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220090 tn?1379167187

A miraculous event

I am still unpacking boxes from our move.  One of the boxes contained old records and in it a set of 78 rpm records that came into my possession through something so unlikely that it seems miraculous to me.

My father was a musician - a violinist.  He died when I was five years old, but I still can remember him practicing his music for many hours.  My family lost contact with most of his friends and I had very little to associate with him.

Two years ago, I received a call from a  man living in Manhattan.  He started the conversation by saying I did not know him, but he was a student of my father's many years ago.

He said he was walking down the street he lives on in the upper west side of Manhattan and he saw two homeless men with a pile of old records on the sidewalk that they were trying to sell.  He told me that he never bothers to look at things like this, but at he walked by the pile of records, he reached for an album of 78 RPM records and picked it up;  it was a recording made by my father and my uncle in 1938!  He bought the album and looked me up.

I met him and he gave me the album and a tape of the records that he had made in a fancy recording studio that still had a turntable that could play 78 RPM records.  I had a CD made from the tape and when I played it it was a miracle to me.  The record was scratchy and sounded like it was 65 years old - as it was; but to hear my father playing after so many years was truly amazing experience.

As soon as I unpacked the CD, I played it again.
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220090 tn?1379167187
A sonnet for you!

Since brass, nor stone, nor earth, nor boundless sea,
But sad mortality o’ersways their power,
How with this rage shall beauty hold a plea,
Whose action is no stronger than a flower?
O, how shall summer’s honey breath hold out
Against the wrackful siege of batt’ring days.
When rocks impregnable are not so stout,
Nor gates of steel so strong but time decays?
O, fearful meditation, where alack,
Shall time’s best jewel from time’s chest lie hid?
Or what strong hand can hold his swift foot back,
Or who his spoil of beauty can forbid?
      O, none unless this miracle have might,
      That in black ink my love will still shine bright.  -Shakespeare
Helpful - 0
208764 tn?1249429657
Eric,

I don't know why I missed this one from you as I always read your posts when I see them. You are a very interesting person as I have watched you over the last year and a half. You seem 'rough and tough' especially when I saw the motorcycle picture in your young days; then you seem sentimental and sensitive as you are 'forced' to listen to what is inside you. Then I think about your early days of partying and the 'darkness' around the contraction of HCV you shared while out enjoying Bob Dylan when he was just starting. Then I think of the sailing and stories that you've shared and re-shared in your travels in the maritime world. And now you're settling in again and seems a new life for you and your wife. I do think that you have the material and I've outlined the big sections, for you to compile it all into something that could be a good transcript and even a bit a 'guide' for others to live a better life. You were looking for something to do to keep your mind busy and it seems there's a consensus that you have a gift that you might share to the world as we here today and gone tomorrow and that would live on to commerate a life that ended up lifting up humanity in some small way. I too encourage you to consider your gift and 'call' to capture it all while you're still young enough.

Good luck you to Eric!
-Scott
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338734 tn?1377160168
You married a geezer!
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338734 tn?1377160168
Capture frequency kind of takes me back to college days and z-transforms. Glad to have forgotton most of that.  

I grew up listening to LPs (Scheherazade was one of the first pieces I ever heard) on a less than high end system, but I think something seems lacking in some CD music. In line with your comment about strings, I notice it mostly on classical music and particularly those with the poingant violin solo. My CD of Scheherazade never seems to live up to my childhood memories. All you said makes perfect sense to me, now.

Brent
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315996 tn?1429054229
And honey I miss you and I'm feeling good,
I'd love to be with you if only I could.
---Bobby Sherman
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Avatar universal
Babe, I have more than ONE Bobby Sherman album...that's what you get for robbing the cradle when you married me!
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220090 tn?1379167187
I said "capture frequency," sample rate might be a more descriptive term.
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220090 tn?1379167187
I gew up listening to the sound of string instruments; my father was a violinist and my uncle, a cellist.   It is those instruments that I can hear the greatest difference between CDs and records.

The capture frequency of the CD algorithm is not high enough.  The result is that the extrapolation between the capture points introduces harmonic distortion that is audible.  There are much better algorithms and I believe the sound track in Blu Ray disks does use one of them, but I have no first hand knowledge of that.

The dynamic range of CDs is greater than records, particularly when lower end record players are used.  The needle can be forced out of the groove by the track of loud sounds.  The super high end systems use a vacuum to hold the record to the turntable and have tone arms and cartridges that will accurately track the loudest sound tracks and can approach the dynamic range of CDs.  The fact that records have lower harmonic distortion when played with a high end system makes them more pleasant to listen to.
Helpful - 0
338734 tn?1377160168
Most of my old LPs have gone by the wayside. My youngest daughter used many of them to decorate her bedroom walls. I think my wife still has a Bobby Sherman album. My worst album was probably Vanilla Fudge.

They do sound better, but I think the digital music captures a greater dynamic range (lacking on vinyl. The say that the spectrum that digital cuts out is not audible and doesn't degrade the sound, but many say, like Eric, that they hear the difference. I think maybe the sound is not as rich in digital.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Yes, I believe it was a clarinet quintet - but my mind is probably foggier than yours, so I'm not entirely sure.  In any event it was lovely.  I would recognize it if I heard it again.

Re CD's vs. LP's, when CD's were new I bought a friend a CD of the opera "Nixon in China" for his birthday, and another friend of his bought him an LP of same.  So we did a comparison test.  The LP won hands down.  Of course, this was in the late '80s.  Today my ears aren't what they were then, so I'm content with CD's.  One of these days I'm going to connect a phonograph to my computer and digitize all my old LP's.  It's a big job, and it has to be done in real time, unlike feeding CD's into i-tunes or whatever.

Happy election day!  
pigeon
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250084 tn?1303307435
Hi Eric!! :)

Lovely story and yes, you write very well, very deep and thoughtful words very often. Always making one stop and think, 'smell the rose's'.

The chances of that happening, that album getting to your hands....I'd consider it a direct gift from your father.

Hope you are well, healing up. Halloween Land is over here, back to reality and catching up on friends, tx's and many things.

LL
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220090 tn?1379167187
One interesting fact about vinyl is that it actually sound better than CDs.  When I lived in Manhattan, I would occasionally go into a high end audio store on the upper east side.  I would listen to a set that cost more that $100,000, and guess what?  It had a 33rpm record player and you could actually hear the difference between it and the CD.

I knew in theory that is should sound better, but hearing it demonstrated was interesting.
Helpful - 0
338734 tn?1377160168
Well, now I feel really old! I remember the 78's pretty well. My parents had some records and I remember listening to kids stuff on it also. I guess the new technology came late to the Mountain West. ;)

Those old 78's are relics now. It must be especially nice to have your father on them. Thanks for sharing the story.

ReallyOldWalrus
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412873 tn?1329174455
Well, it should make us feel good that "everything that is old is new again".  

My 19 year old daughter just informed me that she bought some "vinyl record albums" and wanted to use Grandpa's "stereo player".  

Just goes to show ya.....we reallly did have it goin' on in the day!!!
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220090 tn?1379167187
Thanks folks.  I appreciate the warm words.  

Pigeon,  Benny Goodman playing Brahms - was that a clarinet quintet?  My bran is to foggy to remember, but I think I had that record as well.  It was a 33 though.

Eric
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Avatar universal
You inspire in more than one way.
Thank you, your story was much enjoyed.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
What a wonderful serendipitous story.

Oh how I wish I still had my parents' 78's.  After the advent of 33's, they put the old disks in the basement, which subsequently flooded in a downpour, and the records were destroyed.  I remember best an album of Benny Goodman playing Brahms and another album of boogie woogie music by people like Jimmy Yancey and Pinetop Smith etc.

As a little kid I had a 78 rpm victrola on which I played children's music.  Had to replace the needle after every 2 or 3 songs.  The speaker was in the tone arm.  And the first grownup record I ever bought was a 78: "Earth Angel" by the Penguins.  The next year my dad bought us a hi-fi, and from then on we were modern.  Unfortunately, my folks gave away the gorgeous mid-century modern console radio-phonograph that would probably be worth a fortune today.  Oh well...
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220090 tn?1379167187
78s disappeared quickly after 33 RPM became the standard.  By the time I had my won record player, 78s were gone.  I am sure my grandparents had one, but I lived in NY and they lived in California.  My record player, a present from my grandparents, could play 45s if I put an insert into the large center hole.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
That's interesting.. because *I* am old enough to have listened to 78's.  :)  My grandmother had old Al Jolson '78's even and occasionally on a sunny Saturday she'd take them out and play them.  My first record player was a little 45 rpm.  I had Donny Osmond's "One Bad Apple" ... go figure. :)
Helpful - 0
220090 tn?1379167187
Brent, even I am not old enough to have listened to 78s - LOL.  My first record player was 33 RPM.

Trish, you are welcome.

Eric
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Avatar universal
That's an amazing story and beautiful that that man would buy that record and track you down like that.  I can only imagine the emotion when he presented you with that 78.  Lovely to know of people that have hearts like that.  It always makes me feel better about my world.  I'm glad you have such a treasure thanks to him and thank you for sharing that.

Trish
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338734 tn?1377160168
Eric - Just the mention of 78 RPM records brings back childhood memories for me of my parents records. I can't quite remember the music on them, but I remember the size, shape and player that played them. I think I remember the "Uncle Remus Zippety Doo-Dah" song on a scratchy 78.

It must be something to have a recording of your father from such an early time.

My first musical acquisitions were vinyl, not acetate, and 33 RPM. (not knocking your age or anything!)  ;-)  I still have a lot of 8-tracks around.

Brent
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548668 tn?1394187222
Andiamo:  My Mum wasn't the best either and packed my little brother off to boarding school... I lived with her for two years after and wish I'd taken advantage of burying myself in music instead of being drawn in to drinking too much burgandy and reminiscing with her).

Well said.... "I lose my ability to block thoughts from my subconscious"..(during tx) - I agree, I seem to be more honest and real (for better or worse) and hope to retain it when I'm done and dusted with the chemicals.  Looking forward to your next story!!

Scratchinghead:  OMG smoke out of your eyes!! (at my reunion I ran into a classmate who could drink milk and make it bubble out of his nose - he's now a customs agent;  I was remembered for being 'cute but really bossy'... I'm still bossy lol :-).   Can you show us how the Brazilians dance the Samba (You-Tube would be fine)..



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315996 tn?1429054229
I don't have a story as good as that. I did just get back from my 40th high school reunion. I had totally forgotten about the place and had no fond memories (boys boarding school). Yet, I ran into all sorts of memories other students had of me:
I guess I am a hero in one of my classmate's homes. He told his kids he new someone in school that could blow smoke through his eyes(I have really"airy" tear ducts). I had forgotten that.
Another classmate said he remembers me showing them how the Brazilians dance the Samba. Didn't think anyone even knew I existed. Now I have all these invites to play golf and come visit. Gotta start moseying over to the golf course across the street and hit some balls. Sorry if I piggybacked on your 15 minutes.

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