1 comment(s) |E-mail|Print | Text Size | Bookmark
Thursday, March 4, 2010 3:15 AM EST
Songs from the Celtic Heart BY ALAN SCULLEY | REPUBLICAN-AMERICAN
as a child, Lisa Kelly used to occasionally visit Powerscourt House & Gardens, a historic mansion near Dublin, Ireland that was built in the tradition of the Palace of Versailles in France.But when Kelly returned to Powerscourt last August as a member of Celtic Woman, she gained a whole different perspective.”As a child, you don’t really appreciate it,” Kelly said in a recent phone interview. “But the minute you go back, you realize how beautiful it is and how vast the estate is. They have a Ritz Carlton there actually in the estate. That’s how big the estate is. you don’t see the Ritz Carlton (on the DVD), but it was a beautiful, beautiful venue, and I think we were all so in awe of what was done to make it even better. They have beautiful statues within the grounds, and they were all (lit up) for the show. oh, it was just magical.”As Kelly’s quote suggests, Celtic Woman didn’t come to Powerscourt as tourists. The vocal group was there to film its latest concert DVD,” “Songs from the Heart — Live at Powerscourt House & Gardens.” The show has since been released on DVD, and also debuted in November on PBS as one of the featured programs during the public television network’s quarterly pledge drive.The live DVD also served as a prelude to the newly released studio CD, “Songs from the Heart,” which features the studio versions of a number of songs that were performed at Powerscourt.Concert DVDs — and the exposure they have received on PBS — have played a central role in building the career of Celtic Woman, which was started originally to perform a one-off television special filmed in Ireland and put together by musical director David Downes and producer Sharon Browne.In addition to that original DVD and self-titled debut CD, the group has gone on to release a second studio CD, “A New Journey,” and its companion concert DVD, “A New Journey: Live at Slane Castle, Ireland,” and a 2008 best-of CD and DVD, both titled “The Greatest Journey: Essential Collection.” in all, the group has sold more than 4 million copies of its CDs and DVDs.The group has had some changes since its start. Singers Kelly and Chloe Agnew remain from the original lineup, but two other vocalists, Orla Fallon and Meav Ni Mhaolchatha, have departed and have been replaced by Alex Sharpe and Lynn Hilary. Fiddle player Mairead Nesbitt, another original member, remains in the group.As the “Powerscourt” DVD and “Songs from the Heart” CD suggest, Celtic Woman has weathered the personnel changes just fine.”We’ve been very lucky that all of the girls that have been picked to be in Celtic Woman have all been great,” Kelly said. “And it’s not just stage-wise because there’s more to us than that. we have to live together and we have to travel together. So it’s important that the personality traits are there as well.”Speaking of weather, that is the one thing Kelly would just as soon forget about the Powerscourt show.”We’ve been very unlucky with the weather when we go to do outdoor things,” Kelly said, including the Slane Castle performance in her thoughts. “We’ve done both of them in August, and both times it was freezing cold.”Otherwise, the Powerscourt show figures to provide lasting memories for Kelly.”It was really cool because we got to play for and Irish audience, which we very rarely get to do,” she said. “So as well as having some very dedicated American fans that came over to watch the filming, we also had a lot of Irish. and our friends and family were there. I know from talking to fans, they couldn’t get over how beautiful Powerscourt looked when we had the stage there and the lights. It was a magical evening. It was by far the DVD I felt we’d done. It was just everything worked really, really well.”Kelly is also pleased with the way the “Songs from the Heart” turned out. like other Celtic Woman CDs, it covers a wide range of styles, including a little classical (“Non C’E Piu”), a few traditional Irish songs (“My Lagan Love” and “Galway Bay”), standards (“Amazing Grace”) and covers of contemporary songs (Sting’s “Fields Of Gold” and Billy Joel’s “Goodnight my Angel”).”I felt that ‘Songs From The Heart’ kind of went back to the roots of Celtic Woman, went back to having a classical number, having the traditional (Irish songs), having all of those things,” Kelly said. “That is what Celtic Woman was all about.”Some of the material from the new CD figures to be featured in the show Celtic Woman is bringing to the states this winter and spring.”Essentially it will be what was in ‘Songs From The Heart’ (the Powerscourt DVD),” Kelly said, adding that a couple of new songs may also get added to the show. “And I’m sure some of the old favorites will be there, because you can’t go do a new show when people are coming to hear songs that are famously linked now to Celtic Woman.” Subscribers can read more in the e-edition. Login here