Tap Amplification Part 3

Stacie Strong | May 03, 2008 | there are 0 comments

Ira Bernstein (photo by Tom Caravaglia)

This is the third in a series about tap amplification issues. We've covered microphone selections in general, as well as mic selections for solo tapping in a jazz club. Now we're going to get the insights of Ira Bernstein - an extraordinarily versatile percussive dancer and repository of a wealth of information on sound amplification for dance - regarding tapping in a concert dance environment.

Ira Bernstein has danced all over the world, both as a rhythm tapper and as an expert in other forms of percussive dance, including clogging, stepping, boot dancing and flatfooting. He has shared the stage with such luminaries as Gregory Hines, Savion Glover, Charles "Honi" Coles, Chuck Green, Jimmy Slyde, Lon Chaney, Howard "Sandman" Sims, Buster Brown, LaVaughn Robinson and Brenda Bufalino. A former member of the American Tap Dance Orchestra, Ira currently heads up Ten Toe Percussion Ensemble (www.tentoepercussion.com) and is an acknowledged expert on all things related to amplifying tap. He's currently performing in Appalachian Roots (www.appalachianroots.com), a duo show that's mostly traditional American music, with Ira doing Appalachian flatfooting and rhythm tap (as well as a bit of fiddling), and his partner, Riley Baugus, playing banjo. If Riley's name is familiar, it's because he played on the soundtrack for the movie "Cold Mountain" and on the recent Alison Krause/Robert Plant (of Led Zepplin) CD.

We asked Ira a very long line of questions about amplifying tap - so many that we couldn't fit them all into a single posting! - and he kindly answered every one. Many thanks to him for his patience, generosity and diligence in responding in such great detail. For Ira's first set of answers, check out Tap Amplification Part 2 at http://blog.danceruniverse.com/blog/story/2008/4/16/195726/375.

SS: Now we'd like to focus on tappers who are working on a concert stage, so there's more space to cover and more distance from the band. What kinds of mics would you suggest here?

IB: The recommendations I made before [in Tap Amplification Part 2] would all be exactly the same for working on the stage in a concert setting, especially for a soloist (or perhaps duo or trio), as a soloist usually wouldn't go too far upstage.

However, for large ensemble work, which probably does call for covering a deeper dance area, you can also put PCCs on the back edges of the dance area (facing into the dance area, of course!). The trick here is that these particular mics probably can't be in the monitor mixes. Since they're facing towards the front of the stage, the monitor sound would go directly into them to create a feedback loop. Not nice. Not good!

For very deep dance areas, shotgun mics can also be aimed at the centers of the area to boost pick-up from those regions of the stage. This recommendation is a bit academic for me, as I've never done it for myself. I've only seen/heard this set up, and it translated well to the audience. Perhaps someone from a company out there can offer comments on this gleaned from more direct experience.

SS: Again, where are the optimal mic placements and how far away can the soloist go from the mics and still be heard?

IB: Again, same as above re. distances from the mic.

As was once explained to me (and received a "duh, well of course" response): A mic doesn't "care" how far the origin of a sound is from it. All it does is pick up the sound that reaches it, regardless of where the sound comes from. So any sound that reaches the mic will be picked up and subsequently amplified.

SS: Are there any other options that might be less expensive?

IB: Again, my answer would be the same as in the earlier posting.

But, for a soloist or small small group (duo or trio...), there is another option I didn't mention for club work which is also a good one, albeit possibly expensive, depending on the quality of the system you get: wireless condenser mics on each shoe. I've used this set-up on several occasions when it was supplied by the tech crew and the conditions warranted it over my floor mic set-up.

For this, I use two separate mics, one for each foot, and clip the mic pointing straight down on the OUTSIDE of the shoe as close to halfway between the toe and heel as possible. The wire runs up the leg under my pants (definitely works better with pants to conceal the wire!) to the transmitters, which I've tucked into an elastic belt with pockets under my shirt. Each mic has its own transmitter, so the result is stereo tap sounds.

This is a great set-up for soloists who don't have quick changes in their show.

I never bought this for myself, so I can't quote exact prices. But I did look into it at times. Wireless systems can be fairly cheap or extremely expensive. Again, you get what you pay for.

SS: Is there any difference if the soloist is working to CD rather than live music?

IB: No.

SS: Finally, what kind of amplification issues arise if you're working with a large or medium sized group on a concert stage? What mic issues do you need to take into account, either while you're choreographing or during your sound check?

IB: I've already partly addressed this above, but the short answer is that it is more difficult. You might want to ask this of some of the company directors out there.

SS: Is there anything else you'd like to add?

IB: One last thought, or maybe a few... The sound a dancer gets is the result of the combination of several factors: the dancer, the dancer's technique, the shoes, the taps, how the taps are set, the floor, the mics, the sound system, and how the sound system is set.

A good sound system and good sound tech cannot take bad sound and make it sound good. (Though a lousy system and bad tech can trash good sound!) It's so important to have good tech support to make it so that what a dancer does actually makes it to the audience. But the starting point is the sound of the dancer. The first and foremost point is for the dancer to work not just on clarity of sound, but on tone. If we're truly trying to be musicians, then as with music, if it doesn't sound good, why listen to it?

So those are Ira's thoughts on sound amplification in a concert dance setting. Although every stage is different and most of us have to learn by trial and error, to some extent, it's fantastic to have such expert advice to use as a starting point. Many thanks to Ira for his help.

Does this answer all of your amplification questions, or do you have more? Let us know!