Georgian songwriter and musician Katie Melua is renowned for her exquisite vocals and when audiences go to see her live they want to hear every nuance of her amazing singing voice.
With this in mind, Front of House engineer Bryony October had no hesitation in working with a DPA d:facto Vocal Microphone for Katie when she was asked to handle Front of House duties on her recent run of European dates.
The d:facto really captures the rich and beautiful tones of her stunning voice with very little effort on my part, October explains. Fellow engineers raved about the d:facto and after visiting the DPA factory in Denmark, I too quickly fell in love with it and now use it almost exclusively as my go to vocal microphone. Because she doesnt play guitar in every song we continued to use a wireless version, as she has done in the past, with both Shure and Sennheiser wireless systems, so that she could take it off the stand and move freely around the stage.
For Katie Meluas recent tour, October had to contend with a variety of scale of venue from the 10,000 capacity Black Sea Arena near Batumi in Georgia, where Katie was joined by the Gori Womens Choir, to the smaller and more intimate Cadogan Hall in London, where they did two headline shows for Amazon Prime.
As well as paying careful attention to the vocal sound, October was also keen to use DPA microphones on the drum kit due to the very dynamic role of the kit in the sound mixes.
Drums were the first thing Katie spoke to me about when we were discussing her live sound as she was concerned that they should always be as subtle and quiet as possible to allow the very quiet and delicate songs space and presence, yet needed to provide the drive and feel in the heavier numbers, October says. For this reason, I needed microphones that could handle high SPL when the drummer played with sticks, but were also sensitive enough to convey the more subtle nuances of playing with brushes and mallets.
The set up October chose included d:vote 4099 Instrument microphones for the toms and d:dicate 2011C Twin Diaphragm Cardioid microphones for the kick and distant snare. She also used a d:dicate 2011C for the guitar amps and added eight d:screet 4098 Supercardioid microphones to capture the sound of the Gori Womens Choir.
This combination of microphones was a real dream as they were able to handle the SPL, yet were incredibly detailed when he source was at low level, she says. In terms of the choir, it was a real challenge with a live drum kit next to eight open condenser mics in a hugely reverberant arena, but the directionality and side/rear rejection of the d:screet 4098s made the job less daunting because at low gain I was still able to pick up the four part harmonies of the choir with the most spine tingling clarity, yet without their sound being polluted by the band on the stage or the venues 8s decay time.
October has been a live FOH sound engineer since 1999 and has worked with a huge range of artists across numerous genres including Billy Ocean, Laura Marling, Foxes, Ward Thomas and Keaton Henson. She is no stranger to DPAs microphone technology and has used the brand many times in the past, particularly for classical concert recording.
I have worked extensively with DPA microphones in an orchestral setting at the National Concert Hall in Dublin, where I have mixed broadcast audio for RTE Lyric FM, she says. I then naturally chose DPA when mixing FOH for singer-songwriter Keaton Henson who uses live cello/string quartet and a full grand piano.
All the microphones for Katies tour were supplied by DPAs UK distributor, Sound Network, with whom October has had a long and fruitful relationship.
Sound Network has always been an incredible support to me, she says. When I needed an additional d:facto capsule for the Shure radio system we were using in Georgia, they sent one for next day delivery. Nothing is ever too much trouble for them and I am so appreciative because I feel like a very valued customer. I also want to give a big shout out to all the incredible ladies in DPAs factory in Denmark because I have huge appreciation and respect for their skills and delicacy.
Bryony October is now working with British country music duo Ward Thomas who are on tour with Miranda Lambert, and once again DPAs d:facto Vocal microphones are being used.
www.dpamicrophones.com
Most recent headlines
11/12/2025
Dalet, a leading provider of cloud-native, end-to-end media workflow solutions, ...
28/11/2025
Nadia Fall attends the 2025 Sundance Film Festival premiere of Brides at the Egyptian Theatre on January 24, 2025, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Donyale West/...
28/11/2025
It's easy to ignore those little red update available badges. But when it ...
28/11/2025
WASHINGTON Federal Communications Commission has released a tentative agenda for the December Open Commission Meeting scheduled for Thursday, December 18, 2025 ...
28/11/2025
The Professional Fighters League is looking to super-serve fans of mixed martial...
28/11/2025
Fubo has released in beta on select Roku devices a new feature that lets users display up to four simultaneous streams at once....
28/11/2025
The WNBA playoffs and Week 4 of the NFL regular season highlight the list of live sports events airing on television this weekend....
28/11/2025
The 32nd class of honorees to the B+C Hall of Fame took to the stage at New York's Ziegfeld Ballroom on September 26 for a gala induction event. Click below...
28/11/2025
We hold in our hands the very last Next Text for Next TV, the weekly back-and-fo...
28/11/2025
DirecTV said it made a deal with EchoStar to buy EchoStar's video businesses, including satellite-TV provider Dish TV and virtual MVPD Sling TV, for $1 plus...
28/11/2025
The Broadcasting+Cable Hall of Fame, the premier industry event paying tribute to the influencers, innovators and shining lights of broadcast, cable and streami...
28/11/2025
Friday 28 November 2025
Sky Sports x Slawn drop limited-edition football jersey...
28/11/2025
Rohde & Schwarz shows resilience in a challenging environment, revenue exceeds t...
28/11/2025
Unwrapped: The Toy Show Appeal - airing this Sunday on RT One and RT Player- s...
27/11/2025
LONDON Vizrt has added several AI-driven advanced features offering improved speed, intelligence and accuracy in the newest version of its media asset managemen...
27/11/2025
Prime Video has launched AI-powered video season recaps in a beta version for select English-language Prime Original series in the U.S., a move Amazon is callin...
27/11/2025
Back to All News
Netflix's Raat Akeli Hai: The Bansal Murders Marks a Grand...
27/11/2025
27 Nov 2025
GSMA brings M360 Eurasia 2026 to Samarkand in partnership with VEON...
27/11/2025
Tahar Rahim and Izuka Hoyle star in the gripping six-part Sky Original from Acad...
27/11/2025
Thursday 27 November 2025
Sky Arts Reveals the Nation's Greatest Basslines - and Queen Reign Supreme
The UK's most iconic basslines have been revealed...
27/11/2025
Back to All News
Stranger Things 5': Prepare for One Last Adventure With O...
27/11/2025
The media industry has a paradox at its core. It's an industry built on light, color and imagination, yet behind the scenes, it's powered by one of the ...
27/11/2025
Rating reflects rating progress across areas including policies, diversity & inclusion, health & safety and Net Zero leadership
Winchester, UK, 27 November 202...
27/11/2025
What are the industry standards for Retail Media? Kathryn explains that certification is based on the IAB Europe Retail Media Measurement Standards and the IAB ...
27/11/2025
World champion boxer and Irish sporting icon Katie Taylor will be in studio this...
27/11/2025
Roblox, one of the world's most popular online gaming platforms for primary ...
27/11/2025
Black Friday is leveling up. Get ready to score one of the biggest deals of the season - 50% off the first three months of a new GeForce NOW Ultimate membership...
26/11/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Prime Video EP Mike Muriano Previews Massive Black Friday Slate Fe...
26/11/2025
A cinematic snow sculpture at the 1995 Sundance Film Festival. Photo by Randall Michelson...
26/11/2025
Book podcasts are booming. On Spotify, you'll find everything from celebrity book clubs to deep dives with bestselling authors. And in markets where audiobo...
26/11/2025
Mumbai, November 24, 2025: In a first-of-its-kind initiative, JioStar, in collab...
26/11/2025
LONDON Factual content producer ITN Productions has launched a new low-latency IP gallery for news bulletins....
26/11/2025
MIAMI TelevisaUnivision said it struck a new multiyear distribution agreement with YouTube TV that includes distribution of TelevisaUnivision's U.S. network...
26/11/2025
OpenDrives, Inc., a leader in software-defined data storage and data services, today announced the launch of the Atlas Corporate Creative Solution. This new Atl...
26/11/2025
Disguise, the industry-leading company powering the world's biggest live performances, is partnering with pioneering LED wall manufacturer DVS to give atten...
26/11/2025
HighField AI, the pioneer in agentic and multimodal automation for broadcast and media production, today announced the expansion of its global channel partner n...
26/11/2025
As high-stakes Premier League fixtures approach and additional premium content launches, with MONO positioning themselves to dominate Thailand's sports stre...
26/11/2025
Hosting a wide variety of events from high-intensity NHL games to complex live music concerts and major entertainment productions, Montreal's 21,000 capacit...
26/11/2025
Vizrt, the leader in live production technology revolutionizing viewer engagement and experience, releases AI-driven advances focusing on speed, intelligence, a...
26/11/2025
ITN Productions, an award-winning factual content producer, today launched a new low-latency IP gallery for news bulletins. Responsible for delivering a leading...
26/11/2025
Ikegami reports ongoing advances throughout 2025 in developing and delivering coordinated television production solutions that maximize quality, versatility and...
26/11/2025
Following the Nov. 21 blackout of NBCUniversal channels on Fubo, the two sides have traded barbs about their inability to reach a new carriage deal....
26/11/2025
LONDON As TV sports rights become increasingly important for both broadcasters and streamers, Ampere Analysis predicts global investment in the genre will surpa...
26/11/2025
LOS ANGELES Vubiquity said it has achieved the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Media & Entertainment Competency as part of the AWS Partner Network (APN). This designa...
26/11/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission's Enforcement Bureau said it has entered into a consent decree with Comcast calling for the cable company t...
26/11/2025
Berklee Named to the Hollywood Reporters Top Music Schools List The publication highlights the college's screen scoring program, industry partnerships, and ...
26/11/2025
Back to All News
Animated Series Love Through a Prism' Casts New Light on ...
26/11/2025
Back to All News
NALIP Unveils Fifth Cohort of Director Incubator
Social Impact
26 November 2025
United States
Link copied to clipboard
The National Assoc...
26/11/2025
YouView Achieves Greenly Gold Certification for SustainabilityNov 26, 2025
YouView is proud to announce a Gold Certification award from Greenly for our perform...
Georgian songwriter and musician Katie Melua is renowned for her exquisite vocals and when audiences go to see her live they want to hear every nuance of her amazing singing voice.
