In this computerized age, there is no match for the immediacy of a live concert. I could buy music and play it over and over again, and get instant aural gratification. But to sit in an audience with thousands of like-minded souls, all attuned to the musicians on stage, is an experience on a different plane.
I saw Il Divo last night a the Nassau Coliseum in Long Island, NY. This was the first time they visited the Coliseum, but not their first visit to NY. Il Divo was magnificent. Or, in Afrikaans-style English: Il Divo were magnificent! They were pitch perfect, with not a missed note or hair or crease out of place. Four really classy looking guys with golden voices, singing really classy sounding songs. I love their music, their sound, and their eye candy.
Digression…Urs signs autographs with his right hand, but from these shots, he’s a microphone switch hitter!
Back to the programme…each of our Divos got to introduce songs or talk to the audience. David, our American Divo was boisterous. Carlos, the Spaniard was a shameless flirt. Sebastian, the quiet Frenchman was reserved and respectful. And Urs, from Switzerland(**) spoke English with an enchanting lyricism.
The Libra that I am, I have a yang to balance the yin. If I have one criticism of the concert, it’s … what is with the perturbing backdrops? They’re singing this one song, in another language, which sounded fine and beautiful. And then I look up, and displayed on the four floating projector panels, are women’s white dresses. Then flames start to lick at the dresses. It would be fine if they were just dresses, but the dresses looked like they were wrapped around bodies, so it was as if the non-existent woman was being viciously consumed by flames. If their intent was to convey creepiness, they hit the target, otherwise it was negatively distracting. It would have been better to lose those backdrops and focus on the singers. I liked a few of the more classic panels, like the starfield and the stained glass.
There were also gorgeous models on the screens. I think that those photos were intended for the men in the audience who were forcibly dragged by their women to this concert! If they’re going to be bored senseless, they may as well be entertained by pictures of pretty women. That’s my theory, and I’m sticking to it.
Il Divo performed their encore in tuxedos with tails, and their rendition of “Amazing Grace”, and later, “The Impossible Dream”, while signing autographs and shaking hands with the fans. Perfection. I was amused that they were leaning over, signing and schmoozing, but sang in perfect unison, without skipping a beat or waivering a note.
It was overcast and rainy all week. On the night of the concert, the skies cleared — for Il Divo. Bravo, gentlemen!
Here’s my youtube of their banter.
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That was the concert review. Now for a shameless website plug and more hardware geek talk.
Shameless website plug:
If you enjoy powerful vocals in contemporary pop music, I invite you to come have a listen. My fan site is dedicated to the sultry music of a wonderful and exceptional talent. He performs a half a world away, in South Africa, and his name is Dihan.
It is a flash site, and will take a few seconds to load. I promise you will not be disappointed by the wait because his voice does match his stunning looks! 😉
End of shameless plug.
Geek talk:
If it’s possible to love an inanimate object, I am incurably attached to my new Canon Powershot SX110. It takes the most incredible low light photos. With 10x Optical magnification and image stabilization, it is the ultimate concert camera. The Il Divo photos(*) on this blog page were image captures from an AVI, shot from the distance shown on the venue seating chart above. Don’t ask me how far that is, I am hopeless with distances.
It’s a bit larger than the slim digicams today, with a body that’s a chunky throwback to a compact film camera. But the pictures. Be still my beating heart. The pictures are extraordinary, and the sound is above par for such a tiny device. How I love my cameras. Sigh.
(* Please feel free to steal my photos for your own edification and use. If you’re feeling magnanimous, I only ask for a small favor, a link back to my http://www.dihansite.com. Thank you kindly!)
(** thanks to Lisa for the correction. I am probably the most geographically challenged person you’ll ever meet).
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9 Comments
Thank you for the wonderful Il Divo review. I’m waiting for the end of June to go see them in Florida. It will be my first Il Divo concert.
If you have not been to the Il Divo website, I invite you to come check it out.
We have a whole world of Divas who love Il Divo.
Just one correction: Urs Buhler is from Switzerland not Sweden :):)
Glad you had a fabulous time.
Thanks for the correction Lisa! I’ve lurked at the forum part of their website, and it’s a delightful community. Thank you kindly for the invitation. Their voices are as dynamic as on their albums. You’ll have a great time in June! Eve.
I was there at the concert at Nassau Coliseum-it was everything I hoped for and more. So long – it was great-I liked it much better than the time they were at Radio City. I do agree with you regarding the backdrops-the best was when they just had themselves on the large screens.
By they was do you know who was the celebrity in the audience that everyone was going up to? He was a very heavy man in a beret.
Thanks for your posting! Claire
Hi Claire.
Cool, another Metro area fan. I didn’t catch them at Radio City. That must have been interesting, when they were just starting out? I don’t have any idea who the celebrity is. I’ll have to scan my little videos to see if he’s in them. I was in the rafters and I didn’t pay much attention to the floor seats.
I was surprised they didn’t fill the stadiium, because the whole third tier was empty. Given the economy, I’m not that surprised. I got my tix on a whim, when ticketmaster gave me a half priced offer, just a week in advance. I couldn’t let this opportunity pass, as I’d wanted to see them, but couldn’t “really” afford it when the tickets were full priced. ciao!
The psudo-celebrity turned out to be a contestant from America’s Got Talent-maybe even this year’s winner. I don’t watch that show.
I bought tickets when they first came out -we decided to not buy floor seats but we were a few rows away -really close-it was amazing.
I was shocked to see the 2 for 1 offer and my friend who had seats in the third tier got upgraded to 2nd tier for free when she got to the coliseum. They moved everyone out of the 3rd tier except I noticed 2 people stayed up there -I guess they wanted to -that wasn’t you was it?
I don’t watch much TV, and I barely know about the show “America’s Got Talent!” I would never have guessed that one!
I got a twofer seat, in section 208, which is almost line of sight to center stage. Those are the best seats I’ve gotten for such a big concert. I saw the few stragglers in tier three also. Maybe they arrived late, and weren’t told they were upgraded. There were a lot of closer empty seats that were not filled.
The same thing happened to us at a Josh Groban concert two years ago, in Albany. We paid for the cheap seats in the upper atmosphere, and got moved to more expensive seats upon arrival, which doesn’t seem fair to the people who paid full price. But…life is unfair. 😦
I had that concert high you mentioned after seeing Il Divo in Fairfax, Va over a week ago. Every song was beatiful and they looked great. I’ll have to find a way to see them again.
P.S. I also found the burning wedding dresses a bit distracting.
I was also there at the Nassau Coliseum to see Il Divo – all the way from Texas. Truly awesome. I also wish someone could explain the disturbing backdrops. I heard the famous guy was “Paul” from America’s Got Talent. I was in the “pit” so I never saw him. Thank you for taking such great photos ( I even found myself in one). Just how can I steal them? I saw your video of Bridge Over Troubled Water but now cannot find it. I am always technically challenged. Loved being able to relive such a great performance. Thanks again. P.S. I listened to Dihan-good stuff.
The celebrities name is Neal Boyd and was the winner of America’s Got Talet. He has an Opera voice and sang very well.