Review of The Gloaming at The Colston Hall in Bristol
Posted on: 2016-09-21
Our rating:
People are flying over from Ireland to see The Gloaming as they can't get tickets over there. Wake up London, Manchester, Edinburgh and Birmingham and go and see them!
The Gloaming arrived in Bristol on 21st September 2016 to kick off a whirlwind UK tour covering 5 cities over 5 days.
For those not in the know The Gloaming came into being in 2010 when fiddle player Martin Hayes, after working on and off with Chicago guitarist Dennis Cahill for 20 years, felt inclined to form a band. Early in 2011 he got together with the sean-nós singer Iarla Ó Lionárd, pianist and producer Thomas Bartlett and Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh, who plays fiddle (a unique one) to see if their collaboration might lead somewhere. It certainly has with the band performing all over the world.
"People are flying over from Ireland to see The Gloaming as they can't get tickets over there. Wake up London, Manchester, Edinburgh and Birmingham and go and see them!"
The Gloaming took the stage at 7.30pm in front of an audience of 600 or so people at The Colston Hall and without introduction played a marvellous 17 minute opening set starting with The Pilgrim's Song and ending with Maud Miller, showcasing the immense talent of each of the musicians on stage. This was followed by Oisin's Song telling tales from pre-medieval Ireland and more tunes from their recently released second album The Gloaming 2 including Fáinleog (Wanderer).
Song 44 was a particular highlight of the night for me which tells a story from over 700 years ago when the Normans came to Ireland one of whom meets the woman of his dreams, but only in his dreams. My attention had been drawn all night to the American pianist Thomas Bartlett who plays with such energy and vigour and showed that the piano is not just keys and pedals as he strummed its strings to create an entirely different sound giving this piece an entirely different feel. Thomas has had his passport impounded, he'll tell you the story, I'd guess he'd never be without work if he stayed here.
The audience sat in awe, and silence, throughout each song and it was as if everyone was too frightened to whoop and holler and get up and dance. We met Dennis from Cork after the show and Diego from Dublin (via Brazil!) - both had flown over to see the concert as tickets sell out very quickly in Ireland - who explained that back home the audience would have been much more involved. It just needed someone to make the first step and I'm sure everyone else would have followed suit, perhaps the Bristol crowd were a bit shy!
The encore of Slán Le Máighe meaning Farewell The Maigue, or Farewell Bristol, was met with a standing ovation. A terrific hour and three quarters and can't wait to see them again. The Gloaming 2 now purchased!
5/5 - Reviewed by Brendan Murphy
Check out The Gloaming at www.thegloaming.net for more information.
Article by:
Bristol born and bred despite the name, Brendan has been working in the digital media sector for the last 10 years and advertising for the last 20 years. A wealth of knowledge about the city and more importantly at how to help businesses get as much online exposure as possible. Call Brendan on 07876 735153 or email Brendan@365bristol.com.
