--- Anthony Hind <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Over the last two years, one evening a month, I have > had the good > fortune of being able to hear Renaissance and > Baroque instruments in > the context of a Parisian "salon"
Good for you - how fortunate you are to hear these instruments in the right environment! Unfortunately for most, however, hearing lute performances in a room, as opposed to a hall, remains the exception. > There just does not seem to be enough detail > and micro-dynamics > to be able to clearly hear the very special response > of gut strings, > or any other strings for that matter. Indeed, it is > rare to be able > to hear the micro-dynamics of the slightly rasping > attack or the > crucial timing of the slowly dying note on a CD MP3 or CD, much of the problem comes from recording with the mic too far away. Too many recordings of solo lute music of extremely intimate character are recorded in cathedrals with the closest microphone being six feet away and other mics set up to capture the ambient sound of the hall. This applies to _way_ too many professional recordings. During the session, it might be gratifying for the performer to indulge in the fantasy of having become a pipe organ, but ultimately this is at cross-purposes with the music itself. I agree with you, Anthony, in wanting to hear every scratch, scrape and rub - _that's_ a lute sound to me. The ideal way to get this is by recording in a modern studio with at least one mic fairly close to the instrument. This isn't quite as sexy as putting "Recorded at St. John of the Massive Apocalyptic Final Judgement Gothic Cathedral" on the album cover, but there's only so much you can get from a signal coming out of your speakers. You can either have "big" or a detailed, not both. Chris ____________________________________________________________________________________ Bored stiff? Loosen up... Download and play hundreds of games for free on Yahoo! Games. http://games.yahoo.com/games/front To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
