This is a rare treat. Brian Ciach, the composer and performer of this work (and sole owner of it’s copyright), has given permission for this to be available on YouTube in it’s entirety. Brian performed his Third Sonata on the brand new Steinway B in Murray State University’s Farrell Recital Hall. It is a beautiful instrument, and Brian’s work tests everything from its delicate graces to its thunderous potential.

The microphone technique was a very traditional X-Y arrangement using two Neumann KM-184 microphones about 8 feet in front of the piano.  There was also a bit of tone tweaking. For example, at the distance of 8 feet the directional Neumanns did not have any proximity effect to help out the bass end of things. So a little EQ from Izotope’s Ozone plugin and and a “tape bounce down” with Tone Booster’s Reel Bus plugin helped round, warm and thump things up a little.

A good rule of thumb for music specific videos on YouTube: switch the resolution to HD for a much improved sonic experience. Enjoy!