How Recording Works

Alex wanted to know some of the technical ins and outs behind how a recording is made, in particular how LPs work. I explained as best I could, but later tried to find some good internet resources that would go into the subject a bit deeper. Much to my surprise, I couldn't find one basic comprehensive resource. If you are interested here's a basic primer on analog recording, and one on digital recording, as well as an article detailing some of the advantages of analog recording.

Birthday present

Today is my birthday. Received a good present: a link to music critic Hank Shteamer's great music blog which now will be added to my favorites.

Let's Go Mets!

Sorry, I thought it was April 2007 already.

This is not a joke

This post recounts a major culinary event last week in New York where 10 great chefs of Spain gave a joint seminar on their groundbreaking cooking techniques in front of 1,000 attendees. Some of the food these guys served up was truly wacked out. My favorite is Dirt essence foam over an oyster “Treasure Island” from Catalonian chef Joan Roca. For this dish Roca utilizes something called a Vacuum Distiller machine used to extracts dirt essence from Catalonian soil, presumably to give food a distinct earthy flavor (no pun intended).

The Seventh Seal

This post only makes sense if I start by confessing that I'm the only person in the world never to have seen The Godfather. Well, that's not exactly true: I probably have seen the whole thing, but only if you string together 20 years of watching disconnected sections of it on TV. I am starting here because it is such a clear and obvious example of my cultural illiteracy. I could have started by admitting I've never read Crime and Punishment or Paradise Lost, nor listened to the B Minor Mass or Die Walkure, nor walked the streets of Venice or Athens, nor seen the Mona Lisa (which is pathetic because I've been to the Louvre). Anyway, as part of a series of ongoing mid-life crisis-related acts, I am making a list of all the classic books I've never read, movies or artworks I've never seen, cities I've never visited, and so on. Not because I actually intend on reading, seeing, or visiting them, but because making lists is fun. That said, I did finally watch Bergman's The Seventh Seal, and it was so enjoyable that I'm seriously considering taking my list and making a concerted effort to start knocking off items. And no, smartass, it wasn't just enjoyable because I was able to find the scenes that were parodied in Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey (a highly underrated film, but that's for another post). It was enjoyable because it was genuinely a powerful film, especially if like me you spend a lot of your time grappling with the meaning of existence.

Blog post of the day

Night After Night is one of my favorite music blogs. This post pretty much mirrors my own music philosophy.

What I do all day

A friend asked me what I did all day at my job. Here's what I came up with:

1. Project manage the project managers (50%)

2. Manage risks by thinking of all the things that could go wrong and finding ways to avoid them (49%).

3. Develop new products and marketing strategies, source deals, review contracts, meet with customers, and other real work. (1%)

OK, I'm exaggerating. But not by much.