Windham Hill an audiophile label?


I've been revisiting all of the early Windham Hill Records releases as part of a project detailing the Windham Hill Discography (you can see the site at http://windhaming.wordpress.com )

In my project I reprint all of the original liner notes and credits, and I've recently interviewed Harn Soper and Russell Bond of The Music Annex in Menlo Park where many of the classic Windham Hill albums were recorded (George Winston's Autumn, to name one.)

A typical Windham Hill album from 1980 to 1986 was:
- recorded direct to two-track, with minimal or no reverb at 30 inches per second
- Mastered by Stan Ricker at Mobile Fidelity Sound Labs
- Matrixed and pressed at RTI - Record Technology in Camarillo, CA
- Pressed using Quiex vinyl.

What do you think? Are any Windham Hill albums an important part of your audiophile collection? What are your observations on the sound?

(As an aside, I've also heard that they released original reel-to-reel recordings recording in "real-time" directly of the masters, and were a leader in chromium cassettes. Interesting details.)
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Showing 2 responses by steuspeed

Michael Hedges (RIP) Live on the Double Planet. Makes you appreciate what this guy could get out of a single guitar. Probably a different recording technique being a live album. Saw him 6 times in Portland. Amazing every time. There is a video from Red Rocks I saw once. Worth checking out.
A couple from Youtube. There are many more.

Watchtower
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xV_zXdvK_0g&feature=related

Harp Guitar
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jN3439l4HR0&feature=related