Octave Pitch and Other Notes

We have a new president and vice president-elect. I and any other person in an editorial position might be expected to comment about it. However, I don’t do politics in these pages. The Octave Records “Column to be Named Later” now has a name: “Octave Pitch,” courtesy of reader and name the column contest winner Mark Mazur. Read about Octave’s new release, Hey Joe Opus | Red Meat by Otis Taylor here. Elsewhere in this issue: Larry Schenbeck initiates a series on bel canto singing and I experience an audio initiation. John Seetoo continues his AES Show Fall 2020 report with a look at some of the 7 Audio Wonders of the World. Ken Sander deals with Split Enz. Anne E. Johnson looks at the career of the Country Gentleman, Chet Atkins, and celebrates the 600^th birthday of Johannes Ockeghem. Tom Gibbs waxes nostalgic about four holiday reissue LPs. Jay Jay French is buying a stairway to heaven. Roy Hall invests in an Isle of Arran distillery. J.I. Agnew gets his head around coils in audio. Tom Methans re-lives boogie wonderland. Robert Heiblim examines advances in assistive hearing. In our “Sitting In” section, Max Townshend of Townshend Audio offers a test for determining speaker cable differences, and cartoonist Peter Xeni lets off steam. Ray Chelstowski offers a decidedly different holiday songs playlist. Don Lindich concludes his interview with Krell Industries’ Walter Schofield. We wrap up the issue with streaming audio, unstable speed and the shapes of things.