[haloxt]

firev1, you make some very good points. I also think there are many good aspects of audio reproduction regardless of its fidelity, and I know I don't go to the city without earphones to block out all the noise . I actually believe that with enough knowledge and technology, we can improve our sense of hearing, in any sense of the word improve, be it intelligibility, acuity, pleasantness, or "apparent/interpreted" fidelity. And I admit low-fidelity gear could absolutely have some of these characteristics over real life sound, but I have been referring primarily to the effects, good or bad, big or small, that our relatively short history of having artificial sound may have had on language.
 
Edoardo, that post was quite thought-provoking, and I can't say I disagree with anything you said. It has been said that you can judge the health of a civilization by its art, but that was said before the prevalence of television, and all these other new medias including radio, computers, and even books. Ani DiFranco said in her song "Superhero", "art may imitate life, but life imitates t.v.". I don't want to sound so pessimistic, but it should give one pause if China bans certain musicians "to prevent cultural contamination". Not to say I am fonder of the culture of China, where the families in their tv sitcoms always have one or less children and all the other nonsense they try to push.

 

[Edoardo]

Quote:

Edoardo, that post was quite thought-provoking, and I can't say I disagree with anything you said. It has been said that you can judge the health of a civilization by its art, but that was said before the prevalence of television, and all these other new medias including radio, computers, and even books. Ani DiFranco said in her song "Superhero", "art may imitate life, but life imitates t.v.". I don't want to sound so pessimistic, but it should give one pause if China bans certain musicians "to prevent cultural contamination". Not to say I am fonder of the culture of China, where the families in their tv sitcoms always have one or less children and all the other nonsense they try to push.

 
If China, Eastern Europe and Russia have been "producing" so many virtuosos, it's just for one reason... Discipline... We must recognize we've been raised without having ever been taught about what making an effort is in any field of human knowledge, with the "good marks for everyone" and with the "that's too much for a kid" rules.
 
Futhermore, Eastern Europe and Russia have a huge collective musical culture. 
Every Eastern European well-being family I know of has a piano in the living room and sends the children to learn how to play, sing and dance the great ones.
What in Russia is considered an amateur singer could make any Western talent-show winner *** in their panties.
 
It's very sad to say, but maybe the sixties have done more harm than good to our culture.