Dublin NCH 14 June 2012

[Juliette]

Jun 25, 2012 23:58:20 GMT Libby said:

Juliette, you at least have to tell us about it before you leave!

So, do I give my report or not...?!

Ok at least the first part

[Paddy]

Jun 26, 2012 0:12:11 GMT Juliette said:

Hiiiii everyone!!

I have a beautiful and detailed report waiting for you if you want I wanted to post it tonight but I thought that Michal or other first concert goers might like to give their impression of a first concert experience before?! What should I do?!?!

Lots of love,
Juliette x

Hi Juliette,

I'm sure Michal is being a real gentleman

- waiting patiently to read your impressions of the concert before posting his own.

So, don't hesitate. Go for it (with the usual smileys).

After forty Hayley concerts, I love to read fresh perspectives, just to feel Hayley-wowed all over again.


Paddy

[Juliette]

So helloooo everyone

Sorry for the late report, I've been quite busy lately...

Before giving you my report of this amazing concert, I will bring the bad news first and apologise for the fact that I didn't take any videos nor pictures of the concert.

In fact, the NCH staff was very strict on the “No pictures/recordings policy” and being front row, I didn't have a good angle on Hayley, which made the handling of the camera harder and which would have meant me being concentrated on my camera to have something of quality rather than being concentrated on the concert.

So, I decided to enjoy my concert to its most and live every moment and aspect of it. But I'm sorry to those who were hoping for videos and were looking forward to them...

In fact I have just two photos - see below - of very bad quality, taken very fast, but that I post just to give you some sort of an idea...if you can see something

I will then try to make my report as lively as possible so that you can picture everything as if you were with us

And I will start by describing Hayley's outfits in every detail – yes, yes! :

Hair and make-up: see Paddy's pic (notice her hair is shorter than usual ) - she wore no slide.
Nail polish: transparent on the hands – between grey and brown (near to taupe) for the feet. That's all the things you can see from front row haha!

First half:

Dress: see pic provided by Joyce

Shoes:


Earings:


Necklace: I couldn't find a picture of it but I know we've already seen it... It's a small star in diamond imitation. Not very long and quite sparkly. Help...?!

Second half:

Dress:


Shoes: same as first half

Earings:


Necklace:



Autograph session:



And the two photos....

[Juliette]

– Part 1 –

A concert of Hayley, in Ireland, a day after my birthday sounded a bit like a dream... Or like the perfect occasion I couldn't miss.

I had dreamed of going to Ireland since a long time as I love Irish culture and music and I was very much looking forward to discovering the country. Knowing that I could do so and go to a concert of Hayley on the same trip... I couldn't ask for more!

I left for Ireland on my birthday and this day already started greatly with the news that I had passed my exams, the last step that needed to be “checked” to secure my leaving for New Zealand in just two weeks. I had the feeling that this trip to Dublin was going to be awesome. And I was not wrong.

After a wonderful afternoon and evening in this beautiful city on the 13th and many sightseeing on the 14th, it was time at 6pm to get ready for Hayley's concert. I joined Paddy and Paul in the entrance hall of the NCH a bit later. I had already met Paddy in Manchester and it was great to see him again, and I was very happy to meet Paul for the first time, who is as nice as all the forums' members I have met so far

There were 1h30 to go before the concert, so we went for a drink in the hotel in front of the NCH which happened to be broadcasting the Euro, but we showed courage when we chose a table from which we couldn't see the televisions. Hard decision, I have to confess! After having talked of one thing and another, it was time to go back to the NCH.

We took our seats – front row of course! I was surprised to see how close the stage was from us. Paddy, who was seating next to me, explained that the stage had been made bigger so that it could hold both the orchestra and Hayley. We were thus just 6 ft from the stage and Hayley.

The orchestra came on stage as well as the conductor, and they started the recognizable and very beautiful first notes of “A Thousand Winds”. Hayley appeared from the left door, behind Tim's piano, and walked slowly towards the centre of the stage. Her face said how happy she was to be back. But she seemed quite stressed as well. How natural! It had been a while since she hadn't been back in Ireland and I think she didn't want to deceive anyone. Not to let the stress overwhelm her, she grabbed the microphone stand, closed her eyes and started: “Please, do not stand...” Her voice was as round, powerful and beautiful as ever. I may have felt her stress, but she was still amazing and I was completely captivated by her voice and her talent.

When the song was finished, she gave a little 'welcome' speech. She started by noticing that we were “quite a house” and by thanking us for having chosen her over football! As a true sport fan, she then inquired about the score, and someone in the audience brought the bad news that Ireland was losing by one point. She then said that she wished good luck to the Irish team and that her green dress might help to support Ireland. She paused and said: “Speaking of Irish/Kiwi support...” and mentioned that for the rugby game between Ireland and New Zealand that was to take place the following Saturday, Ireland could not, unfortunately, count on her support as she would naturally be supporting her beloved All Blacks! She then went on by saying that she was very happy to be back since the last time she was in Dublin was 2009, and that in the meantime, she had made another album which lead her to collaborate with Maestro Ennio Morricone and on which she had to opportunity to contribute to some lyrics. She introduced the next song, “Whispers in a Dream”.

With an album such as Paradiso, attending a concert in which Hayley was accompanied by a full orchestra was of course an amazing experience. Because the album is very orchestral and because the music is so beautiful, the full orchestra added so much power and intensity to Hayley's performance... I was deeply moved and thrilled. The whole concert took me to another place. And I was so much into the music, so captivated by the whole concert that I mouthed every word of each song! But I tried so be as silent as possible to let everyone else enjoy their concert as well

Hayley went on with “Profumo di limone” and then, one of my favourite, “The Mummers' Dance”. I love Hayley's interpretation of it and how she has fun singing it. It was only the fourth song, so until then Hayley's stress could still be felt a little but the rhythm of this song helped her to feel more confident. Moreover, the orchestra seemed really happy to be playing all these wonderful tunes and to be accompanying Hayley, so the fun the musicians, the conductor and Tim showed certainly helped Hayley to feel more at ease. Consequently, we were offered a wonderful performance of this song and our happiness could be felt with the big applause we gave at the end of the song.

Hayley left the stage. The conductor informed us that the programme had changed for the next piece and that they wouldn't perform Nino Rota's theme for “The Godfather”, but the love theme from “Out of Africa”, composed by the great John Barry. I couldn't be happier... It is of course such a beautiful theme.

We didn't leave the sphere of film music after that as the next song was the gorgeous “May It Be”. When I saw on the programme that it was featuring in the concert, I was very happy because I love this song and I love Hayley's interpretations of it, studio or live. I've always thought that if I wanted to make someone discover Hayley's talent and remarkable voice, I'll most probably use “May It Be” to do so, as this song gives the full extent of the beauty of her voice and her interpretation is just right. Besides, as it is a song from the Lord of the Rings which, in itself, is strongly connected with New Zealand – consequently, I think that “May It Be” makes one with Hayley: when you hear Hayley singing this song, you see the beauty of New Zealand. So, I was very much looking forward to this piece. In addition, I had never heard it live by Hayley, so it made this moment extremely special. When she started the first verse, she didn't feel very assured, so the beginning was a bit difficult for her because the first verse is made of long voice lines for which you need a lot of breath. But as soon as she started the chorus, her confidence was back, she organised her breathing and was consequently very at ease in the song. And that was it... She took the whole audience on a journey in New Zealand....or at least me

Before singing “Who Painted the Moon Black”, Hayley explained how much she liked singing those “old” songs from Pure, because it took her back to the time when it all started internationally for her, when she was travelling as a 16-year-old young girl, with her mom around the world, and that strangely enough that big journey, i.e. the recording of the album, started in Ireland! The whole orchestra was needed for this song, plus the drums, so sometimes Hayley's voice was nearly covered by the music. At the end of the song, she asked her favourite sound engineer (I think it was him!) for more vocals, but while singing it, she made her cute gesture she had already done at the IRB Awards when she sang World in Union and lacked vocals as well – it amused me

“Songbird” was another wonderful moment of music, this sweet and beautiful song in which Hayley puts all her heart and soul when she sings it. And it was also the opportunity to enjoy Tim Evan's talent: the intro of the song was in fact the first time of the concert we were able to hear him “solo”. I've been impressed by Tim's talent since the first time I heard him during the Barbican concert in Dec 2010. He is a wonderful musician, and it's great for Hayley to have him on board because he's as passionate and talented as she is.

Ah, then... “La Califfa”... My favourite from Paradiso and one of my favourite by Hayley. The theme is absolutely beautiful and the construction of the song is perfect: the introduction which is soft, uncluttered and warm, followed by the two verses in English that, I feel, are a bit cold and shrilly (not with a bad connotation) and that are in contrast with the two verses in Italian in which Hayley's voice is full, round and warm, splendidly accompanied by the piano and then by the violin which plays that beautiful “second voice”, and the end of the song played by the oboe, gentle and simple. You most probably guessed it: this moment was for me one of the highlight of the concert, just as it had been in Manchester. Perfect rendition by Hayley. An exquisite moment full of passion and emotion.

The last song of the first half was “My Heart Belongs To You”, a song for the romantic souls And then of course....the interval!

[Juliette]

– Part 2 –

It is the orchestra that started that second half with a piece by Verdi, an extract from “La Traviata”. Excellent interpretation, of course.

The violin player and leader, Mia Cooper (another first-class musician!) started the intro to “Summer Fly”, a quite long and slow intro during which Hayley slowly walked to the centre of the stage, step by step, one feet in front of the other, like the models do , in her red dress. Then the guitar started and Hayley was immediately taken by the rhythm of the song. She was so at ease, having so much fun!! We could see her pleasure in her eyes, and even her whole body was reflecting it! Obviously, when so much fun and passion is lived and shared, it is spread to people around! And in fact, Mia was having lots of fun too. She exchanged a look with Hayley and we could feel their mutual pleasure. It is then that I thought of Shakira's song “Hips Don't Lie” and of what she said at the time she released it: when she records or listens to a song and she feels her hips moving, it means that it's a good song. And in fact, during “Summer Fly”, I felt my hips slighlty moving... You know what it means Hayley!

The concert went on with Hayley's emblematic song, “Pokarekare Ana”, that she started a capella and then was joined by the orchestra. Of course, another moment of perfect beauty.

Before singing “Amalia por amor”, a song that I know many concert goers are looking forward to, Hayley introduced it by saying it was a tribute to the late and wonderful fado singer Amalia Rodrigues. Another song I really liked on Hayley's album for the alternation between the rather calm moments and those of full intensity. Awesome!

Before singing the next song, Hayley explained that, though Paradiso was an album very orchestral, for the piece to come, she and Tim decided to make an arrangement more intimate and to just use the piano to accompany the song. It was time for the beautiful “I Knew I Loved You”. The orchestral version is obviously great, but the version they arranged is absolutely wonderful. It gives Hayley more space to interpret, as Tim follows her, so she can say the words at her own speed and render a deeper song. The lyrics are very beautiful, and everyone (or at least every romantic soul! ) can easily relate to them. It was a very beautiful, deep and emotional moment.

“Metti una sera a cena” brought back rhythm to the concert and Hayley was very comfortable with the song. Her breathing was organised and at the right moments. Thus she was not concentrated nor worried by technical details and she was really able to have fun. I loved that moment during the musical break when she snapped her fingers... Don't really know why....it was just cool

Hayley left the stage and the orchestra played a piece called “Send in the Clowns”. They played it with a lot of emotion and their great performance earned them an ovation, very well deserved!

Hayley came back for what was another highlight of the concert: “I Dreamed a Dream”. Hayley's current interpretation of that song is obviously much more deeper than when she recorded in 2001 (though still beautiful), so hearing her sing it now is of course a moving and captivating moment. From when the last verse started (“And still I dream he'll come to me...”) until the end of the song, it was the most powerful and beautiful moment: the whole orchestra was backing Hayley with so much passion, and Hayley sang that last part with so much intensity that she was almost trembling. A moment that caught and moved me deeply. A moment I was only able to conclude with a: “Wow”.

Hayley introduced the next song by saying that it would be familiar to those who had watched “Love Actually” and that it was her favourite song by Joni Mitchell: it was, of course, “Both Sides Now”. Hayley is very comfortable with this song, in terms of voice range and of interpretation, so it's always a pleasure to hear her singing it.

The last song of the programme was the usual closure: “Wuthering Heights”. It's a very challenging song vocally and Hayley dealt with it remarkably. The fact that it's very rhythmic adds fun to it and it was once again a wonderful way to end the concert.

BUT, of course.... We wanted more!! Given our thunderous applause, Hayley had no choice but to come back! When she asked if we wanted another one, the answer was of course: YES! She started her encores with “Amazing Grace”. Her interpretation of this song is absolutely perfect and very moving, so it was another exquisite moment. Obviously we didn't want to see her leave, so we gave her a standing ovation – the standing ovation she deserved for that brilliant concert. She came back at the piano. Before starting the tune, as usual, she said she had to take off her heels. It's a moment that always amuse the audience, of course She said that the audience would probably know the song because it had been sung by the famous Irish singer Mary Black... “Aaaaah”, answered the audience. “It's called 'Sonny'”, said Hayley. “Aaaaaaaah”, added the audience. It was, I thought, her best performance of this song since her recording on 'Treasure': no wrong note, not sung too fast, the interpretation was just right and her voice....well, her voice is always awesome!! It was so perfect that we gave her another standing ovation and she came back for her third encore for our enjoyment! But, Hayley is always very thoughtful, so she apologized for keeping us late and said that if we had a train to catch, she wouldn't mind us leaving. What none of us didn't mind was missing the said-train to enjoy another song, of course! The last song was “Never Saw Blue” and Hayley delivered a perfect performance that ended the concert brilliantly. We all once again rose to our feet and gave her another standing ovation: she had completely won our hearts.

[Juliette]

– Part 3 –

We all went back to the entrance hall of the NCH where, we soon understood, Hayley would sign autographs and I met the other forums' members, some I had already met and was delighted to see again – Peter – and others I met for the first time and was as delighted to see : Michal, Natasha (so smiling and fun!! ), Conor and Eugene.

We took photos and chatted, and took position at the end of the queue until it was finally our turn to meet Hayley. Paul was just in front of me and while he was talking to Hayley, the employee of the NCH who had actually been then employed to take the photos started to talk to me and we had a nice little chat. It was his first time seeing or knowing about Hayley and he told me he found she was very good: another person who was Hayleywowed! When it was my turn to meet Hayley, Paul asked her if she knew me and she replied something like: “of course, we have already met!” I was obviously very pleased and our meeting started very well. She asked me since when I had been in Ireland and the girly question, if I had made some shopping Before leaving for Ireland, I had been given two “missions” by my brother and my mum: my brother wanted an autograph, and my mum told me to say 'hi' to Hayley. Of course, I respected their wishes and after Hayley had signed my programme, I asked for an autograph for my brother Thomas and told her my mum was saying 'hi'. Hayley replied: “Oh thanks! Well, tell her I say 'Bonjour'!” I then told Hayley that I was leaving for New Zealand soon to study there for one year. She seemed very excited and told me she was sure I will have an awesome time. After Peter, Conor and Paddy got their CDs and programme signed, Hayley left us. She thanked us once again for coming and wished us all a good journey home. It was the end of what had been a wonderful evening.

[Juliette]

....Quite a long report... I hope you liked it

Lots of love,
Juliette x

[timj]

thanks Juliette, I like your report, Hayley Concert reports are never too long....TimJ

[gillette]

Hi Juliette -

WOWZEE!!!!! What a fantastic report! A true delight to read! A standing ovation for that! Thank you ever so much.

Kind regards,
BobS

[Paddy]

Jun 26, 2012 0:55:45 GMT Juliette said:

....Quite a long report... I hope you liked it

Lots of love,
Juliette x

"Wow"

Paddy

[comet]

great detailed report Juliette,
I am so pleased you so obviously enjoyed the concert.

I am glad you confirmed my thoughts on I Dreamed A Dream as an outstanding and spectacular performance by Hayley,
So much so that I listened to the London cast recording of Les Misérables in full yesterday morning, the whole double album, such a sad story, a bit hard to take.

As the photographs show, It was extremely bright in the front row there was a second rack of 12 led par lamps directly above us,
( I have an intense dislike of LED lighting, not quite sure why, but I am beginning to notice warnings on LED light sources,
DO NOT LOOK DIRECTLY INTO THE LIGHT SOURCE and DO NOT POINT LIGHTS AT REFLECTIVE SURFACES ) and fumbling with cameras would have been as visible as waving a flag, an Irish one of course, not that it would have helped much, we seem to be getting hammered at every sport we partake in.

Just as well we have the RTE Concert Orchestra and RTE Lyric FM to lift our spirits.

Thank you Juliette for an exceptional report and Bon Voyage on your own Odyssey.

[Bamafan]

A wonderful report Juliette! Glad it was such a great concert.

-Taylor i.postimg.cc/9fYxy370/smilie-big-grin.gif

[Libby]

Yes, thank you for your wonderful report! The lack of photos and videos is okay, after all. We have recent photos of her in the red dress, at least, and videos of the same songs from other concerts, so I guess it's not that bad. I completely understand about just wanting to enjoy the concert. That's what I normally do at concerts, too!

[grant]

Hi Juliette

I'm coming to the end of a very busy couple of weeks, so haven't been able to post much - it's been as much as I can manage to keep up with what is being posted!

So, I haven't read your report on the concert yet, but will look forward to doing so later this evening when I have the time to enjoy it - by all accounts it will be worth the wait i.postimg.cc/9fYxy370/smilie-big-grin.gif i.postimg.cc/9fYxy370/smilie-big-grin.gif

Lots of love
Grant
xx

[Richard]

Many thanks for your superb report, Juliette!

I've posted a new link to it on our Facebook page, and your photo with Hayley makes a great thumbnail there.

Lots of love,

Richard xxx