Mike and mash

Besides the poetry readings I have begun to watch for fun – subtle popcorn-fun: like my complicated relationships with the microphone.

I have always had issues with the mike, in angel-and-whore ways.

Either I am too soft (like at Tall Tales) where I have to record the whole story again. Or now at David Sassoon Founder’s Day reading where I am fighting with the mike, my breath scratching over auditory perceptions, or then juxtaposed with the readings at Goa Arts and Literature Festival (GALF) where I am dating the mike as if in a cafe.

 

I have sought advice from friends who are ‘miking’ the moment.

Some said I should hold it as if I was about to suck it. Okay? Okay…

Some told me to note the presence of collar or pedestal mikes to gauge quality of recording. If it’s a professional AV set up, the recordings will be powerful. So the reading voice can be lowered. My race against limited-reading-time should not show!