Live or Recorded; A Faustian response

In Schubertmaniac's and my posts we were referring principally to non-professionals whom we care about performing, or at least that's how I'm looking at it. I agree that I wouldn't want to attend performances by professionals who were merely going through the motions or performances of works I'm not interested in (although I'm always willing to give unknown pieces a listen), but my son's first elementary school concert was a priceless musical moment I'll always treasure.

It's an interesting question, because on the whole I listen to recorded music much more often then I listen to live music. However, there is not listening session that comes close to producing the kind of euphoria that I have felt listening to music being made rather than simply reproduced. Muddy Waters may have been a more competant musician than Claerence Gatemouth Brown is, but I've never heard a Muddy recording that was as much fun as seeing Gatemouth and then talking to him aftrewards about the blues in my hometown... and I can think of dozens of examples like this. Would you rather give up a steady stream of consistant pleasantness or intermitant experiences of rapture? It's like trying to choose friendship or love. I'm just glad that I don't have to make the call.

To Rcprince. I certainly accept that there are personal and in that sense extra-musical reasons for listening to a performance. The reference to Heidegger that Schubertmaniac casually tosses about has very specific ontological, epistemic and metaphysical claims about life and art. I spent the better part of a semester in the dim mists of Herr Heidegger's writings. My response is my considered response to claims which I find specious. I also believe that they are germane to this hobby.

Bringing up Heidegger was calulated; I would not broach
a philosophical point casually. There was a point to be made. You decided it was a little deceptive, your choice. An authentic experience is a philosophical term.I would never demean any of your experiences as authentic or not authentic, only you can decide that, existentially speaking.

Other than the music per se, the live performance offers ambience, and human interaction and contact. If we call such "surrounding" aspects of the live experience, "atmosphere" (for wont of a better word), then atmosphere, inseparable from the music, can beget magic. At home, we would have a more solitary "atmosphere".
This same "atmosphere" at home is of solitary ilk; when I listen to (say) Furt, I am in a phantasy world of nostalgia. So, authentic experience? Mr Heidegger would probably disagree -- but Mr Kant may not! But the question of whether I can experience Furtwangler live is clearly metaphysical, isn't it? Cheers.