the bees are gone (part 1)

disclaimer: the following post is inspired by the editorial of audio art (taiwan hifi mag)issue #228 and it is not meant to steal the thoughts. it is so thought-provoking that i have decided to give my personal views.

something strange happening in certain parts of northern america. in the past, many fruit-bearing trees such as the wild apple trees would have borne lots of fruits during the harvest season in july and august. but last year, many trees are barren with no fruits in sight. do you know the cause of it?

the bees are gone. as you know, bees are carrier for pollen - the fine powder-like material consisting of pollen grains that is produced by the anthers of seed plants, which are responsible for the reproduction of seed-bearing plants. of course, the main reason for the absence of the bees is global warming but that's not the topic of this post.

so, what has it got to do with hifi, you ask? the malaysian hifi market and many other markets in the world including taiwan, is suffering one of the worst decline in the last couple of years. this is akin to the missing bees. the bees is the medium that carries the all-important pollen, just like many of us audiophiles who carry our passion for this hobby and disseminate it to all other like-minded enthusiasts. and the problem is - many audiophiles have gone missing! the can be explained by the retirement of the senior and veteran audiophiles and the totally non-existence pool of new and young audiophiles. the main reason for this - the passion is gone!

there are many ways to rekindle this passion. first and foremost, aspiring audiophiles or even experienced ones must learn to appreciate live music, be it gigs or concerts (and i don't mean those mega cantopop concerts by HK singers!). there are many opportunities in this country to see first-class live performances on a regular basis. a few prominent venues come to mind - dewan filharmonik petronas (DFP) for classical music, no black tie for jazz and indie music, groove junction for jazz and funk, alexis ampang for jazz music and many others (like the indie concert i advertised in the blog which is held in KLPAC this friday night) if you bother to find out. why aren't these people listen to live music if they want to play hifi? if people like live music enough, they are bound to be excited by the thought of re-creating the experience in the comfort of their homes! it is only thru appreciating live music then one can become a better and complete audiophile. it is only thru appreciating live music then an (aspiring) audiophile can become ambitious and passionate. i am a regular gig/concert goer and i revel in such experience cos not only i get entertained with the best hi-fi in the word (live music), it improves my listening skills and hence my hifi too.

i also think that some experienced audiophiles among you should carry the role of a mentor. a mentor should expose hifi to many more newbies who want to play hifi but don't know how to start or afraid of the cost. i have done my part in the last few years influencing my less experienced friends. a simple gesture like inviting them to listen to your system may open their eyes (and ears) to the wonderment of hifi. or even bringing them the the hifi show where they get to ogle at the equipment. be patient with these newbies, explain to them basic jargons and terminologies in layman term. for them, it definitely beats reading those jargon-filled WHAT*HI-FI, stereophile or TAS! there are so many influential tasks that a good mentor can do to bring in more audiophiles to the hobby. the responsibility starts with you!

to be continued... i will write about the role of the dealer in my next post ;-)