ANNE BISSON TRIO
FOUR SEASONS IN JAZZ - LIVE AT BERNIE’S
THE DIRECT-TO-DISC AUDIOPHILE EDITION
|
Some recordings document a performance. Others preserve the electricity of creation itself.
Four Seasons in Jazz - Live at Bernie’s belongs firmly in the second category: an intimate, beautifully conceived vocal-jazz album captured live through an uncompromising all-analogue recording chain at Bernie Grundman Mastering in Hollywood.
On 4 and 5 March 2017, Canadian pianist and vocalist Anne Bisson entered Bernie Grundman’s celebrated mastering facility with acoustic bassist Jean-Bertrand Carbou and drummer-percussionist Pierre Tanguay.
There were no conventional studio safety nets. No digital editing, overdubbing or post-production reconstruction.
The musicians performed together while legendary recording engineer Michael C. Ross created the balance in real time. His live analogue mix travelled directly into Bernie Grundman’s record-cutting system while a parallel direct-to-tape recording preserved the sessions on analogue tape.
As Ross explained at the time, the trio was playing live, he was mixing live - and the performance was going directly to vinyl.
That immediacy can be heard throughout the album.
Bisson’s voice appears with remarkable presence and emotional intimacy. Her Steinway Model D concert grand possesses convincing scale, weight and harmonic colour. Carbou’s acoustic bass is warm, rounded and naturally positioned, while Tanguay’s drums and percussion contribute texture and rhythmic movement without disturbing the recording’s spacious atmosphere.
This is chamber jazz presented with the vitality of a live event.
FOUR SEASONS — FOUR MUSICAL MOODS
The programme follows the changing seasons as an emotional journey.
Summer opens with warmth and familiarity through “I Can See Clearly Now,” “Summer Breeze” and Michel Legrand’s “Summer Me, Winter Me.”
Autumn becomes more reflective with Anne Bisson’s evocative “September in Montreal,” followed by “September Song” and “Maybe September.”
Winter moves into a darker, more introspective space through “Midnight Sun,” “Summer Wishes, Winter Dreams” and Bisson’s original composition “Sinking Into the Future.”
Spring restores lightness and movement with “Up Jumped Spring,” “It Might as Well Be Spring” and the beautifully contemplative “Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most.”
The selection combines recognised standards, sophisticated popular material and Bisson’s own compositions without ever feeling like an audiophile demonstration compilation. The seasonal concept gives the programme continuity, while the trio’s understated communication holds everything together.
THE MUSICIANS
Anne Bisson — piano and vocals
Jean-Bertrand Carbou — acoustic bass
Pierre Tanguay — drums and percussion
Anne Bisson is a classically trained Canadian pianist, vocalist, composer and producer who returned to her first musical love—jazz—after an extensive career in television and performance. Her expressive voice, natural piano playing and commitment to high-quality physical recordings have earned her a devoted international audiophile following.
Pierre Tanguay is one of Québec’s most versatile percussionists, with a career spanning jazz, improvisation, contemporary music and world traditions.
Jean-Bertrand Carbou provides the album’s essential harmonic foundation, combining the weight and natural resonance of the acoustic bass with exceptional sensitivity to Bisson’s voice and piano.
AN ALL-ANALOGUE COLLABORATION
Recorded at Bernie Grundman Mastering, Hollywood
Recorded direct-to-disc and direct-to-tape
Recording dates: 4–5 March 2017
Producer, engineer and live mixing: Michael C. Ross
Mastering and lacquer cutting: Bernie Grundman
Engineers: Mike Aarvold and Scott Sedillo
Chief technician: Thomas “Beno” May
Executive producers: Gary Leonard Koh and Wuti Larnroongroj
Trident 88 16-channel analogue console
Steinway Model D nine-foot concert grand
Pressed by Record Technology Incorporated
The project was conceived through the collaboration of audiophile-industry figures Gary Leonard Koh of Genesis Advanced Technologies and Wuti Larnroongroj of Brilliance Music & Studios.
It became only the third direct-to-disc production undertaken at Bernie Grundman Mastering and was widely recognised as the 2017 Rocky Mountain Audio Fest award winner for Best Audiophile Analogue Recording.
AN AUDIOPHILE REFERENCE RECORDING
Reviewers have praised the album’s exceptional presence, natural instrumental timbre, quiet surfaces and convincing reproduction of a real performance space.
FIDELITY described it as a recording of extraordinary presence and naturalness—one capable of remaining a reference from the modern vinyl revival for decades.
Yet its real achievement is not simply technical.
Direct-to-disc recording cannot manufacture musical chemistry. It exposes everything: timing, balance, phrasing, communication and every decision made during the performance. What makes Live at Bernie’s special is that Bisson, Carbou, Tanguay and the engineering team transformed those limitations into creative energy.
The result is revealing enough to demonstrate the full potential of a high-end analogue system, but musical enough to be enjoyed long after the equipment evaluation has finished.
|
FEATURED EDITION
Album: Four Seasons in Jazz — Live at Bernie’s
Artist: Anne Bisson Trio
Label: Camilio Records
Catalogue: CAM5-5023
Format: 12-inch LP
Speed: 33⅓ rpm
Vinyl: HQ-180g
Edition: Limited and individually numbered
Recording: AAA — 100% analogue
Country: Canada
Release edition: 2021
Genre: Vocal Jazz
An essential recording for admirers of intimate vocal jazz, direct-to-disc production and genuinely natural analogue sound.
Music For Life | Audiophile Quality
www.thesoundoftape.com
 |
In Stock at The Sound of Tape - Anne Bisson Trio - Four Seasons In Jazz
