Is imaging reality?

Have sat down front many times and find I like the sound and the view less.

When seeing an orchestra, ballet, or opera, I prefer the ‘dress circle’ seats. I can see everything from ‘slightly’ above, while also feeling close. And typically sounds wonderful, but in reality, in places like Severance Hall in Cleveland, sounds great wherever you sit. It’s more about the view.

I listen to primarily classical, and primarily orchestral. I also mentioned this in a similar thread:

No, at a live venue, a concert hall, we do not really hear ‘imaging’, but as I stated, I think the difference is, in a concert hall, we also are watching while listening vs only listening to 2 channel without any visual help, and we need/want to make up for not seeing the musicians play, or where we know they are typically located. Thus, for me, listening to orchestral music in my living room, without visual cues, I like to have those imaging cues separating the musicians on the stage as I know they are. In this strange way, it makes it more realistic, both in soundstage width and also more importantly depth. I want that timpani sounding as if is way behind the speakers and at the rear of the stage. Imaging recreates the stage, the room, the hall, etc. when we cannot see it.

The same goes when listening to trio or quartet jazz recordings. I like to hear where each musician is. Or, chamber works, etc. But when I *see* a Jazz trio at a club, it isn’t important. I’m also watching.

Now, it still takes a well recorded album to pull this off well.

And interesting enough, when watching the Berlin Philarmonic live (I have a subscription) through my 5.1 channel HT set-up, everything surrounds me, also not realistic, but all is fine, as I am watching while listening, and it matters little.

@rvpiano

I agree. I’m not sure why anyone would think it annoying ‘hearing’ each group of musicians on the stage as they actually are. I have many mono orchestral recordings, perhaps that is more ‘realistic’ to what you might hear in a hall, and some are recorded really well, almost stereophonic, especially in depth. I can enjoy these mono recordings both recorded and engineered well, but yes, if I had a preference, prefer imaging offered by a stereo recording, and really enjoy the recordings that concentrate on that aspect.

@mazian

For example I recently played a bassoon concerto and could hear the intake of breathe from the soloist before he/she began the solo, the click of the keys ( I call them keys but I am sure there is an official term that I can’t remember) and the shuffling of the players feet, all sounds you would be unlikely to hear at a live venue unless, perhaps you sat in the front row

I love that kind of stuff in a recording. Heck, in most cases you would have to be an orchestra member yourself to hear those things. But I like the immersive quality that type of thing brings, regardless if it is realistic, particularly for an orchestra performance. I have a couple of the Royal Concertgebouw Live box sets, and really like the various ambient sound captured. It provides a feeling/sense of ’being there’.

@brownsfan

Yes, and not only that, but George Szell himself was intrically responsible for creating a ’new’ sound absorption and diffusion system behind and around the stage vs what was originally designed.

Given your name, I assume you live, or used to live, near.