I had an enjoyable exchange with another forum member the other day and it inspired me to share the focus of that talk.
When we either evaluate or discuss audio system performance, we will play certain recordings that we feel will illuminate the strengths and weaknesses of a system. I mentioned the concept of "foundational recordings". To me, the audiophile history has held certain recordings as perennial favorites and references. This is not to say that these are the only excellent recordings in existence, but rather that they are well-known enough that they may be referred to in discussions about a system's sound and how various aspects of these recordings are reproduced on a given system. Just as in various scientific endeavors, certain "controls" are put in place as standard experimental conditions, so that the plague of confounding variables can hopefully be eliminated. In my work, when testing devices which handle blood, engineers hold blood temperature and hematocrit (red blood cell % in the liquid which determines viscosity) constant so that changes in flow and pressure can be attributed to the device under test. Likewise, it makes sense to me that when audiophiles compare system performances, they have a common ground from which to describe auditory impressions.
There have been many "lists" of recordings that might serve this purpose, here's a couple examples:
Harry Pearson's Super Disc List, which has appeared for decades in The Absolute Sound, recently listing both LP and CD recommendations.
Penguin Guide, which lists many versions of works and ranks them sonically and performance-wise
The point is: I believe it makes sense to have SOME recordings that are widely used and discussed for system evaluation purposes. Also, and perhaps more importantly, many of these recommended recordings are part of the foundation of audiophile history. Mercury's Living Presence series, RCA's Living Stereo series, the "shaded dog" EMIs, the Blue Notes, the 6-eye Columbias, etc. all have been favorites mentioned more often than others in audiophile literature. Recently, labels such as 2L are making wonderful high-res digital recordings, both in stereo and surround.
I am not suggesting that anyone be told that ONLY recordings from the "famous" lists be used for equipment evaluations, but I firmly believe that having some well-known recordings with detailed descriptions (by many authors) of their sonic attributes assists in the discussions with other audiophiles.
For instance, here are a few of the musical moments that stand out to me, and tell me a great deal about a system's performance:
1. Pavarotti in Rigoletto, where he walks across the stage while beginning the famous aria.
2. Mickey Hart, when he pushes over the "Beast" drum kit on Reference Recordings' Dafos
3. The pizzicato strings on Benjamin Britten's Serenade for Strings from 2L
4. Heifetz's violin entrance in the first movement of Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto on RCA Living Stereo
5. The 4th movement of Scheherezade with Reiner and the CSO on RCA Living Stereo
6. The duet between Bonnie Raitt and John Lee Hooker "I'm in the mood" from The Healer on Chameleon Records
There are so many more, and likely your choices may not all be the same, but I hope that our members might suggest some recordings that they feel should be in the "foundational recordings" list to form common ground in discussions around the world.
Thanks for the thoughts to a new friend from across the pond!
Lee
When we either evaluate or discuss audio system performance, we will play certain recordings that we feel will illuminate the strengths and weaknesses of a system. I mentioned the concept of "foundational recordings". To me, the audiophile history has held certain recordings as perennial favorites and references. This is not to say that these are the only excellent recordings in existence, but rather that they are well-known enough that they may be referred to in discussions about a system's sound and how various aspects of these recordings are reproduced on a given system. Just as in various scientific endeavors, certain "controls" are put in place as standard experimental conditions, so that the plague of confounding variables can hopefully be eliminated. In my work, when testing devices which handle blood, engineers hold blood temperature and hematocrit (red blood cell % in the liquid which determines viscosity) constant so that changes in flow and pressure can be attributed to the device under test. Likewise, it makes sense to me that when audiophiles compare system performances, they have a common ground from which to describe auditory impressions.
There have been many "lists" of recordings that might serve this purpose, here's a couple examples:
Harry Pearson's Super Disc List, which has appeared for decades in The Absolute Sound, recently listing both LP and CD recommendations.
Penguin Guide, which lists many versions of works and ranks them sonically and performance-wise
The point is: I believe it makes sense to have SOME recordings that are widely used and discussed for system evaluation purposes. Also, and perhaps more importantly, many of these recommended recordings are part of the foundation of audiophile history. Mercury's Living Presence series, RCA's Living Stereo series, the "shaded dog" EMIs, the Blue Notes, the 6-eye Columbias, etc. all have been favorites mentioned more often than others in audiophile literature. Recently, labels such as 2L are making wonderful high-res digital recordings, both in stereo and surround.
I am not suggesting that anyone be told that ONLY recordings from the "famous" lists be used for equipment evaluations, but I firmly believe that having some well-known recordings with detailed descriptions (by many authors) of their sonic attributes assists in the discussions with other audiophiles.
For instance, here are a few of the musical moments that stand out to me, and tell me a great deal about a system's performance:
1. Pavarotti in Rigoletto, where he walks across the stage while beginning the famous aria.
2. Mickey Hart, when he pushes over the "Beast" drum kit on Reference Recordings' Dafos
3. The pizzicato strings on Benjamin Britten's Serenade for Strings from 2L
4. Heifetz's violin entrance in the first movement of Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto on RCA Living Stereo
5. The 4th movement of Scheherezade with Reiner and the CSO on RCA Living Stereo
6. The duet between Bonnie Raitt and John Lee Hooker "I'm in the mood" from The Healer on Chameleon Records
There are so many more, and likely your choices may not all be the same, but I hope that our members might suggest some recordings that they feel should be in the "foundational recordings" list to form common ground in discussions around the world.
Thanks for the thoughts to a new friend from across the pond!
Lee
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