As a fan of Within Temptation, I have been waiting for this DVD to come out since they announced the show back in February and now it's finally here. This dvd is brilliant, sure it's not the same as the European release but the main concert is what's important here and it's fantastic. There are no other words to describe the vocals of Sharon den Adel combined with a live orchestra. Within Temptation was made for something like this and I love the new arrangements to some of the songs including "Mother Earth", "Stand My Ground", and "Angels". Adding the pyros, video screens, lights, dancers, and sounds made this one of the best live performances ever captured on film.

This version of Black Symphony contains a cd with 13 live songs and a DVD with the full 22 song concert and a few special features:

Backstage report- a 13 minute interview with the band, crowd, and orchestra before and after the show.

Documentary - runs for about 23 minutes and it features the band discussing a little about their career with rehearsal footage from black symphony.

Countdown - 8 minute overview from the day of the show.

For anyone that wants to know the technical stuff, the show is shot in widescreen and contains 2.0/5.1/DTS sound.

Every fan of Within Temptation must pick this up! You won't regret it.

I recieved my long awaited copy of Within Temptation's "Black Symphony" today. This concert is simply fantastic! WT, The Pa'dam Choir, and the Metropole Orchestra provide a feast for the senses the likes of which I've never experienced. You may think I'm exaggerating, but I assure you I am not. If this live DVD doesn't get them world wide acclaim, then nothing will. Sharon den Adel is absolutely stunning and an unbelievable talent. Her voice absolutely soars to incredible registers and is unwaivering over the two hour event. The rest of the band forms a very cohesive unit and their playing is flawless as always. The Metropole Orchestra and Pa'dam Choir make this an even more spectacular event. Nothing can compare to having them live on stage with the band. Recordings would just not have been the same. I won't describe the entire concert here. I don't want to ruin it for anyone. I will say I highly recommend this CD/DVD to everyone. Five stars hands down. Go out and get it!!

If you have never had the privelidge of seeing the Silent Force Tour on DVD (originally released in PAL a few years back & now just released in NTSC format) you will finally get the chance to see on of the BEST bands in the genere and wow how they have evolved since then. WT pulls out all the stops for this unbelievablly stunning performance. On stage they look so excited and enjoying this perofrmace so much you can feel it. The sound and picture are crystal clear shot in HD and the whole package is a top notch effort. All the classics are here and they open the show with a Jaw dropping rendition of Jillian- they then power thru their amazing cataloge while the symphony orchestra & choir accompaines them to an amazing effect. They have video screens, pyro, stilt walkers and various other FX to make this on extrodinary evening of music and a MUST have DVD. Period. Do not miss The Black Symphony it one show you will never forget and want to watch over & over again.

This will be a very pure review in that up until last week I'd never heard of this band, and I still know nothing about them except what I've gathered from the documentary within this fantastic DVD. Which is not much since I'm not fluent in their language.

I'm not into Goth Metal and, y'know, I'm old. I don't read KERRANG but I saw an intriguing ad for this in the UK's MOJO magazine, went to the band's website and was totally knocked out by the sample video. On the strength of that exposure alone I ordered the CD/DVD that night, and with great pleasure I can tell you that it's a KNOCK-OUT. The most exhilarating, absorbing and awe-inspring concert video I've seen since Pink Floyd's PULSE.

Aside from the instant and obvious reaction of falling head over heels for the lovely Sharon, founder and lead vocalist, great praise must go to the band for writing some curiously beautiful and haunting music, to the superbly refreshing Metropole Orchestra, the only symphonic assemblage I've ever thought of as THRILLING... and the Choir Pa'dam, who fly very high, right up your spine.

And BRAVO to the set designer and technical crew whose stage and visuals are as majestic as anything I've ever seen on a stage. Even the stilt walking angels who appear briefly are mesmerizing. I know, even I can't believe I'm saying that...

Quite seriously, this is an extraordinary visual and auditory treat. Great extras as well. All in all a tremendous bargain and a disc set I'll long treasure. There'll be a lot of "Hey, you gotta sit down and watch this" evenings with my friends...

To non-metalheads like me, let me say this - don't be put off by the "Goth-Metal" tag - this isn't dark - it isn't all the things you assume it will be. Don't rob yourself of something joyous and bright. There's great talent and intelligence at work here.

Oh, and there's a CD as well. I haven't listened to it yet. I can't get my eyes off the screen.

In February of 2008, Dutch symphonic metal/symphonic rock band WT hit a new pentacle of their career with their innovative "Black Symphony" concert. This concert featured the Metropole Orchestra (a 60 piece orchestra), a 40-member choir, 10-foot pyrotechnics, a massive HD video screen, guest musicians such as Keith Caputo, and of course, Within Temptation. All of this chaos was led by WT light soprano/mezzo-soprano singer Sharon den Adel.

I absolutely love Sharon. Not only is she a highly talented singer, but she writes many of the songs for WT, designs her own costumes, sounds great live (and manages to sound great for two full hours), and seems to genuinely love what she does and loves her fans. Sharon just seemed so down to earth in this concert and she was very exciting to watch.

I cannot stress the epic nature of this concert enough. The best way to make you understand it is to go to youtube and watch clips from the DVD. This is how WT's music was meant to be heard: with the full power of a live symphony behind it. It added an extra dimension to the music that could not be experienced through a studio album. Many of the songs were also beefed up with more symphonic instruments and choir work to breathe new life into the songs. The newer "versions" of "Frozen," "The Howling," "Jillian (I'd Give My Heart)," and "The Heart of Everything."

I especially liked the sit-down acoustic section in the middle of the concert where the band preformed their slower songs like "Memories," "Somewhere," and "Forgiven." The section had a warm, intimate feel to it that helped to slow the pace of the concert down for a bit while still keeping it interesting. I particularly liked the duet performance of "Somewhere" with Anneke Van Giersbergen (Agua de Annique, ex-The Gathering). I never really liked the song before, but this version brought tears to my eyes.

There were also some old favorites mixed in with the ample songs taken from "The Heart of Everything." The oddest choice being "The Other Half (Of Me)" from WT's days as a doom metal band. I thought it was nice of them to welcome George Oosthoek back for some good old-fashioned growling. Now, as much as I don't like growling in songs (and was grateful that WT dropped the growling really early in their career), the live performance of this song helped me to have a greater appreciation for it and for growling in general.

All of this pomp and circumstance came to an end with the performance of WT's first hit, "Ice Queen." In a swirl of white tissue paper and blasting pyrotechnics, Sharon poured her heart into the song that first made the band famous. Virtually every fan in the audience sang along. Then, it was all over.

I have to admit that tears were in my eyes as the credits rolled. I couldn't believe that they pulled it all off. Every aspect of the concert worked perfectly together, and all of the hard work that the band must have put into it paid off. Seriously, there seem to be a ridiculous amount of elements here, but they all manage to work. "Black Symphony" is truly one of the greatest live spectacles of 2008.

The concert marked the end of WT's "The Heart of Everything" tour. The good news? The band has announced that they will begin working on a new album in 2009. It is currently slated for released in 2010.