National Arts Carols

On Friday, I was at the NAC for their Christmas show. The orchestra would typically play some Holiday-related music as well as collaborate with other performers. This year, it was folk singer David Myles and jazz vocalist Emilie-Claire Barlowe. It was an evening of hits and misses, though luckily more of the former.

In an effort to expand from the usual Christmas songs, the NAC played other music. Of the 3, I only enjoyed the Fantasia on Greensleeves. Kozaky (an 8-bar traditional song) was too slight to stretch to several minutes, and A Charlie Brown Christmas was nostalgic fun but seemed a bit anemic.

David Myles' music veered between bittersweet (It's Christmas) and silly (Santa Never Brings Me a Banjo). But though a genial and funny musician, the amphitheatre was too large for his quiet songs. Emilie-Claire Barlowe was a better fit. With her festive gown, soaring voice, and assured presence, she was at home on the stage. Overall, she was best with just her band. Their samba take on Sleigh Ride was the highlight, with its joyful complexity and fun. The slower tunes such as The Christmas Song made the best use of the swelling orchestral arrangement and Barlowe's bright voice. The other numbers bored me with their smooth jazz feel. I couldn't help but think of Bry Webb's collaboration with the "Massey Hall Band": a meld of pop and orchestra that didn't sound like elevator music.

Barlowe was raised an anglophone from English-speaking parents. But being gifted with such a "beautiful French name", she has lately begun to learn the language, even putting out a French CD a few years ago. So she thrilled the bilingual crowd with a few chansons including a cover of Diane Tell's Si j'étais un homme. At the end of her set, Myles joined Barlowe for a duet or two, ending the night with a crowd singalong of Silent Night.