Voices in the Night
Dull skies and showers threatened to spoil the Canadian display for the second year running but the rains held off for the duration of the display. However, the damp air and lack of wind led to problems with smoke accumulation and some low cloud at times obscured the higher bursting shells. The young Montréal firm presented an artistic display coordinated to music for mainly female voices in 11 flowing segments.
Part 1 to the music Zooropa by U2. The display opened with a line of strobe pots with glitter candles in front. Then whistle candles and colour mines, serpent candles with colour shells above. Next, a flight of rockets and a volley of glitter shells, followed by shells of serpents and colour and then shells of fireflies. Then a front of glitter mines, a barrage of titanium salutes, a front of gold glitter mines, another barrage of titanium salutes and a final volley of firefly shells as the display moved seamlessly into:
Part 2 to the music Sleepy Maggie by Ashley MacIsaac with Mary Jane Lamond. This opened with candles of whizzers and another line of strobe pots. Above these, shells of beautiful gold glitter and candles of the same. Then shells of blue stars and gold glitter comets followed by several fans of rockets. More blue and gold comet shells and yet more fans of rockets followed by salute terminated tourbillon candles. These were followed by shells of pale gold go-getters with tourbillons as well. Next, very large multi-colour changing ball star shells with tourbillons. Then more fans of rockets bursting to gold twinkles and pale gold go-getters with shells of the same. The segement was brought to a close with big shells of white comets and pale gold go-getters, a barrage of titanium salutes and large shells of white balls and comets.
Part 3 to the music Angel by Joe Jackson & Friends. A line of loud crackling comet candles followed by crackling crossettes with blue ball shells above opened this segment. Then shells of crackling crossettes with mines of the same below. These were followed by glitter shells with candles of crackling charcoal comets below. Next, some very beautiful shells of crackling charcoal comets which turned to golden frond weeping willows with nice twinkles. These were repeated several times and followed by salute terminated white ball candles with white ball shells above. Then several fans of rockets, shells of blue stars and glitter. This segment was brought to a close with more of the crackling charcoal comet to weeping willow twinkle shells as the music moved seamlessly to:
Part 4 to the music The Diva Dance by Éric Serra which is the theme music to the film Le cinquième élément by Luc Besson. This opened to volleys of shells with rings of blue ball stars surrounding white comets, then the same with gold comets, then white rings with pistils of small red stars. Then gold rings with blue pistils and other combinations of coloured rings surrounding pistils or comets. Next, mines of crackling crossettes with the segment brought to a close by more of the crackling charcoal comet to weeping willow twinkle shells.
Part 5 to the music Ulysse by René Dupéré which is the title music to the show Mystère by Cirque du Soleil. A front of dazzling green mines, then blue ball and glitter mines with big colour and comet shells above opened this segment. Then another front of blue and then green mines, shells of blue stars and gold comets and a barrage of titanium salutes. This theme was repeated several times, with beautiful aqua mines and shells. Then really large dazzling mines with huge colour and comet shells above with more fronts of mines and large colour and comet shells above with a barrage of titanium salutes bringing this segment to a close.
Part 6 to the music Great Gig in the Sky by Pink Floyd. Large flights of rockets bursting to narrow cones of glittery comets which turned to slow falling flashing stars opened this segment. Then shells of pale gold go-getters followed by more flights of rockets. This theme was repeated several times and then move to shells of very fast flashing pale gold fireflies. Next, flight after flight of rockets bursting to go-getters, fast twinkling fireflies, all in pale gold and also tourbillons. Then large shells of the same and some really nice large shells with comets and multi-coloured stars. More flights of rockets with the fast fireflies and tourbillons followed by shells of bright white stars and more slow fall firefly rockets. The segment was brought to a close with many beautiful kamuro shells of white comets turning to silver and gold twinkling weeping willows and finally some very bright white kamuros filling the sky and again turning to delicate silver and gold weeping willows.
Part 7 to the music The Cold Song by Klaus Nomi. This opened with glitter comet candles with ball shells above. Then shells of colour and comets, followed by some huge pistil shells. Then some really beautiful shells of bright gold glitter which turned to bright gold fireflies. These were repeated several times and were really beautiful. The segment was brought to a close with some really nice pale gold fast flashing firefly shells.
Part 8 to the title music from the film The Mission by Ennio Morricone. Several flights of rocket fans bursting to slow falling flashing comets opened this segment. Then serene candles of charcoal comets followed by whistles. Next a line of X-shaped fountains came hissing loudly into existance. Then some horizontal and vertical wheels spun into life. Some of the wheels became girandolas, several of which rose into the air, then fell back a bit and then rose up higher. Unfortunately, some of the girandolas didn’t make it off the ground. Mext, crossette candles with big glitter shells above and then shells of glitter comets and whizzers. These were followed by palm-tree shells with crossed charcoal comet candles below. Then shells of blue balls and glitter comets, repeated several times followed by big weeping willow shells which turned to silver. Barrages of salutes and some really huge weeping willow shells brought this segment to a close.
Part 9 to the music Lakme – Sous le dôme doré by Léo Delibes. Fan-shaped white ball with charcoal tail comet candles opened this segment. Then left and right angled star mines in blue, then red, then green, then white and finally white comets. Above these, shells of small stars of brilliant orange, then the same below in mines. Next, a barrage of titanium salutes, candles of salute terminated white balls and salute terminated serpents. Front after front of white comet mines with barrages of salutes. Above these, shells of colour stars and glitter comets with the segment brought to a close with some really huge shells of blue stars and gold glitter comets.
Part 10 to the music Ode to my Father by Hans Zimmer. The atmoshperic hymn-like music sung with male voices opened with a group of fountains on the central platform in the lake. Behind these, weeping willow shells with rising tails. Then candles of whizzers with more groves of palms behind. Next, mines in blue, pink, aqua and white comets with shells of twinkling pale gold above. This theme was repeated and was followed by more palm-trees. Then charcoal crossette comet candles with multi-colour changing shells above followed by candles of whizzers and tourbillons. More groves of palm-trees, then some delightful shells of weeping willow type comets which turned to blue at the end of their burn. Then the same but turning to green, followed by blue ball and gold comet shells. Finally, the first part of this segment was brought to a close with some enormous weeping willow shells with comet stars which turned to blue and then to green. The voices changed to female as the second part of this segment opened serenely with white ball shells and fan shaped glitter comet candles. Then double breaking shells of fireflies and twinkling stars followed by large shells of pink and aqua. Next, some nice shells of small stars in various colours, followed by whistle candles, ball shells and then glitter comet candles. Then shells of glitter, big shells of weeping willow turning to colour stars followed by white glitter comet shells. More whistle candles and then crossed comet candles with firefly shells above. Finally, the segment was brought to a close with large shells of rings of tourbillons followed by a huge weeping willow in silver which trailed right to the ground.
Part 11 to the music Roll Tide by Hans Zimmer which is the theme music to the film Crimson Tide. This began with the central tower in the lake surrouned by lines of waterfall fountains and a line of strobe-pots at the back of the firing site. Several salutes were embedded into the waterfall fountains and exploded loudly as huge weeping willow shells burst above. Then the pace began to increase somewhat with lots of brilliant shaped-burst shells. These started off with single rings with one side in blue, the other in gold. Then some amazing pattern shells bursting into five-pointed stars, lots more multi-coloured rings, bow-tie shapes, double-concentric rings, more five-pointed stars, huge rings with brilliant coloured pistils. Then the impression of a submarine going under the water was given with barrages of salutes, huge numbers of really large nautic mines, mines of salutes, and screaming whistles candles. The pace increased and increased with vast numbers of dazzling colour shells, salute candles, salute-terminated tourbillons and barrage after barrage of chest-thumping titanium salutes. The pace increased still further with more and more salutes, the vast cloud of smoke hanging over the firing site being illuminated like a thunderstorm out of control by all the huge salutes. The display was brought to a close after a moment’s pause by another huge barrage of titanium salutes.
This was a really excellent display. The synchronization was excellent throughout and the themes flowed fluidly from one segment to the next. The choice of pyrotechnic material was great and I really like the use of so many rockets. It’s a pity that the low cloud and humidity conspired to create static clouds of smoke which obscured some of the higher bursting shells. This is going to be a difficult year for the judges.