Celtic Christmas

Cherish the ladies Christmas show was unforgettable. The show was had the perfect blend of instrumental music, singing, dancing and laughter. Very entertaining and enjoyable!

Second year we saw this at the Ryman. Incredible music and dancing. I would recommend this show to anyone who loves Christmas music. If you like Irish music as well, you will NOT be disappointed. Simply magical.

Half of the musicians are Americans not Scott or Irish.

Really enjoyed the evening of Celtic music. The variety was very entertaining. Wish the Celtic dancers had danced more and would have loved to hear more of the children's choir. But other than that - it was a great experience. Hope they do it again!

As usual, seating, view and sound quality are the best. The music was great, but seemed like there was little preparation or coordination with the show itself. Seemed unrehersed and maybe a lot of "last minute" changes? Just didn't seem to flow well.

Great event. We enjoyed the entire show. Will definitely make plans to attend next year if this is offered. The Ryman is the perfect venue for this show. Ric Blair did a splendid job getting everyone together for this show and his performance was wonderful. The musicians were amazing, such talent in one room. The Nashville Irish Step Dancers did a great job too. And the kids that sang the Lennon song were wonderful.

Not your typical Christmas show, but in a good way. A mix of modern, classic, and ancient hymns made the event appropriate for all ages. Not only would I recommend it to friends, but I would jump at the chance to attend again next year. I hope Ric Blair and his band and guest groups will make "Celtic Christmas" a new annual tradition in Nashville.

The full presentation was excellent. The special guests were a great choice. The Children's Choir was well prepared and added a beautiful sound to the evening. The dancers had a very crisp precision that was as fine as could be found anywhere. The sound during the first half was a little strong for my Sr. Adult ears but all in all the freshness of the Celtic music came through with a renewed freshness for the Christmas season.

we really enjoyed it...the variety...the mixture of local and famous musicians...

The show was absolutely awesome. Ric pulled together a great group of performers -- the dancers were a tremendous asset.

This was a great way to start the Christmas holiday off. Sound was clear, music was wonderful. Great performance! Would see this again.

The program was good. I loved the dancers and especially the kids!

A CELTIC CHRISTMAS ... just like (talented!) friends and family making Christmas music in the kitchen. Outside, the temp was 15 degrees; as the concert began, the Ryman Auditorium heated up -- the music was like Grandpa's wood burning stove, hot enough to make you move, but too cozy to leave....Rick Blair described it as an early style Christmas celebration: good music with family and friends... and he hit the bodhran on the head!!! Overall, an excellent concert, Jeff one of the percussionists, did a very good Scots accent reading the Christmas story from Jamie Stuart's Glasgow Bible ... ("what it was all a'boot" ..."the wee bairn" .... "the shepherds were gobsmacked" ) Like the 12 Days of Christmas there were ladies dancing (FANTASTIC JOB, NASHVILLE IRISH STEP DANCERS!!!) and singing -- Mauread Ni Mhaonaigh. Besides the ladies of the Nashville Irish Step Dancers leaping, there were also Lords a leapiing -- okay, he probably isn't a Lord... but Rick's energy level kept him bouncing around the stage! There were drummers drumming, Rick & Franko on bodhran, Jeff & Chris(?) on percussion; pipers piping (Ivan Goff & Eric Rigler!!!! WORLD CHAMPION TALENTS) ... and also fiddlers, guest Mauread Ni Mhaonaigh, (and violins-a great string section) fiddling...and I missed the name of the other young lady fiddler, she's a regular member of "The Celts". On the down side --- There WERE just a few small quirks that kept it from being a perfect 5 star performance ... a few microphone cues were off, some of the live music was louder than the live vocals - but hey, it's LIVE music--not lip sync'd, and the issues were pretty quickly fixed. MY biggest complaint is probably one voiced by others... the Ryman is a beautiful auditorium, and viewing is great just about everywhere-- but the old church style pews make for uncomfortably cramped close quarters, especially in winter clothes. (I found out about the concert late, and could only get balcony seats-maybe they're tighter?) My body shape is NOT that of a concert go-er 25 - 75 years ago; we had 6 in our pew section that was marked for 8!!! If those two seats had been sold---they would NOT have been able to sit in them!!! Add to that, I'm a bit long legged, and my knees were only 1 inch away from the pew in front of me; to let anyone out, you either have to empty the whole row or everyone must stand in their seat. It wouldn't have hurt a bit to have had cushions, either. Guess I'm spoiled; but I didn't even have room to get up and dance a bit (probably a good thing, even though the music made you want to move!!). Stomping my feet ( and probably the lady's next to me) had to suffice. Speaking of the lady on my right, she said she thought it was too loud; but me being an old rock-n-roller, I said, maybe, but I'm getting kind of deaf -- I think it's about right, maybe less instrument and more vocals, but yeah, my Mom probably would agree with you... (my wife, on my left side, elbowed me and whispered,." You realize you just called her an old lady? I said, "Who me?") I didn't think it was too loud, again, there were some quirks and missed mic cues, and it's hard to understand Gaelic words with an American English brain... but the beauty of the song made up for that; plus the spoken translation afterwards helped as well. The after concert meet and greet was really nice, just a bunch of friends saying hi! Wish I could've met the whole band. OVERALL-- I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS AS A GREAT CONCERT... I REALLY REALLY HOPE THIS WAS THE FIRST ANNUAL CELTIC CHRISTMAS -- I can hardly wait for next year's!!!! and if it's in the Ryman, I'm bringing a cushion...

What a wonderful way to celebrate the Holiday! The concert was "tip top". Music and vocals beautiful. Brought tears to my eyes. If they repeat this next year put it on your list.

Last years show was awesome ! This year it appeared like an effort was make to go cheap even at the expense of the show. The dancers looked to be someones pre-teenage children instead of the professionals (very impressive) they had last year. I really enjoyed the older gentleman narrator last year. The drummer was good but not as interesting. The percussion and base did not sound as good as I remember from last year.

Good show. I thought is would be more orginal Irish and Scottish music. But good any way. Starting 20 minutes late did not set the tone for the night

AWSOM! Says it all.I will definitely want to see them the next time they're in town!

The Celts started 20 minutes late, and we were forced to listen to terrible recorded music like Japanese dirges, and sad Celtic type music. It was much too loud for the Taft. The music lacked variety. Except for the silly readings by the drummer, there was little reference to Christmas. The Taft theatre looked sad without any holiday decor. The group informed us that they were actually from Cincinnati and NOT a Celtic country, as their fake accents were very obvious. The music was amateurish and more suited for a pub or bar, and not a holiday event at the Taft theatre. We were very disappointed.

Late, way too loud, badly mixed, seemed like the musicians had had a fight before the show. Had my fingers in my ears it was so painful. Did not feel like Christmas at all.

Problems with sound, a choppy program, and poor playing (from missed notes to missed beats and cues by the players) made for an overall poor program. Over 20% of the people in the theatre left at intermission. I wish that I had too, since I had a 2 hour drive home. The individual players had talent but they just couldn't bring it together as a group. I hate to give a poor review, but couldn't get around this one...

The show was OK, but I was disappointed to learn that most of the folks on the stage were NOT Irish, Scottish, etc. I tried to go back and re-look at the video on the Ryman website but it had been pulled off. One singer, Kathy Jordan had a fabulous voice and was MOST enjoyable, she was authentic. One of the band members was from Dublin, another from Michigan, one guy was Asian.....the dancers I believe were from a local dance group - definitely NOT Irish. I felt a bit deceived, we drove over an hour and a half to see the show. If I had known beforehand, I don't think I would've put that much effort into going. It was a good lesson for future shows. Not a bad show, just not what I thought I would see.

We could not hear the singers or the sublties of the music above the overwhelming amps. At times, the volume was downright painful. I think that is the reason that the performers did not receive any curtain calls. This hall is famous for its acoustics - what a shame to ignore its innate capacity for great sound. We saw Straight No Chaser there a couple of week ago and they got it right!

This was the second year I attended. I want to say how great it was. It was wonderful being able to attend an event that included Christ as part of Christmas as this is the true meaning. I brought my best friend this year and she loved it and wants to attend the next year. The music, dance, and singing and the true meaning of Christmas was just great.

Terrible--music too loud to hear voices of singers. Reverberation from speakers. Had to leave at Intermission.

The show was very amateur. The MC read off of note cards verbatim, and by his tone and pitch it didn't seem like he had even rehearsed before the show. It was like he wasn't aware of what he was going to be saying nest. There was a a good minute of lag time in between each song where the band would look around aimlessly waiting for someone to take the lead into the next song. The lead guitarist was repeatedly tuning his guitar on stage as a lead in to the next song. The sound quality on vocals made it difficult to understand the singers during song and discussion (when the intermission was announced we couldn't understand that that's what was said. We had to take the cue from the other audience members that he did in fact just say it was intermission....you could tell other audience members were confused to. Not sure if that was the end of the show or if he just announced the intermission).

This was my first experience with the Celts. I must admit being an Irishman having seen Celtic Women and Riverdance, I wasn't sure what to expect. Let me just say, WOW!!! I enjoyed the readings, the laughter, the step dancers, the choir and especially the music. My 9 year old asked if we could make the show a Christmas tradition.......I sure hope so, I sure hope so!!! A must see!!!

My husband and I definitely got the most bang for our entertainment buck with The Celts at Celtic Christmas in the Ryman.

I was a bit disappointed in this. There was no decoration on the set to even suggest Christmas and it seemed the performers (mainly the singers - the musicians were good) had not practiced much together. I have seen many productions before, so was surprised that one of this caliber was so below average. There were good moments, of course, and some good performers, but overall, I found it lacking.

I highly recommend Celtic Christmas if you are looking for a sweet subtle show that magnifies the real meaning of Christmas. The musicians are brilliant and the music is beautiful. Kathy Jordan's vocals -- WOW!

Often we could not understand the singers' words. We wished that we could have heard the words. We have been to other concerts of Irish/Celtic music and easily heard the words, so we assumed that the amplification was not correct.

We loved the Celtic Christmas program. The story telling and variety was fantasic. We we expecting a comedian to perform too, but nothing was ever mentioned.

This event could not have been better! If this celebration becomes an annual event, as mentioned, we won't miss it.

THIS WAS ABSOLUTELY THE BEST THING I HAVE SEEN IN A LONG LONG TIME.

I would definitely attend this show again, and would highly recommend it to others. The show had a good mix of Irish music, with modern Christmas music and songs. Great show, never a dull moment.

Amazing music ! We thoroughly enjoyed this evening at the Ryman. The musicians were incredibly talented and the music was beautiful. Loved the Christmas story told in Gaelic!

Exellent program for all ages; great variety, great entertainment, and outstanding performers throughout.

Some of the most talented musicians in the Irish and Scottish genre came to Nashville with The Celts. The Celts differ from The Chieftains in a very important way. The latter play traditional instruments playing traditional Celtic music. The Celts play traditional and modern instruments and a mixture of modern and ancient music. The music is at once innovative and surprising.

This was a great event! I really enjoyed it and it really propelled me into the Christmas spirit. I have already recommended that friends come back with me next year.

This was an amazing show! The music was so wonderful. I actually closed my eyes and could picture myself lying in a field in Ireland listening to the music. The stage presence was awesome! I would definitely recommend this program to everybody. The dancers were great! I hope this becomes an every year event. I will definitely attend every year if so.

Loved the music. The musicians were amazing. The Nashville Irish Stepdancers added so much to the event. And the children's choir at the end was an unexpected treat. Those children sang beautifully!

The show was fantastic. We were absolutely delighted that Tim O'Brian and Eric Rigler (the piper and Irish whistle player from Braveheart and Titanic) were part of the show. The dancers were amazing to watch. The music was powerful and stirring. The reading of the Christmas story from the Gaelic Bible really kept the entire program focussed on the true meaning of the Christmas season. They mentioned that this might be the "first annual" Celtic Christmas, and we would definitely greatly anticipate returning for this amazing performance year after year.

They said this was their first performance of Celtic Christmas. I couldn't tell. All the musicians were in sync and well rehearsed, the young dancers were great and the music was first rate. If you have the chance, and you love Celtic music, see this show.

MOST BEAUTIFUL AND HAUNTING SOUNDS, FROM THE PIPES TO THE BODHRAN TO THE ANGELIC FEMALE VOCALS TO THE ENTHRALLING RIC BLAIR PERFORMANCE...A MAGICAL CHRISTMAS EVENT TO BE REMEMBERED...AND PLEASE TO BE REPEATED NEXT YEAR!! WAS NOT FAMILIAR WITH THE BLAIR BAND BUT WENT HOME WITH 4 ALBUMS, THAT SHOULD LAST TILL NEXT YEAR