Fragments—the title—feels inaccurate; these recordings are not shards of some missing whole. Rather, they form a single large, varied portrait. To borrow an analogy from art history, what we have here is the result of cleaning and restoring a large canvas, removing layers of varnish and dirt that had obscured the true colors and textures that were there when it was…
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Columbia Records continues to extend its Bob Dylan Bootleg Series, which began in 1991. The latest edition in this complex warren of burrows brings us to Volume 17, Bob Dylan—Fragments—Time Out of Mind Sessions (1996–1997).
In 1955, Canadian pianist Glenn Gould surprised executives at Columbia Masterworks by choosing J.S. Bach's Goldberg Variations for his debut recording. His performance was fast and fluid and sparkling and delicious, and it was an astonishingly big seller. In 1981, Gould came full circle and recorded the Goldbergs again. It was his last studio recording. That second attempt could not be more different from the first: relentlessly intellectual, percussive, insistent.
Outtakes from the 1955 sessions were released by Sony in 2018. Late last year, to honor what would have been Gould's 90th…
I'm picturing a gaggle of cigar-chomping Simaudio execs in an office discussing what to do about the fact that their high-end amplification lines have become so successful that their names have become synonymous with the company. "In the '90s, people thought our company was called Celeste," one floor-pacing exec says, speaking for everyone in the room. "Now they think we're called Moon! How do we fix this?" After much debate, a member shouts: "We add 'by Simaudio' at the end!" The execs hoot, holler, and slap the conference-room table—and thus is born Moon by Simaudio.
A fictional account…
Listening
I started listening to Brother Jack McDuff 's Moon Rappin' (LP, Blue Note 84334), which, with the funk-fueled "Flat Backin'" leading off, should leap out of the gate rhythmically. I had to jack the volume knob up pretty far before it would make that leap—my first hint that the Shinai, a 37Wpc solid state integrated with tube-circuit topology, might not be an ideal match, powerwise, for the Voice 22s.
I started listening to Brother Jack McDuff 's Moon Rappin' (LP, Blue Note 84334), which, with the funk-fueled "Flat Backin'" leading off, should leap out of the gate rhythmically. I had to jack the volume knob up pretty far before it would make that leap—my first hint that the Shinai, a 37Wpc solid state integrated with tube-circuit topology, might not be an ideal match, powerwise, for the Voice 22s.
Not that it mattered much. With the Shinai–Voices combo, "Flat Backin'" sounded dynamic and vibrant, its soundstage a big-cityscape of light and movement, airy with a…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Two-way, standmounted, reflex-loaded loudspeaker. Drive units: 1.14" (29mm) textile-dome tweeter with waveguide, 6.1" (155mm) mineral-filled polypropylene-cone mid/bass driver. Frequency response: 55Hz–24kHz, ±3dB. Frequency range: 45Hz–30kHz, –6dB. Sensitivity: 89dB/2.83V/m. Nominal impedance: 6 ohms. Recommended power: 50–150Wpc.
Dimensions: 7.9" (200mm) W × 13.8" (350mm) H × 11.4" (290mm) D. Weight: 10.35lb (4.68kg) each.
Finishes: Black piano, white piano.
Serial number of units reviewed: MV2221390030BG. (Designed in Canada, built in…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Analog source: Rega P5 turntable with RB700 tonearm and Audio MusiKraft Denon DL-103 cartridge.
Preamplifier: Sonic Frontiers SFP-1 Signature phono preamp.
Integrated amplifier: Grandinote Shinai.
Loudspeakers: Focal Aria K2 936.
Cables: Interconnect: Audience Studio ONE. Speaker: Audience Studio ONE, Kimber Kable Monocle XL. Power: Shunyata Research Black Mamba CX, LessLoss DFPC.
Accessories: Shunyata Research Venom PS8 power conditioner; a component rack and a wood plinth stand (under turntable) whose brand names are lost to time.—Rob…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
I used DRA Labs' MLSSA system and a calibrated DPA 4006 microphone to measure the Simaudio Moon Voice 22's behavior in the farfield, and an Earthworks QTC-40 mike for the nearfield responses. As the loudspeaker's manual recommends that the grille be left off for the "best results," the measured behavior was taken without the grille.
The Moon Voice 22's sensitivity is specified as 89dB/2.83V/m; my B-weighted estimate was inconsequentially lower…
We started issuing recordings on the Stereophile label at the end of the 1980s, both to make available some of test tracks that we were using in our reviews and to enable readers to have access to recordings where the provenance was fully documented. That way the "Circle of Confusion" that Bob Katz discussed on the Stereophile website in 2017, where the sound quality of an audio component couldn't be judged using a recording with unknown sound quality potential, could be avoided. As Bob wrote, "How can any reviewer make a judgment about a transducer without knowing what a recording is…
Molto Molto: the Music & the Musicians
Molto Molto—Works for Jazz Orchestra by Sasha Matson Stereophile STPH-023
The Music
Concerto For Piano & Jazz Orchestra (CD Tracks 1–3; LP 1, Sides A & B)
Adam Birnbaum, piano
I: Find the Pocket 7:14
II: Distant & Sweet 7:02
III: Molto Molto 8:44
Capt. Trips 8:12 (CD Track 4; LP 1 Side B)
Steve Cardenas, guitar
Symphony No.3 For Jazz Orchestra (CD Tracks 5–8; LP 2, Sides A & B)
I: Vamp Till Ready 4:52
II: Song Torch 6:32
III: Bossa Alla Calli 5:20
IV: Life…
Molto Molto: John Atkinson on the Studio, the Sessions, Mixing & Mastering
I got down to studying the scores Sasha sent me, learning the instrumentation, deciding on possible editing points, and wondered where the project could be recorded. I had played bass in the 1970s with what we used to call a "rehearsal band," and I still remember how loud it was. Using the minimal microphone technique I prefer for conventional classical works, we would need an enormous space, like a concert hall, for the sessions.