The soundtrack for the tribute to Celine Dion is here


Paul.

Whatever what people think about Céline Dion, it is clear for me that this soundtrack is 100 times more promising for a pyrotechnic display than the one from le Cirque du Soleil. The first song was highly predictable. The beat of the last one (composed in the 1980s) is perfect for a grand finale... though "vous qui volez vers l'an 2000" sounds anachronous today (maybe removed from the soundtrack!).

Hopefully, the weather will cooperate.

Fred

Hopefully, the weather will cooperate.

Where's Travis when we need him ?

Though it may be a little early for him to ascertain which conditions will prevail on Saturday. Meteomedia has a 90% rain probability for the day, but I've found Travis' prediction to be more accurate. He's been spot on numerous times this year (OK, I'm stopping the topic hijacking here...)

Continuing the thread hi-jack - there appears to be a discontinuity in the Environment Canada weather forecasts: for Montreal on Saturday, it says periods of rain, but for Ottawa it says sunny all day. I can't believe the weather could be so radically different in two locations that are so close together. The forecast at weather.com says showers in the morning for Montreal, which is more consistent with the passing of a front on Friday that will trigger the predicted storms. I'm no Trav, but I do have some clue as to how the weather works Let's hope I'm right. Trav: we need you!

Paul.

Trav usually posts an initial forecast on Thursday. I'm sure he is on duty for us today and we will be shortly updated. So the thread hi-jack will come to a close!

With 23 segments, I predict that transitions will be more complex and allow a more continuous display, at least within each thematic part. Interestingly, La Ronde people have been involved in the soundtrack design, as well as a professional studio, which is not uncommon but do not necessarily apply to all displays.

Fred

Paul Csukassy played the soundtrack after the interview. The transitions are definitely complex, both between songs and within songs as he mixed from the CD version to the live version of a song. It's really really well done. The soundtrack is a very important element of a display and it makes sense to get professional help to put one together. Simple hard-fade-out/hard-fade-in is not good enough for the level of competition we have here. All the winners over the past 6 years have had extremely well produced soundtracks - this is no coincidence in my humble opinion!

Paul.

Paul Csukassy already did a great job with Michael Jackson songs (I never noticed a sloppy transition and I've watched the video tens of times), I have no doubt that he did a great work.

Mixing live and studio versions is quite a feat in itself. If the soundtrack transitions are as smooth and seamless as you describe, it would be a shame for previous contestants for a show not in competition to have a better soundtrack than their's.

Paul Csukassy's a very talented man, that's for sure !

This year, he'll have to work twice as much as last year, as he now needs to prepare the closing display...

May I briefly participate in the topic "hi-jacking"?

Hopefully, the weather will cooperate

It should. A pair of cold frontal waves will be influencing Ontario and Quebec through the day Friday. As these fronts advance into this persistent buoyant hot/sizzling and humid airmass, heavy convective showers and thunderstorms (some t-storms may prove to be quite severe) will develop out ahead and along the fronts for both Ontario and Quebec. Even though both fronts are not quite as powerful as previous ones, it is to my belief that they are strong enough to produce heavy to severe thunderstorms late Friday in Ontario and Quebec given the atmospheric dynamics. As such, with the timing of the fronts considered, this is more of a late afternoon-overnight event on Friday than it is for the day Saturday in its entirety - in which case, Saturday should gradually improve through the day. What Paul stated above is therefore, in a nutshell, generally to be expected in terms of convective activity and timing. Wind speed (not like last week) and direction are something that I'm placing some emphasis on for Saturday evening more than anything else, but I'll continue to keep an eye on tendency as I acquire newer model outputs.

I'll have some additional details later this evening, although, by the looks of it, I believe that I more and less said it all here.

Paul,

I can't believe the weather could be so radically different in two locations that are so close together.

This actually tends to happen more often than you think! In most cases, the drastic weather differences that can occur between two major cities within a small overall distance can be principally attributed to the movement of low pressure systems, blocking areas of high pressure (which can result in persistence of unsettled conditions or fair weather in some areas whereas other nearby localities see opposing conditions) or simply the timing of a frontal wave, which is the scenario for both Ottawa and Montreal for tomorrow and early Saturday. Other physically contributing forces that can govern localized weather are geographical/topographical characteristics endemic to a particular location, which can either attenuate or conversely strengthen systems over a relatively small distance depending on the region of focus.

On topic, the soundtrack selection for the display appears that it was carefully considered, namely for good transitional points. I just wish they included the "Power of Love", particularly for the finale, but it certainly sounds like an interesting display with its accompanying overall design nonetheless (considering that it's indeed off-competition).

Trav.