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Discussion: Respighi: Pines of Rome, Fountains of Rome, Debussy: La Mer - Reiner

Posts: 32
Page: 1 2 3 4 next

Post by ramesh March 30, 2006 (1 of 32)
A couple of people who've reviewed this praise the sound.
It is immediate, but sounds shrill at increased dynamic levels compared to the other Chicago SACD recordings. Anyone who has this and can compare to the earlier CD/LP care to comment?

Post by DSD March 30, 2006 (2 of 32)
ramesh said:

A couple of people who've reviewed this praise the sound.
It is immediate, but sounds shrill at increased dynamic levels compared to the other Chicago SACD recordings. Anyone who has this and can compare to the earlier CD/LP care to comment?

I have this Respighi and it is not shrill on my tubed system, has powerful bass and clean, sparkling highs with lots of impact. The Respighi pieces compare very favorable to the Classic Records LP, I give the SACD a slight edge.

Could it be equipment related? Since going tube my George Szell SACDs not longer sound shrill, just slightly bright.

I don't have an answer I wish I did.

Teresa

Post by seth March 30, 2006 (3 of 32)
ramesh said:

A couple of people who've reviewed this praise the sound.
It is immediate, but sounds shrill at increased dynamic levels compared to the other Chicago SACD recordings. Anyone who has this and can compare to the earlier CD/LP care to comment?

I agree. I bought this SACD because I've read reviews of the CD and LP versions that say the "The Pines of the Appian Way" is demo material; I find the brass in to be shrill. I wasn't that impressed with the overall sound quality.

And dare I say it, but IMO, most of the LS SACDs are a bit overrated (in terms of sound quality). They are often quite good, especially considering their age, but there always seems to be some kind of issue, like the distortions in the otherwise brilliant Stokowski disc.

Post by Peter March 31, 2006 (4 of 32)
seth said:


.....And dare I say it, but IMO, most of the LS SACDs are a bit overrated (in terms of sound quality). They are often quite good, especially considering their age, but there always seems to be some kind of issue, like the distortions in the otherwise brilliant Stokowski disc.

I'm more fond of LS than Mercury in general as far as recording philosophy is concerned, but do view these as historic releases. They're wonderful performances, but I'd like modern wonderful performances, too.

The LS website hasn't been updated for ages; the above disc doesn't appear. I hope this isn't a bad omen, though thankfully the Ides of March are long gone.

Post by Edvin March 31, 2006 (5 of 32)
This Reiner disc is loud and glaring, very Chicago. La mer recieves what must be the most boring performance ever, almost.

Post by Daland March 31, 2006 (6 of 32)
I am quite surprised to hear that some listeners find this recording unsatisfactory in sonic terms. In my opinion this three-channel SACD sounds better than the five-channel Exton disc with Ashkenazy conducting three Respighi tone poems (including "Feste romane"). I did not detect any shrillness (certainly not in the bass). The sound is rich and warm with silky strings und well-rounded brass. This was the first time I really enjoyed the Respighi tone poems (recordings on RBCD like Muti's had put me off). I also found "La Mer" very impressive. The lush horn sound may lend it a "Germanic" touch, but this is a matter of taste.

Nor did I notice any distortions in the Stokowski disc (if the reference is to "Rhapsody"). I do not think at all that the Living Stereo discs are overrated. I think a good case can be made for preferring Reiner, Munch, Heifetz and Rubinstein to Thielemann, Boulez, Mutter and Lang Lang.

The different sonic impressions may have something to do with the equipment Before I upgraded my system I also found a number of SACDs unsatisfactory because of aggressive strings and harsh brass. But now the sound is much mellower. The wiring and other factors (e.g. correct settings for loudspeaker size) may also play a part.

Post by DSD March 31, 2006 (7 of 32)
Daland said:

I am quite surprised to hear that some listeners find this recording unsatisfactory in sonic terms. In my opinion this three-channel SACD sounds better than the five-channel Exton disc with Ashkenazy conducting three Respighi tone poems (including "Feste romane"). I did not detect any shrillness (certainly not in the bass). The sound is rich and warm with silky strings und well-rounded brass. This was the first time I really enjoyed the Respighi tone poems (recordings on RBCD like Muti's had put me off). I also found "La Mer" very impressive. The lush horn sound may lend it a "Germanic" touch, but this is a matter of taste.

Nor did I notice any distortions in the Stokowski disc (if the reference is to "Rhapsody"). I do not think at all that the Living Stereo discs are overrated. I think a good case can be made for preferring Reiner, Munch, Heifetz and Rubinstein to Thielemann, Boulez, Mutter and Lang Lang.

The different sonic impressions may have something to do with the equipment Before I upgraded my system I also found a number of SACDs unsatisfactory because of aggressive strings and harsh brass. But now the sound is much mellower. The wiring and other factors (e.g. correct settings for loudspeaker size) may also play a part.

You describe exactly how this wonderful SACD sounds in my 2 channel system. I am truly shocked that some people find the Reiner Respighi SACD less that reference quality! I have tubed equipment and EMIT (planer) tweeters and I am sure this helps. However I do find Membran SACDs and LSO Live SACDs to be shrill beyond the point of listenability. But NEVER shrillness in an RCA Living Stereo SACD or a Mercury Living Presence SACD, not a single one. And the only RCA Living Stereo that I have found overload distortion is the Franck/Stravinsky.

I have the 2nd Exton volume of Respighi: Church Windows, Belkis, Queen of Sheba and it currently is my best sounding SACD. See review on my website:

http://www.hirezstereo.com/reviews-respighi.html

I was thinking of getting the first volume but if the Reiner SACD that I already have is better, I'll pass, thanks!

Happy listening,
Teresa

Post by akiralx March 31, 2006 (8 of 32)
seth said:

I agree. I bought this SACD because I've read reviews of the CD and LP versions that say the "The Pines of the Appian Way" is demo material; I find the brass in to be shrill. I wasn't that impressed with the overall sound quality.

And dare I say it, but IMO, most of the LS SACDs are a bit overrated (in terms of sound quality). They are often quite good, especially considering their age, but there always seems to be some kind of issue, like the distortions in the otherwise brilliant Stokowski disc.

I think this SACD sounds slightly better than previous incarnations, with added firm bass, and the Respighi performances are excellent - but it's not an SACD demonstration disc. I agree with Seth, they sound very good for their age but cannot compare with the finest SACDs from the modern era.

My SACD demo disc is Kobayashi's Mahler 3 with the Czech PO on Exton.

The Reiner La Mer performance is decent at best, no match even on SACD for Haitink, for one. Munch is better than Reiner but Haitink is one of the best ever.

Post by seth March 31, 2006 (9 of 32)
Peter said:

I'm more fond of LS than Mercury in general as far as recording philosophy is concerned, but do view these as historic releases. They're wonderful performances, but I'd like modern wonderful performances, too.

The LS website hasn't been updated for ages; the above disc doesn't appear. I hope this isn't a bad omen, though thankfully the Ides of March are long gone.

I am not a fan of the Mercury sound (not to hijack this thread or anything). Yes the sound is quite vivid with a wide dynamic range, but it's too 'in your face' for my taste.

Post by seth March 31, 2006 (10 of 32)
Daland said:

Nor did I notice any distortions in the Stokowski disc (if the reference is to "Rhapsody").

They're most definitely there; many people have noticed it.

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