I'm going to piggyback/hijack/reinvigorate/whatever this discussion because I've got a similar issue, think I've found the solution in this thread, and would like some confirmation and/or redirection. Here's the deal:
I taped a Keb Mo show, and for the most part, the music and audience clapping is appropriately balanced. I set levels to the band and the only place it clips is on audience clapping. That is, on one particular guy clapping. He sat to my immediate right, was significantly taller than me, and was a very percussive clapper, clapping away 2 ft from my mic. Fortunately, for some reason he hardly clapped during the first hour of the show. Unfortunately, once he started, he hardly every stopped for the last hour and a half: random between songs, rhythmic during songs, all of it with much enthusiasm.
I'm using Audacity and I've got slightly more experience using it than I do taping, but only slightly. Since it's only the one clapper clipping, I'm thinking I'll amplify the whole show within the dynamic range of the music, allowing the clipping. Then use compression to control him during the songs, especially the multiple ones where he was the only one in the entire auditoreum clapping along. Have I got the right idea? Frankly, I'd like to just not hear him at all during the quiet songs, but that isn't possible, is it?
(I did eventually try giving him dirty looks and wincing (silently, of course) and that helped a little. I intend to work more on those skills, but if there's a technical precaution to take in the future, I'd be interested in hearing about it. I'm using an R-09HR.)