SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT!!!
YANNI CONCERT DATE ADDED OCTOBER 24, 2009 IN DURANGO, MEXICO - 8:30 PM PLAZA IV CENTENARIO AS PART OF THE REVUELTAS DE DURANGO FESTIVAL. ADMISSION IS FREE!!!

Guadalajara - Day of Show October 16, 2009

Guadalajara! Guadalajara!

You can't be in Guadalajara and not have the song playing in your head.  If you're unfamiliar with the tune check it out on iTunes.  My favorite is by Desi Arnaz, The Best of Desi Arnaz - The Mambo King.  Guadalara is the capital city of the Mexican state of Jalisco with a population of 1,579,174, making it the second most populated city in Mexico (Wikipedia).  It was founded in 1531 by the Spanish explorer Cristobal de Onate. The city has a rich variety of architectural styles, ranging from the baroque to the modern.  I unfortunately didn’t have a chance to see the beautiful historic downtown district, but I did manage to take a picture of this arch on the way to the venue.

We arrived at the Auditorio Telmex at 4:30 pm.  Here are some pics of the beautiful theater.

Here's the theater empty...

And here it is filling up...

I know many of you like to see behind the scenes pictures, so I took some at soundcheck and during the show.

Charlie Adams

Victor Espinola and his fabulous Paraguayan Harps

This is the vocalist's backstage table where they can place things that they need easy access to off the stage.  Each little lava lamp has their name on it. You can see everyone's bottle of water.  Leslie has a cup of tea and Ender has his video camera next to his.  If you haven't checked out his video tour diary on YouTube here's the link: Yanni Voices Mexico Tour Diary 2009

Nathan Pacheco reads a book on American History in his backstage dressing room between songs.

After the show many of us went to a nearby Mexican restaurant named Santo Coyote.  Although most everyone was very low on sleep due to the long bus ride the night before, everyone got their second wind, largely due to the great food and the fantastic Mariachi Band.  To everyone's delight Ann Marie Calhoun, Samvel Yervinyan, and Jason Carder all took turns playing along with the Mariachi Band.  It truly was a blast!

Another show tomorrow and then we're off to Mexico City for three shows at the Auditorio Nacional on October 19-21, 2009.  

Leon - Day of Show October 15, 2009

The Poliforum Leon was packed for Yanni's first performance in Leon and the thundering applause as he took the stage made the house shake.  The crowd sang along to all of the songs in Spanish and cheered enthusiastically for everyone on stage.  It was truly one of the best audiences ever!

The Venue

The front of house, notice the spotlights on the top of that scaffolding...

Sasha practicing backstage...

Fortunately, the stage set-up made it very accessible for close-up shots of the Voices.  Here they are...

Nathan

Leslie

Ender

Chloe

Chloe bringing the house to its feet with Niki Nana...

Immediately after the show we climbed on the bus and headed to Guadalajara, approximately 150 miles away.  But first, some of the vocalists and orchestra stopped to sign the Niki Nana Fan Club banner.

We have two shows in Guadalaja, Jalisco October 16 and 17, 2009 then three shows at the Auditorio Nacional in Mexico City October 19-21, 2009.  Hope to see you there!

Monterrey to Leon - Travel Day October 14, 2009

The reviews are in this morning and Yanni is a hit in Monterrey!  The headlines read “A Show without Egos” (El Milenio) and “An Exciting Evening” (El Norte).  Both papers gave the Yanni Voices Concert rave reviews.  Although most of the orchestra and staff couldn’t speak the language, they still flocked to the airport newsstand to pick up their copies.  Of course this was after they had all visited the Starbucks for their all too familiar lattes.  For those of you who can read Spanish or just want to look at the pictures, here is the link to the article on the web.

http://www.milenio.com/node/302913

El Norte

El Milenio

A Familiar Sight at the Monterrey Airport

We boarded the charter plane at 2:00 pm and took off to Leon, Guanajuato.  It’s great to be on a plane where you know all of the passengers.  Here are some pics taken by Gary Westcott.

You can see the plane reflected in the windows...

Somewhere between Monterrey and Leon from the air.

We arrived an hour later and made it to the hotel in time to drop off our bags and a group of us left right away to the leather district.  The city of Leon is located in Central Mexico and boasts the largest trading area in the world for leather and shoes.  The hotel recommended a place called “Plaza de Zapatos” or “Shoe Plaza” and that’s exactly what it was, a mall of shoe stores.  Boots were on most everyone’s list and that’s exactly what they bought.  Apparently the “Plaza de Zapatos” was only the tip of the iceberg as far as leather shopping, but, unfortunately, our time was limited.

Boots anyone?

Most everyone made it an early night.  Starting tomorrow night we have three shows in a row.  One in Leon at the Poliforum Leon, then two in Guadalajara on October 16 and 17^th at the Auditorio Telmex.

Monterrey - Day of Show October 13, 2009

There has been lots of activity today.  Although the weather was rainy and a bit gloomy, spirits were still high from the great Puebla audience reaction.  Some of us went early to do a little shopping at the mall (we can always find places to shop!) across the street from the hotel while others relaxed for the day at the hotel.  We again climbed aboard the vans at 4:00 pm and headed to the venue.

We are back in Arena Monterrey located in Parque Fundidora (Foundry Park).  The Park is a living example of Monterrey’s industrial history and the first to develop the concept of an urban public park in northern Mexico.  The park’s 350 acres are packed full of facilities for sport, the arts, and entertainment. There is the mile-and-a-half Santa Lucia Riverwalk that winds through the whole park if you want to take a stroll or a boat ride to see all of the sights the park has to offer.

Parque Fundidora

Back to Arena Monterrey!  Yanni had a special guest before the show.  Her name is Andrea Montesinos, a Olympic hopeful figure skater from Monterrey.  Her father produced a video of Andrea competing in her figure skating championships.  She always skates to Yanni’s music in her competitions and has won 4 Gold Medals already.  Here are a couple of pictures from the meeting and the link to her YouTube Video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLuu-s_0Tb4

Mucho Gusto! (Pleased to meet you!)

Andrea's State Championship Gold Medal

The arena quickly filled as soon as the doors opened at 8:00 pm.  Here are two young members of the Niki Nana Fan Club in Mexico.  They are big fans of Yanni and play his music everyday while they do their homework.

It is estimated that about 10,000 people attended the concert and they definitely showed their appreciation to Yanni and all of the performers on the stage.  Here are a few concert shots from before and during the show from Monterrey.

The Arena before the show...

Yoel doing his thing!

The Storm!

Our next stop is Leon, Guanajuato.  We’ll be playing at the Poliforum Leon on October 15, 2009.

Puebla to Monterrey - Travel Day October 12, 2009

As we bid a fond farewell to Puebla we look forward to another great show in Monterrey. We traveled by plane from Puebla to Monterrey. Here are a few candid shots of the orchestra at the airport.

Can you imagine sitting in an airport waiting for your flight and suddenly you hear Ender Thomas and Victor Espinola singing “Isn’t She Lovely” by Stevie Wonder?  Wow!

A very excited fan at the airport asks Chloe for an autograph.

Samvel enjoying his cup of coffee.

Also, for those of you who are curious about the orchestra members touring with Yanni in Mexico, here they are:

Charlie Adams – Drums

Briana Bandy – Viola

Ann Marie Calhoun – Violin

Jason Carder – Trumpet

Yoel Del Sol – Percussion

Victor Espinola – Harp

Benedict Fischer – Violin

Ming Freeman – Keyboards

Cesar Lemos – Guitar

Jim Mattos – French Horn

Sarah O'Brien – Cello

Anna Stafford – Violin

Dana Teboe – Trombone

Gabriel  Vivas – Bass

Erika Walczak – Violin

Samvel Yervinyan – Violin

Alexander Zhiroff - Cello

Puebla - Day of Show October 11, 2009

It’s been an incredible day.  The orchestra and staff had the rare treat of having the afternoon free before the show, so many went into town to do a little sightseeing.  The weather was perfect at a temperate 75 degrees.  Sarah O’Brien and Ann Marie Calhoun were spotted by a couple of fans as they ate lunch in the main plaza.  The fans asked for an autograph and let them know how excited they were about attending the show later that evening.

At 4:00 pm we piled into three vans that transported us to the venue.  The energy was high in anticipation of the first show.  Many snuck outside the venue to take a peak at one of the many wonders of Puebla, an active volcano while others practiced in their dressing rooms.  The doors opened at 7:45 pm and the Auditorio Siglo XXI quickly filled with fans who could not wait to see Yanni for his first performance in Puebla.  As the orchestra members came onstage to take their places the crowd starting cheering, however, they roared when the music started and Yanni came out and started the show with Santorini.  There was another deafening roar when Ender Thomas took to the stage and the familiar notes of Desire began.  The audience was loving and wildly enthusiastic right to end.  So much so that when the house lights came on after the encore they continued chanting Yanni! Yanni! The very humbled Yanni had no choice but to come out and do another encore.  Because they had already performed every song on their set list Yanni delivered an encore of Desire to fulfill his audience’s desire for more.  It was the perfect finish and a great start of his Mexican Tour.  Next stop, Monterrey at the Arena Monterrey on Tuesday, October 13^th.