Songs of Praise, Sunday 27 August 2006

[Dave]

Hi guys,

There are now three videos of Sunday's Songs of Praise up on the HWI Video Jukebox page... Simon's medium bitrate (340 kbps) capture of Ave Maria, my high resolution copy of Ave Maria, and Simon's compilation of the "best bits" of the whole programme (at a fairly high bitrate).

The programme's theme was the 900 year old Lincoln Cathedral "which is for many the finest example of Gothic Architecture in Europe". Enjoy it... and there may be a bit more to come.

If anyone has problems playing my file of Ave Maria, let me know and I'll post a downloadable link. Meanwhile, I'll post a few screen captures from it in here, a minute...

Cheers, Dave

[Dave]

Hi everyone, here is:

Hayley at Lincoln Cathedral, on Songs of Praise

Want more?

Cheers, Dave

[Richard]

Hello Dave and everybody!

Those are great screen captures, so we would love to see more, please. Also well done to Simon for putting the videos up on the main site so promptly! i.postimg.cc/9fYxy370/smilie-big-grin.gif

It was another beautiful performance by Hayley, so I've posted a link to the videos on her official forum.

Best Wishes,

Richard

[Dave]

Hi Richard and thanks for posting the links in the official forum, I've done the same in one or two other music related forums, too. All the more 'hits' for HWI.. and Hayley!

Yes I'll certainly post more of the screen captures, I didn't do it last night as it was *very* late! Anyway, I have 4,609 to choose from but I'd better be selective to avoid a lot of almost identical duplication... or would that be 4,609-ication?

So here are a few more... Stuart has also posted some in the Screen Captures thread (welcome home Stuart!) so except for one, I have chosen markedly different shots from them (although Simon has more for the website) and they follow on in sequence from the last three I posted.

More Hayley at Lincoln Cathedral, on Songs of Praise

Cheers, Dave

[Raymond]

Great VIdeos!!! Thank you. I love the screen captures too.

Raymond

[postscript]

stevehome said:

Hi Folks,

Simon has posted a Medium res (340Kbps) version of Hayley performing "Ave Maria" from songs of praise on the main site, a 600Kbps version will be available soon.

Here is a link to the medium res version:-

www.hayley-westenra-international.com/video-vault/2006_wmv-player/20060827_songs-of-praise_lincolncathedral_SS_340Kbps.html


Enjoy,

Steve H

Did anyone capture the second week's Caccini with the solo organ accompaniment? I would love others to hear and to express their opinion on my thoughts that is the best of the Caccini she's ever done?

Peter S.

[Richard]

dave said:

Hi Richard and thanks for posting the links in the official forum, I've done the same in one or two other music related forums, too. All the more 'hits' for HWI.. and Hayley!

That's a good idea, Dave!

I belong to two of Tashi's forums, so I'll post links to the videos there as well.

Best Wishes,

Richard

[postscript]

Superb pictures Dave. Thank you.
Love the middle one.and she is wearing that lovely primrose yellow dress with the gold embellishments wich I think is superb. It enabled me to wax lyrical about it in my first Huddersfield post--reminds me I said I'd edit the second Huddersfield post, so i will if not too late and too old news now--I think I ascribed it to making her seem like a Greek goddess--the dress and adornments, of course!

Peter

[postscript]

Superb shots, Dav e, thank you. Of course we can't get any of these shots without the original and i did think the BBC had lit the cathedral well. I found this a most interesting programme, talking with the various craftsmen etc but the lighting ambiance of the cathedral must have made it a wonderful experience for Hayley. Used to crowds and loving them there must have been something ethereal about an 'empty' (technicians etc) cathedral and just her and the organ.

Peter

[postscript]

richnorri said:

dave said:

Hi Richard and thanks for posting the links in the official forum, I've done the same in one or two other music related forums, too. All the more 'hits' for HWI.. and Hayley!

That's a good idea, Dave!

I belong to two of Tashi's forums, so I'll post links to the videos there as well.

Best Wishes,

Richard

Well done, guys. Those of you who can manage more than one Hayley forum--or more than one forum at all!--do a great job by spreading the word that way.

Peter

[Dave]

someone said:

Hi everyone!

The video is absolutely lovely! Hayley looks and sounds beautiful, and the setting really complements the theme of the song. I understand Hayley sang this live, right?

Oksy

Hi Oksy,

Yes it is a beautiful setting, one of the best you could have. I think Hayley looks tiny, almost lost among the splendour of the surroundings in some of the shots! I don't know if she sang it live or not... Songs of Praise often have to use backing tracks in places like that and I've even known them resort to miming in some cases - Hayley would have to take their advice on that.

Did you sort out your Windows Media player problems? I ask this as I'm about to give a link to a new version of my Ave Maria recording and this one is twice the video bitrate, so the file is twice the size of the one on the HWI website. And importantly for you, you can just download it, save it, and you should be able to play it OK in Windows Media Player.

I've used special techniques to improve the quality and clarity to "near DVD" standards while using one-sixth of the DVD bitrate and filesize. You can also take useable screen shots from anywhere in this video - the one below is from it (not as good as from the original recording but not bad I think).

If anyone doesn't know how to take screen shots of a video in Windows Media Player, let me know and I'll post the method in Technical Support.

Here is the upgraded video of Ave Maria (22 MB) which is best played full-screen if you want to see the sparkles in Hayley's dress!

Please let me know, anyone who tries it, if the video does NOT show up in widescreen (16:9) format - just because it works on my Media player doesn't necessarily mean it works on yours!

Screen shot from the above video

[jons]

Regarding Hayley singing live, when I watch a programme where she is singing live, I think she's miming to begin with. But then she sings some notes a bit differently and I know she's singing live. Thats how good she is - she sounds like the original recording.

Hayley mimes on 'Songs of Praise' because there is no audience. Prayer and Heaven were basically videos. Why should Hayley sing live when there's no audience anyway? Hayley might as well save her voice. And I'm sure thats the reason.

[Steve H]

Hi Dave,

Just a quick post to say the screen captures you have posted are brilliant, thank you very much for sharing.

Hope you are keeping well?

See you at Cadogan Hall

Steve H

[postscript]

I for one, Dave, would be grateful for any such tips on screen shots. I am on the edge of so much technological change I am really feeling way behind in what has been happening over the last two or three years while I have been immersed in family matters and divorced from the rest of the world.

Thanks.

Peter

[Oksana]

Hi Dave!

Thanks so much for making the video available, because just yesterday, my media player stopped streaming embedded videos again! I've noticed that this happens every time I disable the overlays on WM to get screenshots. So for now, I won't be doing any more, in case that is what causes the problem.

Anyways, the video is really high quality, thanks for posting it.

Oksy