New Partnership Announcement
Julien's Auctions has unveiled an exclusive collaboration with Grammy and Oscar Award-winning producer T Bone Burnett to auction his “Ionic Original” CDs.
Ionic Original is characterized as “a single, hand-made collector's edition master recording specially arranged and performed by the artist for each individual disc recorded.”
Details About the Ionic Original
An Ionic Original disc will debut in 2022 featuring Bob Dylan—the first new studio recording of his classic track since 1962. Blowing in the Wind was sold at Christie's in London for Pound sterling £1.48 million (US$1.76 million at that exchange rate). Burnett was a guitarist in Dylan's band in the 1970s.
The recording technology was developed by Burnett's company, NeoFidelity Inc., which harnessed advances in nanotechnology, materials science, and engineering to create “the most significant advancement in analog recording and durability in over 70 years.”
In this physical audio format, a “specially designed” coating is applied to a traditional acetate substrate to ensure “superior” audio reproduction. Ionic discs can be played on standard vinyl playback equipment.
According to the new agreement, all Ionic Originals will be sold exclusively through Julien's Auctions, establishing a direct channel for these musical artifacts to connect with collectors and fans.
“Musicians have solved the mystery of the United States – and many common out of many, one. We have listened and harmonized with every culture that has touched these shores,” Burnett stated.
“The Julien's Auctions team recognizes that United States music is fine art and deserves to be treated with the seriousness and respect of any other fine art.
“I am excited to collaborate with Julien's to fulfill our vision of merging the music space with the visual arts realm, providing artists with a new high-quality and dependable medium, as well as a new source of income following the decline of recorded music quality due to mass technologies.”
“The team at Julien's Auctions understands that the music of the United States is fine art and deserves to be treated with the seriousness and respect of painting or any other fine art.”
T Bone Burnett
Burnett is a multi-award-winning artist, with accomplishments including creating soundtracks for films such as Oh Brother, Where Art Thou?, The Big Lebowski, Cold Mountain, The Hunger Games, Crazy Heart, and Walk the Line, as well as the HBO series True Detective.
He recently launched his first solo album in over 15 years, titled The Other Side.
David Goodman, CEO of Julien's Auctions, commented: “Julien's Auctions is delighted to join forces with the legendary creative T Bone Burnett for this groundbreaking collaboration to make Ionic Originals accessible to a global audience of passionate music collectors and art enthusiasts alike, recognizing that these recordings are true works of art, comparable to those of Basquiat, O'Keeffe, or Rothko.”
“Each unique disc in this series not only offers an extraordinary listening experience due to its groundbreaking technology but also represents an exciting future for rarities and classic records in the auction market.”
“This presents an excellent opportunity for collectors and establishes a new way for artists to acknowledge their ‘works of art’ that genuinely reflect their influence and significance in the realm of art and culture.”
