Innholdsfortegnelse for January 2019 i Stereophile

It was January 1986. Stereophile’s then publisher, Larry Archibald, and I were driving in his diesel’Benz sedan from Las Vegas to Santa Fe. We had shaken hands at the just-concluded Consumer Electronics Show on my replacing J. Gordon Holt as the magazine’s editor, and now, during the 750-mile drive, we mapped out the strategy to take what was then an “underground,” digest-format, somewhat irregularly published magazine to the position of dominance in audio publishing it still enjoys. As Larry and I discussed on that 13-hour drive from Nevada to New Mexico, we began publishing every month with our October 1987 issue. We had planned to change to the large format you hold in your hands in January 1993. However, we missed that target, not hitting it until 25 years ago,…

ATTENTION ALL AUDIO SOCIETIES: We have a page on the Stereophile website dedicated solely to you: www.stereophile.com/audiophilesocieties. If you’d like to have your audio-society information posted on the site, e-mail Chris Vogel at info@XLinkAudio.com. Please note that it is inappropriate for a retailer to promote a new product line in “Calendar” unless this is associated with a seminar or similar event. CALIFORNIA Saturday, January 12, 2–5pm: The Los Angeles & Orange County Audio Society and the San Diego Music and Audio Guild will hold a special joint meeting at the Ultimate Ears production facility (3 Jenner Street, Suite 180, Irvine 92618). Sud Munshi, lab technician, will take you behind the scenes of how in-ear monitors are manufactured at Ultimate Ears. Each product is handcrafted, precision tuned, and custom tailored to…

The UK-based hi-fi critic Malcolm Steward has been a hero of mine since the late 1980s, when he first broke ranks with his perennially pro-Linn colleagues at Hi-Fi Review and declared that the Roksan Xerxes turntable was competitive with Linn’s LP12: a gutsy move, and one that people were still talking about in 1990, when I first visited London and its more savvy hi-fi shops. Steward’s subsequent recommendations of Naim’s Aro tonearm and various Mana Acoustics accessory platforms cemented him in my mind as perhaps the most courageous audio critic in England, and over the years his pieces for Hi-Fi Choice, Audiophile, HiFi-Critic, and other publications always showed the reviewer’s craft as its best. These days, Steward and his wife, graphics designer Philippa Steward, are drawing from deeper reserves of…

I measured one of the Cary CAD-805RS amplifiers (serial no. 180218) using my Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see the January 2008 “As We See It”1). Before doing so, I installed all the tubes, following the guide in the manual, and checked that the bias current for the 300B driver tube was the recommended 60mA, using the front-panel meter. I checked the bias current several times while performing the measurements, but it hadn’t changed. I took complete sets of measurements from the 4, 8, and 16 ohm output-transformer taps with the 845 output tube that AD preferred, and with the negative feedback set to 0, 5, and 10dB. I repeated some of the tests using the 211 output tube. The Cary’s impedance measured a usefully high 55k ohms at 20Hz and…

Description Two-channel integrated amplifier with Bluetooth and digital inputs. Inputs: 1 pair balanced, 2 pairs unbalanced, analog; coax and TosLink S/PDIF, USB, digital; Bluetooth, Audio Return Channel (ARC). Outputs: 2 pairs five-way binding posts, XLR/RCA preamplifier out; 1 ⁄4 " headphone (12–600 ohms impedance recommended). USB audio input: USB Audio Class 2.0 supporting up to 32-bit/384kHz PCM and DSD256. Bluetooth: 4.1 (Smart/BLE enabled) A2DP/AVRCP supporting formats up to aptX HD. Continuous power output (RMS): 100Wpc into 8 ohms (20dBW), 200Wpc into 4 ohms (20dBW). Frequency response: <3Hz–>80kHz, ±1dB. THD (unweighted, at rated power into 8 ohms): <0.002% at 1kHz; <0.02%, 20Hz–20kHz. Signal/noise: >103dB. Channel separation: >100dB at 1kHz. Input sensitivity: inputs A1-A2 (unbalanced), 380mV RMS. Input impedances: input A3 (balanced), 47k ohms; inputs A1-A2 (unbalanced), 47k ohms. Power consumption: 1000W…

Analog Sources Kuzma Stabi S turntable & Stogi tonearm; Thorens TD 124 Mk.I turntable, Jelco 350S tonearm; Denon DL-103, Hana EL, Ortofon Quintet Bronze cartridges. Digital Sources Apple MacBook computer running Audirvana Plus; LG BD550 BD player (as transport); ATC CDA2 Mk.II CD player; Halide DAC HD, PS Audio NuWave DACs; Western Digital T2 Mirror Drives (2). Preamplification Auditorium 23 A23 MC step-up transformer, Shindo Laboratory Allegro preamplifier. Power Amplifier Shindo Laboratory Haut-Brion. Integrated Amplifier Heed Audio Elixir. Loudspeakers DeVore Fidelity Orangutan O/93, Elac Debut B6, Klipsch Heresy III, Quad S-2. Headphones Master & Dynamic MH40. Cables Interconnect: AudioQuest Chicago & Water & Yukon, Morrow Audio MA-1, Shindo Laboratory, Triode Wire Labs American & single-ended (RCA). Speaker: AudioQuest Castle Rock, Auditorium 23, Tellurium Q Black, Triode Wire Labs American. AC:…

I measured the Chord Electronics Qutest using my Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see the January 2008 “As We See It”1), using both the Audio Precision’s optical and electrical digital outputs and USB data sourced from my MacBook Pro running on battery power with Pure Music 3.0 playing WAV and AIFF test-tone files. Apple’s USB Prober utility identified the Chord as “Qutest” from “Chord Electronics Ltd,” with the serial number “413-001.” The Qutest’s USB port operated in the optimal isochronous asynchronous mode. Apple’s Audio-MIDI utility revealed that, via USB, the Qutest accepted 32-bit integer data sampled at all rates from 32 to 768kHz. The optical input locked to datastreams with sample rates up to 96kHz (192kHz is listed in the specifications), the coaxial S/PDIF inputs to streams of up to 192kHz-sampled…

Description Tubed/solid-state DAC/headphone amplifier. Tube complement: two GE5670. Inputs: USB, AES3 (XLR, single link), S/PDIF (coaxial/optical combo), BNC multifunction (S/PDIF in or sync input). Outputs (line-level): balanced (XLR), single-ended (RCA). Outputs (headphone): single-ended (3.5mm, 6.3mm), balanced (2.5mm). Output into 600 ohms, balanced/single-ended: >11.2V/>5.6V. Dimensions 8.7" (220mm) W by 2.5" (63mm) H by 8.4" (213mm) D. Weight: 4.4 lb (2kg). Finish Silver. Serial number of unit reviewed 3002000475 (listening), 3002000468 (measuring). Price $2499. Approximate number of dealers: not disclosed. Warranty: 1 year, parts & labor. Manufacturer iFi Audio, 139-141 Cambridge Road, Churchtown, Southport, Merseyside PR9 7LN, England, UK. US: iFi Audio (USA), 105 Professional Parkway, Suite 1519, Yorktown, VA 23693. Web: www.ifi-audio.com.…

GRATEFUL DEAD Pacific Northwest ’73–’74: The Complete Recordings Dead.net/Rhino R2566110 (19 CDs). 2018. Grateful Dead, Jeffrey Norman, prods.; Rex Jackson, Kid Candelaria, Jeffrey Norman, engs. ADD. TT: 20:21:54 This set documents the Dead in 1973–74, when they were undergoing the most dramatic transition of their career. Pigpen, the band’s original frontman, died just months before the ’73 shows, which included new songs from the just-recorded Wake of the Flood, the first album on the band’s own label. New members Keith and Donna Jean Godchaux gave the group a decidedly different sound in “Eyes of the World,” “Row Jimmy,” “Here Comes Sunshine,” “Stella Blue,” and “Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodleoo.” The transition continued in the 1974 shows, reflecting the outpouring of new songs that would appear on The Mars Hotel: “Scarlet Begonias,”…

What’s going on? Editor: First music editor Robert Baird is let go. Now, in John Atkinson’s review of the Constellation amplifier (October 2018, p.159), he says he uses a Justin Bieber song for reference. Pick me up off the floor. Please!! Even if he’s using it for the sound only, he still has to sit through that crap. Maybe I shouldn’t have just renewed my subscription. —Ron Monitto (disgusted 30-year subscriber) ronmon57@verizon.net I blame Art Dudley Editor: I blame Art Dudley for my recent rediscovered appreciation of analog vinyl recordings. He kept beating that horse so long that I succumbed and bought a Rega turntable to listen to some of my old LPs again (after cleaning them). I was sort of amazed at what I was hearing. There is an…

There’s no place for fashion in epidemiology, aeronautical engineering, or the mining and storage of uranium. Fortunately, domestic audio is less serious, its goals more scattered and ambiguous, than those and a thousand other pursuits. And so, throughout the 20th century, any number of trends in domestic audio popped up their heads, some remembered as fads, others as legitimate approaches to playback. Among the latter are amplifiers whose output sections operate in single-ended mode, in which the entire signal waveform is amplified by a single1 device—usually a tube, most often a triode—rather than being split into positive and negative halves and sent to complementary pairs of output devices. Single-ended output stages, which by definition operate in class-A, were common in the early days of consumer electronics—most tubed table radios, for…

Analog Sources Garrard 301 turntable; Audio-Creative GrooveMaster II, EMT 997 tonearms; EMT TSD 15, Ortofon SPU A Wood, Shindo Laboratory SPU pickup heads; Koetsu Onyx Platinum cartridge. Digital Source Mytek Liberty D/A processor, Sony SCD-777 SACD/CD player. Preamplification Auditorium 23 Hommage T1 & T2 stepup transformers, Shindo Laboratory Monbrison (2017) preamplifier. Power Amplifier Shindo Laboratory Haut-Brion. Loudspeakers DeVore Fidelity Orangutan O/93. Cables Interconnect: Audio Note AN-Vx, Luna Red, Shindo Laboratory. Speaker: Auditorium 23, Luna Red. AC: manufacturers’ stock. Accessories Box Furniture Company D3S rack (source & amplification components), Audiodesksysteme Gläss Vinyl Cleaner Pro.…

A few seconds after I first powered up Ken Micallef’s review sample of the Edge A (serial no. HT C10972 6856 0020) it turned itself off, its front-panel light glowing red to indicate a fault. I suspect that, despite the protection afforded by the impressive packaging, the box had been dropped somewhere on its way to me. As Cambridge’s Dominic Baker was visiting the company’s US office, in Chicago, he stopped by my Brooklyn test lab on his way back to the UK with a second sample for me to measure (serial no. HT C10925 6853 0026). This second sample of the Edge A passed its self-test routine, and I measured it using my Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see the January 2008 “As We See It”1). Before performing any testing,…

Digital Sources Roon Nucleus+ media server, iPad mini running Roon 1.5; Ayre Acoustics C-5xeMP disc player; iFi Audio Pro iDSD, Mytek Brooklyn, PS Audio PerfectWave DirectStream D/A processors; Z-Systems RDP-1 digital preamplifier (used as digital format converter). Integrated Amplifiers Ayre Acoustics EX-8, Cambridge Audio Edge A. Power Amplifiers Lamm M1.2 Reference monoblocks with external passive volume control. Loudspeakers KEF LS50, Rogers LS3/5a, Wharfedale Diamond 11.2. Cables Digital: AudioQuest Coffee (USB) & Vodka (Ethernet), generic 15' TosLink, Esperanto Audio (S/PDIF). Interconnect: Canare (unbalanced). Speaker: AudioQuest K2. AC: AudioQuest Dragon Source & High Current, manufacturers’ own. Accessories Target TT-5 equipment racks; Ayre Acoustics Myrtle Blocks; ASC Tube Traps, RPG Abffusor panels; Shunyata Research Dark Field cable elevators; AudioQuest Niagara 1000 & 5000 Low-Z Power/Noise-Dissipation Systems. AC power comes from two dedicated 20A…

I measured iFi Audio’s Pro iDSD (serial no. 3002000468, a different sample from the one auditioned by HR) with my Audio Precision SYS2722 system (see the January 2008 “As We See It,” http://tinyurl.com/4ffpve4). I used both the Audio Precision’s S/PDIF outputs and USB data sourced from my MacBook Pro running on battery power and playing WAV and AIFF test-tone files. Apple’s USB Prober utility identified the iDSD as “iFi (by AMR) HD USB Audio” from “iFi (by AMR),” and confirmed that its USB port operated in the optimal isochronous asyn chronous mode. Apple’s AudioMIDI utility revealed that, via USB, the iFi Pro iDSD accepted 16- and 24-bit integer data sampled at all rates up to 768kHz; its TosLink inputs accepted PCM datastreams with sample rates up to 96kHz, and its…

QKORE1, QKORE3, QKORE6 GROUND UNITS: Passive grounding devices, connected to power conditioners and audio components with QKore Wires. Dimensions (all three) 10.6” (270mm) W by 3.2” (80mm) H by 7.9” (200mm) D, or 8.9” (225mm) D with binding posts. Weights: QKore1, 13.25 lb (6kg); QKore3, 13.55 lb (6.1kg); QKore6, 17.2 lb (7.8kg). Serial numbers of units reviewed QKore1, 4157251; QKore3, 4158509; QKore6, 4158572. Prices QKore1, $2499.99; QKore3, $3499.99; QKore6, $4999.99. QKORE WIRE CONDUCTORS: 1x16 AWG, solid-core, 99.9999%-pure oxygen-free copper (OFC), silver-plated. Insulation: fluorinated ethylene propylene (FEP). Terminations available: banana, spade, RCA, male or female XLR, BNC, RJ45, USB-A, USB-B. Price $359.99/2m; add $150 per additional meter. USB, RJ45 terminations, $399.99. All Approximate number of dealers: 95. Manufacturer Nordost, 93 Bartzak Drive, Holliston, MA 01746. Tel: (800) 836-2750‬. Fax: (508) 893-0115.…

Dear Audiophile Music Lover, These are interesting times. Getting our money’s worth is on everyone’s mind. And yet, out of thousands of audiophiles with whom I’ve visited and corresponded, none of them were getting their money’s worth from their music systems! This includes every veteran audiophile I have visited in more than 30 years. Each system could have been greatly improved upon with the simple application of my straight-forward techniques. That’s actually why I wrote Get Better Sound and produced the 3-disc DVD set. The biggest improvement doesn’t come from a new component… We’ve been conditioned to think that somehow, if we just get that new amp that got the great reviews, all will be well. That might be true, IF our systems were fully optimized to take advantage of…

On the 2017 Winter Solstice, the astounding Joyce DiDonato—the coloratura mezzosoprano from Kansas who zips through impossible runs of Rossinian roulades faster than anyone can shuck corn—took a break from opera to present a song recital in London’s famed Wigmore Hall. With Jake Heggie and Gene Scheer’s moving song cycle Into the Fire as its centerpiece, this live recording of DiDonato with the Brentano String Quartet confirms that she is a song interpreter of rare distinction. Having attended the February 2012 world premiere of Into the Fire, composed for DiDonato and the Alexander String Quartet, I can attest that her interpretation of the 33-minute cycle has considerably deepened. Without ever crossing the dotted line between tragedy and melodrama, DiDonato revisits the heartbreaking story of Camille Claudel (1864–1943), the gifted sculptor…

DANIELSSON–FRESU Summerwind Paolo Fresu, trumpet, flugelhorn, electronics; Lars Danielsson, cello, bass The ACT Company ACT9871-2 (CD). 2018. Siggi Loch, prod.; Lars Nilsson, eng. DDD? TT: 49:22 Paolo Fresu is not famous in the US but is ubiquitous on the European jazz scene. He records prolifically, leads some 20 different bands, is a soughtafter sideman, curates ensembles in which he does not play, operates his own record label (Tuk), and runs a jazz festival in his native Sardinia. Although not a major innovator, Fresu was early in his use of electronics in acoustic jazz. The trumpet playing of this direct musical descendant of Miles Davis is some of the prettiest, most soulful that can be heard today. An ideal place to discover Fresu is Summerwind. He is all alone with Lars…

Dmitri Shostakovich (1906–1975) was hardly the first composer to run headfirst into opposition from political authorities. In his case, however, the pushback was so extreme that it affected everything he wrote thereafter. In early 1936, after the style and subject matter of his opera Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk clashed with the socalled proletarian aesthetic of Russian dictator Joseph Stalin (1878–1953), Shostakovich was denounced by the official state newspaper, Pravda. From then on, his symphonies reflected either his defiance of decades of Socialist realism, or attempts to appease the authorities while still speaking his truth. There’s no better way to understand Shostakovich’s despair and anger than to listen to his Symphony 4 in two vastly different recordings: one by Mikhail Pletnev and the Russian National Orchestra, which also includes Symphony 10…

We’ve (un)comfortably crossed the $10,000 threshold for phono cartridges. Cartridges with five-figure prices are available from Air-Tight, Grado Labs, Kuzma, Lyra, Ortofon, TechDAS, and van den Hul. Now joining them is Ikeda Sound Labs, with the new 24Kgold–plated 9Gss, to be produced in a limited edition of 200 units ($10,500). I reviewed Ikeda’s previous top model, the Kai ($8500), in my June 2015 column. The Kai produced a very low output of 0.19mV and, not surprisingly, had a very low internal impedance of 2.5 ohms, indicating very few coil-wire turns. Glued to its boron cantilever was a solid diamond MicroRidge line-contact stylus, probably sourced from Namiki. The Kai’s cantilever-stylus assembly was similar if not identical to what Lyra and others use in less costly cartridges. The Kai’s body was of…

JUNG-A LEE A PRIVATE ORGAN RECITAL IN WALT DISNEY CONCERT HALL Jung-A Lee, pipe organ Works by J.S. Bach, Bovet, Buck, Buxtehude, Couperin, Gilbert, Lee, Messiaen, Sweelinck, Vierne, Wammes, Weaver Yarlung YAR77215DSD (5.0-channel DSD256 download from www.NativeDSD.com) This recital offers privileges: It’s gratifying that music recording and playback technology (five channels of DSD256!) has reached a point where, even if only rarely, one can be fleetingly fooled into believing that one has been transported to an actual musical performance—in this case, it’s easy to imagine that I sit in Walt Disney Concert Hall as Jung-A Lee performs for me alone. And has introduced me to several delightful pieces of music, some by unfamiliar names. I began listening by clicking on such familiar names as Bach and Messiaen, but it quickly…

Description Single-ended, tubed monophonic power amplifier. Tube complement (each amp): two 6SN7, one 300B or one 845, one 211. Inputs: 2 single-ended (1 RCA, 1 XLR). Output power with 845 power tube: 27W (class-A, 14.3dBW), 50W (class-A2, 17dBW). Output power with 211 power tube: 27W (class-A, 14.3dBW), 70W (class-A2, 18.45dBW). Input impedance: 150k ohms. Output impedance: separate connectors for 4, 8, 16 ohms. Signal/noise: >80dB below rated output. Frequency response: 20Hz–20kHz, ±0.5dB, at full power output. Dimensions 12.25" (310mm) W by 10" (255mm) H by 24" (610mm) D. Weight: 85 lb (38.6kg). Finish Anthracite Black, black or silver front panel. Serial numbers of units reviewed 180218, 180219. Price $15,995/pair. Approximate number of dealers: 25. Warranty: 3 years (tubes, 90 days). Manufacturer Cary Audio, 6301 Chapel Hill Road, Raleigh, NC 27607.…

“What are you doing for your 40th?”, everyone asked. We thought about it and decided that since we aren’t wild about lavish cakes (although we do love a tasty fastelavnsbolle), we’d celebrate a little differently. Even the thought of making new speakers makes us warm and fuzzy, so that’s what we chose to do. Meet the Special Forty: hygge for your ears. Laurels aren’t for resting on, which is why we gave Dynaudio Labs free rein to play. (It gave our accountants a heart attack). Our only instruction: take our classic tech and see what you’d do differently this time. Their design was nothing short of genius. They took our classic Esotar 28mm soft-dome tweeter design, put our DSR* precision coating on it and then machined an aerodynamic vent into…

Description D/A processor with 10-element Pulse Array Design DAC and separate 5V power supply. Digital filter length: 49,152 taps operating at 16Fs. Digital inputs: USB Type B, 2 coaxial S/PDIF (BNC jacks), 1 TosLink S/PDIF. Analog outputs: 1 pair unbalanced (RCA). Maximum output: 3V, 2V, 1V, switchable. Frequency response: 20Hz–20kHz, ±0.2dB. Channel separation: 138dB at 1kHz. Dynamic range: 124dB (A-weighted). THD: 0.0001%, 1kHz at 2.5V into 300 ohms. Noise modulation: “none measurable.” Dimensions 6.3" (160mm) W by 1.6" (41mm) H by 2.85" (72mm) D. Weight: 1.7 lb (0.77kg). Finish Black. Serial number of unit reviewed 37220. Price $1895. Approximate number of dealers: 100. Warranty: 3 years. Manufacturer Chord Electronics Ltd., The Pumphouse, Farleigh Bridge, Farleigh Lane, East Farleigh, Kent ME16 9NB, England, UK. Tel: (44) (0)1622-721444. Fax: (44) (0)1622-721555. Web:…

Analog Sources Dr. Feickert Analogue Blackbird turntable with Jelco KT-850L tonearm, AMG Giro G9 turntable & 9W Turbo tonearm, Linn Sondek LP12 Hercules turntable with SME M2-9 tonearm; AMG Teatro, EMT TSD 75, Etsuro Urushi Cobalt Blue, Hana SL, Koetsu Rosewood Standard & Signature Platinum, My Sonic Lab Ultra Eminent Ex cartridges. Digital Sources Mac mini computer running Audirvana+ 3.2; HoloAudio Spring “Kitsuné Tuned Edition” Level 3, Mytek Brooklyn, Schiit Audio Yggdrasil with Analog 2 & Gen 5 USB upgrades, Aqua Acoustic Quality Formula xHD DACs; JVC X-Z1010 CD player used as transport. Preamplifiers PrimaLuna DiaLogue, Rogue Audio RH-7. Power Amplifiers Bel Canto Design REF600M monoblocks, First Watt SIT3, Pass Laboratories XA25, PrimaLuna ProLogue Premium, Rogue Audio Stereo 100. Headphone Amplifiers Audeze Deckard, Pass Laboratories HPA-1, Schiit Audio Asgard. Loudspeakers…

Digital Sources dCS Rossini DAC & Scarlatti clock; Apple MacBook Pro computer with Intel i7, SSD, 8GB RAM; Intel NUC7i7BNH with 8GB RAM, 128GB SSD running Roon; Linksys routers with two sets TP-Link Gigabit Ethernet media converters, multimode duplex fiber-optic cables, Small Green Computer linear power supply; external hard drives, USB sticks, iPad Pro. Integrated Amplifier CH Precision I1 Loudspeakers Wilson Audio Specialties Alexia 2. Cables Digital: AudioQuest Diamond (Ethernet), Nordost Odin 1 & Odin 2 & Valhalla 2 (USB), Wireworld Platinum Starlight Cat8 (Ethernet). Interconnect, Speaker, AC: Nordost Odin 2. Accessories Grand Prix Monaco rack & amp stands, 1.5” Formula platform; Nordost QB8, QX4 (2), QK1, QV2 AC power accessories, Sort Kones, Sort Lifts; Audience aR2p-TOSOX, Tweek Geek Dark Matter Stealth (with High Fidelity & Furutech options) power conditioners;…

This relatively affordable, high-sensitivity, two-way floorstanding loudspeaker4 has been a firm favorite with Stereophile’s writers since Sam Tellig reviewed it in January 2014. Herb Reichert wrote Follow-Ups in December 2015 and July 2016, as did Art Dudley in May 2018.5 Ken Micallef also uses a pair of O/93s, and the DeVore was a finalist in our 2016 and 2018 Loudspeaker of the Year categories. (DeVore Fidelity’s larger Orangutan O/96, which costs $12,000/pair, was one of our Joint Loudspeakers of 2017.) I don’t usually measure the products written about in our regular columns, but it had been on my mind for some time that I should measure the Orangutan O/93 when, last September, I received an e-mail from Herb Reichert: “I am listening to the DeVore O/93s, and every time I…

BERLIOZ Requiem Kenneth Tarver, tenor; Seattle Symphony Orchestra & Chorale, Seattle Pro Musica; Ludovic Morlot Seattle Symphony Media SSM1019 (CD). 2018. Dmitriy Lipay, prod., eng.; Alexander Lipay, eng. DDD. TT: 75:59 This work, strange even by Berlioz’s standards, was commissioned in 1837 for a major ceremony at the huge Church of the Invalids, in Paris, and Berlioz intended to fill it: 400 players and singers took part. When I was in college, audiophiles used it as a stereo demonstration record—could your speakers handle the brass and timpani upheavals that sounded as if the world was ending? Nowadays, with somewhat more sophisticated ears, I listen to it and am more fascinated and entranced by Berlioz’s strange combinations of instruments, jarring changes in dynamics and rhythm, and incredible use of quiet. This…