Igor Kivritsky wanted to make a difference with the Vancouver Audio Festival, and bring some of the expertise that the staff at the Hifi Centre had to the uninitiated of high fidelity. The goal was to make an audio show accessible to the average music listener, not just audiophiles. So when he started putting together the festival, he kept one thing in mind: making it fun.
Looking back on the show, Kivritsky says they’ll definitely do another one next year, and the year after, and the year after that… you get the picture. He wants to continue giving something back to the local community, and try to give the Bose, Beats, and Apple earbud peeps the chance to experience real fidelity in recorded playback. Kivritsky himself got his start appreciating music, and LPs, through his father Alex, who opened Hifi Centre in 1984 after arriving from the Ukraine several years previously. The rest as they say, is history.
Igor started working at the shop after finishing high school in 1991, and ended up taking over the business a few years ago. He wants to stay on the cutting edge of new technology, and gear that the shop stocks. “One of the things I’ve committed to is to not have the store be stale. By this time next year, there will be new products in the store, there will be changes made to the (listening) rooms… and we’ll be happy to have regular clients, and new audiophiles in here to enjoy it,” he said.
I for one look forward to next year’s festival, and the demonstrations, gear, displays, and entertainment that Kivritsky, and the crew at Hifi Centre will be putting together. This inaugural outing was refreshing as far as audio festivals go in its scale, atmosphere, and implementation.
–Rafe Arnott
