GG: Goldbergs, etc.

["John P. Hill" <jphill@frank.mtsu.edu>]

Re:  Those Goldberg CDs...
Clearly, there are *at least* two different CD issues of the '82
Goldbergs.  My original Columbia Masterworks version has only
one track.  This is *not* a player issue, since the program IDs,
index and table of contents are part of the P-Q subcode in the
digital data stream.  I think it quite likely that GG would have
wanted a single track.  After all, this was still relatively
early for digital recording (the Soundstream system was developed
in the mid-70s) and *very* early for CD releases.  One of the
reasons that GG rerecorded the work (and he rarely did this) was
to reconsider the metrical/rhythmic interrelationship of the
aria and variations.  Although he undoubtedly *recorded* the
work in sections, his *concept* of the work stressed a very
linear progression through the piece.  One can imagine him
saying, "You know, you really need to listen to this whole
thing all the way through to get the idea..."  The literature
suggests that, as a listener, he often did marathon sessions
auditioning the same recording *many* times all the way through.

Re:  Studio Recording and Digital Editing
BTW, studio recordings are carried out by having the performer
realize a few complete takes of the work and then zeroing in
on shorter sections called "inserts" which will later be edited
in to a larger part of a complete take.  GG did *lots* of
complete takes and inserts, often realizing completely different
stylistic approaches that might preclude using previous takes
in the final edited version.  Digital editing can be completely
"seamless", in that the ear can easily be fooled into thinking that
what you hear on the CD is one continuous performance.  It rarely is.
In my experience, classical musicians rely upon editing *much*
more heavily than most casual listeners would imagine.  With GG,
it wasn't a question of whether he could play the pieces through
flawlessly; the issue was GG trying to achieve a unique vision and
"perfect" realization that would otherwise never be attainable
through live performance.

Re:  20-bit/Super Bit Mapping
SBM is Sony's method for taking the original analog master tapes,
digitally recording them with 20 bit resolution and then redithering
back to 16 bits for CD release.  IMHO, these are superior to both
the original vinyl releases (Columbia often had terrible vinyl and
questionable mastering) and the original Masterworks
CD versions.  Some of the early master tapes are probably almost
unplayable at this point and even the SBM technology can't do
much for them.  On the other hand, the later Dolby A recordings
from the 70s (like the Toccatas) come across pretty well (too bad
GG hated those pieces!).


John Hill
Dept. of Recording Industry
Middle Tennessee State University
email:  jphill@frank.mtsu.edu