Jos Janssen responded to David Harbin:

>>I'd like to buy myself a Sheherazade but am unsure which one to go for.
>>I want an exciting characterful performance in realistic sound (deep
>>rich bass, timpani has impact etc.) I'm considering two versions and
>>was wondering if there are any comments:
>
>Yap.  Half an hour ago, I arrived home from Amsterdam, where David Zinman
>and the Concertgebouw Orchestra gave the most exiting Sheherazade I've
>ever heard.  How underrated David Zinman is!

Agreed.  I was just about to post regarding how much I've enjoyed the
Zinman/Baltimore Enigma Variations on Telarc, and their Rachmaninoff
2nd Symphony, also on Telarc.  The strings and horns are captured *so*
beautifully, and the phrasing!  I could kick myself for avoiding the
Baltimore forces only because they're a relatively provincial orchestra.

Are you a Church Window fan?

Completely curing my "provincialitis," was a Reference Recording
of Respighi's "Church Windows," with Keith Clark and the Pacific
Symphony Orchestra.  (Orange County's finest....) I found the orchestral
execution and recorded sound superior to both the Chandos/Simon or the
Telarc/Lopez-Cobos.  You can practically walk through the orchestral
sound, even in the thickest climaxes.  Do try it out.

Favorite Sheherazade?

Although I'm Sheherazaded out, the earnest and characterful playing of
the winds of the New York Phil, (Temirkanov/RCA), continue to keep my
ears perked, and my speakers love the Manhattan Center for some reason.
(Don't forget Rimsky's other music!  Brilliant has a great deal on his
symphonies and opera suites--the suites are a goldmine).

Oh, and if you're into such things, my new audio system is complete, for
a mere $10,000.  (I'm not rich, I just put away $800/month for a year
by cutting down on beauty products, etc.).

Amp: Musical Fidelity A308
CD player: Rega Planet 2000
Interconnects and speaker cable: Cardas Neutral Reference
Speakers: Vandersteen 3a Signatures
Sub: Definitive Technology 12-incher, (for just a touch of extra air-mov't).

If you're looking to upgrade and play primarily CM, this is the system
I put together, (taylored for CM), after a year of listening, mixing and
matching a myriad of components; and I'm very happy with the results.

Some comments: The cables made a difference, the interconnect spectacularly
so, with instrumental timbres remaining true much longer into crescendi,
and initial cracks of mallet against drum or mallet against bell becoming
much more immediate.  Organ pedal notes are much more powerful and
focused, and high-lying and closely-interweaving string lines are presented
with a little more air between the notes.  Etched string sound acquired
a sheen for all but the worst recordings, but more on that later.

I listened to a lot of speakers, finally choosing the Vandersteen's
because of their special, (to me), presentation of acoustic instruments.
Timbres are delivered with a kind of...humidity, if that makes sense.
Good modern recordings sound great.  Good vintage recordings sound great.
Recordings with added reverb or recordings with closely-miked strings...
forget it.  This is the bummer about revealing speakers--bad recordings
will sound worse then they would if played through speakers that get
things generally right.

Soundstage: If you like chamber music, or Jazz, the Vandy 2a Sigs will
be enough.  I found I needed to jump up to the 3a's to get a soundstage
big enough for Mahler or Strauss.

John Smyth
Sacramento, CA