Calling all Recording Engineers

Excellent observations in the above posts. Since the original question concerns "classic" jazz recordings I will add my two cents worth in that context; although the same issues apply to classical or any other music (including pop) of value. I think much of the answer to this question lies in what makes these recordings "classic" to begin with. IMO there are (were) two things at work here that are very interrelated; in addition, it is very difficult to determine which came first and which was a direct result (at least in part) of the other. I'm referring to the decline of interest in live music on the part of the general public and the proliferation of technology. As concerns jazz, remember that jazz was one of the if not the most popular music of the first half of the century; and that was during a time when a very different aesthetic existed as concerned the arts. It was a very different time, and a very different social climate. There was more respect for quality in a general sense and that respect certainly applied to music. In addition there was much more interest on the part of the average person in performing music if only on an amateur level. In general the average person heard much more live music than recorded music. The implications of this are obvious. At the same time there was rapid growth in the development of technologies that could be applied to the recording of music. Technological toys that arguably were not needed; but since the technology was developed, there was pressure to find a use for it. Unfortunately, when it comes to the business of recording music, there really is very little difference between it and any other business endeavor. It has become more and more about expediency and protecting the bottom line, as was pointed out by Albert. This trend is really a reflection of our social climate and not something that is isolated and unique to the art of recording music IMO. Look at the quality of most pop artists today versus those of fifty or sixty years ago. Folks, Frank Sinatra was a pop star then; what more need be said. As concerns recording engineers themselves, I just don't think the love of the music is there to the extent that there once was. The great Rudy Van Gelder set up a studio in his own home and produced some of the greatest and most important jazz recordings of all time. Do we have a Van Gelder today? Is there jazz being produced today worthy of the kind of care and attention shown by someone like him? I'm not so sure. Again, which came first, the chicken or the egg? And while I'm certainly not going to excuse engineers for their lack of commitment to produce a great product, I do know that most today don't have anything resembling an audiophile sensibility. This one blows me away: One of the most common and frustrating observations by musicians is that in the vast majority of cases, while in a recording studio, the engineer never comes out of his booth to hear what the real thing sounds like before starting to try to capture that sound. They start turning knobs without knowing what the artist(s) really sounds like. Go figure.

I'm not sure it's the best, but it certainly is one of the great jazz recordings of all time. Aside from the usual superb playing by Evans, that recording captures the sound and feeling of the Village Vanguard like no other that I have heard. I had the privilege of hearing Evans three times at the Vanguard, and have been there probably somewhere around twenty times over the years to hear other artists, so the characteristic sound of that club is familiar to me. It's really spooky how a recording can take you back to a particular venue if it's done right. The only problem for me with that recording, and it's a very minor one, is that at the Vanguard the piano is on the left as the audience faces the musicians. On "Waltz For Debby" one gets the perspective of the club from the bandstand facing the audience; in other words the piano is on the right. By the way and speaking of drummers, the last time I heard Evans he was auditioning drummers. That night Bob Moses and Joe LaBarbera took turns. To me LaBarbera was far superior in that setting; very intuitive and with a wonderful touch. Great brushes too. Regards.