representation of another miking technique for piano, by placing the microphones inside the case, over the strings, and under the lid. A pair of microphones close to the edge of the case is titled A, and another pair towards the felt and keyboard, in an XY orientation, is titled B.

We really like the sound of the spaced pair (A), as by moving around the microphones, we can get a perfect balance of bass and treble strings, giving us a very three-dimensional sound. Plus, by using this technique, we don't have to put the boom arm of a mic stand all the way under the lid like the mic pair (B) or other similar miking techniques. Frequently, it is necessary to utilize post-production reverbs to add ambiance to the sound of the piano. We use industry-standard Bricasti M7, and Altiverb reverbs to create the perfect ambiance for your music.

The story is very different for upright pianos. Because of their case size and the mechanical layout, the sound we capture from them differs significantly from that of grand pianos. We approach recording upright pianos in a few different ways.

Top view of an upright piano. A pair of microphones behind the piano, titled A, a pair of microphones over the case of the upright piano, titled B, and another pair behind the player, placing the player between the pair, titled C.

We prefer to mic the upright piano by utilizing pair A and pair B microphones to blend in the signals in the post. Pair A, placed right behind the piano case, gives a much darker yet lovely tone. Our ability to remove the top cover of the piano affects how pair B will sound. We encourage the musicians to learn how to remove the top cover before our arrival, but we can also help remove the cover. Moving the piano away from the wall is usually challenging, so blending pair B and C has become the new norm in location recording. Pair C includes some of the late reflections of the piano, introducing a subtle yet sweet reverb to the signal.

We recommend you tune your piano every six months but at least once a year. When tuning the piano, professionals usually care for the instruments in many other ways, including oiling the essential parts, fixing minor problems, and other more severe issues, such as severely grooved felt. If you need recommendations for professional piano tuning services, please do not hesitate to reach out to us.