Renaissance at the Town Hall

Annie Haslam

The original Renaissance was born in 1969 when two former members of the Yardbirds, Keith Relf and Jim McCarty, moved away from the British blues rock of their previous band to form an experimental progressive rock band with classical influences. Personnel changes happened often and quickly, and less than two years later, Renaissance featured none of its original members. Annie Haslam, who joined in 1971, became the face of Renaissance, which then had success in America through the 1970s. The band split in 1987, and Haslam began a solo career. Since 1998, Haslam has reformed Renaissance several times using various musicians. Renaissance's 13th and most recent studio album was 2013's Grandine il vento, reissued as Symphony of Light in 2014 with three bonus tracks; Renaissance also released a live album in 2015. The present band in American-based and consists of vocalist Haslam, pianist Rave Tesar, guitarist Mark Lambert, keyboardist Tom Brislin, bassist Leo Traversa and drummer Frank Pagano.

Renaissance's headlining engagement at the Town Hall tonight was designed for old time fans, as the band launched the set with several of their most familiar compositions, "Prologue", "Trip to the Fair," and "Carpet of the Sun." Haslam's acrobatic multi-octave vocals led the charge, and prominent piano leads and intriguingly complex band arrangements made for a versatile fusion of classical, folk, rock, and jazz influences. Beginning with the third song, Renaissance was joined on stage with 10 additional musicians whom Haslam introduced as the Renaissance Chamber Orchestra. These musicians augmented the rich and lush production of "Mother Russia", "Carpet Of The Sun" and "A Song for All Seasons," all of which included an orchestra on the original recordings. In total, all but two of the evening's songs were from Renaissance's 1970s catalogue; this then begs the question as to whether the current music world would readily accept new Renaissance music or if Renaissance will continue to revive a bygone era.

Visit Renaissance at www.renaissancetouring.com.

Setlist:

1. Prologue
2. Trip to the Fair
3. Carpet of the Sun
4. At the Harbour
5. Grandine Il Vento
6. Symphony of Light
7. Kalynda (A Magical Isle)
8. Island
9. Mother Russia
10. A Song for All Seasons

Encore:

1. Ashes Are Burning

Note: the 10-piece Renaissance Chamber Orchestra accompanied Renaissance on songs 3-10.