WARNING: This is a long one!
1 / 2 of Part Two: The ConcertAgain, before you read this: If this review becomes interrupted by a small paragraph dwelling on a single moment of the concert (and it
will, because those are the only moments I can really remember with vivid imagery) you can simply skip to read the specifics
But, you won’t be reading much if you do that
And also: I love writing, and explaining little moments through words with heavy description. If I get a little carried away with the adjectives (but, I won’t tell you which ones
) please excuse me, as this is, in fact, my first concert review.
On with the concert!
Program and Fiddler Crossing Sign planted firmly in hand, the lights dimmed and an achingly familiar silhouette appeared within the shadows of the spotlight……My breath caught in my throat, and my head snapped towards Angelica. I had this look on my face:
It’s her…oh my gosh, it’s HER! Angelica looked back at me with the most innocent expression, albeit with as much as excitement as I had, as if to reply:
I know! I can’t believe it, either! She grabbed my hand (I’m tearing up as I type this) and we simultaneously turned back to the stage to watch in awe as Máiréad, absolutely breathtaking in that spotlight, slowly walked down the stage. (talk about sister-bonding time!)
Chloë’s almost-whispered voice greeted the audience with a lovely intro, one that I have heard about, but never actually heard. All I can remember is, “…I am the deer’s cry…” or something along the lines of that. I feel real ashamed for not remembering everything…
In the next moment, my vision was completely trained on Máiréad and her beautiful fiddle. She slowly moved all her weight onto one leg and then the other and her torso moved with her violin; but you couldn’t see any details, not yet, as there was only a ‘back-light spotlight’ as Angelica calls it, enveloping the stage and Máiréad in a purple-ish glow.
Everything was still dark, and a mystique feeling came over me. Each girl finally came up on the stage ( I don’t remember the order nor how each of them entered - all I know is that they were
there ) Lisa, Alex, Chloë , and Lynn all took their separate cues of “ya da da da ya dadada da…” and Máiréad moved to the back of the stage, bow raised towards the sky.
That’s when the tears came. I was brought back to this little moment, when I was watching
The Sky and the Dawn and the Sun the other night on my portable DVD player before bed, and I was thinking to myself, “When I go to that concert, when they sing
this song, I am
not going to cry.”
I did just that. It wasn’t sobbing or anything along the lines of being audible, but I had to blink tears away before someone saw anything and thought “Dork.” My vision was blurred for a half-a-second and I freaked. There’s this old trick: It’s impossible to cry if you look up at the ceiling. But, I was stubborn and refused to take my eyes off the girls. So, I just caved and let the tears roll down my cheeks. The only thought revolving in my head was back in that moment when I was in my bed watching the DVD version of SDS. My chin was quivering horribly as the song continued and I remember my legs - my entire body - shaking with pure emotion. I hung onto every word, leaning forward in my seat and all, and tried to absorb as much as I could. Talk about an overwhelming experience!
You know that frequently used saying you see in practically every review here? “It brought me to tears” and/or “I was shaking with excitement” To all of you who have underestimated the pure truth in those statements…
Don’t. Those who have been to these concerts and reviewed, mean it with everything they have. Granted, it’s the cheesiest saying in the history of the world, and for me, was used with probably the cheesiest meaning ever: “Oh, the Celtic Woman concert brought me to tears. I was shaking with excitement.” It’s true. Never. Ever. In all the world did I think I would ever be saying such a thing, but here I am.
I’m not sure how much I can stress what that single opening song, The Sky and the Dawn and the Sun, did to me emotionally.
It was all just extremely powerful and will remain my favorite group song for a very, very,
very long time.
Back to reality!
As I said earlier: most of what you are about to read will mainly consist of little moments that made my smile a bit bigger, made me clench my sister’s hand harder, and just flat out made my night the best single experience of my life! (hint: most, but not all of this will mainly consist of “Máiréad-moments”
)
Okay, you guys remember those little binoculars I was talking about earlier in Part One? Those little things played a fatally big part for me that night when it came to the really slow air emotional songs! Angelica and I were practically fighting over it during Shenandoah, When You Believe, Fields of Gold, The Voice, True Colors, You’ll Be In My Heart, Goodnight My Angel, Last Rose Fantasia…you get the idea!
Seeing them live is one thing (a really big thing at that
) Seeing them up-close, albeit through binoculars, is a
totally different thing. I could make out every single little detail of each girl, right down to the eye-color, and I couldn’t do it without the help from my aunt and her underestimated binoculars!
Angelica and I, after both being frustrated with having to tap each other on the arm to get each of our turns, finally came to this silent mutual agreement that we would give twenty-seconds each to look at the girls up-close with the binoculars. Those were the most precious twenty-seconds of my life! We stopped using the binoculars during the more upbeat songs, like Granuaile’s Dance ( I didn’t even try to use them during that song!
I wonder how the spotlight guy keeps up with her! ), The Contradiction and At the Ceili.
Now, to review each girl…
The Voice… WOW! When the song began, I seriously was not sure if they were doing a playback of the recording from Slane Castle or what, because Lisa’s voice was…THE Voice! Flawless! To my non-so-great-surprise, the song came to a part where I could definitely tell that Lisa’s voice was not dubbed over with the playback, because there was a change in a certain note about midway through the song, and my jaw just
dropped at the crescendo! Again, everything was just flawless, and I’m still surprised at how beautiful Lisa sounds live! I’m proud to say that I loved this way better than the recordings! The Voice was definitely my “Lisa highlight” of the night!
If I could say one thing which has changed about Chloë, it’s that she has matured beyond what I could comprehend! The difference between Slane Castle, and her performance at the concert was COMPLETELY contrasting as to what I had expected! In a good, fuzzy, amazing way of course! Her voice is no longer that of a light and airy angel, but one that has again, say it with me now! Matured! It is still angelic in every sense, but different. A good different! And I thoroughly enjoyed every sung word that came out of her mouth!
Another quick note about a Chloë song, before I forget: “When You Believe” touched me the most, out of all the songs in the concert (excluding SDS). The lyrics, although blurry in my mind at the moment, meant so much to me. It’s hard for me to explain, really! Main thing is: When I first saw Celtic Woman, when I first
really got hooked on their music…a concert was the last thing on my list, whatever that list may be. As I joined the forums, and read up on all this talk of how amazing these concerts were, there was this little need to go to at least
one. An experience for myself, just to see if it was really what everyone said it was. A small hope sparked inside of me, and it never stopped. A little flame, but it was still there. (Again, with the cheesiness of all this!
)
When Chloë sang When You Believe, the memory of my grandad surprising me with the tickets for that fateful night flashed before my eyes. I began tearing up again.
~
Though hope is frail, but it’s hard to kill ~ Those lyrics,
that moment of awesome recognition - Hope is what got me here -
that tearful thought “I’m really here, this is really happening…” will be with me forever. This song means so much to me, and I just need to thank Chloë (if I ever have the highest honor to meet her!) for enhancing that moment with her beautiful vocals.
For Lynn, I’m not sure if I should review Carolina Rua or Dulaman for her highlight of the night…because I honestly cannot choose! So, I’m going to do both!
First off: Next to Máiréad, Lynn was the flirty one (for both songs)! ^o^ I hate making comparisons between girls, past and present, so I won’t compare/contrast the difference between Meav’s version and Lynn’s version of Dulaman. Either way, they’re both equally hand-clapping, foot-tapping, shoulder-bumping upbeat songs! And these are the only two girls who can make a song, with the subject of seaweed, sound good!
Carolina Rua was the same way! It’s a pleasant reminder, especially when sung live by Lynn, that this young woman is definitely accepted as a part of the group! Hands down, no questions asked!
Alex! Wow, Alex is my new favorite! Not that any of the girls are above the other, since they all have their different qualities that make them special. So, there’s really no point in trying to choose a favorite (although, we each have our
favorites, as there‘s usually one that will stick out the most when they can touch your heart in a special way
) If that makes any sense to you!
Anyways, back to Alex! I’ve never heard True Colors before. Ever. If there was one song that I was going to savor for the concert (I’ve heard about it all over the forums, and God, was I tempted to listen to it!) it was this song. Again, this was similar to Chloë’s effect on me in “When You Believe” but for a different reason. I won’t go into anything personal, (it was a highly personal issue I thought about when listening to this song) but Alex really hit the nail hard with True Colors.
And I remember thinking to myself “Yeah, this is why I love these girls!”
….
…
…I’ve saved the best for last: Máiréad!!! It’d be impossible to count how many times Angelica and I turned to each other (whenever we could take our eyes off THE fiddle pixie) and then just quickly turn back!
Gosh, I have no idea where to start with this one!
Coast of Galicia: It was everything…AND MORE! The one part of that song that I remember the most, was when there was this hair of a pause. Máiréad let out the
cutest little “Yip!” I have ever heard! There was an audible laughter among the audience. I was beaming with giggles myself (was even tempted to “woo!” back at her!
) It was just the happiest, fluffiest, cutest part of the show! And I will never forget it!
Granuaile‘s Dance, itself, was an amazing song! I got the same feeling I had with Dulaman; It’s just such an upbeat, toe-tapping, hand-clapping song! That guy in the video from Slane? The one who was dancing in his chair? Yeah, remember him? He’s my hero!
Speaking of clapping….I clapped for each and every song until my hands felt raw! If
anyone who attended the concert suspect that I’m the girl who yelled out that high-pitched, squeaky “Yeah! Mái--réad!” Yup, that was me!
I apologize for any ear-damage I may have caused (especially Angelica, since she was the one who was right next to me!) but, hey, it was all in good fun…right?
…Right?
Okay, you know what, just agree with me, because we all know that Máiréad put on an amazing performance! There’s no holding back yelling out her name after Coast of Galicia, Granuaile’s Dance or The Contradiction!!!! (all exceeding favorites of mine!)
It was and still is impossible for me to choose my favorite Máiréad song: CoG or GD…*sigh* But, if the Songs from the Heart DVD include Máiréad’s whooping yips in any of her songs ( you can count on me to be praying for that! ) I think I’ll at least have a new favorite DVD!!!
Okay, I’ve decided to cut the second part of my review in half, since I feel this is getting a bit too long! The next part, however, will be up tomorrow and will include all my thoughts of the group songs and what happened during the intermission!
End first half of part two.