"Everybody's gotta get into the act!" Jimmy Durante used to say. That's what's happening with phono preamplifiers—they just keep being built, and I keep getting them for review. Up for evaluation in next month's column are new models from Perreaux, Musical Fidelity, Graham Slee, and a Chinese one, Ming Da. You can bet there'll be more.
Let's see—should I start with a discussion of conflict? Or maybe indecision? No, let's be more psychological and talk about approach/avoidance dilemmas...No, I'm supposed to be entertaining. How about a joke? Nah, that won't do. Well how about the framework for a joke? Yeah, that's the ticket!
One of the things endured by engineers and journalists involved in the design and discussion of high-end components is the seemingly endless attacks from those who, for whatever reason, feel that there is something unhealthy, even vaguely immoral, in the whole idea of wanting to listen to music with as high a quality as possible. The Listening Studio's Clark Johnsen reminded me recently of a letter from Daniel Shanefield that I published in the January 1984 issue of <I>Hi-Fi News & Record Review</I> that illustrates the whole genre: "It is utterly useless to write an amplifier review based on listening tests. If there were anything other than mere frequency response variation, it might be interesting...most hi-fi magazines will...forswear attempts to review amplifiers for their 'inherent sounds.' There are still plenty of interesting things to talk about in reviewing amplifiers, such as features, power, cost effectiveness, beauty, etc." (Of course, Daniel Shanefield is not quite as authoritative a published amplifier reviewer as, say, <A HREF="http://www.stereophile.com/interviews/66">J. Gordon Holt</A> or Harry Pearson of <I>The Abso!ute Sound</I>.)
One of the treats of my Thanksgiving was an up-close-and-personal analysis of my 14<SUP>th</SUP> century musical manuscript by Metropolitan Museum fellow Eric Weaver. I was reasonably sure of its date, based on the staff structure and mensuration, but Eric taught me an immense amount about parchment, calligraphy, illumination, monastic culture, and medieval guilds in the 30 minutes or so that he discussed my musical fragment. In short, he took an object I see above my hi-fi every day and made an epoch come alive—conversationally and off-the-cuff.
Bagheera is the mistress of the disbelieving glare.
Huckleberry, on the other hand, has mastered the air of angelic innocence.
Daniel J. Levitin, author of <I>This Is Your Brain on Music</I>, has a website with a bunch of interesting music-related material, as well as a nifty little animated feature on his book.
Watched James Brown's widow Tomi (not Tammy, she’s touchy), on <I>Larry King</I> last nite. Larry, who was at low ebb last nite and looked real bored by being used as a platform in a marriage dispute, wasn't buying any of it. Larry, bad manicure and all, looks like he's interviewed enough grieving, flaky–as–hell rock star widows.
Is industrial design "intelligence made visible" or "attention-seeking frivolity"?
Year's best sports-related story—2007 is going to have to really be wild to better this one.