This article, a fine example of organized crime & retaliation.In DC June 2021, a man from Maryland approached me, asking me who I worked for. He seemed to be referring to the crime report I turned in to AG, that was accepted. I told him I had ID's with two gov offices, but was non specific, as those are related to my work re: victims of crime. I did not give him the answer he wanted, nor was detailed enough for him. (If he was anyone in government or important, he'd already have known.)
There were social dynamics at play. If I was alone, I never would have let that man come physically close to me. But I was with a group of individuals; he came up to one of them, in order to talk to me. He looked at me, said even though I didn't answer him, it didn't matter who I did or did not work for, as "They" have connections in all places. When he said this, it made me curious enough to bite. I asked him what he did. He said he was a contractor. He said he "cleaned" things up for wealthy people.
What he was talking about, is what I believe to be organized crime for hire & public corruption. Including "cleaning things up", where murders are made to look like suicides.
Victims & Journalists murdered for doing the right thing & speaking out.
I interviewed Actors in Texas & DC, when I turned in a report to The Attorney General. Some of the mentally ill members, were more open about their tech & chemicals they use to make it look like suicide, like an rx that if injected, will stop the heart and not register on a chemical test (MD confirmed this). Some seemed to not know what they were getting into when they signed their contract & NDA, and assumed, I didn't have a foundation in what they meant, so didn't think the reference they used, would give it away.
A small handful of the white collar criminals (engineers) did explain processes to me in a way that was pointed enough & clear, for me to understand. Others were non-verbal, their actions displaying what they were doing: pointing to a piece of tech, or to a bag of "herbs" (not herbs) or rx where the label explained it. A few, used synonyms, thinking they were getting one over on me.
Ultimately, they communicated with me as a part of them liked me enough or rapport built was enough. More than that, I think it was about THEM, LIKING what they did + their narcissistic need for glory. There are also language structures, which can trigger answers based on the criminal's disorder.
I've been researching Threat Actors who financially traffic since they committed a crime in SF in 2012 & recurring crimes since.
They are connected to drug trafficking, sex trafficking, murder-for-hire, where I didn't find out about all of that until TX/DC.
They hate the press & their victims who lived, or spoke out against them.
"Nearly half of the journalists who were killed last year were not on assignment when they were targeted, the U.N. said, and were slain in their homes, while traveling or in various public places."
After another defeat to Kucherepa in the 1958 election, Cameron regained his High Park Parliamentary seat in 1962 and was re-elected in 1963 and 1965. After completing his final term, the 27th Canadian Parliament, Cameron left federal office and did not campaign in any further national elections.
A neighbour discovered the bodies of both Cameron and his wife Beatrice at their Etobicoke apartment on 3 January 1982. Metro Toronto Police indicated they both died early that day of natural causes.[1]
This is horrible. My heart goes out to Zapata's family. Were charges pressed? Is there any way to prevent this?
"Zapata (2-4) lost consciousness after her opponent, Quebec native Marie-Pier Houle (4-0-1, 2 KOs), connected on a flurry of shots in the waning moment of the fourth round of their women’s welterweight bout, prompting the referee to stop the fight. Zapata, however, was not able to return to her own corner and began convulsing on her feet."
My family taught me about brain injury and prevention very young, in CAN, related to safety in sports training & Canadian Royal Purple. https://lnkd.in/eyaTNuVw
I remember being shocked, that some MD's in San Francisco, knew so little about Brain Injury & the effects, especially amongst athletes. It took me much research to understand, that they were only experts in their specialty, and that Brain Injury Awareness, is still significantly lacking in most populations.
(1) In 2000 in Hollywood, I met "Diane", and I'm trying to figure out which NXIVM woman she is. Pam Cafritz? (Image below.) I knew Diane from work, and was out of alignment, with what she represented. I felt, uncomfortable, so declined to interact.
(2) I also met a female violinist, who was blonde. I cannot remember her name. (Do you think we can figure it out?) We spent some time together, being friends. I liked her very much. She had devoted much of her life to music, and was beyond brilliantly talented. I think she may have been a violinist for Trans-Siberian Orchestra, for, in 2020, a guitarist from TSO, reached out to me too. He called himself T. W. Durfy. (3) What is his real name? Do you know?
DINNER WITH THE VIRTUOSO VIOLINIST
Some of the dinners the beautiful blonde and I had, she seemed like she was "interviewing" me. I didn't recognize it for that at the time. Because of my boundaries, and my training on safety, the truth, is never only one thing. I have my truth, which is mine, and my family, told me to keep it close. My family from home to 1985, I have kept private. From my father's side, they taught me that with great resources, comes great responsibility, and it was something, that those outside their class, failed to understand. I was instructed to only interact, with those who were our socioeconomic peers. I didn't fully grasp it, as my mother is French & Ojibwe, and her and Clifford, and their clan, had different belief systems than my father.
THE ART OF PRIVACY
When I was adopted in 1985, I was given strict instructions including fear tactics, of what I could and could not say. I believed, the foreboding words Louise spoke. When I met the woman who raised me, I loved her very much. She was the first/only woman I'd met post 1985, who let me talk about home. I felt safe with her, and respect her more than accomplished, husband.
They, are of a different socioeconomic class than my father; still significant though according to US metrics. They were into privacy, and PR, too. Just like home. Just like the Agency. Just like, many of the people we knew, who wore their medals or positions of power, like badges.
There is the PR version of family systems, where my California family, also told me to keep things confidential. That we could only talk about successful investments in business, and we could also talk about philanthropic activities. I was trained, if I was asked certain questions, to not respond, or to give an answer that meant "nothing". I never gave an inch, even if people thought I did. They were misinformed, approached me the wrong way, and I also, never respond well to anyone who lies about who they are, who they work with, nor what their intentions are. The writing is always on the wall. They are always transparent.
COMMUNITIES
For individuals who approached me, wanting more, if I perceived them to be within Pick-Up-Artist Community or "holistic wellness", I would repeat back to them, what it was that they had said to me. This is normal in rapport building. There is a video from Dr. Brene Brown, about empathy vs. sympathy. Caring about how others feel, for some of the individuals I categorized, if they shared with me, I'd respond with things like, "Ah, I've been there too." Chunking-up. This statement means, that we are all human, and at certain points of the scale, we all have the same experience, from the broadest lens possible. I had no clue, what most of them were talking about, not specifically, neither their details. I'm not a mind-reader. No one is. What I could see, and hear, and feel, and sense, is that there are layers in every sentence, and every expression. There are tonalities; there are micro-expressions; there are pauses and body language, that all paint a picture, both of what is, and is not, said. So much, exists, in the empty space, of no-thing, where all who are expertly trained, can see, if they happen to look for it. In those moments, I perceived, that they, were experiencing suffering, and I simply wanted to show them, that I saw them as a person, and that, there is a way, for them to be okay, and on the other side of that emotion.
The feedback from those groups, regarding empathy, constantly alarmed me. They exhibited low to none, ability to differentiate, what was inside vs outside of them. They seemed to think, that if someone was kind, then they knew what they had gone through, or that they were in it, with them, too. This failure in logic, critical thinking, self-awareness, and perception, may be a result of their upbringing or membership affiliation.
ACTING SKETCHES FOR CREDIT
There were other people, who approached me, wanting more, who for the purpose of this writing, I'll call Producers, Actors or Comedians. For them, I knew their number, and if I chose to engage, we were doing skits. This is called fictional drama, and sketch acting, as well as even some researched monologues, and voice overs, that I was asked to take part in, for resume credits. None of it was real, and I certainly hope, that all involved, knew that. I have always identified with writing and public speaking. I wanted to study what I felt to be relevant, to help me grow.
CONFIDENTIALITY TRAINING
I was well trained, on different levels of linguistics for the explicit purpose, to create rapport and the perception of depth, without revealing, what is actually close.
There are so many years and layers of expert tutelage. There has been a time or two, where a computer breach produced data loss, and it was frustrating, to rebuild. The benefit of having done so, for the purpose of this article, is that I took the time, to do my due diligence, on my background. I knew what happened, and who I knew, as these were people from childhood, and connected to my family. I believe the first time I tried this exercise, I just wanted to make sure I was spelling my teacher's name right. I ended up finding their bio, and I was amazed. I had had, no clue. They hadn't led with that. WOW. I felt profound sense of awe and appreciation, when I read their biographies, as an adult. Many of those individuals, have made great contributions to humanity, and are recognized as such, with plaques, sculptures, being notable in our encyclopedias, and more. I am fortunate. The family that adopted me, is connected to good people. In contrast, some of the affiliates of the adoption agency, are opposite.
NON-DISCLOSURE
I knew better, from Louise, than to ever talk of my home before 1985. I asked her where my dad was, and she told told me a terrifying story, full of threats and bad outcomes, of children she met who refused to follow her instructions. Post, I knew what my life was like in California, what my family wanted, and what I could share.
SCHEDULE - NO TIME TO SHARE
I was on a schedule. Morning study followed by run, followed by school, followed by lessons with private instructors and/or sports, followed by chores, then homework, then rest. Saturday was chores or break. Sunday was more education and civic service. Summers were traveling or sailing. Winters skiing. There was no down-time. And the family expectation, was that we were each, and collectively, close to immaculate.
People outside of this type of upbringing, I think most of them, cannot comprehend, the level of training and education, that my adopted family, steered me with. I think musicians who are top tier "get-it", for the hours they put into their gift, is similar.
INVESTIGATING
In 2009, I had an awareness, that some standard "getting to know you" questions I was being asked, I did not know the real answer, for myself, only the cookie-cutter version I'd been told to give, or various "gossip", which I am against. So I returned to the home I had been 1987-1998, and I dug through government records. It was massive research, and I got what I needed. Basically, in 1998, there was a tragic accidental death of a young child in the community, and there was a conviction, regarding faulty permit. That is all. The truth is simple.
The story the District Attorney wanted to get to the bottom of, were related to things they were told, by two adopted girls. I was at boarding school, when the DA asked for my account. I told them. I knew nothing of what the girls were saying, and I personally believed, they were lying. I did not know why, at the time. Now, I know.
They were either lying in entirety out of maliciousness, or lying regarding the timeline (date), and persons involved, in their statements. In memory studies, children's accounts, are unreliable until approximately the age of seven. While children can remember from ages three or four to seven, by the time they reach 7, they've usually forgotten what happened before. The adopted girls may have been remembering things that happened to them, from before they were adopted. I wish, their "parents" had just told them, and perhaps even provided, regression & timeline therapy. Instead, I estimate, that they were advised to protect the adoption agency with their silence.
THIRD PARTY INTERFERENCE & CRIME
Satisfied with the court records, I let my research go. It resurfaced again over the last some years, originating from a group related to Dr. Danielle Roberts (NXIVM), who I met in 1999. I kept asking myself, why do these strange people, who I do not know, as in associate with, care about the 1998 case, when they were "seemingly not" involved, when it was a lie, and also, when it has nothing to do with either "them" nor me? It is because of their affiliations with Adoption Agencies, and the Identity Theft Crimes, that DOJ has already convicted their members of. Dr. Roberts, she lost her license, related to unusual cruelty.
AGAPE FRAUD WITH BABY HOLLY
Last night I read an article written by Agape Cult Members, including a man who said he was Danielle's brother. Wesley Roberts is the name he gave me in 1999. They call themselves "Family Detectives". They turned in a genealogy match, about a missing child, and their match is either direct or partial fraud, that I can prove. I already submitted my evidence to the OAG. This group, is merciless, and committed to their path and practice of Identity Theft. I will subsequently publish redacted versions of my letters to law enforcement, when it is appropriate.
CAN YOU HELP ME WITH THESE? THANK YOU. QUESTION 1: DIANE I am curious, which NXIVM member is the woman below, on our upper left. In the far left, a woman in a red shirt, called herself Madeline. Standing behind her, taller, is a woman who called herself Diane. Who is she? Is she Pam Cafritz? Or someone different?
QUESTION 2: TSO VIOLINIST Do you happen to know through hearsay, who was the blonde violinist in 2000 that I met in South Pasadena? There was a significant group of people who all seemed to know each other, and each other's various "circles". I felt like I connected to none of them, based on values/preferences. I was there to work & write & train. And so I worked, and ran the Rose Bowl, keeping things simple. Some of the people that I met though, are more than famous, and some are also connected to prominent CEO's I knew from home. Was the blonde violinist Val Vigoda? Or someone different?
QUESTION 3: TSO GUITARIST
Which Guitarist is Trans-Siberian Orchestra member, T. W. Durfy? He reached out to me in 2020, and what he presented, seemed out of alignment, with what his true, unstated, intentions or research, actually were (which he never told me). He did help me with a warning, in 2020, that ended up being profound, as I changed my threat assessment, changed my course, and filed case paperwork. Thank you.
Who is T. W. Durfy?
QUESTION 4: TSO SARAH
Is Author Sarah Jane Cion, the same as TSO Violinist, Sarah Charness?
QUESTION 5: O'Neill, David Z
Why are there deaths with Trans-Siberian Orchestra? These types of Hollywood deaths, are not what they seem, when you look at the Trophy Walls, of the Perpetrators Involved. A PUA, in 2014, showed me the Trophy Wall, of Britney Spears. I immediately cut off all contact with him. Another perpetrator, who I filed a fraud case against in 2003, he alluded to crimes, which I failed to grasp at the time. Now, I have a good idea, of what he and his group, do.
QUESTION 6: Helping Children
Trans-Siberian Orchestra, is into helping children. Are they helping? Is it a spectrum? Something different? I do not know.
Both Billboard Magazine and Pollstar have ranked them as one of the top twenty-five ticket-selling bands in the first decade of the new millennium.[8][9] Their path to success was unusual in that, according to O'Neill, TSO is the first major rock band to go straight to theaters and arenas, having never played at a club, never having an opening act and never being an opening act.[10]
Paul O'Neill managed and produced rock bands including Aerosmith, Humble Pie, AC/DC, Joan Jett, and Scorpions, later producing and co-writing albums by the progressive metal band Savatage, where he began working with Jon Oliva (who had left Savatage to spend time with his family and take care of personal matters), Al Pitrelli and Robert Kinkel. O'Neill took his first steps into rock music in the 1970s when he started the progressive rock band Slowburn, for whom he was the lyricist and co-composer. What was intended to be the band's debut album was recorded at Jimi Hendrix's Electric Lady Studios and engineered by Dave Wittman. Although Wittman's engineering was capturing the exact sound O'Neill was hearing in his head, O'Neill was having trouble with it because many of his melodies were between two and three octaves. Rather than releasing an album that he was not happy with, he shelved the project, but continued working in the industry at Contemporary Communications Corporation (also known as Leber & Krebs).[citation needed]
Over the years, O'Neill continued to work as a writer, producer, manager, and concert promoter. In 1996, he accepted Atlantic Records' offer to start his own band.[11] He built the band on a foundation created by the marriage of classical and rock music and the artists he idolized (Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Queen, Yes, The Who, and Pink Floyd, and hard rock bands such as Aerosmith and Led Zeppelin and the multiple lead vocalists of the R&B groups the Temptations and the Four Tops).[12] He brought in Oliva, Kinkel, and Pitrelli to help start the project. O'Neill has stated, "My original concept was six rock operas, a trilogy about Christmas and maybe one or two regular albums."[13]
In the 1980s I was fortunate enough to have visited Russia. If anyone has ever seen Siberia, it is incredibly beautiful but incredibly harsh and unforgiving as well. The one thing that everyone who lives there has in common that runs across it in relative safety is the Trans-Siberian Railway. Life, too, can be incredibly beautiful but also incredibly harsh and unforgiving, and the one thing that we all have in common that runs across it in relative safety is music. It was a little bit overly philosophical, but it sounded different, and I like the initials, TSO.[citation needed]
Christmas Eve and Other Stories and The Christmas Attic (1996–1998, 2014)[edit]
Their debut album, the first installment of the intended Christmas Trilogy, was a rock opera called Christmas Eve and Other Stories, and was released in 1996.[12] It remains among their best-selling albums. It contains the instrumental "Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24" which originally appeared on Savatage's rock opera, Dead Winter Dead, a story about the Bosnian War. Their 1998 release The Christmas Attic, the sequel to Christmas Eve and Other Stories followed a similar format. This album produced the hit "Christmas Canon", a take on Johann Pachelbel's Canon in D major with lyrics and new melodies added. The Christmas Attic was first performed live in 2014.
Beethoven's Last Night (1999–2000, 2010–2012)[edit]
Beethoven's Last Night was written and recorded in 1998 and 1999 and turned over to Atlantic Records in late 1999 for release in 2000. The story begins when Mephistopheles appears before Beethoven, whom Paul O'Neill refers to as "the world's first Heavy Metal Rock Star",[14][15] to collect the great composer's soul. Of course Beethoven is horrified at the thought of eternal damnation, but the devil has an offer and the bargaining begins. There are numerous plot twists including the fate of his music, and the ending is based on a true but little known fact about Beethoven. Also in 1998, at the request of Scott Shannon of WPLJ, they performed live for the first time in a charity concert for Blythedale Children's Hospital. In 1999, at the urging of Bill Louis, a DJ for WNCX in Cleveland, they did their first tour,[16] during which they debuted sections of Beethoven's Last Night. They performed the album in its entirety for the first time during the spring tour of 2010. In October 2011, Beethoven's Last Night was released in Europe to coincide with their European tour with new cover art by Greg Hildebrandt and the missing pages of poetry from the original release.
To coincide with the 2012 spring tour, Beethoven's Last Night: The Complete Narrated Version was released by Atlantic/Rhino/Warner Brothers Record.[18][19] This two-disc deluxe edition includes all the music from the original release and, for the first time, the narration featured during live performances of the album. It comes packaged with a booklet filled with Hildebrandt's illustrations of the story, plus the full lyrics and narration. The narration is performed by Bryan Hicks, who has been handling the live narration on the tours for this album. Creator Paul O'Neill explains, "This is how I have always envisioned the story being experienced. Where the listener can relax, close their eyes and within minutes be wandering the streets of 1800s Vienna with Beethoven on the last great adventure of his life."[20]
Whenever the band was off the road they returned to the studio and in 2004 completed The Lost Christmas Eve, the final installment of the Christmas Trilogy. It is a story of loss and redemption that encompasses a rundown hotel, an old toy store, a blues bar, a Gothic cathedral and their respective inhabitants all intertwined on a single enchanted Christmas Eve in New York City. The next year they combined all three Christmas albums and released them in a box set titled The Christmas Trilogy, which also contained a DVD of their 1999 TV special The Ghosts of Christmas Eve[21] (Each of the albums still continue to be available individually.) The Lost Christmas Eve was first performed live in 2012 followed by a encore tour in 2013.[22] Critics once again called it "stunning showmanship"[23] "that included every trick known to man kind including massive pyro, spectacular lasers, stages that hover over the audience, hot back up singers all the while constantly connecting with their audience."[24]
After another few years of touring, Night Castle, Trans-Siberian Orchestra's fifth album, was released on October 27, 2009 well received by fans and critics alike. It debuted at #5 on the Billboard Album Charts.[25] It was certified gold in eight weeks and is now platinum. "Their most ambitious and adventurous work to date. It runs the gamut from hard rock to classical taking the listener on a journey through history detailing the triumphs and follies of man but is ultimately a story of transformation and love."[26] Initially intended to be their first regular, non rock opera, consisting of ten stand alone songs album, O'Neill credits Jon Oliva persistence that it was too early for such a move and that the fifth album had to be a rock opera. Insisting that "TSO was not like any other band and that the fans expected a story. It was a little bit of a role reversal because when we were working in Savatage, I was always wanting to do a concept record."[27] The two-disc set includes a version of "O Fortuna" from Carmina Burana by Carl Orff, which was previewed live by the band during their 2004–2008 tours. An MP3 version of the album released through Amazon.com contains an additional track entitled "The Flight of Cassandra".[28][29]
The first half is a rock opera about a seven-year-old child on a beach who meets a stranger from New York City who tells her a story that takes her all around the world and through time where she encounters various characters, many of which are based on historical individuals such as Desiderius Erasmus. The second half pays homage to Trans-Siberian Orchestra's influences. It also contains new versions of several Savatage songs as well as "Nut Rocker", originally by B. Bumble and the Stingers and previously made famous by Emerson, Lake & Palmer, featuring Greg Lake on bass guitar.
In February 2011, Night Castle was released in Europe with two live bonus tracks ("Requiem" and "Toccata-Carpimus Noctem") added. Both live tracks were recorded on the 2010 spring tour at the Verizon Theatre at Grand Prairie, in Texas. Metal Kaoz, reviewed it as a two-hour plus double rock opera CD with, "no filler" that flows smoothly. "The classical layers meet the beauty of Metal music and form the fine blend... a wide range of emotions and musical colors...tracks that will blow your mind. Hit play and wander freely in TSO's, Night Castle."
On October 30, 2012 Trans-Siberian Orchestra released a new five-song EP entitled Dreams of Fireflies (On a Christmas Night) on Lava Republic Universal Records. It debuted in Billboard Magazine's Top 200 Albums chart at number #9, and #1 in the rock charts.[25] It was the band's first EP and with a list price of five dollars or under was Trans-Siberian Orchestra's way of saying thank you to their fans.[30] Rather than containing the usual TSO story, it was more like a Harry Chapin album where a short story is contained within the song. For example, "Someday" is about how people have a tendency to put off saying thank you to individuals that they owe a great debt to and with the best of intention tell themselves that they will do it someday. Also each song is accompanied by a short poem.
Tales of Winter: Selections from the TSO Rock Operas (2013)[edit]
Released on October 11, 2013, this fifteen-track collection is Trans-Siberian Orchestra's first greatest hits collection and includes songs from all six prior releases. Cover art once again provided by Greg Hildebrandt.
On November 11, 2011, TSO released a new choral piece entitled, "Who I Am". This was originally released as a digital download to fans who purchased tickets through the band's ticket pre-sale but is now available through other music sites as well as being released on their 2015 album, Letters from the Labyrinth. The song was performed live as the opening number for the 2011 winter tour in acknowledgment of the rough times many people in the world were going through but bringing a message of hope by pointing out that together we can solve these problems as earlier generations have done in the past.[31] It was accompanied by sound and video clips of individuals who helped humanity progress forward or overcome seemingly impossible situations. The first quote and image was Reverend M. L. King's voice echoing " I have a dream...that all men will be judged by the content of their character," followed by President Kennedy's inaugural challenge, "Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country." It included pictures of Jonas Salk, the scientist who cured polio, Saint "Mother" Theresa of Calcutta who spent her life caring for the unwanted and ended with Neil Armstrong taking the first step on the moon and the NASA's Gene Kranz paraphrased quote in regard to saving the astronauts aboard the damaged space capsule Apollo 13, that, "Failure is not an option."
In 2013 the band announced the late November release of a novella, Merry Christmas Rabbi. Referred to as the final missing piece to the Christmas Trilogy, it is the journal discovered by the girl in the Christmas Attic rock opera that leads into the song, "Dream Child". Press releases described it as "the story of a fateful Christmas Eve and how one of the craziest gambles in human history leads to a second chance for a troubled youth who finds himself past the point of no return."[32][33]
In June of 2017, the organization announced that they would continue with their Christmas-themed touring. The Ghosts of Christmas Eve story, which they had performed in 2015 and 2016, was announced as their story once again for the 2017 tour.[35]
David Z, bassist for TSO, died on July 14, 2017, while touring with Adrenaline Mob for their "We The People" tour; a tractor-trailer veered off Interstate 75 in Florida and struck the RV that Adrenaline Mob was riding in. Fellow TSO and Adrenaline Mob member Russell Allen was also injured in the accident.[36][37]
For the 20th annual TSO winter tour in 2018, the band decided to once again tour with The Ghosts of Christmas Eve story.[38] In 2019, TSO returned to the Christmas Eve and Other Stories show, which had previously been performed from the inaugural 1999 tour through 2011.[39] No tour was held in 2020, due to continued mass gathering restrictions tied to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States.[40] The band instead played an online livestream performance of Christmas Eve and Other Stories on December 18,[41] and returned to physical performances in 2021 with the same Christmas Eve and Other Stories show.[42]
In 2022, the band announced a tour of The Ghosts of Christmas Eve: The Best of TSO and More.[43]
In 2009, a group of musicians from the metro New York area formed a band, called The Wizards of Winter, inspired by TSO. The Wizards released their own limited-release Christmas album in 2011 while performing a mixture of TSO and original material in live concerts. In 2013, four of the original members of TSO — Tommy Farese, Guy LeMonnier, Tony Gaynor, and Michael Lanning toured as guests with The Wizards of Winter. Another original TSO vocalist, Joe Cerisano toured with them in 2014. The band released two new Christmas albums (The Wizards of Winter and The Magic of Winter) with Guy LeMonnier and Tony Gaynor joining the band as full members.[44] The band now performs their own original material when touring, with a few TSO songs added.[45] In June 2018, long-time TSO drummer John O. Reilly also joined the Wizards of Winter as a full member.[46]
In 2005 Carson Williams started a synchronized lighting race when he used 88 Light-O-Rama channels, over ten thousand lights and a small radio transmitter to illuminate his home to "Wizards in Winter".[47] A video of the house quickly went viral on the internet and eventually was picked up by Miller Lite as the theme for their TV ads over the next two years. Other homes soon followed eventually crossing to single homes with over a million lights.[5] Soon after entire cities like Denver and Chicago were lighting their downtown districts in a similar manner, as well as many major theme parks such as Disney World and Universal Studios.[48]
Since Trans-Siberian Orchestra began touring, the band has donated over $16 million to a combination of local and national charities. At every tour stop, the group donates one dollar or more from each ticket sold to a local charity in the city where they are performing.[49][50] A single day (two shows) in New Jersey's Izod arena yielded $40,000 to local charities.[51] The band helps any charity or group they think is in need but especially ones that protect and help children. In 2010 Paul O'Neill voiced the band's philosophy on the TSO's web site and also in the 2010 Winter Tour Book, "We are all in this together. We must look out for the well being of each other, most of all the young. For the young are the architects of the future and we are the architects of the young. We can not tell those yet to be born that we did our best." Paul was a well known history buff.[11][52][53]
Paul O'Neill constantly stated that the fans own the band: "TSO's goal is to make the best albums and concerts we possibly can, sparing no amount of time or expense and then charge the lowest possible price. No musician or singer is on the TSO flight deck for the money. We do it because we love the energy from the crowd especially the kids. Also in Trans Siberian Orchestra the crew are as much a member of the band as anyone on the flight deck. They actually have the hardest jobs. They are the first ones in and the last ones out. Watching them at work is like watching a well choreographed ballet or military operation. TSO could not be TSO without them and we know it."[54][55] Al Pitrelli summed it up more humorously, "No one in TSO is paid to be on the stage, that we do for free. The money is to stay out of trouble on our off time."
Over the years, O'Neill consistently thanks the audience,[51] referring to them as the second half of Trans-Siberian Orchestra and that without them TSO would just be notes and words echoing in an empty arena. "The fans' enthusiasm and energy power the stage show as much, if not more, than any local electric company."[56]
TSO are known for their elaborate live shows which employ lights, lasers and fog machines.
In 1999, TSO performed a stage adaptation of Christmas Eve and Other Stories for its first live tour.[57]
In 2009, Billboard ranked TSO as one of the Top 25 Touring Artists of the past decade.[8] Live shows are known for their extensive use of pyrotechnics, lasers, and lights synchronized with the performance.[5][12][58]
Between 2010 and 2012 spring tours were held, in which the entire Beethoven's Last Night album, and songs of Night Castle were played. In 2011, for the very first time in the band's history, a European leg was included, with venues predominantly in Germany, but also in Austria, Belgium, England, and Switzerland.[59] Initially, Savatage was announced to reunite at the end of the TSO setlist. However, the plans were scrapped, as the band cited undisclosed personal matters that held Jon Oliva from being available to tour.[60]
In 2013, TSO kicked off their second European tour with a performance on New Year's Eve 2013-14 in front of over one million fans at Berlin's Brandenburg Gate.[22] "A daring feat in which the band played three shows across two continents in 27 hours."[62] The show was broadcast live to millions more on German television.[62]
In August 2014 the band announced the first half of the winter tour they would feature The Christmas Attic, the only rock opera from the "Christmas Trilogy" never performed live up to that point.[63]
In August 2019, TSO announced the return of Christmas Eve and Other Stories for the winter tour.[64]
In August 2022, TSO announced the return of the Ghosts of Christmas Eve for the winter tour.[65] A new instrumental song entitled "Carousels of Christmas", written by Jon Oliva, is being performed on the 2022 tour.
On July 30, 2015, Trans-Siberian Orchestra and a reunited Savatage headlined the 26th edition of Wacken Open Air Festival in Germany, which is the largest metal festival in the world. The 2015 festival lasted three days and featured over one hundred bands.[66] This event marked both TSO's first outdoor festival appearance and first Savatage show in 13 years.[67] A massive set was designed so that the two main festival stages would be identical, although this aspect of the show was not revealed until the second half of the performance. For the first 40 minutes Savatage played a reunion show featuring Jon Oliva as the main lead singer for the first time in over 25 years, as well as Zak Stevens. This was followed by a Trans-Siberian Orchestra set on the next stage debuting several new songs. Following this, for the first time in music history, the entire band played a coordinated set spanning the two festival main stages, connected by a catwalk. This united Trans-Siberian Orchestra featured four guitarists, four keyboard players, two drummers, two bassists, a full string section, and 24 vocalists and dancers performing in sync for nearly 80,000 people.[68]
In the televised broadcast a week after the show but right before the actual performance, Paul O'Neill and Al Pitrelli admitted to being blindsided by non-stop rain and mud on the night before which removed any chance to check the staging until the actual show.[69] Metal Recusants, which favorably reviewed the entire event said, "If all the above shows were spectacular and memorable the Savatage's and Trans-Siberian Orchestra show is a whole new level of shows...I have never seen such a thing take place before and it was definitely a once in a lifetime experience."[70]
