The Boradin Quartet and Wendy Carlos

In this episode of Recordings, E.T.C., Canby plays a record by the Bourdain Quartet produced without the aid of microphones.

"Each musical instrument of the quartet is fitted with a special vibration sensor... These unique sensors are designed to convert the sound of an instrument into a corresponding electrical signal and to feed that signal by cable directly to the recording console. Microphones are not employed."

To an ear accustomed to more traditional recordings of classical music, the results sound utterly bizarre. It sounds like a stringed instrument, but slightly off, as if synthesized electronically. Canby refers to it as "an absolute recording" where the raw sound is directly fed into the control booth, unadulterated by signal interference and room reverberation. According to the album's liner notes, this is how the instrument is meant to be heard. Canby goes on to say that the contemporary act of listening to a symphony is largely experienced in the comfort of one's living room. This experience is already a radical departure from the experience of a live orchestra, so perhaps this particular recording is a return to something more pure and true.

Going along with the theme of escaping traditional listening habits and sonic expectations, Canby plays a selection of Wendy Carlos' interpretation of 18th century composer Domenico Scarlatti, as played on the electronic Moog synthesizer. Here, the sound is purely electronic and was not generated by any acoustic sources.

WNYC archives id: 58816