This past Saturday, I was taught a lesson in audio I won't soon forget...

A couple of friends came to visit us... coming from Germany, I knew they'd want to visit the most representative places on México.

We went to Santa Fé (the newest financial / shopping district), Chapultepec, Xochimilco, and at night we decided to take them downtown, to eat on a very old (1860's) restaurant. It's called "La hostería de Santo Domingo".

It's a place where time stood still from the 50's on. It has an old piano, a kind gentleman well on his 70's playing it, and the decoration is straight out of a 1930's movie.

So, anyway, we were having some tequila and beers, when the piano player began working his magic on the piano keys. And what brand of magic it was - absolutely breathtaking. The thrill of listening to his old hands' striking the yellowish-white keys, his breathing, the piano sounding as full and beautiful as nothing else... the passion in each and every note he played.

I was astounded. At that precise moment I realized something I should have noticed a while ago. No matter how hard I try, no matter how much money I spend, no matter how many tweaks I use, no matter how many "Stereophile Class A Recommended" components I get... no matter what, I'll never own any system, at any price point, that will be able to even sound similar to what I heard at that moment. It was the passion, the intensity, the blessing of being able to listen to someone play an old piano, while delivering each piece with all the emotion he had.

It was breathtaking.

The next day, I attended a classical concert at the Nezahualcóyotl Concert Hall. The passion was there, too.

It was such a startling discovery, to find out any audio system at any price point pales in comparison to what the hands and soul of a kind old gentleman can do. It surely set my priorities straight. Who needs upgrading to a $1,000 a foot interconnect when so much more joy can be found for free?

If you haven't, try it sometime. You'll like it.

 

True, there IS nothing as exciting as live music. There are vibes that just dont make it thru the wires...no matter how much they cost!!

 

On a similar note.....my cousin was a big Rascals fan in the '60s. As he lived in Long Island, he saw The Rascals many times. He says that live, they were UNTOUCHABLE, simply incredible. They KILLED every audience.

BUT.... when you played the records, it was nothing like hearing them live...there was an electric feeling that just didnt make it onto the records.

 

I have an old 1975 issue of Stererophile (probably the first one I bought) that I still keep for this reason: In it is a letter from a reader on the economics of audio. The writer says that "For the price of a class A system, it would be possible to bring into my home every Sunday for a year, a local University String Quartet alternating monthly with a Chamber orchestra including refreshments. For the same cost, you could instead fly to Vienna for the concert season. More practically, you can get a subscription to the Pittsburgh Symphony, the Philadelphia Symphony, the necessary plane tickets and a very nice class C system"

Kind of puts it all in perspective, doesn't it?

Jay N.

 

Which is why I'm overall happy with what I have but am still going to save for the Pioneer DV-563A.

 

Heh. I agree with you - I don't think I'll stop buying new equipment anytime soon. But the obssesion suddenly died - now, I'm not in any hurry to upgrade anytime soon. And I have understood there's no way I'll ever get to the level I so much desired - because no system can. Which is good, since I guess I'll try to be as exposed as much as possible to live music from now on.

Ted's post, though, states my thoughts on the matter perfectly well.

 

Javier, great post. This is so true. I have definitely gotten an appreciation for good gear, but live it will never be.