Post by Beagle May 12, 2007 (1 of 26)
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What are other forum members hearing when listening to violin -- in the concerto or chamber context (not orchestral)?
I have been listening recently to
Smetana: String Quartets Nos. 1 & 2 - Smetana Quartet
Shostakovich: Complete String Quartets Vol. 2 - Mandelring Quartett
Nielsen: String Quartets Vol. 1 - Den Unge Danske Strygekvartet
Dohnanyi: Chamber Music - Kocian Quartet, Beethoven String Trio
As I painfully noted in my review of the Smetana, I had to set the volume lower to protect my hearing from the more intense violin notes. That is what you get when you add higher fidelity to a dry PCM recording, alas. The Mandelring Shostakovich vol. II has excellent bass, open acoustic space... but occasionally uncomfortable high violin sound. Hearing this right after the Smetana, I began to think I needed to have my ears examined!
The Nielsen has highs, but generally keeps to the comfort zone, and has an airy acoustic which suits the music. The Dohnanyi disc is an acoustic gem, illuminating the full range of string sound with a very pleasant warmth. Nothing is obscured, everything is present but unaggressive. Listening to this disc assured me that my hearing remains what it has been for decades.
So, do others sometimes hear the violin 'honking' like a freight train, as I do numerous times on the Smetana disc, and now and then on the Shostakovich?
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Post by Arthur May 12, 2007 (2 of 26)
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Beagle said:
What are other forum members hearing when listening to violin -- in the concerto or chamber context (not orchestral)?
I have been listening recently to
Smetana: String Quartets Nos. 1 & 2 - Smetana Quartet
Shostakovich: Complete String Quartets Vol. 2 - Mandelring Quartett
Nielsen: String Quartets Vol. 1 - Den Unge Danske Strygekvartet
Dohnanyi: Chamber Music - Kocian Quartet, Beethoven String Trio
As I painfully noted in my review of the Smetana, I had to set the volume lower to protect my hearing from the more intense violin notes. That is what you get when you add higher fidelity to a dry PCM recording, alas. The Mandelring Shostakovich vol. II has excellent bass, open acoustic space... but occasionally uncomfortable high violin sound. Hearing this right after the Smetana, I began to think I needed to have my ears examined!
The Nielsen has highs, but generally keeps to the comfort zone, and has an airy acoustic which suits the music. The Dohnanyi disc is an acoustic gem, illuminating the full range of string sound with a very pleasant warmth. Nothing is obscured, everything is present but unaggressive. Listening to this disc assured me that my hearing remains what it has been for decades.
So, do others sometimes hear the violin 'honking' like a freight train, as I do numerous times on the Smetana disc, and now and then on the Shostakovich?
Thanks for your interesting comments, Beagle. I just got the Smetana and have the Shostakovich on order, but I've been on the fence about the other two. I think you've just pushed me off--definitely so about the Dohnanyi!.
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Post by Beagle May 12, 2007 (3 of 26)
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Arthur said: you've just pushed me off--definitely so about the Dohnanyi!.
Pardon? Away from acquiring Dohnanyi? Or towards it?
It's the best-defined, most realistic sound of the lot. Did I make it sound too warm? 'Unaggressive' means it won't jar the fillings from your teeth -- but it does have bite and snarl. Maybe I owe the disc a thorough-going review....
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Post by Sigfred May 13, 2007 (4 of 26)
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Beagle said:
Pardon? Away from acquiring Dohnanyi? Or towards it?
It's the best-defined, most realistic sound of the lot. Did I make it sound too warm? 'Unaggressive' means it won't jar the fillings from your teeth -- but it does have bite and snarl. Maybe I owe the disc a thorough-going review....
The Dohnanyi sounds varmer to me than Martinu: String Quartets Nos. 2, 4 & 5 - Kocian Quartet, another SACD by the same quartet, but not too warm. Both of them are very nice, though.
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Post by andrewb May 13, 2007 (5 of 26)
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Beagle said:
...
So, do others sometimes hear the violin 'honking' like a freight train, as I do numerous times on the Smetana disc, and now and then on the Shostakovich?
I am very surprised that you thought the Shostakovich to have occasionally uncomfortably high violin sound - I have played this disc numerous times and thought that it might be just a little too comfortable in this regard.
I certainly find it at least as comfortable as the Nielsen.
The Smetana I have not heard but given the heritage of the recording it may be unsurprising that there is some excessive edge to the violin.
Rather than considering your hearing I would suggest you consider how you feel when you are listening, I have often found a disc to be aggressive and edgy only to listen at a later time and find all that edginess has disappeared and I then hear a gorgeously clear and warm sound. The difference for me is that when I am tired, stressed or both then I cannot properly "hear" the music and hear too much of the painful aggression of a violin - when I am relaxed and alert it all changes and I "hear" the music. The lesson for me is to switch off when over tired and go to bed!
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Post by Julien May 13, 2007 (6 of 26)
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So, do others sometimes hear the violin 'honking' like a freight train, as I do numerous times on the Smetana disc, and now and then on the Shostakovich?
It's interesting you brought that out. I have that feeling in string quartet recordings sometimes. Recently even my beloved Lindsays and Fry Street have sounded a little bit like that. I was thinking it was me being tired, or listening too loud, or also probably my speakers being rather on the bright side with so much definition.
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Post by samadhi May 13, 2007 (7 of 26)
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The Audite recordings are all PCM, right? I have yet to hear a PCM recording that gets the tone of strings just right (though, admittedly, I don't have anything approaching a state-of-the-art CD/SACD player). Actually, strings don't sound totally convincing to me even with the best DSD recordings (including discs from the Fry Street Quartet, Pentatone, Channel, Praga, Hyperion, Chesky, and another which nobody ever talks about -- Midori playing violin sonatas on Sony). The best string tone I've heard on an SACD was on the Living Stereo Pines of Rome, which of course was recorded in analog. For me, the most natural string sound is still to be found on vinyl. And some continue to feel that vinyl is more relaxing than digital.
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And some continue to feel that vinyl is more relaxing than digital.
I would say more relaxing, because more distorted (and with less dynamic range) :)
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I believe, that if recording is properly mastered, then when you hear "aggressive" sound from violin, that may be problem of your speakers (or type of tweeter). I prefer soft-dome tweeter myself, especialy those which Dynaudio makes. Also if your speakers doesn't have "linear" characteristic (or near linear) in "violin" frequencies, you may hear aggressive sound at those frequencies which have more sensitivity compared to others. And I am sure we all have different "ear characteristic" so some sounds may be aggressive to some of us, but not at all to others (when listening from same position, with same volume, on same recording and equipment).
Bad positioning of speakers or bad acoustic may also count in this matter.
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Post by Beagle May 14, 2007 (10 of 26)
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syrienko said: "aggressive" sound from violin ... may be problem of your speakers (or type of tweeter)
I will try to be more clear:
Violin sound is beautiful on some discs, quite satisfying on most discs, but occasionally unpleasant on a few discs. Same speakers etc, different discs. Of course 'the mood one is in' is always relevant, but I am talking about listening to the same few discs, day after day.
IMHO, some discs 'honk'... sometimes. Maybe 'too loud' is the problem; when I am home alone I tend to drown myself in sound....
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