Julie Feeney and the Pages Orchestra

At
The National Concert Hall

29/05/10

Angela Macari O’Looney

Julie Feeney, whose album 13 Songs won the Choice Music award in 2006, has an abundance of musical talent and also possesses the skill to compose, produce and even conduct an orchestra. Her album Pages drew the attention of Choice Music Award judges for a second time earlier this year, where she performed at the final in Vicar Street.

Like many of her admirers from every age group, I headed to see Julie perform at the National Concert Hall. Her orchestra, led by Louis Roden arrived onstage and soon after this, our star made her entrance attired in a dress sculpted and hand stitched from the pages of Julie’s orchestral score, by Sharon Costello Desmond.

Tapping a pair of drumsticks, she beat a tattoo and sung a jazzy piece, involving tricky vocal percussion and complex notation.

With a delightful intro on Cello, Monster was next. From the Pages album, this has beautiful harmony. She had two backing vocalists who did some amazing close harmony throughout the whole show.

Her third song featured her female drummer/percussionist and demonstrated Julie’s remarkable vocal range.

Grace is soulful, involving trickling notation on harp and is an outstanding arrangement. I thought it very touching hearing some of the audience sing the chorus with her here.

The orchestra then played a beautiful instrumental, featuring strings, piano and Cello. Julie returned to the stage now dressed in yet another exciting costume, consisting of a cheeky ultra modern Basque style skirt, worn over black leggings and top and upon her head, a miniature version of the colourful playhouse from the cover art of Pages.

Quirky costumes, eccentric ideas and very original music seem to be Julie’s signature. Yet beneath the colourful, childish fantasy lies a true genius with a fascinating imagination!

She continued her wonderful set with lots of songs from both of her albums. I particularly enjoyed the two part harmony for Knock Knock, performed by her male and female backing singers. This is a gorgeous song and the way it starts with just vocals, gradually building up is awe inspiring.
Wind out of my Sails was spectacular and she then did the amusing Myth, which involves whispers, chattering and Julie coming down into the audience whispering, while her singers sing the chorus. The plucky violins in this piece create drama with stops and starts throughout, while each time she freezes with the bright spotlight behind her, there’s a delightful air of suspended wonder.

The theatrics and interaction with her audience adds to the atmosphere greatly. Piano and Flute performed a sweet instrumental, while Julie went off to change into her next costume.

This time she returned wearing a kind of Cloud costume, all white tulle, with a cocky white bowler hat and glittering red shoes. She was a vision indeed!

Julie mentioned her tiny accordion, explaining that it is the self same one from her schooldays and still has her name and address written in her mother’s handwriting. Her many anecdotes and chats with the audience lent a touch of intimacy to the occasion.

A beautiful piece by Philip Lask received a big response. Also a number called Fictitious Richard, which is a tongue in cheek story with a pretty melody and I enjoyed the use of lighting here. The shape of this auditorium is perfect for Julie’s songs and lends to the general atmosphere. She made sure to thank everyone involved in her success and also her fantastic orchestra and singers.

Mr. Roving eye guy, Life’s Nudge, One More tune, Valentines Song, You Broke the Magic and others from Julie’s treasury riveted each listener to their seat. She got two encores and for her first she performed Hallelujah. I’m not usually a fan of this song; however Julie can perform any piece and make it sound special.

I wondered were other people waiting for the same thing as me. Continuous applause brought our sparkling lady back onstage, to perform two final songs. The first was the chirpy Love is a tricky thing, which was a thousand times more brilliant live than on CD.
I somehow knew what her choice for the very last song would be and I wasn’t wrong!

She had kept her trump card for long enough now and when the familiar intro for Impossibly Beautiful rang out, there was a collective sense of joy amid her adoring fans.
Heartbreakingly beautiful, this song is haunting and delicious. As people were leaving the auditorium, you could here them still humming the chorus.

You get a feeling that despite her boundless ability to compose and perform and her enormous success in the music business to date, Julie never loses her connection with her followers, who each seem to know her personally and vice versa.

In the foyer she shook hands, had photographs taken, chatting away warmly with everyone. This and the memory of a wonderful show left me smiling as I headed out into the drizzly Dublin night.