maxg Posted April 11, 2005 Share Posted April 11, 2005 To be brief - well I will try.... Well - the system and I are still alive. It was touch and go for a while there - but we made it through! What? You ask (or not - but if you are wondering about your next amp or something it is gonna screw the logic of the post - so get on topic will ya!) Anyway: SWMBO Junior hit 3 years old last week and the party was Saturday. 15 kids aged 1-11 swarming over the house like locust eating anything with Chocolate on it, and chips of course. About 20 adults as well to parry some of the major blows. Rather than worrying about what music to put on I chose all the music channels on the Satellite and put them in a favorites group so we could zap between them easily - turned the volume up to "obscene" on the amp and let them have at it. Spent the rest of the evening deflecting erant balloons from the TT. Need to get a cover for it I suppose - but I can shift when I need to and arm and TT made it through safe. Only real moment of concern came from one of the more junior party-goers who started to climb the rack like it was a staircase - he didnt get too far! Kids Parties in Greece start late - and run late. Italian and French music channels to not cater for this. I glanced at the screen around midnight and there were some decidedly naked young thing gyrating to the music in (still simulated) sex acts. Still it kept some of the older ones enthralled and there was quite a hullabaloo when I switched channels to MTV and then VH1 neither of which do that kind of thing. Of course I had not swtiched by the time my mother-in-law had sat down and got something of an eyeful. (What is it about that woman? Every time she comes to our house and the TV is playing there is the most graphic sexual content we have ever witnessed. On any channel - long ago, when we lived in England she plonked down in front of the TV and the BBC immediately decided to risk all with a detailed program on Lesbian Mothers and their bisexual lovers - I mean - what? On the BBC? Good lord Sir! Whatever next? But I digress.) As it is I gather that at around 2 am the simulations on the channels we were watching stop and things get rather more real (if Porn can be described as real) but fortunately we had bundled the last one of the minor terrorists out of the door by then, Mother-In-Law included. Anyway - it all passed fine - the only remaining issue is that some complete b*****d bought my daughter a beautiful pink Barbi Karaoke machine with innumerable magnificient(!) digital sound effects and a tape drive (with free tape) to capture those wonderful moments for posterity. And now Musicology (you thought I had forgotten - hoped maybe - who knows?) Tony's latest Girlfriend is a musicologist. What is one of them then? A music scientist. They study the mathematics (and physics for all I know) behind music and generally have perfect pitch - along with an amazing ability to write the music they hear down - as they hear it - for multiple instruments playing at the same time. Cool huh! Anyway in an interlude when the Clown we had hired (who wasnt a clown - she was a fairy but who is counting) had whisked all the kids off into SWMBO Junior's bedroom she sat down to listen to some vinyl on my system. Quite enlightening it was too. Aside from her positive comments on the system (which could have been mere politeness) she was a fabulous resource for what recordings sound "real" and what dont. My beloved Philips recordings do not fair well. Many of the audiophile recordings likewise. However, there was one recording that just floored her. She said it was the single most realistic recording she had ever heard and that with her eyes closed she would be hard put to identify it from the real thing. That recording is: Schubert String Quartet in C major Christian Poltera Auryn Quartet Tacet L110 Stereo Germany Most interestingly it is an "all tube" recording - very audiophile of course - but I have had more diverse reactions to it than any other recording I own. For example - I adore it and Tony loathes it with a vengence - as a recording that is. Obviously whatever her qualifications this is still just an opinion - but interesting all the same. A Musicologist is a hand y thing to have around - but, IMHO, a terrible thing to be. There were a number of recordings she simply could not relax and listen to. As soon as they started playing she told me she could not help analyzing them and that meant getting no joy from them. Tchaikovsky's Violin concerto, Grieg's Pier Gynt and a variety of others she was totally unable to comment on sonically - or enjoy - because of her "skill" What a terrible curse to bear - or price to pay for your chosen profession. The above 2 are amongst my most favorite musical pieces of all time. When I die I would want of these 2 playing in the background - and she cannot hear them in that simple delight that is my listening pleasure. As ever - so much for brevity! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxg Posted April 11, 2005 Author Share Posted April 11, 2005 Well that post went down like a lead balloon! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ben. Posted April 11, 2005 Share Posted April 11, 2005 Give it a bit, Max... we're still shaking the cobwebs off over here!! The title could use some work though. You should have mentioned the simulated sex, I guess! Occupational hazards like that are a pain. Being a musician and recordist, I couldn't stand to see a lot of live music for a long time. I'd just stand there with my arms crossed picking things apart. I've somehow loosened up a bit since then (believe it or not), and in recent years have even been known to shake my *** every now and then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seti Posted April 11, 2005 Share Posted April 11, 2005 ************** Most interestingly it is an "all tube" recording - very audiophile of course - but I have had more diverse reactions to it than any other recording I own. For example - I adore it and Tony loathes it with a vengence - as a recording that is. ************** I know what you mean about the all tube recordings. I recently started listening to T-Rex and was immediately struck by how well his recordings sounded so I looked up his producer which was Tony Visconti. As it turns out all of T-Rexs albums were recorded on all tube analog which Tony Visconti still uses to this day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boomac Posted April 11, 2005 Share Posted April 11, 2005 Max, just out of curiosity, do you know if she has ever listened to that Ray Brown recording that you recommended a few months ago? I cant recall if you mentioned if that LP was Tonys or not. Anyway, very interesting post. What does a Musicologist actually do with that talent? Who would one work or consult for? At any rate, I guess Ill have to be on the lookout for that Schubert Piece. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rplace Posted April 11, 2005 Share Posted April 11, 2005 Great write up Max. I felt like I was at the party. Guess I got out of a gift...tell miss 3y/o SWMBO that I owe her a gift. You handled the rack climbing kid much better then I would have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxg Posted April 11, 2005 Author Share Posted April 11, 2005 Thanks all. Boomy, No idea on whether she has heard that title - I will ask Tony if I remember and let you know. Oh, and as a musicologist she lectures at the university. What else she could have done is beyond me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-MAN Posted April 11, 2005 Share Posted April 11, 2005 Actually blinded by her gift? Reminds me of some engineering types that I know. Too much right brain and not enough left makes for an unbalanced life. Hey, you can quote me on that one, it's pretty good! DM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
No Disc Posted April 11, 2005 Share Posted April 11, 2005 That could explain why I like the older DGG Tulips as they were also mastered using tube gear. A few months back I had a Russian Pianist over to my place and I put on some vinyl of Sviatoslav Richter. He felt the sound was quite believable and didn't detect any obvious faults of pitch or timbre. Musicologist... mmmm. I guess ignorance is bliss. I'll stay in the dark and enjoy my music. One thing that is good is that your system is capable of producing quality sound that even a Musicologist could not discern from the real thing. That says a lot about your system. Now you need better recordings... LOL No Disc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxg Posted April 12, 2005 Author Share Posted April 12, 2005 "One thing that is good is that your system is capable of producing quality sound that even a Musicologist could not discern ..." Change that to "almost could not discern..." My system is good - though I say it myself - but realism is not something I was ever striving for to a great degree. I am a firm believer that if I was not at the original recording session and do not have access to the master tapes there is no way for me to know what is realistic and what is not. I am therefore guided entirely by feel. I go for what sounds real to me - and it seems that I am not too far away. I have always regarded this recording as the most realistic I have ever heard - it is so tangible to my ears that it is almost impossible to close your eyes and imagine the system rather than the players. It seems the musicologist agrees. Just to take a moment out to Boast a little (Apologies in advance) but what most pleases me about my system - what I think it does as well as any I have ever come across is that it is, to all intents and purposes, 2 systems: Below a certain volume the amp is in all class A operation. This really suits classical music and happens to be the volume levels I play classical at. Above that volume the amp goes into AB operation. This is the level I would start listening to Rock. The presentation is much firmer and harder hitting. There is less "air", less melody but more of that visceral feel to the music one would normally associate with Horn presentations. That is what I am actually proud of! End Boast! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boomac Posted April 14, 2005 Share Posted April 14, 2005 Max - Since you spoke so highly of Grieg's Peer Gynt, I picked up a CD today and have been enjoying it for the past hour or so. Greig Peer Gynt Symphonic Dance No. 2 * In Autumn Old Norwegian Folksong with Variations Sir Thomas Beecham Royal Philharmonic Orchestra EMI Classics Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxg Posted April 14, 2005 Author Share Posted April 14, 2005 Glad you are enjoying it! For me it is THE way to unwind after a long day - if only I could stay awake during my late evening listening sessions to enjoy the damn thing. So many records - so little time! This work thing really gets in the way sometimes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boomac Posted April 14, 2005 Share Posted April 14, 2005 The secret is finding time for a nap! I've found that even 20 minutes can make a hugh difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
No Disc Posted April 14, 2005 Share Posted April 14, 2005 I'll have to try that because I have the same problem. I usually don't get all house things out of the way until about 8:30-9pm and then once I set down and start to listen I can usually get about 4-5 tracks in before I find myself drifting off. Caffine used to be my friend, but I can't seem to tolerate it these days. No Disc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxg Posted April 14, 2005 Author Share Posted April 14, 2005 "The secret is finding time for a nap! I've found that even 20 minutes can make a hugh difference" Certainly true if you are behind the wheel. And count yourself lucky ND - I dont manage to get SWMBO Junior off to sleep before 10:30 EVER - and usually before 11.00 By the time I have sorted things out and sat down to listen - I am on the verge of sleep and next thing I know I am being woken by the dub dub dub of the run off groove. Sometimes I wonder why I invested all this money in the first place... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.