| Octave Records Celebrates the Holidays With Two New Christmas Albums — Charlie Brown Goes to The Nutcracker by Ron LeGault’s jazz quintet, and guitarist Alfredo Muro’s The Spirit of Christmas offer musical holiday cheer in stunning Pure DSD sound– Boulder, Colorado, November, 2023 – Octave Records warmly invites everyone to celebrate the holiday spirit with two uplifting new releases: Charlie Brown Goes to The Nutcracker by the Ron LeGault quintet, and The Spirit of Christmas by internationally-renowned guitarist Alfredo Muro. Ron LeGault puts a jazz spin on the beloved Charlie Brown soundtrack music and the holiday classic The Nutcracker, while Alfredo Muro brings a heartfelt intimacy and virtuoso performances to a wide range of seasonal favorites. Both albums are recorded with extraordinary sound using Octave Records’ exclusive Pure DSD high-resolution audio process. Pianist Ron LeGault has been performing his Charlie Brown Goes to The Nutcracker show to packed audiences at the St Julien Hotel in Boulder, Colorado for more than 10 years. “The band and I have wanted to capture the show for posterity, and Octave Records gave us the opportunity. We are thrilled to be able to present this music for everyone to now enjoy.” Recorded live in the studio, the album captures the confident yet relaxed interplay that only comes from years of playing together, with Ron joined by Andrew Vogt (tenor sax, baritone sax, clarinet, flute), Curtis Fox (trombone), Dave Weinand (bass) and Andreas Schmid (drums).The quintet performs a host of Charlie Brown tunes like the familiar “Linus and Lucy,” the “Charlie Brown Theme,” “Christmas is Coming,” and others, along with jazz-laced versions of pieces from The Nutcracker including the iconic holiday classic “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy.” Added to the mix, the quintet plays a wry, swinging take on “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch.”  Alfredo Muro is a concert guitarist, composer, arranger, and improviser. He’s been described as a Latin guitar virtuoso, yet his styles and tastes are far more wide-ranging, from the classical repertoire to folk, jazz, Brazilian and more. He noted, “The idea of the program presented on The Spirit of Christmas was to choose traditional Christmas themes, combined with Christmas music popular in Spain and South America. Many of those songs are connected to my heart – they are part of my childhood in Latin America.”The selections range from holiday standards like “Silent Night,” “The Christmas Song” and “White Christmas” to spiritual works such as “Jesus Bleibet Meine Freude” (“Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring”) and “Ave Maria, and songs that are deeply personal to Muro including “Preludio de Adiós” and “El Noi de la Mare.” Muro’s Paco Santiago Marin classical guitar has a deeply rich tone with a wide color palette and superb dynamic nuances, all captured in remarkable fidelity. On “Villancico de Navidad,” Alfredo is joined by guitarists Robert Chirico, Adam Buer and Felicity Muench and bassist Allen Bossard, to close The Spirit of Christmas on a beautiful and graceful note. The albums, available on disc or via download, were recorded, mixed and produced by Paul McGowan at Octave Records’ studio, with assistance from Jessica Carson, Alfredo Muro, Ron LeGault, and Terri McGowan. Both albums were mastered by Gus Skinas. Charlie Brown Goes to The Nutcracker and The Spirit of Christmas feature Octave’s premium gold disc formulation, and the discs are playable on any SACD, CD, DVD, or Blu-ray player. They also have a high-resolution DSD layer that is accessible by using any SACD player or a PS Audio SACD transport. In addition, the master DSD and PCM files are available for purchase and download, including DSD 256, DSD 128, DSD 64, and DSDDirect Mastered 352.8 kHz/24-bit, 176.2 kHz/24-bit, 88.2 kHz/24-bit, and 44.1 kHz/24-bit PCM. (SRP: $19usd – $39usd, depending on format.) |
About PS Audio Founded in 1973, PS Audio has earned a worldwide reputation for excellence in manufacturing innovative, high-value, leading-edge audio products. Located in Boulder, Colorado at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, PS Audio’s staff of talented designers, engineers, production and support people build each product to deliver extraordinary performance and musical satisfaction. The company’s wide range of award-winning products include the all-in-one Sprout100 integrated amplifier, audio components, power regenerators and power conditioners. www.psaudio.com |
Tag Archives: Gus Skinas
Stereo Equip Manufacturer Opens Record Studio To Level The Field
It’s been nearly two years since we moved into our new digs in Boulder, Colorado. The most exciting part has been watching our recording/mastering studio, led by engineer Gus Skinas, come to life. Gus is a close friend and one of the nicest and most humble gents around. The world knows Gus from his work on projects for Pink Floyd, The Rolling Stones, Stevie Wonder, Elton John, Al Kooper, George Harrison, Queen, Joni Mitchell, Chick Corea, Frank Zappa, and The Police (to mention a few). His talent is unmatched, and we’re proud to have him in the hi-fi family.
A few days ago, we made a big step forward. With Gus at the helm, PS Audio has launched our much-anticipated music label: Octave Records.
Almost every time I give a tour at the new facility I get questions about Octave. With hundreds of labels out there, what makes Octave different? You and Paul make components, why the expansion into recording? Are you just doing this because it’s cool?
Guilty as charged!
In truth, we started Octave Records for the same reason we design audio components—because we know we can make a difference. We know we can produce albums with superior sonic quality and we also remain keenly aware of the challenges faced by so many music creators. Labels have been known to sacrifice quality for profits and for mass-market appeal. For albums-sold, most labels compensate artists with pennies on the dollar. Oftentimes, labels insist on owning the artist’s music. We believe the music deserves high-quality presentation and that the artists deserve to be honored for their contributions. It’s the artists, after all, who give rise to our entire industry.
So we decided to build a label the way we think it ought to be. Octave Records uses the finest studio equipment, all centered around the acclaimed Sonoma DSD recording, mixing and mastering system. We asked Gus to personally craft each recording. And to better support musicians, Octave Records covers 100% of the studio, mixing, mastering, production, distribution and marketing costs. We also provide artists with a direct-share of retail revenues, which are ten to twenty times that of other labels. At Octave Records, the artists own their music, and we give them creative control. They’ve earned it…and we get to enjoy the fruits of their labors on our hi-fi systems!
“Along with our dedication to producing the best-sounding recordings available today, Octave Records offers a different kind of business model,” said Paul McGowan, PS Audio CEO. To support musicians, Octave covers 100% of all studio, mixing, mastering, production, distribution and marketing expenses so that artists may directly share in retain sales revenues – while also retaining ownership of their music.”
It’s with great pride that we announce the first album from Octave Records: Out of Thin Air, a solo piano performance from renowned pianist Don Grusin.
Offered in SACD, native DSD (DVD-Audio) and CD formats, you can learn more about Octave Records and listen to samples of Grusin’s new album here https://www.psaudio.com/products/out-of-thin-air/ If you are interested in picking up a copy of this limited edition, they are available with world-wide distribution (direct from us in Boulder), however, this album is not available for digital download at this time.
I hope you enjoy listening to the album as much as we have enjoyed making it. This is the first of many. For the Silo, Scott McGowan.