this seems to me like a case where using actual field recordings is basically a necessity. in theory you could achieve what he's talking about just by changing parameters on a plugin, but I don't think it's nearly as convincing in practice.
maybe it's just a property of sampling in general that as a listener you can infer a lot of information in an extremely short duration of time, and then instantly hear it change completely. (not just the space, but also sometimes the performer, era, genre etc.) good example of how working with existing recordings lets you create "impossible" experiences musically.
sort of reminds me of corpsey's point, but I'm pretty sure it's great if you listen properly?