The Lisa Kelly Voice Academy

[urbanracer34]

So it's pretty official that Lisa Kelly is not coming back to Celtic Woman?

Scott has said on twitter that they're not ruling it out forever. So I'd say it's more of a never say never type of deal. Just look at Méav showing up on Home for Christmas.

aislin

I was thinking this exact same thing about a half an hour ago.

[mattycakes]

This is such an incredibly bittersweet moment. I had the privelage of seeing Lisa sing live for her last tour of SFTH and she was a joy to watch on stage. Also met her at that same Meet and Greet and she was so very sweet. Its a terrible shame that Celtic Woman won't be graced by the ineffible dignity and nobility that Lisa seemed to effortlessly bring to every song she sang. And I think that right there is the biggest reason we're all sad to see her go. Its not really her voice, because Susan is more than a match for her. But its that innate quality Lisa Kelly had of gracing the stage and truly captivating the heart and soul.

Good luck and God bless Lisa! I'll certainly miss your presence and your voice! Those students of yours will be in great hands. And if you ever decide to take a field trip to Cinci, call me! 

To Scott Porter. I'll certainly miss your management of CW. You were always there, the man behind the curtain, if you will, constantly providing calm answers to a storm of fan inquiries. For that, I'll miss you. And you helped to put on some of the best CW shows to date. Best of luck to the both of you moving forward.

Now! As for this Susan nonsense! *plants fists on hips*    Guys, I think we all need to give her a break. True, she's not Lisa. She will NEVER be Lisa. She is Susan. She is her own unique person and talent and I for one adore her. She has a certain vulnerability on stage that I just adore seeing. Especially in Follow On. *shudders* But everyone is turning this into the same thing as with Lynn when she first took over for Meav. Stepping into the BIG shoes left behind by one of the original soloists and one of the most popular members is hard enough without those of us calling ourselves fans saying she's not good enough! As with Lynn, I suggest we all reserve judgement until she's heard in one of her own songs. I'll be the first to admit I was hesitant of Lynn until I heard her on The Call. As soon as she sang "Sometimes it is in desire" I was gone. So let's give Susan that same chance!    Okay! That's all! Rant over. 

[The Quiet Man]

Sorry Matt, I can't totally agree with you totally, in my opinion Lisa Kelly's biggest asset onstage was her unique voice, which I could always tell apart from those of the other vocalists.  Orlagh was also unique (the only alto) and Hayley too (bell-like vocal color that was hard to replicate), but the rest of the vocalists sound (and sounded) largely interchangeable.  I also consider her to have had the best and most "polished" personality in the group, which is probably why she was almost always first at the table in the (unfortunately rare) signings etc. where all soloists were present.  I think CW definitely loses something with her, and it's also a milestone in another departure from the original five.

As for Susan, there is no way around the fact that she has a tough act to follow because of all the above.  BUT, she has to stand or fall on her own merits, she isn't automatically entitled to the same amount of fan goodwill that Lisa got, and the statement that "if you call your self a fan then whatever" is the flawed "no true Scotsman would..." argument.  (with credit to Jack Marshall of www.ethicsalarms.com)  Perhaps Susan will come into her own with the next show and songs that are unique to her, that remains to be seen, but each individual fan is entitled to decide what he/she prefers and act accordingly.

The main point of this thread, however, is to wish Lisa well in her new endeavor.  I do, and I hope perhaps in a year or so she gives a public "master class" where her students strut their stuff.  Maybe we'll even see her students competing for the Mario Lanza prize in Philadelphia one day.                             

[Maloney]

I cant sing well at all.....   hmmmm I wonder......... LOL

[Tiffany Gray]

I am going to miss Lisa being with CW so much.  I got to see her live 4 amazing times.  But I'm SO happy for her, and so unbelievably proud of her!  She continues to use her God-given talent to help and inspire others.  And hey, she'll be right here in the US! 

[Emer Dreamer]

 ....I'm getting a little off topic here..... but I have to disagree on one point with  Quiet Man.   I agree with what you said about Lisa, Orla, and Hayley having unique voices. (And very lovely too)   but I STRONGLY  disagree with any assessment that would dare classify  MEAV'S voice as interchangeable.    There is absolutely  NO ONE who sings like Meav!   ( class by herself)

[Starman]

    I'll miss Lisa tremendously from Celtic Woman.  I saw her at 36 shows and had probably a dozen M&Gs with her.  She joked that it seemed I always got her at the Meet & Greets.  She knew full well I was never disappointed in seeing her.  She stated a couple of times that she could always find me in any audience.  She proved it when she spotted me in row K at the Fox on the second night of filming of Believe in Atlanta and made sure I saw that she saw me!  I was really surprised!  In hindsight, I suspect she knew then it might well be the last time I would ever see her.

   I'll always support her in all that she does, as I feel sure is true of the majority of her fans.  Let's look for opportunities to support her and show her that her fans will always be her fans.

[Wyle_E]

I guess we should have seen it coming.  Last fallback hope is that she will produce a new solo CD every few years.

[littlecubspirit]

We can be thankful that we have so many good memories of Lisa, so many albums and DVDs to peruse when we grow nostalgic. And who knows, perhaps that DVD companion to her solo album (she talked about it on the meet the artist segment on the original Celtic Woman DVD) will finally get dusted off and released. Though its more likely that we may see her put out new music, since its been so long since her original solo album.

[aislin]

A minor note here, we all have different tastes in music. Part of that has to be that not everyone hears everything exactly the same way, much as we don't all perceive colors the same way due to variations in biology. What some might see as an ordinary voice to others will be the voice of a generation. Just look at the wide ranging reviews CW gets or flip through the radio. In my opinion, David has yet to go wrong in selecting vocalists and each adds something new and different to whatever song they are performing.

I also forgot to mention my own congratulations to Scott & Lisa on their new endeavor in my earlier post and I'd like to do so now. This school sounds like a fantastic way for Lisa & Scott to be able to continue to share their love of music (and maybe eventually dancing) with the world while still being close to home for their kids. I wish them all the success in the world.

aislin

[Celtic Chan]

Just like all of you guys, I'm going to miss Lisa a lot.

When I heard Celtic Woman for the first time they were singing "You Raise Me Up" ("Songs From the Heart" version). Ever since then Lisa has always struck me as "the mother of the group". Though I'm extremely upset about her leaving, I have to keep in mind she has a family. I'm happy for her & I hope she's happy with this new adventure in her life. In my opinion, Susan is a good singer & a beautiful woman, but she never has made me feel the way I do about Lisa when she sings. But that opinion might eventually change.

Anyway, Lisa is such a beautiful & talented person! She has an AMAZING voice! I love you, Lisa!

[Pantro]

Lisa Kelly:Please don´t go to Celtic Woman.

[Gail]

Okay.........so now we ARE losing Lisa Kelly. I was afraid of this happening.

That means that the ONLY original members of the group now are Chloe and Maeraid -- which we will probably lose if Chloe ever decides to attend university, and if Maeraid becomes pregnant (now that she is married).

Yes, the constantly changing members ARE talented, but I stick with my previous comments that are there are simply TOO MANY changes happening with this group too fast (from the fans side of it) -- and that is probably why their long-time fans are leaving. They are still enjoyable to listen to, but the original magic is gone (and especially since the "upper management" decided to keep only the 3-part harmony -- yes, those 3 voices blend well, but the missing 4th voice is DEFINITELY felt -- to those of us who have an ear for, and love for, close, or good counterpoint, 4-part harmony)........I am SO glad I have bought almost all the DVD's from the beginning up through the Christmas Celebration one.

Yes, Maev may be heard on the CD's, but that is NOT the same is seeing them all together on stage - reacting not only to the live audiences, but also to each other. Each time I watch the other DVD's, I enjoy watching and hearing the other, newer singers, but I keep missing Maev (and Orla)........I can't help it!

And as I have also noted before, the same thing has happened with Celtic Thunder (which, I have stated per web info I gleaned, is owned by the same company as Celtic Woman.....and that group was also started the same year as Celtic Woman [if my memory serves me correctly])...........there ARE a few more of the originals still left in Celtic Thunder -- SO FAR, only Damian and Paul have left the group -- but Paul was a MAJOR voice/talent in that group, as I'm sure everyone realizes.

I have read a reply on here about many other groups who've changed numerous members over the years........yes, there are -- BUT, if any of you have ever watched the PBS channels program concerts of "Golden Oldies" groups performing their DECADES old pop hits.............not only are MANY of those groups STILL composed of their ORIGINAL members (even in their 50's and up into their 70's and 80's)..........and notice the audience is also of their faithful -- now much older -- fans, but notice, too, that the audiences are always PACKED !.....and nearly through the whole concert, are ON THEIR FEET, clapping in time to the music, and singing right along with the singers, in their enthusiasm over seeing and hearing -- in person, all those favorite singing groups as they remember them. That longevity of the same members in the music groups, and those long--faithful fans......is something worth thinking about.

[The Quiet Man]

Not "losing," LOST.  You are correct that we only have two of the original core five left.  Whether that represents a "tipping point" or not remains to be seen.  Just to set the record straight, Celtic Woman debuted in 2004.  Celtic Thunder debuted in 2007.  CW has been through 11 soloists with 4 currently in the group, CT has been through 9 with 6 currently in the group.  Arguably, like Deirdre and Hayley with CW, who had brief tenures, boy soprano Daniel Furlong and current soloist Neil Byrne might not "count" the same as the other soloists, the former because he had only a brief tenure with CT, the latter because he has not been featured much.  

So far, the changing of soloists doesn't seem to have hurt the bottom line too much, mostly because most concertgoers are casual concertgoers, not core fans.  However, now that it's known that Susan is here to stay, and not merely to fill in while Lisa K is on maternity leave, the fans generally have to decide whether they like her on her own merits or not.  If, as the new press release seems to indicate, the upcoming spring tour shakes things up and gives Susan some solos not previously performed by someone else, that may help her.  The fact is that there has almost always been a personnel change each time out, although some of the departures came without a lot of general notice.  What is different now and going forward is that half the group wasn't there at the beginning.  

I'm not sure it can be helped, 6-month tours are rough, particularly on those members who have spouses and/or kids missing them at home.  Yes, they know what they are signing up for, but knowing it intellectually and knowing it by experience are 2 different things.  I can't say I blame anyone, Lisa K especially, since she's been around the dance floor more times than any other member except Chloe and Mairead, for deciding after a while that enough is enough.  

I would also throw this out: The Irish Tenors predate CW by about six years, and for about that long THEY were the premiere Celtic act on PBS.  They went through some personnel changes too, which I won't run through at length because I would get bogged down in the details, but eventually their audience faded on its own.  In 2004 they sold out the NJPAC, a huge venue.  This year they are performing in NJ in the small Bergen PAC in a town that no one has heard of unless they are from northeastern NJ.  Even the restoration of the original lineup hasn't brought them back to where they were.  They've shot their bolt.  Eventually there comes a point where you've shot your bolt and it's time to yield the stage to a fresh act.  CW has been out there for nine years now, or it will be nine years this year.  At some point reinvention probably won't help them any longer.  Dunno if we're there yet.                      

[urbanracer34]

I honestly hope this is not the tipping point for CW.
They're one of the best musical groups I've heard in years.
I feel like they may have a ton of life left in the group, even if there's only two of the original five left.
It depends on us, the fans, and a ton of other factors as well; Is it profitable? Is it worth doing? Can we pull it all off? How many places have we sold out lately or on our last few tours?
As Scott Porter said, "No one knows what the future holds, so we may work with (Celtic Woman) again in the future, but for now its time to focus on new roads!"

I just hope for Lisa K and Scott that there will be a CW for them to return to if and when they decide to come back...

I think this last point I'm about to say is true for all of us: If CW were to disband or otherwise shut down permanently, it would be a sad day for each of us, depending on the circumstances of course, whatever they may be.

Some fans are more "hardcore", or in other words, larger fans than the rest of us. Some of us have supported them since the beginning. Some of us started supporting them only recently, with more finding out about them all the time through YouTube and through word of mouth. Some of us have probably, at some point in our lives, when were just starting out on this road or even way before it, saw a CW CD in the store, a download file of one of their CDs on the Internet, or even a commercial for one of their concerts; and thought, "I'm not giving them a chance. No way."

Yet we all did give them a chance, and here we all are. We wouldn't be here on this forum if CW didn't exist. We wouldn't know each other if CW didn't exist. And for some of the more hardcore fans, they probably feel like they wouldn't exist if CW didn't exist.

It is us, the fans, no matter how young or old we are in age or how long we've been fans, who will help keep CW going. We'll always be on their and right by their side.

Let's keep supporting them, lets give Susan a chance, and let's try to make these next few years some of the best they've ever had!