This is an ongoing project by Claude Lemaire of Soundevaluations. 41. Frank Sinatra, Sinatra's Swingin' Session!!! Capitol Records – SW 1491 (1961), MoFi – MFSL 1-407 (2012), 33 1/3 rpm. Genre: big band swing, vocal jazz, traditional pop standards. As previously mentioned in the very first installment of this series, Frank Sinatra along with Nat King Cole remain... Read More »
Dave Stryker's Strykin' Ahead on CD and LP. (Strikezone 8815, CD $15, LP $25 www.davestryker.com) The other night, while driving home one evening between Syracuse and Rochester, I happened upon a program called Cool Jazz Countdown on the local NPR station. The format of the show was clearly modeled on Casey Kasem's original Top 40 Countdown—if Casey... Read More »
The Apartment Life For those curious about the name I've chosen for my new Positive Feedback column, the New Apartment Lounge, here's the story. Last spring, I moved into a new apartment, a bigger space than my former digs, but still on the small side. Shortly thereafter, I found a CD I had not listened... Read More »
How did you come up with the name "KC VIBE"? To really know the authenticity and integrity of something, you must know its place of origin. We all know the role provenance plays in art and collectables. There is a midwestern value of doing something well. With a straightforward, unassuming manner. What design goals... Read More »
Youngstown, OH – November 29, 2017 – SVS, manufacturer of high performance speakers, subwoofers and audio accessories, proudly announces the 4000 Series subwoofers, three new models loaded with advanced features and technology only available from SVS, at a price that redefines the cost of entry into reference quality bass for music and home theater fans.... Read More »
FRANKLIN, TN, November 30, 2017—Emotiva Audio Corporation, the company that continually proves high-end audio doesn’t have be high-priced, announced today the latest addition to its Airmotiv speaker series, the E2 wall mount surround loudspeaker. Two-way Model Can Be Configured as Direct Radiating Dipole or Forward/Rear Dipole, For Maximum Flexibility in Any Theater Installation The Airmotiv E2 ($459/pair) represents Emotiva’s... Read More »
Manfred Honeck and the Pittsburgh Symphony's Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5; Barber: Adagio and Michael Stern and the Kansas City Symphony's Adam Schoenberg: American Symphony; Finding Rothko; Picture Studies recordings have both received multiple 2018 GRAMMY® nominations! Best Engineered Album, Classical Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5; Barber: Adagio – Mark Donahue, engineer (Manfred Honeck & Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra) Schoenberg, Adam: American Symphony; Finding Rothko; Picture Studies – Keith O.... Read More »
So soon! Another year, another time to announce my Brutus Awards for 2017. Every year seems to go by faster, and this year was no exception. As longtime readers know, I instituted the Positive Feedback Brutus Awards way back in the mists of time…yonder in 2003. And every year, for the new readers who have... Read More »
In my last Ramblings I wrote about the Gold Note PH-10 phonostage and in summary, loved what it did with our vinyl (reveiwed HERE) … in this Ramblings let me ramble a bit about the Mediterraneo turntable ($6973 with bundled B 5.1 arm) and the supplied Donatello MC cartridge ($1030). For the Mediterraneo turntable, from the Gold... Read More »
Beginning at the end of 2003, PF established its first annual awards for fine audio. The Brutus Award was established for the best that David Robinson and Dave Clark had heard in their own listening rooms during that year. You can think of it as our equivalent of an "Editors' Choice" award. The Gizmo Award, on the... Read More »
Good friend John Marks of The Tannhauser Gate once again sallies forth to introduce us to another musical worthy: In this case, the ravishing operatic singer, Frederica von Stade. Her vocal mastery is a wonder to hear, as you'll experience in John's three sample tracks below. I have been aware of Canteloube's Songs of the Auvergne for... Read More »
In which our hero meditates… The Audionet HEISENBERG Monoblock Amplifiers, bi-amped, with the YG Acoustics Sonja XV Loudspeakers and Kubala-Sosna Realization cables. In the fall of 2016 I reported on an extraordinary time that I had when I flew to Newark, NJ, and visited Bill Parish of GTT Audio for the launch of the brilliant... Read More »
The Capitol Audiofest was bigger than ever this year and I had less time than ever to see it. For those who don't know about the Capitol Audiofest, its an audio show that takes place in a hotel, with many demo rooms in the hotel being set up by a dealer, distributor, or occasionally a... Read More »
Intro The Audio Engineering Society convention is two different things happening at the same time. First of all there's a scientific conference downstairs with papers on the latest in audio technology. Secondly it's also a trade show selling pro audio gear. Both of these have many items that are of interest to the high end... Read More »
As we, at LAAS, count our blessings, you are at the top of our list. You made LAAS 2017 the most successful "first-year audio show" ever in the United States. Thank you! And we are looking forward to an even more successful event next year. We hope you will join us June 8-10 at the Hilton Irvine/Orange... Read More »
Boulder, CO 11/21/2017: It is with heavy heart I am writing about the end of an era. My friend, mentor, inspiration and former business partner, Arnie Nudell, has passed away from complications of pneumonia. The family laid him to rest on Monday, November 20, 2017. Arnie could truly be said to be one of the founders of... Read More »
Denny Zeitlin & George Marsh's Expedition. (Sunnyside Communication SSC1487, CD $12.98, http://sunnysidezone.com/album/expedition) The first time I listened to Expedition from pianist Denny Zeitlin and percussionist George Marsh, I didn't think of it as a collection of improvisations between two longtime collaborators. I imagined a more traditional jazz ensemble, one with a traditional rhythm section, even though... Read More »
Berlin, Germany - November 04, 2017 - Today CEntrance, a leader in Digital Audio, announced Immediate availability of BlueDAC, it's newest portable D/A converter and headphone amplifier. BlueDAC combines the best of CEntrance portable digital technologies to date, including a long-life rechargeable battery and a 24-bit/384kHz USB interface, and adds a brand new, custom, high... Read More »
Lyn Stanley's The Moonlight Sessions, Vol. 2 (A.T. Music LLC 3106, 2-LP set $125, CD/SACD $29.98, http://www.lynstanley.com) "Other than that, I think her voice is incredibly sexy and inviting. It's much closer to London than too-cool-for-school Krall and for that reason I'll be more than happy to bring this to all future trade shows. Unless, of... Read More »
Goodly guide and hale-fellow-well-met! John Marks of The Tannhauser Gate once again leads us into fascinating lesser-known musical worlds in this latest essay. Music and painting meet here, to the blessing of all! This possibility is something that I know well; PF artist Dan Zimmerman used to have sessions of listening-cum-drawing at my place many years ago.... Read More »
Grandissimi Gravita. Violin Sonatas by Vivaldi, Tartini, Veracini, Pisendel. Rachel Podger, violin; Brecon Baroque. Channel Classics SACD. CCSSA 39217. Snow showers! On November 13. In Western Massachusetts! And unexpectedly this album of baroque violin sonatas sounds warm and comforting that last week seemed a bit indifferent. I've learned not to underestimate the role meteorological (and... Read More »
Furutech Co. Ltd. • Tokyo, Japan, manufacturer of ultra-refined analog, digital, video cable and accessories, invites you to the RCM Audio room – Azalia I. Furutech debuts the ultimate Cable and Connector damping solution featuring Furutech’s revolutionary NCF sound enhancing material. Multifunctional NCF Booster Performance-enhancing Connector & Cable Holder Not only does the Furutech NCF... Read More »
DETROIT, MI—November 14, 2017—Shinola is proud to announce The Canfield Headphone Collection. Designed and developed in Detroit and based in the belief that how it’s made matters, that how things look, feel and sound, matters. The Canfield adds to a range of Shinola Audio goods (Runwell Turntable, Bookshelf Speakers) that are distinctive in every detail. Two years in... Read More »
Wayne Goins, Jazz and Blues Man Extraordinaire, joins Positive Feedback as a Senior Associate Editor and as a Musician in Residence. We welcome Wayne to our creative community with real enthusiasm…I've heard him play! The man has the real bad-ass chops, amigos! Dr. David W. Robinson, Ye Olde Editor Well, hello there! Nice to meet... Read More »
Cue exhibit C, marked as personal identification tag, allowing said member of the audio press to attend Denver's annual mile high HiFi show. "Your honor", says the defendant, "this is more proof that the industry is doing great!" Truth be told, I'd agree—advocate—that for some in the industry, the HiFi business is indeed booming. Let's call... Read More »
Ye Olde Editor, a portrait. (Photograph by John Robinson; image processing by Ye Olde Etc.) I made a recent trip to Salina, Kansas to catch the 20th Anniversary Acoustic Sounds/Analogue Productions Blues Master weekend. My good audiobud Chad Kassem had been asking me to catch this event for twenty years now, and I had always... Read More »
In which our hero meditates… (Drawing by Robinson at a particularly boring faculty meeting many years ago….) What's the deal with me and German designs? In my later adult life, I've gravitated to a lot of products from our friends in Germania. While I'm not in the market for, say, guns, artillery pieces, or tanks,... Read More »
Angela Gheorghiu, soprano; *Chorus of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden; Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi/Anton Coppola; +Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden/Antonio Pappano. EMI Classics 50999 9 65938 2 0. TT: 73.35 Madama Butterfly: Un bel dì vedremo; Tu, tu, piccolo Iddio (with Roberto Alagna, tenor). Edgar: Addio, mio dolce amor*; Nel... Read More »
Confession is Good for the Soul Those few pilgrims who've remained in touch, and kept up to date with RADIO FREE CHIP's infrequent musings, might just recollect how a persistent and recurring theme of recent columns centered around how contented I was with my rig, how my system had evolved to the point where I... Read More »
So it is now 2017, and many of us music lovers and gear nuts have moved into the area of playing back our music files (streamed or downloaded from the internet or ripped from a CD) in some fashion. The world of computer-based audio has evolved from using an off-the-shelf PC or Mac to do... Read More »
Roger Skoff Comments on the State of Music and Our Hobby Most of us will never sit on the stage at a concert of any kind. Neither will we ever have the opportunity to actually see—either by our physical presence or even through pictures—our favorite music of whatever kind being performed or recorded. Even so,... Read More »
Our fellow voyager and good audio friend, the esteemed John Marks, he of The Tannhauser Gate blog site, strikes out in a direction in this article that speaks to me. It's the moving and deeply inward world of Morton Feldman's Rothko Chapel, a commissioned composition both celebrating and creating the spiritual framework for the edifice of that... Read More »
At last! The construction that plagued last year's Rocky Mountain Audiofest is history and the show is back to normal. Improved sleeping rooms. Much larger restaurant with the same amount of help. The same nice friendly staff. The Marriot's tower section packed with audio equipment of all shapes and sizes from the Mezzanine to the... Read More »
Marek Pospieszalski, gra piosenki, które śpiewał Frank Sinatra Marek Pospieszalski MP001, Medium: Compact Disc. Date of release: 15th March 2017 A parcel with Marek Pospieszalski's album was sent from my home city of Cracow. It is modest, released in a digipack without any booklet, with minimum lettering imprinted on the CD and is – let me tell... Read More »
This article, by Clark Johnsen, originally ran when Positive Feedback was in print - Volume 8, Issue 2, 1999 I. In The Beginning Was The Tone The amiable, estimable John Marks (or is that, inestimable?), before appearing on the cover of our previous issue, addressed in TAS #115 the vital topic of how to engage (or is that,... Read More »
Lynn in the BIG room Last year Lynn and I trekked out to New Jersey for the YG Acoustics Sonja XV speaker press event. That roll out went so well that GTT Audio staged a reprise this year for the launch of the Audionet Heisenberg amplifier and Stern preamp. So, Lynn and I recently returned... Read More »
25 October 2017 Sarasota, FL - VAC/Valve Amplification Company will exhibit in the Potomac Room at the upcoming Capitol Audio Fest, November 3-5 in Rockville, MD. Kevin Hayes, President of VAC, stated, "In 27 years, this will be the largest, finest, highest performance music system we have ever displayed, and we are so pleased to be in the largest... Read More »
