As a music critic, I don’t think I should be expected to know what the lights used in the Concert Hall of the Sydney Opera House are called. One is aware of the many ignorances that plague one like a glaucoma, and the technical – or even the not-so-technical – terms for the various lights, spotlights, and what have you, are something that elude me. Needless to say, there were many on display at the Sydney Symphony’s latest concert, given in conjunction with Glenn Frey (he of the Eagles fame).
There were, for instance, the usual bug-eyed, pixel-filled lights dotted along the rigging hanging from the ceiling. These lights, made up of many smaller ones – a bit like a handheld torch with multiple LEDs in it – have the ability to change colour constantly, without any need for the tinted cellophane (or whatever material is used) that a basic light would need. They’re a staple of the not-so-classical concert, and are used to alter the mood with varying degrees of success. (Blue means a quieter, more deeply-felt song; reds and yellows are for more upbeat numbers, and so on.) Also evident were some plain white lights from above, to spotlight various members of the band when needed, and also, in one particularly moving song, to briefly glow upon Frey himself, during the accented word in its chorus, as if he were some ancient magi summoning the spirits.
It was all very lovely, all very nice, and not at all – as it can sometimes be – overdone. The mixing of the sound, too, was near-perfect, achieving that crucial blend of being not too soft (thus making the music seem inconsequential) and not too loud (thus preventing any lesser bodily organs disintegrating from the vibrations). Frey’s words were nearly always intelligible, and the backing music never overpowered him. So, from a technical standpoint, everything went remarkably well. (It’s worth pointing this out, because other, similar, concerts, have sometimes been plagued with such seemingly mundane issues.)
It is curious to note that these ‘X with the Sydney Symphony’ concerts (where X equals, for example, Tina Arena, Olivia Newton-John, Randy Newman, and many more) tend to attract a slightly different crowd to your usual purely-classical performance. Indeed, the median age of the patrons was about 10 to 15 years lower than the norm, and as such – and also because of the material being presented – there was a much more enlivened atmosphere. (Applause and cheers before the end of a song were par for the course, as one can imagine, as if the audience as a whole was sick of waiting for the train to come to a complete stop before alighting.) The Sydney Symphony Orchestra, too, is slightly different, usually being amplified, and this concert was no exception. What was the exception, however, was that the Sydney Symphony seemed hardly to exist, crammed up the back of the stage where it was conducted by Guy Noble. From what this critic could see, there were only strings on stage, and a somewhat abbreviated version of them at that. Which isn’t to say that the concert was worse for this, mind you, but it certainly wasn’t the fullest orchestral accompaniment that one has seen.
Nevertheless, it was just the right amount for this concert. The ‘X with the Sydney Symphony’ concerts usually work best when the symphony is used to bolster some jazzy numbers, and, Frey having recently released his newest album, entitled After Hours, there were plenty of jazz covers to be had, such as ‘The Look of Love’, ‘Here’s to Life’, and ‘Shadow of Your Smile’. It was these numbers (and a few more) where the concert truly shined, the symphony adding just the right colours to the already wonderful pieces.
There was many an Eagles hit as well, such as ‘Take it Easy’, ‘Already Gone’, ‘Tequila Sunrise’, ‘Lyin’ Eyes’, ‘Desperado’, and so on. A jazz rendition of ‘The Heat is On’, too, was rather marvellous. Frey’s voice has lost none of its appeal, and he’s quite adept at the inter-song patter, too. (‘This song is from when the Dead Sea was only sick,’ being an example of his wit.) One of the best concerts of this type that the Sydney Symphony has had.
Rating: 4 ½ stars out of 5
Glenn Frey with the Sydney Symphony
Sydney Symphony
Conductor: Guy Noble
With Glenn Frey, Scott Crago (drums), Will Hollis and Richard Davis (keyboards), Danny Grenier (guitar), Tom Evans (saxophone), Doug Livingston (pedal steel guitar), Reggie McBride (Bass) and Roberto Chavira (percussion)
Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House
1 March
