Ponomusic

Breaking news in sharing and dealing with music files... FLAC as a standard... WOW!

Neil Young - the man who always supported analog recording and vinyl - cannot be wrong!

Thanking my friend Reinhard... also very seldom wrong, as well.

Music

"After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music" - Aldous Huxley

"There is no scientific proof of existence of music" - Albert Einstein

Wondering "why" so many pixes and forums and blogs and Hi-End fairs devoted to audio gears... maybe due to the immateriality of music... so, while "food" can be shown and appreciated at various levels - i.e. smell, tactile, visual and tasted/digested (not that satisfaction on the latter...), of course, music can only be heard and soul-digested... the gap, time-lapse between the hearing and enjoying is variable... not necessarily an instantly enjoyed music gives a long-lasting, DNA-involving, blissful experience.

Nonetheless, the misteriousness involved in music eerieness makes us all appreciating the hardware (audio and musical instruments) needed to the reproducing of music in our homes.

We are sort-of globally fooled... looking at a shiny, or technically brave or cleverly conceived piece of gear we both "see" the chance to get "better music" and the workmanship shown... we almost perceive the aural improvements which we wish ourselves we'll be able to get from this or that "better" gear.

Sometimes, like a luthier "see" a cello or a violin or a guitar from some wood slabs, the ultimate audio and music scholar "see", "feel" the final sonics of a given audio system, smooth or coldish, soundstaging or not, dynamics, detailing and all the in-between plethora of audio lingo and amenities.

As a guitar player, I sometimes listen to the very best music in my mind... I also dream of music and sounds... is this ideal musical experience the straightest, nearest to our inner God or music-deities... so pure and unrelated to cables-gears-rooms-noises-etc.

Is the latter the most satisfying music available to humankind?

The truest?

The purest?

Satori?

Paul Bley & Gary Peacock - Mindset - Soul Note (1997) - Best double-bass recording, ever!

I'm almost sure, pals... this is the VERY best recording of double-bass I'm aware of... and, believe me, I'm quite an obsessive double-bass music collector with more than 100 different discs on the matter...

Vinyl or disk... who cares... the music is geometric and also the Paul Bley's piano is masterfully captured... BUT Gary Peacock's majestic instrument and playing is SUPERB, period!

BEWARE - don't be fooled by the very first track... Bley's piano sounds quite crappy... like a shitty, cheap plywood, chinese-made instrument, sure not the Bosendorfer Imperial usually played by Bley in countless recording, Owl label from France in primis.

Magically, after this so-so clickety clackety beginning... BANG! The piano is - sure is - another faaar better instrument and the music flows and flows...

The double-bass? TO BE HEARD TO BE BELIEVED... full bodied, airy, woody and playing in a definite space, all the fretboard and body noises and rubbing are here, adding a sense of trueness.

Impeccable recording and quite an experience.

... not an easy task finding a copy of this elusive disk on Soul Note label from Italy, BUT, nonetheless, much worth the effort of searching and chasing for it.

You won't regret...

Enjoy!

Garrardzilla - old & new/new & old

After swapping months ago from Schick arm to The Peak, I had an heavy laziness attack... I listened to my audio system swapping from open-reel to disk to vinyl... but, when listening to vinyl on Garrardzilla, I missed to use the TTWeight peripheral-ring.

The ceremony involved - i.e. carefully centering the stainless-steel ring on disc rim while spinning and then lightly, feather-like removing the plastic centering disc, then, finally putting the clamp in place... well, I sort-of felt annoyed and didn't use it.

Some dust get deposited on the shelf stored, unused in months accessory and this evening I noticed and got the plum to use it, again...

Undusted the two parts, ring and centering-disc and... listened to the now complete Garrardzilla...

I almost fell from my listening chair!

The sound was so true and perfect... how, HOW I had laziness winning on quality and beauty?!?

The noise floor was even lower, dynamics improved, and also on amazingly complex recording, like Paul Giger/Jan Garbareck/Pierre Favre's "Alpstein" on ECM, so rich in textures, the sound flowed effortless and liquid, natural... perfect.

Listened to P.J. Harvey's "White Chalk" gorgeous 45 rpm John Dent's mastered Island masterpiece and, again... surprise-surprise... The Peak and Lumiere DST on Garrardzilla were singing soooooooooooooooo nicely: Polly's voice was so airy, ethereal and angel-like.

Perfect.

I recently experienced this...  almost silly... using a-new something I already owned and didn't use for some time... the AMAZING Silflex' Toslink DAC-to-transport cable from Lifatec and, now, the TTWeight...

It doesn't happen so often, but... shame on me... I guess I'll do not change anything for a veeery loooong time.

Flea market's nuggets - John Lennon & Yoko Ono last complete interview, Dec. 6th, 1980...

Only an handful days after this in-deep interview, John was shot in NYC...

A very, VERY interesting little book, where the empathy, the melting together of Yoko and John, is so tangible and painful, considering the ill-fated meeting to come with the Grim Reaper.

A nice find - it's a first edition - and a document. as well.

Yeah...

Dieter Rams' Quads - the Braun LE-1

Braun's amp, tuner, and LE-1 speaker,  made in West-Germany, under QUAD's blessing.

Superb electrstatic LE-1 speaker and stand... notice the unconnected mains plug... soooo cute... the Quad ESL 57 in German sauce...

A young woman demonstrates a new type of loudspeaker, right, shown at the German Radio Exhibition in Frankfurt, West Germany, Aug. 14, 1959. The loudspeaker works on the basis of metal foils oscillating between electrodes. Makers say the tone range is much wider than that of the usual membrane loudspeaker. At left, radio and record player units feed the loudspeaker. The makers is Firma Max Braun. (AP Photo/Walter Lindlar).

Sought after and cool...

Wood discs...

... sure not a viable alternative to our beloved, cherished vinyls, yet... cool looking at the poor Audio Technica cartridge reading the wooden grooves...

Musings

... for most artists... and bloggers, as well:-)))

... thanks to Melanie for the above... so true!

NYC News... Academy Records Annex... and the vinyl garbage

Sad news... anyway...

Too bad...

Claus Jäckle's AcousticPlan "Vadi" - The most elegant disk player ever?

Love it... the minimalist display... and the right size track shown... 

NAT Audio Eimac 450TH DHT monoblocks...

Impressive... maybe dangerous lava-like anode giant triode with pets and kids around... but soooo cool without the glass windshield!

Nikolas Tesla... resurrected in the name of audio?

An hero, a scientist, an eccentric, an inventor... now an hi-end brand-name?

... no comment!

Robbie Basho remembered at the Avatar Meher Baba Center of So. California

A very, VERY important event will be held on next Sunday, March, 9th...

... I sincerely hope and trust that the public attention given to the a.m. event will also - and at last - give access to the serious scholar and luthier to examining, studying and measuring Robbie's long lost and missed instruments - i.e. the Mexican made, Jon Lundberg's retopped 12 strings and his Weymann's 6 strings guitars... for posterity appreciation.

A dream maybe and hopefully near to come true...

Don't worry, be happy (Meher Baba)

Music, notes, hertz and bandwidth... a much worth repeating share

'nuff said...

Alan Resnais passed away yesterday, March 1st, in Paris

R.I.P. 

Neumann DMT - the mono Neumann cartridge...

More elusive than the stereo sister, the Neumann DST (...), here is a REALLY sought after cartridge...

WOW! 

This is the cartridge for a (mono lover) King!

A Robbie Basho's concert leaflet

My friend Michele found this one-of-a-kind cover of a long forgotten vinyl disc by Robbie Basho, "Venus in Cancer" on Blue Thumb label which Robbie himself shipped to Italy in early '80s.

He apparently hated the original art-cover and made this cover alteration when selling the disc at his concerts or by mail!

It's a seldom seen drawing of a peacock and cherry tree in a nice, straight and elegant Japanese style.

Lovely.

Thanks to Michele Bollini for sharing...

ALLNIC 100 W DHT 1610 prototype power amp!

WOW! 

Will be shown at next Munchen Hi End...

the mighty 1610

R.I.P. Dept. - Paco de Lucia passed away in Cancun, Mexico...

R.I.P. Paco de Lucia 
(21 December 1947 – 26 February 2014) 

"I have to confess that I still do not read music at all. When I look at all the artists today I think they are doing the right thing to learn as much as possible about music. When I was young I simply had no choice but to learn by ear. Some people say that this might be a reason why my music comes more from inspiration than from intellect."
- Paco de Lucía

Thanking my friend Fabio... I wasn't going to write about this sad event for laziness... yet, the above mentioned words he found and hinted to me are so sincere and inspiring.

R.I.P. Paco... 

ECM's Manfred Eicher and audio

I've been asking myself about this for years... decades, now: which kind of music system uses/owns ECM's boss, Manfred Eicher?

His recordings are among THE very best, his sonic vision is flawless and crystal-clear: wide soundstage, beautifully layered, variety of timbres... he created, since first ECM's discs, back in 1969, a new kind of music... ECM!

NOT jazz, not ethnic, not new-age or rock or folk or classical... it's free music, it's a little of all these!

The venues where these wonderful recordings have been created are an handful, considering the decades involved: Talent Studios in Oslo, Tonstudio Bauer in Ludwigsburg, some live recordings (the most beloved held at America Haus in Munchen) and sone NYC selected studio, BUT always edited at Bauer's, some Austrian churches and recently, ArteSuono Studio near Udine, Italy...

Manfred Eicher "conducting" in the studio... B&W speakers in the background...

Arvo Part and Manfred Eicher

Manfred Eicher and Jan Erik Kongshaug

The decades long producing and attention to his HIGH sonic aesthetic and vision made ECM a masterpiece of consistency and quality.

... so, again: which music system used Manfred Eicher at his old Gleichmannstrasse, 10 in Munchen's headquarter or uses these days at the new premises or at home?

Apparently, El Cheapos Marantz integrated amp and SONY DAT and bookshelf speakers... so, maybe his listening while at the desk is only for pleasure, as he listened to the real thing, in the studio, direcly from musicians, so, like many musicians (and Manfred Eicher definitely IS a musician...) he doesn't need a true audiophile audio system... his aural memory is so well worn and his skill so refined that's enough... yet...

Manfred Eicher in his ECM office

... a truly motorik view from Mr. Eicher's window... 

Does him only use the above system or also an home audio system for evaluating or simply enjoying?

I'd REALLY like to know his home music-room size, speakers, turntable (if any), disk player, arm, cartridge... everything!

... not for gossip-sake, BUT to have the (almost unnecessary) confirmation that nothing is by chance... and that Manfred Eicher can hear!

Anyone?