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ARSCLIST  September 2008

ARSCLIST September 2008

Subject:

Re: New online publication: Manual of analogue audio restoration techniques, by Peter Copeland

From:

Michael Biel <[log in to unmask]>

Reply-To:

Association for Recorded Sound Discussion List <[log in to unmask]>

Date:

Mon, 15 Sep 2008 05:49:38 -0400

Content-Type:

text/plain

Parts/Attachments:

Parts/Attachments

text/plain (191 lines)

I agree that it is a good thing to have this published, but it is even 
more unfortunate that Peter is no longer with us because there are many, 
many factual and historical errors and omissions. Chapters like 4,5 and 
6 where he is laying out his experience in playing recordings and giving 
detail like how to identify BBC recording systems are magnificant.  Look 
at page 109 when he explains that a test record was recorded with the 
cutting stylus slightly askew, and that this same situation happens on a 
lot of regular records made with the Blumlein cutter and need to be 
played with the pickup twisted at up to 30 degrees. 

I am glad that he calls lacquer discs "nitrate" and he explains why on 
page 51 although I wish he had a source listed for his dating Cecil 
Watts as the inventor in 1934.  His widow's book does not give any 
dates.  I am also glad on pages 88 and 89 he explains the strobe disc as 
being the basis of 78.26 and 77.92 (leaving out the asinine contention 
from Warren Rex Isom that gear-drive teeth ratios were the original 
causal determination.)  The discussion of the history of bias is good 
except the use of the term "shakes up" might lead one to think that the 
magnetic particles actually move, where it is only the magnetic field of 
the particles that is in motion, not the particles themselves.

But elsewhere in historical chapters I think that there are certain 
things that are included as place holders where for example, he states 
that something is the first he has found.  It seems that he was hoping 
that as he went along and other items came to his attention he would 
replace the section, but if nothing did it could still go as it stands.  
An example is his use on page 216 of Mike Gray's discussion of a 
possibility of a 1939 Toscanini broadcast being done in what the 
community calls "accidental stereo" but he calls "archaeological 
stereo".  He has reference to a Barry Fox article which apparently 
discussed Brad Kay's discovery of the Ellington Program Transcription 
from 1932 that is undeniably dual-disc accidental stereo, but refuses to 
acknowledge it (perhaps because of Keith Hardwick's angry denial of any 
possibility of its existence.)  He says the Toscanini is "the first 
documented example" but the Ellington was on Lp and now is on CD and can 
be examined.  On the next page he hedges his bets with ways that other 
recordings of this type might be found, but even though it had already 
happened, he was waiting for another.  On page 126 he even asks for a 
date on a test disc he describes. 

He has completely misunderstood how Les Paul created his overdubbing on 
page 287 when he talks about a mono tape recorder with the heads in the 
PER arrangement instead of the usual ERP.  That machine was used for a 
time delay that was of the length of the tape loop.  On the next page he 
misrepresents how the Beatles first LP was recorded when he says it was 
"compiled" with "the instrumental backing being recorded on one track 
with the vocals added on the other."  By using the word "ADDED" he is 
implying that they were overdubbed in a separate pass.  It is obvious 
when you listen to the tracks in isolation that they were recorded 
simultaneously because you can hear the studio ambiance of the other 
track on their opposite ones.  On page 181 he assumes he knows the 
reason for the phase differential on the first stereo LP of the Disney 
Fantasia soundtrack, but he does not know that the magnetic master dub 
had been recorded around 1954 via telephone lines because the only 
multitrack mag film recorder available was about 15 miles away from the 
optical players.  This is probably the cause of the slight timing 
shift.   It is why  there is a separate mono track on the video releases 
-- the opticals no longer exist in a complete form to allow it to be 
redone.  The panning of the instruments were done live at the time of 
that dubbing by one of the original road show audio operators. 

But the most maddening thing is on page 221 where he repeats the drastic 
error he put on page 48-49 in his British Library book "Sound 
Recordings."  He insists there that the 7-inch Columbia Stereo-Seven 
discs were issued in 1953 and are mono despite using the dual-arrow logo 
Columbia used in the late 50s, and that the record he illustrates in 
colour is "Everything's Coming Up Roses"  from the 1959 Broadway show 
"Gypsy" and is marked on the label as coming from Columbia CS-8330 "Give 
My Regards To Broadway" by Andre Previn and his Trio which was issued in 
late 1960.  In this work he claims the record series was even earlier, 
1951-52, that they were called stereo back then to merely indicate these 
single channel recordings include a "sense of space around the 
performers" and then firmly says "All these items are single-channel 
mono, and should be treated accordingly."  Wrong Wrong Wrong Wrong 
Wrong.  These *are* real stereo and I told him so in 2001 when I was 
there in the British Library and saw it in the little book.  He bases 
his whole argument about the use of the term stereo in the early 50s on 
this series, and I see no basis in fact for this.  He then goes on to 
discuss fake stereo in the stereo era which is an entirely different 
matter.  He probably saw the little ads for Columbia 7-inch LPs on the 
back of early 50s LPs and thought these were them.  How could he think 
that this song could be recorded six to nine years before the show 
opened, and why they would include the title of the show six to nine 
years before it opened?  Shouldn't he have tried playing it in stereo?  
Actually Columbia's slogan for spacious mono sound was "360 Sound" and 
later when they were doing real stereo they also used the slogan "Stereo 
360." 

I wish he was still here to be able to make the corrections.  

Mike Biel   [log in to unmask]



Richard L. Hess wrote:
> Dear Will,
>
> I am so glad that the team at the British Library did this. As I was 
> beginning my transition from broadcast systems engineering to analogue 
> sound restoration, I was fortunate to make the acquaintance of Peter 
> Copeland through this and other lists.
>
> In 2002 I was asked by a publisher to review a proposal from Peter for 
> a book (I was honoured that Peter had suggested me as a possible 
> reviewer). When I heard of his passing and didn't see a book, I was 
> afraid that much of his storehouse of knowledge would be lost.
>
> This is absolutely WONDERFUL news that much of his knowledge and 
> perspective has been captured. I am so pleased with this. I will 
> shortly create a link to this on my website.
>
> Again, many thanks to the British Library for making this possible. 
> This is the best possible memorial for Peter that I could think of.
>
> Cheers,
>
> Richard
>
> At 06:14 PM 2008-09-14, Prentice, Will wrote:
>> Dear ARSClisters
>>
>> I'm very pleased to finally be posting a link to Peter Copeland's 
>> manual. As will be clear from the blurb below and the preface to the 
>> manual, this is not a straightforward guide to best practice, but a 
>> rich collection of history, detailed research, opinion, speculation 
>> etc put together by its author over a period of years. There's plenty 
>> to think about, and plenty to discuss. Enjoy!
>>
>> Will
>>
>> ***
>>
>> Manual of analogue audio restoration techniques
>>
>> Peter Copeland, Conservation Manager at the British Library Sound 
>> Archive from 1986 until his retirement in 2002, worked for many years 
>> on a manual of analogue audio restoration techniques, designed as an 
>> aid to audio engineers and audio archivists. Peter died in 2006 after 
>> a lifetime dedicated to understanding the history and complexity of 
>> analogue audio technology, and his manual was left incomplete.
>>
>> The British Library is making the work freely available as it stands, 
>> as a service to professional audiovisual engineers and archivists, 
>> and as a testament to a life dedicated to the care of audiovisual 
>> heritage. As a snapshot of Peter's viewpoint at a certain time, some 
>> parts have inevitably dated. The core of the work however, is 
>> unlikely to date. Focussing in unparalleled depth on the correct 
>> playback of analogue sound recordings, the result of detailed 
>> research into the history of audio technology, it will be an 
>> essential guide for audio historians and for technicians working in 
>> digitisation programmes.
>>
>> The manual is freely downloadable as a 2.25MB pdf here:
>> http://www.bl.uk/collections/sound-archive/manual.html
>>
>> ************************************************************************** 
>>
>>
>> Experience the British Library online at www.bl.uk
>>
>> The British Library's new interactive Annual Report and Accounts 
>> 2007/08 : www.bl.uk/knowledge
>>
>> Help the British Library conserve the world's knowledge. Adopt a 
>> Book. www.bl.uk/adoptabook
>>
>> The Library's St Pancras site is WiFi - enabled
>>
>> ************************************************************************* 
>>
>>
>> The information contained in this e-mail is confidential and may be 
>> legally privileged. It is intended for the addressee(s) only. If you 
>> are not the intended recipient, please delete this e-mail and notify 
>> the [log in to unmask] : The contents of this e-mail must not be 
>> disclosed or copied without the sender's consent.
>>
>> The statements and opinions expressed in this message are those of 
>> the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the British 
>> Library. The British Library does not take any responsibility for the 
>> views of the author.
>>
>> ************************************************************************* 
>>
>
> Richard L. Hess                   email: [log in to unmask]
> Aurora, Ontario, Canada       (905) 713 6733     1-877-TAPE-FIX
> Detailed contact information: http://www.richardhess.com/tape/contact.htm
> Quality tape transfers -- even from hard-to-play tapes.
>

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