SARAH BRIGHTMAN IN CONCERT AT THE ROYAL ALBERT HALL
( WEA - 1997 )

My DVD Review and Track Listing

This concert, in London's Royal Albert Hall, opens with an orchestral overture medley, and while that is being performed viewers are treated to some archival photo shoots of Sarah in various locations and musicals. Sarah then appears on stage to sing her opening song, the beautiful Bailero, from Joseph Canteloube's Songs of the Auvergne. This is sung in a more traditional style as opposed to the somewhat ethereal recording on her Eden album (which I really like).
The concert than moves on to a more bouncy tune, the Chanson Espagnol from Les Filles de Cadiz by Leo Delibes, with its wide range of notes and vocal colours. We are then treated to the beautiful Puccini aria O Mio Babbino Caro, which had been available on recorded medium only as a live recording until she recorded it for her Classics album. An absolutely gorgeous song by Edvard Grieg, Solveig's Song from Peer Gynt, reveals Sarah at her best, displaying amazing expression, both vocally and visually.
Also included in this concert is music by Gershwin, Bernstein, and a touching duet with boy soprano Adam Clarke, of the Lloyd Webber Pie Jesu, which is taken from his Requiem. Sarah explains what this music was written for, and dedicates it to family and loved ones who have passed on. She also sings the beautiful Tu Quieres Volver, with an exquisite classical guitar accompaniment, and one of her concert standards, the Queen song Who Wants to Live Forever.
The concert focus then shifts to an Andrew Lloyd Webber segment, which begins with Whistle Down the Wind, a song that he wrote for a new musical that at the time was soon to be released. Sarah sits on the piano to sing this moving song, with Lloyd Webber himself accompanying on the piano. She then sings her usual Phantom material, ending with the emotive Music of the Night, which concludes the concert programme. Her bond to this material to me is obvious throughout the entire set.
Sarah reappears for an encore, however, with tenor Andrea Bocelli, to sing the duet version of Time To Say Goodbye, an obvious crowd favourite. She then concludes this absolutely stunning evening with Lloyd Webber's Don't Cry For Me Argentina.
This is an amazing concert from start to finish, as Sarah traverses through this wide range of material with apparent ease. Her vocals are superb, and her expression, both vocally and visually, is stunning! Maestro Paul Bateman very skillfully directs the English National Orchestra and choir for this concert, and their accompaniment is excellent. It is obvious to me that Sarah is a natural performer, so talented and so emotive, and this shines through very brightly during this concert. If you are a fan of Sarah's than you will want to add this DVD to the Eden and La Luna ones, because it is a great one too! My only regret is that I wasn't at this concert, so I'll have to be satisfied with the recorded version instead!