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"We want the Beatles! We want the Beatles!" the packs of teenage girls screamed as they chased Herb Reichert down the halls of the Park Lane Hotel, grabbing for his still-ample hair. Stereophile's Fab Four—Ken Micallef, Jim Austin, Herb Reichert, and myself—hit the halls early for the first day of the New York Audio Show. As Herb has explained, I knew that Friday, November 9th was also the release date for Giles Martin's remixed The Beatles (aka the White Album), and I had a strong hunch that Chad Kassem would have some LP copies at his Acoustic Sounds booth—after all, his company pressed…
We know, we know, it's only November 12. But it's one heck of an issue, featuring our Products of 2018, and it's hitting newsstands, tablets, and mailbox now! The versatile Ovation PA 8.2 preamplifier from German company AVM is featured on the December cover and this issue's line-up of reviews has a European flavor: as well as the AVM, we audition Elac's Adante AF-61 speaker and EMT's HSD 006 phono cartridge (Germany); the ATC CDA2 CD player, Harbeth P3ESR minimonitor, and Wharfedale Diamond 11.2 bookshelf speaker (UK); Ortofon SPU Wood pickup head (Denmark); and Aqua Formula xHD DAC (Italy…
Thursday November 15, 7:30–10pm, Audio Vision S.F. (1628 California Street—at the end of the historic cable car line—San Francisco, CA 94109) is holding what they call a "BIG FREE HOME AUDIO EVENT!!" Featured will be D/A processors from Chord Electronics, a SME Reference turntable system, loudspeakers from Raidho, and Nordost power and cabling systems.
Attendees are asked to bring some music to re-experience and are told to expect a night of unparalleled sonic excellence There will be wine, beer, light nibbles, and some prizes as well!! RSVP to info@audiovisionsf.com or call (415) 614-…
The last time I covered the New York Audio Show it was not, frankly, a great experience. The show was really small. It seemed like everyone was playing Diana Krall or some pop-classical piece from an audiophile label. Nobody, it seemed, dared to play interesting music.
This year's experience was better—much better. The first room I walked into—the Audio Note UK room—was playing an old cello LP; it sounded like Jacqueline du Pré, but I'm not sure. A good Audio Note UK system is a very fine way to listen to old classical LPs, among the finest. The next room I walked into—the Vitalis Audio…
John Atkinson reviewed the Aqua Formula xHD in December 2018 (Vol.41 No.12):
Jason Victor Serinus reviewed this non-oversampling (NOS) digital-to-analog converter from AQ Technologies, aka Aqua Acoustic Quality, in June 2018. The Formula xHD, which costs $17,000, has no chips or digital filters, instead using a 24-bit, four-branch, resistor-to-resistor (R2R) ladder based on field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). When JVS listened to a recording of Vadim Gluzman performing the Brahms Violin Concerto, with the Lucerne Symphony Orchestra under James Gaffigan (SACD/CD, BIS 2172), he found…
As she moves quietly across the huge scoring stage at Skywalker Studios toward the large, comfortable control room that sits behind glass, it's obvious that Leslie Ann Jones is in charge. She wears no badge that proclaims her authority, although her professional title is impressive: "Director of Music and Scoring, Music and Scoring Recording Engineer and Mixer" (footnote 1). Nor does she speak in a large voice or hit you over the head with her five Grammy awards and four Grammy nominations. But when she turns from watching the 80' × 60' × 30' scoring stage, which has the lowest noise floor…
"Ultimately, I try to be as helpful and collaborative as I can. I try to think of ways I can make it better rather than just throwing up my hands in frustration. I want people to succeed. This approach has something to do with my politics and railing against being raised in a somewhat privileged atmosphere where I went to private schools.
"It also has to do with what I've become since I got to Skywalker, and the similarity between what we try to do in scoring and what the rest of the building does. Our approach springs from George [Lucas]'s vision to design a space for inventions that…
Sidebar: Leslie Ann Jones Discography
LAJ's Five Favorite Recording Projects (footnote 1)
Ferron Shadows on a Dime (engineer)
Kronos Quartet Nuevo (engineer)
Rosemary Clooney Dedicated to Nelson (engineer)
Laura Karpman & Langston Hughes Ask Your Mama (engineer)
Unbreakable, Original Cast Recording, featuring the San Francisco Gay Men's Chorus (producer/engineer)
LAJ's Five Most Recent Projects
Jake Heggie Songs for Murdered Sisters featuring Joshua Hopkins (producer/engineer…
David Bowie: The Width of a Circle
Parlophone 0190295082260 (CD). 2021. Bernie Andrews, others, prods.; Nick Gomm, eng.
Performance ****
Sonics ***
Parlophone 0190295082260 (CD). 2021. Bernie Andrews, others, prods.; Nick Gomm, eng.
Performance ****
Sonics ***
The 50th anniversary of the release of David Bowie's The Man Who Sold the World was marked last year with a remastered reissue that restored Bowie's desired cover art and intended title: Metrobolist. Parlophone has followed that up with a worthy two-disc set charting Bowie's early course.
The first CD contains an hour-long radio appearance from February 1970, presented by BBC legend John Peel. On four songs, Bowie plays…
Alice Coltrane: Kirtan: Turiya Sings
Alice Coltrane: vocals; organ
Impulse! B003370502 (CD). 2021. Ravi Coltrane, Ed Michel, prods.; Baker Bigsby, eng.
Performance *****
Sonics ****
Alice Coltrane: vocals; organ
Impulse! B003370502 (CD). 2021. Ravi Coltrane, Ed Michel, prods.; Baker Bigsby, eng.
Performance *****
Sonics ****
Luaka Bop's 2017 release of the compilation The Ecstatic Music of Alice Coltrane Turiyasangitananda renewed interest in the singular work of the harpist/ pianist. Reissues of her self-produced cassettes have largely replaced the previous narrative—jazz widow who faded into irrelevance—with a new one: vital voice who followed her faith without faltering in her art.
The loss of husband…