Well, what a difference in one concert!
The setting in theKelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum museum was lovely and for being such a large cavernous space below the organ in the main hall, they made it feel cosy and intimate. The turnout was not as big as they had hoped for which was unfortunate, as people missed a wonderful evening of contrasting performances.
It opened with Silvia Perez Cruz – a fantastic Catalonian jazz/folk singer who sang exquisitely hitting and holding some phenomenal notes accompanied on the guitar by Toti Soler who played in a flamenco/jazz style.
I, like most people, did not really know what to expect however was certainly not disappointed even though I am not a huge jazz fan.
Unfortunately I am not able to list the songs as I don”t know any Spanish however I would highly recommend you search them out on You Tube!
The second half of the concert was a complete antithesis to the first half. This was a piece of work premiered back in 1999 at Celtic Connections written by Andy Thorburn with lyrics by Aonghas MacNeacail. It is piece for 12 unaccompanied singers sang in various different languages from Gaelic to Scots to Latin.
It charts the history of the last 2,000 years of Scotland which coincidently was the same theme for Rona Wilkie”s
performance earlier on Sunday. It is as much a visual show and would be best watched live watching the interaction of all the singers. Personally I would have liked some photos screened onto the backdrop to highlight the different periods which they were singing about.
Ruth Roy