{"id":676,"date":"2012-12-22T20:00:10","date_gmt":"2012-12-22T20:00:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/216.71.127.204\/wordpress\/?p=676"},"modified":"2015-10-13T15:41:41","modified_gmt":"2015-10-13T15:41:41","slug":"trans-siberian-orchestra-att-center-san-antonio-tx","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/houstonmusicreview.com\/wordpress\/2012\/12\/22\/trans-siberian-orchestra-att-center-san-antonio-tx\/","title":{"rendered":"Trans-Siberian Orchestra – AT&T Center – San Antonio, TX"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n\n\n
Written by Robert Johnson <\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Dec 22, 2012 at 07:00 PM<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\"PhotoI\u2019ve wanted to see Trans-Siberian Orchestra for years.\u00a0 I always heard great things, but due to the holiday touring schedule, I was always traveling and unable to attend.\u00a0 Thankfully, for the first time ever, I was able to catch Trans-Siberian Orchestra on this year\u2019s Lost Christmas Eve tour.<\/p>\n

The stage was set with a large swinging clock, flames and fireworks, elevated platforms, large screen video, lasers, and a slew of talented musicians.\u00a0 Immediately, it was evident that the band put an incredible amount of effort into the visual effects to accompany the music.\u00a0 Considering that the band plays large venues (more than 18,000 were in attendance in San Antonio), this sort of attention to detail helps increase the value of every ticket in the house.\u00a0 Whether fans found their seats in the nosebleeds, or on the floor, chances are they were able to take in the complete Trans-Siberian Orchestra experience.<\/p>\n

The set opened strong with a rousing performance of \u201cWinter Palace.\u201d\u00a0 By the fourth song, the popular \u201cWizards in Winter,\u201d an incredible enthusiasm had spread throughout the AT&T Center.\u00a0 In fact, fans were on the edge of their seats for much of the two hour event.\u00a0 Throughout the evening, there was a consistent rotation of musicians taking center stage.\u00a0 While \u201cChristmas Dreams\u201d required a more refined classical vocal performance, \u201cChristmas Nights in Blue\u201d needed a blues-style singer.\u00a0 Rather than ask the same singer to perform multiple styles, Trans-Siberian Orchestra used specialists for each style of song.\u00a0 Similarly, numerous female vocalists also took turns at lead.\u00a0 In some songs, like \u201cChristmas Canon Rock,\u201d the talented group of vocalists worked together to provide a full, dynamic rendention of fan favorites.<\/p>\n

The first 90 minutes (or so) of the set was dedicated to The Lost Christmas Eve, a story narrated by Phil Brady between songs designed to tie everything together.\u00a0 Unfortunately, the narration throughout the event really took away from what could have otherwise been a perfect show.\u00a0 This is not a knock on Phil Brady.\u00a0 Brady was fantastic in the the role he was asked to play.\u00a0 He has a great narrator voice, good facial expressions, and the ability to deliver an emotional story with authority.\u00a0 That said, the story itself was disjointed and difficult to follow with each segment separated by three to six minutes of music.\u00a0 Spread out over ninety minutes, it would require an incredible attention to detail to truly follow the story.\u00a0 On top of that, it took away from the natural ability for songs to foster an energy on their own right.\u00a0 For example, had the band been able to continue directly after \u201cWizards of Winter,\u201d the crowd would have been absolutely nuts for \u201cChristmas Dreams.\u201d<\/p>\n

Once the story was stripped from the performance, the action really picked up.\u00a0 The final nine songs, starting with \u201cThe Mountain\u201d and ending with \u201cChristmas Eve (Sarajevo 12\/24)\u201d had a fantastic flow and energy.\u00a0 The pyro was in full effect and the musicians really let loose.\u00a0 In essence, the band\u2019s execution of the final nine songs was like that of a traditional concert.\u00a0 Without the stops after each song, the crowd was treated to the true talent and chemistry the band members share.<\/p>\n

Musically (taking out the storytelling), Trans-Siberian Orchestra put on a flawless performance.\u00a0 Jane Mangini, on keyboards \/ piano, was absolutely the standout performer of the event.\u00a0 It was impossible to watch the show without becoming captivated by the power and precision of her performance.\u00a0 Despite playing piano with a reckless abandon throughout the entire event, she never slowed, or played with any less intensity as the concert went on.\u00a0 Similarly, guitarist and music director Al Pitrelli has the talent and skill of Joe Satriani, yet played throughout the set so seamlessly that he made it look easy.<\/p>\n

Trans-Siberian Orchestra puts on a wonderful show.\u00a0 Gone are the days where you\u2019d be required to attend a crappy musical version of The Nutcracker to get in the holiday spirit.\u00a0 Trans-Siberian Orchestra offers a brilliant alternative to the boring and traditional, while still fostering the joy and excitement of the holiday season.\u00a0 If you haven\u2019t seen Trans-Siberian Orchestra in the past, you should definitely give them a chance.\u00a0 If you\u2019re worried that you\u2019re too young or too old, you shouldn\u2019t be.\u00a0 The crowd was a perfect cross-section representation of society, with men and women of all ages represented.\u00a0 Feel free to take the whole family with you.<\/p>\n

Notes:
\nMusic director: Al Pitrelli
\nKeyboards \/ Piano: Jane Mangini<\/p>\n

Other Musicians:<\/p>\n

Ava Davis
\nApril Berry
\nJodi Katz
\nDari Mahnic
\nChloe Lowery
\nAndrew Ross
\nNathan James
\nDustin Brayley
\nJeff Scott Soto
\nSetlist:<\/p>\n

Winter Palace
\nFaith Noel
\nThe Lost Christmas Eve
\nWizards in Winter
\nChristmas Dreams
\nChristmas Nights in Blue
\nChristmas Jam
\nSiberian Sleigh Ride
\nWhat is Christmas?
\nFor the Sake of Our Brother
\nThe Wisdom of Snow
\nWish Liszt
\nBack to a Reason Part II
\nWhat Child is This?
\nChristmas Canon Rock
\nDifferent Wings<\/p>\n

The Mountain
\nA Mad Russian\u2019s Christmas
\nDreams of Fireflies (On a Christmas Night)
\nToccata Carpimus Noctem
\nSomeday
\nChild Unseen
\nRequiem (The Fifth)
\nThis Christmas Day
\nChristmas Eve (Sarajevo 12\/24)
\n* Contact Robert at <\/u>robert@starsandsatellites.com<\/span><\/u><\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Written by Robert Johnson Dec 22, 2012 at 07:00 PM I\u2019ve wanted to see Trans-Siberian Orchestra for years.\u00a0 I always heard great things, but due to the holiday touring schedule, I was always traveling and unable to attend.\u00a0 Thankfully, for the first time ever, I was able to catch Trans-Siberian Orchestra on this year\u2019s Lost… <\/p>\n

Read More<\/i><\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-676","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-concert-reviews"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/houstonmusicreview.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/676","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/houstonmusicreview.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/houstonmusicreview.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/houstonmusicreview.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/houstonmusicreview.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=676"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/houstonmusicreview.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/676\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":677,"href":"http:\/\/houstonmusicreview.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/676\/revisions\/677"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/houstonmusicreview.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=676"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/houstonmusicreview.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=676"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/houstonmusicreview.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=676"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}