The Trans-Siberian Orchestra Winter 2006 Concert Tour Review

If you are among the legions of fans who crave holiday entertainment, boy have I got a concert for you: The Trans-Siberian Orchestra Winter Tour 2006. Trans is a full tilt rock extravaganza of sight, sound, lights, lasers, and things that blow up in the night. It is a fully charged family carnival full of incredible musicianship with a spice of old fashioned sentiment, iced with a heartfelt message of peace and hope. It is certainly not your 'average' rock concert.

The Orchestra is indeed just that. The band itself consists of 16 members, not to mention their orchestra string section - the East Coast and West Coast touring troupes. The one constant is the incredible music put forth by its master craftsman Paul O'Neill. Their 3 Christmas CD's are for many rock enthusiasts (members of the rock band Savatage moved on to form Trans) the highlight of the musical season. "Christmas Eve And Other Stories," "The Ghosts Of Christmas Eve," and "The Lost Christmas Eve," are truly staples of what a tight knit rock ensemble can create with original imaginative holiday conceptual melodies. What O'Neill has done so well is combine old and new.

Taking some 'traditional' holiday favorites; O Come All Ye Faithful, Hark The Herald Angels Sing, What Child This Is, etc. and built his own holiday wanderlust into a truly unique experience. If your thing is rock music, loud guitars, sweeping vocals, and a narrative theme, Trans-Siberian Orchestra will give you all of the above and more. You will be swept away into the beauty of Christmas and its true meaning. Not by tales of Santa or reindeer and elves, but by being transported into the human condition we are all so aware of every day and finding the love and astonishment the season is really about.

The concert is a wonder to behold. On this night, November 4, 2006, the Sunrise, Florida show was their second stop on a massive two month tour. The crowd of thousands was delighted at The Bank Atlantic Center to the 'west coast' touring troupe. Fronted by musical director/guitarist Al Pitrelli, the band has a couple of surprises for us this time around.

Beginning with their customary "An Angel Came Down," delivered expertly by vocalist Guy LeMonnier, the band led into a rousing fan favorite "Wizards Of Winter." (You may know it better as the 'Budweiser' commercial with the house in Ohio with the brilliantly syncopated Christmas lights - it should be showing up on your TV screens any day now) Thus the show has begun. Unlike many holiday offerings, as I stated before, this one comes with a theme and full narration by Tony Gaynor.

It is essentially the story of an angel being sent down by God on Christmas Eve. As the angel travels the world he encounters lost souls throughout the land. Have no fear: the concert is not a downer. It does bare its poignancy however and does strike a chord with all in attendance. One of the most touching segments is the song "Ornament," sung by Tommy Farase. Of course we must not forget the instrumental "Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24." It is just another addition to the many highlights of the show.

The 'Christmas' portion is the first half of the show. The second is an all around rock-and-roll extravaganza filled to the brim with lights, lasers, bombs, and yes, this year, they added pyrotechnics. With a couple more Christmas offering thrown in. There are also segments where their lead violinist Anna Phoebe, appears on a platform located in the audience on the arena floor. She is accompanied on another song by guitarist Angus Clark on that same fire engulfing high rise (if lifts into the air). They also play through the audience making their way back unto the stage.

One of the most interesting segways is their Christmas themed tune "Christmas Nights In Blue," that leads into an unbelievable rendition of Eric Clapton's, "Layla." Another highlight from the second part of the show is from their CD "Beethoven's Last Night." It is the unmistakable "Beethoven's 5th." By the end, the crowd was on its feet. Beethoven may not have had this 'treatment,' in mind when he wrote his most famous symphony but I'm sure he would approve.

On a closing note, I have never been to a rock show where it is customary, no matter how large the venue, that the band appears in the lobby of the arena to 'meet and greet' their fans after the performance. I wasn't expecting it this night considering the thousands at the Center. But true to form, there they were. All 16 members (minus the string orchestra) of the touring troupe behind large folding tables signing tour books, cd's, DVD's, etc. Their comments from the stage, "We don't believe in the usual 'backstage.'

We want to come out to you. Meet some old friends and meet some new friends." The Trans-Siberian Orchestra made thousand of new friends on this night. Hopefully if you're lucky enough you will get a chance to see and meet the group. Either way, their CD's and DVD are in stores now. Merry Christmas.

By Tina Mrazik