What we have to show in 1982 is:
TV news broadcasts where roughly a third of the film clips sound as if…
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Not too many years ago, high-fidelity movement was being hailed from all quarters (and many halves) as a revolution. In the sense that it took the country storm, and made billions of dollars for many entrepreneurs during heyday, it was indeed a revolution. But now the public has grown tired of high fidelity and is turning other electronic diversions—video, video games, and computering. And what, as of this summer of 1982, do we have to show for the high-fidelity revolution?
A letter in response appeared in Vol.5 No.7:
The NonRevolution
Editor: It was with interest—and moderate sympathy—that I read the editorial, "The Revolution That Never Was," in your Vol.5 No.4. Particularly intriguing was the figure of 273% for distortion. A little research revealed that —273 degrees Celsius is the (rounded) figure for Absolute Zero. Perhaps, then, 273% is the figure for absolute distortion. Maybe it could be the name for a new magazine.
I was less sympathetic to your criticism regarding the listening public. A quarter-century of a wide variety of…
The Incredible String Band
Hannibal HNCD 4437 (CD only). TT: 45:15
The 5000 Spirits or The Layers of the Onion
Hannibal HNCD 4438 (CD only). TT: 50:06
The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter
Hannibal HNCD 4421 (CD only). TT: 50:12
Wee Tam & the Big Huge
Hannibal HNCD 4802 (2 CDs only). TT: 87:49
Changing Horses
Hannibal HNCD 4439 (CD only). TT: 50:24
I Looked Up
Hannibal HNCD 4440 (CD only). TT: 41:30
All above: Joe Boyd, prod.; John Wood, eng. AAD.
Hannibal HNCD 4437 (CD only). TT: 45:15
The 5000 Spirits or The Layers of the Onion
Hannibal HNCD 4438 (CD only). TT: 50:06
The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter
Hannibal HNCD 4421 (CD only). TT: 50:12
Wee Tam & the Big Huge
Hannibal HNCD 4802 (2 CDs only). TT: 87:49
Changing Horses
Hannibal HNCD 4439 (CD only). TT: 50:24
I Looked Up
Hannibal HNCD 4440 (CD only). TT: 41:30
All above: Joe Boyd, prod.; John Wood, eng. AAD.
This ultimate hippie band was perhaps the most lyrically sophisticated and musically daring…
There's a fantastic new two-SACD/CD set of a demonstration-quality live recording of a rather obscure work you really should get to know, not only for its own merits, but also for what I believe is its underappreciated but major influence on music and on popular culture. The piece is by 20th-century composer Arnold Schoenberg, but trust me—it's more than "listenable." It (or, at least, the music on the first disc) is beyond engaging; it is compelling—a revelation, even. The work is Gurrelieder (Songs of Gurre), Gurre being a castle in medieval Denmark that was the setting of a real-life…
My contention is that Gurrelieder provided the DNA for the sound-world of a major portion of the movie soundtracks (and a lot of the TV soundtracks) we grew up with, up to and including the original TV series Star Trek and Star Wars. The means of transmission could have been Erich Korngold and all the other composers who later turned to film, who came here from Austria and Germany either for career advancement or to flee persecution. The fully orchestrated version of Gurrelieder was premiered in Vienna in 1913. Korngold, a child prodigy who had already had an opera performed before Emperor…
I won't go on at length about the SCM 40's sound. The family resemblance to the SCM 11 was strong: it sounded like an excellent monitor speaker (which the SCM 11 is), except with more bass—and, for the price, unusually well-controlled, well-extended bass. I gather that some people hold to a stereotype that ATC speakers are for rock'n'rollers, by which I assume they mean large-scale dynamics, but also slammy bass and etched treble. Well, you can't prove that by me. Indeed, my sister-in-law listened to some Jane Monheit on the SCM 40s, then turned to me and said, "These speakers just sound '…
Sidebar: Please Clue Us In
It has become a pet peeve of mine that too many audio manufacturers don't seem to make any effort at all to explain the rhyme and reason of their product lines. I think that if a manufacturer has two different speaker models that cost exactly the same or several different digital players that appear roughly or at least somewhat similar, everyone, including the manufacturer and dealers, stand to benefit if the manufacturer's website and sales literature make some effort at explaining why. My guess is that many companies don't offer an explanation because the…
Balanced performance isn't the be-all and end-all of product design. A person can listen to a product which balances the highs with the lows, detail with forgiveness, delicacy with dynamics, and still feel unmoved. Such a product might sound "proper," but it won't produce the illusion of a live performance. It takes a special window or two on reality to convince you you're listening to live music. Such a loudspeaker may have other deficiencies which keep it from being a universally appealing product, but it keeps reminding you of the live experience. It may appeal only to a small number of…
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There was a sacrifice in perceived depth when I moved the speakers back to the rear wall—the recordings had to provide most of the depth cues, without as much assistance from a deep room/speaker interface. The number of recordings that can provide most of the depth cues are fewer than you might imagine. With my listening chair about 12' away, the speakers were certainly able to "dissolve" the rear wall, but I got a 20th-row perspective of the orchestra, with a foreshortened front-to-rear perspective of the ensemble depth. Moving the chair closer, to about 9', deepened the soundstage again,…