Copper


Instrument Designer Rick Turner: A Life

and Other IllnessesAudioIssue 173Music

These days, I struggle, aside from dealing with my illness, with taking in what else happens in the world around me. Like the death of Rick Turner at age 78....

The Role of Imagination

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 148MUSIC

Sitting here listening to a Steinway recording – literally, a Steinway recording, as in an album of Ravel by the artist Sean Chen, released by Steinway & Sons records –...

Of Tubes and Men

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 117MUSIC

I got new tubes! No, really! “Why is he telling me this?,” you wonder. It’s where I got them and what they are that’s not insignificant, although a couple of...

The Ordinary Beauty of Elbow, Part Two

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 115MUSIC

I had thought that the intervening time between Part One and Part Two of these pieces on the great Manchester band, Elbow, would bring about greater familiarity with their recent works, but...

On the Necessity of a Power Plant

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 103MUSIC

I know there’s a policy of having us writers not write about PS Audio products. But sometimes it’s something that’s just screaming at us (well, me) to do. Paul McGowan’s recent video/pod-thingy about...

A Journey Through The Absolute Sound

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 102MUSIC

I discovered high-end audio in 1978. But I always seemed to have a natural inclination towards high quality experience. My father was a largely self-trained EE, who was hired at...

My C-24, Redux

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 101MUSIC

In one of his Paul’s Posts (“Capturing Air”), Paul McGowan mentioned my AKG C-24, and I thought I would try to describe the mic, and how it’s been changed. First of all:...

The Sound of Microphones, Redux

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 100MUSIC

Specifically, Neumann LDCs, or large diaphragm condensers. You know how they sound. Everybody knows how they sound. They’re the most ubiquitous recording mics there are. But just in case: You...

Further Thoughts on System Synergy

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 99MUSIC

For the past week, I’ve been thinking a bit more about the issue of system synergy – and its opposite. I have a sort of “wild” idea about what may...

The Sound of My Stereo and the Quality of Cables

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 98MUSIC

I’ve written about the sound of my system before – and how it had devolved from its extraordinary condition of more than 20 years to one which was, in hindsight,...

My Helios, Redux

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 97MUSIC

I’ve been asked a couple times about the recording / mixing console I own (with a friend). So I thought I might write a little about it. Helios began at...

The Story of "All I Wanna Do", Redux

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 96MUSIC

I was talking to Paul McGowan a week or so ago, and he asked again about how the song’s lyrics came about. This is as I remember it: Originally, on...

Where I Am, Part 2

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 95MUSIC

Picking up the story from Issue 87: a lot of water has gone by the bridge in the meantime. But someone in the forum asked for prayers, which motivated me to...

The Bass That Phil Lesh Gave Me

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 94MUSIC

In one’s early life as a musician, one tends to look for signs along the way that you’ve chosen the right path. For me, there were a couple early indicators...

Where I've Been, Part 1

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 87MUSIC

If you’ve been interested (and I’m not saying you ought to be…), you’ll have noticed that for the last year, I’ve frequently been missing from these pixels, and Copper has rerun older...

My C-24

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 85MUSIC

In one of his Paul’s Posts (“Capturing Air”), Paul McGowan mentioned my AKG C-24, and I thought I would try to describe the mic, and how it’s been changed. First of all:...

The Qobuz Diaries

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 81MUSIC

I spent a week, since the last issue, in the hospital. (Don’t ask! I’ll tell soon enough.) This is the second week in just over a month that I’ve had...

Reaching Inside

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 80MUSIC

Bear with me; I’m going to talk about myself — again. I’ve been somewhat ill lately and in between bouts of sleep, left with a bit of time to think...

Mix A vs. Mix B, Redux

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 83MUSIC

In the dark, dim past, on a dark and stormy night, Bill Bottrell would rant to anyone who would listen (usually just me) about Mix A and Mix B. As...

The Most Remarkable Man, Redux

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 78MUSIC

I’ve discussed a few of the heavyweight characters I encountered in my initial years as a player. But I didn’t yet talk about the man whose influence on me is...

96,000 People Can't Be That Wrong, Redux

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 77MUSIC

As I write this, I’m listening to the early Flying Burrito Brothers. I love this stuff. I first got “turned on” to music like this by hearing the very first...

Steve Reich: Drumming, Redux

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 76MUSIC

When I was 17, I discovered the compositional style called Minimalism. I remember the moment very well. It was 1974, the spring of 11th grade, and my mother was downstairs teaching...

Messiah

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 74MUSIC

On Sunday, December 9th, my family and I went to Los Angeles’s Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, to hear the Dream Orchestra and the Opera Chorus of Los Angeles doing...

On Words In Music, Redux

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 72MUSIC

I was trying to figure out when and where I first tried my hand at writing lyrics. The first time that I can still remember, they were written on the...

The Tuesday Night Music Club, Redux

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 68MUSIC

[Our friend, regular Copper columnist and resident right-handed bass player Dan Schwartz has had to undergo surgery to repair a broken right arm—and so we’re re-running a classic Schwartz column from Copper#15.  We...

The Great Wall, Redux

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 67MUSIC

[Our friend and regular Copper columnist Dan Schwartz is under the weather—and so we’re re-running a classic Schwartz column from Copper #39. Best wishes to Dan, with hopes of sunny days and better health!—Ed.]...

Hitting Bottom

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 65MUSIC

Mark Malboeuf, alias badbeef, asked me to comment on a thread in the PS Audio forums about PS’ AN-series speakers in development, and as I thought about it, I realized I...

A Conversation

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 63MUSIC

Well, conversation might not be the word. I was going to write a bit about my bedroom system. But on Sunday I had an encounter so bizarre that I have to write...

Obsessed With Stereo

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 62MUSIC

I think about my system too much. I mean, really too much. As I’ve written many times, it was stable for more than 20 years. That’s a really long while in anybody’s...

RootMasterSound

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 61MUSIC

By now, it’s no secret that THE Show a few weeks ago was a mild bust. Too many events scheduled for the same place at the same time, etc. I...

Structure Needs a Firm Foundation

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 60MUSIC

I’ve had a BHK Signature preamp for about a week-and-a-half, so it’s on the way towards  breaking in. The first big change came just short of a day. This isn’t...

Why Doesn't My System Sound Better? Part 2

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 58MUSIC

About half a year ago, in Copper #45, I wrote a bit about my system, and the seemingly neurotic doubts it aroused in me. Well, OK — not seemingly. I wouldn’t be...

The Sound of Microphones

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 56MUSIC

Specifically, Neumann LDCs, or Large Diaphragm Condensers. You know how they sound. Everybody knows how they sound. They’re the most ubiquitous recording mics there are. But just in case: You...

In Defense of Taste

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 52MUSIC

My last piece seems to have raised some eyebrows, though in the end it seems I came out more favorable than not. But it got me to thinking. How much...

Danny Thompson

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 51MUSIC

While writing the last few chapters, I talked on occasion to Rick Turner. He suggested that I should write about someone who it turns out is a favorite upright bass...

What Is a Bass? Part 3: Alternative Materials

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 49MUSIC

In the first two installments, I talked about a bit of the history of electric basses, and covered the innovations that came from Alembic. This time, I want to discuss...

The Story of "All I Wanna Do" (as I remember it)

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 46MUSIC

I was talking to Paul McGowan a week or so ago, and he asked again about how the song’s lyrics came about. This is as I remember it: Originally, on...

Meetings With Remarkable Men, Part 2

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 41MUSIC

I wasn’t much of a Grateful Dead fan at first. A neighbor said I should come to his house to hear Workingman’s Dead, and I thought it was OK. The next...

Meetings With Remarkable Men, Part 1

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 40MUSIC

Last time out, I wrote a bit about the Grateful Dead’s Wall of Sound, and a little about the circumstances surrounding it. It’s something I’m thinking quite a bit now...

Roon: What's It Building In There??

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 38MUSIC

A couple of years ago, along with a DirectStream DAC, I bought an older Mac Mini. Why older? The price was “attractive”, and I got the last model you could...

Wild About Harry (Pearson)

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 35MUSIC

Some time ago, I wrote, first for Paul McGowan, and re-published in PFO a couple years ago, about why I left The Absolute Sound.  But I didn’t really write about Harry Pearson. Many...

96,000 People Can't Be That Wrong

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 33MUSIC

As I write this, I’m listening to the early Flying Burrito Brothers. I love this stuff. I first got “turned on” to music like this by hearing the very first...

Silence Isn't Silent

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 32MUSIC

Let me tell you about Bernie Leadon. Bernie came to some notice in the late 60s, as a member, first, of Dillard & Clark, and then of The Flying Burrito Brothers. And...

The Minimalist Groove of Nik Bärtsch

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 31MUSIC

I first heard of composer Nik Bärtsch from director Robert Harmon around the time of Bärtsch’s earliest ECM releases. A little while after that, my friend Pete Devine started raving...

Ducks In a Row

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 30MUSIC

For about six months of my life, around the time of my 18th birthday, I played in a cover band—six sets a night, and finished at 2 AM. The band’s “home...

Terry Riley

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 29MUSIC

Which Terry Riley? I first heard A Rainbow in Curved Air before I heard Steve Reich, but I didn’t identify the album as being a part of anything, except the great exploratory...

Breaking Glass

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 28MUSIC

To pick up the story: Shortly after I first heard Steve Reich, I heard Philip Glass, maybe the same week — again, on Diaspar, the brilliant show on WXPN. What I heard was a...

The Restless Mind: At Last, At Rest

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 27MUSIC

I had begun to write about my early years listening to another pillar of minimalism, Philip Glass, when word broke out on Facebook that Larry Coryell had died in his sleep after...

Steve Reich: Drumming

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 26MUSIC

When I was 17, I discovered the compositional style called Minimalism. I remember the moment very well. It was 1974, the spring of 11th grade, and my mother was downstairs teaching...

Courtney Hartman and the Mysterious Ghost

AND OTHER ILLNESSESAUDIOIssue 25MUSIC

In October, I appeared at a 3-day event called the Fretboard Summit, on a southern California golf course, along with Rick Turner and Jack Casady. Rick has been one of my best friends for...