Got any real world examples to compare to what is actually going on?
BTW, everyone would NOT be happy if only two of the four Beatles showed up at a “Beatles” concert, no matter who the back-up musicians are.
So the problem is that TSO doesn’t work according to exactly the same model that rock bands use, that it’s closer to a Broadway show than the Rolling Stones? And because of this difference, they suck?
I have no real opinion on their music, but this is a dumbshit reason to hate it.
I like to know what I am getting when I pay for a concert ticket.
“Tonight, the lead role normally played by Robert DeNiro will be played by Troy McClure”
This has nothing at all to do with core members of the group changing out background musicians:
2015 West Touring Group
Al Pitrelli - Guitar, music director
Angus Clark - Guitar
Vitalij Kuprij - Keyboards
Jane Mangini - Keyboards
Johnny Lee Middleton - Bass
John O. Reilly - Drums
Asha Mevlana - Violin
Phillip Brandon - Narrator
Jeff Scott Soto - Vocals
April Berry - Vocals
John Brink - Vocals
Ava Davis - Vocals
Gabriela Gunčíková - Vocals
Joe Retta - Vocals
Jodi Katz - Vocals
Chloe Lowery - Vocals
Andrew Ross - Vocals
Bart Shatto - Vocals
2015 East Touring Group
Chris Caffery - Guitar
Bill Hudson - Guitar
Derek Wieland - Keyboards, music director
Mee Eun Kim - Keyboards
David Z - Bass
Jeff Plate - Drums
Roddy Chong - Violin
Bryan Hicks - Narrator
Zachary “Zak” Stevens - Vocals
Russell Allen - Vocals
Robin Borneman - Vocals
Dustin Brayley - Vocals
Rob Evan - Vocals
Autumn Guzzardi - Vocals
Lisa Lavie - Vocals
Georgia Napolitano - Vocals
Natalya Rose - Vocals
Kayla Reeves - Vocals
Everything is totally different, from the music director on down. If the musicians matter, then you should be hearing two different performances. If you cannot hear any differences in the shows, then it is so tightly staged that who is playing what instrument doesn’t matter too much-they are background.
I believe he was using irony to mock or convey contempt. If only there was a word to describe that…
To bring it all back to my point, it’s that more than one of us has said their concerts, for all the millions in stagecraft and lighting and thunder and roar and hoopla… lack a little something in the end. I contend that even the best “ensemble” musicians playing music as good as TSO’s (on the albums) are going to have a little bit of phoning it in, of not really being invested in the music since they’re just replaceable elements in the mix.
Nothing more or less. As I said, I like TSO’s music for what it is. They pack concerts, so they bring something to the stage. But in my brief era of fandom, it was amusing to find how many fellow fans couldn’t name a single performer, and I did not go to the Xmas concert to be disappointed… but went home feeling like I’d eaten five pounds of cotton candy.
No further criticism or bashing intended.
So, why the Pit?
Okay, I’ll criticize and bash.
I once worked as a concert PA. Worst show I ever worked was TSO. The band, the crew, the tour staff, all had this bizarre air of superiority like they thought they were the greatest band in the history of music; they seemed to have no clue they are just a bunch of has-beens and nobodies pandering to stupid holiday audiences.
Every single person associated with that show was a gigantic, arrogant asshole. They talked down to me and my people like it was everyone’s very first day, they tried to dictate to us where to get things from (they had zero clue where to find anything in the area and were just looking at a map online), they made ludicrous demands (note demands, not requests) for things that just were not possible, and then they tried to stiff us at closing. Their music is the worst type of soulless, substance-less pandering I’ve ever heard; I’ve heard Muzak with more soul than that bullshit.
Fuck TSO.
Because saying this in the original thread was call inappropriate (and may have been) and I didn’t want any further limitations on the topic even though my comments were fairly mild.
I’ve kept quiet while reading this thread, but I’ll just say I never understood what the hell was supposed to be good about TSO. I’ll be honest: I haven’t dug deep into their catalog, but all I’ve heard sounds like the heavy metal version of Yanni music to me.
I worked a Trans-Siberian Orchestra show once, but I don’t work those Christmas shows anymore. It’s just not worth it.
It’s not often when you can whoosh an 18 year veteran of the boards. And the name play made it that much sweeter. I’m basking in the glory now but fearfully waiting MY turn.
It sounds like you know exactly what you’re getting if you buy a ticket to one of their shows, even more so than buying a ticket to another show.
Complaints about members being assholes? Sure, I can see that. Complaints that you don’t like the music? Make total sense. Even complaints that when you see bands, you prefer to see specific musicians? Fine (although that is not generally how orchestras work in my experience).
But claiming that an orchestral/pyrotechnic performance is “fake”? Nonsense.
Dunno why the hate, Barbie. Sounds like your kind of crowd.
I never said the orchestral/pyrotechnic performance was “fake”. I said that when you have two entirely different groups play the same sets, you will get two entirely different performances unless individual talents are tamped down enough to make sure that everyone gets pretty much the same performance.
How so? The advertisements don’t label the shows as “TSO East” or “TSO West” and neither do the tickets, and most people don’t get their program books until after they enter the auditorium.
As OP, I used the word fake to apply to the music. CZ had pretty much nailed what I meant by the word.
I’ve never been to a TSO performance, for precisely the reasons outlined in this thread. Christmas music is performed because it has to be. It’s not a challenge to the performers any more, so they have no true passion. No matter how much flash and glitz is infused into it, it’s still the same song heard over and over. It’s the type of show you take elderly relatives to because it fulfills your holiday fellowship duty and they get excited by all the pretty lights.
Manheim Steamroller uses local musicians when they travel. Lots of them. I’ve see Christmas shows by both bands and enjoyed them. Then again, I go t a concert to see a performance and hear the music, not so much to see the performers. This, to me, rates a big “meh”.