Michael Fremer reviews “Lifeline” LP

Michael Fremer remains one of the chief analog gods in the world of music writers and critics.  We might call him Wotan, except that Mr. Fremer hasn’t yet made a rash decision that costs the cosmos its future.  Michael writes that Lifeline: Music of the Underground Railroad is “an intensely transparent and three-dimensional recording produced live in front of an audience in the 500 seat Samueli Theater at Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa, California….  “The sound is intensely three-dimensional, especially the sensation of being in the audience when the deserved applause come after each performance. The singers appear before you convincingly effectively spread across the stage, bathed but not buried…. “Yarlung’s recording engineer Arian Jensen and producer and label owner Bob Attiyeh used Agfa 468 tape on a SonoruS ATR12 recorder employing SonoruS Holographic Imaging technology. Whatever that is, works.  An AKG C24 stereo microphone captured it Continue Reading →

Paul Seydor reviews Sasha Cooke’s “If You Love For Beauty” in “The Absolute Sound”

If You Love for Beauty.  Sasha Cooke. Colburn Orchestra, Gilad. Yarlung (LP). “Every once in a while, there come along singers who have a quality of singing so beautifully, and touchingly, that it kind of makes you cry, just the sound of their voice,” observed Michael Tilson Thomas.  “I think Sasha Cooke is one of those people.”  He’s right, so it’s curious Cooke isn’t better known after performing with many of the leading opera companies, symphony orchestras, and conductors; winning two Grammies; and boasting repertoire from the baroque to contemporary avant-garde.  Recorded in analog with minimal miking, Cooke’s debut album has been available on CD since 2012, but Yarlung has now released it on vinyl.  Cooke’s ravishing voice is complemented by her sensitivity and imagination, apparent in the depth of feeling and lyricism she imparts to Mahler’s Rückert–Lieder. Also on the program are two Handel arias, including a powerful performance Continue Reading →

Jane Booth writing for Agora Classica and Early Music Today reviews “Ciaramella Dances.”

Dances on Movable Ground Ciaramella, Adam Gilbert, Rotem Gilbert (dirs) Yarlung Records 96819 CD VINYL The Californian group Ciaramella specialises in Renaissance dance music; here they explore the Spanish and Italian grounds – passamezzo, passacaglia, ciaconna and so on – that underlie so many late Renaissance dances. Recorders and shawms predominate; playing of expressive fluidity and rhythmic vitality supports plentiful virtuosic divisions. Lifelike sound of exceptional clarity enhances the impact. As well as choosing an ideal acoustic, producer Bob Attiyeh has used an old-fashioned analogue tape recorder, equally old-fashioned analogue valves for the recording circuitry, and a single stereo microphone – viva analogue! Strongly recommended, even if for me a couple of fiddles would be welcome from time to time in this selection, on the cusp of the Renaissance and baroque periods. —Jane Booth Ciaramella Dances is available on CD | Vinyl | Tape | DSD | HDTracks | Apple Continue Reading →

“Lifeline” and “Yuko Mabuchi plays Miles Davis” win Album of the Year awards!

NativeDSD does great work.  Founded by recording legend Jared Sacks and his son Jonas, NativeDSD provides the highest quality DSD downloads around the world.  And the golden-eared connoisseurs who judge the best albums in their categories every year know their music. It is therefore a huge honor that Yuko Mabuchi plays Miles Davis and Lifeline: Music of the Underground Railroad won best album of the year in their respective categories.  Congratulations to Yuko, Michelle, Del, Bobby, Quinton, Mike, JJ and Walter for such excellent performances, and sincere thanks to the jury at NativeDSD for choosing to recognize their work in such an important fashion.  Thank you to our generous sponsors and executive directors who made these albums possible.  These musical successes always take a strong team.  Kudos to Toyota North America, Stratton Petit Foundation, Randy & Linda Bellous, Craig & Diane Martin, Ann Mulally, Steven A. Block, Raulee Marcus, Leslie Continue Reading →

City of Los Angeles honors “Yuko Mabuchi plays Miles Davis”

The City of Los Angeles presented Yuko Mabuchi with commendation for her 2019 release Yuko Mabuchi plays Miles Davis, an album she recorded in the Brain and Creativity Institute’s Cammilleri Hall with JJ Kirkpatrick, trumpet; Del Atkins, bass and Bobby Breton on drums.  Tellingly, Albert Edmund Lord III presented this appreciation from the City of Los Angeles at the Catalina Jazz Club gala event supporting SAPPA, the after-school music education program in Watts where Yuko volunteers part of her time as the orchestra pianist and accompanist.  As Mr. Lord explained, Los Angeles appreciates Yuko’s interest in serving the community as much as it appreciates her meteoric abilities as a concert performer and recording artist.  The text of the commendation reads: Congratulations on the release of your album “Yuko Mabuchi plays Miles Davis”.  Your passion and mission to ensure that influential and significant music and artists continue to live on in Continue Reading →

Clifton Harris reviews Michelle Mayne-Graves and Lifeline Quartet

Mr. Harris highlights the timeless appeal of Lifeline’s spirituals and points out that as important as the Underground Railroad code songs were before and during the Civil War, they resonate just as profoundly in today’s America.   “The Quartet’s Lifeline album comes at a challenging time in America for African Americans, especially with the Trump administration and the dangerous rhetoric that has incited racially charged violence all over the country since his election in 2016. This album covers Negro spirituals from the mid 1800’s to the early 1900’s and reminds us of the spirit we needed to be free as a people.” “Michelle’s range appears to be limitless on this 12 track album….” –Clifton Harris, San Bernardino American News Please read the full article in the San Bernardino American News.

Writing for “The Ear” in the UK, Jason Kennedy gives “Yuko Mabuchi plays Miles Davis” Five Stars, and “Hot Pick”

It’s unusual to find a pianist creating a tribute to jazz’s most successful trumpeter but you have to give Mabuchi her due; she does a fine job.  Davis tunes are famous because of the way he played them, so an interpretation might be jarring but it’s the emphasis on the keyboard that makes this work.  That and the excellent quality of the live recording, which is dynamic, spacious and natural enough to put you in the moment, then the applause comes and the scale of the venue is fully revealed.  Available on tape, PCM and DSD this could become a hi-fi classic.  –Jason Kennedy Please click here to see the entire page

Yuko Mabuchi Trio & Branford Marsalis Quartet in Orange County

Yuko Mabuchi Trio and Branford Marsalis Quartet ushered in the New Year in Orange County with great jazz.  Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa produces one of the most important jazz series in the country.  I drove up from my home near San Diego to attend the Yuko Mabuchi Trio/Branford Marsalis Quartet performances on January 25th in the 1800 seat Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall.  I’ve been attending concerts for many years in North America, Europe and Asia and this performance will remain among my greatest memories of live jazz.  Segerstrom Center uses two concert halls for its jazz series.  The more intimate 300-seat Samueli Theater hosts most of the musicians on the jazz series, which recently included Cecile McLorin Salvant, Kurt Elling and The Kenny Barron Quintet.  But for Ahmad Jamal last year and the recent Yuko Mabuchi Trio/Branford Marsalis Quartet performances, Segerstrom needed the large Continue Reading →

Sony Select (HD) distributes Yarlung’s high resolution albums in Mainland China

对话雅鲁唱片创始人 – Bob Attiyeh AcMaverick 索尼精选高解析度音乐2017-10-27点击阅读原文了解更多详情 —索尼精选独家访问— 雅鲁唱片创始人、音乐制作人 Bob Attiyeh“  “成为发烧友,意味着喜爱各种类型的音乐”  – Bob Attiyeh” Bob Attiyeh click here for English Translation 往期文章阅读:厂牌精选 – Yarlung Records 索尼精选:雅鲁唱片的音乐品味广受好评。你们如何选择合作的音乐家?你们更喜欢什么样的音乐? Bob:幸运的是,在雅鲁,我们有一些朋友和顾问帮我们寻找和评估有才华的音乐家,而且我们定期收到来自世界各地的音乐家的合作邀请。雅鲁绝大多数的唱片是在洛杉矶录制的,不过我们的团队规模小,可以去世界上任何一个地方进行录制。我们的模拟磁带录音机(由SonoruS Audio制作)和高解析度数字平台(由瑞士的Merging Technologies制作)可以在全球任何一种电压环境中工作。 触动我们的音乐如此之多。我觉得最重要的是心理上的因素,而非严格意义上的音乐性如何。换句话说,最让我满足的音乐,是讲一个好的故事,而且把它讲好。不一定要是像诗歌或者小说那样有叙事性的故事,而是传递了情感体验的故事。如果音乐告诉我一个好故事,我就享受它,无论它是什么类型,古典、浪漫、文艺复兴、爵士、流行、世界音乐都可以。 索尼精选:雅鲁唱片的音乐品味广受好评。你们如何选择合作的音乐家?你们更喜欢什么样的音乐? Bob:我们对新发行的爵士钢琴唱片引以为豪,那是去年三月与现象级青年爵士钢琴家Yuko Mabuchi和她的三重奏乐队合作录制的,现在刚刚发行。Yuko不仅是一位富有经验和才能的钢琴家(她的手指在键盘上好似闪电,她敏感的音乐性拨动我们能的心弦),而且年轻美丽的她还是一位不错的作曲家。她的作品,以及爵士乐即兴,听上去清新而诱人,对世界各地的听众而言都是很容易亲近的。Yuko生于日本,常在亚洲演出,一年半前刚刚搬到美国。有她在加州,我们很幸运! Yuko Mabuchi与Bob Breton在Cammilleri音乐厅录音 Bob:既然你问特别的录音体验,我得提那张和大都会歌剧院女中音歌唱家Sasha Cooke,以及科尔本(Colburn)音乐学校管弦乐团合作的,在科尔本音乐学校的Zipper音乐厅录制的唱片。Sasha和乐团的声音如此美丽,把人包裹在其中,我必须时刻提醒自己这不是个梦。我们把专辑命名为If You Love for Beauty(《若你慕色而恋》),这是马勒的吕克特歌谣的一首。除了马勒,Sasha还演唱了亨德尔、肖松和John Adams的歌曲。这张专辑是我的最爱之一,索尼在中国进行发布。刚过去的这个夏天,Sasha在Mason Bates新创作的关于乔布斯的歌剧中演出,她的声音听起来和录制本专辑时一样清新可人。 专辑:If You Love for Beauty 索尼精选Hi-Res音乐 热卖中 在科尔本音乐学校的Zipper音乐厅与女中音歌唱家Sasha Cooke、科尔本管弦乐团录音 索尼精选:您曾说自己是一名“声场”(soundstage)狂。能不能为我们解释一下这个概念?比如雅鲁的专辑Smoke & Mirrors Percussion Ensemble是如何体现的? Bob:我一直挺喜欢讨论录音中的“声场”。听一张具有好声场的唱片,能把我传送到音乐会现场。我们谈论声场的时候,就是在说当你用扬声器听唱片时,播放出来的乐器和人声,听上去好像乐手就站或坐在你面前。当你坐在家里,把两个扬声器放到恰当的位置,一张好的唱片能让你觉得你坐在一群专门为你演奏的音乐家正前方。 如果你听的是管弦乐团和声乐家的录音,比如刚刚讲的Sasha Cooke的那张,你会听到第一小提琴靠左边,Sasha在中间,第二小提琴和低音提琴更靠右边。听一张理想的唱片时,使用精心设计的音响系统,并且扬声器正确摆放,我们称为“成像”,这样出来的声场就是精确的。你既听到乐队的整体音响,还听到在舞台上扇形排列的每一位坐着或者站着的乐手都在为你演奏。精确的声场,是一张唱片给人现场感的重要因素。 专辑:Smoke and Mirrors Percussion Ensemble 索尼精选Hi-Res音乐 热卖中 Bob:Smoke & Mirrors Percussion Ensemble这张唱片(也是在科尔本音乐学校的Zipper音乐厅录制的)就体现了丰富而精确的声场。你能辨别乐手和乐器的准确方位,在音乐厅中从左到右、从前到后的分布。感兴趣的朋友可以从我们的网站yarlungrecords.com/sonorus/下载测试音频,了解更多关于声场的知识,以及如何放置扬声器。 其中的“环绕音效测试”能帮你精确地放置扬声器,也可以给SonoruS全息影像进行测试。我每次都用这个来给新房间放置扬声器。这些下载都是免费的。 索尼精选: 您平常都用什么设备听音乐? Bob:我们很幸运,在雅鲁有许多很棒的聆听方式,在工作和休闲中都是。对大部分高解析度音频,我们用Merging Technologies的NADAC,和一台exaSound进行播放。SonoruS ATR10磁带机用来放模拟磁带,Well Tempered Lab和Linn Sondek的唱盘来播黑胶唱片。我们主要的前置放大器是Elliot Midwood制作的Messenger与Arian Jansen制作的SonoruS。我们的固态功放是Gary Koh的Genesis Advanced Technologies的产品,立体声扬声器是由Dali与Genesis制造的。 索尼精选: 您最喜欢的室内乐录音场所? Bob:科尔本学校的Zipper音乐厅,南加州大学大脑与创造研究所的Cammilleri厅,迪士尼音乐厅,The Broad Stage,和Segerstrom艺术中心的Samueli剧场,这些是我们录制室内乐的最佳场所。我们也和更大的乐团在其他超棒的音乐厅合作过。 索尼精选:您有没有用过索尼的音频产品?使用体验如何? Bob:的确有,我是索尼的粉丝。我们用一台索尼的DVD播放机,连接一台市面上罕见的丹麦制造的LA Audio数模转换器,来听CD。那声音很棒,索尼的传输非常可靠,噪音极小,我非常满意。另外,我们使用Tascam录音笔来录制高解析度的PCM文件。这支Tascam其实是索尼制造的!我们还有索尼车载CD机,音响效果超级好。 索尼精选:发烧友是什么样的一群人?您认为高解析度(Hi-Res)音乐是否只会在发烧圈传播? Bob:随着硬盘存储成本降低、带宽的增加和网络传输变得更快更便宜,我的直觉告诉我,喜爱音乐的人会逐渐放弃低解析度的文件(如mp3),只听高解析度音频,不管是从索尼精选购买,还是流媒体播放。一旦喜欢音乐的人听到做工精良的Hi-Res音频,他们往往不会回到高压缩音频,即使是用便携式设备来听音乐。iPhone、HTC手机和三星手机都可以轻松地播放高解析度音频,即使在便携式设备上,高解析度音乐也能明显地显示出优势。或许对重金属和各类摇滚乐而言并非如此,我对那块市场不太了解。我猜测如果摇滚乐唱片以高解析度录制的话,用Hi-Res音频播放器来音效会好得多。 Bob:你问发烧友是什么样的,我从很个人的角度来回答吧。有些人享受昂贵的音响设备多于享受音乐,有些人最感兴趣的是设备的外观、重量和价格。尽管重量、外观对营销而言很重要,但一件产品的重量并不代表着它的质量,外观也不代表它播放出来的音质。诚然,我们喜欢音乐成为审美体验的一部分,所以如果音响设备听上去不错,看上去也像美丽的艺术品,那当然很好。 Robert Gupta使用曾属于Nathan Milstein的斯特拉迪瓦里小提琴在迪士尼音乐厅录音。左二为Bob。 Bob:对我而言,英文中的audiophile指“声音爱好者”,或者在我们的语境下,“音乐爱好者”。“audio”来自拉丁语,更精确地说是动词“Audire”(听);“phile”来自古希腊语,意思是“爱”,或者“珍惜” (φιλέω)。作为雅鲁的制作人和录音工程师,我希望雅鲁的唱片听上去如透亮的明窗,让听者尽可能直接地、不受干扰地感受音乐家的表演。有人告诉我雅鲁有它自己的独特声音,不过我自己并未发觉,也很难描述。人们提到的特质有“透明的”(这让我开心,想想我们的明窗比喻)、充满细节的和精确的声场(像我们上文讨论过的),丰富而紧致的低音,以及富有延展性的、自然的高音。当我觉得一张唱片听上去就像我在音乐厅或者录音时听到的那样,我就很开心。我想要呈现的音乐,是没有人为地添加个性化效果的,但又具有吸引力的。所以对我来说,成为发烧友,意味着做一个喜爱各种类型音乐的人,每年听很多音乐会,尽可能让我们的唱片听上去和现场音乐会一样。 索尼精选: 雅鲁接下来的唱片计划有哪些? Bob:接下来要发行的是我们的首张合唱作品专辑。乐队由32名合唱队员组成,没有乐器伴奏,指挥是颇富天赋的新秀Robert Istad。Istad博士与我还将筹划未来的唱片录制。这张合唱专辑包括欧洲、俄罗斯和美国的宗教音乐。 我们还打算在2018年初发行一张钢琴独奏专辑,以及与雅鲁的巨星Antonio Lysy合作录制一张南美音乐专辑,他刚刚凭借个人专辑Antonio Lysy at The Broad: Music from Argentina为雅鲁摘得了首个格莱美奖。这张新专辑,打算命名为《南美洲》,将包括Piazzolla和Villa Lobos的音乐。 我们将与Yuko Mabuchi和她的四重奏乐队合作第二张爵士乐唱片,另外还要给Miles Davis作品音乐会进行现场录音。我们会很忙的! 索尼精选:您之前来过中国吗?索尼精选是将雅鲁Hi-Res唱片介绍给中国音乐市场的首家音乐服务商,有什么想和我们的用户说的吗? Bob:我很幸运地来过中国几次,不仅是中心区域,而且还看到了少数民族地区的许多神奇的事物。中国的博大和文化多样性让每个有机会到访的人都惊叹不已,我感觉真的很幸运。我期待不久后回中国看看。 Bob:对索尼精选的用户们,我想说:感谢你们对中国高解析度音乐的支持。中国有一些世界上最好的音乐人,创作了这个星球上最有趣、最令人满意的音乐。很高兴知悉中国的爱乐者们有机会从索尼精选听到各厂牌最高解析度的音乐。感谢你们让好音乐继续生存及蓬勃发展。因为你们,世界变得更好。 感动时刻 “音”为有你 索尼精选三周年 纪念T恤全场送 微信满减超值优惠 厂牌大抽奖 多重好礼 等你来赢 Sony Interview in English Sony HD Beijing interviewed Bob Attiyeh in October, 2017 about Yarlung’s high resolution albums, Yarlung’s mission with musicians, Continue Reading →