Post by roger on Nov 1, 2008 16:24:24 GMT
Report from Barrow-in-Furness
My route to Barrow converged with Gordon’s at Watford Junction which had recently experienced a light sprinkling of snow. Despite the ever-present threat of frozen points whenever the temperature drops below about 10 degrees, our trains were never more than a few minutes late. The time passed and we quickly found ourselves pulling into Lancaster where we picked up a connection to Barrow.
The hotel was excellent except, to Gordon’s eternal disappointment, they were a bit late in serving the toast at breakfast the following morning!
We arrived at the venue and positioned ourselves in a strategically prominent position in the hope that Dean and Cumbrian may find us. As it turned out, we only met Cumbrian briefly after the concert but Dean joined us quite soon after we arrived.
The venue was very comfortable and quite intimate with a capacity of a little over 500. Dean had confirmed that the concert had sold out before going to press. Quite right too! Our seats were right in the middle of the fourth row but it was the first that was raked and so we had the most perfect view of the microphone stand that was awaiting Hayley’s arrival.
As there are still many more concerts to follow, I won’t give away any real secrets otherwise Hayley may have to change her script! We have agreed though that any amount of photographs may be shown and the set lists are bound to become known so there is little point in withholding the details here.
So often, Hayley has opened her concerts with a certain Maori song with which she is closely associated and I half expected this to be no exception. Much as I like it, I was very pleasantly surprised to hear the opening line, “Let your arms enfold me…”. Those gentle notes at the beginning of ‘Prayer’, sung a cappella, made the most perfect start. At the end of the first verse, Al Gurr decided it was time to join in with the piano which just happened to be in front of him. Already, the audience must have been transported into that ethereal realm known as ‘Hayleyland’.
This was followed by Caccini’s ‘Ave Maria’, ‘Scarborough Fair’ and ‘Songbird’. This first set was a very well-balanced mix of classical and light pop and it almost came as a disappointment when she left the stage and Raven who, until now, had been backing her, took centre stage. But the disappointment didn’t last for long.
In most previous concerts, Hayley’s guest artist has been another singer - Katherine Jenkins, Mario Frangoulis, Alfie Boe to name but three. I have enjoyed seeing them all but I have often felt that Hayley doesn’t need another singer as they can, unintentionally, detract from the performance that I really want to see. For that reason, to have a string quartet as the supporting artists was a refreshing change and a delightful contrast yet wholly suitable to the occasion.
Raven were superb. Their first piece was Natalie’s arrangement of two sections of Vivaldi’s ‘Four Seasons’. Brilliant. Stephanie then introduced the next number which was their adaptation of Morricone’s ‘Gabriel’s Oboe’ but, because it featured Rachael, they called it ‘Gabriel’s Cello’! Their first set was concluded with a fiery arrangement of ‘Danse Macabre’ by Saint-Saens which was quite electrifying.
Hayley returned to perform another of her new songs, ‘Now Is The Hour’. If anyone had told me a year ago that this would be included in her repertoire, I would not have been overly excited at the prospect but, having heard it on the album, I was definitely looking forward to hearing the live version. It was so overwhelmingly beautiful, especially during the short vocalise section between verses, that I don’t understand why she didn’t start singing it years ago.
It was particularly pleasing that Hayley has reintroduced ‘Never Saw Blue’ into her repertoire. It is a delightful song which I don’t believe any singer could do better. The first half concluded with ‘Shenandoah’ and ‘Danny Boy’.
The accompaniment from Raven and Al was wonderful but significantly enhanced by AJ (Andy) Moore’s guitar. Although his playing was fairly quiet and subtle, it really added so much to the overall sound that strings and a piano could never do.
I will continue with my thoughts of the second half in the Newcastle thread.
And so, all too soon, the Barrow concert was over. We knew there would not be an official signing so Dean, Gordon and I strolled round the outside of the venue to the Artists Door. There was a light drizzle but a small porch of an adjacent building provided sufficient shelter from the elements.
It wasn’t long before Stephanie and Rachael appeared and I spent several minutes chatting to them. Stephanie spoke of her sister who, she said, also plays the… She didn’t complete the sentence but gave an impromptu demonstration of someone playing an air violin! “Yes, I know,” I said. “I met her once”. Stephanie seemed surprised that I even knew who her sister was and was amazed when I said I had met her so I explained that Steve Abbott once introduced us at the Cadogan Hall in London. In case anyone is puzzled by this, I should explain that Stephanie’s sister is a former winner of the BBC’s Young Musician of the Year Award and is now one of the UK’s leading violinists, Nicola Benedetti.
The conversation continued for a few more minutes until Hayley appeared. One memory which will stay with me for a very long time is the witnessing of Dean having his photograph taken with her. It is almost five years since I first had a similar experience and I know exactly how he must have felt!
During our few precious minutes with Hayley, I asked her to confirm a highly important detail even though it has not yet been questioned. She told me that the dress which looks yellow (or primrose) in many photographs and, indeed, under the stage lighting but has been described as lime green, is indeed just that, lime. Thanks Hayley, I am sure you have saved a lot of members countless sleepless nights worrying about it!
And so we said our farewells to Dean before Gordon and I adjourned to our hotel for the night… and cold toast in the morning!
See you in Newcastle, folks!
Roger
My route to Barrow converged with Gordon’s at Watford Junction which had recently experienced a light sprinkling of snow. Despite the ever-present threat of frozen points whenever the temperature drops below about 10 degrees, our trains were never more than a few minutes late. The time passed and we quickly found ourselves pulling into Lancaster where we picked up a connection to Barrow.
The hotel was excellent except, to Gordon’s eternal disappointment, they were a bit late in serving the toast at breakfast the following morning!
We arrived at the venue and positioned ourselves in a strategically prominent position in the hope that Dean and Cumbrian may find us. As it turned out, we only met Cumbrian briefly after the concert but Dean joined us quite soon after we arrived.
The venue was very comfortable and quite intimate with a capacity of a little over 500. Dean had confirmed that the concert had sold out before going to press. Quite right too! Our seats were right in the middle of the fourth row but it was the first that was raked and so we had the most perfect view of the microphone stand that was awaiting Hayley’s arrival.
As there are still many more concerts to follow, I won’t give away any real secrets otherwise Hayley may have to change her script! We have agreed though that any amount of photographs may be shown and the set lists are bound to become known so there is little point in withholding the details here.
So often, Hayley has opened her concerts with a certain Maori song with which she is closely associated and I half expected this to be no exception. Much as I like it, I was very pleasantly surprised to hear the opening line, “Let your arms enfold me…”. Those gentle notes at the beginning of ‘Prayer’, sung a cappella, made the most perfect start. At the end of the first verse, Al Gurr decided it was time to join in with the piano which just happened to be in front of him. Already, the audience must have been transported into that ethereal realm known as ‘Hayleyland’.
This was followed by Caccini’s ‘Ave Maria’, ‘Scarborough Fair’ and ‘Songbird’. This first set was a very well-balanced mix of classical and light pop and it almost came as a disappointment when she left the stage and Raven who, until now, had been backing her, took centre stage. But the disappointment didn’t last for long.
In most previous concerts, Hayley’s guest artist has been another singer - Katherine Jenkins, Mario Frangoulis, Alfie Boe to name but three. I have enjoyed seeing them all but I have often felt that Hayley doesn’t need another singer as they can, unintentionally, detract from the performance that I really want to see. For that reason, to have a string quartet as the supporting artists was a refreshing change and a delightful contrast yet wholly suitable to the occasion.
Raven were superb. Their first piece was Natalie’s arrangement of two sections of Vivaldi’s ‘Four Seasons’. Brilliant. Stephanie then introduced the next number which was their adaptation of Morricone’s ‘Gabriel’s Oboe’ but, because it featured Rachael, they called it ‘Gabriel’s Cello’! Their first set was concluded with a fiery arrangement of ‘Danse Macabre’ by Saint-Saens which was quite electrifying.
Hayley returned to perform another of her new songs, ‘Now Is The Hour’. If anyone had told me a year ago that this would be included in her repertoire, I would not have been overly excited at the prospect but, having heard it on the album, I was definitely looking forward to hearing the live version. It was so overwhelmingly beautiful, especially during the short vocalise section between verses, that I don’t understand why she didn’t start singing it years ago.
It was particularly pleasing that Hayley has reintroduced ‘Never Saw Blue’ into her repertoire. It is a delightful song which I don’t believe any singer could do better. The first half concluded with ‘Shenandoah’ and ‘Danny Boy’.
The accompaniment from Raven and Al was wonderful but significantly enhanced by AJ (Andy) Moore’s guitar. Although his playing was fairly quiet and subtle, it really added so much to the overall sound that strings and a piano could never do.
I will continue with my thoughts of the second half in the Newcastle thread.
And so, all too soon, the Barrow concert was over. We knew there would not be an official signing so Dean, Gordon and I strolled round the outside of the venue to the Artists Door. There was a light drizzle but a small porch of an adjacent building provided sufficient shelter from the elements.
It wasn’t long before Stephanie and Rachael appeared and I spent several minutes chatting to them. Stephanie spoke of her sister who, she said, also plays the… She didn’t complete the sentence but gave an impromptu demonstration of someone playing an air violin! “Yes, I know,” I said. “I met her once”. Stephanie seemed surprised that I even knew who her sister was and was amazed when I said I had met her so I explained that Steve Abbott once introduced us at the Cadogan Hall in London. In case anyone is puzzled by this, I should explain that Stephanie’s sister is a former winner of the BBC’s Young Musician of the Year Award and is now one of the UK’s leading violinists, Nicola Benedetti.
The conversation continued for a few more minutes until Hayley appeared. One memory which will stay with me for a very long time is the witnessing of Dean having his photograph taken with her. It is almost five years since I first had a similar experience and I know exactly how he must have felt!
During our few precious minutes with Hayley, I asked her to confirm a highly important detail even though it has not yet been questioned. She told me that the dress which looks yellow (or primrose) in many photographs and, indeed, under the stage lighting but has been described as lime green, is indeed just that, lime. Thanks Hayley, I am sure you have saved a lot of members countless sleepless nights worrying about it!
And so we said our farewells to Dean before Gordon and I adjourned to our hotel for the night… and cold toast in the morning!
See you in Newcastle, folks!
Roger
