When I listen to my system.......


As I have stated many times, I listen to the musicianship and the composition. As I listen to SRV, just as an example, there are three musicians working together to create a "performance". How is it that anyone can put tone, sound staging, or anything else with the "sound" before the performance. There is much information on our recordings, and generally, many of these recordings are just so so with the fidelity. In fact, why do many listeners only listen to top notch recordings of higher fidelity, of the "sound", rather than appreciate those qualities I look and listen for. Is it because I was a singer / vocalist in my youth? Is it because I was around musicians who shared the joy of "music"? Is it because at a very early age, I was introduced to big band music and eclectic performances by so many, via my dad (he would have been 100 today; happy birthday dad). Yes, I consider myself an audiophile, because I spend money on gear and am careful with my dedicated room....my system allows me to hear more of the performance. But, it is the "music", the "performance", that matters most to me. I suppose I am feeling a bit nostalgic today, because of my pops. I am bringing this up again, because I do not understand the mentality of folks who listen differently than I. I know this subject might be ad nauseum to many, but some of the folks I used to design systems for, became less interested in the music, and more about the sound, placing the music and performance secondary, or not at all. I am just venting. If you would like to add to this post, I welcome all thoughts. No judgement from me. I wish everyone well. Enjoy! MrD.

mrdecibel

Showing 1 response by deep_333

Every "performance" is different.

For instance, there is a big difference between watching a 3 man folk piece in a small venue and a full blown Hans Zimmer concert with a full orchestra and all kinds of electronic elements fused together....Or go to a metal concert or maybe you’re watching some North African or Asian musicians who are singing in a language you may not know or playings instruments you don’t know about....How a listener may get into such different performances (accommodates it in his physical/mental space) is its own phenomenon.

You may want to use familiar pieces to tune/tweak your rig, of course. But, if it is a constant thing, it could imply that one’s playlist is a bit restricted, i.e., isn’t too big or eclectic enough. There’s a saying, "familiarity breeds contempt"....i.e., if someone’s listening to the same familiar piece over and over, he may not appreciate the performance all that much anymore and get too focused on nitpicking the audiophile parameters.

Is it because I was a singer / vocalist in my youth? Is it because I was around musicians who shared the joy of "music"? Is it because at a very early age, I was introduced to big band music ....

I’ve been playing a violin since i was single digits old, i am an instrument enthusiast, but, not a pro, i.e., it isn’t my livelihood. But, I hang out with a couple of pro musicians (it is their livelihood). We may get together out of nowhere and be in a creative space together. But, if i were to record some of it and try to listen to it, it typically is a let down...because it rarely captures that creative moment. But, if it was some random recording from an unknown artist, i.e., i wasn’t there when it was recorded, I can accept it as is and enjoy it for what it is... unless there are glaring errors with how it was mastered or something. Musicians need to get paid and i can live without nitpicking someone else’s music.