Don, which hi-fi magazines are "fat and healthy"? Not the two in the US. One doesn't publish 12
issues a year anymore and the other one has very few ads in recent issues. Plus, major portions are
now reprints of blog postings from hi-fi shows.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Don Cox" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Tuesday, January 31, 2012 1:39 PM
Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] Mercury 51-CD box set now officially set for USA and Europe markets
> On 31/01/2012, Richard L. Hess wrote:
>
>> Hello, Louis,
>>
>> These are certainly perceptive comments and I know only two people who
>> currently admit to sitting down with a good stereo system and
>> listening to music. Not surprisingly, one is the music director at our
>> church, and the other is my recording mentor and good friend, Don
>> Ososke. I remember when I first visited Don at his home, I came with a
>> CD case and we spent most of the night playing music for each other,
>> although we sometimes would not finish a track as our brains spiked on
>> something in that track that led us to another...and another...and
>> another. Sadly, although it's probably good for my health--I need my
>> sleep--Don and I have never lived geographically close to each other
>> <smile>.
>>
> There must be some people listening, because the hi-fi magazines are fat
> and healthy, even in the middle of a long recession.
>
> I certainly listen.
>
>> What I think I notice, however, about the younger generation is that
>> they appear to need visual stimulation in order to fully enjoy the
>> experience. If they don't have something to watch as well as listen,
>> it appears that they do not enjoy it as much.
>>
> I think this may account for the great popularity of opera and ballet in
> the 19C, and musical films in the mid 20C.
>
>> I think we may be seeing a parallel to this change in audio
>> consumption in still imaging consumption, however since George Eastman
>> created his cash cow (which apparently has or will soon receive some
>> flavour of bankruptcy protection), photography has been more about the
>> individual capturing the image than sound/music ever was, despite
>> bootleg concert taping.
>>
>> i- and Android phones seem to be changing and mixing up this space yet
>> again.
>>
>> Cheers,
>>
>> Richard
>>
>> On 2012-01-31 8:31 AM, Louis Hone wrote:
>>> I'm a SACD owner and I love the format, especially the multi-channel
>>> mixes. I love to remove all the channels except the center one and
>>> listen to the singer. Elton John, Billy Joel and Karen Carpenter are
>>> favorites. It's like you are in the control room while they are doing
>>> their vocal tracks, and you are soloing their mic. You almost hear
>>> their heartbeats. I think one of the problems with SACD, is that you
>>> have to sit in the sweet spot and do nothing else but allow the music
>>> to engulf you. I remember as a teenager, when a good album would come
>>> out, we would sit down and listen to it. Just listen - nothing else.
>>> Think back to Sgt Pepper. Nowadays, few people have the luxury of
>>> taking the time to sit down and do nothing else but listen. We listen
>>> to music in our cars while driving, in our homes while preparing
>>> supper, on our Walkman while walking, jogging, reading, riding the
>>> subway, etc. but we rarely have the time to sit down and focus on the
>>> music being played, on the recording itself. And apart from easy file
>>> downloads and exchange, the MP3 format has become a background music
>>> generator while we do other things. Q sound was also a format the
>>> demanded that you sit motionless in the exact sweet spot to enjoy the
>>> 3D effect. No wonder it never caught on. Time is a luxury today and
>>> not too many people want to "waste" it listening to music only. Our
>>> world has changed, unfortunately. We have become multitask human
>>> beings with not enough hours in a day to do it all.
>>>
>>> Louis
>>>
>>>
> Regards
> --
> Don Cox
> [log in to unmask]
>
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