Norah Jones

[Paul J Need]

Had the pleasure of seeing Norah Jones in concert last night at Hammersmith. Great Music, very tight band, decent sound.

 

However, rarely do I get the urge to slag off someone elses work but .. jeeeeeeeeeeez the lighting was appalling! Some very nice "states" throughout the evening but the impression I got was the LD was still reading the user manual, or getting to grips with the desk, or hadn't finished programming ............ At the end of each number a very nice "picture" would be "slammed" out and replaced by a FOH wash of 6 blue washlights......... with the subtlety of a guy probably using his left foot on the faders while listening to motorhead on his walkman and doing a hand-stand.

 

I realise that people like us who have been in the business for many years have been spoiled from going to any concert, movie, stage show.. cos a certain amount of "magic" is removed..... i.e. we knnow how things work. but for a concert of a favourite artist to be ruined by insensitive fader control is not very impressive.

 

Rant over.............. :(

[Pete McCrea]

Never know..... the artist may have specced it........(unlikely but hey!)

[heff]

Hey there Paul,

 

thanks for your feedback regarding the show.

 

I can assure you that the show is programmed and I am well versed with the console (a wholeHog II I think it was called, I might need to go check that for you!!)

 

The brief from Norah is, though, that she doesn't want the stage to black out.. As it is, the blue mac wash (at 30%) is faded in at the end of each song, over 2seconds, which isn't exactly slamming, but perhaps could be stretched to a little longer before she complains about a dark stage.

 

Sorry to hear your concert was ruined,

 

Hugh Taranto

Norah Jones LD

[P. Funk]

isn't that what makes this forum great? :D

[landy]

isn't that what makes this forum great? 

 

it never ceases to amaze me who we have here, quite a force! :wub:

[Jon]

Yup, this forum is a very useful tool!

[la grande homme]

...is your face red... :** laughs out loud **:

 

I believe that's called being cyber-slapped :wub:

[vinny baby]

I have learned from experience to never slag of another artist, or LD's work. It always comes back on you.

 

I have also learned that just beacuse you see the lighting as crap, doesnt meen it is, all you are seeing is another LDs interpritation, and most of the time its different to the way you would design the show yourself. And remember you are seeing it as a technical point of view, and your perception of 'good' lighting is clouded by the fact of you working with lighting as your trade.

 

And 100% of the time the audience, wouldnt tell. if something was wrong, or something wasnt designed right.

 

I know the lighting and PA is part of the whole magic. But at the end of the day the audience is there to see the artist.

[P. Funk]

and you *haven't* learned to spell :** laughs out loud **: (jst joking :unsure:)

 

I agree with you vince - whenever I go and see a show now I never try and analyse the lighting or anythign else except the artist(e)(s) on stage. I just go to watch the performance. As long as I can see them, everything's good. If the lighting happens to be good, then all the better.

 

Reminds me of a gig at my school last christmas. We had a concert pianist in to play a recital, and I had spent (in collaboration with my music teacher) the whole day designing and rigging a *very* nice set of scenes for it. He came in 30 mins before the performance, I showed him the lighting, and he said no (shadows of black keys on white keys :D ) but it didnt matter. We did the whole thing with the house lights at full, and it was still an amazing gig.

[Just Some Bloke]

whenever I go and see a show now I never try and analyse the lighting or anythign else except the artist(e)(s) on stage. I just go to watch the performance.

WOW! You're the first lighting designer or technian I've ever come across who is physically able to do this!

 

Is there anyone else who can perform this unheard of feat? :unsure:

[Pete McCrea]

I wish I didn't have a clue about it all. Then I could walk into a gig an just apprecciate it. I lost that ability when I started to work in this field about 8 years ago.....

[olistockman]

I know that feeling really well, go out to enjoy yourself, and end up sitting at the side with a queue of pints thinking ....'why the hell did they do that' 'why aren't they making the most of their kit' and 'why didn't the installers leave them with some decent programs'

it's depressing...let's hope the Chilli's gig is a breath of fresh air...no doubt it will be :unsure:

[P. Funk]

well I do think about the lighting sometimes, and when I walk in, but when the gig starts, I try not to think about it.

 

Also... I'm not a lighting designer... yet. I'm an AS level student :unsure:

[Mr Steve]

I take far too much notice of the lighting when I go to events. I think I need therapy...

[James]

But then again I remember when I see a production where the acting is so good that I cease to notice the lx cues, Or where the lighting is so good that you look and say - what inspired him to do <that> Particularly when you see the same group lit in two different ways - for example the Reduced Shakespear company - very similar content of production - totaly different lighting styles.

 

Just my thoughts

 

James

 

Who found it almost impossible to sit through a production I'd designed lighting for once* when it became immediatly obvious that the followspot op had decided that my carefuly crafted state was too dim and threw his 2K in full flood accross the front of the stage in almost every scene.

 

By the second act I had again got lost in the acting so I almost forgave him...

 

 

James

 

*This was the first production where I was involved in the design and plotting stages but didn't op and first saw the finished product on the first night.