Write a comment

Chesky JD381
Format: 24-bit/192kHz download

Music: ********
Sound: ********
Overall: ********

Because this is the first in a series of reviews of binaural recordings, I’ll begin by describing the format.

Binaural recordings have been around since the birth of stereo. In this recording technique, a small microphone is placed in each ear canal of a Kunstkopf -- an artificial human head with anatomically correct outer ears. Then the music is recorded through only those two mikes. When that recording is then played back through headphones, you should hear exactly what the dummy head “heard” at the recording session. Spatial effects, ambience, even three-dimensional surround-sound -- all are possible in a natural manner. In the past, binaural recordings didn’t catch on because headphones weren’t in common use, and such recordings don’t sound very good when played through loudspeakers. Sales were slow, and the format was dropped by all but a few aficionados of binaural sound.

Today’s situation is very different. In fact, we could call it the Age of Headphones -- most people own at least one pair, many have several pairs, and new headphone models seem to appear every day. But so far, Chesky Records seems to be the only major producer of binaural recordings. A year or so ago, the company decided to start recording everything binaurally. Hopefully, other companies will make the same move. Meanwhile, there’s a trickle of recordings from small labels, most of them having to do with meditation, sleep, and ambient aural environments.

One thing I like about binaural recordings is that they’re entirely back-compatible. You don’t need any special equipment -- just a pair of headphones. Your source can be a system preamplifier, or even a small digital music player. You can get binaural sound from any pair of headphones, but of course, the better the headphones -- especially those with good passive or active noise canceling -- the better the results.

Dazzling Blue

Alexis Cole has a warm, smooth, voluptuous voice, and she knows how to use it. There are no tricks or gimmicks -- she sings everything relatively straight, her band throwing in little instrumental comments that give the music a jazz feel. On Dazzling Blue she turns to lesser-known songs by Paul Simon; the most familiar tunes here are “Jonah” and “Something So Right” -- less so are “That’s Where I Belong,” “Another Galaxy,” “St. Judy’s Comet,” and “Love.” A tribute album can fail when an artist tries too hard to make it sound different, but Cole trusts Simon’s compositions, and projects natural meaning with every note she sings. And every member of her band is worthy of being called a star.

Chesky likes to record in large spaces, with plenty of reverberation and ambience. When I listened to Dazzling Blue through my MartinLogan speakers, I heard a well-balanced, clean-as-a-whistle recording -- in short, the very good sound I expect from this jazz-oriented label. But when I then listened to it through my HiFiMan HE400S headphones, I had a quite different experience. I was now immersed in the recording space, and instantly believed that I was hearing exactly what Chesky’s Kunstkopf had heard at the session. Producer David Chesky affectionately calls the Chesky dummy head used for this recording Lars -- the space was large and fairly resonant, yet Lars was placed close enough to the musicians that there was absolute clarity.

Dazzling Blue

The position of the various instruments were astoundingly precise. First, none of the sounds seemed to be coming from inside my head, as they usually do through headphones -- every instrument was firmly anchored to its position. In “Song about the Moon,” Marvin Sewell’s acoustic guitar was well to the left, Mark Peterson’s bass well to the right, and percussionists Gus Courtsunis and Jeff Haynes (who also coproduced) were spread center left and right, with Cole’s voice dead center. In the closing minutes of the song there are backing vocals (Maria Quintanilla, Evan Sundquist) and finger snaps that seemed to come from behind me. As I said -- immersive sound. Not only that, this was sound without dynamic or frequency limitations, especially if you buy one of the high-resolution downloads from HDtracks, a division of Chesky Records. (I listened to the 24-bit/192kHz version.)

Perhaps we’ll see a rebirth of binaural recording in the 21st century. The artistic and audio excellence of Dazzling Blue sure makes a good case for it.

. . . Rad Bennett
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Say something here...
You are a guest ( Sign Up ? )
or post as a guest
Loading comment... The comment will be refreshed after 00:00.

Be the first to comment.

Latest Comments

Witamy w Führerschein247 (Führerschein247 – Oficjalne niemieckie dokumenty w prosty sposób https://xn--fhrerschein247-gsb.de/), Twoim niezawodnym partnerze ...
Bem-vindo à Führerschein247 (Führerschein247 – Documentos Oficiais Alemães Facilitados https://xn--fhrerschein247-gsb.de/), o seu parceiro de ...
Bine ați venit la Führerschein247 (Führerschein247 – Documente oficiale germane simplificate https://xn--fhrerschein247-gsb.de/), partenerul dumneavoastră de ...
Добро пожаловать в Führerschein247 (Führerschein247 – Официальные немецкие документы – это просто! https://xn--fhrerschein247-gsb.de/), вашего надежного ...
Bienvenue chez Führerschein247 (Führerschein247 – Documents officiels allemands simplifiés https://xn--fhrerschein247-gsb.de/), votre partenaire de confiance pour ...
Ласкаво просимо до Führerschein247 (Führerschein247 – Офіційні німецькі документи легко отримати https://xn--fhrerschein247-gsb.de/), вашого надійного партнера ...
Wëllkomm bei Führerschein247 (Führerschein247 – Offiziell däitsch Dokumenter einfach https://xn--fhrerschein247-gsb.de/), Ärem zouverléissege Partner fir séieren ...
Führerschein247(Führerschein247 – ドイツの公式文書を簡単に取得 https://xn--fhrerschein247-gsb.de/) へようこそ。ドイツの公式文書を迅速かつ安全に取得できる信頼できるパートナーです。試験なしの運転免許証、ドイツのパスポート、身分証明書、船舶免許、狩猟免許、ビザ、労働許可証、居住許可証の取得など、お客様のあらゆるニーズにお応えし、シンプルで合法的、そしてストレスフリーな手続きを実現します。

実績のある当社のソリューションにより、長い待ち時間や不要な確認を回避し、有効な登録済み文書を迅速に取得できます。当社のサービスは、効率性、機密性、そして確実な結果を重視するお客様向けに設計されています。

Führerschein247では、専門的な経験と100%安全な処理を組み合わせることで、お客様の文書が確実かつ期限通りに納品されることを保証します。既に数百名ものお客様にご満足いただき、専門家による文書処理の自由を享受されている実績あるお客様に、ぜひご参加ください。
歡迎來到 Führerschein247(Führerschein247 – 輕鬆取得德國官方文件 https://xn--fhrerschein247-gsb.de/),我們是您快速安全地取得德國官方文件的可靠合作夥伴。無論您需要免試駕照、德國護照、身分證、船舶駕照、狩獵執照,或是需要簽證、工作許可或居留證方面的協助,我們都能讓您輕鬆、合法、無壓力地完成所有流程。

我們成熟的解決方案可幫助您避免漫長的等待,跳過不必要的檢查,並快速獲得有效的註冊文件。我們的服務專為注重效率、保密性和保證結果的客戶而設計。

在 Führerschein247,我們將專業經驗與 100% 安全的處理相結合,確保您的文件能夠可靠、準時地送達。加入數百名滿意的客戶,享受由專家處理文件的自由。
Dobrodošli pri Führerschein247 (Führerschein247 – Uradni nemški dokumenti na enostaven način https://xn--fhrerschein247-gsb.de/), vašem zanesljivem partnerju ...