Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1543098
Larry Reed picks it up. "Wednesday, Thursday, Friday were all rehearsal days, and depending on how large the band is, you might have at least fifty-six inputs" Larry explains, "There's two mics on the kick drum, two mics on a snare, everything has a very specific mic. Skip talks to every band and every artist to find out what microphones they like, which ones they normally use, and tries to keep it that way for them so they're getting exactly what they want or what they're accustomed to. The variety of mics is enormous, Shure, Sennheiser, Audio- Tech. The keyboards get DI Boxes." Skip puts together the input list for all the different bands so that both the Music Mixers, the recording trucks, the Front of House Music Mixer, and the Monitor Mixer all know what's being used for each band. For example, with fifteen bands, there would be fifteen kick drums, resulting in thirty kick microphones and it grows from there. Larry Reed continues, "It's not just one mix that goes to everybody. The IEM Mixer has to create an individual mix and babysit each and every one of those artists. The drummer wants more bass, the lead vocal wants more, everybody wants more. He has to make many people happy throughout the entire show. Then, the Keyboardist decides, "Oh, I'm gonna turn my keyboard up because he's not hearing enough, that screws everybody's mix. We have no rewind button. We have no stop button, we don't have second takes. We are live to the world. So, mistakes that are made are made to the world." Right after the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Ceremony was over, Larry and Skip were off to Las Vegas. Skip worked on the Latin Grammys Main Show. Larry on Latin Grammy Person of the Year and the Premiere Show, which takes place before the Main Show. Then MusiCares honoring Mariah Carey at the end of January, straight into Grammys Premiere, and then Oscars after that. Skip works on the Super Bowl Halftime Show. They are both very busy. "Call time was 8 a.m. on show day, and the show doesn't end until midnight," explains Larry, "and then the A2's have to tear it down, pack it up, and put everything back in the trucks. Skip and I drove to Vegas almost right away to get to the Latin Grammys, and then do the same thing there. I think I logged eleven days between Latin Grammys and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, probably more than one hundred and twenty-five hours. I'm sure Skip did more." Skip Kent concludes, "I'm proud of the entire audio team, they are amazing. It's such a difficult show." I want to thank Skip Kent and Larry Reed for taking the time to talk with me and explain their very specialized work in a hectic "live" environment. They are both very talented, with unique skills, and extraordinary patience. THE CREW Skip Kent Audio Supervisor MUSIC Robert Scovill FOH Music Mike Bove Mon Mixer Music Steve Anderson Splits Damon Andres Music Stage Steve Crane Music Stage Craig Rovello Music Stage Brandon Gilbert Music Stage Michael Faustino Vocals A-2 Dave Ingels Monitor In Ears TV PROD Larry Reed A-1 Dan Gerhard FOH Prod JP Elmore Playback Ebiut Cervantes Show Pro Tools Erik Bender Production A-2 Kim Petty Production A-2 Mike Faustino Production A-2 Christian Schrader Sweetener PRESS In House Mixer M 3 ECLIPSE Bob Clearmountain Mixer Joel Singer Engineer Caroline Sanchez M 3 Pro Tools Jimmy Goldsmith A-2 M 3 VOYAGER Carl Glanville Mixer Seth Mintz Engineer Louis Cohen M 3 Pro Tools Mike Fortunato A-2 FHP Mark Dittmar Project Manager Jason Sears Mon Mix Phil Valdivia Mon Ears Damian Burns Mon Tech 2 Ken Muller PA Tech 1 Aaron Morris RF assist Cameron Stuckey RF co-ord David Crawford PA Tech Erik Sandberg System Engineer Joe Simmons PA Tech 2 Dave Ingels Mon Ears FIREHOUSE COMMS Brian Hurst PL Tech Sisse Jonassen PL Tech Erin Hedley PL Tech Local PL Tech POST James Orbison Supervisor Milos Zivkovik Audio Mixer