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January 2009 |
"If you have a
question for me, enter this room.
It exists just for us. A place for
you to come to ask me whatever you
wish. A chance for us to get closer.
Share your thoughts, tell me your
story, ask me your questions. They
will be answered."
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Dear Candice,
I am very shy, but I write you now!
First, I have to say that I like Blackmore's
Night for over 7 years now, and I think I
will like it longer and longer.
The first CD I got from my father, because
he is a great Ritchie Blackmore fan for over
25 or 30 years now.
Befor he know Blackmore's Night , he went to
a little shop and asked for Ritchie
Blackmore things, so the woman there told
him, that Ritchie Blackmore has got a new
band with the name Blackmore's Night.
My father bought it and was very wondered
about that was Ritchie does now.
At our home he put this in the CD- player
and he liked it very much.
At this time I was a little girl, my father
played it very often.
So one day I asked him to give me the CD
with the name " Shadow of the Moon", because
I liked it at that point.
I went to my room and played it, I like it
so much. I was 6 years old!
After a few years I got all of your CDs and
DVDs and I hear and watch it every day.
Because I like your voice and Ritchie's
guitar playing, he is the best guitar player
of all time!
In 2007 I went to my first concert from you
, it was in Berlin.
In 2008 I went to my second concert in
Hannover and in 2009 I went to the concert
in Bonn, the concerts I always visiting with
my parents.
In Bonn I was in the third line, it was so
exited to be there! It was a great concerts,
but all of your concerts are wonderful, my
father liked Bonn, too because of the Rock
Part with Smoke on the Water.
I was wondering , that Ritchie played it. I
like the Rock part too.
After the concert I went to the stage ,
because I saw you there, to get an autograph
or shake your hand but I was to late and to
shy.
So my family and I in my medieval violet
coustum, went back to the hotel.
The concert was a bit to short . Do you know
why???
I was in the third line but I am not in the
fanclub so I havent got photos from you. Why
are the people not allowed to take photos at
the concerts?
This year in 2010 I go to a concert again
with a coustum like yours!
Hello,
I am so glad that you and your father have
found our music and that you are enjoying
the cds and the shows so much. It makes me a
bit sad that though you were third in line,
you didn't get front row! I don't understand
that and it seems wrong to me. I am sorry if
you had problems there. You never have to be
afraid to approach me for a photo or an
autograph. I love to meet our fans! Though I
understand completely...I too am very shy
when I see or meet someone who I am a fan
of. Your costume sounds lovely! Usually when
a concert is cut short there is a problem of
some kind. I believe in Bonn it was just
simply that there was a curfew that the
venue had imposed and they wouldn't allow up
to play beyond that time. If, as an artist,
you play longer than curfew, the hall can
cut your power off and charge you a very
high fee for breaking the rule. So when we
have a curfew by the hall we must stop
playing, even if we'd like to play all
night...
As far as photos, personally I don't mind
people taking photos at the shows. But
sometimes when you say that all cameras are
ok to bring, some people bring very large
cameras with professional setups and for
some reason those high quality cameras with
the detachable flash units mess with the
frequency of the in ear monitors causing the
signal to cut out and slowly fade back in as
the song progresses each time a photo is
taken. So I guess it is easier to just say
"no photos" so people leave those big
cameras at home and we can have no problems
with our equipment due to that. And video
cameras are a problem because sometimes we
like to play brand new songs or songs that
we haven't recorded before- but if people
video tape them, then when we finish the
tour or get back into the studio to record
them, they have already been heard on
youtube or via internet so it doesn't make
the release of the song as special as if it
were the 1st time you heard it on cd...
Have a great New Year and thank you for the
photos!
Love and light,
Candice |
Candice..
A few years ago I came across a song on
the web, it was called "Under a Violet
Moon", needless to say, it absolutely
blew us away. It didn't take long to
find your web site and we've been hooked
ever since. Like your other fans we
started collecting your CDs and DVDs. We
finally made it to Chicago HOB (2009) to
seen you in person. Your music is so
enchanting, but it means so much more to
see you performing it. Are you planning
any more DVDs? YouTube is OK but...
All our love,
Neil & Shirley
Hi Neil and Shirley,
We always have such a great time in
Chicago! I'm really glad you guys were
able to come out and enjoy that show
with us. As you probably know we have 2
dvd out right now: Castles and Dreams
and Paris Moon. But we actually had 2
vhs tapes released before those dvds
from the early days. They document the
band at the beginning so the band is
probably nothing like what you see
now... And also we had taped a show at
Burg Solingen that has a few dvd tracks
which was released on the Beyond the
Sunset cd. Also, keep in mind that the
full concert dvds had to be cut down to
what you see because we played over 3
hours at each of those shows so, as the
record company couldn't put out a 3 dvd
disc set in each of those releases, we
have a lot of those extra songs that
were left on the cutting room floor. And
finally the shows that we did in 2009
were recorded in Germany so we do have
quite a bit of footage over the past
years, since 1997. What we'd like to do
eventually is make a dvd box set showing
the growth of the band with footage from
each time period. We're hoping to do
that in the next year or two!
Thanks for your question...
Love and light and New Years Wishes!
Candice
Candice,
I watched Renaissance at Whitaker Center in
Harrisburg, PA and I thought about your
amazing show when I saw you there. Listening
to Annie, I recognized a distinct influence
in your singing style. Have you listened to
her a lot through the years, learned from
her? I wish you all the best and look
forward to another concert in our
area...soon, I hope. Maybe see you at the
Faerie Festival again??!!
Stu Barnhart (Lititz, PA)
Hello Stu,
Although Annie is a wonderful singer and
artist too! I must admit that I was not
familiar with her works until meeting
Ritchie. He was the one who introduced me to
her song Ocean Gypsy which we covered on the
1st Blackmore's Night cd. So any
similarities would be coincidental. Since
then, though, Annie does keep in contact
with us on a personal basis and we are
pleased to count her as a friend.We do love
playing Pennsylvania and try to make it to
the Renaissance Faire in Mt Hope at least
once a year with a trip to Bube's Brewery in
Mt Joy following... And who knows, perhaps
our paths will cross again at another Faeire
Festival...only time will tell!
Love and light,
Candice
Hello Candice!
I wanted to tell you how much fun I had at
your show in Chicago this October, I took my
boyfriend with me who hadn’t heard very much
of your music until that night. Luckily,
he’s very open minded when it comes to music
and he had a great time as well. Thank you
so much for inviting local animal charities
to come to the concerts, I’m a big animal
lover too and it makes me happy that you
guys have such big hearts. I also read
somewhere that you guys usually end up
losing money when you go on tour… thank you
for being so dedicated to your fans! I
couldn’t be happier that my favorite band
makes music because they love to and not for
the money. Unfortunately most of the famous
musicians today don’t have the same
mentality. I’m often made fun of because I’m
21 but only really listen to 60s, 70s, and
80s music along with some not so popular
bands that are around today. It doesn’t bug
me at all though, I think of it more as a
compliment that I’m not listening to the hip
stuff.
Before I discovered you guys I never really
had a favorite band since I would go through
a lot of phases. I also have the bad habit
of playing the same songs over and over
again until I’m tired of them. It’s strange
because your music I NEVER get tired of even
though I constantly listen to it. I think a
lot of it has to do with my fascination with
the fantasy world and every time I listen to
your music I’m taken to a world I’d love to
be in. Both the lyrics and music are
gorgeous!
I know I’m rambling now, so I wanted to ask
a few questions! First, I’m curious as to
how you and Ritchie decorate your house. Is
it decorated like a mini castle? I’m asking
because I love decorating things, picking
out colors, etc. If I had the money I would
probably convince my parents to let me
decorate the house like a castle or fantasy
related. I also was curious about how your
family reacted when they found out that you
and Ritchie were dating, first because he’s
famous and second because of the age
difference.
Thanks for being such an inspiration! I
could talk forever, but I don’t want to take
up too much of your time. Good luck to you
guys on the new CD, can’t wait!
Love, Hillary
Hello Hillary,
Thank you for your kind words and I love
your enthusiasm! Good for you that you
aren't following fashion and trends because
they are "in" and you are all about braving
your own path...its so much better to be an
independent thinker than one who follows the
fads just to be cool...Much cooler to find
your own path. Yes, making money on the road
is difficult especially when you insist on
keeping the ticket prices low for your fans.
I don't understand these bands who charge
such ridiculously high fees for tickets! I
guess as long as they have money at the end
of the day that's the motivation, but for us
its all about the music and the fans who
come to see us play. Of course, you see the
care put into the shows too: the production,
the amount of band members, the projection
units and lights and quality sound...all
costs...But we wouldn't have it any other
way! Ugh, enough business talk...concentrate
on the music!! And back to our world of
fantasy...
Yes! Our home was contemporary when we 1st
moved in, but the location was what grabbed
us- right on the water with the forest next
to the house...Beautiful! Also we have
cathedral ceilings with a big stone
fireplace so the foundation for a
renaissance decor in that room was all set.
Through the years, we have changed standard
doors to gothic arched doors with wrought
iron gates on them; added scones,
tapestries, deep rich colors everywhere and
lots of long heavy curtains... It doesn't
really matter how big or small your home
is..it all starts with 1 room and then
spreads from there. Even if its little
things like heavier frames around photos and
tapestry throw pillows, there are always
ways to transform. So if you just start with
your room, make it your own Medieval
sanctuary.
As far as my families reactions to Ritchie:
My parents, though they were unfamiliar with
Ritchie's works being from a different era
and having different musical tastes, didn't
care about the fame thing. Fame is pretty
territorial. If your unfamiliar with someone
for what they are famous for then it isn't
really a factor in how you perceive them.
The age thing they never really mentioned to
me. It was always that they just wanted me
to be happy and if I was, they were. I guess
I was never one to follow the straight and
narrow path so as far as staying out till
the wee hours of the morning I had been
doing for quite a while anyway so that was
nothing new. I was always a night owl. When
they met Ritchie they all became friends and
remain so to this day so its all very
comfortable. It's important for me to keep
that strong family connection. We all help
and support each other whether its my
parents, my brother or my sister....
Thanks for your question!
Love and light,
Candice
Dear Candice,
I've been thinking about this thing for many
months... or I should say for almost a year.
Have you ever thought about making a record
with just lullabies? I don't know why I have
this question in my mind. Maybe bacause me
and my husband want so much to have a baby
(but unfortunately it's harder than we
thought; we've been trying for the last 4
years but I'm affected by infertility), and
your beautiful voice just seems to fit it so
perfectly!
I dream about holding my baby and listening
your voice to make him (or her) sleep
peacefully. It's just sounds perfect! You
have a magical connection with children and
after your "Once in a Garden" music and also
"Faerie Queen" my mind travels around this
"lullaby project". I know it sounds crazy,
but maybe someday...
Anyway, congratulations for your "Paris
Moon" dvd. Love it (just like all the oldest
cd's and dvd's)! And I've posted a few lines
about it in my blog, but it's in Portuguese.
(
http://la-mindi.blogspot.com/2007/11/paris-moon-novo-dvd-do-blackmores-night.html
).
Well, wish you a very happy Christmas and an
explosive New Year!
Best wishes,
Mindi
ps.: sorry about my awful English :-)
Hello Mindi!
Your English is excellent! Much better than
my Portuguese...
Yes! I have actually considered a project of
lullabies... I love singing soothing, quiet
songs with haunting melodies and I think
that it may be something I will definitely
be doing in the future. I have a few songs
that may be considered lullabies already
written and recorded for my own
project...that is still to be released. I
also have a list of songs that were written
by other people that I would love to cover
in this style...
Infertility seems to be something that is
very common these days...I hope that by the
time you read this email you have had some
wonderful news and a child is forthcoming.
Don't despair, though...these days there are
so many medical ways to address this
situation as well as other methods like
adoption etc...
So many ways to fulfill your child dream...
I wish you to receive what you are searching
for...and thank you for the blog post!
Love and light,
Candice
Email
questions to Candice at
nightanswers@aol.com
If selected your answer will be posted here.
Five questions a month will be answered,
so please keep checking back. |
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