Sensible Sound articles from April 2003

Sensible Sound archives from April 2003

Ramblings.
April 1, 2003... Welcome to Issue 95, which features our annual compilation of recommended recordings from our contributors. This is always my favorite issue of the year, for several reasons. Indeed, recordings are what got me interested in equipment in the...

Yo, grasshopper! (Forum).
April 1, 2003... As a reader of your mag for many moons can you tell me what "yin/yang" means in regards to audio; a reviewer stated that preamp A was "yin" to preamp B "yang." What would be the characteristics of each amp? Would one be a tad bright? Lou...

Tres yang. (Forum).
April 1, 2003... I received issue 93 and read it cover to cover as I usually do. Filled with interesting products that might warrant an actual listen. However except for the Yamaha stuff that can be found everywhere, all of the other equipment doesn't really...

Holy Holography, batman! (Forum).
April 1, 2003... Mr. Ferstler's review of the Yamaha and Sunfire units in Issue 93 was enjoyable as usual. My only disappointment was that (unless I accidentally skipped over it) there was no mention of the Sunfire's Holography processor. Although I have don't...

Misleading? (Forum).
April 1, 2003... `Are Speaker Curves Misleading?' is quite interesting. I used to enjoy reading Julian Hirsch's reviews. The first several and last several paragraphs were the most interesting. Technical data in the middle was akin to Greek, and I think Hirsch...

Come on, guys! (Forum).
April 1, 2003... I have just finished reading the reference issue (94) and have some comments and recommendations I wish to give you. 1. Of your 18 contributors, only 10, or slightly more than half, provided recommendations. Of the 10 who did, 3 provided...

A little irritation. (Forum).
April 1, 2003... I've been a subscriber since Issue 5 or 6. Today I write to express a little irritation. Issue 94 has the cover showing "The New Mirage Omistat Micro." I was very interested to see what you have to say about it but cannot find any further...

CES 2003. (Straits Of The Art).
April 1, 2003... This year's CES represents a milestone event for me. I was asked to join the esteemed staff of writers for The $ensible Sound. After doing my own reviews for the past four years it seems odd to write for such a legitimate publication. It is...

Are speaker response curves misleading? Part 2. (Skeptimania).
April 1, 2003... In Part 1 (Issue 94), I indicated that printing out room-response curves as part of speaker reviews was risky business, because it would be very easy to misinterpret them. Such curves highlight only one (admittedly important) element in the...

Panasonic DVD-RV32 DVD player. (Equipment).
April 1, 2003... Manufacturer: Panasonic Consumer Electronics, One Panasonic Way, Secaucus, NJ 07094; 800/211-7262 Price: $150 Source: Reviewer Purchase Reviewer: Howard Ferstler OK, this is a short (for me) review of a really good DVD player...

Polk LSi25 loudspeakers. (Equipment).
April 1, 2003... Manufacturer: Polk Audio, 5601 Metro Drive, Baltimore, MD 21215; 410/764-5201 Price: $3000/pair Source: Manufacturer Loan Reviewer: Howard Ferstler Up until now, the largest Polk speaker I have reviewed was the RT-35, several...

David Russell Plays Bach (Prelude, Fugue and allegro, BWV 998; Chorale Prelude," Wachet auf, ruff uns die Stimme," BWV 645; Partita No. 2, BWV 1004; Suite No. 4 for Lute, BWV 10064; Chorale Prelude, "Jesu, bleibet meine Freude ("Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring").(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... David Russell, guitar (Telarc CD-80584) Guitarist David Russell has recorded several excellent albums for Telarc, some of which have been recommended in this column previously. This new effort is also highly recommendable, as Russell brings...

Bride of the Wind (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack).(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... Various Artists (Deutsche Grammophon 289 469 584-2) Long-time (and probably most short-time, come to think of it) readers already know that the music of Gustav Mahler is often discussed in these pages, not only in this and John Puccio's...

Centennial Composers Collection.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... Beegie Adair (Green Hill GHD5298) When I think of "legendary" jazz pianists, the names that come to mind are departed titans of the past such as Thelonious Monk, Bud Powell, and Fats Waller, along with some more contemporary masters such...

Carl Filipiak: Looking Forward Looking Back.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... (Geometric Records GEO-247) Baltimore-based guitarist Carl Filipiak has recorded some really good CDs in the past, but this is his best yet. From the opening cut, Filipiak's "One for Wes," this is a really solid effort from Filipiak on...

Finzi: Lo, the Full, Final Sacrifice (and other choral works).(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... Choir of St. John's College, Cambridge/Christopher Whitton (Naxos 8.555792) English composer Gerald Finzi (1901-1956) is perhaps best known for his Clarinet Concerto, but this recording covers some of his music for chorus. Those who enjoy...

Toshio Hosokawa: In die Tiefe der Zeit; Duo for Violin and Cello; Winter Bird.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... J.S. Bach: Suites Nos. 5 and 6 for Solo Cello Isang Yun: Gasa; Espace I; Images Thomas Demenga, cello (ECM New Series 1782/83 461862-2) Cellist Thomas Demenga has undertaken a recording project under the auspices of ECM's Manfred Eicher...

Mulgrew Miller and Wingspan: The Sequel.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... (MaxJazz MXJ 204) Pianist Mulgrew Miller has appeared a sideman on many jazz recordings, but here he steps into the limelight leading a group that comprises Steve Nelson on vibes, Steve Wilson on alto and soprano sax, Duane Eubanks on...

Mosaic (Clarinet Quintets by Brahms and Mozart).(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... Anthony Michaelson, clarinet/Adrian Levine and Kathy Andrew, violins/Stephen Tees, viola/Judith Serkin, cello (Stereophile STPH015-2) I remember being quite excited when I first heard that the folks at Stereophile were planning to record...

Rubbra: Nine Tenebrae Motets; Magnificat & Nunc dimittis in A flat; Missa in honorem Sancti Dominici; Missa Cantuariensis.(Choir of St. John's College)(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... Choir of St. John's College, Cambridge/ Christopher Robinson (Naxos 8.555255) In the past I have praised the symphonies of English composer Edmund Rubbra (1901-1986), whose music sounds modern but always pleasing, perhaps in the mold of...

Salonen: LA Variations; Five Images after Sappho; Mania; Gambit; Giro.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... Dawn Upshaw, soprano/Anssi Karttunen, cello/Los Angeles Philharmonic/London Sinfonietta/ Esa-Peka Salonen (Sony Classical SK 89158) Esa-Peka Salonen is best known as the relatively young (b. 1945--so I think I say that in this case...),...

Sibelius: Violin Concerto.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... Jascha Heifitz, violin/ Chicago Symphony Orchestra/Walter Hendl (JVC JVCXR-0223-2) For four decades the Heifitz recording of the Sibelius Violin Concerto has stood as a benchmark. Although the sound has some of that wiry edge that a...

Tin Hat Trio: The Rodeo Eroded.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... (Ropeadope Records 0-7567-932342-2) It is difficult to characterize a recording such as this. The music is primarily acoustic, primarily instrumental, but not quite jazz, not quite folk, not quite pigeonholable. The Tin Hat Trio comprises...

Double double.
April 1, 2003... After trying something a bit out of the ordinary last time around, Tom Lyle and Ye Grumpy Olde Editor are back to doing what we usually do in this column, independently auditioning two competing recordings of large-scale orchestral music,...

Carousel corner.(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... "Buzz" is an odd commodity. Generally, buzz is a word-of-mouth phenomenon: something has fired imaginations or booties away from the inexorable grind of publicity machines and hype maestros. It spreads more like ooze and less like a prairie...

The Strokes, This Is It.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... (RCA) The Strokes, born of New York City's prep school elite, feature Nick Valensi (guitar), Julian Casablancas (vocals), Nikolai Fraiture (bass), and Fab Moretti (drums) joined by Albert Hammond, Jr. on guitar (Daddy wrote "It Never Rains...

The Vines, Highly Evolved.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... (Capitol) Like all good hype, Aussies The Vines were preceded with a publicity blitz--including the cover of Rolling Stone--the likes of which hadn't been experienced since, oh, The Strokes about six months prior. Songwriter and singer...

The Hives, Veni, Vidi, Vicious.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... (Sire/Burning Heart/ Epitaph) The tax rate in Sweden hovers around 70%, a heart transplant costs fifty bucks, and every single woman is a model-quality blond from birth to death. With a cradle-to-grave nurturing state, what's the beef? I'd...

The White Stripes, White Blood Cells.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... (V2) Bass players cringe at the very notion of a band without bass. You wanna leap on to the stage, whip out your Fender Jazz Special, plug into a Bassman head sitting on top of a big ol' JBL EL 40, and show `em what it's about. You give...

The Apples in Stereo, Velocity of Sound.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... (spinART) This lovely retro-pop agglomeration has continually expanded its sonic repertoire, embracing big, horn-laden, Fabulon tinged rave-ups as ably as assimilating Merseyside jingle-jangle, prime evidence their remarkable 2000 release...

Ben Kweller, Sha Sha.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... (ATO) Prodigy and genius Ben Kweller, signed to a label since he was fourteen, is heir to one of rock's richer niches, the pianist/vocalist/composer, occupied of late by the likes of Elton John, Billy Joel, Tori Amos, Randy Newman, Bruce...

Spoon, Kill The Moonlight.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... (Merge Records) Spoon, guitarist Britt Daniel and drummer Jim Eno, have accounted for a steady outpouring of releases since their 1994 formation in Austin. Kill The Moonlight, their fourth full-length album, is a spare affair...

Norah Jones, Come Away With Me.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... (Blue Note) There is a pop sub-genre that I call "New York cafe culture" where singers are paramount, playing and accompaniment secondary. It is indeed a near cousin to the lone folkie, the difference venue, ambience, and material. Norah...

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, The Last DJ.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... (Warner Bros.) Tom Petty has always been the cranky sort, who's seldom been shy to lob the occasional grenade into the laps of the suits who underwrite his recordings, broadcast his hits, and promote his tours, the bloody ingrate. Cool....

George Harrison, Brainwashed.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... (Dark Horse/Capitol) Only the most reluctant of pop icons could mock his own impending death on his last recording. Harrison, dying quietly while being ravaged by throat and brain cancer, poured his last shards of strength into his garden...

Phish, Round Room.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... (Elektra) There is a phenomenon in pop performance that I call the "studio trap." For some reason, no matter how great a live act a band is, someone gets it into their head--sometimes it's even the band--that the dulcet sheen of a studio...

Dave Matthews Band, Busted Stuff.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... (RCA) Busted Stuff starts encouragingly enough with "Busted Stuff" with some jazzy sax from LeRoi Moore and tasty bass from Stefan Lessard, and one hopes that this is the band's breakthrough disc, the one that vaults them beyond the...

Los Lobos, Good Morning Aztlan.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... (Mammoth) In a bit of a twist, on Good Morning Aztlan David Hidalgo and songwriting partner Louie Perez tear themselves away from the experimental and return to straight ahead rock, the banner of which has been carried on Los Lobos' recent...

Red Hot Chili Peppers, By The Way.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... (Warner Bros.) So what does happen when Long Beach surf punks turn forty? Do they all go out and get rocking chairs? Do they wash their tube socks? Do they put aside childish things? In the case of the Chili Peppers, long rock's very bad...

The Streets, Original Pirate Material.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... (Vice/Atlantic) The English class system, as entrenched as any despite nominal democratization, maintains a firm thumbscrew on minorities and the improverished. If one is born to an "underclass," social mechanisms grind relentlessly to...

R.I.P.
April 1, 2003... Jam Master Jay, Zal Yanovsky, Joe Strummer, Maurice Gibb, Al Hirschfeld, the crew of Columbia. E-mail: wonderlzrd@aol.com. C'mon, don't be shy... this isn't Dr. Phil. --KE

The Broadway and cabaret scene.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... Betty Buckley: Deep in the Heart (Fynsworth Alley 3020621622) Audra McDonald: Happy Songs (Nonesuch 79645-2) Mandy Patinkin: Sings Sondheim (Nonesuch 7960 [2 discs]) Keely Smith: Keely Swings Basie-Style with Strings (Concord 2138-2)...

Two Channels.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... American Voices. Music of Charles Ives, Henry Cowell, George Gershwin, Samuel Barber, Leonard Bernstein, Ornett Coleman, and others. Mark Hetzler, trombone; Lisa Leonard, piano; Mike Orta, Jazz piano; Dennis Marks, boublebass. Recorded in 2001,...

Harris, Roy: Symphony Number Seven; Symphony Number Nine.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine, conducted by Theodore Kuchar. Recorded in 1999, at the Grand Concert Studio, Kiev. Engineer: Andrij Mokrytsky. 57+ minutes. Naxos 8.559050. One way Naxos can deliver recordings at such sensationally...

The Chad Lawson Trio: Dear Dorothy: the Oz Sessions.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... Recorded ca. 2002, at Acoustic Barn Studios. Engineer: Rick Dior. 56+ minutes. Summit 330. As I have noted in the past, Summit often turns out some technically fine recordings, and does so without making a big deal out of it. This example...

Mozart, W.A.: Symphony Number 41; Piano Concerto Number 23.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... Orchestre Symphonique de Laval, conducted by Jean-Francois Rivest; Alain Lefevre, piano. Recorded in 1999, at St. Ferdinand de Laval Church, Canada. Engineer: Alain Chenier. 73+ minutes. CBC SMCD5220. With straight stereo playback, this...

Vivaldi, Antonio: Complete Recorder Concertos.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... Laszlo Kecskemeti and Laszlo Czidra, recorders; Nicolaus Esterhazy Sinfonia. Recorded in 2001, at the Reformed Church, Diosd, Hungary. Engineer: Janos Bohus. 63+ minutes. Naxos 8.553829. Normally I audition recordings on my main system, but...

More channels.
April 1, 2003... Lynyrd Skynyrd: Then and Now. Remastered from Lyve From Steel Town (tracks 1, 5, 7, 9, and 10, recorded in 1997) with additional material remastered from the studio release Edge of Forever (tracks 2, 3, 4, and 6, recorded in 1999), and Twenty...

REO Speedwagon Live.(Video Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... Recorded "live" in 2000, at Riverport Amphitheater in St. Louis. Engineer: Claus Trelby. Silverline 288064. As usual for those who do not have a DVD-A player this DVD-A release also includes Dolby digital tracks at 448 kbps. There are no...

Test disc.
April 1, 2003... Sound & Vision Home Theater Tune Up. Up until now I have been aware of only two good DVD test discs that allow enthusiasts to fine tune high-fidelity surround-sound audio-video systems. The older one is the Video Essentials disc, available from...

African Heritage Symphonic Series, Vol. III.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... Paul Freeman, Chicago Sinfonietta. Cedille Records CDR 90000 066. There are three good reasons listeners may be interested in this disc. First, it continues Cedille Records' series of classical music by contemporary African-American...

Beethoven: Violin Concerto; Romances.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... Anne-Sophie Mutter; Kurt Masur, New York Philharmonic. DG 289 471 349-2. By now it should be a given that Ms. Mutter is an accomplished violin virtuoso and a most beautiful woman to boot. But must DG really emphasize the latter aspect to...

Copland: Appalachian Spring; Clarinet Concerto; Quiet City; Three Latin-American Sketches.(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... Laura Arden, clarinet; Paul Gambill, Nashville Chamber Orchestra. Naxos 8.559069. It must be something in the air in Nashville. About a month ago I sat down and listened to one of the most lively and sparkling renditions of West Side Story...

Gliere: Symphony No. 3 "Il'ya Murometz.".(Sound Recording Review)
April 1, 2003... Leon Botstein, London Symphony Orchestra. Telarc CD-80609. It's always good to see someone pushing the envelope, you know? Every time I pick up a new Telarc disc, they always seem to be doing just that. Not that I usually hear much...

Grofe: Death Valley Suite; Hudson River Suite; Hollywood Suite.(William Stromberg, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra)(Product/Service Evaluation)
April 1, 2003... William Stromberg, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra. Naxos 8.559017. While Ferde Grofe's reputation lies squarely with the Grand Canyon Suite from 1931, he composed any number of other such pictorial pieces of music, most of them coming after...

Handel: Music for the Royal Fireworks; Water Music.(Martin Pearlman, Boston Baroque)(Product/Service Evaluation)
April 1, 2003... Martin Pearlman, Boston Baroque. Telarc CD-80594. Time was, you couldn't get both the Fireworks Music and the Water Music on a single album. In the old days of vinyl, they simply wouldn't fit; then in the early CD days, record companies...

Kashif: The Queen Symphony.(Tolga Kashif, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.)(Product/Service Evaluation)
April 1, 2003... Tolga Kashif, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. EMI 7243 5 57395 2. I have no objection to orchestrating pop tunes; it's done all the time. Nor do I have any objection to the rock group Queen. But Tolga Kashif's orchestration of Queen's songs...

Mahler: Symphony No. 5.(Sir Simon Rattle, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra)(Product/Service Evaluation)
April 1, 2003... Sir Simon Rattle, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. EMI 7243 5 57385 2. "Wouldn't you just die without Mahler?"--Educating Rita, 1983. Bach, Mozart, and Beethoven may still reign supreme over the classical concert hall but I doubt that anyone...

Overtures & Intermezzi.(Herbert von Karajan, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra)(Product/Service Evaluation)
April 1, 2003... Herbert von Karajan, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. EMI 7243 5 74764 2 3. While so many other classical recording companies are cutting back severely on their output or curtailing production altogether, it's reassuring to see EMI...