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CWazyTom
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« on: December 20, 2019, 06:47:35 PM »

My apologies for the significant delay in getting this posted. It's been a little hectic.

On December 5, 2019, I finally saw a show at Carnegie Hall for the first time!

I flew from into New Jersey in the morning and took the train to Manhattan. I walked around Central Park for an hour or so and then had dinner with Mr. Peabody and some other superfans. I then walked off the dinner by rushing to see the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center before heading back to Carnegie Hall for the show!

It had been an adventure getting the tickets. I had ordered them for Mr. Peabody and I while he was flying back from Europe. I couldn't ship to Canada for some reason so I sent them to him...only they never arrived. I had to have them re-printed and held at the box office instead.

The show was in the Stern Auditorium. It was visually impressive, with a deep orchestra section and a total of 5 levels (4 narrow balconies at the back and around the sides of the theater.

The stage was pretty large and somewhat high relative to the first row where I was sitting, next to Mr. Peabody.

The opening performance wasn't actually in the program (I'm trying to confirm who it was), but it was incredibly impressive. That guy had one of the most ridiculous vocal ranges I've ever heard.

Mairead Nesbitt got 2 solos (Carol of the Bells and You Raise Me Up) and accompanied on stage in a few of the other songs.

You Raise Me Up, for which Lynn accompanied a singer (not Lynn), really hit me hard this time. Mairead's been there for me through some mental struggles over the past few months and I'm grateful for all the times she's been there to raise me up. There were a lot of tears shed during this song.

Lynn, unfortunately, didn't get any solos. She sang a duet of Merry Little Christmas with Colbie Caillat. It sounded nice (though I much prefer the Celtic Woman group arrangement). Lynn's mic didn't seem like it was turned up high enough though. Colbie Caillat was definitely the dominant voice in that song. I could hear Lynn's harmony but not nearly as distinctly as in CaraNua. In the "group" numbers for which she was on stage, she was basically singing backup. I thought they could have done a much better job of using Lynn's gorgeous voice in the show.

Lynn seemed a bit shy that day. She was standing off to the side of the stage and had to almost be coaxed up to the microphone by Colbie Caillat.  As someone that's very shy myself in most situations, I empathize with her and I actually thought it was adorable.

One of the non-Celtic Woman highlights of the show was Lisa Fischer's performance of "On the Wings of an Angel" (a Tim Janis song). She sang with a tremendous amount of heart.

Tori Kelly also did a great job with her solo, Never Alone.

Another of Tim Janis' own songs, Solid Ground, peaked my interest. At the time, it sounded really familiar but at the time, I wasn't sure why. I later realized I had heard Hayley on YouTube perform the same song (possibly at one of Tim Janis' show at Carnegie Hall a few years ago). Tom Rhoads did a good job with it although I'm admittedly biased toward Hayley's performance.

Most of the songs in the show were performed in contemporary styles. There was a mix of traditional Christmas songs, contemporary Christmas songs, religious songs, and generally uplifting ones. Most of the songs/performances were good, though not necessarily anything I would fly to see were it not for Lynn and Mairéad.

Eimear McGeown (who plays flutes whistle, and some other wind instruments) was in a few songs. She was one of the performers in the Tim Janis Celtic Heart PBS special and DVD, which releases nationally in 2020.

Tim Janis himself was backstage for most of the show. He came out to play piano for a few songs and to talk about the charities.

There were a few interludes where people close to the charities (Forever Young Foundation music therapy, Sophie's Place, and The Golden Hat Foundation). I'd encourage you to find out more about each of the charities. There were some really touching stories about the charities during the show. There was a story about a little girl's wish list: one item of which was simply to "change someone's life." There was also a song written by Sophie, who had always dreamed about performing in front of a large audience  but never got the chance. The song was performed by her siblings.

I'm a believer in music therapy and the ability of music to calm our minds and heal our hearts. I really connected with some of those charity stories and they were a highlight of the night.

There was no Meet and Greet for this show. The show ran close to 2.5 hours with no intermission. By then it was too late to wait at the stage door for Mairead and Lynn. I had to rush to the subway to catch the train back to NJ. I made the train (barely) with one minute to spare.

Overall, I enjoyed the show. It had variety and some good performances. Given how little Mairead and Lynn were in the show and that there was no M+G, I not sure if I'd fly to one of those in future years ... unless the timing and lineup are just right.
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VegasDavid
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« Reply #1 on: December 29, 2019, 12:27:14 AM »

I'm glad you were able to make it to the show without any major mishaps, Tom!  Too bad they didn't let Lynn's voice shine like it should.  We'll just have to see her sing with Caranua some time.
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