No more classical music?!

[jthek]

BBC earth shows were on the world stage

but I like the intimacy of the LCS for regular shows

[floridababa]

Step dancers are good but it lacks vocalists.

[Guest ldtr]

Just now, floridababa said:

Step dancers are good but it lacks vocalists.

They have added vocalists to some routines.  At least they did on my last HAL cruise.

[floridababa]

1 minute ago, ldtr said:

They have added vocalists to some routines.  At least they did on my last HAL cruise.

On the NS in April mos of the Step One performances had no vocals. Only 2 had

[JAVERZ]

Has anyone heard what they plan to do with the LCS room on the Pinnacle ships?  Will it just be for BB King performances and possible games?  It will be interesting to see what the plans are.

 

[jthek]

11 hours ago, JAVERZ said:

Has anyone heard what they plan to do with the LCS room on the Pinnacle ships?  Will it just be for BB King performances and possible games?  It will be interesting to see what the plans are.

 

Jewelry auction, line dancing, art auctions, 

Nothing exciting that I saw in 47 days on Kdam in April/May

[AV8rix]

26 minutes ago, jthek said:

Jewelry auction, line dancing, art auctions, 

Nothing exciting that I saw in 47 days on Kdam in April/May

Ummm, you were on Rotterdam in April/May.  Jus' sayin' 😊.

 

[jthek]

You betcha

[syesmar]

On 7/2/2023 at 10:08 AM, cruisemom42 said:

 

Maybe some enterprising CC'er should print up some pins with this phrase on it and give them out at roll calls. 😆

 

Edited to add:  Oh wait, HAL doesn't attend roll call meetings, see separate post. LOL.

 

Guess we can just wear them around the ship.

😀What if we had a “Coordinated Feedback to HAL” Thread on this forum, and on select days picked a topic for concerned Mariners to email customer service about? I honestly don’t know if it would help or hinder the cause, but I would participate if it helped restore some beloved HAL features.

[OlsSalt]

15 hours ago, jthek said:

BBC earth shows were on the world stage

but I like the intimacy of the LCS for regular shows

 

That was my concern, the use of the classical performers for the BBC movie background.

Miked, muddled and awful. Just sawing away.

 

No problems with using those movies for "entertainment", but the gimmick of "live music" was not any value-added benefit considering the talent of those performers when they were offering their LC concerts in the more intimate setting.

[JAVERZ]

4 minutes ago, OlsSalt said:

 

That was my concern, the use of the classical performers for the BBC movie background.

Miked, muddled and awful. Just sawing away.

 

No problems with using those movies for "entertainment", but the gimmick of "live music" was not any value-added benefit considering the talent of those performers when they were offering their LC concerts in the more intimate setting.

I totally agree!  

[curmudgeon98]

12 minutes ago, OlsSalt said:

 

That was my concern, the use of the classical performers for the BBC movie background.

Miked, muddled and awful. Just sawing away.

 

No problems with using those movies for "entertainment", but the gimmick of "live music" was not any value-added benefit considering the talent of those performers when they were offering their LC concerts in the more intimate setting.

Yes, the BBC Earth "live music" schtick was a waste of effort.

 

We first ran into the LCS groups on HAL about six years ago.  The one we had at that time was pretty poor; uninspired music selections and muddled performances.  We were pleasantly surprised when we came back to HAL for a couple of cruises last year and found really excellent LCS groups (and excellent BB Kings groups as well).  It helped make up for the weak offerings on the main stage.

 

I have no particular tie to the LCS branding, but it's nice to have some good classical musicians on the ship.  

[OlsSalt]

31 minutes ago, curmudgeon98 said:

Yes, the BBC Earth "live music" schtick was a waste of effort.

 

We first ran into the LCS groups on HAL about six years ago.  The one we had at that time was pretty poor; uninspired music selections and muddled performances.  We were pleasantly surprised when we came back to HAL for a couple of cruises last year and found really excellent LCS groups (and excellent BB Kings groups as well).  It helped make up for the weak offerings on the main stage.

 

I have no particular tie to the LCS branding, but it's nice to have some good classical musicians on the ship.  

 

The Lincoln Center groups are only recent. Prior classical groups (quartets or duos) were a mixed bag, some excellent, some a bit strained, and some maybe had not even worked together very long as an ensemble.

 

I suspect this prior inconsistent quality - hit or miss- was why HAL went with the higher end LC branding. But that did make the LC option vulnerable to the current cost-cutting demands many cruise line face post-"covid". 

[3rdGenCunarder]

 

I received an email from HAL touting cruise bargains. In the array of photos, there was a link to "The Best in Live Music." And here is what the link gave me. Note the large number of "results" to sort through!!!!! 🙄

 

Entertainment

Enjoy outstanding entertainment options across our fleet, from R&B, rock, pop and more in our music clubs to visually stunning performances on the World Stage. Whether you’re in the mood to carve up the dance floor or to relax, you’ll find something to love, night after perfect night. Venues vary by ship.

0 RESULTS

SORT BY ALPHABETICAL A-Z

page 1 of 1

Page 1 Of 1 

[NH harpist]

18 minutes ago, OlsSalt said:

 

The Lincoln Center groups are only recent. Prior classical groups (quartets or duos) were a mixed bag, some excellent, some a bit strained, and some maybe had not even worked together very long as an ensemble.

 

I suspect this prior inconsistent quality - hit or miss- was why HAL went with the higher end LC branding. But that did make the LC option vulnerable to the current cost-cutting demands many cruise line face post-"covid". 

Yes. Audition calls for LC were quoting $5,000.00 a player. Even with the pare down from quintet to quartet, that was $20,000 per ship. With 3 Vista Class, 2 Signature Class and 3 Pinnacle Class, that's 8 ships X $20,000 = $160,000 HAL saved. Pre-Lincoln Center contracts, the resident talent in classical was very much a crap shoot. I remember this violin/piano duo that made my undergraduate students sound like Menuhin/Horowitz. We thought we lost them when we booked another cruise that same year on a different ship. Nope. They were there, too. With such punishment, HAL made more, for our bar bill went up. HAL knew their true worth: they made the duo sell stuff at the deck sales on sea days. . . . no kidding! Yes, we are sad about LC and have communicated with the company more than once to no avail. HAL is more interested in developing the casinos.

[jthek]

Nothing like sipping some red wine after dinner in the Pinnacle Grill and listening to Rhapsody in Blues being played in the Lincoln Center

[Guest ldtr]

2 hours ago, jthek said:

Nothing like sipping some red wine after dinner in the Pinnacle Grill and listening to Rhapsody in Blues being played in the Lincoln Center

Unfortunately some liked coming out from dinner with their glasses of wine, then proceeded to talk through the Lincoln Center performance.

[Copper10-8]

20 hours ago, ldtr said:

They have added vocalists to some routines.  At least they did on my last HAL cruise.

 

You're right! They will add one (or both) BB King's All-Star vocalist(s) to their "salsa" / "Latin" show (the show title escapes me), and have also added the two piano tinglers to another show (and, yes, that show title also escapes me, boy, oh boy, 🤪 but I will find out)

[jthek]

3 hours ago, ldtr said:

Unfortunately some liked coming out from dinner with their glasses of wine, then proceeded to talk through the Lincoln Center performance.

Give them a stern look 

I'm not opposed to telling them to pipe down

[YXU AC*SE]

19 hours ago, syesmar said:

😀What if we had a “Coordinated Feedback to HAL” Thread on this forum, and on select days picked a topic for concerned Mariners to email customer service about? I honestly don’t know if it would help or hinder the cause, but I would participate if it helped restore some beloved HAL features.

 

You mean 'Let's-astroturf-HAL-with-what-we-think' day ?     🙂.   Scott. 

[latebuyer]

I’m a gen xer and want to add my disappointment that lincoln centre stage is discontinued.  This would make me rethink travelling with holland america as this is part of what differentiated them from other cruise lines. I’m glad i experienced it in 2019 on my alaskan cruise. 

[OlsSalt]

3 hours ago, YXU AC*SE said:

 

You mean 'Let's-astroturf-HAL-with-what-we-think' day ?     🙂.   Scott. 

 

As a former local elected official, we did tend to ignore orchestrated astro-turf letter writing campaigns. However, unique and sincere individually written letters did resonate. But those  orchestrated campaign members did and can vote, so it pays to be aware of their sentiments and not reject them out of hand. 

 

In this case, the only "voting" is with one's feet- and not sailing HAL ships - by choosing from among all those other cruise lines who do continue to offer classical music onboard. 😵‍💫

 

The timing for these demands is so poor right now. I have great sympathy for HAL facing the huge mountains of "covid" debt, inflicted on this particular industry. Adagio, lentimento.

[latebuyer]

I emailed my cruise consultant and will post his response. Basically i said i'm less likely to book without lincoln center stage there as there is then not as much to differentiate HAL from other cruise lines. Also, it seems like Holland America is more expensive and now there is less to justify that. Also that highlight of my alaskan cruise. I don't have a lot of pull though as i haven't booked a lot of cruises.

Edited July 4, 2023 by latebuyer

[Tinknock50]

I am booked with Princess and have a hold on a HAL cruise. I was going to "sell" my friends on joining me on the HAL based a great part on LC .  Now with the disappearance of classical on HAL, my decision is to stick with my Princess booking.

So sad.

[jthek]

HAL made a big mistake

Let's see if they fix it