Audio News for July 27, 2012

Musical Worlds of Victor Herbert at Library of Congress – The Music Division of the Library of Congress will open The Musical Worlds of Victor Herbert from Aug. 16 thru Jan. 26 in Washington D.C., and aftwards it will travel to the Walt Disney Concert Hall in LA from Feb. 24 thru Aug. 17, 2013. Victor Herbert almost single-handedly moved Broadway into, thru and out of its operetta phase. He was the founder of ASCAP, music director of the Pittsburgh Symphony, and recorded extensively for Edison and Victor. His music is enjoyed renaissance in recent years, marked by new productions of his musicals and a new biography. The rich resources of the Library of Congress can be accessed thru their website: www.loc.gov
Nazi Tattoo Forces Russian Baritone from Bayreuth – Baritone Evgeny Nikitin, who started out as a heavy metal performer, has withdrawn from the lead role in Wagner’s The Flying Dutchman at the Bayreuth opera festival, amid an uproar over the Nazi-related (including swistikas) tattooed on his body. Nitkitin, from a Russian city north of the Arctic Circle, was discovered by Valery Gergiev. Christian Thielemann, conductor of The Flying Dutchman, said “A swastika is a no-go, not only in Bayreuth…”  Yet Nikitin will be appearing at the Bavarian State Opera in November in Wagner’s Lohengrin.
Pioneer’s Next Generation of Basic HT Speakers – The new line is similarly-priced but chief speaker engineer Andrew Jones has redesigned the speakers for higher accuracy and smoother response to better handle all from the most subtle music passages to the demands of multichannel movie soundtracks. New woofers include a vented pole piece, increased sensitivity, and a new structured surface cone. The tweeters were completely modified using oversized magnets and new domes for enhanced efficiency and response. A custom-designed wave guide is used to produce a more consistent sound thruout the listening space. The new line has the same TV-molded cabinet construction as previous models, which reduces vibration and ringing. The grills are detachable, and the center channel SP-C22 speaker has been reduced in size to allow it to fit more situations while maintaining performance. The floor-standing towers were made three inches taller to obtain better high frequency dispersion at a seated ear-level. The speakers are now available at prices ranging from $99 to $159. Pioneer’s SMA wireless music system speakers provide the broadest connectivity options of any available, including Apple’s AirPlay, DLNA 1.5, and Wireless Direct. They will be available next month at pricing from $299 to $399.