[Fmpro] No Fortissimo? Symphony Told to Keep It Down

[Adrian Ellis]

"...the conductors are conducting more and more loudly [...] I
know conductors who have hundreds of shades of fortissimo, but not many
in the lower levels.  Maybe the whole world is just becoming louder."

I'm fascinated by this - I'm surprised that performed symphonic music (both "classical" and contemporary) is being affected by the loudness factor that is year after year being ratcheted up in everything delivered to our senses - I can hardly watch films in a big cinema without suffering a seizure anymore, pop and rock albums are being mastered more loudly than the last (look at those poor crushed waveforms and complete lack of dynamics), both film and video games have more, bigger, louder faster better sound music effects... indeed, the world seems to be getting faster, and louder.  I suppose I naively thought you could still run into the concert hall and (in a restrained mezzo forte) shout "SANCTUARY!!", but I guess not.

Did everyone hear that or should I repeat it again, more loudly?

 
Adrian

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Message: 19
Date: Sun, 20 Apr 2008 22:59:03 -0400
From: Les Mizzell <lesmizz at bellsouth.net>
Subject: [Fmpro] No Fortissimo? Symphony Told to Keep It Down
To: fmpro at nxport.com
Message-ID: <480C02F7.90806 at bellsouth.net>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed

Orchestra is too loud?

Thought everybody would find this interesting

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/20/arts/music/20noise.html?_r=2&hp&oref=slogin&oref=slogin


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