I’d like to start a discussion about which parts of a system a particular music genre taxes the most, not just these genres but others as well, but first an aside…

I think these 3 genres really have a lot in common. This seems kind of strange mostly because, I think, the people who like these various genres only like one and usually dislike (or hate with a passion, the others).

The commonalities:

* The foremost one is that they are all about voice, and not just voice but the story the voice is telling us about. Yeah, Opera has it’s orchestra and Folk its harmonic and guitar and Rap its bass rhythm, but seriously, it is all so forgettable [I would say Rap is less so, but that may be my prejudice].

* Not a lot of people like these genres, being kind of inaccessible in various ways, both in terms of content and with the difficulties in understanding a singing voice.

I think that Opera, however, because it was commissioned by the powers-that-be (or were), is delightfully risque sometimes but not, I would guess, controversial in its day.

However, because Folk and Rap are created by the disenfranchised among us, and can be characterized as ‘protests’ or just plain ‘angry’, they cause(d) some discomfort.

Neli does not like Rap. She thinks the songs, the musicians, are angry AT her. Me? I think they are speaking FOR me. Since about, what? 25%? of Rap is about male-female relations and the way society has gummed up the works [:-)] she is probably right.

But the other 75% is much more interesting, for me anyway, especially the ones about The Struggle of life. And this struggle is something that is also present in Folk and Opera…. [and the Blues. Maybe Blues is a firth primarily vocal genre as well…?].

Anyway, although I consider myself interested primarily in instrumentals, I have been listening to a lot of vocal music in the last year or so. Seems like we all probably ebb and flow through various genres as the years go by… 🙂

I was listening to our Audio Note Kegon amplifiers, which use a 300B tube.

Now, in general, I prefer the sound of the 211 tubes, found in the Ongaku and Gaku On, and now the Jinro, amplifiers.

But there was something about the 300B sound that really appeals to me.

It *seems* like it reminds me of the sound and feelings I get when I think of the 60s. Nostalgia is an interesting emotion – and hard to describe and hard to know how other people relate to their own nostalgic feelings. And a lot of it is probably just ‘lost youth’.

But this particular 300B sound – and all 300B amps will be sound different, and very few will have the kick-ass control these amps have over the speakers [making for tighter, more accurate dynamics] – but this sound reminds me of old James Bond movies [which seemed luxurious and futuristic back-in-the day], and people who smiled on the street [in Boulder, people walk around in this preoccupied, politely apathetic state-of-mind], bright colors [what happened to all the colors, anyway?], and endless possibilities [they are still endless, but I am too tired to consider all of them realistic anymore].

Of course, this nostalgia giving rise to enjoyment of the 300B is not limited to ‘sound’, but to music genres as well [classic rock anyone?]. Even Jazz leaves me nostalgic – for the time 10-15 years ago when we were just starting out on this audiophile journey.

And, check this out… if you want to like Rap, or Opera [and don’t already]. Just play it for awhile, the wait a few years, and then play it again. The nostalgia you will feel THEN for the music you play TODAY will make the music much more enjoyable. Weird but true, huh? 🙂

… to all sorts of pleasant and annoying noises in our environment?

Is traffic noise getting louder and louder and getting more and more resolution? Kind of a pisser this is.

Are you able to identify the many missing frequencies in the music they play at the gym or at Whole Foods [just fill in the places where YOU experience ambient music]. Kind of shocking that music can still be identified and sometimes even enjoyable in all its sparseness.

Do you find yourself hearing the various resonances in peoples voices and comparing their subtle differences to the singers you listen to most often? Cool huh?

… etc.

We are not X-Men (or Alphas) but we do enjoy a degree of extra sensory hearing power. Lovin’ it.