A fairly warm Summer's evening gave way to a temperature of 22 C in the metropolitan area, borderline moderate-high humidity, and generally light winds of 11-14 km/h (occasional gusts of 21-24 km/h) from the SSW to SW, although the winds had been breezier during the hours leading up to the display. This caused the smoke to pass relatively quickly towards the right of the audience of La Ronde, but there had been some periods of smoke buildup to the far right along low-level, causing the display to sometimes appear murky there. Light showers, however, had been developing in close proximity to the island of Montreal during the show and just after the display came to a close (becoming more widespread towards 1:15 a.m.), and isolated thunderstorms were in development nearby during the mid-afternoon, as evidenced in the following radar imageries and photograph. Many spectators had appropriately brought umbrellas, just in case.
Late-evening convective showers (just after display time):
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b132/Rain12/July26th20141.jpg
Mid-afternoon isolated thunderstorms:
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b132/Rain12/July26th2014.jpg
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b132/Rain12/July26th2014-1.jpg
What an exciting and vehement display by Team Australia. As noted during Paul’s interview, the designers’ objective was to “create an enjoyable and interesting display for the audience…”. I can safely say that this goal was more than achieved, as I do not believe that I have heard so many rounds of strong roars of approval for any display so far this year! Most assuredly, there was so much action (really, a series of faux finales) and intensity throughout this show that I was very often left stunned. Much of the show was so focused at mid- to high-level that, as Fred stated above, much the people outside La Ronde frequently felt a great deal of satisfaction. Indeed, the pyromusical design of the display was very engaging and allowed for some great transitions in rhythm and pace, creating different moods through most of the show. Since the display was mostly fast-paced, the small breaks between segments were, to me, actually beneficial. Product quality was high (making all competitors this year exhibiting vastly high-quality products), and the rich selection of colors and symmetry of the shells, in particular, further exemplified the quality, although, as Simon pointed out, I, too, thought that the gold colors tended to fade rather quickly, appearing a little dim. The low-level sequences were likely the most defining aspect of the display (some of the most memorable were present to open the show), and the angled mines from left to right and right to left were a reminder of some of those firing patterns seen during Italy 2013. As a result, I thought that synchronization was largely well done and was sometimes executed creatively (again, mostly during the rapid low-level sequences), and the selected music was mostly enjoyable and appropriate. The low-level effects also, for me, made up for the lack of nautical devices. Synchronization was nicely demonstrated through the use of the laser comets during “Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps”, although I agree that it was more effective during the Canadian show. The most memorable section for me, though, as others have already described above, was when that series of white whistling/screaming comets (or rockets?) dramatically emerged from the central part of the firing site, both to open and conclude the segment of “Scott & Fran’s Paso”. This was very, very captivating, more so with respect to the echoing noise that had been generated! Finally, because most of the show was more concentrated at higher levels of sky, unlike the American team, the vertical depth of the display was often not compromised, as the Australian team effectively made use of low-level supporting effects while amplifying the width of the show and usually leaving no void skies. As such, the symmetry of the display was generally sustained efficiently.
As successful as this performance was, however, I thought the theme, although well represented, somehow lacked substance for a more complex design. This led to a more simplistic thematic connection, even though the thematic representation through the pyrotechnics was apparent. Though I thoroughly enjoyed the display (many of you probably know that I am most pleased with fast-paced and intense shows), the firing sequences, notably at mid- to high-level, became a little repetitive from one segment to the other, which reduced the creativity aspect somewhat when representing the elements of the different soundtrack. The transitions in pace, again, were effective, but I thought that the use of horsetails became a touch too common for the more serene sections. Synchronization was also, as mentioned, excellent, but there had been points where the music stopped and the fireworks kept going - I counted three segments where fireworks continued as the music came to a close, including the finale. A few technical errors also occurred when the odd large shell of blue stars and outlying horsetail emerged, although these were very minor. The finale was decent, but, as Simon also pointed out, the danger of having such a large and intense display is that the finale needs to be proportionally more intense/enduring in order to really be convincing and, subsequently, have a lasting appeal, or else it will just become eclipsed by earlier (more) intense sequences rather than overseeing the display, in its entirety, like it should. Consequently, while the finale began at an enticing pace, it was on the short side and lacked crescendo. Their 2006 finale was quite stunning!
All that said, this display certainly faces high chances to collect an award this year, especially after producing a very appealing display for the final entrant of the competition! Thank you, Foti’s International Fireworks, for crafting such an exquisite and vitalizing display!
Trav.
