Review: Trans-Siberian Orchestra in Nashville 12/21/08

Before the show began, Trans-Siberian Orchestra singer Tom Farese and narrator Tony Gaynor got into the Christmas spirit by presenting a donation check to the Monroe Carell Children's Hospital. The non-profit hospital is a part of the Vanderbilt hospital chain and contains Nashville's only neo-natal intensive care unit. The crowd was very pleased wth Trans-Siberian Orchestra's community involvement and the donation got them the first of what was to be many standing ovations throughout the night.

Once the Christmas giving was completed, Trans-Siberian Orchestra came out to do what they do best, rock some Christmas carols. The 3 hour show was divided into two segments. The first, very theatrical, segment was narrated by the capable Tony Gaynor and told the story of an angel who was sent to Earth by God to find the one thing that best represents the good man has done in celebration of Jesus' birth.

Vocalists Tom Farese, Andrew Ross, and Jeff Scott Soto were all masterful in telling their portions of the story while actor/vocalist Bart Shatto brought the production to another level with his portrayal of a bum who sings the song "Old City Bar." Gaynor weaved the entire show together with his narration while guitarists Al Pitrelli and Angus Young, keyboardists Jane Mangini and Derek Wieland, and violinists Alison Zlotow and Mark Wood kept the instrumentation tight with some local help from the Nashville Strings. Highlights of this portion of the show included the instrumentals "Christmas Eve (Sarajevo 12/24)" and "Mad Russian's Christmas", Tom Farese's vocals on "This Christmas Day" and Bart Shatto's rendition of "Old City Bar."

Once the theatrical portion of the show ended, Tom Farese came back out to introduce the band and say some thank yous to the crew and to remind the audience to remember the people who can't be home for Christmas because they are serving overseas. He then promised that the show was far from over and that this was the chance for the audience to sit back and rock out.

For the next hour and a half, Trans-Siberian Orchestra delivered everything they promised and more, putting the light and pyro show that had been used sparingly during the theatrical portion of the show to full effect. Highlights of this portion of the show included Trans-Siberian Orchestra's hit song "Wizards in Winter", a guitar duel between Angus Clark and Al Pitrelli that included parts of "Voodoo Chile" and "Kashmir", a keyboard duel between Jane Mangini and Derek Wieland that culminated in a full-band rendition of Vince Guiraldi's theme for "A Peanuts Christmas", and vocalist Kristin Gorman's amazing range on "Queen of the Winter Night."

If you've never seen Trans-Siberian Orchestra in concert, I highly recommmend that you check them out. The music is good, the production is top-notch, and the light show is like nothing you've seen before.