Capturing a steel string acoustic guitar performance is a tricky thing. Recording a performance is easier. There are many wonderful recordings of steel string guitarists, and most fall into one of two point-of-view camps: the audience or the guitar. Rare is the capturing of the fine line between the audience and the instrument. In fact, this elusive perspective is arguably one of the joys of playing guitar (or any instrument). During a performance, the artist enjoys a truly omniscient perspective, paradoxically becoming both the instrument and the audience. Perhaps this is what musicians call “the zone,” where one “channels,” rather than plays.
Peppino D’Agostino immigrated sixteen years ago to America to pursue his dream as a composer and performer. Those early days as a struggling street musician (and sometimes house painter and vegetable seller) in San Francisco now seem far behind. Since then, D’Agostino has released eight critically acclaimed albums, has composed a soundtrack for a major film, and is found on many guitar samplers, videos, and books with some of the leading guitarists of our time. His international touring schedule reaches from The Great American Music Hall in San Francisco to The Atrium in Prague, and from the Vancouver Festival in Canada to the Strawberry Music Festival in California. D’Agostino’s unique way of playing on the fretboard with the left hand while simultaneously creating percussive effects with the right hand, combined with his use of unconventional tunings, results in a sound that seems almost impossible on one guitar.
AIX Records DVD-Audio offering Peppino D’Agostino: Acoustic Guitar reveals D’Agostino in fantastic form. Special musical guest Juan Van Emmerloot provides drums and percussion embellishments on the recording, which complement the guitarist’s own complex and percussive style.
Audio & Mix:
Peppino D’Agostino: Acoustic Guitar is an AIX “Tribrid” release, and includes hi-res 96khz/24-bit DVD-Audio tracks, video, and ROM features on a dual-sided (DVD-10) disc. The DVD-Audio side of the disc (red label side up) provides an uncompressed 5.1 96/24 MLP “Audience Mix,” as well as a stereo 96/24 PCM mix for DVD-Video player compatibility. The effective micing technique (seen in the video of the performance) is the key to the unique POV blend of audience and instrument. Multiple stereo pairs of microphones are placed close to each instrumentalist to provide isolation and flexibility for the 5.1 surround and stereo mixes. Additional mics are placed in the back of the hall to capture the ambience.
While the DVD-Audio 5.1 surround option is labeled as an “Audience Mix,” there is a startling quality to D’Agostino’s guitar, which contributes to blurring the line between audience and performer. Imaging is widely spread across the front speakers, with ambience spreading into the surrounds. D’Agostino’s percussive techniques contribute to some low end, which is thankfully not overemphasized to provide “wow” LFE action (Dr. Waldrep’s recording philosophy, evident on all AIX releases, is “…pure music made without equalization, dynamic compression, artificial reverberation, and overdubbing”). D’Agostino’s guitar sounds as it should, incorporating a natural, full-bodied tone, crystal-clear harmonics, and impressive dynamics. A minor quibble about the DVD-Audio “Audience Mix” is that Van Emerloot’s drums and percussion sound a bit hollow and flat compared to D’Agostino’s exquisite guitar. Also, the more aggressive percussion contributed by Van Emerloot sometimes distracts in this mix.
The additional option of a stereo 24/96 PCM mix – also located on the red label side of the disc – appears to be a downmix of the “Audience” perspective. While it’s an excellent stereo representation of the performances, the real winner is the 5.1 mix.
The DVD-Video side of the disc (blue label up) includes my preferred mix: the DTS 5.1 “Stage Mix,” along with a Dolby Digital 5.1 version of the “Audience Mix.” More on the DTS mix in a bit. Compared to the uncompressed DVD-Audio option, the Dolby Digital encoding of the “Audience Mix” frankly exhibits less spacious sonics. The impressive, subtle imaging between speakers in the DVD-Audio version is an excellent example of high-res, uncompressed audio, and comparing it to the Dolby Digital version is an ear-opening example of the limitations of compression. However, for those listeners who have not yet upgraded to DVD-Audio, the inclusion of the “Audience Mix” in Dolby Digital 5.1 is an interesting alternative to the “Stage Mix.”
One might think the DTS 5.1 “Stage Mix” is simply that – a performer’s perspective; however, this mix also combines the performances of D’Agostino and Van Emerloot much more successfully than the “Audience Mix.” Whereas Van Emerloot’s percussion seems oddly disembodied and removed from D’Agostino’s guitar in the “Audience” option, the “Stage” perspective provides a more cohesive blend of the instruments. It’s intriguing that a more expressionistic mixing approach would ironically provide a more satisfying “truth” to the pairing of the performers. While I would have preferred the “Stage Mix” as the DVD-Audio choice, the DTS track is magnificent. Since it is a different mix, it’s difficult to compare the DTS track’s sonic quality to the uncompressed DVD-Audio MLP option. However, the sonic fundamentals remain the same: impressive tone, spacious imaging, and dynamics. Much more evident, though, is the improved audio quality of Van Emerloot’s drums and percussion. In this mix, his contributions make liberal use of the rear speakers without sounding “boxy,” and his various percussive trinkets are clearly defined.
Extras & Highlights:
A (nearly) full-length video of the program included on the DVD-Video side of the disc captures all the performances, minus the mysterious “Ponteio.” I say “mysterious,” because this track includes a mind-bending percussion breakdown of unique timbres, which leaves me wondering how it was done. Since there’s no video for this track, I guess it will remain a mystery…
Video quality is serviceable, but at least one camera set-up sports rough zooms and exposure anomalies – it seems the cameraperson is adjusting the camera lens’ iris during some shots, making the exposure modulate at times. Even so, the full screen video provides a clear image without distracting edge or compression problems, and it’s a nice document of the actual performances.
Features accessible from the main menu are: The Musicians (including bios, discographies, contact info, etc.), The Recording (including detailed tech notes and session photos), The Disc (including a "Welcome and Introduction" by Dr. Waldrep and "How To Use This Disc" explanation on disc navigation), Audio/Video Setup (including video angles and audio track options), AIX Records (including a catalog listing of the label’s classical, jazz, acoustic, and vocal/misc. titles), and Credits (reproduced from the Jewel Box booklet).
The booklet is a one-page, folded affair, with liner notes comprised of abridged text information from the disc.
Menus & Interface:
Unfortunately, a fairly loud AIX Records logo is the first thing that one encounters when the disc spins up. Other AIX DVD-Audio titles include a silent logo (which is preferred). The simple, static main menu provides a listing of the songs, as well as access to the aforementioned features: The Musicians, The Recording, The Disc, Audio/Video Setup, AIX Records, and Credits.
ROM & Weblinks:
A hyperlink to AIX Record’s website is included as the disc’s sole ROM feature.
Artists & Technicians:
Peppino D’Agostino: Acoustic Guitar is performed by Peppino D’Agostino (steel string guitar) and Juan Van Emerloot (drums and percussion).
Recording credits: Dr. Mark Waldrep (producer, art director, recording and mixing engineering), Janice Davies (associate producer), Andrew Giacumakis (audio engineer), Dominic Robelotto (audio preparation), Nick Sanders (video production), Nate Jones (video production), Chris Davies (video editing and compression), Brent Curtis (DVD authoring), and Jason Kissinger (DVD authoring and quality control).
Conclusions & Afterthoughts:
While there are a few impossibilities in life, leave it to the fine folks at AIX Records to achieve the improbable. With the release of Peppino D’Agostino: Acoustic Guitar, AIX Records’ founder and chief engineer, Dr. Mark Waldrep, offers a gift for acoustic guitar aficionados and music fans alike: the opportunity to experience an acoustic guitar performance from the omniscient (and elusive) point of view of the performer. Fans of steel string guitar maestros Michael Hedges, Stephen Stills, and Leo Kottke will surely find D’Agostino’s performances on AIX’s excellent DVD-Audio disc immensely satisfying.
