HiRez Poll Fleck, Bela - THE BLUEGRASS SESSIONS [DVD-AUDIO]

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Rate the DVD-A of Bela Fleck - THE BLUEGRASS SESSIONS

  • 6:

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • 5:

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • 4:

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • 3:

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • 2:

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • 1: Poor Surround, Poor Fidelity, Poor Content

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    22

JonUrban

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Please post your thoughts and comments on this 2001 DVD-Audio release on Warner Brothers from Bela Fleck. (n):phones(y)


Bela Fleck 400.jpg
 
supurb recording and in the round mix, music is probably not to everyones taste, but i like it. given the standards set by steven wilson this is probably an 8/8.5 when it came out i would probably have given it more.
 
I never knew this existed until I read this post. Being a bluegrass fan I managed to track a used one down on Amazon so hopefully in a week or so I can give it a number!
 
This is WAY too good a disc to be sitting here with just 4 votes. It's a little off the beaten path, sure, but this is great acoustic music performed by some of the best in the business -- true legends even -- and totally discrete.

I used to recoil at the very thought of banjo, mandolin, etc. And I still don't know much to speak of about bluegrass. But I was broken in gently, and have developed an appreciation for it. That's a good thing if you live here in East Tennessee... this is bluegrass country.

Much of this sounds traditional to me -- more so than say Alison Krauss and Union Station. For those of you who aren't fans of traditional bluegrass vocals -- count me in that group -- there's only one real vocal track here, "Polka on the Banjo", and I have to say that I really like it. If there were a dozen I'd probably hate 'em, but one sounds great. As for standout tracks, I can hardly pick one out. They're all good.

Okay, if you truly hate bluegrass, you don't want this. But if you enjoy acoustic music, this is fantastic stuff -- check it out. It's a 10 to my ears.

Mark Z
 
There are many terrific aspects to this disc. For starters Fleck has assembled an all-star band (including Jerry Douglas, Sam Bush & Stuart Duncan) and the listener is placed right in the middle. There's often loose chatter before and after tunes giving this disc the feel of old friends jamming in the living room. Fleck has written most of the material and while much of it is effectively evocative of old-school bluegrass there are also tunes that lean on nontraditional progressions and rhythms. Nothing necessarily wrong with that but the material can sometimes seem somewhat restricting to the musicians. I would have preferred overall more traditional, looser fare that allowed the musicians even more opportunity to cut loose and show off their impressive improvisational and technical chops. That complaint notwithstanding I do really enjoy this disc. The presentation and musicianship are first rate. A solid 9 for me.
 
So, I've had this for a couple months....got it for a good bargain. Honestly, the music is pretty good. It's blue grass, so don't think otherwise. The mix is OK...not too much discreet"ness" going on, but it's got a good sound.

I'd vote a 7. It's good.....if that 's what you like. :)
 
No whacky surround auto-panning (with the notable exception of "Do You Have Room?" lol), no, but this mix is as discrete as it gets, in terms of static placement!
Sound is superb! Content is great, but I like other Fleck records waaaay better.
Like Perpetual Motion...
Very pleasant. Will get muchos listenos.
9 from El Baggeh
 
Short take - demo disc in this genre. Excellent!

I vote a 10. Anyone who likes bluegrass and comes into my sweet spot gets some of this in their ears. I don't recall any panning, but the instrument placement is discrete as can be - it's like sitting in the middle of a circle of some of the best musicians in the world! The recording is as clean as a whistle. Only a few of my discs leave the shelf as often as this one, but I have many bluegrass friends, and I go to festivals myself. The only thing close to this in the genre is Nickel Creek - This Side, which I have started to compose a post about but have gotten sidetracked.

Before I leave this disc, anyone who is going shopping for this one needs to know about a quirk in the packaging which might lead you to a stereo copy when you thought you were getting surround. Complete details can be found here:

https://www.quadraphonicquad.com/forums/index.php?threads/bela-fleck.16072/post-165212
Shop carefully for this one, but do check it out!
 
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Short take - demo disc in this genre. Excellent!

I vote a 10. Anyone who likes bluegrass and comes into my sweet spot gets some of this in their ears. I don't recall any panning, but the instrument placement is discrete as can be - it's like sitting in the middle of a circle of some of the best musicians in the world! The recording is as clean as a whistle. Only a few of my discs leave the shelf as often as this one, but I have many bluegrass friends, and I go to festivals myself. The only thing close to this in the genre is Nickel Creek - This Side, which I have started to compose a post about but have gotten sidetracked.

Before I leave this disc, anyone who is going shopping for this one needs to know about a quirk in the packaging which might lead you to a stereo copy when you thought you were getting surround. Complete details can be found here:

https://www.quadraphonicquad.com/fo...072-Bela-Fleck&p=165212&viewfull=1#post165212

Shop carefully for this one, but do check it out!

And for lovers of bluegrass music check this one out: http://www.blu-ray.com/movies/The-Goat-Rodeo-Sessions-Live-Blu-ray/42255/

Brilliant from the opening note to the last with impeccable audio and video [actually reference material] and Chris Thile's [of Nickel Creek] performance is over the top. New from $7 from AmazonUS third party vendors + s/h.
 
I voted 9 but came out 10 just because the music made me happy. i saw this come up last week on QQ and I had to get it.This is a DVD Audio delight. All the things I love, the sturdy DVD A jewel case, the on screen menu, Advanced Resolution Audio, and great blue grass music in surround sound 5.1 PCM 24/96.
Some members on QQ have their hobby collection old Quad stuff, I would love to own the entire DVD-A collection, most of them Warner Bros. I think?
 
And for lovers of bluegrass music check this one out: The Goat Rodeo Sessions Live Blu-ray Release Date May 29, 2012

Brilliant from the opening note to the last with impeccable audio and video [actually reference material] and Chris Thile's [of Nickel Creek] performance is over the top. New from $7 from AmazonUS third party vendors + s/h.
Thanks for the tip on GOAT Rodeo Blu-ray. Just ordered the last one in stock from AMAZON and anxious to sit down and absorb it all!
 
This Bela Fleck DVD-A was one of the first ones I bought after getting my DVD-A capable player many years ago. It's an impeccable disc as far as the artistry, the overall sound quality, the surround mix and the engaging content which is varied sufficiently to hold interest to listen to it all the way through. Even as a stalwart bluegrass fan, I am aware that a full album of BG instrumentals (one exception - Polka on the Banjo) can be wearing at times but the selections here are really quite differentiated without straying too far afield from the genre. Love this disc and play it regularly. The "in the middle of it all mix" is so fitting for the bluegrass aficionado and causes one to appreciate the talent of the individual players even more due to the discrete placement. This is a disc that truly exemplifies how the surround format can enhance the music appreciation and listening experience.
 
There’s some great comments here; a few of you have summed the album & mix up perfectly.
This is as discrete as it gets. It’s a demo-worthy disc that I play for anyone who has never experienced surround sound. Each amazing musician gets their own channel, with you sitting in the middle of them and it’s never been easier to distinguish each of the ingredients of great acoustic/bluegrass music.

Bluegrass might be more of a wider genre than people think and Bela Fleck is on the outskirts in my opinion. I believe many people who think they wouldn’t like this, …would.
I play guitar, mandolin, a little banjo …I’m a little biased & I like bluegrass, …definitely not all of it, but I also like so many other genres & this is simply great music, performed by some of the best, if not, the best in the world, …& in my opinion, it’s a wonderful surround experience.

I really love this release, it’s one of my all-time favorites and I can’t recommend it enough.

I would give this mix a 9, but the music brings it to a 10.
 
Just to note, in case anyone knows how to, the artist's name in the title for this stream needs fixing. It's Bela. He's a he.
 
To me, this is an easy 10. I've had the CD almost since it came out. You really can't find a more prestigious assemblage of bluegrass musicians, and playing original compositions that reflect both the bluegrass genre, and Bela Fleck's eclectic and approachable jazz sensibilities. That makes for an album that is easy to describe as "bluegrass for people who don't listen to bluegrass." If you like jam bands, if you like jazz noodling, if you like displays of exceptional musicianship in general, if you like hearing acoustic instruments recorded and mixed well, this album is something you'll find enjoyment in. Indeed, a song like "Spanish Point" would not be out of place onstage at a jazz festival if a banjo, flattop acoustic guitar, and dobro weren't turned away at the door. There's no one here who doesn't shine as a soloist when it's their turn, though Jerry Douglas's dobro work comes the closest to stealing the show sometimes, which only pushes the other musicians toward a greater whole. And if you've never listened to Bela Fleck before, I implore you to give him a chance to demonstrate the range of expression he's able to coax from a 5-string banjo. His regular band, the Flecktones, truly deserves a listen in their own right, featuring both himself and the astonishing electric bass work of Victor Wooten.

The surround arrangement is all about discrete placement of instruments into the five channels, allowing the soloists to shin while also allowing counterpoints and intertwining lines their own speakers so they can emerge that much more clearly than in the stereo mix.
 
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