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Based on the mirror-flipped image of the first two, I'd say that he is using a phone--unless, of course, he played left-handed on those and then changed to right.
The video quality isn't bad (could easily be a lot better) but he definitely could've had a better video production in place for these amazing videos.
We are definitely becoming more and more accustomed to higher quality video content. With that said, I'm a videographer and I don't even have and HD webcam, because I just don't need it. I think the same might be true for Stephane. On the other end of the production spectrum look at how good Joscho's videos are. Better quality video, lighting and audio makes the experience 1000x better. But at the end on the day, content it king. I've always been curious to know what Django would have sounded like if he would have recorded with today's recording capabilities.
Well, that's one of the, maybe the biggest reason why I love this whole album; it's closest we've come to hear what Django would sound like had he recorded with modern equipment (even though I read that some think he took too many liberties interpreting some of these pieces). Which is somewhat ironic since Stephane has worked hard to not be seen as another Django clone and now his life's masterpiece is cloning Django. But the way I see it this sits at the very top among some of the most important recordings in the history of this genre.
His album is a major contribution to the music world, for sure, and I love that he made it! I think the liberties that he takes are due to lack of technique. By playing things slower, he is able to keep things cleaner. Just my theory. With that said, Django gave us so much and there are so many directions we can go with it. Oscar Wilde said "Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery that mediocrity can pay to greatness". I think Stephane made this out of reverence. I say that it is our job to evolve things, no matter how big or small.
I don't think there is any player around that would say that the way Stephane approached these compositions was due to a lack of technique. I put him at the highest echelons of what can be done on a guitar; in my mind, there are only a handful of other players (speaking of those still alive) that are in that club. I've seen him perform them live half a dozen times at this point. He's a master, and I don't use that term lightly. I've spent a lot of time with him over the years, and my take is that he recorded this with the idea that he had more time to capture these compositions, and provide the listener an experience as if Django had more than one (often short) take of a piece. He treats these as the "classical repertoire" of this style of music, and I think it shows at how beautifully he captured these pieces.
I'll echo Buco once again and say that I think this particular record is an absolute masterpiece. Stephane is a very special player, and even though he has really carved out a niche of not being a Django clone, he captured something generational.
I am probably alone in my theory, but because I see Django's technique is at a much much higher level than Stephane's or even Bireli's, that he had to change his approach. This album is an absolute masterpiece! I would almost put it in the classical music section.
Catch Stephane at a live performance or take a few lessons from him. His technique is probably amongst the top-tier of any player in this genre. I know he'd never say he's as good as Django (I think the greats like him don't go anywhere near a statement like that), but if there is a person alive today with comparable technique/skill, Stephane certainly has to be part of the conversation, along with players like Stochelo, Bireli, Angelo, Sebastien Felix (just to name a few).
I totally agree!!! Thanks✌️