Official USA 2014 Tour

Talks and reviews about Libera concerts or public appearances

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Yorkie
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Re: Official USA 2014 Tour

Post by Yorkie »

Thanks John.

Those of us that can't attend a concert really enjoy reading the first hand accounts of those fortunate souls who got to be there. Is it true that moose (mooses, moosi???) are incredibly stupid beasts?
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Re: Official USA 2014 Tour

Post by john45 »

Yorkie wrote: Is it true that moose (mooses, moosi???) are incredibly stupid beasts?
They're about as dumb as they look - and they certainly don't know how to follow the rules of the road.
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Re: Official USA 2014 Tour

Post by mbbrose »

I finally got to write this up! I think I got most of my details right. I was in awe a lot of the time!

The stage set up at this venue was interesting. There was a platform for the instrumentalists at the back of the stage. At first I thought it may be kind of distracting to see them but it was actually nice. You could see Steven G. on clarinet/keyboard and Josh on keyboard! RP was very visible as he sat on a stool on the stage in the corner.

I was sitting in the front section a few rows back from the stage a little off center.

I’ll add in little details I noticed that made the concert more interesting! I’m a music teacher, I notice weird things haha. This was my first concert, so seeing Libera on the stage 10 feet away was awesome. It was surreal!

Each time they entered the stage there was light accompaniment that led up to the start of each song. Really nice and ethereal.

Joyful, Joyful
They were set up in 2 arcs. It seemed that the newbies were all together on the 2nd row on the left. Eoghan and Henry Barrington were in the center of the 1st row. They only sang parts that were tenor, so for the first part of the song they spent a lot of time smiling. ☺ It seemed that Matthew RA was singing mid parts on this, but later on I noticed him singing lower parts with Eoghan and Henry. Maybe his voice is gradually dropping so he can still get the middle range. It started in unison but broke into harmonies. Really nice.

This one was cute to watch the little ones. You could tell it took them a bit longer than the “more experienced” performers to get their minds on stage. It must be a lot to take in, walking out on stage and seeing all of those people looking at you! Little Gabriel would be looking around and realize the next part of the song had started and jump into action. It was very cute.

Sanctus
The set up for this was one large arc that they shifted to from the previous 2 row arc. The harmonies were clear as ever. This one is always cool to watch to see who is singing what parts. Dylan Duffy and Lucas with Tom DL at times were on the high notes. They were not near each other in the arc but you could tell they were communicating, which is a neat thing to watch any performers do but especially ones so young.

Speech
Ben and Cassius did this one. Introduced the eldest, Henry at 14 and youngest, Alex Gula at 8. The crowd got a kick out of the “middle aged” boys being 11.

During the speech I saw Sam Wiggin getting fidgety with the mic behind his ear. It was funny to see RP communicate with him to keep still. One of those moments that reminds you they’re still kids!

Song of Life
Isaac came to the front and center for this one and his solo was flawless. This was the first time I noticed Matthew RA doing low parts.

Voca Me
The lighting was nice for this one. Very low lighting but the backdrop looked like a starry sky. The boys were positioned at random places facing various directions. Ciarnan the solo part on this one with Tom on the high parts. Matthew Jansen added in with Ciarnan on the last “Voca Me.”

Amazing Grace
This was very pretty and I think it went very well for the US audience. The unison was strong on the first verse, and then following there were harmonies that added depth. In the 3rd verse Ciarnan soloed and there were a few boys backing him up on sustained vocals along with the instrumentalists. The last verse everyone joined along with nice yellow lighting to match the lyrics.

Speech
Ciarnan and Cassius talked about their robes and hoods. Cassius entertained everyone by putting his hood over his head.

Ave Maria
This version is the Schubert one, which is probably one of the more well known Ave Maria arrangements in the US. The set up was in an arch with Tom in the front and center. Tom DL did the solo on this and it was great! His voice on the ornamentations was great.

Salva Me
The lighting on this one at the beginning was purple with a lighter purple light being shone on the soloist on the high “salvas” which was Alex Montoro. He was standing on the stairs that led up to the instrumentalists platform. The boys were divided into 3 groups for this one I believe. They did the slight arm raise on “free me to fly away.”

Apparently something during this song or the transition afterward almost made Ben start laughing.

How Can I Keep From Singing
They were arranged in a single arc. Tom’s high notes on this were clear and rose above everything beautifully.

Speech
This was given by Alex Gula and Gabriel and it was adorable. They said they joined Libera in January of 2013 and listed the places they’ve been already. They were talking about how many things they have to learn- the parts to the songs, the words, the movements, how to find their spot from song to song-often in the dark. Alex said sometimes they practice finding their spots blind folded! Haha that would certainly be a sight to see.

Hymn to Mary
This was solo Isaac. He was kneeling front and center with the rest of the group in 2 rows, also kneeling. From what I remember it was a peaceful and calm song that fit Isaac’s voice really nicely.

How Shall I Sing That Majesty
The set up for this was in 4 groups with Lucas and Alessandro in the front angled towards each other. Lucas sang the first part solo, joined by Alessandro. I heard some new very high harmonies that I haven’t heard before. Good indication of the great potential this group has!

Interval

Dies Irae
Again as they entered the stage there was mysterious lite music. The string section was featured playing the Dies Irae main theme. The boys walked on stage and formed a V shape. At the point was Ciarnan and he was the soloist. At times he was supported by Matthew Jansen I think. At each chorus every other boy would step out creating a neat expansion effect.

I could see Alex Gula sort of mouthing the words to some of the solo verses. He wasn’t singing them but was following along this way. Maybe he’s working on these parts for another time.

The transition from Dies Irae into Gloria was probably one of my favorite musical moments of the concert. The “kyrie” part repeated and created a great suspension then there were passing tones right into the joyful major key of Gloria. The contrast from minor to major was great.

Gloria
This is one of my favorite songs. The set up from what I remember was in 2 rows and the back row moved forward for the final chorus. It’s a simple move that gaves a lot of impact. The low parts on this sounded very strong.

Speech
Alessandro and Cassius I think. They introduced Moose, their mascot. They talked about how they tour on school holidays and how some of them had to go directly from school to the airport to leave for the US – still in their school uniforms.

Orinoco Flow
The set up was in 5 groups and they did forward and side to side movements. I remember seeing videos of this song and in the beginning they alternate groups on who is saying “let me sail, let me sail” and then another group sings “let the orinoco flow.” I noticed that there were a few boys singing both lines – the call and the response I guess you could say. The ones I noticed singing both parts were the strong soloists of the concert – Isaac, Ciarnan, Tom are the ones I noticed mainly.

Dreaming of Home
I’m not remembering the set up of this one. I do remember that it started out with less than half of the boys singing. Perhaps they were in a double arc. It was a peaceful contrast to Orinoco. There was a nice high part done by Tom DL (what is it with all these high note singing Toms?!?!) I hope they keep this one for more concerts.

How Great Thou Art
Sam Wiggin did the solo on the first verse. It was really great for his voice, soft and solemn. The choir joins in for the chorus. The second verse was sung by more with nice instrumental accompaniment. The third verse had cascading harmonies with great middle and low presence below the main line. The last chorus was powerful with great Libera descants. The last note was held for a long time, shifted up a half step then back down for a powerful finish.

Speech
Ciarnan talked about latin and about how a lot of their songs are in latin…but they don’t actually talk to each other in latin. He led us through some of the vocal exercises they do. He mentioned that it was like their mouths were doing gymnastics. They did a 2 octave scale that went very high and he shifted that over to the next song by saying that was a good warm up for Tom because he will sing notes that go even higher in the next song.

Stay With Me
The set up was in 2 rows with the choreography of their hands crossing and uncrossing from back to front, as they have done before. Tom stood on the platform stairs doing the high part. The first verse was sung solo by Alessandro, followed by Lucas. I noticed that Lucas had a very smooth voice and a calm composure. I hope to hear more solos from him! Cassius did the last “stay with me.” You can hear his voice settling into a nice alto. It has dark qualities to it.

The drums on this one were a little much. I think the tom tom’s were tuned a little low and they didn’t fit in.

Wayfaring Stranger
Sam Wiggin did the solo on this as well for the first verse. His voice fit this nicely. The folk song structure of this piece is beautiful and a very well known folk tune known to many in the US. There was a nice Libera interlude and the last verse was very powerful with the low voices singing at an octave with the main line. Of course the descants were beautiful. The song wound down and ended with Sam singing the last line solo. This was hauntingly beautiful and I hope they keep this one on for future concerts/CDs.

Glory to Thee
The set up was in 5 groups. Tom did the solo. The live performance of this was so great that I felt like I was listening to a mastered recording. The canon part was beautiful and clear. The low voices were great on their “praise father son and holy ghost” at the end of the canon. Eoghan had a nice smile on this face as he watched the solo that he had done be sung by someone new. It was sweet.

Speech
Ben Fairman gave the goodbye speech and thanked everyone for coming. He was cute and the audience loved him.

Exsultate
They did moves that involved them moving closer to the front of the stage I believe. Tom did the solo. This seems like it would be a hard piece to pull off live, and definitely adding more of a challenge having it be the last piece. But of course they did it amazingly. These kids have some stamina!

Encore: What A Wonderful World
This was a nice surprise! Isaac sang the first verse solo. RP arranged it beautifully with great harmonies. I think it’s nice that Libera has started to add encores/pieces that are meaningful to the culture of the places they are touring.

At the end they bowed and waved as they left the stage. They made sure to take their time waving and smiling at everyone!

There were a lot of aspects of this touring group that reminded me of the group we see on the Lieden DVD. The median age is lower, there were only 3 boys that were singing the lower parts (Eoghan, Henry, Matthew RA…in Lieden Callum, Michael, Connor) and the group is similar sized. The quality was also there.

This group has a lot of talent! There were the main soloists, but there are definitely more in the making it seems. I can’t wait to see the progress of these boys. The group on tour was lighter on the lower voices, but the 3 there did a very nice job. I suppose it’s the point in some of the older boys lives that school and other things become more demanding, and that’s life.

I think it’s great that there are boys as young as Alex and Gabriel who are able to tour and do so well! They stayed on stage the whole time, along with the newbies. Towards the end of the second half, I could see the little ones getting more fidgety and tired. Some of them were yawning while singing and got distracted by their sleeves. Those little things make you realize they are kids. They happen to be doing something amazing, but they’re still little kids. And that’s what I really love about Libera.

My fiancé came to the concert with me. He is studying elementary music education and was impressed with the ability of the boys to do a 2 hour concert…or anything for 2 hours and to be so focused! He said “Getting them to sing is probably the easier part… How does he (RP) get that many boys to do THAT for 2 hours?!” We also ran into Sam Coates on the way out. We got to have a nice chat with him. He and my fiancé started talking about the sound board and mixing and all of the technology stuff. It was cool.
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paul
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Re: Official USA 2014 Tour

Post by paul »

Thanks to all for posting up your concert reviews, I enjoyed reading all of them. I'm now looking forward to Arundel even more. I wonder if there will be any change to the set list. As John mentioned, it had an American flavor so would they change for Arundel?
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Yorkie
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Re: Official USA 2014 Tour

Post by Yorkie »

Thanks for a great write up mbbrose, very enjoyable to read and you conveyed how enjoyable it was for you to watch. I'm glad they were on their best form for your concert. I have to agree with you about the current group being something special. A lot of talent and also the work they put in for last years DVD has brought them on in leaps and bounds.

Paul, I would think that the set list will be pretty much the same for Arundel given the time difference between the two. The only American song on the set list unknown to a British audience would be The Wayfaring Stranger, but from YouTube clips I've looked at I think it will be fine for a UK concert. An interesting song actually so it would be nice to hear how Libera treat it. Amazing Grace is English, How Great Thou Art is one of Britain's favourite hymns, and Wonderful World was written and performed for a James bond film!
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Re: Official USA 2014 Tour

Post by DrewE »

Hi everybody, I'm still alive, even though I've been away from the forum for eons. I probably won't be keeping up too frequently for now, either, due to a chronic condition called "lots of things to do but less than lots of time to do them in." 8)

I also was at the New Jersey concert, and quite enjoyed it. (This was the second time I've gotten to see Libera live—the first was at the Egg in Albany, NY.) As it was a 5-6 hour drive each way for me, and I didn't take time off from work, it made for a very, very long day!

Driving down was actually quite enjoyable; the weather was fine, and I had the pleasure of listening to the first eight of Beethoven's symphonies.

Others have described the concert in good detail. I think the highlights for me were Wafering Stranger (which, despite being a pretty well known spiritual, was not familiar to me), Dies Irae and the segue into Gloria, and the encore of What A Wonderful World. I've always liked Dies Irae, and was really happy to see it revived from the first Libera album (in 1999). The transition between the two songs was a very neat moment musically, too. And Wonderful World was absolutely spot-on, and a nice sweet arrangement of the song. Libera did not sound at all like Louis Armstrong, of course; but I'd be rather frightened if they did!

Yorkie — I think you're confusing "What a Wonderful World" with "We Have All The Time In The World"; both were sung originally by Louis Armstrong, the latter one for the James Bond film.
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Yorkie
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Re: Official USA 2014 Tour

Post by Yorkie »

DrewE wrote:
Yorkie — I think you're confusing "What a Wonderful World" with "We Have All The Time In The World"; both were sung originally by Louis Armstrong, the latter one for the James Bond film.
I suspect you are probably right :D
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Re: Official USA 2014 Tour

Post by labbie »

"Wonderful World" was featured in the movie "Good Morning, Vietnam", which starred Robin Williams as a disc jockey (radio presenter) with the U.S. forces in Vietnam. It was apparently based on a true story, but the name of the DJ escapes me. Perhaps someone else has seen the movie.
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It's a Wonderful World: Wikipedia

Post by Amie_Hill »

What a Wonderful World
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

For the Sam Cooke song, see Wonderful World (Sam Cooke song). For other uses, see Wonderful World (disambiguation).
"What a Wonderful World"

Single by Louis Armstrong
from the album What a Wonderful World
B-side "Cabaret"
Released October 1967
Format 7"
Recorded 1967
Genre Traditional pop
Length 2:21
Label ABC 10982, HMV
Writer(s) Bob Thiele
George David Weiss[1]
Producer(s) Bob Thiele[1]

"What a Wonderful World" is a song written by Bob Thiele (as "George Douglas") and George David Weiss. It was first recorded by Louis Armstrong and released as a single in 1967. Thiele and Weiss were both prominent in the music world (Thiele as a producer and Weiss as a composer/performer).[2] Armstrong's recording was inducted in the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999. The publishing for this song is controlled by Memory Lane Music Group, Carlin Music Corp., and Bug Music, Inc.

History[edit]
Intended as an antidote for the increasingly racially and politically charged climate of everyday life in the United States, the song also has a hopeful, optimistic tone with regard to the future, with reference to babies being born into the world and having much to look forward to. The song was initially offered to Tony Bennett, who turned it down.[3] Thereafter, it was offered to Louis Armstrong. George Weiss recounts in the book Off the Record: Songwriters on Songwriting by Graham Nash that he wrote the song specifically for Louis Armstrong. George was inspired by Louis’s ability to bring people of different colors together. The song was not initially a hit in the United States, where it sold fewer than 1,000 copies because the ABC Records head Larry Newton did not like the song and therefore did not promote it,[citation needed] but was a major success in the United Kingdom, reaching number one on the UK Singles Chart.[1] In the US, the song hit #116 on the Billboard Bubbling Under Chart. It was also the biggest-selling single of 1968 in the UK where it was among the last pop singles issued by HMV Records before becoming an exclusive classical music label.[4] The song made Louis Armstrong the oldest male to top the UK Singles Chart, at sixty-six years and ten months old.[1] Armstrong's record was broken in 2009 when a cover version of "Islands in the Stream" recorded for Comic Relief – which included the 68-year-old Tom Jones – reached number one in that chart. Tony Bennett did go on to cover "What A Wonderful World" several times, as in 2003 with K.D. Lang, paying homage to Bennett's friend Armstrong.

ABC Records' European distributor EMI forced ABC to issue a What A Wonderful World album in 1968 (catalogue number ABCS-650) which did not chart in the US due to ABC's non-promotion of it,[5] but did chart in the UK where it was issued by Stateside Records with catalogue number SSL 10247 and peaked on the British chart at No. 37.

The song gradually became something of a standard and reached a new level of popularity. In 1978, Armstrong's 1967 recording was featured in the closing scenes of the first series of BBC radio's cult hit, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and was repeated for BBC's 1981 TV series of the same. In 1988, Armstrong's recording was featured in the film Good Morning, Vietnam and was re-released as a single, hitting #32 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart in February 1988. The single charted at number one for the fortnight ending June 27, 1988 on the Australian chart.

The song was also used in the first five episodes of the ABC sitcom Family Matters.

In 2001, rappers Ghostface Killah, Raekwon and The Alchemist released "The Forest," a song which begins with three lines of lyric adapted from "What a Wonderful World", altered to become "an invitation to get high" on marijuana.[6] The rappers and their record company, Sony Music Entertainment, were sued by the owners of "What a Wonderful World," Abilene Music. The suit was thrown out of court after judge Gerard E. Lynch determined that the altered lyric was indisputably a parody, transforming the uplifting original message to a new one with a darker nature.[6][7]

As of April 2014, Louis Armstrong's 1967 recording has sold 2,713,000 downloads in the US after it was released digitally.[8]
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chris17
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Re: Official USA 2014 Tour

Post by chris17 »

Thank you very much to everyone who wrote up reviews of the concerts! :D
Last edited by chris17 on Tue Apr 22, 2014 2:46 am, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: Typo
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Re: Official USA 2014 Tour

Post by labbie »

May I also add my appreciation to those who took the time to review the concerts. Thank you for your detailed insights.
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Re: Official USA 2014 Tour

Post by mbbrose »

You are all welcome! I have always loved reading the detailed concert reviews over the years and now that I finally went to one, I wanted to do the same for others.
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Re: Official USA 2014 Tour

Post by LuxVenit »

I'll add my thanks as well to the folks who took the time to type out their reviews of these performances. Looks like Libera's got another group of quite talented lads. Of course, when don't they? ;)

Not to be selfish, but I'm very much hoping for another US tour this summer...preferrably in the midwest!
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Re: Official USA 2014 Tour

Post by alynn »

Just an off topic question. When was the last concert Ben Crawley was seen as part of the staff of Libera? It feels like I haven't read anything about him being part of the crew for ages.
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Re: Official USA 2014 Tour

Post by fan_de_LoK »

It's not so long time ago.
Ben is credited as was one of the stage managers at the DVD recording in Armagh during last August.

http://liberasworld.blogspot.com.es/201 ... chive.html
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