Concert Tour in Japan - June 2008

[grant]

Well done Akito!!

I look forward to reading more - sounds like you had a wonderful evening.

Now I am dying to hear "Tsubasa Wo Kudasi" live!

Best wishes
Grant

[Nordly]

hi Akito! I hope you enjoyed the concert! Now for the flood of questions- did you get Hayley sings Japanese songs? Was there a program? Did you get it? How was Hayley? And finally- did you get to take any photos of the event?

You're so lucky to have heard Nada SouSou- I love that song! Was it in English or Japanese?

~NL

[martindn]

Thanks for your comments and song list Akito! Is this the first time you have met Hayley?

Martin

[gra7890]

Hi Akito,
thrilled you had a great time.

What a lovely concert list of songs. it was well thought out, a mixture of old and new !
Look forward to hearing and seeing more.

Best wishes,

Graham

[gra7890]

Hi Stephany,
Thanks for the photos of the rehearsal.
Just how do you mange it i.postimg.cc/9fYxy370/smilie-big-grin.gif

Graham

[david]

Hi Akito and Stephany,

Many thanks for the song list and comments, I'm glad that you had a great time and you were able to meet Hayley as well. Thanks as well Stephany for posting the rehearsal photos here!

Best wishes
David

[gra7890]

Hot of the YOUTUBE press.......

Jill and Hayley arriving for the signing session after the Concert on June 7th ; until her ' Japanese minder' stops the shot.

Hayley at Signing Session

Look at the length of the queue !!
Stick with it the last few seconds are quite good.

Best Wishes,

Graham

[dutchjoyce]

Oh wow...........

Nice to see something "live" from Japan.............Thanks for posting!!
Joyce.

[Dave]

Jun 8, 2008 22:14:37 GMT gra7890 said:

Hot of the YOUTUBE press.......

Jill and Hayley arriving for the signing session after the Concert on June 7th ; until her ' Japanese minder' stops the shot.

Hayley at Signing Session

Look at the length of the queue !!
Stick with it the last few seconds are quite good.

Best Wishes,

Graham

Thanks Graham and yes, the cameraman got too close!

It was easy to recognise Hayley's trademark laugh when she started signing, even from across the room!

And yes (Jon!) YouTube does indeed have its uses! i.postimg.cc/9fYxy370/smilie-big-grin.gif

Akito, thanks for posting, I'm glad you had a great time at the Concert and I am looking forward very much to reading to your report!

Cheers, Dave

[Joe]

Hi Akito !

Great job...so glad you enjoyed the concert!

And thanks also to Graham for that YouTube video link

Best wishes,
Joe

[Stephany]

Hello Akito,

I'm delighted to hear that you managed to go to Shiga and had a great time there! Ooooh the concert songlist is so different to what we have in the UK -- how I wish she would include Yuki No Hana in her future concerts.

Thanks again for the report, Akito!

Stephany

[Richard]

Many thanks for your speedy first report, Akito!

I'm looking forward to reading more, but I'm sure you need some rest while everything sinks in. i.postimg.cc/9fYxy370/smilie-big-grin.gif

Also thanks to Graham for posting the video of the signing session.

Best Wishes,

Richard

[Ross]

Edit: I've moved this post to Favorite Tracks.

Richard

[graemek]

Hi Akito

& thank you,

Graeme

[akito]

Hi all,

Here, I would write some kind of a report.


So far, there have been many busy and uncomfortable days to me and I've decided to change my job at last. Also I've changed my place of living. what's more, I've been arguing with my parents and course adviser about quiting my course program at university. So, after I've settled theses things, almost suddenly, I became aware of the calender and realized that it was already in June!

I regretted my foolishness but what's over is over, and I began to put my every effort to think about the way I can see Hayley at one of the concerts. At first, the Aichi concert seemed the most hopeful of all, but it is on 15th and I have a friend coming from NZ, no actually a Kiwi coming from South Korea on that day . This left only Osaka and Shiga concerts though sadly it was almost clear that there would be no seats left for Osaka one, considering Hayley's growing popularity and the big population of the city. So the only hope for me: Shiga was left and after all it seemed fair enough. The Biwako Hall (1,850 seats) is slightly bigger than the Symphony Hall in Osaka (1,700 seats) and the concert starts at rather an early time (2.p.m.) and what's more, Otsu city in Shiga is not populated heavily like Osaka or Nagoya.

With those encouraging facts, I got on a train bound for Kyoto in the morning and I listened the album "Treasure" on my i-pod while on the train. After exchanging the train at Kyoto station, it took me only ten minuets to Otsu, the capital of Shiga Prefecture. Situated nicely beside the Lake Biwako, the venue looked somewhat like a miniature of the Sydney Opera House in Aussie.

Although a "rainy season" called Tsuyu has already began here in Western Japan, it was almost a fine day and I certainly regretted for not bringing my camera today. Lake Biwako, the largest lake in our land is nothing like Lake Te Anau in NZ, but its calmness resembles something to Lake Wakatipu beside Queenstown and also of the harbor around the Sydney Opera House.

Just as my "calculation" has worked out, there were about 60 seats left and I could at last buy myself a ticket. Can you imagine how glad I was in that moment!

After having my lunch down by the water, the hall opened at 1:15. I seated myself and looked at the program but I wasn't quite happy with the song-list, thinking, "Oh no, 'You Raise Me Up' and 'Let Me Lay' are not listed here... ah Samon, you filthy little preacher!" But when Hayley appeared on the stage wearing a beautiful golden dress that twinkles in the light and started to sing 'Pokarekare Ana', I put all those stupid thoughts away. Biwako Hall, indeed was an excellent venue and I could clearly see a difference in the echos of her clear voice. What a beautiful song from the "land of long white clouds", I thought, even though I've been listening to the song a hundred times.

Specially, the last two songs, 'Yuki no Hana' and 'Sen no Kaze ni Natte' were sang, just unbelievably beautifully and I definitely loved these English versions. I hadn't listened to the new album before coming to the concert, by the way.

After the intermission, Hayley changed to a rose-coloured (pink?) , elegant dress and behold! She sang one entire song in Japanese. 'Shiroi Iro wa Koibito no Iro', that was! Her singing was perfect and we all wondered at her ability and also at her loveliness.

Though the English lyrics was translated not technically but rather imaginatively for 'Tsubasa wo Kudasai' it seemed, Hayley sang it with such passion and emotions, and I was deeply moved.

The first encore, 'Nada SouSou' was sang beautifully (in English) as always and Hayley sang last few lines in Japanese. Even now, I can perfectly recall how charming that was.


Best Wishes,


Akito