AIX Records has announced its next music album on 3D Blu-ray for late October, which will also be the world's first classical music release on 3D BD:
Mozart: Clarinet Quintet, K.581 / Horn Quintet, K.407 / String Quartet, K.169, performed by The Old City String Quartet, winner of the Fischoff Chamber Music Prize Gold Medal for 2010. It can be preordered only from the
AIX Records site.
The performance will be presented in 1.78:1 720p video. The audio is available in 5.1 "Stage", 5.1 "Audience" and 96/24 PCM stereo. It is compatible with 3D players and 3D TVs as well as 2D systems.
AIX Records specifies that the recordings on this BD 3D disc "are NOT attempts to 'document' a live recording of this chamber group but instead an exploration of the creative process of making and recording music on 3D video and using high-resolution digital audio recording equipment. AIX Records uses no EQ, dynamics processing or artificial reverberation...everything you hear is as the musicians played it."
AIX Records plans to have seven 3D music albums on Blu-ray completed by Christmas. The first,
Goldberg Variations Acoustica 3D, came out in August. Other upcoming 3D Music Albums include Grammy-winning vocalist Rita Coolidge, multi-platinum country artist Mark Chesnutt, and classical/jazz crossover flutist James Walker.
AIX also has released the
AIX Records 3D Music Album Demo & Calibration Disc, featuring eight music tracks from released and upcoming 3D BDs from AIX Records, as well as numerous test tones and an introduction to the world of HD Surround Music and 3D Music Albums. It is also available at the
AIX Records site.
In an interview with Studio Daily, AIX founder Mark Waldrep says that he chose to work with the Panasonic AG-3DA1 integrated 3D camcorder, as opposed to a traditional beam-splitter rig, mainly because of efficiency and cost concerns.
Regarding the constraints when working in stereo 3D, Waldrep revealed that any inaccuracy in rotation or synchronization can cause headaches for the viewer. Additionally, authoring needs to be done as an HDMV to accommodate the PS3, as he reminded, "upgraded firmware for the PlayStation 3 is never going to support BD-J 3D."
There were also frame rate issues. The albums were actually shot at 1080i/29.97, but "the Blu-ray spec doesn't take that format. It only takes 23.98, and you can't get from 29.97 to 23.98 easily." That's why the 3D albums from AIX are coming out in 720p.
Regarding Blu-ray as a format for audio programs, Waldrep said: "Blu-ray is a perfect solution. It's easy and inexpensive and the quality is so far superior to any other audio playback format, including vinyl and analog tape, that it's a no-brainer."