Alya Mehrtash staff writer
The Concert and Chamber Orchestras performed at the “Harvest of Harmony” fall orchestra concert on Oct. 11. Both groups separately performed three different songs throughout the performance. Overall, the concert was a complete success and showcased the program’s musical strength.
After a quick introduction by music director Bill Bradbury, Concert Orchestra began with its iteration of J. S. Bach’s “Brandenburg Concerto No. 3” While the violins did sound a little too high pitched at certain points of the song, overall all of the instruments worked well together to present a well performed piece.
Next, they played “Wondrous Flight” by Bruce Tippette. In the beginning of the song, the violins had a more steady beat to follow while the cello had more choppy notes, but the two differing sounds complimented each other. This was one of the slower pieces played by the Concert Orchestra and each instrument seemed to have a more distinguished role in the song.
The Concert Orchestra finished with Mozart’s “Symphony No. 12, K110 (First movement.)” The piece was had a more classical style than Concert Orchestra’s other performed pieces. The five double bass players were very in sync and had a much more active role in this song compared to the others.
After Concert Orchestra finished its three pieces, Chamber Orchestra, the more advanced group, came onto the stage and began to play J. C. Bach’s “Sinfonia in D Major ‘Allegro.’” This song was filled with much higher, sharper notes played especially by the violins and violas.
They then played George F. Handel’s “Chaconne and Variations.” Compared to the other pieces, Handel’s piece had a much slower and mellow melody.
Chamber Orchestra closed the concert with N. Rimsky-Korsakov’s “Capriccio Espagnol.” Before they began, Bradbury encouraged the audience to think of the piece as more of a “collection of Spanish dances.” Capriccio Espagnol was filled with many more small-group portions and solos in between the song, including an incredible solo by senior violinist William Lee. The piece was a phenomenal end to the entire concert.
Bradbury hopes that at the next concert the audience will see musical progress in the program. The next orchestra concert will be held on Dec. 6 at the Salter Theater. Highlights gives this show a 4.5 out of 5.