The first time I heard of her voice was the song “A Whole New World” in Aladdin. I just had to know the singer behind the lovely voice. And from there on, I was in love with…..Lea Salonga. Never mind that I was then oblivious to the fact that she was already a huge name in Miss Saigon and countless other musical shows, I was just mesmerized by the voice—powerful, crystal clear and full of emotions.
So when an opportunity came to see her perform live in Kuala Lumpur, I was delighted.
Kicking off her concert at KL Convention Centre with just the right amount of class and finesse, Lea in a black evening gown charms the audience from the very first note.
Backed by a 6-piece band (two keyboardists, guitar, bass, drums and piano, the latter beautifully played by younger brother Gerard Salonga), the crowd’s first favourite came in the form of “I Dreamed A Dream”, made popular recently by Susan Boyle. Powerful vocal house she is and that song draws loud cheers from the floor.
Between songs, she tells stories, cracks jokes and the mood of the concert lifts beyond the slow numbers in the beginning. Then, she surprises me….
Paying a beautiful tribute to the late Michael Jackson, Lea tells how “heartbroken she and brother were when they heard of the tragic news and proceeds to lament “Gone Too Soon”. It was a moving rendition and for a brief moment, I can almost see “the comet blazing across the evening sky”. Ain’t too sure what was it…but her voice and emotion shining through in each word bring tears to my eyes….
Other favourites in the almost-too-short concert (just 90 minutes) include “I Give My Live for You” from Miss Saigon, some medley of 80’s power ballads, an impromptu duet with a member audience for “A Whole New World”, much to the surprise to many. “He even got the harmony right!”, she praises her young duet partner.
Her story-telling between songs continues with how she says she feels more relaxed these days as she approaches 40 years of age, and how she feels all should have fun and let loose some. And boy, did she have fun…with the second surprise of the night when she performs Lady Gaga’s Poker Face, drawing loud cheers from the younger audience..ahem!
Right after the “rockish” Gaga hit, she brings the pace a notch lower with yet another fave “On My Own” from Les Miserables. She even attempts to sing P. Ramlee’s Tiga Malam (made popular by Siti Nurhaliza) in passable Malay, garnering loud cheers throughout the concert hall.
It was indeed a beautiful and classy concert by Lea with her repertoire of songs that managed to satisfy, surprise and altogether enrich the audience. She did me, for sure.