Re: [ARSCLIST] How not to record- was mike- an orchestra

[Don Cox <doncox@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hello Mike

On 01/01/08, Mike Richter wrote:
> Steven Smolian wrote:
>> Bravo! I've seen and heard this this countless times. The conductor,
>> should he be involved enough to be engaged in the recording and
>> editing process (not all are), has virtual veto power over the
>> producer and often tries to rectreate the listening experience as
>> heard from the podium.
> 
> The conductor's involvement in recording and playback varies with the
> person, of course. I have only one case in point to offer: Erich
> Leinsdorf. I had occasion to see and to hear his system in Boston
> about 1962. I had just moved up to AR3s - and he was using AR2s, not
> even 2xs. His amplification, cartridge and turntable were of K-Mart
> quality. The result was not badly distorted but certainly not capable
> of reproducing the detail in even the LPs he had conducted.
> 
> Let me commend to anyone who has not seen it "The Golden Ring", now on
> EMI DVD. It documents the recording of the second half of
> Gotterdammerung; the interaction between Solti and Culshaw is only one
> of the fascinating stories. Note that for Culshaw's intentions, many
> mikes were required with a musically capable engineer to manage the
> board.
> 
Culshaw was trying to produce something more like a film score than a
reproduction of what one would hear at Bayreuth.

Currently, the newly issued Keilberth performances, in 1950s stereo, are
being praised all over for having both better sound and performances than the
Solti-Culshaw version. (Which I must say I own and enjoy.)

Regards
-- 
Don Cox
doncox@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx