Great Interview-

I have always thought that Harry Pearson was right in looking for the absolute sound not in amplified sound from electronics but from the "sound of actual acoustic instruments playing in a real space." 

@kmcong The only time I fire up my music rig is if I’m going to sit and listen to music. Having music in the background is distracting because I’ll find myself stopped and listening to it. When the last road band I was in broke up and I got a job in a retail store playing Muzak, that was a problem. 😳
 

Agreed, tho, that I can’t imagine why every musician isn’t a lover of great sound  For most musicians I think budget is a factor  I’ve sat any number of musicians in front of my rig and their jaws drop  But none have pursued a system of their own  One noted jazz pianist says she spends so much time hearing and playing live music she’s not really interested in playback at home  She listens to recording mixes on her computer and wonders why I waste $$ on stereo gear.

In terms of what I’m looking for in playback, I’d say I want it to sound Real  If it’s a close-mic studio recording I like the impact of the final mastered mix; like the mix station is my AV room. If it’s recorded in a live space, I want to be in that space with the band/orchestra  Or put another way, either they are in my room or I’m in theirs  A great recording on a great sounding rig - It can happen…

@terry9 Bingo ! Musicians are listening to the performance. What I have been discussing all along. But I digress. Hi end audio can be enjoyed for many reasons, and I am accepting this, as more and more audiophile people are not listening to the performance, the musicianship, the composition. To each his/her own. My best, MrD.

We went to hear Joe many times in the early days- he was hauling his own gear in a rental box truck. He eventually morphed more into a hard rock act. I wish him continued success, but the blues based stuff was what attracted me. 

Hello All! Musicians are used to being "IN" the music. They are surrounded by other people aling music. Tey concerned with how they are producing the musical performance. They are doers not listeners. They are concerned with structure and shaping of the sound the listener hears. They are "in the moment" of producing the music. They know what they want to do are concentrating on how to produce the sound they want. If they are listening to a recording, it is history. It's done. It's over. It's yesterday. They aren't concerned with how history sounds. They know how it sounds in their minds and how it was produced. Yesterday is of little interest and value. NOW is what counts. Do the performers "have the chops," They are not listening for what the audiophiles care about. So, fancy gear is of no interest to them. Did they hit the right note? It doesn't matter that an instrument is not accurately reproduced. The melody and harmony matters. The pacing and timing of the notes matters, how the players work together matters. Not much else. We enjoy the historic performance of the recording in a very different way, and thank them for their efforts.  Happy Listening.