Brenda Russell-The Jazz Channel Presents (2001) |
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General | Extras | ||
Category | Music | Featurette-Meet The Artist | |
Rating | |||
Year Of Production | 2001 | ||
Running Time | 72:06 | ||
RSDL / Flipper | No/No | Cast & Crew | |
Start Up | Menu | ||
Region Coding | 2,4 | Directed By | Waymer Johnson |
Studio
Distributor |
Warner Vision |
Starring | Brenda Russell |
Case | Soft Brackley-Transp | ||
RPI | $39.95 | Music | Brenda Russell |
Video | Audio | ||
Pan & Scan/Full Frame | Full Frame |
English Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s) English Dolby Digital 2.0 (224Kb/s) English dts 5.1 (1536Kb/s) |
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Widescreen Aspect Ratio | None | ||
16x9 Enhancement | No | ||
Video Format | 576i (PAL) | ||
Original Aspect Ratio | 1.33:1 | Miscellaneous | |
Jacket Pictures | No | ||
Subtitles | None | Smoking | No |
Annoying Product Placement | No | ||
Action In or After Credits | Yes, the band plays out over the final credits. |
What I do know is that this concert presented a very pleasant listen that, while never threatening to become an intense concert experience, was refreshing and quite soothing after a hard week at work. Probably the greatest downfall to this show is that, frankly, it looks like a television show. The audience is quite subdued (at least until the latter stages of the show when Brenda Russell gets the audience on their feet), and the stage and lighting just look, well, cheap. As I previously stated, the concert - in terms of lighting and set design - reminds me of performances on telethons, or on the late Hey, Hey, It's Saturday. This does detract from the atmosphere of the production somewhat, but nonetheless I suspect fans will be more than pleased.
Fortunately, the aural aspect of the presentation is not affected by the "made-for-TV" appearance of the disc. A big let down is the total lack of any form of background information on Brenda Russell - there is not even a discography.
1. Expect A Miracle 2. Catch On 3. She's In Love 4. Way Back When 5. If Only For One Night 6. Walkin' In New York 7. Love And Paris Rain | 8. In An Ideal World 9. Piano In The Dark 10. Please Felipe 11. Something About Your Love 12. So Good So Right 13. Get Here |
Presented full frame 1.33:1, this transfer appears to have been shot on video and transferred to DVD later. I cannot confirm this, but the properties of the transfer appear consistent with an (albeit clean) video source.
The sharpness of this transfer is quite good, but not spectacular. The entire presentation has very much a "telethon" feel, from the small auditorium to the small stage, and cheap-looking backing lights. Throughout the transfer, grain is always a threatening presence, but it is always kept in check, never breaking out of the backgrounds. Shadow detail is good, although the bright stage lighting keeps it from really being an issue. There is no low-level noise in the transfer.
The colours appear a little washed out, although this is probably more due to the amount of blue used in the stage lighting than any real problem with the transfer.
There were no MPEG artefacts visible, and neither were there any film artefacts. The fact that the transfer was not extremely sharp also helped in terms of reducing aliasing, as there are only a few, very minor instances, mostly caused by the grille on the microphone.
There are no subtitles present on this disc.
This is a single layer disc and hence contains no layer change.
Sharpness | |
Shadow Detail | |
Colour | |
Grain/Pixelization | |
Film-To-Video Artefacts | |
Film Artefacts | |
Overall |
There are three audio tracks present on this disc. There are two 5.1 mixes - a Dolby Digital mix at 448Kbps, and a DTS mix. There is also a Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo track at 224Kbps.
The clarity of individual instruments was very good. There was never a problem with one drowning out another, and vocals were also mixed in at exactly the right level. The only real problem was the applause in the surround soundtracks, which was often louder than the performance, and quite harsh in tone.
There were no problems with audio sync during the transfer.
The use of the surround channels was quite extensive, but also subtle. Many instruments were worked into the rear channels, and while this is certainly not to the level of The Corrs: Unplugged, the surround mix is still quite impressive. Obviously crowd noise has been worked into the surround channels as well, and while occasionally it can be quite loud, it is never too much of a distraction. For the stereo mix, the placement across the soundstage is quite wide, giving the mix quite a dynamic feel, separating out the individual sounds quite nicely.
The subwoofer gets an impressive workout on both surround soundtracks. The DTS track works the bass slightly harder, but both the DTS and Dolby Digital tracks feature very sharp, well defined bass that is a real pleaser to experience.
Dialogue | |
Audio Sync | |
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts | |
Surround Channel Use | |
Subwoofer | |
Overall |
NOTE: To view non-R4 releases, your equipment needs to be multi-zone compatible and usually also NTSC compatible.
The video quality is very good, although it is encumbered with the appearance of having been shot on video.
The audio quality certainly breaks no new barriers for concert DVDs, however what is presented is a very solid effort providing a good concert experience.
This disc contains little in the way of extras, although the single interview is quite interesting.
Video | |
Audio | |
Extras | |
Plot | |
Overall |
Review Equipment | |
DVD | Pioneer DV-535, using S-Video output |
Display | RCA 80cm. Calibrated with Video Essentials. This display device is 16x9 capable. |
Audio Decoder | Built in to amplifier/receiver. Calibrated with Video Essentials. |
Amplification | Onkyo TX-DS787, THX Select |
Speakers | All matching Vifa Drivers: centre 2x6.5" + 1" tweeter (d'appolito); fronts and rears 6.5" + 1" tweeter; centre rear 5" + 1" tweeter; sub 10" (150WRMS) |