Congratulations to Alexander Baker for Being our 9000th member at Blue Coast Records!

Blue Coast Records is pleased to announce its 9000th member, Alexander Baker!  Very exciting for us.  This is a 300% increase since the beginning of this year.

Alexander found our site while googling for DSD Downloads.  This lead to a site on the Sony playstation that discussed DSD capabilities which had links to Blue Coast Records.  He found, he listened, he purchased!

And then he signed up to our Blue Coast Records mailing list.   Ding, Ding, Ding, Ding, Ding!!!!  He's our 9000th member.

"Basically I'm a computer audiophile nutcase, always looking for higher quality material.." Alexander said in a note to us.

 

For being the 9000th member, Alexander will win a free download album of his choice.   Our guess is it will be in the DSD format.  :)

Who will be the 10,000th member?  Join our mailing list.  Maybe it will be YOU!

Congratulations

Blue Coast Records

What is an Audiophile? Part One (repost)

This is a repost of the article written by Cookie Marenco for PStracks.com 

We welcome your continuing comments at the PStracks.com  website.

 

What is an Audiophile?

Featured Opinions — 30 August 2011

Why does the term “Lunatic Fringe” come to mind?
Since When Did It Become Controversial Listening to Music with Great Sound?
After all, sound is a huge part of everything we do as humans, from how we communicate with each other to how we choose to spend time alone. What is wrong with wanting the sound we interact with to be the best that it can be?
I travel in music circles with pro audio engineers, recording artists, label execs and audiophiles. It surprises me that more industry people don’t go to the audiophile shows where the rubber meets the road — the people who create the music meeting those that love and buy their products.

When I ask my industry cohorts ‘why’ the first words coming from their mouths seems to be ‘lunatic fringe’ — as if ‘audiophiles’ have the plague and should be avoided at all costs.

What is defining the word ‘audiophile’ that is so bad in their minds? Can we reintroduce ‘audiophile’ to a new generation? Do we need a new word to describe a passionate listener?
A recent survey by the CEA (Consumer Electronics Association) indicates that music lovers are everywhere. They’ve analyzed the results in a study called “Notion of Quality: Audio Expectations of Consumers.” Participants were asked to rate themselves as to their music listening habits divided into 3 categories. Here are the results of how people thought of themselves.
Audio Enthusiast –34%
Moderate Interest – 34%
Low Interest – 32%
CEA estimates that there are 80,000,000 Audio Enthusiasts in the USA alone. Audio Enthusiasts would pay more money for better quality content and listening gear. Their ages run relatively equally from 18-55+, with 77% having household incomes of less than $75,000 annually and 48% are women. Is it possible to expand the ‘audiophile’ profile to include these demographics or do we need a new word? “Audio Enthusiast” isn’t a bad term. As a product manufacturer, broadening the demographic to be more inclusive is a very healthy sign and benefits the whole community.
Today, the profile for ‘audiophile’ seems to be over 50 years old, male, with income over $100,000 annually. Some manufacturers feel that the estimate for ‘audiophiles’ is about 500,000 worldwide. That’s a tough nugget for any of us in the business to develop new products. Adding new categories of the demographics from the CEA report could be advantageous.
Take for instance, “women”.. something I know a bit about. I have often wondered why more women don’t consider themselves ‘audiophiles’? And, why more manufacturers haven’t taken advantage of the power of a woman’s dollar as the auto industry did in the nineties. Whether you like ‘Beats’ headphones or not, they’ve made it ‘cool’ to want better sound for a younger generation. Spending $299 on headphones is a start. If anyone feels ‘kids today’ don’t understand ‘quality in sound’, please come to my studio and experience my fresh faced interns working on analog tape, buying vinyl and unhappy with mp3 sound.

Once exposed to great sonics, they can’t go back to mp3.

In upcoming articles, I would like to poll the readership as to what it means to be called an ‘audiophile’. I welcome suggestions for questions. Is an audiophile someone who pays $xxxx for their listening environment? Someone who builds their own set of speakers? Goes to meetings with fellow listeners? Pays $1000 a foot for cable? Buys ‘Beats’ headphones? Hates mp3s? I’d like your opinion to help open our world to new ears. Let me know what you think.
This is a great forum to place your comments so we can all share.  Simply comment on this post.
Thanks and enjoy your music experience!
Cookie Marenco
Founder and Producer, Blue Coast Records
http://bluecoastrecords.com
Special thanks to Gene Bryan Johnson for his editing skills and the volunteers at
DownloadsNOW.net

Chi McClean, the latest Blue Coast Artist to have music available in the DSD format!

Hello DSD friends! 

We have a free DSD download for you to enjoy at our AudioGate.bluecoastrecords.com page by our newest Blue Coast Artist, Chi McClean!
http://audiogate.bluecoastrecords.com/

Chi has been touring the country singing and playing guitar, surfing, camping and booking more shows as he goes.  He is a true road warrior who's talent doesn't go unnoticed.  His songs are reflective of his life, loves and travels. At times, he'll remind you of John Mayer with a southern rock twist much like Chris Robinson of the Black Crowes.

You can hear the rest of his album, also available as a DSD, 9624WAV and CDQ download, by clicking on the link below..
http://chimcclean.downloadsnow.net/a-thing-or-three

This album of guitar and voice, performed live in the studio, recorded in my E.S.E. technique with no headphones or overdubs.  A different version of Hole in My Heart is now on the Blue Coast Collection 2 (song #3).  http://bluecoastrecords.downloadsnow.net/blue-coast-collection-2

Check out the article for PSTracks.com called What Is An Audiophile?  http://www.pstracks.com/2011/08/30/what-is-an-audiophile/
and join in with comments!

Special thanks goes to Paul McGowan at PSAudio and to Gene Bryan Johnson for editing expertise. 

Thanks again for all your support and

Enjoy the music!

http://bluecoastrecords.com/

join our mailing list or Facebook page
or Twitter.com/bluecoastworld

Three Free DSD Audio Downloads from Blue Coast Records!

Hi friends, each month we upload one new song for your DSD listening experience.  This month our featured artist is Keith Greeninger performing a song he wrote called, "Hop in the Truck".  Keith also has a youtube video coming featuring that song.
http://audiogate.bluecoastrecords.com/

This selected DSD comes from our archives.  Brain (drummer with Tom Waits) plays some classy percussion while Chris Kee supplies the bottom end bass.  All the songs from this session were recorded using E.S.E., no headphones, no overdubs, just live in a few takes.  Great musicianship is all that's required!  We'll have the rest of these songs available as DSD downloads by September 1st!
http://bluecoastrecords.com/special-event-02-may-2009

Also featured is a solo acoustic guitar piece by Gregory James called "Taos".  A wonderfully moody piece he composed.  Houston Jones, "I Found a Heart" is going to retire to the catalog in a month.  Be sure to get it while it's free.  One of my favorite songs.

Be sure to check our page with free DSD music downloads every month.  You can also find the Korg AudioGate software on the same page.

Come back soon!

Stereophile -- Northern California Audio Show and Blue Coast World

The Second (Northern) California Audio Show Starts Friday

By Jason Victor Serinus • Posted: Jul 11, 2011

The pendulum has swung back to the West Coast. Just one week after the Capital AudioFest, three weeks after AXPONA NYC, and six weeks after T.H.E. Show Newport Beach, the second California Audio Show is set to begin. Scheduled for July 15–17 in the Crowne Plaza SFO in Burlingame, the show is located just minutes from San Francisco Airport, a few giant steps from a major freeway, a free shuttle ride away from the airport's BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) stop, and an eight-minute walk from CalTrain's Broadway Station. Show organizer Constantine Soo, founder and editor of Dagogo.com, reports that the show currently promises 42 rooms of various sizes, all with active exhibits playing music. The list of exhibitors and brands, complete with a generous helping of California retailers, service providers, and distributors, includes a host of companies whose equipment resides in the homes and dreams of Stereophile readers.
Especially enticing are the seminars from Acoustic Science Corporation, Dan D'Agostino Master Audio Systems, Cookie Marenco's Blue Coast World, and MIT Cables (aka Music Interface Technologies). The latter two will attempt to look into the audiophile crystal ball, with MIT's "The Past, Present, and Future of High-Resolution Audio" coming directly after Marenco's "DSD—Then, Now, and Tomorrow."
Marenco's DSD seminar dovetails with the launch of Channel D's DSD-equipped Pure Music v1.8 computer playback software and the expected California Audio Show preview of Sonic Studio's forthcoming Amarra 2.3 with its own set of DSD features. Chris Connaker of ComputerAudiophile.com will join Marenco to co-moderate a panel that includes original members of the Sony DSD design team, Gus Skinas of the Super Audio Center, Leslie Ann Jones of Skywalker Sound, and legendary Telarc engineer Michael Bishop of Five/Four Productions.
On an extraordinary system assembled by Tim Marutani Consulting for Blue Coast World in the Plaza Ballroom 1, Bishop will play many of his live-to-stereo DSD masters, including previews of new Five/Four direct-to-DSD masters and new FIM re-releases of great Telarc titles. State-of-the-art equipment from Magico, TAD, Constellation Audio, Continuum Audio Labs, and Bottlehead will unite with a cutting edge computer and reel-to-reel playback set-up. Expect a first hearing of Merging Technologies' new Emotion high-end media server. The Swiss company, known for its award-winning Pyramix Digital Audio Workstation, has for the first time managed to embed its DAW Audio Engine in a stereo, multi-channel, and multi-zone Media Server that handles PCM, DXD, and DSD.
Marutani also promises to showcase Bill Schnee's Bravura Records live-to-two-channel, 192/24 recordings and Reference Recordings' HRx 176.4/24 masters. He will even offer sneak previews of RR's forthcoming Reference Mastercuts LPs. Marenco, in turn, will also offer the show's only live performances, which she will record direct-to-DSD twice daily and upload for immediate free DSD downloading. These performances were packed at the 2010 California Audio Show.
Bay Area and California retailers are also making a strong showing. AudioVision San Francisco, which sat out last year's show, is sponsoring four different rooms, with gear from Devialet, KEF, Naim, Nola, Clearaudio Simaudio Moon, Dynaudio, Bel Canto, and Anthony Gallo sending a lot of music through Crystal Cable, Nordost, Shunyata, and Cardas.
"This is actually low key for us," AudioVision co-owner Randy Johnson explains. "We first opened the shop when Stereophile held its show in San Francisco's St. Francis Hotel. We had nine rooms, which put us on the map. We're never going to attempt something like that again!"
Hardly on the sidelines, the two rooms from Music Lovers Audio Video of San Francisco and Berkeley promise Wilson, Ayre, and a whole lot more. Audio Image Ltd. of Oakland, Soundscape of Santa Rosa, Loggie Audio of Redwood City, Angel City Audio of Rancho Cucamonga, Audible Arts of Campbell, High Value AV of Santa Cruz, and Bob Hodas Acoustic Analysis of Berkeley (pairing Focal with VTL) are some of the other California Dealers who will tout premium value equipment. In addition, from the Northwest, Puget Sound Studios will play some of its fine masterings of classic and new recordings. Apologies to anyone I've missed.
Soo may not be bringing a wine show, cigar show, classic car show, and pornography convention to Burlingame, but he is enticing people with great sound and astoundingly low admission rates. Online pre-registrants can attend all three days for $10; those who buy tickets at the door will shell out a hardly gargantuan $20 for a three-day pass.
Bay Area jazz station KCSM-FM will have a live booth at the show. Every hour, they'll interview attendees, and invite audio reviewers to answer questions from their listening audience.
"We're trying to bring fresh blood to the hotel," says Soo. "Our goal is to reach a music-loving public. I want to give people an opportunity to experience this hobby and passion of ours."
To ensure that your window on the show is just as fresh, Stephen Mejias will be blogging for Stereophile. Stay tuned.

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Rob Ickes on the cover of Guitar Player Magazine!

Coming soon!  The whole article.
We're proud of Blue Coast Artist, Rob Ickes, for making the cover of Guitar Player magazine, August 2011!  Congratulations!

Jean-Claude Reynaud poursuit l'aventure du son

12 juillet 2011 | 04h00
Mis à jour | 09h34

Sud

Barbezieux: Jean-Claude Reynaud poursuit l'aventure du son

Jean-Claude Reynaud est désormais seul à la tête de la fabrique d'enceintes de Barbezieux. Son objectif: conjuguer fidélité de la marque et modernité.

Réagir

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Jean-Claude Reynaud, venu au son par son propre chemin, a la même obsession de la fidélité que son père. C'est à lui désormais de trouver de nouvelles voies.Photo CL

Jean-Marie Reynaud est mort le 31 mars dernier. Le «sorcier de Barbezieux» était reconnu comme le créateur génial des enceintes qui portent son nom. Aujourd'hui, Jean-Claude, son fils de 42 ans, reprend le flambeau. Il est PDG de l'entreprise depuis février dernier, deux mois avant la mort de son père. «C'est une très grande charge» reconnaît-il, incapable après le décès de son père «d'écouter de la musique pendant plus d'un mois». Jean-Claude est le fils naturel et spirituel de Jean-Marie. Enfant, il a joué dans l'atelier de son père. Plus grand, il a découvert son laboratoire, qui l'émerveillait, avec des boutons partout. Sa première chaîne hi-fi à onze ans, impressionnait ses copains. Il est aussi le fils spirituel en devenant un passionné de la qualité du son. Un obsédé de la fidélité restituée.
Deux parcours, le même objectif

Mais il a tracé son propre sillon. Il a plaqué l'école en terminale. Il a forcé les portes des studios d'enregistrement pour devenir ingénieur du son à Bordeaux et Paris. Il a poursuivi l'aventure dans les studios de San Francisco où il a créé un label. Il a imaginé des méthodes pour spatialiser le son, tout en collaborant avec l'Institut de recherche et coordination accoustique-musique (Ircam) de Boulez. De loin en loin, le père et le fils travaillaient, chacun à sa manière, sur la même matière. Leurs retrouvailles professionnelles semblaient inscrites. Et c'est parce que son père envisageait de vendre qu'il est revenu pour intégrer l'entreprise en 2005, en tant que simple technico-commercial. «On en a parlé pendant deux ans. Il n'était pas très chaud et pas sûr de l'avenir de l'entreprise. Il voulait me protéger.» Les deux hommes ont travaillé côte à côte pendant cinq ans. «J'apportais mon regard extérieur. Je voulais des produits plus dynamiques, plus vivants» se souvient Jean-Claude Reynaud. Il a fouillé dans les trésors enfouis de son père. «Il n'a jamais cessé d'inventer. Parfois il avait laissé tomber dans l'oubli des concepts très intéressants.»
Comme l'enceinte murale plate imaginée par le père une quinzaine d'années avant. «Mais à l'époque les gens voulaient toujours des enceintes de plus en plus grosses. Ils ne croyaient pas en son concept qui remettait en cause certaines idées.»

Cap sur le numérique

Jean-Claude Reynaud a remis au goût du jour le principe de mise en tension des haut-parleurs pour éviter les transmissions vibratoires à l'ébénisterie, et donc limiter la distorsion tout en améliorant la dynamique. «En fait une enceinte contrairement à ce que l'on croit, c'est tout sauf une caisse de résonance» précise Jean-Claude. Dans la famille Reynaud, l'enceinte est d'abord un objet au service de la fidélité. «Au-delà de la bande passante, il faut rester attentif au battement de l'air entre les instruments, être toujours au plus près de la vérité des timbres. Les ingénieurs sont capables de faire des enceintes parfaites techniquement. Ce sont toutes les mêmes, trop neutres, sans couleur, sans émotion, ni personnalité» explique le fils. La perfection d'un objet, en apparence si simple, se glisse d'abord dans les détails. Ainsi on utilise une même planche de médium pour la réalisation de toute l'ébénisterie. Chaque haut-parleur, construit en sous-traitance selon un cahier des charges précis, est rodé sur place avant d'être monté. Jean-Claude Reynaud a introduit l'utilisation d'éléments viscoélastiques qui ont la propriété de transformer l'énergie vibratoire en chaleur et donc de la neutraliser. On n'utilise pas n'importe quelle peinture pour les haut-parleurs, «elle peut changer de matière drastique la qualité restituée», raconte-t-il. Une obsession de la perfection qui n'est pas si loin de celle du père.
A lire en intégralité dans votre CL d'aujourd'hui

TAGS
• Barbezieux, 
• Sud Charente, 
• artisanat

Tim Marutani Consulting / Blue Coast World Plaza 1 Ballroom from Tim Marutani Consulting

For Immediate Release

Tim Marutani Consulting / Blue Coast World

Plaza 1 Ballroom

California Audio Show by Dagogo, July 15-17, 2011

Crowne Plaza SFO, 1177 Airport Boulevard. Burlingame, CA

Emeryville, CA  •  6/27/11 • Tim Marutani Consulting, in association with Blue Coast Records founder and engineer, Cookie Marenco, has assembled a state-of-the-art sound system for the Crowne Plaza SFO Hotel’s Plaza 1 Ballroom. The three-day display will include live performances, which Marenco will record direct-to-DSD twice daily and upload immediately for free DSD downloading. Question and answer periods will follow each recording session.

Marutani Consulting has also arranged a host of panel presentations. Thanks to Concord Music Group, First Impression Music, and Five/Four Productions, Michael Bishop, co-founder of Five/Four Productions, will play many of his live-to-stereo DSD masters. Selections will include new FIM re-releases of great Telarc Records DSD titles as well as previews of previously unheard Five/Four direct-to-DSD masters.  

Bishop, former chief engineer at Telarc Records, has been privileged to record icons of the music industry for over thirty years. His releases have helped define the sound of popular, jazz, blues, and classical music for the record-buying public. For his efforts, he has received nine Grammy Awards, Japan’s Grand Prix Award, Gramophone Magazine’s Record of the Year; and multiple Surround Music Magazine and RIAA Platinum Album awards.  

On Friday and Saturday, another industry leader, Grammy and Emmy award-winning producer and engineering veteran, Bill Schnee, will present live-to-two-channel, 24-192k recordings of several artists featured on his new audiophile label, Bravura Records. Schnee produced and engineered many of the legendary Sheffield Lab direct-to-disc recordings, including those of Thelma Houston, James Newton Howard and Friends, The Drum Record, The Track Record, etc. Grammy nominated eleven times for Best Engineered Album, he has over 135 Gold and Platinum albums to his credit. Bravura Records’ new breathtakingly live, high-resolution studio recordings must be heard to be believed!

Randomly throughout the show, Marutani will play Reference Recordings 2-channel DSD and high-resolution PCM masters (in HRx 176.4 kHz/24 bit format). In addition, attendees will hear sneak previews of vinyl test pressings of upcoming Reference Mastercuts LPs. Since 1976, Reference Recordings has produced outstanding audiophile-class classical and jazz releases engineered by the legendary “Prof.” Keith Johnson. Johnson has received the 2010 Grammy Award for Best Surround Sound Album as well as 8 Grammy nominations for Best Engineering.

Tim Marutani Consulting’s state-of-the-art main system in the Plaza 1 Ballroom will include Magico Model Q5 Loudspeakers ($59,500/pair); Constellation Audio Altair linestage preamplifier ($65,000); Constellation Audio Hercules power amplifiers ($140,000/pair); Continuum Audio Labs turntable system ($100,000); and a computer source consisting of a Zalman TNN300 with no moving parts and external supply, Win XP,  Pyramix 6, and  Mykerinos card ($10,000). Also featured are a Mike Spitz ATR102 ½”, ½ track with Mike Spitz hybrid repro using copies from running masters (n/a); Pacific Microsonics Model Two converter for 1x, 2x, and 4x LPCM files (n/a); and Merging Technology DSD DAC (n/a).

The room’s second reference system will include Technical Audio Devices (TAD) Model CR1 Compact Reference loudspeakers ($37,000); Constellation Audio’s not-yet-released or priced Performance Series linestage preamplifier ($TBD) and stereo 250 watt power amp ($TBD); and other outstanding equipment.

Separately, Blue Coast World will host a panel entitled DSD -- Then, Now and Tomorrow. Scheduled for Saturday July 16, 1-3pm in the Peninsula Ballroom, it will be moderated by Marenco and Chris Connaker of Computer Audiophile.

The panel will include original members of the Sony DSD design team. Speakers will provide a history of the DSD recording format, and explain how it led to the development of SACD discs and high-resolution data files. Guest speakers include Gus Skinas of the Super Audio Center, Leslie Ann Jones of Skywalker Sound, and Michael Bishop, with others to be announced.

For further information, please contact Tim Marutani Consulting at tim@marutaniconsulting.com or (510) 652-1911.

Blue Coast Collection 2 debuts to Fans only and gets First Review!

Before we could get a link up on the Blue Coast Records website, Our Music Lover friend, Morten Teinum posted this wonderful photo and review of the recording.  Thanks Morten!
http://mortenteinum.blogspot.com/2011/07/blue-coast-collection-2.html
He has a beautiful blog, Check it out!

Blue Coast Collection 2

Finally!



It was supposed to be released last spring, but now it's here, and it's good. There will be multiple releases of this record. First out is download editions including 44kHz /16 bit, 96kHz / 24 bit, and the most exciting, DSDIFF files. You can also buy a promo CD, but that is a gift if you get one of the download editions (valid if you purchase a download edition in July). In september a Hybrid SACD is released.

DSDIFF or Direct Stream Digital Interchange File Format, is a file container for the format used on the SACD layer, and most likely will the SACD edition and DSDIFF be the same, except you can't rip the SACD. You can play DSDIFF files using Korg AudioGate (mac/win). There is also a DSDIFF plugin for foobar2000 (win) that will play these files without a problem.

Pure Music from Channel D (mac) is also an option.

AudioGate can convert DSDIFF files to multiple formats including flac and Apple Lossless up to 192kHz / 24bit.

On the picture above I have made a 96 kHz / 24bit copy that I can play through a SqueezeBox / Benchmark DAC.

Sonics

As expected, this is the top of the line. The music is recorded live without overdubs, digital effects and so on, and is wonderfully captured by Cookie Marenco.

This is a no-brainer - get this one:

bluecoastrecords.downloadsnow.net/

Lagt inn av Morten Teinum kl. 7:43 PM

Blue Coast Records to Demonstrate Direct Stream Digital Recording at 2011 California Audio Show (July 15-17)

The 2011 California Audio Show (CAS) will feature world renown audiophile producer Cookie Marenco and her Blue Coast Records team recording a series of acoustic performances live to Direct Stream Digital (DSD).  The sessions, using her proprietary Extended Sound Environment (E.S.E.) recording technique, will be open to the public, so fans can experience first-hand how Blue Coast’s world-class musicians are recorded in a natural setting, without headphones or overdubs.  Marenco’s recording technique was featured in the July 2011 issue of Keyboard Magazine and newly launched pstracks.com which centered around Vijay Iyer’s critically acclaimed release called Solo.  

CAS takes place the weekend of July 15th at Crowne Plaza SFO in Burlingame. The live recording events will be hosted by Blue Coast in the Plaza One Ballroom.  Veteran audio consultant and dealer Tim Marutani will share the space.  Blue Coast Artists Jane Selkye, Chris Kee, Chi McClean, Gregory James, Houston Jones, Frank Tusa and more will be performing live in the Blue Coast room. Gus Skinas from the Super Audio Center will also be present demonstrating the Sonoma DSD editing system.  Observers will be encouraged to ask questions about the equipment, techniques and recording process.


This three day exposition will introduce the next generation of high-end audio to audiophiles and the general public, with a list of exhibitors and panelists including Acoustic Science, Music Interface Technologies, Blue Coast Records and many others.  Confirmed media sponsors include Dagogo, Stereophile Magazine, Wired.com, KCSM (Jazz FM 91.1) and KOIT (Light Rock FM 96.5).  A full list of participants can be found at www.caaudioshow.com/.


Blue Coast Records founder, president and producer/engineer Cookie Marenco is a five-time Grammy nominee known throughout the music community as an A&R representative during the “golden years” of Windham Hill Records and pioneering recording engineer for Liquid Audio.   Blue Coast has been mixing and releasing audio files in DSD for more than ten years.  The DSD format provides a stunning difference in sound when compared with industry standard Free Lossless Audio Codec (FLAC) for high resolution audio distribution.  

Blue Coast Records has always been and remains committed to preserving audio at its highest quality, even under the most difficult and challenging of circumstances.


For more information on the event please visit:

BlueCoastWorld.com
Caaudioshow.com
ActMusic.downloadsnow.net/solo
http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/newbay/kb_201107/#/38
CookieMarenco.com

Thank you PSTracks.com for This Article!

Reflections on Recording Vijay Iyer’s latest album

Featured Music — 21 May 2011

To Read the complete article at PStracks.com please click here!  

Written by Cookie MarencocloseAuthor: Cookie Marenco Name: Cookie Marenco
Site: http://www.bluecoastrecords.comAbout: With more than 20 years in the music industry, Cookie Marenco’s creative and technical skills have touched almost every aspect of the business. She is widely known for the quality of her audio engineering skills and for drawing out passionate performances from the artists she produces. She has engineered or produced 5 Grammy-nominated records, several Gold records and an Academy Award-winning documentary. Her artist credits include Max Roach, Brain, Kenny Aronoff, Vijay Iyer, Kai Eckhardt, New Monsoon, Brady Blade, Tony Furtado, Tony Trischka, Dirk Powell, Rob Ickes, Charlie Haden, Tony Levin, Alex DeGrassi, Turtle Island String Quartet, Steve Rodby, Buckethead, Ralph Towner, Paul McCandless, Ernie Watts, Glen Moore, Mary Chapin Carpenter, John Jennings, Pat DiNizio, Keith Greeninger, Houston Jones, Kristin Hersch, Brad Mehldau, Matt Rollings, Kevin Kern, Art Lande, Luis Bonfa, Clara Ponty, Chanticleer, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Mark Isham and Michael Tolcher. Her production and engineering skills can be found on projects for Monterey Jazz Festival, Telluride Bluegrass Festival, Marinfest, Midem, Hard Rock Cafe, Windham Hill Records, Verve, Rounder Records, Om Records, Sony, Warner Bros. and others.See Authors Posts (1)

Vijay Iyer is an international artist of the highest caliber and reflects the new sensibilities of jazz’s next generation of players.  Though considered a ‘youngster’ in the world of jazz, Vijay has been recording albums for more than 15 years.  Vijay was named 2010 MUSICIAN OF THE YEAR in the Jazz Journalists Association Annual Jazz Awards!  I’ve had the great fortune of recording all but one of his releases.  It’s been a pleasure to watch him grow and see him grace the covers of notable magazines such as Downbeat and Jazzwise. He was recognized with a Grammy Nomination for Best Jazz Recording.
Though Vijay is a resident of New York City, he chose to fly to the San Francisco area to record at OTR Studios, my commercial recording facility of 25 years.  Because this would be his first solo piano effort, his decision to use my studio was based around the 1885 Steinway that lives at OTR along with my personal bias to record on analog tape and mix to DSD (Direct Stream Digital).  Light or heavy action, key grip, pedal noise, and you name it variations between instruments make it a challenge for any pianist to perform at their best.

Vijay is always keen to ‘future-proof’ his music by recording with the highest fidelity audio gear and format available.  We used the E.S.E (Extended Sound Environment) techniques devised for Blue Coast Records’ projects.  We simultaneously recorded to tape, DSD and 44.1khz/24bit.

Vijay’s choice of songs showed his wide appreciation for all great artists.  From Michael Jackson’s Thriller he performed a version of ”Human Nature”, my personal favorite.  Over the three-day recording period, he applied his unique interpretive style to works by Ellington, Monk and many other well-known composers. Most of you are familiar with analog tape and have heard of Direct Stream Digital recording.  DSD is a one-bit digital recording format that offers 2.8 million samples per second.  I realize there are numerous opinions on this subject of preference, but, in my view, DSD comes closest to tape and is our format of choice for multitrack recording.  Thanks to Gus Skinas and the Super Audio Center, we have a Sonoma System at OTR studios for use with EMM Labs ADDA converters.

To Read the complete article at PStracks.com please click here!

Valentine's Day Rebate from Blue Coast Records and Artist Connex!

Happy Valentine's Day to our audio friends!  We're sending you virtual hugs for supporting high resolution audio. 

Starting friday, we will be offering a 20% rebate (discount) on all products sold at Blue Coast Records and through the entire Artist Connex catalog. In celebration of Valentine's Day, any purchase of downloads through the end of the day on February 14th, 2011 will be eligible.  Rebates will be credited back to your account no later than February 18.

Our DSD catalogue includes some of our favorites
http://bluecoastrecords.com/blue-coast-collection
http://bluecoastrecords.com/while-she-sleeps
http://keithdayan.downloadsnow.net/

There are plenty of new titles in the Artist Connex Music Discovery module from various labels. 

If you have not been at the site recently, we are pleased to announce that there are 3 DSD songs available for free download.  In conjunction with Korg and their wonderful AudioGate software, we will offer one new download to guests registered at the site.

http://audiogate.bluecoastrecords.com

There will always be 3 songs in DSD available for collectors of high resolution audio.

This is a good time to begin collecting the downloads.

You can get AudioGate free from Korg here.

http://www.korguser.net/audiogate/en/index.html

Watch for next month's newsletter, we have a very special announcement to make....

If you can guess what that announcement is, I'll give you a free download of any song in the catalog!

Happy Valentine's Day
We love your all!

Cookie Marenco
Blue Coast Records
founder and producer