New Plymouth - TSB Showplace 27 Nov 2011

[Dave]

Hi everyone,

We can now discuss in this thread Hayley's Concert at New Plymouth - TSB Showplace on Sunday 27 November 2011. This is part of the Hayley's NZ Paradiso tour, as published by Stuff.co.nz and several other major NZ media sites today.

Please discuss anything about the tour as a whole in the main thread entitled NZ Tour 2011 - General thread, thanks!

Dave

[Ross]

i.postimg.cc/9fYxy370/smilie-big-grin.gif The following article appeared in the Taranaki Daily News about the upcoming concert:-

www.stuff.co.nz/taranaki-daily-news/news/5676826/Westenra-set-to-bowl-us-over

[Richard]

Thanks for the link, Ross!

It's an interesting article, so I'll post it in full:

Westenra set to bowl us over

KATE SAUNDERS
Last updated 05:00 24/09/2011

She's conquered the world – but not the Bowl of Brooklands.

New Zealand's biggest selling artist Hayley Westenra has admitted she would one day love to sing at our region's stunning natural amphitheatre.

"Oh my goodness, it sounds like my dream venue. I love outdoor concerts. They're always a bit risky for promoters with the weather and everything but it sounds idyllic," Westenra says.

For now, she'll have to settle for performing in New Plymouth at the TSB Showplace, where she will appear on November 27 as part of her 10th anniversary homecoming tour.

Speaking to the Daily News from her London home, Westenra, 24, says things have changed since she released her first international album in 2003.

She's enjoying performing more as she gets older and her experience grows. "When I was younger I got really nervous and I still do, but I can relax more and take a few more musical risks when I'm up on stage. I'm able to get lost in the moment a bit more now."

Her latest album, Paradiso, was released earlier this year and is a collaboration with film composer Ennio Morricone and his orchestra.

She says it was incredible to work with the director, who pushed her both as a person and an artist.

That is high praise from a woman who is scheduled to perform one of the anthems in the Rugby World Cup final.

"I'm really, really looking forward to that. Fingers crossed I'll be singing for my team. I haven't really contemplated the All Blacks not being in the final."

And for the record, she is most definitely an All Blacks supporter.

In July she caused a stir in New Zealand after appearing in an English RWC promotional photo shoot perched atop a scrum of players, acting as their halfback while clad in a dress and high heels.

"It was a bit of a laugh. There was a misunderstanding, there was a mixture of nationalities of rugby players but people thought they were all English and I was supporting them. I'm never changing sides," she affirms.

And although the soprano has performed for royalty and has the fastest selling international debut album in the history of the United Kingdom classical charts, she says there's plenty left to achieve.

For a start, she's trying to get better at playing the guitar – although progress is coming along slowly. And there are always different people she would like to collaborate with.

Her current playlist contains Edith Piaf and Nick Cave, proving inspiration comes from everywhere.

"There's always music waiting to be written. I go on holiday and after a few days I want to get back on stage."

That may be because of a shifting attitude and self-confessed growing maturity. "I appreciate all the opportunities more now. I took everything in my stride when I first started but also took things very seriously. I see things for what they are now."

As part of her 10-city New Zealand tour, Christchurch-born Westenra will return to her earthquake-struck home city, where her family still live.

She said it was surreal returning home in March and seeing the damage. Part of the proceeds from her tour concerts will be going to the earthquake appeal. "It's the lives that were lost that is really so heartbreaking."

Richard

[martindn]

Spiderman tweeted that there were four encores at this concert!!!

I wonder what the fourth one was...

Martin D

[Libby]

Well, I hope he will write about it somewhere. I don't see why he can't just log on here long enough for that.

[martindn]

He told me that the fourth encore was a repeat of the Vivo Per Lei duet with Chase Douglas, which might have been influenced by some of Chase's family being in the audience.

Martin D

[Jillian]

Hi everyone,

This review of the concert in New Plymouth appeared in the Taranaki Daily News 29 November 2011.



So Hayley summoned him back onto stage in his jeans??? i.postimg.cc/9fYxy370/smilie-big-grin.gif That must have been rather hilarious and unexpected for Chase!

Cheers,
Jillian

[postscript]

I thought I had already posted on this but I must have been interrupted or gone to sleep! Allan Purdy in Taranaki Daily News has delivered perhaps the most professional of all reviews. It is balanced, he proceeds coherently through the evening, commenting on negative issues in context and then highlighting aspects as appropriate. Rarely can even Hayley deliver so astounding a performance that anyone not especially biased towards her say astounding to everything, except perhaps when the audience gives her that marvelous standing ovation as one or two audiences did. During a tour there will be such a variation, It is the nature of the night and the audience. I have often been disappointed that a standing ovation hasn't happened as often as I feel it should. I am delighted she has concluded she's done a good job, had a good time and is confident in moving on. God Bless you girl. You really are fab!

Peter S.

[Joe]

Thanks Jillian for that very fair and balanced review!

[Libby]

I wonder which songs he thought the band were too "weighty"?

There have been a few times when I thought the live performances of Whispers in a Dream were what I would call laborious. Her vocals are gorgeous, of course, and she interprets the emotion beautifully, but I prefer it the way she sang it on the album, effortless and exquisite. That includes the music itself, too, not just Hayley's singing. It's not just the instruments, though, it's mostly just the rhythm, I guess. I don't know how to explain it, but the lighter way she sings it on Paradiso makes it sound more "dreamy". Since it is Whispers in a "Dream", you know.

I think it's because she's putting more power into her voice, as well as slowing it down, and being slow and powerful at the same time doesn't have the same effect as the lighter quality on the album. I love the power in her voice, but in this song it does make it sound a bit "weighty", and makes it seem to drag on longer.
On the album, she interpreted the emotion of the song without as much power. The purity of her voice and the emotion she put into it were what gave it the exquisite quality. When she slows it down and adds more power, it's almost overdone.
This may sound ridiculous, but when I listen to the album version, it's so heavenly sounding, the feeling it gives me is sort of one of floating on air, while the slower versions with the stronger vocals loses that quality, making it almost seem kind of sad. It still has the hopefulness to it, it's just coming from a sadder place, if that makes any sense. But that may be the way some people need to hear it. Maybe they are very sad, and need to hear the hopefulness in a different way.

Sorry if I sound too critical, and she doesn't sound that way every time, but she never sounds quite like it did on the album. I still enjoy her slower performances very much, don't get me wrong, I just like the album version better.

[Simba]

No no you are completely right (IMO), I think I mentioned something like this sometime back during the Malta performance, regarding performances like Pokarekare ana, Hine Hine....which are better sung with the smooth, flowing connected way of singing (like she used to), compared to how she sings it recently....

But I can't completely decide on that until I listen to the most recent version of Pokarekare ana XD

[tireman]

What did the New Plymouth article by Mr Purdy mean when he said Hayley has an under developed voice.

Larry

[comet]

Hi Larry,

I would take the "Underdeveloped" to be a compliment,

As to mean a natural sounding soprano,
NOT an over trained opera singer who needs to show off all the vocal gymnastics they can perform in every song they sing.

Now is the Hour with a full display of vocal gymnastics

don't get me wrong I still love some of Dame Kiri's singing,
when she is not demonstrating her abilities to do these vocal gymnastics and just using her easy natural vocal range,
she sounds very easy and pleasant on the ear.

[tireman]

Nov 30, 2011 22:04:04 GMT comet said:

Hi Larry,

I would take the "Underdeveloped" to be a compliment,

As to mean a natural sounding soprano,
NOT an over trained opera singer who needs to show off all the vocal gymnastics they can perform in every song they sing.

Now is the Hour with a full display of vocal gymnastics

don't get me wrong I still love some of Dame Kiri's singing,
when she is not demonstrating her abilities to do these vocal gymnastics and just using her easy natural vocal range,
she sounds very easy and pleasant on the ear.

Thanks Paul
Sounds confusing to me. I've never heard an opera singer sing a song such as Hayley can without sounding like an fish out of water. I understand Kiri said some uncomplimentary things about Hayley this year.
Paul I'm gonna miss seeing you and Hayley at the NCH in Dublin this year. Chrismas in a non Chrisyian sound a bit bizzare to me.

Larry

[Libby]

Nov 30, 2011 12:14:41 GMT Simba said:

No no you are completely right (IMO), I think I mentioned something like this sometime back during the Malta performance,

Yeah, I think the Malta performance was the first time we heard it live (I think), and that was the first time I noticed how slow and drawn out it was. Yes, Tim is a good pianist, but he plays it too slow, which then makes Hayley sing it too slow. I don't know if there was a piano on the album recording, but they should utilize the string musicians more, try to make it sound more like the album. It just sounds better to me.