electronics replacing pianos?

[carlteplitski]

The most logical and best explaination I've read or heard recently or as far 
back as we've been discussing the subject. Especially the part where the 
average person, ( young ) gets used to a sound and doesn't care how it 
should sound. It will be considered the norm.
I hope there will enough discriminating people out there who want the best , 
just like I don't like lip sinqing . I really like the real thing, including 
any mistakes ," like my spelling." Most people , as they get older, don't 
like phony stuff, and avoid it.  My take on the subject.

Carl / Winnipeg




----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Geoff Sykes" <thetuner at ivories52.com>
To: "'Pianotech List'" <pianotech at ptg.org>
Sent: Thursday, January 04, 2007 9:26 PM
Subject: RE: electronics replacing pianos?


>I remember a number of years ago reading about a test performed using live
> and recorded music to see if a listener could tell the difference. They 
> set
> up a room with a blind down the middle between an acoustic guitar player 
> and
> a test audience. In other words, they could not see each other but 
> everyone
> could hear just fine. Sitting next to the guitar player was a high quality
> speaker. They had recorded that guitar player in that exact position prior
> to the test playing the same piece that he was going to play live. They 
> then
> brought in the test audience and had them listen to both the live guitar
> player and the recording without telling them which was which. The 
> audience
> guessed the live player correctly every single time. What they ultimately
> proved is that no matter how good the recording and the playback systems,
> there is always some extra lows and some extra highs and some extra nuance
> that just plain won't record or playback. I think the same holds true for
> even the high-end sampled electronic pianos today. They do sound pretty 
> darn
> good, but they don't really sound real. And I don't think that they will 
> be
> able to reproduce a real enough sound from an electronic device anytime 
> soon
> enough for it to effect many of us. On the other hand, as is the case with
> today's professionally recorded music, MP3 compression and the iPOD, the
> listener's expectations and ability to care about the difference will 
> likely
> erode much faster. So, the demise of the acoustic piano may just come from
> an increasing audience of players and listeners that no longer know,
> remember, or care what a real piano sound(ed) like, rather than the
> electronic version becoming good enough to actually replace it.
>
> 2 cents, and change.
>
> -- Geoff Sykes
> -- Assoc. Los Angeles
>
>