Proving the importance of Occam's razor

[ted]

I think my brain is going. I recorded a long improvisation earlier in the week, and on listening to it I was concerned to hear a number of sharp, metallic clicks coming from one channel. I had been using direct mp3, 256 kbps, setting on the Zoom for a long time because I was sick of wrestling with huge wav files. So I assumed (when we assume, we make an ass out of you and me) I had encountered artifacts and spent two nights and days fiddling with Audacity getting rid of them. Only then did the truth suddenly dawn, confirmed by a short recording of silence, that the "artifacts" were perfectly recorded noises of my piano stool, obviously giving way yet again under the strain of hours of frenzied improvisation.

My wife is not surprised, ("Why are you farting about all night with those silly recordings ?") and says my faculties are on the way out.

[iansinclair]

Recordings are merciless.  Amazing what shows up on them, eh?  One reason why I very rarely do them... I like to be deluded into thinking things are better than they are!

[ted]

Admittedly, I belong to the perverted minority of players who love recording and hate live performance. What to do about the seat is more difficult. I suppose I shall have to go back to using my "artist's bench", which I had stopped using, funnily enough, because of its creaking. At the moment I feel inclined to throw them both out in the inorganic collection and get an ordinary, solid chair. What to do about my brain is a conundrum of a completely different order.

[lloyd_cdb]

Recordings are merciless.  Amazing what shows up on them, eh?  One reason why I very rarely do them... I like to be deluded into thinking things are better than they are!

My first recording was just to give me some info on self-criticism to check if I was practicing my first challenging pieces correctly. In my first few attempts the bass came through DRASTICALLY louder than the treble forcing me to change how I played. It turned out later that people listening to me asked me "where'd the bass go?". They said it was perfectly clear how I was previously playing it... I was just doing a crappy job of arranging the mic. My left hand was depressed and bitter for weeks.

I suppose I shall have to go back to using my "artist's bench", which I had stopped using, funnily enough, because of its creaking.

I assume you may have checked this already, but there might be simpler solutions like checking screws. It can possibly be fixed by loosening them slightly and then sitting on the bench when you re-tighten them. Obviously dependent on the screw location.

[ted]

Thanks for the suggestion. The older stool, which I bought with the piano in 1971, has well and truly had it I'm afraid. I have done what you suggested, as well as glueing, nailing and screwing, several times over the years. Trouble all started when a leg broke off in mid-flight and I hit the floor. It's never been the same since. I'll use the "artist's bench" until I spot something really solid that doesn't cost an arm and a leg. The creaks in that, although obvious while playing, are not as noticeable in recordings.