Phonograph Monthly Review, Vol. 5, No. 8 (1931-05)

236 I lie Phonograph Monthly Review Like Garbo, she is deliberate, sparing in her re- sort to mannerisms, eloquent of movement because of that. Her spoken words bite like the leadened lashes of torture whip of old. Her tones are usual, even ordinary, they need no translator, dumb-doomed or gilded with the most rare intel- lectual qualities, she makes her meaning equally clear, arousing emotional reaction in all alike. The success, and popularity, of Barbara Stan- wyck, is another interesting contribution to this royalty of the commonplace. Put Miss Stanwyck in the role of an ordinary, run-of-the garden vari- ety of girl, or even worse, and you get a perform- ance that is remarkable. The voice quality that is hers is admirable for such characters. You can listen to her voice and gain pleasurable reaction without the slightest attention to what she is say- ing with it. It has the power to warm or chill; to awaken sympathy or hate. It is a priceless gift. A comparative newcomer, not at this writing elevated to stardom, although it would seem inevi- table, is Loretta Young. Here again is the voice of the common herd. You have heard so many girls who speak as you believe she speaks, that you already have a friendly feeling toward her. She is—which, of course, Garbo and Dietrich are not—essentially an American product. Every tone of her voice carries the conviction of remem- bered veracity. I have purposely taken all of my present illus- trations from the women of the screen. There are two reasons for this narrowing down to a single sex. One is that in matters of emotion, men are more acted upon than active. The mainspring of most emotional outbursts can be traced to the wo- men in the case. The other is that lack of space prevents any attempt to do justice to both sexes within the scope of my present article. Men's voice, however, offer just as interesting possibilities for study. Just why Chevalier, speak- ing in broken English, is one of our most popular stars, is worth a passing thought or two. Why Walter Houston has succeeded in outdistancing the entire field of his competitors in the talking picture field,offers another fascinating subject. "Wozzeck" Broadcast by New Principle NBC Engineer O. B. Hanson explains parabolic reflector "mike" G ENIUS though there be in the score of Alban Berg’s stark music drama, “Wozzeck,” its key-defiant tones often strike cruelly on the musical ear. So much the more, then, might this composition be expected to be a heavy shock to radio apparatus. One might, in fact, easily have condoned dooming the opera as unsuitable for radio dissem- 0. B. Hanson ination. Nevertheless, the national Broadcasting Company transmitted the rebellious score from the Philadelphia Metro- politan Opera House with a remarkable degree of success. The secret lay in the elimination of a group of variously placed microphones, and the use of a single “parabolic re- flector” type of condenser microphone. It is as big as a small parasol—say two and a half feet in diameter. In appearance it is somewhat like the bowl-shaped type of portable electric heater. At its centre is a condenser microphone, from which project four long rods. O. B. Hanson, manager of plant operation and engineering for NBC, briefly explained to the interviewer the theory of the “single pick-up.” “Additional microphones create a condition very similar to bad acoustics,” he said. “That is, there are several different sound pickups and several different sets of reverberations. This generally means hearing a ‘fuzzy/ or distorted trans- mission and not a clean cut tone. “This was generally the complication during broadcasts in which the carbon type microphone was used. Several of these were often used in a single radio broadcast to bring out or ‘spot’ different orchestral instruments or sections of a chorus. Acoustical interference noticeable as a fuzziness in quality was the frequent result. “Now with the condenser type of microphone NBC engin- eers have found they can work over a larger range and elim- inate audible aberrations up to a certain size orchestra. “With the great symphony orchestra broadcasts, however, these microphones were so far away from the instruments that room noise crept into the transmission. “The development and application of the parabolic re- flector microphone by the NBC solved the problem. This device employs a directional sound reflection principle utilized during the late world war for combatting enemy air raids. “The new microphone may be regulated to assimilate sound waves within a certain radius, just as a focused camera or a spot light’s rays cover a specific area. It is placed farther away from orchestral instruments, or singers, than the ordin- ary condenser-type microphone. The result is a more har- monious blending of instruments and voices.”