Ray Stamford writes: >So do people find reviews useful, does it matter if they are not entirely >objective, do we mind some (a lot of!) subjectivity in them >and to what extent do they affect our CD buying habits? If you can find a review that is entirely objective, you've found a reviewer without emotions. The best I could hope for in a review would be for the reviewer to shed preconceptions, and that's not an easy task. Don Vroon of ARG can't do it at all, and I often notice many reviewers approaching a recording with a predetermined set of musical requirements. The only major complaint I have with reviews is when it is clear that the reviewer already knows he/she dislikes the composer, or the work, or the style in which it is performed; I end up wondering why in the world the particular reviewer accepted the assignment to begin with. There certainly is no value which a reader can glean from this type of situation. Again referring to ARG, they have fairly staunch anti-period instrument folks reviewing period instrument recordings; it's just a waste of time for all concerned. Don Satz [log in to unmask]