RE: arsclist Re: Thoughts...(have your cake and eat it)

["Bewley, Nigel" <Nigel.Bewley@xxxxx>]

Dear All

On 04/12/02, George Brock-Nannestad wrote:

> However, why not educate the listeners that original shellac noise 
> is their guarantee of authenticity, as is a cough with all its 
> reverberation in the sonic environment of a real-life situation. I am 
> terrified of the present processors made available for *live* sound 
> transmissions, some of which made by CEDAR, which are able to 
> fake a clean sound on the fly, because they remove the traces of 
> "unwanted" signals that might be the clue to a real event. I detest 
> an edited "reality". I have a forensic attitude.

And Don Cox added:

There is a fundamental difference between noises that were in the air at
the event and hiss and crackles that are present only on the recording
(or broadcast).

I can see absolutely no reason to conserve noise in the recording, so
long as the original sounds are not affected.

You are suggesting that it would be better to make a transfer from a
noisy pressing than a quiet one.

I would like to add:

One central thought at the British Library National Sound Archive is to have
at least two copies of recordings.  One is the 'archive copy'.  This may be
the original recording or it may be a copy (or clone) of the original and is
as faithful to the original as is practical.  The other version(s) is the
'playback copy' made for access or for conservation reasons.  This version
may have been 'adulterated' with CEDAR, filtration and equalisation, editing
etc.  In some cases the playback copy is identical to the original.
Sometimes there is no need to make a playback copy (we may have, for
instance, two copies of a published compact disc).  Sometimes there are more
than one versions of a playback copy, perhaps reflecting 'layered'
techniques or improving technology.  The transfer engineer making the
playback copy is required to document the process gone through to arrive at
the copy and this sound will embody the experience (both technical and
cultural) of the engineer.  In any case, we always have the archive copy to
make other playback copies if required.  It is worth noting that some of our
listeners and customers prefer the original sound (as Peter Copeland, my
predecessor, puts it "warts and all").

Yours, in the best of both worlds

Nigel

Nigel Bewley
Manager, Technical Department

British Library National Sound Archive
96 Euston Road
London NW1 2DB

nigel.bewley@xxxxx
'phone: +44 (0)207 412 7435
fax: +44 (0)207 412 7416

www.bl.uk/nsa
www.cadensa.bl.uk  (on-line catalogue)


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