Eagle Eye Media presents

Diana Krall: Live in Paris (2002)

"I would sacrifice anything come what might/For the sake of having you near/In spite of a warning voice/That comes in the night and repeats in my ear."- Diana Krall (from the song Under My Skin)

Stars: Diana Krall
Director: David Barnard

Manufacturer: pioneer
MPAA Rating: Not Rated for (nothing offensive)
Run Time: 01h:53m:23s
Release Date: 2002-04-02
Genre: music

Style Grade	Substance Grade	Image Transfer Grade	Audio Transfer Grade	Extras Grade
A-	A	B+	A-	B-

 

DVD Review

The great Duke Ellington once was heard to say that "There are only two types of music; good and bad". In my opinion he was, for all intents and purposes, correct. The best music, when possible, transcends genres and tastes and becomes something extraordinary to the listener. In summation it can be said that whether rock, pop, rap, country, or jazz: good is still good and bad is still bad, regardless of genre preference.

The music brought to life by jazz singer Diana Krall is most certainly a prime example of this. Krall's ability to take a song and transform it into a thing of pure beauty is, for me, perhaps the paramount reason her entire catalogue rests comfortably in my largely rock CD collection. Now, for the first time Krall's voice has been made available on DVD in Diana Krall: Live in Paris and is perhaps the next best thing to seeing her perform in the flesh.

The concert, recorded in December of 2001, shortly after the release of her The Look Of Love CD, is a nearly breathless sweep through a collection of some well and not so well known classics from the likes Cole Porter, George Gershwin and Burt Bacharach. The set, which drags at times but is mostly vibrant, begins with a bang with I Love Being Here With You, a sultry blues tune that shows off the stunning Canadian's abilities at both the piano and vocals. While it would be enough for many lovers of music to just hear Krall's talents, she is ably backed by an accomplished five-piece band as well as the famed Orchestre Symphonique Europeen and Paris Jazz Big Band led by the out-of-retirement Clus Ogerman.

Other standout songs include the above-mentioned I Love Being Here With You as well as her closing number, Joni Mitchell's A Case of You. What separates Diana Krall: Live in Paris from other disappointing performance films is that the composition of the concert by director David Barnard never steps too far from the music at hand. There are no shots of audience reaction; instead the camera stays focused on the musicians, allowing the viewer to get a real sense of being at the concert, rather than feeling like an outsider. Barnard wisely allows his cameras to move freely among Krall's jazz band and bassist John Clayton is almost always present just over Krall's shoulder, which is a nice touch.

The song list is as follows:

I Love Being Here With You
All or Nothing
Let's Fall in love
The Look of Love
Maybe You'll Be There
Deed I Do
Devil May Care
Cry Me a River
Under My Skin
East of the Sun
I Get Along With You
Pick Yourself Up
S'Wonderful
Love Letters
I Don't Know Enough About You
Do it Again
A Case of You


Rating for Style: A-
Rating for Substance: A

 

Image Transfer

	One
Aspect Ratio	1.85:1 - Widescreen
Original Aspect Ratio	yes
Anamorphic	yes

Image Transfer Review: Presented in a 1.85:1 (or perhaps 1.77:1 as the packaging does not specify) Diana Krall: Live in Paris looks to have been shot on digital video;the softness and poor detail often found with DV is present here. The blues that adorn the stage look perfect in their rendering, while the black levels of the background show nice depth and very little grain. The sharpness and detail, though, are often questionable, with close ups of Krall's face looking soft and showing considerable bleeding in the fleshtones. Overall, this is an acceptable transfer.

Image Transfer Grade: B+
 

Audio Transfer

	Language	Remote Access
DS 2.0	English	yes
Dolby Digital 5.1	English	yes
DTS	English	yes

Audio Transfer Review: With both DTS and Dolby Digital sound mixes the audio presentations are, without a doubt, the real star of this DVD. From the opening moments, the surround speakers come alive with applause as well as the ambience of the concert hall. Krall's voice sounds beautiful coming out of the center channel, with her band (especially the bass) coming across crisp and well-defined in the left and right speakers. What is perhaps most impressive is the overall layout of the mix; nearly every speaker benefits from some sort of sound production. This is a crisp, beautiful mix that does justice to already beautiful music.

As comparison of the Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS sound mixes surprisingly found the Dolby Digital track sounding a bit better, as the DTS track had some lip-synching errors when played back on my Onkyo receiver.

Audio Transfer Grade: A- 

Disc Extras

Full Motion menu with music
Scene Access with 17 cues and remote access
Music/Song Access with 17 cues and remote access
Packaging: Amaray
Picture Disc
1 Disc
1-Sided disc(s)
Layers: RSDL

Extra Extras:

1. music videos for The Look Of Love and Let's Face The Music and Dance
2. concert rehearsal footage

Extras Review: The music videos for Let's Face the Music and Dance and The Look of Love are presented in 1.77:1 anamorphic widescreen with Dolby Digital 5.1 sound and are each nicely done.

Rehearsal footage for Do it Again, The Look of Love, and Love Letters are nice inclusions.

Extras Grade: B-
 

Final Comments

A must for Diana Krall and music fans alike, this DVD is perhaps the best concert performance I own and next to Pearl Jam: Touring Band 2000, will undoubtedly be my most watched. Highly recommended.

Kevin Clemons 2002-04-02