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Blackmore's Night
Sony Hall, New York City, NY. Sunday, October 30th.
Ritchie Blackmore Storms Offstage at Sony Hall, Ends Show Prematurely.
Blackmore’s Night, featuring guitarist Ritchie Blackmore of Deep Purple and Rainbow fame along with vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Candice Night, was set to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the band’s debut album, Shadow of the Moon, with a performance at Sony Hall on October 30. As the band plays a unique brand of medieval and renaissance-flavored folk rock, numerous fans at the front tables at Sony Hall dressed in medieval-designed outfits. The audience cheered when Blackmore first came on stage, thinking the show was starting, but he was checking something and returned backstage for another brief period. The audience energy was high and the expectations for a good concert were equally high.
Many things went wrong at the concert, some very evident to the audience. A few songs into the performance, a fire alarm interrupted the performance several times. The musicians repeatedly asked for the blinding stage lights to be dimmed. No one from the venue’s production crew solved the problems.
Less than an hour into the performance, with the issues not corrected, Blackmore left the stage. Night followed. The remaining musicians continued playing, eventually walking off the stage one by one, until only the drummer remained, and then he left also. After a few minutes of silence, a representative from the venue announced that the concert ended.
Blackmore’s Night perform several songs before aborting the show. These songs included “The Clock Ticks On,” “Dancer and the Moon,” “Darkness,” “Under a Violet Moon,” a cover of Deep Purple’s “Soldier of Fortune,” and “Durch den Wald zum Bach Haus.”
The band and management of Blackmore’s Night posted the following statement two days later. At press time, no one representing Sony Hall responded to the band’s management, attorneys, or this reporter.
"To our fans. Never in 25 years of being onstage world wide have we ever experienced the ill treatment of band and audience by the Sony Hall NYC as we did tonight. Trying to keep emotions in check, we will describe, factually, what the attendants and people “in charge” of Sony Hall put us all through that led to total disaster and forced the show to end much much earlier than we wanted.
>We had band members come in from different states, arranged production, took quite a loss financially to come play for you all at this venue. We planned on playing all night till curfew so we could all enjoy the 25 years of our music and even music beyond that scope as Ritchie’s career spans decades beyond.
When we got there, it was freezing. All our band and crew were complaining about how icy the room was. Cold often wreaks havoc with not only vocals but the fingers of those playing the instruments as well as the reed instruments and any string instruments…guitars, hurdy gurdies and violin. We repeatedly requested that they shut the air conditioner so that the room warmed up enough for us to be able to put on the performance expected of us all.
We went to get dressed, into a dressing room that had no working facilities (toilet, etc.) and when we returned to the stage we noticed that it was even colder. The stage decorations actually blowing in the direct wind current from the air con showed that the unit hadn’t been shut off at all. So band and crew stood backstage in coats hoping that the room would eventually warm up. It never did. They never shut the air conditioning off and even the fans had to keep coats on during the show. We told them we couldn’t go on until they shut the freezing air. We had to wait an additional 15 minutes after our intro tape had begun until they finally realized that we couldn’t go on until they stopped the air con. When they realized that we wouldn’t take the stage till they stopped the cold air blowing, they finally shut it off. Then we went on stage.
From our second song, a loud beeping filled the room. It went through every song we played. It would stop for a minute or two, then continue incessantly, ruining any song we tried to play. We were informed by production that it was a fire alarm pulled by someone “on the third floor in the Paramount Hotel” and, although it was unnecessary for us to evacuate the premises and everyone was safe, they refused to shut the alarm off. This beeping went on throughout many of our songs. We tried to make light of it, tried to get people to laugh and joke about it, even worked it into a song since it wouldn’t cease. But after that loud beeping throughout 1/2 of the show. we could not do anything else to overcome the constant distraction.
Add to that the fact that the assigned lighting “professional,” (which) we requested when our production team advanced the show and were assured would be provided by the venue, kept such bright migraine-inducing lights blaring into our faces, never changing, never stopping, even after we requested during soundcheck that the lighting would change and be sensitive to the song moods. Ritchie twice went on mic to tell the lighting person to shut those three bright and offending lights and was ignored each time. Candice twice told the lighting person on mic that he was putting the show in jeopardy by not lowering those lights and to please use “his faders, or even an on/off switch would be helpful at this point” and was ignored. Two fans at that point came forth to offer visors or sunglasses to wear and passed them onstage, feeling the band’s plight. It was no use. The lighting person ignored everything that was told to him and kept those lights on and blaring.
We would never play a venue without having lights and sound at the top of our list of professional asks. They are incredibly important in the scope of what we do. If we would’ve known that the techs at Sony Hall were going to be so unprofessional, we never would’ve gone ahead with the request to play that venue.
There were many other issues that happened that night, including merchandise being stolen, security issues, personal threats being made against the band members. It is abhorrent the way that that venue treated the band and the fans. We feel so sorry for those who came to see the show as we went in good faith, ready to play and have a great time with you all.
We have repeatedly requested that the Sony Hall return the money of the fans who attended the concert. Sony Hall has repeatedly ignored our communications through our agent.
We love our fans and we hope this awareness by other artists in the future will assist them to be aware of what happened to Blackmore’s Night at Sony Hall on October 30, 2022.”
Calw-Hirsau - Die zahlreichen Besucher des Calwer Klostersommers ließen sich am Sonntagabend von dem großen Aufgebot an Security- kräften und der Polizeipräsenz nicht verunsichern. Viele waren von weit her angereist und freuten sich auf einen romantisch-rockigen Abend im stimmungsvollen Ambiente des mittelalterlichen Klosterkreuzgangs.
Die dunklen Wolken verzogen sich nach kurzem Regenschauer wieder und die Zuhörer waren schnell in bester Stimmung Zuhören, Mitklatschen, Mitsingen und sogar Tanzen, eben ausgelassen feiern, war angesagt. Mehr als 1400 Besucher des ausver- kauften Blackmore-Night- Konzerts freuten sich auf eine bunte musikalische Mischung durch das gesamte Schaffen der Blackmore-Band.
Wer vor allem wegen des berühmten Musikers Ritchie Blackmore, dem legendären Gründer und Gitarristen von Deep Purple, gekommen war, konnte zunächst nur staunen. Denn der unvergessliche Abend gehörte eindeutig seiner strahlenden Ehefrau und Muse Candice Night. Die ver- sierte Allrounderin verstand es gleich zu Beginn, in ihrer fröhlichen, offenen Art mit humorvoll eingestreuten Ansprachen im Plauderton das Publikum für sich zu gewinnen. Schnell lief die begnadete Dichterin und stimmgewaltige Sängerin zu großer Form auf. Sie versprühte ihren Charme und sang mit ihrer großartigen samtig-warmen Stimme mal ruhig-besinnlich und dann auch wieder mitreißend-dynamisch.
Wie in früheren Zeiten
Bei soviel Sympathie und Begeisterung für seine attraktive, energiegeladene Frau konnte Blackmore nur im zweiten Glied bleiben. Und doch ließ der begnadete Ausnahmegitarrist immer wieder sein Können aufblitzen und erinnerte damit an frühere Zeiten, als er für viele "der Gitarrengott" mit ausgeprägtem Hard-Rock-Profil war.
Musikalisch hat sich der erfahrene Vollblutmusiker zusammen mit seiner geradezu charismatischen Partnerin ein völlig neues, musikalisches Ambiente geschaffen, das beim Publikum hervorragend ankam. Es ist eine erfolgreiche Mischung aus Renaissance-, Rock- und Folkmusik, die den beiden ambitionierten Künstlern einen Fan-Kreis in fast allen Ländern dieser Welt geschaffen hat. Die begeisterten Fans waren auch in Hirsau nicht zu übersehen, zumal die als Knappen oder Ritterfräulein mittelalterlich gewandeten Besucher zumeist die vorderen Reihen besetzt hatte und überaus lebendig agierten. Wie zu vernehmen war, reisen einige sogar "ihrer Band" hinterher, um möglichst jedes Live-Konzert mitzuerleben. Die Zuhörer wurden dann auch in Hirsau schnell in den Bann von Candice, Ritchie & Co. gezogen.
"Hey, Hey, Hey", erklang es mitreißend von der Bühne. Und es folgten unverwechselbar gefühlvolle Songs und Balladen, die ihre Wurzeln in der Renaissance haben. Der Funke sprang über, und die von ihm ergriffenen Zuhörer ließen sich mitnehmen auf eine faszinierende Zeitreise.
Auch für das Auge wurde jede Menge geboten. Die Akteure des Abends waren nach Art des Spätmittelalters gekleidet, im Hintergrund wurden stimmungsvolle Farbmuster eingespielt. Eine immer wieder wechselnde Bühnenbeleuchtung verstärkte noch die intensive Wirkung der pulsierenden Musik. Historische Instrumente wie Drehleier, Tambourin, Mandoline oder Schalmei setzten weiter Impulse.
Brandneue CD
Neue Begeisterung kam auf, als die Zuhörer Titel auf die Bühne rufen konnten und diese dann von den Musikern spontan aufgenommen und mit großer Authentizität gespielt wurden. Immer wieder verzauberte Candice mit ihrem betörenden Gesang und ihren anmutigen Bewegungen die Besucher aufs Neue. Titel wie "Under the Violet Moon", "Toast to Tomorrow" oder "Dancer and the Moon" kannten viele. Außerdem überraschte die klanggewaltige Formation mit stimmungsvoller virtuoser Musik, die auch auf ihrer brandneuen CD (Erscheinungstermin 11. August) zu hören sein wird.
Den Abend über wurde immer lebendiger mitgeklatscht und mitgesungen. Allzu schnell war für die begeisterten Besucher das zweieinhalbstündige Konzert vorbei. Für die älteren Besucher gab es als Zugabe noch mehrere gecoverte Evergreens wie "Soldier Of Fortune" von Deep Purple, die Erinnerungen an ihre längst vergangene Jugendzeit aufkommen ließ.
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Calw-Hirsau - On the sunday evening, the numerous visitors of the Calwer monastery summer were not left unsettled by the large number of security forces and the police department. Many of them had come from far away and were looking forward to a romantic-rocky evening in the ambiance of the medieval monastery crossroads.
The dark clouds shifted again after a short rain show, and the listeners were quickly in the best mood listening, mit claps, sing along and even dancing, just celebrating, was announced. More than 1400 visitors to the Blackmore Night concert, which was sold out, were looking forward to a colorful musical mixture through the entire work of the Blackmore band.
Who was mainly due to the famous musician Ritchie Blackmore, the legendary founder and guitarist of Deep Purple, could only be astonished at first. For the unforgettable evening belonged clearly to his radiant wife and Muse Candice Night. The experienced all-rounder knew right from the beginning, in her cheerful, open manner, with humorously interspersed speeches in the chat the audience to win for themselves. Quickly, the gifted female poet and vocal singer appeared to great form. She sprayed her charm and, with her great velvety-warm voice, sung quietly, calmly and then again thrillingly dynamic.
As in earlier times
With so much sympathy and enthusiasm for his attractive, energized woman Blackmore could only remain in the second limb. And yet, the gifted exceptional guitarist kept flashing his skills, recalling earlier times when he was for many "the guitarist" with a pronounced hard-rock profile.
Musically, the experienced thoroughbred musician, together with his almost charismatic partner, has created a completely new, musical ambience, which excellently reached the audience. It is a successful mix of Renaissance, rock and folkmusic, which has created a fan circle for the two ambitious artists in almost every country in the world. The enthusiastic fans were also not to be overlooked in Hirsau, especially as the squad or knightly Miss Medieval visitors mostly occupied the front rows and acted very lively. As you can see, some even go "their band" behind, in order to live with every live concert. The listeners were then drawn quickly to the spell of Candice, Ritchie & Co. in Hirsau.
"Hey, Hey, Hey," she said. And there followed unmistakably emotional songs and ballads, which have their roots in the Renaissance. The spark sprang over, and the listeners seized by him let themselves go with him on a fascinating journey of time.
There was also plenty available for the eye. The protagonists of the evening were dressed in the style of the late-medieval, and in the background, harmonious color samples were played. A constantly changing stage lighting intensified the intense effect of pulsating music. Historic instruments such as the turntable, tambourine, mandolin, or shawl continued to give impetus.
Brand new CD
New enthusiasm arose when the listeners were able to call up titles on the stage and these were spontaneously recorded by the musicians and played with great authenticity. Again and again Candice, with her beguiling singing and her graceful movements enchanted the visitors anew. Titles such as "Under the Violet Moon", "Toast to Tomorrow" or "Dancer and the Moon" knew many. In addition, the sound-vocal ensemble surprised the audience with impressive virtuoso music, which will also be heard on their brandnew CD (release date August 11).
The evening was more and more lively and clapped. All too quickly, the two-and-a-half-hour concert was over for the enthusiastic visitors. For the older visitors, there were several encrusted Evergreens like "Soldier Of Fortune" by Deep Purple, which reminded her of her long-gone youth.
Blackmore's Night
The Wellmont Theater, 5 Seymour St. Sunday, July 29, 8 p.m.
BLACKMORE’S NIGHT BRING ‘MAGIC’ TO MONTCLAIR
'Ren Faire' music with a rock beat
Everyone needs to unplug sometimes.
For some people the music and the ambiance of the renaissance is a way to reconnect with the earth, says Candice Night, lead singer of Blackmore’s Night.
When Night spoke to us on Monday, she was still reveling in a three-hour show in Long Island the night before, where she performed music for family and friends.
Her children had been in the balcony, and when her husband, Ritchie Blackmore, formerly of Deep Purple, asked for requests, six-year-old Rory shouted “Smoke on the Water!” she said.
The crowd cheered and called, “Yeah, Rory!”
It does not matter whether your ancestry comes from the Celtic world to feel a connection to the music, she said. She should know: the singer of the folk-rock band, which performs in Renaissance Faire costumes (and reserves the first three rows of every concert for those who come similarly dressed), is a Jewish woman from Long Island, born Candice Lauren Isralow.
Night said she uses her personal ancestry in the lyrics she writes. The band uses renaissance melodies from everywhere: they play the Hora onstage, and on a holiday CD, include the Hanukkah song “Ma’oz Tzur.” She wrote the song “Gone with the Wind” about her grandmother, whose Prussian home burned to the ground, and who came to America without a word of English.
Night said she never thought she’d be front and center performing: she’s the girl who took zeros in public speaking rather than get up in front of people.
“Every moment of my life has been surprising and strange,” she said with a laugh. She always knew she’d do something with music: she met her husband Richie Blackmore when she was interning at a radio station. But she never thought she’d be writing it and creating it.
For Night, “It’s a dream come true.”
FEELING A SIMPLER TIME
Some people snicker at the word “Renaissance Faire,” familiarly called a Ren Faire. Not Candice Night. “When people are laughing, they don’t know if the person standing next to them has a corset or tights in the closet. It’s so interesting to watch this movement,” she said. She pointed out that every time a medieval-flavoured movie comes out, whether it’s a pirate movie, or television’s “Game of Thrones,” it goes through the roof.
“Everybody finds a part of themselves they love, looking back through the veil of life,” she said. The band was founded in 1997, by Ritchie Blackmore, a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame guitarist, known for his work with Deep Purple and Rainbow, and Night. Blackmore plays electric and acoustic guitar, mandolin, mandola, and hurdy gurdy. Night sings and plays seven medieval woodwind instruments, including chanters and pennywhistles. Other musicians in the band include Scarlett Fiddler (violin), Earl Grey (bass/rhythm guitar), Troubadour of Aberdeen (percussion), and Bard David (keyboards/vocals). Their 11th CD, “To the Moon and Back: 20 Years and Beyond,” is a double CD with some catalogue classics, new songs and a cover of Rainbow’s “I Surrender.”
As for Ren Faires, the band performs at them and Night loves them. The faires “transport you back in time.” People are bombarded by ambient light, road rage, and can’t escape from their devices, she said, “It’s soul destroying.”
At a Ren Faire, “you can feel the grass under your feet, the wind through your hair. You can look up from your tablet at the sunset, see a field of fireflies, or a shooting star There are so many beautiful things. Crickets at evening time. There are so many beautiful miracles in front of us all the time, and people don’t see or hear them.”
ANGELS ON EARTH
One thing that Blackmore’s Night does to help people connect to the world is partner with animal rescue organisations. When Blackmore’s Night travels internationally, they often partner with large organisations such as the World Wildlife Fund. Domestically, they prefer to champion local groups. The people who do this hard work are “angels on earth,” she said.
For Sunday’s show at the Wellmont, Blackmore’s Night and the Wellmont are partnering Blackmore's Night with NorthStar pet rescue, a nonprofit animal rescue organisation founded in 2017 by Jeffrey Smith and Tammy Probst-Smith.
The Wellmont will match every donation.
NorthStar will bring rescue dogs to the show on Sunday, for audience members to meet and possibly apply to adopt.
Jeffrey Smith explained that the organisation is entirely foster-based, and that most of the dogs come from Texas, where there is a sad surplus of dogs. Right now NorthStar has 68 dogs up for adoption. The breeding season is long in Texas, as it is in many Southern states, Jeffrey Smith explained. “Up here our shelters are emptier. We can provide a greater variety of dogs.”
He hopes the dogs will enjoy the music, if it is not too loud: “Whenever we have to board a dog overnight, I always put the radio on. Usually country music. Something about the cadence is calming for a dog.”
Animals, Night said, “give and never ask in return.”
Night said that she and her husband said goodbye to a 16-year-old cat recently, after returning from a tour. “We had been home less than 24 hours. He died in my husband’s arms, being petted. Ritchie said, ‘That’s how I want to go.’”
SOMETHING THAT MAKES PEOPLE FEEL GOOD
Their audience includes Ren Faire lovers, but not only, she said. “We don’t neatly fit into any genre. Promoters don’t know where to put us. When you look into the audience, you’d see people you’d never think would be sitting next to each other. A rock-and-roll, metal guy, who’s been a solid Richie fan since 1969, standing next to a woman wearing fairy wings, next to a Harley Davidson guy, next to a grandma, next to kid who’s five years old, dressed as Robin Hood.
“Our demographic is so wide. People are looking for something different, melodic, that makes them feel good. It’s not more women or more men.” Another appeal of the show is that it is family friendly. It has none of the sexuality or aggressiveness of many contemporary performers. Everyone on stage is covered up, and children can sing along.
While she loves flowy clothing, she does not wear bell sleeves at home. “They would be dragging in the kids’ food. I’d be wearing ketchup,” she said with a laugh.
But, she never feels as beautiful as when she’s onstage in renaissance garb. “I put all that stuff on, and become a deeper part of me,” she said.
The audience is very important to the band and Blackmore’s Night never plays the same set list twice.
“Even we don’t know what we’re going to do,” Night said. Richie will often hand a drink to people in the audience, when he can reach them. (In Long Island, there was an orchestra pit, so he could not.)
“My favourite thing is looking out, and seeing everybody leaving with a smile on their face. They are so full of positive energy, and it lasts for days. Even if they can just hold onto that for a moment - that’s true magic.”
On August 26, I had the pleasure of seeing Blackmore's Night live in Berlin, Germany.
It was my first chance to see guitar legend Ritchie Blackmore in concert, and living on the West Coast, I didn't think I'd ever get the opportunity as Blackmore's Night performs mostly in Europe and, on rare occasions, on the East Coast in the U.S.
The 1,600-capacity Admiral Palace theater provided a very intimate setting. The stage looked as if it could've been used for a William Shakespeare play with greenery, flowers and rocks covering musical equipment and curtains painted to look like castle walls hanging on either side. When the concert began, all eyes were on Blackmore as he strummed his acoustic guitar and greeted fans in the front row who dressed as if they were at a renaissance fair.
If I had to describe Blackmore's Night musically, I'd say they are a fusion of renaissance, folk and rock. It became clear from the beginning that they didn't have a problem breaking the rules. How many renaissance concerts have you seen with an arena-rock-style drum solo? A very impressive group of young talented musicians provided the perfect backing to Blackmore's Night.
The concert was full of dynamics, and each song featured a wide spectrum of different arrangements. The best example of this was probably a Deep Purple cover of "Soldier of Fortune," which began with Ritchie and his wife, Candice Night, alone on stage playing very softly. The stage volume was so low, the entire audience had to be silent. As the song progressed, more instruments joined in until every member of the band played with full force. At that moment, it felt like more like a rock concert.
Behind the band was a large screen where different moving images would appear relating to specific songs. The stage production enhanced the live music to create a very enjoyable experience. At times it was easy to forget I was watching one the greatest rock guitarists of all time as songs like "Renaissance Faire" had everybody singing and clapping.
Two hours into the concert came the moment I had been waiting for as Blackmore returned from a short break carrying his signature yellow cream Fender Stratocaster. The band played "The Moon Is Shining" from their latest album, and the sound of an electrified Blackmore had the audience on their feet. The highlight came as he began his outro solo, which lasted about five minutes. Like a master, Blackmore built a solo that took the entire audience on an emotional journey. As he moved higher and higher up the neck and held a high bend for several seconds, the audience was in awe.
As a guitar fan I thought it couldn't get any better than that.
At which point he walked over to the front of the stage, dropped to his knees and began going crazy up and down the neck with both hands, flipping his guitar over and abusing his whammy bar. I cannot describe the audience reaction as the entire venue shook with a deep growl. With that single move, Blackmore reminded everyone that he was still the rock guitar god he's always been. As the song ended, I couldn't help but notice the man next to me was crying. I was also relieved that my friend got the moment on film!
The concert ended up lasting well over two and a half hours with Ritchie and Candice taking requests from the audience. Other highlights included "Fires at Midnight," which began with Ritchie alone on stage, on a stool, improvising acoustically for a few minutes. The beautiful melodic phrases had the audience in silence again, which contrasted perfectly the heavy metal style moves of moments earlier.
To say I enjoyed the concert would be a huge understatement. I would urge any guitarist to see Blackmore's Night if you get the chance.
Will Wallner is a guitarist from England who now lives in Los Angeles.
