What's new

Universal DVD-Audio press release. (long) (1 Viewer)

John Kotches

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Mar 14, 2000
Messages
2,635
Quoted below is the entire text of Universal Music's Press Release this morning about their intended DVD-Audio releases.

Aug 4, 2003 08:00 ET

Universal Music Group Releasing DVD-Audio Titles Beginning September 2003

Upcoming DVD-Audio Release Schedule Features World-Renowned Universal Artists Including Andrea Bocelli, Diana Krall, Sheryl Crow, and Sting, Among Others

SANTA MONICA, Calif., Aug. 4 /PRNewswire/ -- Universal Music Group (UMG), the world's leading music company, today announced its first DVD-Audio titles to be released in the United States beginning on September 23, 2003. UMG plans an ongoing DVD-Audio release program that will offer best-selling artists and core catalog titles to major markets worldwide.


"UMG continues to offer music fans a wide variety of formats in which to enjoy our music. DVD-Audio gives consumers a quality sonic experience, while also offering bonus enhanced content," said Larry Kenswil, President, eLabs, Universal Music Group. "The popularity of the DVD format makes DVD-Audio a natural choice for consumers who wish to experience the world of multi-channel surround sound."


UMG titles slated for release on DVD-Audio include:

* Aaron Neville - Nature Boy: The Standards Album
* Andrea Bocelli - Verdi: Arias
* Anne-Sophie Mutter - Vivaldi: Four Seasons
* Beck - Sea Change
* Cecilia Bartoli - The Vivaldi Album
* Christian Thielemann - Orff: Carmina Burana
* Claudio Abbado - Beethoven Symphonies 1, 2 (among others)
* Dave Grusin - Two For The Road
* David Sanborn - timeagain
* Diana Krall - Love Scenes, When I Look In Your Eyes, The Look Of Love
* Peter Frampton - Frampton Comes Alive!
* Elton John - Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
* George Strait - Honkytonkville
* John Hiatt - Bring the Family
* Marvin Gaye - Collection
* Ryan Adams - Gold
* Shania Twain - Up!
* Sheryl Crow - The Globe Sessions
* Steely Dan - Gaucho
* Sting - Brand New Day
* The Who - Tommy
* 3 Doors Down - Away from the Sun
* Vince Gill - High Lonesome Sound
* Valery Gergiev - Tchaikovsky: 6th Symphony


All of UMG's releases have been remixed and remastered from the original multi-track masters, taking advantage of the superior Advanced Resolution surround and stereo sound quality available with DVD-Audio. Typically UMG's DVD-Audio discs will include bonus content including photos, biographies, lyrics, discographies and videos. UMG DVD-Audio discs will also play on existing DVD-Video players using Dolby Digital(TM) surround sound. To learn more about DVD-Audio and UMG releases, visit www.umusic.com/dvda.


About Universal Music Group


Universal Music Group is the world's leading music company with wholly- owned record operations or licensees in 71 countries. Its businesses also include Universal Music Publishing Group, one of the industry's largest global music publishing operations.


Universal Music Group consists of record labels Decca Record Company, Deutsche Grammophon, Interscope Geffen A&M Records, Island Def Jam Music Group, Lost Highway Records, MCA Nashville, Mercury Records, Motown Records, Philips, Polydor, Universal Music Latino, Universal Records, and Verve Music Group as well as a multitude of record labels owned or distributed by its record company subsidiaries around the world. The Universal Music Group owns the most extensive catalog of music in the industry, which is marketed through two distinct divisions, Universal Music Enterprises (in the U.S.) and Strategic Marketing & Commercial Affairs (outside the U.S.). Universal Music Group also includes eLabs, a new media and technologies division.


Universal Music Group is a unit of Vivendi Universal, a global media and communications company.


Contacts: Kelly Mullens
(212) 331-2569

Bob Bernstein
(310) 865-0589

Source: Universal Music Group

CONTACT: Kelly Mullens, +1-212-331-2569, or Bob Bernstein,
+1-310-865-0589, both of Universal Music Group


Web site: http://www.umusic.com/dvda




To see more releases from Universal Music Group (UMG), Click Here (Link not active in cut/paste
 

John Kotches

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Mar 14, 2000
Messages
2,635
Interestingly enough, I do notice some title duplication between SACD and DVD-A releases...

Anyone else want to chime in on the duplication?

Regards,
 

Shawn C

Screenwriter
Joined
May 15, 2001
Messages
1,429
Yeah, I noticed that too. Now we can argue over which titles sound better on what format!
 

John Kotches

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Mar 14, 2000
Messages
2,635
Shawn,

It really depends, since there is the theoretical opportunity to make changes between formats ;)

For titles that were done in 24/96K, like SDs Gaucho the comparison would be pointless IMO, since the DSD stream was derived from the PCM.

If any of these were mixed via analog to multi-channel, there is a better chance of a head to head comparison.

Regards,
 

David Coleman

Supporting Actor
Joined
Jan 5, 2000
Messages
764
OK here's my titles:

ELTON JOHN- GOODBYE YELLOW BRICK ROAD
STEELY DAN- GAUCHO
MARVIN GAYE- COLLECTION
DAVID SANBORN-TIMEAGAIN

if the price is right i'm gonna have some fun this September!!
 

LarryDavenport

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Nov 15, 1999
Messages
2,972
The Who's Tommy looks exciting, especially if they do a 5.1 mix. I already have Sea Change on SACD and will probably get the SACD of Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, especially if it's a hybrid.
 

Michael St. Clair

Senior HTF Member
Joined
May 3, 1999
Messages
6,001
Wow, this is incredible news. Huge news for DVD-A.

This will fuel the comparison debate, but regardless of how the recordings were produced, there will be no resolution as to which is more accurate. To do that, you have to do individual blind comparisons to the original master. Individuals can certainly judge preference, but that does not necessarily correlate to accuracy. Preference is more subjective, accuracy much less so (especially with controlled testing).

I'm just happy to see more releases. Very exciting!
 

Alan_Horner

Stunt Coordinator
Joined
Aug 7, 2001
Messages
232
The Who's Tommy looks exciting, especially if they do a 5.1 mix.
Tommy will indeed be a 5.1 remix. This came straight from the horse's mouth (so to speak) a few months ago. Pete Townshend's Web site had a diary entry of March 27 in which the composer of Tommy talked about how much he enjoyed DVD-Audio and its possibilities. In the diary entry, Townshend let it slip that he (yes, "he") was working on a 5.1 remix of Tommy. Curiously, the entry was deleted a short time later and has never reappeared.

Looks like Pete let the cat out of the bag sooner than the higher ups would have liked, but the fact remains that he did state that Tommy would see the light of day in a new 5.1 mix. Yeah!
 

Alan_Horner

Stunt Coordinator
Joined
Aug 7, 2001
Messages
232
I'm very interested in seeing whether or not Universal will actually include supplemental materials (i.e., videos, etc.) on the DVD-A editions of titles that will see a dual release on SACD.

It seems strange that a company would one-up their own titles. Perhaps they view the different formats as entirely separate entities, but for those of us with universal players, the release of the same title on DVD-A with supplemental materials has a clear edge over an audio-only SACD edition.

Not surprisingly, the first batch of Universal's DVD-A titles don't have SACD counterparts, so it's impossible to tell what their policy will be. But with discs like Goodbye Yellow Brick Road and others set for release on both SACD and DVD-A, the question will have to be answered soon. Looks like I'll be cancelling that pre-order of Gaucho on SACD and simply "wait and see" what the DVD-A edition will be like.
 

John Kotches

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Mar 14, 2000
Messages
2,635
Alan,

?????

Two of the 3 Diana Krall titles, When I Look in Your Eyes and The Look of Love are also available on SACD.

Beck's Sea Change is on SACD and I believe the Bocelli's Verdi: Arias is also on SACD.

There are other "dual release" titles slated, that haven't hit market yet.

Regards,
 

Mike Broadman

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Aug 24, 2001
Messages
4,950
I don't think I'd be interested in getting titles I already have on SACD, like the Krall. Sure, it would be nice to have both, but I'd rather spend that money on other high-res titles.

The only two on that list that are of interest to me personally are Tommy and Marvin Gaye, both music that I've only recently gotten into (I know, shame on me!).

The number and prestige of some of these titles are exciting. I just don't get why they picked so many titles that are also on SACD.
 

Lee Scoggins

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Aug 30, 2001
Messages
6,395
Location
Atlanta, Georgia
Real Name
Lee
It seems like a blown opportunity to release the same titles on DVDA. Why not release more new titles on DVDA? There appears to be a lot of duplication...maybe Universal is setting up a horse race. But in that case, I would wonder if the comparison would be slanted in favor of the earlier SACDs?

Duplication is substantial here:

Sting
Gergiev pieces
Shania Twain
Diana Krall
Peter Frampton
Steely Dan
John Hiatt
Beck
Anne Sophie Mutter
Cecilia Bartoli
Ryan Adams

All of these have SACDs...curious...

To do that, you have to do individual blind comparisons to the original master.
Actually, Chesky and Telarc would tell you the best test they have already conducted: comparing DSD and PCM conversions of live mic feeds. Most prefer DSD, all else being equal.
 

LarryDavenport

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Nov 15, 1999
Messages
2,972
With all that extra space on DVD-A maybe we can get some outtakes or such on The Who's Tommy that they couldn't fit when they did the last remaster. My nomination for the next 5.1 Who would be The Who Sell Out.
 

Michael St. Clair

Senior HTF Member
Joined
May 3, 1999
Messages
6,001
Frankly, the engineers at Chesky and Telarc don't have more credibility to me than the man in the street, especially when 'testing' in the fashion you describe. I've never seen an engineer conduct a true, controlled, double blind A/B/X test. I've known engineers to be succeptible to placebo effect and bias. I've knew an engineer who used green markers on his CDs. No thanks.

Here is your valid test. You get a very large group of critical listeners. You randomly split it in half. The first half tests DSD to an original source, in A/B/X fashion. The second half tests PCM to an original source, in A/B/X fashion. Ideally, you repeat with more groups. You never compare PCM to DSD.

You publish the results.

Whichever format fooled the most people into thinking that it was the original master (or could not tell apart) is the one that is the most accurate/neutral/transparent.

When you have knowledge of such a test, please let us know. Constantly parroting these little anecdotal 'test' stories here gives zero credence or meaning as to which format is truly the most accurate, neutral, or transparent of the two formats.
 

Lee Scoggins

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Aug 30, 2001
Messages
6,395
Location
Atlanta, Georgia
Real Name
Lee
You never compare PCM to DSD.
There are statistically valid ways to conduct 3 way tests, by including rankings and other methods. Most of what I have heard has been DSD versus live and 24/96 versus live. It is uncanny how the transients of sharp cymbal attacks sound in DSD relative to live. I also like hirez PCM but only at 192K does it approach that of DSD.

Hey, I'm just contributing my opinions here. You can decide whether they are valuable or not.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Latest Articles

Forum statistics

Threads
356,814
Messages
5,123,765
Members
144,184
Latest member
H-508
Recent bookmarks
0
Top