Post by Luke June 19, 2013 (1 of 25)
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Well, it seems to me that most of this forums contributors and readers would agree that the best seats in the concerthall are appr. the 5th to 10th row. Therefore the consensus seems that a good SACD should sound just like that.
But, to my idea, the best place during a concert is the conductors place, no?
Therefore, I would like to own a MCH SACD recorded that way. Imagine a piano concerto where the sound of it would come from the rear speakers. Just like the conductor hears it, standing in front of that piano.
I can imagine that this is not a new thought, but speaking of total immersion ....
Does such a recording exist?
If not, can it technically be done?
Has this been discussed in the forum? And if yes, where do find it?
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Post by diw June 19, 2013 (2 of 25)
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Post by Iain June 19, 2013 (3 of 25)
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Luke said:
Imagine a piano concerto where the sound of it would come from the rear speakers. Just like the conductor hears it, standing in front of that piano...
Good grief, I'd rather not.
Been to many live concerts lately? I guess not. If you had, you will know that conductors generally stand on a podium in front of the stage, and in front/side with respect to pianos or other soloists.
I assume that, in your innovative layout, the conductor would use a periscope to see what the soloist is up to behind him at any time. Nice touch, that.
Seriously now, in a conventional classical concert, the conductor lives on a podium, and is positioned so that he may see - and be seen - by all players and soloists when he beats time (or fails to do so), grimaces, gestures, cajoles, emotes, jumps up and down, waves his arms around at random, has apoplexy etc.
That location is not optimal for listening, however. Near-field listening results in the same spatial distortions and balance issues as near-field recording, and also trashes the hall acoustic and instrumental blend effects- both integral part of the listening experience (unless you like listening in the open air, an anechoic chamber, or LSO Live recordings).
I have been going to classical concerts for 50 years, so have kinda figured out by now the effects on seating location in various auditoria.
Believe me, if you are sensible, you do not want to listen from where the conductor stands. Let him (or her) get on with it, whilst you listen from elsewhere.
And, as for rear quadrant piano locations? The human ears are piss-poor at timbral and spatial discrimination there, so putting the key soloist line behind you makes no sense whatsover.
Back to the 10th row for you, then. Actually, in plenty of better-designed halls, even further back (15-20) is good.
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Post by Iain June 19, 2013 (6 of 25)
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Jonalogic said:
Good grief, I'd rather not.
........
Why not?
Try it. you might like it as a one-off.
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check out the Tacet catalogue. Many of their recordings have the listener surrounded by musicians.
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Iain said:
Why not?
Try it. you might like it as a one-off.
No I won't!
I've done near-field concert listening many times in choir and front stalls, and it sucks.
So I have no overwhelming desire to repeat the experience.
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Post by Chris June 19, 2013 (9 of 25)
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I would say "Varatio delectat".
It can actually be a very thrilling experience both to be completely surrounded by musicians or very close and partly surrounded as the conductor generally is.
And the sound from the stage is definitely much better than say the first 5-10 rows in many halls anyway.
In most halls the sound flies over your head if you are seated in the front rows. But up on stage you get a very close and very immersive sound.
That said,I do prefer the sound from the best seats in the hall in most cases.
But I would much rather hear the sound the conductor hears,than say the very last back seats in a hall where the back stall seats are under a balcony. That can be very boxy in some halls.
One of the best examples of how the conductor hear things is,as already mentioned here Vocalise from Channel Classics.
Since I most often listen via headphones I wouldn't mind if the conductor's "view" was always included as another valid take on things.
In some cases only then,would we actually get to hear how the conductor has balanced the orchestra, and not the way the producer and or balancing and or mastering engineer has treated it in post production.
Take a look at how mics were placed on some of those early Living Stereos or Blumlein EMI 's were setup. They were often both very close too and a bit above yes, but still similar to what the conductor also heard.
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Post by wehecht June 19, 2013 (10 of 25)
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