Rerurn to Romy the Cat's Site
In the Forum: Playback Listening
In the Thread: The “Implied Sound” in Audio.
Post Subject: The Art of ListeningPosted by Paul S on: 7/25/2008
For several years I wrote a ongoing monthly editorial about poetry (The Art of Poetry). No nutshell version is available, but Romy''s post reminds me that much of it dealt with just the active aspect of Dialog that is discussed here. IMO this is exactly what sets Art apart from product, that it resists "consumption" and yields itself only through conscious interaction. Likely, this is exactly why Art is less "popular" than entertainment, and likely this explains why most hi-fi delivers other than Art, which is ultimately to say, other than Music. Of course if the system is designed/used for consumption, it won't "work" for Music. And it only seems rational that if the aims during set-up were nothing more than entertainment, then the artistic capability and/or content is quite likely to be either limited or nil.
For me, the top of the FM experience - the live performance - is germane to this discussion in that FM is somewhat "off" in terms of what most of us think of as "sonics". At the same time, FM, like some of the "limited" early recordings, yet manages to capture and convey the "vital" aspects of Music in a way or ways that do not preclude Dialog.
The "Life" in a musical work is somehow both extremely fragile and unbelievably tough. It can obviously survive an incredible amount of manipulation to be re-born in the mind of the active Listener; but this is not to say that anything of significance will happen in the mind of someone who is only marginally conscious.
Best regards,
Paul SRerurn to Romy the Cat's Site