(Toronto, ON) – Multi-platinum, JUNO-award winners The Tenors performed at the Air Canada Center in Toronto on November 24th, 2015 for their Under One Sky tour.
This vocal quartet constitutes of Clifton Murray, Remigio (Remi) Pereira and Victor Micallef and Fraser Walters. A handsome bunch of new generation crooners who have the spirits and soulfulness of men twice their ages. Their vocal abilities are bar none and their harmonizing leaves you in awe of their talents.
A highlight of the show for me was when the quartet performed a cover of the Joe Cocker song You Are So Beautiful, with video clips on the stage backdrop of each individual band member surprising their moms for Mother’s Day. This particular song sent literal chills through out my body. I observed many ladies around me wiping tears from their faces. I also saw, when the song was over, a young lady kissing whom I presume was her mother. It was a powerful moment.
Speaking of powerful moments, Clifton described how his ailing grandmother would forget the names of her family members, yet through the power of music would remember words to songs they sang as a family. He performed the song Make You Feel My Love and dedicated it to his grandmother.
Remi has been ill and performing for a month while under the weather. Had Walters not mentioned it you’d have been hard pressed to know the difference. Remigio, a consummate professional, showed no signs of being sick. Not only can Remi sing, but also has his Masters Degree in Classical Guitar Performance. Although famous for being 1/4th of The Tenors, he also has 2 gold albums to his credit. Recently he and Pavlo Simtikidis co-wrote and released a new instrumental Mediterranean style album called Guitarradas. Remi chose to use his highlighted portion of the evening to invite Pavlo to play their self titled song Guitarradas. The crowd loved it!
Having attended my fair share of shows, I found myself fascinated with the fact that there was no signs of cell phones anywhere, generally at shows you would see the glow of cell phones, taking images or videos. However, here, there was none that I could see (although later intentionally there would be), the crowd had such respect and admiration for The Tenors. They were there to enjoy that very moment in time and soaked it all in.
A crowd favorite was when they sang the Italian / English operatic song Time To Say Goodbye, accompanied by the angelic sounds of the 24 members from the Upper Canada College Choir. I witnessed older Italian men sitting next to me singing every word along with The Tenors. The conclusion to this song brought the crowd to their feet for a standing ovation.
Following this song, the lights dimmed momentarily and The Tenors appeared on a small platform stage within the audience, where they would continue their set. Referred as the “camp fire section”, the singers talked about influences of their fathers, and fawned memories of their youth singing My Fathers Son.
A surprising guest for the evening was local hero Doo Doo the Clown. Doo Doo has been in the news recently for coming to the aid of two ladies that were being assaulted on the streets of Toronto. The Tenors felt he deserved recognition and invited him as their special guest for the evening. Doo Doo appeared in full clown makeup and talked about the attention he’s been receiving based on his recent actions. People in the crowd where yelling “Thank you” in appreciation.
The Tenors performed a medley rendition of songs from Luciano Pavarotti and Elvis Presley in celebration of both their 80th year (had they both still been alive), consisting of songs such as Suspicious Minds, O Sole Mio, It’s Now or Never, I Can’t Help Falling in Love to name a few. They left the crowd wanting more as they left the stage.
Their encore consisted of the songs Hallelujah and Under One Sky. Hallelujah had the audience pulling out their cell phones and swaying with their lit screens in appreciation.
Although I consider myself a Rock ‘n Roll, Metal type gal, I like to keep an open mind to other genres of music. I can certainly appreciate talent no matter what form it is presented as. I willl admit I had a misconception that it would be solely operatic style for the entire evening. Yet The Tenors proved me wrong. They were a fresher, more current version of the genre. An operatic ensembles with a pop sensibility. The chills that I felt through out the evening can attest that the four Tenors that sang for me that night where incredible. I say sang for me, because between sets they individually would speak to the audience like it was a face to face conversation. The where very personable in nature. It was a show that I’m happy to have had the opportunity to review.
A special thanks to Holmes PR for the opportunity.
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