Britten - Four Sea Interludes and Passacaglia from Peter Grimes

Whilst at my parents' place last week, I listened to a few things that my father wanted to demo me. I am afraid that we are on very different wavelengths when it comes to appreciating the technical quality of sound recordings. For me the reference in audio is a really good LP. Whatever the technical measurements may say, there is nothing that beats this in terms of listening involvement and naturalness. My father has always been interested in the latest trends (and fads) and has jumped firmly on the bandwagon of SACD, Blu Ray Audio, DTS, and whatever other formats are cropping up as specifically targeted to the audiophile listener. I remain firmly unconvinced. Whilst at times embedded in a pleasing aural perspective, the music comes across anemic, synthetic and utterly devoid of life. Even dynamics sound compressed. So there was little to enjoy in this version of Britten's atmospheric interludes from his Peter Grimes. I look forward now to reconnecting with my exploration of Bartok.