Copper


Table of Contents – Issue 221

Issue 221Table of Contents

“I have seen the midnight sun shining.” – The Strawbs, “Midnight Sun” Too many music greats have passed on in the past few months. Yet their music lives on, and...

Talking With Musician, Composer and Record Labe...

Issue 221The Copper Interview

David Chesky needs little introduction to audio people. In 1984 he and his brother Norman started Chesky Records, one of the first audiophile labels to make a serious effort at...

Jazz Goes off on a Modern Pop Tangent: Octave R...

Issue 221Octave Pitch

Jazz musicians have always adapted the songs of the day to a jazz style and feel. With Octave Records’ latest, Tangent, pianist Charles Blenzig and his trio have taken songs...

How to Play in a Rock Band, 14: Show Me the Money!

Issue 221Frankly Speaking

Bands and artists play to express their music, for fun, to entertain their audiences, to get the girls or guys…and, oh yeah – to get paid. Especially if you’re trying...

Musings About AI, Audio, and Music

Issue 221Frankly Speaking

Being a music and audio person, I have some thoughts about how AI will relate to our listening consumption in an increasingly AI-laden era. Unlike much of the AI slop...

EveAnna Manley Passes the Torch With the Sale o...

Issue 221Industry News

On July 10, the announcement was made that the maker of pro and consumer audio gear, Manley Labs, was being sold by founder EveAnna Manley to its new owner, Dirk...

No Man Is Free Who Is Not Master of Himself

Issue 221Featured

A friend confided to me recently that his mind is so active, he can’t get to sleep at night without first wallowing and flopping in bed for hours. When he...

Freedy Johnston’s Can You Fly: a “Perfect” Albu...

Issue 221Disciples of Sound

Freedy Johnston’s debut record, 1990’s Trouble Tree was a bit of a disjointed affair. But within the album’s 13 tracks was something that critics and fans alike felt was worthy...

More People Who Make Audio Happen: T.H.E. Show ...

Issue 221The People Who Make Audio Happen

This year's West Coast T.H.E. Show SoCal 2025 took place in June in Costa Mesa, California. Issue 220 (last issue) has B. Jan Montana's show report, and we continue our...

Inner Sleeves (And What You Can Learn From Them)

Issue 221Audio Anthropology

In the days before digital music, the primary medium for sound reproduction was the vinyl record. Sure, there were some who went with reel-to-reel tapes, but they were in the...

Peter Asher's Life, in Concert

Issue 221Wayne's Words

  Songs and Stories, at My Father's Place in Roslyn, NY, June 29, 2025 It's not often that you see a show by an 81-year-old musician, who could have been...

Maria Stader: Opera's Other Maria

Issue 221Featured

Copper has an exchange program with selected magazines, where we share articles, including this one, between publications. This one's from Switzerland's AAA Magazine.   Together with the tenor Ernst Haefliger,...

Quantum Technology and the Future of Music and ...

Issue 221Featured

2001: A Space Odyssey is a film which greatly influenced my future. The movie's HAL 9000 computer may or may not have been thinly veiled as a fictional IBM creation...

From The Audiophile's Guide: More About Optimiz...

Issue 221Paul's Place

This article is part of a series of excerpts from The Audiophile's Guide, a 10-volume set that offers guidance and knowledge about all aspects of audio reproduction and system setup. Previous...

The Vinyl Beat In a 12-inch Singles World

Issue 221The Vinyl Beat

Many collectors take 12-inch singles for granted. The format had various promotional/test pressing uses over a couple of decades prior to the mid 1970s. One of the first available for...

The People Who Make Audio Happen: The Roni Lee ...

Issue 221The People Who Make Audio Happen

As noted in the last issue, NAMM is the world's biggest music industry trade show, filled with instruments, artists, concerts, parties, and people. It’s a big event, ranging from the...

PS Audio in the News

Issue 221PS Audio in the News

The Absolute Sound included the Stellar DAC in its listings of best DACs under $5,000, with a YouTube video review. TAS noted, “In the ever evolving landscape of digital audio...

Back to My Reel-to-Reel Roots, Part 20

Issue 221Copper Classics / Natural Born Kessler

At the risk of courting lawsuits from retired octogenarians, I find myself unable to resist attacking the easiest of targets: record labels. To be more precise, the major labels circa...

A Bedtime Story

Issue 221Audio Static

  This cartoon was previously published.

Radiotrician to the Rescue!

Issue 221Audio Anthropology

  We haven't seen many Marantz receivers with this interesting black and silver color combination. This one's an MR215, made from 1978 to 1980. It delivered a modest 18 watts...

Harmonious Path

Issue 221Parting Shot

  Baby it’s cold up here, especially in the summertime when no-one gears up for this type of weather. This photo was taken at Sonora Pass, California. "Sonora" comes from...

How to Post Comments on Copper

Issue 221

We get queries on how to post comments at the end of Copper articles. Here's how to get set up to leave comments: To comment at the end of an article, you...