vocal/choral music recommendations?

[outlier2]

Hi There,

My oldest daughter is 10 and is a huge fan of the LOTR soundtracks. She loves the beautiful vocal parts from Enya to the choral to the chants (mines of moria).

Does anyone have a recommendation for music that would appeal to her based on this sample? I need some Xmas ideas...

Thanks

[Kpt_Krunch]

outlier - try www.aixrecords.com . There is a vocal DVD-A from Zephyr on their called "Voices Unbound". It is a very very good disk, with 23 tracks total. They have a holiday special on right now where you get free shipping, you get a free sample disc, and if you buy over $100 worth of discs (5 at 24.95 each) you get their Christmas DVD "Surrounded by Christmas" which is also an outstanding disc (if you like jazzed up Christmas music - it is done very tastefully).

[outlier2]

Cool. I'll check it out. Thanks Kpt_Krunch. BTW, how is the customs hit on these things shipped from the US?

[outlier2]

Just ordered "voices unbound" along with several other titles that interested me. They have a great deal going on here for the Xmas season.

[CCarncross]

Charlotte Church recordings, Josh Groban....

[outlier2]

Are these in surround format (DVD-A or SACD?).

[Kpt_Krunch]

Originally posted by outlier2
Cool. I'll check it out. Thanks Kpt_Krunch. BTW, how is the customs hit on these things shipped from the US?

Sorry to take so long to get back to you - $5.00 + GST and that's it. My last order took a week to get here. I ordered another 9 disc's (including the voices unbound disc) and was able to get free shipping from them, even though I am in Canada. Overall, I find their disc's amazing, and you won't be disappointed. I have pretty much all their classical and acousitic disc's now, with some Jazz as well.

If you like Acoustic Guitar - I hope you ordered Peppino D'Agostino and Laurence Juber's Guitar Noir. Guitar Noir has won an award for best multi-channel DVD-Audio for it's category. And since it is all recorded in Hi-Res to begin with (not remastered from old tapes) it sounds real (I'd say unreal - but that would be an insult :))

There is also a song on the sampler from the Concorde Ensemble - "This Endris Night", which is truly outstanding. Unfortuantely, Mark told me that this group is no longer together and they are looking for replacements before they can complete the DVD - but your daughter I'm sure will love the Zephyr Disc!

[mrtanner]

Originally posted by outlier2
Are these in surround format (DVD-A or SACD?).

Disks from AIX provide incredible value. DVD-Audio on one side, DVD-video with your choice of mixes (DD/DTS) on the other side. All are wonderfully recorded.

[outlier2]

Kpt Krunch, CCarn and MrTan

Thanks for the feedback!

Yes I ordered Guitar Noir along with Zephyr, Bach, and a Ravel disk to complement the free sampler and the Xmas special. I can't wait for it to get here! I look forward to the look on my daughter's face when she can hear something recorded in MC for choral/voice.

[outlier2]

Still waiting for my AIX order. Must be slow this time of year...

I also stumbled across another choral recommendation for those of you interested in this music. 'Sacred Feast' by Gaudeamus is supposedly one of the best recorded pieces available in this format. I've ordered a copy but it seems to be hard to find. It was published by DMD. I'll let you know how it sounds. I hate waiting...

[seriousfun]

Emma Shapplin's DTS release "Eterna" sounds like it is what your daughter is looking for.

http://www.dtsentertainment.com/sellsheet.php?upc=692860109995

[outlier2]

Thanks seriousfun! I'll have to check that out. Seventeen days since my order to AIX and still no disks... probably a postal hiccup but annoying nonetheless.

[CCarncross]

As long as they are there by Christmas Eve, does it really matter?

[Kpt_Krunch]

Outlier - must be the mad Christmas rush, and maybe somehow affected by the rotating strike. I can also imagine customs is very busy, and I'm sure that's where your order is.

Looking forward to hearing your impressions on the discs (once they arrive)!

[outlier2]

The disks arrived a few days ago. It took a few weeks to get here but it got here before Xmas which is the main thing!

The AIX recordings are superb! The Zephyr disk is very nicely done although I'm not certain it will appeal to my daughter as only a small portion of it has that medieval feeling to it. I think the Gaudemus disk will be better based on the samples I've had of it.

The big surprise was Laurence Juber's Guitar Noir. This is one of the finest recrodings I have heard in a high resolution format. The skill displayed in the performance was astonishingly good.

The Latin Jazz Trio was also excellent. Again the recording was very good but a lack of bass reduced it from a reference disk to a very good disk.

The AIX all stars, surrounded by Xmas was a real treat! This disk is reference quality and a fun Jazz take on xmas toons. I even liked the surfer rendition of Hark the Harold Angels Sing (very fun and extremely well done).

I only listened to one of the two classical disks- Bach Brandenberg Concertos' 3 and 5 plus Air on a G string. The performance was average and listenable. The recording had some flaws. The LFE had some weird resonance in it as if it was picking up some low freqency interference or something. Pretty disappointing really and I would not recommend that disk.

I still haven't listened to the Ravel/Stravinksy disk.

Overall, I would say that I am very pleased with AIX and the disks. Some of the best sound quality I have heard from my system. I would highly recommend anything with Juber in it or the pianist from the Latin Jazz Trio (wow!).

I'll let you know how the Gaudemaus disk sounds when it arrives.

[CCarncross]

What a bummer.

Dad opened all my Christmas presents and pre-played all my new music! Gee thnx a lot Dad.

[outlier2]

Actually, not a bummer. The other disks were for me so I feel comfortable looking at them. The fact that I pre-screened the one I was thinking of giving her for Xmas means that she will get something else for Xmas that she will like more than Zephyr. If I was buying a book for her I'd thumb through it to make sure it was appropriate too. 10 year olds don't worry about shrink wrap if there is Xmas paper to tear through to get to the disk. My piece of mind at knowing the material is appropriate and having the opportunity to avoid disappointing her by giving her something she won't like based on the recommendation of one stranger on the internet means that peeking is justified in my opinion. I'm sure you would do the same for your kids.

[Kpt_Krunch]

outlier - good call on screening the discs! I think you'll like the Ravel/Stravinsky disc better than the Bach. The Zephyr Vocal disc may very well grow on her, though you're right about only a couple of the songs having the medieval sound to it. Peppino D'Agostino is another wonderful Acoustic Guitar release from them, though the disc is a couple of years older, and the DVD-A side is the 'Audience' mix, not the stage mix that Guitar Noir follows.

I also have an ICBM-1 Bass manager that I use for multi-channel audio. I find that device does well for taming (or adding if needed) bass levels on some discs (I find all of my M/C discs vary in bass response on my system).

Oh, btw, I did just recently buy the David Garfield disc as well (the Pianist from the Latin Jazz Trio) - and he is an incredible player to be sure. I've only had a chance to listen to the disc about three times though, so I can't say if I like it better than the Latin Jazz Trio. It is a fine disc in it's own right though.

I'm sure you'll find the more you listen to these recordings, the more you'll like them.

[outlier2]

Hi Kpt_Krunch,

I have bass management on the DVD-A analog inputs on my receiver (HK 7200) which I use instead of the crappy BM on the Pioneer 563a. I do find some variation in bass across disks but normally I can just turn up my sub a notch (PW2200) to compensate if the bass is a tad weak. This works great for most disks, including most of the AIX disks but the Latin Jazz Trio sounded like the bass wasn't miked properly or the mix deliberately reduced the bass output. For instance, on the DTS version, you can see the video of the bass player plucking away like mad but almost nothing is audible from the instrument! Notwithstanding this problem, I really liked this disk and the sound/performance of the pianist and percussionist were superb!

I hope Ravel/Stravinsky are a better example of what a quality outfit like AIX can do with a classical recording. Bach was a disappointment, especially after the high quality of the other disks.

I think my daughter will grow to like the Zephyr disk, especially some of the early French songs which are amazing! But I think I will give her Gaudemaus for the gift based on samples I've heard from Amazon. I only hope it arrives soon or I may be forced to shop for a disk at a B & M store on Xmas eve!

Thanks again for all your helpful suggestions!

Outlier

[Kpt_Krunch]

Originally posted by outlier2
Hi Kpt_Krunch,

I have bass management on the DVD-A analog inputs on my receiver (HK 7200) which I use instead of the crappy BM on the Pioneer 563a. I do find some variation in bass across disks but normally I can just turn up my sub a notch (PW2200) to compensate if the bass is a tad weak. This works great for most disks, including most of the AIX disks but the Latin Jazz Trio sounded like the bass wasn't miked properly or the mix deliberately reduced the bass output.
Outlier

Interesting, I have an H/K 520, along with a PA2000 that I use to drive the Main L/R channels, and a PW2200 and the 563a. Though, I replaced the 563a with a Samsung 841 (for DVI video for my Sammy 61" DLP). One thing I noticed with the 563a, besides not playing RHINO discs very well, was that when listening to an AIX disc, if I switched to a movie, I got no sound. I had to go back into the DVD setup and acknowledge I had a digital connection before it would work. It got really annoying.

Funny how you mention the Latin Jazz Trio. I never noticed the soft bass that much on my old Polk RT800i's. I recently upgraded to Ascend speakers, and just listened to that disk the other day. I had to turn the gain on my ICBM all the way up to hear any bass. I thought there was something wrong with the speakers. To double check, I threw on the Surrounded by Christmas disc, and lots of bass there :). I think the Polks some how artificially enhanced what little bass it got, giving a false impression of bass (though make no mistake, the bass wasn't that strong on the Polk's either). That's the nice thing with the ICBM, I can control the bass volume from that without going to the sub. It's too bad the bass wasn't mixed in properly on that disc though.

[outlier2]

Sounds like we have similar systems. I'm driving Paradigm Reference series V3's, 60's CC570 and ADP470's with a PW2000. They sound great but they are a neutral, accurate speaker and don't add bass that is not in the signal.
Accordingly, the Latin Jazz Trio sounds more like a duo. Sorry to ruin it by brining attention to it for you...

I finally listened to the Ravel/Stravinsky disk. Much better than the Bach performance and the recording was very good all around.

All in all I am happy with AIX but they are not uniformly good in quality. I haven't notice a problem with switching between disks and movies so it may have been a problem specific to your unit.



Originally posted by Kpt_Krunch
Interesting, I have an H/K 520, along with a PA2000 that I use to drive the Main L/R channels, and a PW2200 and the 563a. Though, I replaced the 563a with a Samsung 841 (for DVI video for my Sammy 61" DLP). One thing I noticed with the 563a, besides not playing RHINO discs very well, was that when listening to an AIX disc, if I switched to a movie, I got no sound. I had to go back into the DVD setup and acknowledge I had a digital connection before it would work. It got really annoying.

Funny how you mention the Latin Jazz Trio. I never noticed the soft bass that much on my old Polk RT800i's. I recently upgraded to Ascend speakers, and just listened to that disk the other day. I had to turn the gain on my ICBM all the way up to hear any bass. I thought there was something wrong with the speakers. To double check, I threw on the Surrounded by Christmas disc, and lots of bass there :). I think the Polks some how artificially enhanced what little bass it got, giving a false impression of bass (though make no mistake, the bass wasn't that strong on the Polk's either). That's the nice thing with the ICBM, I can control the bass volume from that without going to the sub. It's too bad the bass wasn't mixed in properly on that disc though. :( :( :(

[tunerguy]

Some of my favs are Sacred Feast like someone else said.baltic Voices is also good.Estonian philharmonic orchestra.Mormin Tabernacle choir has a christmas SACD on Telarc & I believe Mannhatan transfer has a christmas SACD also.On Penetone the Russian Orthodox Church music on SACD.Vaughn Williams is got music called :the Sea:

[outlier2]

tunerguy,

Great stuff! I ordered Sacred Feast over a month ago and I'm still waiting. I ordered it through Amazon.ca from Caiman.USA. They suck. I'm pissed.

I own the Vaughn Williams SACD: A Sea Symphony- an awesome recording with pure DSD all the way through! Highly recommeded.

I'll look into your other suggestions. Looks like some interesting ideas.

Cheers!

[outlier2]

Finally got Gaudeamus- Sacred Feast (ordered it over a month ago). Awesome choral recording that turns my HT into a cathedral. My daughter loves it. Higly recommended if you like the sound of the XBOX Halo game or LOTR soundtracks.