Norman Schwartz writes:

>(1) A superior recording can influence a listener's opinion as to the merit
>of a performance.

True if the quality of the sound matters more to the listener than the
quality of the performance.  But less true, I believe, for "sophisticated"
listeners, especially once the sound quality crosses some threshold.

>(2) The sound qualities of a concert hall may not be apparent in recordings
>made therein (poor sounding halls can appear good in recordings and/or vice
>versa.

Absolutely, In the extreme case, close miking of individual instruments
with minimal capture of the hall sound, multitrack recording and electronic
processing (added reverberation, equalization) can produce a sound that is
arbitrarily different from the sound heard by a listener physically present
in the hall.

>(3) A given orchestra can sound differently from different seats in a given
>hall (in a single evening).

Absolutely, though the effect is more one of coloration and altered balance
than the wholesale modification possible in (2) above.  The best example is
if you seat close to the stage near the basses, the basses will dominate
the sound.  Similar, close the stage, the strings in general have a more
brilliant sound (because the direct sound arrived at the listener's ears
significantly sooner than the hall's reflections) than further back in the
hall (where the reflected and direct sound arrive relatively more closely
in time).

>(4) In recordings, the characteristic sound of a given orchestra ... may
>not be apparent

See (2) above.

"Len Fehskens" <[log in to unmask]>