hoyainspirit
Platinum Hoya (over 5000 posts)
When life puts that voodoo on me, music is my gris-gris.
Posts: 8,392 
|
Post by hoyainspirit on Aug 26, 2016 12:25:48 GMT -5
|
|
SirSaxa
Blue & Gray (over 10,000 posts)
Posts: 15,620
|
Post by SirSaxa on Aug 26, 2016 13:39:33 GMT -5
Thanks Hoyainspirit. Probably the least well-known to the public was Rudy Van Gelder, though he was a key factor in the recording of probably more records than anyone else -- ever. So influential was he that the NY Times ran TWO pieces about him today. RVG was the greatest recording engineer in the history of music. He came to prominence when Alfred Lion, founder of jazz label Blue Note Records, first recorded at Rudy’s home studio in 1952. From that initial recording session, Alfred never used another engineer or studio. Together they developed what became known as The Blue Note Sound. Then everyone wanted to use Rudy. The two stories from today’s NY Times are linked below. A couple of excerpts: RVG wanted “to get electronics to accurately capture the human spirit,” and to make the records he engineered sound “as warm and as realistic as possible.” ------ Mr. Van Gelder, who died on Thursday at 91, was the most revered recording engineer in jazz — the man behind the curtain on thousands of albums and the chief architect of the storied “Blue Note sound.” He shaped the way we hear the music and the way we want it to be heard. So it’s natural, now, to look for some trace of Mr. Van Gelder in the brilliant recordings he made, either at his first home studio in Hackensack, N.J., or at his second, in nearby Englewood Cliffs. It’s natural, and it’s also maddening, because so much of what he did was intangible. You hear it, you feel it, but his signature was etched in invisible ink. What is it, exactly, that you’re listening for? Naturalism? Warmth? The sound of a room? “Some musicians sounded more real on your recordings than they would in a club,” the pianist and writer Ben Sidran ventured in 1985 in a rare interview with Mr. Van Gelder, who seemed to agree. He replied, “A great photographer will really create his image, and not just capture a particular situation.” ------ Peter Keepnews www.nytimes.com/2016/08/26/arts/music/rudy-van-gelder-audio-engineer-who-helped-define-sound-of-jazz-on-record-dies-at-91.htmlNate Chinen - includes links to a few sample musical moments from his recordings www.nytimes.com/2016/08/27/arts/music/rudy-van-gelder-essential-recordings.htmlRIP Rudy. Humble spirit but a giant in jazz history. |
|
hoyainspirit
Platinum Hoya (over 5000 posts)
When life puts that voodoo on me, music is my gris-gris.
Posts: 8,392
|
Post by hoyainspirit on Aug 27, 2016 11:53:14 GMT -5
Thanks Hoyainspirit. Probably the least well-known to the public was Rudy Van Gelder, though he was a key factor in the recording of probably more records than anyone else -- ever. So influential was he that the NY Times ran TWO pieces about him today. RVG was the greatest recording engineer in the history of music. He came to prominence when Alfred Lion, founder of jazz label Blue Note Records, first recorded at Rudy’s home studio in 1952. From that initial recording session, Alfred never used another engineer or studio. Together they developed what became known as The Blue Note Sound. Then everyone wanted to use Rudy. The two stories from today’s NY Times are linked below. A couple of excerpts: RVG wanted “to get electronics to accurately capture the human spirit,” and to make the records he engineered sound “as warm and as realistic as possible.” ------ Mr. Van Gelder, who died on Thursday at 91, was the most revered recording engineer in jazz — the man behind the curtain on thousands of albums and the chief architect of the storied “Blue Note sound.” He shaped the way we hear the music and the way we want it to be heard. So it’s natural, now, to look for some trace of Mr. Van Gelder in the brilliant recordings he made, either at his first home studio in Hackensack, N.J., or at his second, in nearby Englewood Cliffs. It’s natural, and it’s also maddening, because so much of what he did was intangible. You hear it, you feel it, but his signature was etched in invisible ink. What is it, exactly, that you’re listening for? Naturalism? Warmth? The sound of a room? “Some musicians sounded more real on your recordings than they would in a club,” the pianist and writer Ben Sidran ventured in 1985 in a rare interview with Mr. Van Gelder, who seemed to agree. He replied, “A great photographer will really create his image, and not just capture a particular situation.” ------ Peter Keepnews www.nytimes.com/2016/08/26/arts/music/rudy-van-gelder-audio-engineer-who-helped-define-sound-of-jazz-on-record-dies-at-91.htmlNate Chinen - includes links to a few sample musical moments from his recordings www.nytimes.com/2016/08/27/arts/music/rudy-van-gelder-essential-recordings.htmlRIP Rudy. Humble spirit but a giant in jazz history. Those RVG Blue Note recordings (and other labels) played a huge part in my life as a youngster totally fascinated with and immersed in jazz. So much of the music I listened to as I was learning the music was recorded by RVG. A true giant in the industry. |
|
