How to Record Grand Piano | Featuring Doug Fearn 

The sound actually doesn't come from the bridge, any more than it does the bridge of a guitar. The ribs on the underside of the soundboard spread the vibration to the larger soundboard area, as do the braces inside of a guitar body. The bridge itself doesn't just move up and down, but rocks back and forth perpendicular to the length. The ribs are doweled into the bridge, and the whole assembly vibrates back and forth with the bridge in the middle. Thus the actual sound from the piano comes from somewhere between the bridge and the perimeter of the case, mostly in the middle of the piano. Sound also comes from under the metal frame (aka the "plate") where there are holes to let the sound out from the back side of the bridge. Exactly where the sound comes from and which string(s) is hard to determine without using headphones and a directional mic, and thus the exact location of the "sweet spot" could be anywhere, as you have said. It would also be possible to mic the piano from the bottom (or behind for a vertical piano) since whatever sound is produced above will also be coming from below, and likely a less percussive sound as well. Not a sound engineer, but 30+ years as a piano technician. Thanks very much for your video.

This is underrated

Quality content from experienced engineers, I'm subbed!

Thanks for this, I use my R88 on the upright piano, and I will now try and drop down away from the hammers. Cheers.

Wow, this video is exactly what I need right now. I’ve been looking for ideas on getting better recordings of my piano videos. When I saw you featured piano, I about jumped out of my chair. I have a 1906 Mason and Hamlin AA! You are exactly right, this piano is very different acoustically than other pianos and I’ve struggled to get good stereo separation and balance between treble and bass. You have given me some great ideas to try. I won’t be taking the lid off, though. Lol. It’s just me and my piano in my living room. Thank you!

Friendly sound engineer from South Dakota here. Thank you for teaching me your method, George

Great video! I like how you explained why a grand has more colors of sounds to deal with compared to other instruments.

YESS!! LOVE THIS!

This was a great overview thanks! I’m still trying to find the “sweet spot” for the mic position, the gain etc. haven’t expected it can be so challenging actually.

This is great thanks!

Very dope!

Omg that micro + great sound engineering work sounds crazy! Im hearing the album on TIDAL. It's a pity that the micro its expensive, but i thing it worth it one day buy it. Thanks a lot, u gained a subscriber!

Great video! This is the first good video I've watched on youtube regarding recording the grand piano. Theres a lot of misconceptions about the sound coming from the hammers. As you mention, most of the sound comes from the bridge itself, and that's not very appearant unless you listen to a grand piano without the lid, then you clearly hear where the sound comes from. The main thing, I think, is to be aware of the sound, not what's necessarily the most logical from a visual point of view. The balance between having a full sound with enough low end combined with a nice, airy definition is very important. Do you use any microphones in addition to the r88 on the piano? I often use a mono room mic in addition to my r88 to get more definition and air, but my setup is constantly changing.

I so agree with you about the sound coming from the bridge !

If you'd like to hear out set up in action, you can download the high-res sound example here: bit.ly/39w5zhw We'd love to hear your comments and questions. Don't forget to like and subscribe!

super, thanks for such detailed lesson video! I have a question. As I see, when recording the microphones stand on microphone stands. Is the microphone shok mounth necessary too?

every time i watch videos like this im always saddened when i see the recommended mics are $2k lol

Instead of saying “you don’t want the sound of the hammers clacking and mechanical sounds”, it would be much more helpful if you only went through the difference between recording at the bridge and recording at the hammers. What someone wants is up to them. Recording at the hammers can give a very intimate, cinematic sound and is a technique that is definitely in use. Giving as much information as possible without being biased, especially if you haven’t specified that you are detailing a “classical style” or “modern jazz trio style” -recording or whatever, would be much more helpful. Also, talking about sounding “as good as possible” isn’t bad, but I do think detailing how something sounds and bringing up the differences, maybe even talking about what you deem good and why you have chosen a specific pre-amp or mic position for the sound you are after, would again, be much more helpful.

Excellent video. Piano sounds great on the album. Question (not trying to be funny...): Do you ever put the lid back on the piano or do you just keep it in storage somewhere?

Good video. I'm keen to try ribbons on my Yamaha C5. Maybe the AEA Nuvo N8's. Blumlein won't work in a room thats mid-rage intense.

Very cool, excellent presentation! I'm working towards recording my own solo piano album so this was inspiring!

In your recordings you pan the high end of the grand piano to the right and the low end to the left. Why do you prefer that approach rather than the audience's perspective where they would listen more of the low end on the right and the high end to the left? (if you are seating in the center of course and have a great seat) Thank you!

This is great for jazz recording, but what if I want to record real simple piano music that has a lot of damper resonance/ambiencE?

Nice and interesting content. Thanks a lot. Though I wonder about the position of the microphone because the R88 is a "Far-field ribbon mic designed to retain low end and top end at a distance", as describes by AEA. Don't you think by positioning above the strings, so near to the sound board the recording does not really benefit from the whole range of perspective and the breadth of this Blumlein mic ? No offense, it's really a naive question.

Thank you so much for your video , very good . Please , could you tell me which Are the best mic for recording grand piano ? I have Rode NT 2000 , Apogee 76 elements , mic - pre Neve Amek 9098 system. I have Yamaha C5 grand Piano . Thank you in advance

What is that cool looking silver mic (a ribbon maybe?) that you're using for talking? Sounds great!

Hi George, Doug & Geoff, thank you for this great video! I have a dilemma and I hope you'd be able to help me out. I bought the R88 and the RPQ2 preamp to record at home and it turned out to big a huge mistake as the R88 picks up alot of the interference from the untreated room and makes it extremely noisy and practically impossible to use. If you hop on the forums online there's alot of people complaining about it being super noisy. Apparently you need to be in a pro studio environment to make that amazing mic come alive...Just wondering if perhaps you know of a hack or of sometype of equipment I can incorporate to deal with this noise problem? I really like the natural sound of my home and would really love to be able to use my R88 to capture it. Any suggestions would be really great!!! Thanks.

YOU NEED TO TAKE THE LID OFF THE PIANO When's the t-shirt coming out with a picture of a piano without a lid on it ?

You kind of lost me at the "take the lid off" section. Pianos are designed to function with lids. It's always going to be a case-by-case situation based on the piano, the way the piano is mic'ed, and the type of sound you're going for. Taking the lid off might yield a nice sound in a certain situations, but something dry and lifeless in others. Ribbon mics pick up in a figure 8 pattern (picking up sound from the rear), so with the R88 that you're using, the position and angle you've chosen possibly would be picking up reflections off the lid that would be objectionable.

So how do you record an upright? Strip it down and place the mike between the pianists knees?

What kind of Mic was that overhead....the mic you guys were speaking into?

Loved 4:23-4:30 YOU NEED TO TAKE THE LID OFF THE PIANO

Fun video - but no sound example? Now I have to go to another source to sample the result of the whole video ??.... am I missing something here?

Take the lid off!

FYI, your site give me a privacy warning when I try to visit it.

Try mics under the piano….. be aware of pedal noise.