Purchases Today

[Florestan]

Not one to be associated with large forms, which in his case wasn't he case.  .

Precisely. 

[steve ridgway]

With a title like this I couldn't possibly resist .

[asin]B000FGGKIK[/asin]

And it was cheap even brand new with a free MP3 download as was this one.

[asin]B00005S6HT[/asin]

In order to get free postage though I was forced to buy this as well .

[asin]B00AKV92Q2[/asin]

The eerie electronic racket has got to be that bit more frightening without the vinyl noise from the archive.org download .

[JBS]

Weekly transfer of my bank account to Arkivmusic's
Quotes are from the Arkivmusic item pages...

Works on This Recording
1.   Concerto for Violin no 4 in G major, H 7a no 4 by Franz Joseph Haydn
Performer:  Amandine Beyer (Violin)
Orchestra/Ensemble:  Gli Incogniti
Period: Classical
Written: by 1769; Eszterhazá, Hungary
2.   Concerto for Violin no 1 in C major, H 7a no 1 by Franz Joseph Haydn
Performer:  Amandine Beyer (Violin)
Period: Classical
Written: by 1769; Eszterhazá, Hungary
3.   Concerto for Cello no 1 in C major, H 7b no 1 by Franz Joseph Haydn
Performer:  Marco Ceccato (Cello)
Period: Classical
Written: circa 1761-1765; Eszterhazá, Hungary

The Azrieli Music Prizes were established in 2014 by the Azrieli Foundation to offer opportunities for the creation, performance and celebration of high quality new Jewish music. New works by composer Brian Current, winner of the 2016 Azrieli Commission, and composer Wlad Marhulets, winner of the 2016 Azrieli Prize, are featured on this new album. In addition to those, the album also features Song of Songs, for soprano and orchestra by Lukas Foss, an important work of Jewish music premiered by the Boston Symphony in 1947. Celebrating its 25th birthday in 2018, The Czech National Symphony Orchestra (CNSO) has gained a position among Europe's top symphonic ensembles. In the studio, the orchestra has worked on recordings for Plácido Domingo and for Ennio Morricone's Oscar-winning score to director Quentin Tarantino's film The Hateful Eight

The Eton Choirbook is famous – and important – because it uniquely preserves some of the most spectacular music composed in Britain before the age of Purcell and Handel. Had this book not survived, literally dozens of superb pieces would have been irretrievably lost; among them would have been the ones by Walter Lambe, William Cornysh and Robert Wylkynson on this album. Whilst the book itself is of huge historic significance, its legacy is immeasurable, informing and influencing scores of composers and performers for more than 500 years. This unique recording emphasizes that legacy with the premiere of four new works by contemporary composers all commissioned by the Genesis Foundation and all inspired by the works from the Eton Choirbook alongside which they sit. This album also features Stephen Hough's stunning exploration of faith worldwide- Hallowed- which was commissioned for The British Museum's 'Living with Gods' exhibition. "... the singing of The Sixteen under Harry Christophers was wonderful beyond words." (Church Times) "Wonderful music, wonderfully performed... sit back and let these glorious sounds fill your ears and lift your spirits." (Gramophone) Read less

[JBS]

Amazon back cover image for the Sixteen CD so you can see the contents

[zmic]

I find the difference between DVD and Blu-ray rather massive unless the Blu-ray is very bad. At typical picture sizes and viewing distances the resolution of DVD is below the resolution of human eye.

Try converting a 192/24 file to 44.1/16 and then back to 192/24. Do you hear differences between original 192/24 and manipulated 192/24? that test eliminates the issues related to DAC sample rates. Convertions should be done using highest quality sinc-interpolation.

Would you conduct a medical trial by giving your test subjects a real pill and a placebo pill and then ask which pill felt better?

[Madiel]

Would you conduct a medical trial by giving your test subjects a real pill and a placebo pill and then ask which pill felt better?

That's indeed part of how real life medical trials work.

[Ghost of Baron Scarpia]

Why buy SACDs if CDs are good enough?  Don't quite understand your logic.

You are very quick to decide that hi-rez skeptics are contradicting ourselves or illogical.

The case, as I see it, is fairly straightforward.

1) There is well justified scientific/mathematical arguments that say that 44.1 kHz 16 bit exceeds the sensitivity of human hearing, and that higher resolution formats do not add anything that the human ear can perceive.

2) Controlled tests show that people cannot distinguish between playback of otherwise identical audio at CD resolution and high resolution.

However, there are valid reasons that a high resolution recording can sound better, such as

1) The record label didn't use optimum noise-shaping, signal processing, in generating the CD resolution master.

2) The high resolution master was lovingly prepared from studio tapes and the CD master was made in 1986 using an unrefined ADC and a degraded mix down tape rather than the studio master.

3) Your equipment has a better signal chain for the high resolution master than for the CD resolution master (i.e., your CD player, computer, operating system, audio player app, etc, is resampling the CD resolution master in a non-optimal way.)

4) Placebo effect.

If it really sounds better to you, it could be for one of the perfectly valid reasons above. I would argue it is not because CD resolution is inadequate.

There are actually reasons why the high resolution could sound worse, mainly that inaudible high frequency components could be beyond the usable bandwidth of your amplifier and cause distortion.

[Que]

Just ordered directly from Musique en Wallonie (site in French only):




Q

[71 dB]

You are very quick to decide that hi-rez skeptics are contradicting ourselves or illogical.

The case, as I see it, is fairly straightforward.

1) There is well justified scientific/mathematical arguments that say that 44.1 kHz 16 bit exceeds the sensitivity of human hearing, and that higher resolution formats do not add anything that the human ear can perceive.

2) Controlled tests show that people cannot distinguish between playback of otherwise identical audio at CD resolution and high resolution.

However, there are valid reasons that a high resolution recording can sound better, such as

1) The record label didn't use optimum noise-shaping, signal processing, in generating the CD resolution master.

2) The high resolution master was lovingly prepared from studio tapes and the CD master was made in 1986 using an unrefined ADC and a degraded mix down tape rather than the studio master.

3) Your equipment has a better signal chain for the high resolution master than for the CD resolution master (i.e., your CD player, computer, operating system, audio player app, etc, is resampling the CD resolution master in a non-optimal way.)

4) Placebo effect.

If it really sounds better to you, it could be for one of the perfectly valid reasons above. I would argue it is not because CD resolution is inadequate.

There are actually reasons why the high resolution could sound worse, mainly that inaudible high frequency components could be beyond the usable bandwidth of your amplifier and cause distortion.

Damn good post. 

[steve ridgway]

Damn good post. 

Sabbath Bloody Sabbath though still sounds much better on cheaper gear that takes the bass out and distorts the treble  .

[Karl Henning]

I have just ordered, and I trust it won't be cancelled, a SH copy of this box set for the princely sum of £14.90 incl P&P. I really don't care what condition the box is in as long as the discs are ok.

It may seem an odd choice for someone who already has an extensive collection but it offers me an opportunity to get some recordings that have long been gathering dust in a wish list but have never quite made it to the top - I reckon about 17 discs worth!

Including Bernstein's Vienna Schumann recordings - not everyone's taste but at the price why not.
Sinopoli conducting Elgar 2 & Liszt's Faust Symphony.

I really enjoy the Sinopoli Elgar.

[André]

Comala is a cantata written by Gade in the ossianic spirit. Mendelssohn had reservations, but Schumann was enthusiastic and conducted the work multiple times.



String attacks sound sharp as a razor and sound clips reveal great transparency, which I like.



This oratorio by Gounod is almost as long as Faust. Hopefully it will not be boringly formulaic.



One of the 4 (at least) Mahler 9ths recorded by Sanderling.

[aligreto]

Volans Concerto for Piano and Wind etc.

[flyingdutchman]

You are very quick to decide that hi-rez skeptics are contradicting ourselves or illogical.

The case, as I see it, is fairly straightforward.

1) There is well justified scientific/mathematical arguments that say that 44.1 kHz 16 bit exceeds the sensitivity of human hearing, and that higher resolution formats do not add anything that the human ear can perceive.

2) Controlled tests show that people cannot distinguish between playback of otherwise identical audio at CD resolution and high resolution.

However, there are valid reasons that a high resolution recording can sound better, such as

1) The record label didn't use optimum noise-shaping, signal processing, in generating the CD resolution master.

2) The high resolution master was lovingly prepared from studio tapes and the CD master was made in 1986 using an unrefined ADC and a degraded mix down tape rather than the studio master.

3) Your equipment has a better signal chain for the high resolution master than for the CD resolution master (i.e., your CD player, computer, operating system, audio player app, etc, is resampling the CD resolution master in a non-optimal way.)

4) Placebo effect.

If it really sounds better to you, it could be for one of the perfectly valid reasons above. I would argue it is not because CD resolution is inadequate.

There are actually reasons why the high resolution could sound worse, mainly that inaudible high frequency components could be beyond the usable bandwidth of your amplifier and cause distortion.

Well, then, to you and others Spotify would be good enough as there are numerous Pentatone and BIS releases on Spotify.

[The new erato]

[asin]B00AKV92Q2[/asin]

The eerie electronic racket has got to be that bit more frightening without the vinyl noise from the archive.org download .

Reminds me that in my local Norwegian lingo Heimert is equivalent to moonshine (the drink that is)

[Malx]

I really enjoy the Sinopoli Elgar.

I believe he takes his time with the Symphony but manages to pull it off - I'm looking forward to making this recordings acquaintance.
The good news is that it has been dispatched!

[Ghost of Baron Scarpia]

Well, then, to you and others Spotify would be good enough as there are numerous Pentatone and BIS releases on Spotify.

I haven't gotten into streaming services. I would probably consider it if they offered lossless compression.

[Ghost of Baron Scarpia]

Couldn't help myself.

[asin]B01L98GVZE[/asin]

The pair of the Rostropovich boxes, DG/Decca and Warner (effectively EMI/Erato) will comprise my holiday present this year. (Both also contain various Soviet era recordings).

My rationalization, how can I not have the Rostropovich sets when I have the big Tortelier box, and Rostropovich was arguably a better cellist and more visionary musician overall? (He was the dedicatee of so many great 20th century works for cello.)

[Ken B]

Couldn't help myself.

[asin]B01L98GVZE[/asin]

The pair of the Rostropovich boxes, DG/Decca and Warner (effectively EMI/Erato) will comprise my holiday present this year. (Both also contain various Soviet era recordings).

My rationalization, how can I not have the Rostropovich sets when I have the big Tortelier box, and Rostropovich was arguably a better cellist and more visionary musician overall? (He was the dedicatee of so many great 20th century works for cello.)

He had a standing offer to orchestras who hired him. He would do one of the concerti he commissioned, of which there were dozens, for one tenth of his price to play the Dvorak. He usually played the Dvorak.
The Erato setis especially full of commissioned pieces.

[steve ridgway]

Reminds me that in my local Norwegian lingo Heimert is equivalent to moonshine (the drink that is)

I have only listened to this sober and it's intense enough like that with the spoken piece about the victim of bomb test fallout going through many electronic manipulations until it sounds like being in some echoing alien city.