Ricardo Arjona Alpharetta Concert reviews
Arjona mesmerized!
I am not a Ricardo Arjona fan. Like many men in the audience, I went to this show to support my wife who has been playing his songs in our home for decades. Now… I am an Arjona fan.
Terrific performer. Ricardo is super comfortable on stage and performed each of his songs with passion and heart. His 30+ year career has molded him into a consummate performer and artist. He connected with the crowd, shared anecdotes and freely took requests from the audience. As mentioned earlier, I have never really been a fan of his singing, but I can honestly say that he sounds excellent live. His lyrics pull you right in to each song, but his humility and sheer joy of performing are what draw you in even further.
Speaking of sound, the audio and mixing was superb at Freeman Coliseum. Kudos to the sound engineers who managed to make every instrument speak without overpowering the audience with volume. Excellent job of sculpting the mix.
Arjona's band is just incredible. Made up of mostly veteran musicians from various countries, they each contributed their own virtuostic touches. The band included a sax player, a violinist, a female rhythm guitarist/vocalist, pianist, electric and bass guitarist and two percussionists. They were all tight, laid back and capable of producing a range of sounds and moods — from heavy rock to melancholy ballads. Many excellent solos and duets from these fabulous musicians.
Finally, Arjona's staging is worth the price of the ticket alone. His tour is based on his Circo Soledad album, so the stage is set up in a digitized "Cirque du Soleil" style complete with lighting effects, moving set pieces, elevators, and two fabulous dancers. We enjoyed the aerial acrobatics and interplay of these performers to keep the theme going. Also noted that all of Arjona's band wore outfits that, while unique to each performer, were carefully put together to visually complement the theme: black with a touch of red. The stage director knows what he/she is doing.
Go see this show whether or not you're a fan of Arjona. It was worth it.