My favorite night of entertainment on the ship is Music Night. That night all of the musicians from the different venues go back and forth between venues and jam. You see, and most importantly, hear, the folks you have been listening to all during the past two months mix it up and perform some unlikely combinations. One singer from the rock venue singing Edith Piaf with the classical trio and then picking up a viola and joining in on some Astor Pizzaiola. Another of the rock singers teaming up with the jazz combo to sing some Ella. The classical violinist playing “The Devil Came Down to Georgia” with the rockers and everyone having a great time.
The evening entertainment has changed on Holland America. While they still have comedians, jugglers, multi instrumentalists playing Brahms on the accordion, the folkloric shows from the ports of call, and the singers and dancers, who on this cruise are a cut above some of our earlier Holland cruises, more of the evenings have feature films and have the musicians from the different venues taking a turn on the mainstage. This may look like a cutback in entertainment, but these are the musicians we have been watching all cruise and when they take the mainstage their normal fans are there to cheer them on and they get a wider audience. These are some of the best mainstage nights.
The only one I really didn’t enjoy was the classical, not because they didn’t play well, they were wonderful, but because the sound guy thought he was mixing a rock band. Too much base, which meant an overpowering cello, a “wall of sound” which meant no dynamic range, and reverb which covered the subtilities of the playing. In classical the best sound is transparent, here the engineer imposed his rock sensibilities on classical music. It was the only time I ever felt I needed earplugs for a piano, violin and cello.
But rather than end on a sour note with too much reverb, I want to talk about Bernie. Bernie is the cruise “techpert” He gives talks on how to use computers and smart phones to elderly guests and helps us individually He got up on the main stage and initially I thought it would be a guy doing high end karaoke, a way for Holland to save on entertainment fees. But it was so much more. Bernie gave it everything, his voice, his moves, his charm. And the crowd loved Bernie. They were there for him, cheering and clapping and stomping, and at the end waving their cell phone flashlights to the final tune before the standing ovation. It is one of the reasons I love long cruises. We had formed a community and that community came together, Bernie was good but the whole community was good and had come together to celebrate. It may have been the second-best night of entertainment on the ship.
The night sounds magical. I know I would have loved it.
I love those special music times, too. Just magical.