Despite their penchant for all things digital, Devialet has a soft spot for vinyl. Witness their fifth LP release in just over a year with Ella Fitzgerald Live at the Concertgebouw – 1961. This follows Sarah Vaughan, Bill Evans, Oscar Peterson, and Dave Brubeck, and continues the series focus of “Lost Recordings.”
I’ve not heard the vinyl copies yet, but have been given the opportunity to download 24-bit samples to listen to, and the sonics of those cuts are impressive indeed. I’ll be shooting the French company a note to see if I can get an LP for review – stay tuned.
In the meantime, here’s some more information on the recording process, and the story behind the LPs from Devialet.
–Rafe Arnott
From the press release:
The adventure of The Lost Recordings was born of a partnership with Fondamenta, a music label with which we share the same passion, and a mad challenge: to find mythical recordings, unpublished, lost and bring them back to life. By bringing together the best archaeologists of sound, who for more than a year have traveled the world in search of mythical recordings lost in the immensity of the archives. By developing a unique process, the Phoenix Mastering, using Expert for an extraordinary process of restoring these analog bands. And the project The Lost Recordings was born.
The restoration of the tapes and the remastering of the recordings could not have been carried out so perfectly without the help of Fondamenta. In particular, thanks to the exceptional performance of Expert Pro’s analog-to-digital converter, they have developed a unique process called Phoenix Mastering®, which makes it possible to recover an incredible sound quality.
The Album:
A true vector of emotions, vinyl is an analogue medium of excellence capable of transmitting all the warmth and authenticity of an old recording. This is why this support, pressed in 180 grams to guarantee an audiophile quality, was obvious for a collection as unique.
Produced in one of the world’s finest pressing factories, with an exclusive, limited-edition design, each vinyl from the Lost Recordings collection is a rare item. Each album is limited to 900 copies.
The Lacquer:
Carved in pure aluminum foil and coated with cellulosic lacquer, this fascinating object is the ultimate analogue support. Its exceptional physical properties make it possible to engrave all the finest details and the richest textures of a recording. Yet, lacquers are not listened to, being used only in the vinyl manufacturing process to create pressing dies.
Few people in the world have had the chance to listen to this unique medium. With the Lost Recordings collection, we offer you the opportunity to experience and share this intense emotional experience.
