In his most recent posting on this thread, D Stephen Heersink continued to
maintain that ARG does not do right by Naxos; it brings up the budget price
advantage routinely, and displays an attitude of price elitism.  He also
provided specific quotations from various ARG reviews to support his
position.

Mr. Heersink is certainly a strong advocate for Naxos, and the record
company should be very pleased to have him in its corner.  However, I think
he's being much too hard on ARG, in effect micro-criticizing the reviews.

Just out of curiosity, I took out a recent Fanfare and found eleven reviews
of Naxos recordings; seven mentioned the Naxos price advantage.

I see nothing wrong with a reviewer bringing up the price differentials.
"Price" is what got Naxos off the ground, and it's price which has led to
Naxos selling more recordings than any other company.  It's not the only
factor, but it is the "enabling" factor.  Further, one of the prime jobs
of a reviewer is to provide insight to the reader concerning purchasing
decisions; since purchases cost money, it is appropriate to mention any
price advantage Naxos possesses.

So, I do not agree with Mr. Heersink's premise, and the review samples he
provided did nothing but confirm in my mind that ARG reviewers generally do
a fine job.

Don Satz
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