Goldberg Variations

[Galileo]

I just ordered the MA Recordings reel to reel set of "The Goldberg Variations" as performed by Ito Ema. Has anyone else ordered this? Also, would someone please give me $16K so that I can get a Doshi tape head amp (just kidding on that last point)?

[astrotoy]

Yes. I actually started this by first asking Todd Garfinkle whether he would be interested in issuing the GV album on tape. I was able to get people who were willing to buy 10 copies and then Todd got Gary Koh and Ki Choi to work through the duplication. They did a great job doing the duplication and Todd found some unusual wooden boxes for the 2 reels. Wonderful performances in a beautiful acoustic. Todd did a great job of engineering the original album. I recently got a new tape rig, including an Ampex ATR-102 and a Doshi 3.0. Haven't had time to play the GV tape on it yet, but your post will push it up on the play list.

Larry

[Tunes]

Yes, like Larry mentioned, word began circulating that Todd might be open to this and I bugged him several times about it. A year ago, he shipped me a set of the tapes. Very nice! I use an early version of the Doshi tape pre. I'm considering trading up to his newest version 3.0 if i can.

[Tunes]

Btw, Todd will be at the TAVES show fri through sun and mentioned that he will bring a couple of copies of his GV tapes with him.

[Beaur]

Well I have the LP and it's spectacular. Not only the recording but the playing as well. Maybe I'll break down and get some of Todd's tapes if I ever get my machine back! Happy listening.

[garylkoh]

Treasure this album...... because Ms Ema-san suffered a stroke shortly after the recording. This is the only recording she has made. The LP is also even more limited in supply than the tape.

[MylesBAstor]

I just ordered the MA Recordings reel to reel set of "The Goldberg Variations" as performed by Ito Ema. Has anyone else ordered this? Also, would someone please give me $16K so that I can get a Doshi tape head amp (just kidding on that last point)?

I bought it last year at RMAF and it was definitely worth the money. I think Todd was in shock that someone actually wanted to buy tape. Even without a Doshi. Todd had some more tapes at RMAF this year but in a different box.

[Galileo]

Well the tape just arrived yesterday so I will probably play it tonight. I don't have a Doshi or any tube pre, just a deep purple J-Corder rebuilt Technics 1520, but it has certainly sounded lovely. I'm looking very forward to hearing this title on tape.

[Galileo]

I just finished playing the Goldberg Variations on two track 15 ips tape from MA Recordings. My J-Corder Technics 1520 has been rebuilt and sounds very lovely, although I can have it modified so that the play head goes directly to a pair of RCA sockets on the back, then I could sell a kidney and get the Doshi 3.0. In all truth, just the stock J-Corder 1520 is very flexible and pretty much blows everything else away. The performance and sound quality of this Goldberg Variations is outstanding. It is the thing that dreams are made off. It leaves Glenn Goukf in the dust. I also have a cassette master copy of the Davide Pannozzo Trio playing "A Portrait of Jimi Hendrix". It doesn't have quite the tonal neutrality of reel to reel, but it's a direct dub of the analog master tapes and sounds better than any other cassette I've heard in my Willy Hermann rebuilt Nakamichi Dragon, and it was "only" $100 with tax and shipping. I love reel to reel, but, done properly, you get 90% of the dynamics and ease of listening on a CrO2 cassette as you get from two track, 15 ips tape. I tried to talk Chad into trying it with no luck.

[astrotoy]

I just finished playing the Goldberg Variations on two track 15 ips tape from MA Recordings. My J-Corder Technics 1520 has been rebuilt and sounds very lovely, although I can have it modified so that the play head goes directly to a pair of RCA sockets on the back, then I could sell a kidney and get the Doshi 3.0. In all truth, just the stock J-Corder 1520 is very flexible and pretty much blows everything else away. The performance and sound quality of this Goldberg Variations is outstanding. It is the thing that dreams are made off. It leaves Glenn Goukf in the dust. I also have a cassette master copy of the Davide Pannozzo Trio playing "A Portrait of Jimi Hendrix". It doesn't have quite the tonal neutrality of reel to reel, but it's a direct dub of the analog master tapes and sounds better than any other cassette I've heard in my Willy Hermann rebuilt Nakamichi Dragon, and it was "only" $100 with tax and shipping. I love reel to reel, but, done properly, you get 90% of the dynamics and ease of listening on a CrO2 cassette as you get from two track, 15 ips tape. I tried to talk Chad into trying it with no luck.

That sounds great. Your J-Corder will be fine for a long time, until you sell your kidney. :-)
Willy does great work. He fixed up my Dragon years ago. Fortunately he lives in the same town as I do, less than 3 miles from me. I have some great old cassettes that Connoisseur Society released (all classical) - copied in real time on Cr02 tape (by a company called INSYNC IIRC). They were in Dolby C and worked well in my Dragon.

Larry

[Galileo]

Sorry it's been so long to reply. J-Corder has an optional four-head headblock where one head goes to the internal electronics and another head is wired to a pair of connectors on the box for an external (tube) headamp. I don't know how much that modification costs, but are there any "good" tube headamps with both NAB and IEC EQ settings that fall somewhere between the Bottlehead and the Doshi 3.0 in both price and performance. Thanks very much for any suggestions you can offer! I suppose I could use the internal electronics to switch EQ settings and have the external headamp support only IEC as well.

[dcc]

Todd Garkinkle recently confirmed me that he is having new LP pressings and they should be available at the Munich Highend show. I hopefully will be able to compare the High Rez file against the tapes and the LP.

[garylkoh]

Here's Todd with Bernie Grundman cutting lacquer...... Besides the Goldberg Variations, he's also got other projects in the works..... including one of my favourites, guitar works by Vlatko Stefanovski & Miroslav Tadic