WINNIPEG FREE PRESS
Nylons still smooth as silk.... Ageless wonders, WSO mesh well
Highly entertaining Canadian a cappella male quartet the Nylons made their Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra debut as the latest concert in the orchestra's Pops series. The three weekend shows featured the world-famous ensemble performing their famously tightly knit harmonies in their newest, hot-off-the-press symphony show, Putting it Together. Remarkably, it's only their second foray into this genre since their first symphonic production in the mid-1990s.
Born in the back of a Toronto deli during the late 1970s, the Nylons are celebrating their 30th anniversary as well as marking a quarter-century recording history. The current ensemble consists of founding member Claude Morrison (tenor); Gavin Hope (baritone); Garth Mosbaugh (tenor) and Tyrone Gabriel (bass).
The orchestra was brightly led throughout the two-plus-hour program by Charles Cozens, who also arranged all the show's orchestral numbers. He quietly went about his business of directing the show's two extensive -- if not exhausting -- sets while giving the full limelight to the four showmen.
One must give special kudos to Morrison, who grooves like a man half his age. His falsetto has not wavered over the past three decades, nor his high-kicking choreography. As Good Old A Cappella flowed into the crowd-pleasing Dream with its gorgeous fade-out, we were able to hear his timeless vocals as well as during his solo during Heavenly Bodies.
A knockout arrangement of Blues in the Night let Gabriel shine like the star he is. Just when we thought he "only" sang low with rock-solid rhythmic precision heard at its best in River of Dreams, he proved he could also soar into the stratosphere, with a light agility that was a surprise.
Mosbaugh is not only a gifted composer but also blows a mean tenor saxophone. His arrangements of Something's Coming as well as ballad Consider showed his keen ear for lush harmonization.
Hope was clearly born to entertain with his creamy vocals wowing the first-row ladies with the panache of a young Frankie Valli. His cool interpretation of Mosbaugh's Consider was underscored by the composer's jazzy sax accompaniment.
A Canadian medley included Winnipeg's very own the Guess Who's Share the Land as well as a few surprises. An overly polite string section bowing through hippie anthem Aquarius/Let the Sun Shine felt oddly surreal despite the multi-generational audience gamely clapping along.
As the Nylons launched into one of their first two encores, The Lion Sleeps Tonight, the crowd went wild with the first jungle cry before settling down for a reprise of Kiss Him Goodbye.
One of the lines in the show's opener Putting it Together is "Art, it isn't easy." Yes, that might be true, but for the Nylons it's also a whole lot of fun. Concert rating 4 out of 5
