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In Reply to: Julia Fischer: Can She Do No Wrong? posted by madisonears on February 27, 2007 at 19:18:31:
of course violinist like soloists on many instruments come with their own styles and interpretations. If one prefers violinist x over y, and it often varies on a work-by-basis, that of course doesn't mean x is a better violinist than y. For example, in general, I prefer Fischer's playing to Heifitz, who was an absolutely great technical virtsuoso, simply because I am not a fan of Heifitz' style of playing. I even find it annoying. However, when I make direct comparisons of the same piece, I prefer the playing of Grumiaux or even Zuckerman (not Perlman!) to Fischer. For example, a comparison of the Bach Unaccompanied Violin Sonatas and Partitas played by Grumiaux and Fischer is fascinating. It shows that Fischer really is a very fine violinist, but for me Grumiaux's playing has much more depth and impact. However, his style is different, and at the time of the recordings he was a very seasoned artist.As for Pentatone, I don't know what it is, but I have many Pentatone SACDs, and none of them has top-tier sound. Maybe I've been unlucky. On some, the CD layer is significantly better than than SACD layer; the Rossini Overtures is a good example of this.
Follow Ups:
Agreed that there are finer recordings of unaccompanied Bach. Notably Milstein and Szeryng. A lot more depth, which I believe originates from the grittiness of their tone (it's not as neat and tidy, but I find this music demands some edge). Unbroken chords in Bach's solo works need bite, and a lot of newer artists shy away from this. You hear that tendency in Hilary Hahn's recordings as well as Julia Fischer's. But these are still fine recordings.
Your experience with Pentatone SACDs mirrors mine for their RQR reissues. What experience do you have with there DSD releases?
It could well be that my less-than-stellar sound experience is entirely or largely confined to the RQR reissues. I'll have to go back and check. The Bach Sonatas with Fischer is DSD. I thought the sound on that was quite good, and I did compare the CD layer, which wasn't as good. I have heard more compelling or engaging sounding violins on other records than this, though.I mentioned the Rossini Overtures because it received very high praise for its sound in reviews. I found the MCH version had the poorest sound, the two channel better, and the RBCD the best sound on that disc. In fact, I thought the MCH sound put it among the poorer SACD recordings that I have. I was quite disappointed. I bought it at the same time I bought the Fischer Dvorak 9th, and the contrast in sound quality was striking.
Actually the Philips Dvorak you refer to was recorded by the same people who record the PentaTone DSD recordings ....and with the same Polyhymnia equipment. Read on the last page (before the inside rear cover):"Recording, mastering and editing facilities by Polyhymnia International BV on behalf of Emil Berliner Studios."
The recording engineer in this instance was Roger de Schot whom you may notice is the same engineer that did the Strauss Waltzes with Kreizburg and the Vienna Symphony for PentaTone.
PentaTone RQR recordings depend on the quality of the original Philips Tapes and on the quality of their preservation.
The new DSD recordings have all (so far) been done by Polyhymnia International. The best Philips SACDs were also done by Polyhymnia! Its a shame Universal employed Emil Berliner for their subsequent recordings because they are all drastically inferior to any of Polyhymnia's products.
Although I don't have a simple explanation for it (I can make up some hypotheses, though), it could be that some discs/labels sound better on some systems than on others. i am not doubting that Pentatone RQRs can sound great on some systems or to some people, but on average on my system they don't. On the other hand, most Telarcs (but not all), Philips, and Harmoni Mundi sound superb on my system. RCAs are a mixed bag.Do you have the Rossini Overtures? I only keep bringing it up because the reviews I saw just raved about the sound.
HowdyI used to wonder if it was my taste or lack of a resolving system, but I've taken to asking people which discs they don't like on their systems and playing them for them on mine and now I believe that tho there are many paths to audio bliss, not everyone strives for a system that plays many things well. Here's a post from Christine Tham after she visited me: http://www.audioasylum.com/forums/hirez/messages/218252.html
Here's a post from Christine Tham after she visited me: http://www.audioasylum.com/forums/hirez/messages/218252.htmlThis is certainly a sterling testamonial, but then you have to realize it comes from Christine "There Are No Bad Recordings" Tham! :-)
And I have many of them. In fact, there are times I wonder if the best sound on SACD is actually analog sourced, the second best DSD, followed by PCM sources.
I'm sure she is not the absolute best at everything she attempts, but, so far at least, all of her recordings are on a very high level of artistry and sonics. I agree with you about the Grumiaux Bach being an equally attractive or slightly better performance, but what really pushed Ms Fischer to the top of the list for me was the Pentatone recording compared to the aged (but well preserved) Philips recording. Grumiaux is one of the artists I would like to resurrect for the purpose of modern recording. Perhaps after she is seasoned with passing years and numerous performances, she will be capable of offering the same insights into the music as do veteran players. For such a young woman, however, I find her skills far exceed those of the wiry-toned Hilary Hahn and some of the other young lionesses.I had the privilege of hearing Zuckerman only a couple weeks ago with my local symphony orchestra playing a Bach Violin Concerto. He was also the guest conductor for the evening, and he gave a rousing rendition of the Tchaikovsky Fourth Symphony, a work I never cared much for. As soloist, his honeyed tone and freshly sprung rhythms reminded me of, you guessed it, Julia Fischer! Or maybe it was the other way around...
I've never heard a criticism similar to yours regarding Pentatone SACD's. Many that I have, though certainly not all, feature some of the very best sonic representations of an orchestra or chamber group. Even the older Philips quad recordings are superb when reprocessed with DSD. May I suggest you audition the Mendelssohn Piano Trios or Mozart Violin Concertos as a good example of new recordings that are really outstanding for the musical content and sonic qualities?
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