Ibrahim Ferrer, one of the best-known practitioners of the Cuban vocal music known as <I>son</I>, died in Havana on August 6 of multiple organ failure. He had returned, ill, from a European tour several days previously, and then been hospitalized.
As the Senate Commerce Committee began hearings on issues related to <I>MGM v. Grokster</I> on July 28, Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) president Gary Shapiro issued a masterfully constructed statement reminding the Committee of the stakes involved. Why masterful? Essentially, we are struck by the concision of the CEA argument and its gentle reminder that a significant American industry will be crucially affected by the final resolution of this issue—and not the one that first springs to mind, either.
Reader Brian Huempfner wants to know if any <I>Stereophile</I> readers have converted their analog recordings to digital, and, if so, what software they used to transfer and clean up the recordings?
Walking through the circus that was WCES '95 was like undergoing total neural-synaptic overload. I felt hard-pressed to just keep my head above water separating good sound from bad. Trying to piece together a coherent picture of the show, I jotted down the components in the best systems that I'd heard, and a few items popped up with astonishing regularity. One of these was Audio Research's single-chassis CD player, the CD-1.
What, a high-fidelity product from Magnavox? The company that 20 years ago had a reputation for building massive, polished-console boom-boxes and was scornfully referred to in audiophile circles as "Maggotbox"? Some important things have happened to Magnavox since those days. Mainly, it became a subsidiary of the Dutch Philips company, co-developer of the laser video disc and now the audio Compact Disc. The Magnavox CD players are actually made by Philips for US distribution by Magnavox.
John Atkinson, you were right the first time ("Letters," <I>Stereophile</I>, December 1997, p.17, footnote 1): Jeremy Bentham is, indeed, the famous English philosopher and legal theorist whose mummified remains are preserved at the University of London. Sitting in a large glass display case, Bentham has been holding court since his death in 1832. As you noted, Bentham looks deceptively like a waxwork. But this is because his head, in fact, <I>is</I> made of wax. The original, rumor has it, suffered through one very macabre rugby game played long ago by mischievous students.
For years now, Internet users willing to walk on the audio wild side have had access to millions of illicit music files via peer-to-peer file-trading services. But those who have tried to find locate of the commercial sources for online music files have found their choices limited.
On July 25, New York State Attorney General Elliot Spitzer announced that Sony BMG Entertainment had agreed to "stop making payments and providing expensive gifts to radio stations and their employees in return for 'airplay' for the company's songs."
Michael Brecker, the legendary tenor saxophonist, has been a staple in the recording scene for more than 30 years now—we were first bowled over by his work on drummer Billy Cobham's 1974 album <I>Crosswinds</I>, although we could have just as easily mentioned hundreds of titles where he supported other musicians as a first-tier studio player. Along with his brother, trumpeter Randy Brecker, he co-led the Brecker Brothers band in the 1970s and, since 1987, has released intelligent, challenging records as a headliner, including our favorite, 2001's <I>The Nearness of You: The Ballad Book</I> (Verve 549705 CD).