MY REEL CLUB PRESENTS A UNIQUE MUSIC RECORDING PROCESS

My Reel Club says that it represents a “new era in high-end audio recordings for unique and thrilling entertainment and education”.

The cornerstone of My Reel Club recordings lies in a community funding concept that involves audiences, performers, investors, and producers.

HIGH END AUDIO LABEL

My Reel Club is the first high-end audio label funded by a community dedicated to producing the highest possible quality artisan recordings for all platforms and formats, aiming to introduce music lovers to the basics of sophisticated music listening.

My Reel Club presents a unique music recording process with two alternative versions of live studio performances using the same recording chain in parallel.

My Reel Club founder Ferenc Koscsó

COMPARATIVE LISTENING

The comparative listening of the two versions is an experience which allows audiences to transparently analyse the results of the two recordings with different technologies. By comparing the two versions, the listener can evaluate the capabilities of the device chain and loudspeakers at home, the accuracy of the spatial placement, the natural timbres and the quality of the sound field. Listeners will be able to understand how modern music production processes alter live sound.

The first variation is the digital DXD version mixed live to stereo on an analogue desk and recorded with 352.8 kHz sampling, processed without editing, post-production or mastering. The chain includes one of the top A/D converters (Merging Anubis ADC with external linear power supply, Pyramix recording software). The first variation analogue stereo feed was also recorded on analogue tape at 38 cm/s speed using a Nagra IVS recorder. The average dynamic range of these recordings is higher than the current commercial recordings.

In the second variation, a simultaneous microphone feed was transferred to a Pro Tools system using the same analogue chain in a typical multi-track configuration with 192 kHz 24-bit sampling, then enhanced in post-production by mastering engineer Istvan Matok.

In the studio

AUDIOPHILE RECORDINGS

These unique audiophile recordings are made available by My Reel Club, whose purpose is to produce recordings that capture the true live concert experience.

The history of lifelike stereo recordings goes back to the 1950s when pioneers of modern music recordings used very few microphones and a maximum of three reel-to-reel recording tracks. Since all the musicians would perform live simultaneously at these sessions, the recordings go beyond individual performances.

As post-production technology was not yet available, the final performances show how the artists influenced each other. My Reel Club shows these recordings in the raw, letting the artists and their talent shine to offer the purest possible rendering of these captivating performances. The audience of this unique performance consists of club members who initiate and co-finance recordings.

MY REEL CLUB

My Reel Club’s mission is to bring listeners closer to the art of music recordings and introduce worldwide audiences to the most sophisticated Central and Eastern European (primarily Hungarian) music.

The initiative started with guided studio visits and continued with high-quality live studio recordings, as founder Ferenc Koscsó sought to connect excellent performers with dedicated audiences directly.

Nagra

A CROWDFUNDING MUSICAL COMMUNITY

My Reel Club projects bring together personal music experience and crowdfunding. Members can initiate music recording productions, contact artists and other supporters, and play a role as funders.

My Reel Club aims to share revenues from the productions with the performers as well. Returns are shared proportionally between performers and community members in a transparent way.

THE FIRST MY REEL CLUB PROJECT

For the first project, My Reel Club recorded the world premiere of a unique album composed and performed by internationally renowned Hungarian jazz musicians.

The works on the Planets album, written by composer/jazz guitarist Gábor Juhász, were inspired by long stargazing evenings during the Pandemic. His compositions reflect the ethereal, mystical and distant world of the planets and, simultaneously, the lonely genius of Copernicus: humanity’s restless, constant striving for further discovery.

Gábor Juhász,

Gábor Juhász said that playing his new compositions in the studio, knowing that the music would be available to a broader audience without any editing or post-production, was an exciting task with a high level of responsibility. This recording was also a unique experience for world-famous saxophonist Tony Lakatos, who also highlighted the talent of Júlia Karosi and the “fantastic musicians of the trio”. According to Tony, the enchanting female voice represents the Venusian character of the planets.

The singer added that the studio recording was born from a collective experience, “breathing in, flowing, and embracing the sounds of the music was soul- touching”. The different versions of the Planets album, recorded in two different ways and released in various formats, also offer listeners an excellent opportunity to educate themselves and gain a better appreciation of the losses in the subtle nuances of sound in the search for the perfect commercial product.

Gábor Juhász, Trio – The Planets

The Planets album is available on the My Reel Club website in several formats:

DSD256/DXD raw live stereo recordings using an analogue recording chain (Live-to-Disk)

Multi-track PCM 192k/24-bit with post-production and mastering

Stereo high-speed tape (Live-to-Tape)

Double CDs with two comparable versions

Dolby Atmos and 192k/24-bit 5.0. immersive audio version is also available

The MQA version processed by MQA is available now.

Available on Hi Res Audio this week and Qobuz, Deezer, Tidal, Spotify, and Amazon during April.

HiFi Pig Says: It is great to see this project taking off for Ferenc Koscsó as it has been several years in the making.