"Emotionally involving" music and your system...

Fab4fan, you make a good observation. Attending a live performance one does get to see the performers and the instruments being played and certainly that adds more sensory input and makes for a more emotional connection to the performance. When listening at home you have to visualize (if you can) the performers and musicians in your head.

I also find that when I'm watching and listening to my home theater setup that I'm not nearly as critical of the sound as I am when listening to music on my 2-channel systems. So the effect of adding the visual component cannot be ignored. And I've enjoyed a few Broadway performances myself. I don't find it corny at all. It's very visual there, as well, with the bright costumes, makeup, and choreography. It can be just about overwhelming, and of course, that is the intent in many cases.

Fairconn, I appreciate your kind remarks and feel fortunate to have shared so much good music with you. I would be remiss if I didn't acknowledge Dan Fanny's (American Hybrid Technology) contribution to my (any your) audiophile education. HP, of TAS thought very highly of Dan's Non-Signature phono stage; and as many who know him can attest, he does the best and most comprehensive mods to Acoustat Servo-charge amps known to mankind. Happy Listening!

I think the differences between recordings can be major, although the added interaction of audience and musicians can be much better.

Friends & I have been sitting down on Friday evenings to listen to and compare many different pressings of an agreed on piece of music (this past Friday it was Stravinsky's Firebird.) Some conductors have an affinity for the music in a way that the emotion comes through easily, and others produce a recording that is the musical equivalent of "white bread" or cardboard. I like the way Boulez brings new vitality to 20th century composers, while von Karajan or Bohm breathe life into Beethoven and Mozart. When you are listening to 8-10 versions of a piece in the same evening, the differences are immediate.

The best examples of "live" for me are a Mahavishnu Orchestra concert at the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago about 1970-71? I met someone years later and we talked about greatest concerts we were ever at, and it turns out that he was sitting in about the same row and position on the same night. His experience matched mine exactly!

Another memorable performance was hearing Solti & the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in rehearsal at Orchestra Hall for Beethoven's 9th Symphony. A week later they recorded it at the Kraennert Center in Urbana, IL for Decca's 25th Jubilee Anniversary (it was Georg Solti's 25 anniversary of recording with Decca.)

Pbowne, I heard the Mahavishnu Orchestra in Chicago in 1971 and was absolutely blown away! They performed at an outdoor venue and I ran out to buy an album the next day. Thanks for the reminder -- they must have been on a real roll that year.

Thanks all for your interesting posts. Keep them coming!