11-06-2014 Post does not mapped to Knowledge Tree Romy the Cat Boston, MA Posts 10,160 Joined on 05-28-2004 Post #: 1 Post ID: 21316 Reply to: 21316 About Harry Pearson legacy. fiogf49gjkf0d A site reader sent me email that Harry Pearson died last night. It is sad news and my condolences to his beloved, relatives, friends and the people who knew him personally.  The internet audio sites are full of tributes to Harry Pearson and this is probably a good thing but among all that universal "fashionable" worshiping of HP legacy many things get overlooked. For instance the TAS's "writer" Mike Framer published his teary piece:   http://www.analogplanet.com/content/audio-legend-harry-pearson-passes-away   …that sound like a nice combination of words if to recognize the nature of the facts. What was overlooked by Mr. Framer is that Harry Pearson walked away from TAS with very specific blame of the TAS rats, he felt that TAS got converted into a publication that he personally would never buy of read himself – a very serious charge from my point of view and something that the industry people today capitalizing on HP memories shall be very much consider. Do not get me wrong. I did not take the Harry Pearson departure from TAS very seriously; neither have I considered that Mr. Pearson was too much conscious of what he was doing. He had a direction to flow at this time, he went for it and it happed that it was not in TAS direction, who cares? Let presume that we care about quality of play more than we care about the wellbeing of the actors and let to elevate our horizons a little bit higher.   Today a lot of heard about Harry Pearson as the founder of the high-end audio industry, the owner of "Gold Standard” of audio journalism, invention of audio vocabulary and many other things that the  feeble minds in audio feel that it was "given to them" by HP. The irony is that they are very right – they bought in into superficial, lightweight and mostly misleading high-end audio concept and they have no own sensitivity or brain to undusted that the industry "best intention",  like cancer metastases have conquested and have converted the industry consummates into a pile of dead cells. I very much do not think that the high-end audio industry that we have it today was something that HP envisioned in 60s but for sure all his life he was VERY instrumental to shape the official audio into the format that we have today.   So, could a professional legacy of HP be evaluated by the retardness of his professional survives? Well, let look into it. The "great" industry that HP created (which is very much not true, he just was selling the concept that have existed long before he was born) never was able to identify a definition of "audio quality". As today there is no universal, meaningful, truly objective audio quality assessment test, who would believe that 50 year after HP's "invention" of the industry we still have this situation? One of the most unfortunate HP accomplishment in his professional life was that fact that he polarized a propagation of the audio idea around a group of selected representatives. It was not the people who were educated by HP machinery but rather people were converted into a silent flock who supposed to brainlessly pursue the imaginary windmills that the "representatives" (or the "high priests" of audio: magazine and sites editors, reviewers, dealer and the rest of audio dirt) appointed them to follow. And, Oh, Boy, an Harry Pearson LOVED to be the one who declared monthly marketing revolutions and kept promoting new and new pointless products and idea. For sure many today no nothing better than to imitate him and consider him as "godfather".  Sure it was entertaining and sure the audio maker love to ride that thread but, sorry, it had very little to do with growing understanding of True Audio in people but instead it was about building up Artificial Audio understanding around himself and solely for the sake of serving the own club interests.  The today level of official public audio thinking is a very direct harvest of what Mr. Pearson have seeded and cultivated for years and years. Sorry, I am not impressed but rather hugely disappointed.   With all my critical appraisal of Harry Pearson's audio endeavor his death it is for sure at personal level is a very tragic and very unfortunate news.   Rgs, Romy the Cat "I wish I could score everything for horns." - Richard Wagner. "Our writing equipment takes part in the forming of our thoughts." - Friedrich Nietzsche

11-06-2014 Post does not mapped to Knowledge Tree Paul S San Diego, California, USA Posts 2,658 Joined on 10-12-2006 Post #: 2 Post ID: 21317 Reply to: 21316 RIP (Please) fiogf49gjkf0d Unlike most audio writing, a good winnowing of HP's work at least results in something of substance, IMO. Unfortunately, use of his ideas has been fairly indiscriminate to date (including by HP himself...), and there is no reason to believe it will get any better from here on out. Sure, he tried to cash in; but, we can't hold that against him, can we? And, naturally, things quickly got out of hand, as ever. I'm guessing people are already starting to lay outright claim to pieces and parts of HP, either for self-promotion or to promote ideas they ascribe to him, as they've done with Harvey Rosenberg, and innumerable others. While this is not unique to audio, "we" are notable (if not singular) in our rudderless approach to our pastime, making us particularly susceptible to idol worship. As for HP's "actual legacy", why would there be any "progress" based on HP's percepts, when HP himself was "at his best" when "channeling", like the Oracle at Delphi, or Nostradamus? No, it will ever be up to "the reader" to make the most of rare opportunities afforded by others in audio. This means, I'm afraid, that we're still on our own, each of us, HPs contributions notwithstanding. May he rest in peace. Paul S

11-06-2014 Post does not mapped to Knowledge Tree rowuk Germany Posts 454 Joined on 07-05-2012 Post #: 3 Post ID: 21318 Reply to: 21317 Legacies needed? fiogf49gjkf0d Granted, there are those that were involved at some point in time with HP and most of us read his stuff for what ever reason but why do we need a legacy? What did he leave behind of note? HP has no legacy for me. He was a successful journalist for much of his career and was for sure able to combine hobby and job for his own pleasure. That's it. I read his magazines/articles for a while, but never bought anything based on the reviews because they never made sense to me. So, my condolences to his family, may he rest in peace and hopefully his estate is organized. I will not be watching E'bay for deals. Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again.

11-06-2014 Post does not mapped to Knowledge Tree Romy the Cat Boston, MA Posts 10,160 Joined on 05-28-2004 Post #: 4 Post ID: 21319 Reply to: 21318 A missing point fiogf49gjkf0d Rowuk, I think you are missing the point. No one judge him as journalist who combine hobby and pleasure or judge him on any other matter. The person has passed away. However, it is not the HP the Person who has a legacy but a functional entity that HP took for years in one way or another shaping and running the industry. The absence of any more or less civilized critiques in audio is a part of his legacy. The idiotic integration of manufactures and revisers is his legacy. Disability of majority of audio people to talk about sound and if they do then to use meaningless vocabulary is his legacy. An army of directionless individual who unable navigate own audio actions unit somebody stick their noise is his legacy. Absurd amount of retards who fancy them audio journalist today – they are all his legacy. A very severe shortage of manufactures whop actually have own identity, integrity and ability to expels anything in audio is also HP's legacy and he was the one who for year breed mediocrity among audio maker and substituted it with own marketing Vaseline.   So, if you feel that you never was exposed to mentioned above then you indeed did not deal with HP legacy. I need to say that I do not "blame" HP personally in above and in many other aspects I do not like in "his" Hight-End Audio but he for sure was a very visible figure and very much enabler. "I wish I could score everything for horns." - Richard Wagner. "Our writing equipment takes part in the forming of our thoughts." - Friedrich Nietzsche

11-06-2014 Post does not mapped to Knowledge Tree clarkjohnsen Boston, MA, US Posts 298 Joined on 06-02-2004 Post #: 5 Post ID: 21320 Reply to: 21316 Him (hp) again fiogf49gjkf0d I like what Romy has written. It's clear to me that Harry fell into a role he had neither created nor perhaps even wished, and he stepped away when he realized what had become of it all. (Not to forget his inept business management.) I've written my own, highly unusual appreciation, soon to be published in Positive Feedback; I'll alert y'all when it's out. clark

11-06-2014 Post does not mapped to Knowledge Tree Paul S San Diego, California, USA Posts 2,658 Joined on 10-12-2006 Post #: 6 Post ID: 21321 Reply to: 21319 Fremer's HP "Obituary" fiogf49gjkf0d I have to say, despite Mike basically co-opting Harry's spotlight, the piece was +/- honest, and I (re)learned a few things. Something MF makes clear: even HP was not more than a bellwether, once the "industry" really took notice of him. I'd somehow forgotten that David Wilson once wrote for Absolute Sound; but this example also tells us much about "our industry", and HP's place in "shaping" it, I think. Paul S

11-07-2014 Post does not mapped to Knowledge Tree Stitch Behind The Sun Posts 235 Joined on 01-15-2009 Post #: 7 Post ID: 21322 Reply to: 21321 RIP fiogf49gjkf0d Kind Regards Stitch

11-10-2014 Post does not mapped to Knowledge Tree Romy the Cat Boston, MA Posts 10,160 Joined on 05-28-2004 Post #: 8 Post ID: 21324 Reply to: 21322 Invented field? fiogf49gjkf0d Stitch, you do have a talent in visual form, the image depicts the situation ridiculously accurate.     BTW, I took quite a lot of interest to read the comments at different sites from different people regarding the Mr. Pearson departure. Many people presented the ironically the same ides over and over again – they were regular "civilians" and then many year back they discovered one of the audio publication that suddenly aroused them to practice audio. Again, it is so much different from anything else. If you are mountain climber, or sailboat racer or caves explorer, or poker player, or vodka dinkier or anything else the makes you happy then you have interest first and then you might discover a community with all those magazines and frameworks to support you "hobby". In high end audio it looks like it very opposite. Most of the people had no interest to enrich own like with playback experiences but they read a glossy magazine that told them that by buying some "special" magazine-approved boxes then they can get some "extra from life". I guess then if we had no audio publication then we had no people interested in better sound reproduction. Well, for sure we would have less idiots in audio and perhaps of audio critiques had no diplomas and credentials that Mr. Pearson, Mr. Holt and alike have invented for them we would not have  the horrible state of audio and we have it today…. "I wish I could score everything for horns." - Richard Wagner. "Our writing equipment takes part in the forming of our thoughts." - Friedrich Nietzsche

11-10-2014 Post does not mapped to Knowledge Tree clarkjohnsen Boston, MA, US Posts 298 Joined on 06-02-2004 Post #: 9 Post ID: 21325 Reply to: 21324 And now for something different fiogf49gjkf0d From Clark Johnsen's Diaries: When Harry Met Clarkie, or, Harry Pearson, R.I.P. (Only my oldest, dearest friends call me "Clarkie", so be careful – but it does make for a better title, so, yeah. / The author) When I first met Harry it was on the lawn of the St. Tropez Hotel at a C.E.S. some years ago. But we had had a history that, in its various intrigues, seems worth recounting, now that the grand old man is gone and unable to be embarrassed by some bad behavior. But we made up and even exchanged friendly e-letters later. http://positive-feedback.com/Issue76/clark_pearson.htm

11-19-2014 Post does not mapped to Knowledge Tree Romy the Cat Boston, MA Posts 10,160 Joined on 05-28-2004 Post #: 10 Post ID: 21349 Reply to: 21316 That is exactly what it is. fiogf49gjkf0d TAS created a page with industry players play tribute to HP, a good deserving thing.    http://www.theabsolutesound.com/tribute/harry-pearson/    It however ironic to read some of the comments as they exactly describe what HP was truly great. The estimable Bob Carver before TAS was TV technician who make a very loud reputation among his colleges as he was able to visit a customer, to make some tweaks of TV and make TV to performer as it was fixed as that parts were replaced. According to his colleges Carver those years did make a name as TV reaper con artist. Then TAS pop up at his horizon. Bob Carver writes: "When Harry reviewed my Phase Linear 700 amplifier in the premiere issue of TAS, he launched me with such power and authority that I was able to start a company and never look back."  Yes, HP was able to do it, thankfully the high-end audio has plenty of Morons out there who feel that practicing audio means to get a periodic publication and to run rendering the recommendations of the month. Oh, well…. "I wish I could score everything for horns." - Richard Wagner. "Our writing equipment takes part in the forming of our thoughts." - Friedrich Nietzsche