Here, I’d like to compare George Littert’s essay, Random Access: Simple but Cool Technologies for Audience Communication, with A New Day…

The start of George Litterst’s essay describes the opening of a classical concert performance.

“The concert hall is buzzing with excitement as the audience enters. Suddenly the lights flash, and there is a mad scramble as the latecomers rush to their seats. A minute later, the lights begin to dim … and a hush comes over the crowd” Litterst, (2003).

As I was reading this, my mind transported me back to January 2007, where I was seated at The Colosseum, Caesars Palace, and the same anticipation and excitement filled the venue. Of course, me being extremely excited to finally be in Las Vegas, I had turned up to the show an hour beforehand – even before the doors to the Colosseum had opened. We walked through Caesars Palace, and got to the box office, next to which is a Céline Dion store, and the entrance to the Colosseum – we handed our tickets to the staff and they scanned the barcode, and we waited in the lobby area – a surprisingly vast space, with a beautiful Chrysler 300c on display. It’s not to win – it’s there because the show is sponsored by Chrysler. Accordingly, the three levels of seating are named after Chrysler-related things – the Chrysler Salon, the Crossfire Salon and the Pacifica Salon.

Once the doors had opened, and we walked through the doors, you could instantly tell that this was going to be more than a pop concert. We were sat two rows from the front, and the enormous screen filled not only the back of the giant stage, but also our whole field of vision. During the pre-show period, there was a huge image of a gold-framed mirror on the screen. Cleverly, a projection of the audience was ‘reflected’ in the mirror. The camera operator was playing tricks on members of the audience – zooming in on couples kissing and one Chinese man who’d fallen asleep even before the show had begun!

Then, as Litterst described, the lights at the entrance began to flash and people rustled to make themselves comfortable before the show began. A few moments later, the lights dimmed, and at the same time, the band (who are sheltered underneath steps in the the stage) played a deep chord, that got louder and louder, until eventually, the mirror shattered. Fragments of glass fell, and the backing singers began to sing the opening of A New Day Has Come. A small, vague silhouette of Céline on a staircase appeared at the top of the screen. A few seconds later, it disappeared. Then it reappeared moments later, lower down on the screen and slightly bigger. It was there for a few seconds, then it faded, only to reappear lower down again. At the end of the introduction, the silhouette on the screen had vanished, and a spotlight turned on, and illuminated Céline who was standing meters away from me! The effect was so clever – how they were able to match the silhouette to a real person.

Litterst describes a classical concert – that the program features the “architecturally intriguing” works of Bach and Beethoven. He continues to say that the audience are prepared to listen to music that “pulls at the heartstrings and challenges the intellect” (Litterst, 2003). Now, many people may argue that Céline’s music is not like this. However, during her show, Céline sings some of her French songs, like “Pour Que Tu M’aimes Encore” (For You To Love Me Again), that has a gently ticking percussion, and changes key several times. An operatic, Neapolitan song, “Ammore Annascunnuto” (Hidden Love) was also performed, demonstrating Célines ability to sing this style of song, which she does incredibly well.

These types of song make the show intellectually challenging for those, like me, who have a limited knowledge of French or Italian. Also, the unusual time signatures and key changes show that the music and orchestration can be appreciated by people with an interest in music – which most people going to see the show would have. I found it fascinating listening to people play music that sounds challenging to play. There is also no doubt that songs such as “My Heart Will Go On”, performed at the end of the show, pulls at the heartstrings. It’s not only the lyrics of this song, but also the rich orchestration and volume that raised the hairs on my neck.

Litterst asks his readers whether they regularly attend concerts of this nature. I won’t be able to answer for all people, but personally, I have been to classical concerts only once or twice a year. Not many of my friends have been to one at all. It was the influence of my parents that made me go to see the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and the BBC Symphony Orchestra when they performed at Cheltenham Town Hall. As for seeing A New Day…, I don’t have the time nor money to fly back and forth to Las Vegas to see the show. With tickets up to $320 each, not many people can afford to see the show, which is partly why I created this blog – to enable those not fortunate enough to see the show live.

Interestingly, Litterst asserts, “I do not necessarily believe one’s success as a performer should be measured by the size of one’s audience or by the decibel level of the applause” (Litterst, 2003) He poses a few questions for the reader to consider too:

– How can a classical artist attract an audience and build a constituency?
– How does one effectively communicate artistry to a group of strangers?
– Are there some modern tools or new technologies that can assist the performing artist with reaching the potential audience?

When introducing new and unknown pieces, Litterst suggests introducing the music and composer, and discuss the nature and the culture it embodies. This is something that Céline does during her show – she informs the audience, which is primarily American, that Jean-Jacques Goldman writes one of her songs, and the story it tells. This helps to “bridge the gulf” so that the audience are made aware of the meaning.

Now, although I wouldn’t call Céline a classical artist, I think these questions are applicable to find out how the show sells out 4,200 seats most nights of the year – for five years. Litterst acknowledges that there are similar ingredients at a rock concert and a classical concert – extra-musical elements that add to the show, like lighting, costumes and movement. These things, according to Litterst, are a minor part of the experience at a classical concert, but at A New Day…, these elements are as important and the music itself. This is evident, as the giant screen – the largest in North America – is used liberally to display vivid and frequently abstract moving images to accompany each song. For example, during “The Power Of Love”, the screen displays a backdrop of pastel pinks and purples, and then midway through the song, this morphs into a large kaleidoscopic-type animation of rotating concentric circles. This adds to the interpretative nature of the music. Not all of the imagery is as asbtract as this, though. During “Ammore Annascunnuto”, for example, the screen displays a black and white image of a quiet Italian village street, and gas-style lamposts descend onto the stage. During “I’m Alive”, to relfect the up-beat tempo of the song, the screen displays accelerated footage of Times Square in New York City. Litterst used to use paintings that depict possible interpretations of the music in Schumann’s Opus 9, and display them using a projector, to serve a similar purpose to the giant screen. Similar devices to automate the visual content are used in both Litterst’s classical performances, and at Céline’s A New Day…

Litterst, G., (2003). Random Access: Simple but Cool Technologies for Audience Communication. American Music Teacher. Vol. 52, (Issue 5), 73+.