In fairness to audio cats, there are some who have a great knack with drums and are able to step back and get both a great sound & serve the drummer and musicians. Unfortunately, they are too few.
I'm primarily a pianist :eek: [what?!? no piano emoticons?] and I've done a lot of live sound as well as recording, so I've seen both sides. I'll always remember overhearing a 'trained' sound tech say "Musicians NEVER make good sound men". Geezzzz
When I do live audio, I love to get input from the musicians - they're not always understanding of what the audio tech is aiming at, but often they have long standing insight & experience that any sound man should learn from.
Straight up jazz drums do really shine with some (2) well placed, quality, full spectrum condensers, gently filling out the hall. But, Leave the blending up to the drummer and the band!!!!
I dig a lot of 70s euro progressive music [Yes, Genesis, King Crimson, PFM...] I went to a progressive festival where the joker sound tech had HUGE sub cabinets and mixed the kick drum like techno-disco dance music - WRONG! Fine for a dance club with quarter note kicks and limited syncopation - TeRrIbLe for the complex & subtle intricacies of early progressive music and jazz forms.
Too many audio cats are more interested in showing off their gear than being invisible and serving the style of music, the artist & the song.
I think every audio tech should have to take extensive music appreciation and history before graduating or ever hiring themselves out. Any bonehead can blast out 100+ dB - the sound system should blend and support the band, not control it.
By example, I used to love sitting down to play a nice Kawai 7 ft grand on Sunday mornings, but hated to start playing only to have the acoustic sound of the piano overcome by the monitor - cramming that lovely sound into a big, black wooden box on the floor off to my right that sounded like crap. Years of practice & technique thrown right out the window. oy....Soap Box
