"It`s the biggest band I`ve ever had," bragged Sting about the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra that is accompanying him on a tour promoting his new album ‘Synchronicities.’
|Last Updated: Jul 15, 2010, 12:48 PM IST|Source: Bureau
New York: "It`s the biggest band I`ve ever had," bragged Sting about the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra that is accompanying him on a tour promoting his new album ‘Synchronicities.’
Featuring orchestral versions of songs famous and obscure, the show was fittingly performed at New York`s illustrious Metropolitan Opera House. "I`ve gone legit," the singer jokingly explained.
The latest in a series of stylistic forays that have marked this restless artist`s post-Police career, the shows are a natural progression from his excursions into the jazz and classical realms. Looking far too good for his 58 years and sounding terrific, Sting was visibly exuberant as he delivered a nearly three-hour show that traversed his entire career, including plenty of rarities along the way.
Besides the 45-piece orchestra conducted by the exuberant Steven Mercurio, the lineup also included several of Sting`s long-time players as well as special guest Branford Marsalis, who provided his sinuous sax playing on the show`s opener, ‘If I Ever Lose My Faith in You,’ as well as numbers like ‘Englishman in New York.’
The results, as is so often the case with these sorts of experiments, were mixed. Too often the arrangements -- provided by several contributors, including Michel Legrand -- gave the music the feel of a movie soundtrack, adding texture and bombast to the music but too often failing to provide revelatory aspects. In many cases, the orchestral versions bore a marked resemblance to the originals, with precious few changes from the original tempos and little melodic divergence.
The numbers that were the most arresting were the ones that deviated the most from the original versions. A slowed-down ‘Roxanne’ provided room for haunting cello and clarinet solos; ‘Whenever I Say Your Name’ benefited from a sterling violin intro; the brass section provided a suitably martial atmosphere to ‘You Will Be My Ain True Love,’ written for the ‘Cold Mountain’ soundtrack; and some sultry trumpet solos provided appropriate atmosphere for ‘All Would Envy,’ about the relationship between an older man and much younger woman.
On the other hand, the sumptuous, Muzak-style arrangement of ‘Every Breath You Take’ gave it a generic feel, robbing the song of its hauntingly menacing implications. Two songs particularly benefited from the orchestra`s contributions: ‘Russians,’ featuring musical quotes from Prokofiev and Mussorgsky, was delivered with thrilling bombast, and the strings on ‘Moon Over Bourbon Street’ gave it the ominous feel of a Tim Burton movie soundtrack.
Sting was in chatty form throughout, providing lengthy song introductions that were alternately humorous, autobiographical and professorial. He clearly was buoyed by the wildly enthusiastic response of the crowd and relishing the opportunity to revisit many songs that he hadn`t performed in years.
Bureau Report
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.
Cookies Setting
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device and the processing of information obtained via those cookies (including about your preferences, device and online activity) by us and our commercial partners to enhance site navigation, personalise ads, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. More information can be found in our Cookies and Privacy Policy. You can amend your cookie settings to reject non-essential cookies by clicking Cookie Settings below.
Manage Consent Preferences
Strictly Necessary Cookies
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work or you may not be able to login.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then some or all of these services may not function properly.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They are also used to limit the number of times you see an advert as well as help measure the effectiveness of an advertising campaign. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we may not know when you have visited our site, and may not be able to monitor its performance.