Elizabeth Marvelly

[gra7890]

Hi Ross,
Thanks for the two downloads. They are safely saved and I will listen to them later

Thanks again,

Graham

[gra7890]

Feb 4, 2009 17:51:24 GMT gra7890 said:

Thanks for the two downloads. They are safely saved and I will listen to them later

Hi Ross,
Just managed to find the time Great.... Many Thanks,

Best Wishes,

Graham

[Ross]

Geoff Sewell and Incognito Artists plus Elizabeth Marvelly Christchurch Town Hall 24th Feb 2009

This was one of the best concerts I have been to in the Town Hall in several years since Amici Forever a few years ago (which included Geoff). When I arrived at the concert venue there was a reasonable crowd already. I bought a programme and then I saw that there was a pre-order of the DVD of the Wellington concert available so I did that too. I get the DVD sent to me whereas I would have to wait until the tour is over before it is available at the Warehouse stores. After watching the concert I am glad I am getting the DVD, hopefully it also includes the songs that Elizabeth does.
After a pre concert beer I went to my seat in the upper gallery about 2 rows back from the front and right in the centre so I got the excellent acoustics that the Town Hall gets.
Looking at the stage I could see a grand piano on the left, guitars next and then the drums. A double bass was right of centre, then a four string section to the right. At the back was some steps for the choir to stand on. The backdrop was filled with little lights which gave the appearance of stars. By 8pm the theatre was almost full.

At 8pm Darren Bennett the MC came on ( he is a member of Incognito Artists) and said the usual about no recording devices but you could take heap of photos of him which got a laugh. I was too far away to take any good photos but I did take some at the signing later.

Then on came Elizabeth in a long dress which was black around the chest and had different coloured strips which went down the dress (red, blue and pink).
For Elizabeth's set she had the string section only plus backing music.
She said she always loves singing in the Town Hall.
She started with There You'll Be
Far Away
La Vie En Rose
and she finished with Pokarekare Ana which she sang well, almost as good as Hayley. The high notes at the end brought a lump to my throat, as Elizabeth is part Maori she can relate to the meaning of the song. Elizabeth dedicated this song to Rob Guest who died suddenly last year. Rob was one of our most well known singers. He was the longest running phantom of the opera played mostly in Australia and Asia.

Then Geoff Sewell came on. For those that do not know, Geoff was part of the Amici Forever Opera Band but left a few years ago to look after his daughter who had autism, which was the charity of the tour. Geoff comes from New Zealand so we all love him here.
Geoff started with Senza Catene
So Far Away was next and Elizabeth joined Geoff for this song which Amici Forever did and Geoff did (with Elizabeth) on his album I Believe.
Geoff then sung I Believe

Then the first of the Incognito Artists came on. These are artists who play at functions and pretend to be waiters etc and suddenly start singing and dancing throughout the night. The come from the West End mainly.
Darren Bennett has played Riff in West Side Story and can dance and sing and is the show creator.
Tim Rogers is one of the original artists and has done many operas and musicals like Phantom Of The Opera, Miss Saigon etc and has played Tony in WSS.
Emma Clifford has played Anita in WSS as well as other musicals. She can sing, dance and act (been in some movies).
Martin Crewes is Australian has played Marius in Les Miserables, Chino in WSS. He has also been in some movies.
Finally Celia Graham has been in a lot of West end musicals, most famous as Christine in Phantom of The Opera and Geoff said many think she was the best in the West end productions.

Tim and Celia did a brilliant rendition of Phantom Of the Opera with Celia doing the high notes at the end of the song with ease.

Then the funniest moment of the concert happened. When Tim was about to sing his next song a cell phone started ringing in the audience. Tim stopped and asked for the spotlight to shine on the culprit. We all laughed. Tim then got the guy to come onto the stage and say sorry which the guy did. Then just as the guy was leaving the stage Tim got him back and said he would have to sing a song.
Well as the guy started singing you realized he was part of the act. He was in fact Martin. They sang Torna A Surriento.
Geoff joined them to sing O Sole Mio.
Then Celia joined them and they did Whisper Of Angels a very beautiful song.

Then the musicians started doing a slow beat and the audience started doing a slow clap while a lady in the audience danced her way onto the stage, she was Emma and she sang All That Jazz.
Darren joined Emma and Emma said it was Darren's birthday and so we all had to sing him Happy Birthday. They then did Puttin On The Ritz with Darren doing a tap dance with a cane.

Geoff came back and sung Where Do I Begin (dedicated to his wife Simone).
Prayer In The Night which he did with all the Incognito artists.
Then they got the audience to stand and clap to Brindisi.

Then the Burnside High School Choir (same school Hayley went to) and sang with Geoff You'll Never Walk Alone. Geoff sat at the front of the stage for the start and then joined the choir later in the song.

INTERVAL

Elizabeth was signing during the interval so I rushed down and got her to sign my CD of hers. I also got a photo which I will post later.
Then I bumped into my parents neighbours from Ashburton and there was an elderly lady with them who knew me when I was young and she knew Hayleys grandmother (not the singing one, but she apparently had a good voice too). So it is a small world after all lol. Mind you in New Zealand you almost always meet some one you know when you go to events.

SECOND HALF

All the guys sang a medley of I Love You Baby, What's New Pussycat and Delilah with every one in the audience waving their hands in the air.
Darren sung Grenada. Celia did a short German opera song and then Emma and Darren did a Spanish dance.


Then Elizabeth came back on in the long pink dress that she wore in her Paul Potts concerts. She did an excellent rendition of Tarakihi. She certainly has a powerful voice.

Then for the next part of the concert they did what Amici Forever used to do which was each artist did a song each.The girls were in short dresses for this bit.
Martin sang Maria from WSS.
Emma did Hey Mambo and she danced to it too which we enjoyed.
Celia did the best version of Summertime I have ever heard.
Darren sang Fly Me To The Moon.
Tim did a fabulous job of Bring Him Home from Les Miserables.
Then the best was left to the last when Geoff started singing How Great Thou Art. Geoff is a real show man as he uses all of the stage and throws himself onto his knees at the finale. The audience really loved this song.

The Burnside High School Choir came back on and with Geoff sang When A Child Is Born. At one stage he got one of the girls to join him and let her sing part of the song.
Then Geoff, Martin and Celia sang Time To Say Goodbye which was well sung.
Then for the finale they all sang Nessun Dorma and at the end they got a standing ovation. They stayed on the stage and sang Funiculi Funicula while the audience stayed standing and clapped along as well.
For the second encore they did American Triology (from Amici Forever) at the end of which they got another standing ovation (first time I have struck that at a concert). Concert finished at 10:50pm.

AFTER CONCERT

I stood in the line for the signings and got Geoff to sign my copy of I Believe CD and I got all the Incognito Artists to sign the programme. I also took some photos which I will post shortly.
I got home at 11:30pm but I had trouble sleeping as I was still on a high from the concert (I guess all the people who go to Hayley concerts have the same problem lol).

[Ross]

:)Here is a photo of lovely Elizabeth at the interval signing.


Geoff at the after concert signing


Geoff doing funny faces lol


Here is the lovely Celia Graham


And the equally lovely Emma Clifford

[Ross]

:)Emma and Tim Rogers


Darren Bennett


Tim Rogers


Martin Crewes

[comet]

Thanks Ross for the update on Elizabeth, I have her first album, but I see "NEW STUFF" in the background of your great pictures, you sure are getting around these days, you seem to be a man of leisure, A dedicated follower of music and other interests...did you win the Lotto or something ? or do you just have long holidays over there. If so maybe I should join you in your fair land

[Ross]

Feb 26, 2009 0:22:32 GMT comet said:

Thanks Ross for the update on Elizabeth, I have her first album, but I see "NEW STUFF" in the background of your great pictures, you sure are getting around these days, you seem to be a man of leisure, A dedicated follower of music and other interests...did you win the Lotto or something ? or do you just have long holidays over there. If so maybe I should join you in your fair land

I wish I did win lotto Comet. We get 4 weeks a year in NZ. But I had accumulated too many and have been told by work to take 4 weeks holiday. So I think Hayley's tour in April/May would be a good time to take it.

[thomas]

Hi Ross!

Thank you for the report and pictures. Obviously you had a good time. i.postimg.cc/9fYxy370/smilie-big-grin.gif I can't wait for the new CD of Elizabeth to be released.
Sounds like a good plan to take your holidays in April/May.

Best wishes,
Thomas

[gra7890]

Hi Ross,
You are certainly getting about !
But take the chances while you can

Best Wishes,

Graham

[Ross]

i.postimg.cc/9fYxy370/smilie-big-grin.gifToday I got my DVD copy of Geoff Sewell & Incognito Artists and it is great. Unfortunately it doesn't include Elizabeth although I did see her when they did a prayer backstage before the concert. This DVD is well worth getting. I got one song wrong in my review. When they had Martin get on stage when his cell phone rang it was La Donna E Mobile they did.

[larryhauck]

Yikes, yet another rising international star. When will the U S produce some real talent? We haven't had a phenom since Streisand. What a shame and we have such a large population. Perhaps the tastes over here are not as appreciative of real talent as other countries are.

Larry

[Ross]

As it is ANZAC day in New Zealand and Australia the Maori TV Channel has been running programs about our involvement in the wars. As part of this they played a concert involving Maori singers called Anzac Hei Kinaki. Elizabeth Marvelly sung two songs in this concert. She sung Tarakihi and also a duet with Tina Cross called What The World Needs Now Is Love Sweet Love.
At the end Elizabeth announced she is recording a new album which is to be called Home.
I will post a video later on.

PS Since I posted this Elizabeth also sang Far Away which I will also post later. Plus at the end Elizabeth joined John Rowles, Eddie Low, Tina Cross in singing If I Can Dream which I will also post.

[Ross]

i.postimg.cc/9fYxy370/smilie-big-grin.gif Here are the two videos from the concert.
First one has Elizabeth singing Tarakihi and a duet with Tina Cross called What The World Needs Now Is Love Sweet Love.

www.mediafire.com/?j22zn10jyft

The second video is Elizabeth singing Far Away and in a quartet singing If I Can Dream.

www.mediafire.com/?mmknnyhiyqn


+

[gra7890]

Hi Ross,
Thanks for the videos. I am writing this as they are downloading. Looking forward to seeing them

Graham

[comet]

Hi Ross,
I have heard Tarakihi by various artists on You Tube and elsewhere and it is just a great song....energetic, rhythmic, older and deeper, in touch with the earth and water and the sun and the real things that sustain life than modern religions and fashions just don't connect with..
and I just wish Hayley had had a go at it sooner, it is just a little more aggressive than the Maori songs Hayley normally sings, which are lullabies and love songs

I saw a great version of it once on video from above the right hand side of the stage and I just can't find it again , maybe some of you know thee one i am talking about
I have just been looking on YouTube for it but "Still haven't found what I'm looking for " but I found some great versions of it anyway.. most of them by Elizabeth..ye would'nt steal her bicycycle with her singin' at'cha like that.. she's just scary when she sings that one

You can imagine her saying she will break your legs off and eat the raw meat off the bones and then stick the bones back in you if you ever mess with her again !

And then i looked up the translation on folksong.org.nz/tarakihi/index.html
and was dissapointed at how passive and innocent the song was

Tarakihi

E, pakia kia rite
E, ko te rite kia rite
E, takahia kia ngawari
E, torona kei waho
Hoki mai

E whakarongo ai au
Ki te tangi mai
A te manu nei,

A te tarakihi,
I te weheruatanga
o te po

Tara ra-ta kita kita
Tara ra-ta kita kita

Wiri o papa, towene, towene
Wiri o papa, towene, towene

Hope whai-a-ke
Turi whatia
Ei! Ei! Ha!

Clap in unison,
in unison, in unison.
Stamp your feet smoothly
Hands outstretched
then back.

I listen
to the cry
of this flying creature

of the cicada
in the middle
of the night.

Tara ra ta ki ta ki ta
.... cicada noises

Quivering rear end, whirring, whirring
Quivering rear end, whirring, whirring

Knees bent
hips swaying
Ei! Ei! Ha !

Edit: link to translation page added.