Sony BMG planning new Art Tatum "re-performance" SACD for early 2008

[soundboy]

Multi-channel hybrid SACD with binaural version.

LOS ANGELES " Sony BMG Masterworks and Zenph Studios have announced that a "re-performance" of legendary jazz pianist Art Tatum's 1949 recording "Piano Starts Here" will be held on Sept. 23, 2007 at 5 PM at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles - the site of the original live concert performance.

The re-performance, which is achieved through Zenph's music software technology, will be recorded by Sony BMG before a live audience for a forthcoming hybrid multichannel SACD/CD, to be released in early 2008. The re-performance will also include four songs Tatum recorded in 1933 that appear on "Piano Starts Here," including the jazz standard, "Tiger Rag."

Zenph's technology captures the musical nuances of the original piano recording's every note, with details about the pedal actions, volume and articulations " all with millisecond timings. The digital data is transcribed into high-resolution MIDI files and played back on a state-of-the-art Yamaha Disklavier Pro concert grand piano, allowing for the production of brand new renderings without the limitations of the original recording.

"It will be like going back to the moment of creation and hearing Tatum play in person," said John Q. Walker, President of Zenph Studios.

The producers and engineers will also record a binaural version of the re-performance; headphone playback will provide an experience that replicates what Tatum would have heard while he sat at the piano.

The Zenph re-performance also corrects problems that have accumulated since the original. A track on the current album titled "The Man I Love" omits excerpts from "Porgy and Bess" which Tatum performed during the original concert; Zenph has restored about two minutes of lost material.

Playback speed, slowed down on the album tracks, has been corrected, so Tatum actually plays faster than has typically been thought. And, a tape glitch during "Humoresque" that mars the current re-issue will be corrected.

Zenph's first album, a re-performance of pianist Glenn Gould's 1955 recording of Bach's Goldberg Variations, received critical acclaim and spent nine weeks on the Billboard Classical Top Ten chart this summer.

 

[timbre4]

Art Tatum is astonishing, I'll buy this in a heartbeat.

 

[radiodaddy]

I've had the Gould in my hands three or four times at the store, but haven't pulled the trigger.

The 55 Goldberg is on my musical pedestal. I'm not a sonics nut - the performance, the headlong rush, the passion is what draws me back to the piece. I just can't get past the fact that it's a digital simulacrum - as advanced as the technology they used may be, I get a nagging feeling that something (other than Gould's grunts) would be missing.

Those of you who are familiar with both the Zenph and the original - am I missing something? Is it really all that and a bag of chips, and will turn around the way i hear the performance? Or is it just a nice digital try? My 55 (on vinyl and CD) has taken me through life so far and has always remained true - should i ditch her for the trophy wife?

 

[wavelength]

This really can't be a huge decision. It's 14.99 at Amazon.com.

 

[radiodaddy]

This really can't be a huge decision. It's 14.99 at Amazon.com.

Opportunity cost. $14.99 not spent here is available for something else. I alread have three copies of the piece - original LP, first CD issue, and remaster on "A Sense of Wonder." If the Zenph is no more than a gimmick with spiffy sound, it's a waste of money for me.

 

[soundboy]

More information on the upcoming re-performance

 

[elmer]

Opportunity cost. $14.99 not spent here is available for something else. I alread have three copies of the piece - original LP, first CD issue, and remaster on "A Sense of Wonder." If the Zenph is no more than a gimmick with spiffy sound, it's a waste of money for me.

First off let me just state that I am not overly familiar with the original recording and therefore cannot offer a comparison. I can tell you however that this is a stellar recording and does not come off as any sort of digital trickery. The SACD surround layer is rich and the playing (albeit triggered via computer) sounds completely natural. This is IMO, a worthy addition to anyone's classical library and a standout surround title - keep in mind, it is solo piano so the "surround" element is relative - but it is enveloping.

There is also a "Binaural Stereo Version" included on the disc for what the hyperbole states as "The Ultimate Headphone Experience" - had to listen via the computer drive as my Pioneer requires that I go into the menu and turn off the SACD default in order to listen to the non SACD layer - but it sounds pretty good - not sure about the "ultimate" part though.

Looking forward to the Art Tatum

 

[elmer]

Just picked this up today - astonishing! Keeping in mind that the original performances are from 1933 and 1949 - hearing this new "re-performance" has a slightly otherworldly component to it. As with the aforementioned Glenn Gould "Goldberg Variations" Zenph title - an excellent recording. I have only one previous recording of Art Tatum (from the Ken Burns Jazz Box Set) - so I can't comment on the accuracy of the performance but it sure sounds good. As per the original recording(s), the first 4 tracks were recorded in studio ( the 1933 tracks). The balance (from the original 1949 live concert) was recorded live at the Los Angeles Shrine Auditiorium in 2007 in front of an audience - that must have been a mindf*%k! I had to double check the credits when I heard the applause.

Art Tatum is generally regarded as one of the finest if not the best instrumental virtuoso on any instrument - in any era. To hear his music performed under these circumstances is truly remarkable! A worthwhile SACD for anyone's collection. Note that this is solo piano so the 5.1 element is purely atmospheric - but you get a tremendous sense of being there.

 

[soundboy]

Btw, your local Best Buy should have this SACD in stock. Got mine at my local Best Buy.