Music it is said is part and parcel of every audiophile's raison d'être. It is the reason for large speakers and annoying electronics that occupy living space and endanger peace, happiness and in some cases marital bliss. And yet it would appear that less of us are parking our ears in front of the audio set-ups we cherish so much as often as we once did. It seems like a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, but in fact was only ten or so years ago I recall visiting people who spent their downtime at home planted at the very centre of a very sweet spot. Alas the world of high fidelia has changed in a very acute way, changed by fashion and technology, and from anecdotal observation so have the habits of the species known as fanaticus highendosaurus. Gone are the days when evenings were spent massaging one's ears with the melodious tune of notes be they raucous or gentle. Those notes have for the most part been replaced by very squeaky and unnaturally loud speech or worse emanating from the meagre speakers of a flat screen.
So when do music lovers listen to music? Have we all succumbed to consumption of music via headphone, or through the car's speakers while commuting hither and thither? Or are we hearing once glorified and much admired music via small streaming devices, piped to us when cleaning dishes or trying to poison our nearest and dearest by taking a stab at cooking? I suspect that a secret desire to unleash secret DJing talents and the ability to hear a selection of music as opposed to a single disc of one type or another at a time may have a lot to do with the migration away from the aforementioned sweet spot as well.
So come and confess your sins and profess to your playlist addictions, prey walk into the confessional digital booth and share your thoughts and habits, we will not judge you. I for one will feel smug when you describe the playlists of compressed music played in the background by a Sonos. I will keep listening to CDs and bitch and moan over how difficult it is to do it the old fashioned way!
Reuben Klein