Time for a musical performance and a brief rant. In the early days, hi-fi writers would talk about “goosebump experiences” … the hair standing up on the back of their neck.
This performance by Sarah Rogo captures it better than I can write, and I’ll let her do most of the talking.
We seem to have wandered astray from describing our hi-fi’s by their “engagement factor”. It’s an attribute I see becoming increasingly overlooked … at least in the forums and audio press.
In this TED talk, Sarah relates a moment as a fifth grader, watching a movie about The Holocaust and hearing a clarinet played in a manner that changed her life.
Introducing a song about coming of age, she speaks of changing the world by listening.
Those of you who know me are used to my continually emphasizing the ability of a hi-fi system to capture the musical intent of the performer/composer.
Stumbling onto this video inspired me to formally start a series on musicians with a powerful ability to capture moments/feelings/emotions/thoughts and communicate it to their audience.
This is why we have hi-fi systems … n’est ce pas? It’s powerful stuff.