SoundWaves with The Florida Orchestra

Is it possible to find someone who cannot hum a bit of Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons -- arguably one of the most enduring works of all time? Vivaldi presents a musical travelogueof spring, summer, autumn and winter, complete with bird songs, shimmering creeks, a thunderstorm, peasant’s dance and a freezing ice storm. It’s exuberant and captivating every time. Another masterpiece on the program is Mozart’s Symphony No. 39, one of three...

This program spotlights an unusual instrument for a classical program: the saxophone. For Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet, the tenor saxophone makes a rare appearance in a symphony orchestra with the theme representing Juliet. Of Prokofiev’s nine ballet scores, this is his finest – even though he originally wrote a happy ending to Shakespeare’s tragedy. An “altered” version was performed, however. The saxophone is front and center for...

Beethoven composed his Violin Concerto in 1806, when he was deaf. From the onset, the music unfolds with a sense of spaciousness, its character more graceful than frenetic. This work is not about power and bravura but poise and spirituality. At nearly 45 minutes, it also requires a lot of stamina for the soloist. Also on the program are Šárka and Die Moldau from Smetana’s Ma Vlast, a set of six tone poems depicting life and nature ...

For some listeners, Tchaikovsky’s evergreen Piano Concerto No. 1 is overplayed and overwrought. For others, it never fails to thrill with its embraceable tunes and striking rhythmic flourish. No, Tchaikovsky wasn’t subtle, and this piece is supercharged with pulsating sentiment. Meanwhile, the music of English composer William Walton is seldom heard in American concert halls, so a performance of his Belshazzar’s Feast is a treat. T...

A concert immersed in the sea. It opens with Garth Neustadter’s Seaborne, a film with stunning images of the sea set to music, performed by the Percussion Collective. The work explores water from the air, surface and underwater vantage points. Then the concert flows to Sibelius’ The Oceanides, which has been described as “the finest evocation of the sea that has ever been produced in music.” In Debussy’s La Mer, he pays tribute to ...

Variations on a Rococo Theme is the closest Tchaikovsky ever came to writing a cello concerto. Scored for a reduced orchestra, the Variations assume a chamber-like texture and balance the sweetness of the classical style with a romantic warmth, the soloist never leaving the spotlight − much less having a moment to rest. The program opens with the tone poem Elegia Andina by Gabriele Lena Frank. She was born hearing impaired, yet the...

Felix Mendelssohn’s best-loved work has to be his radiant Violin Concerto. It is loaded with good tunes. In particular is the finale, a puckish movement full of sparkle and bravado. One of the most significant African-American composers of the 20th century, William Dawson seamlessly wove folksong into works such as the Negro Folk Symphony. Quotes from American spirituals simmer throughout the work, which ends in an explosion of rhy...

Brahms’ idyllic Symphony No. 2 radiates warmth – until an explosion of brass announces one of the most exciting endings in music. In Grieg’s impassioned Piano Concerto, the opening rumble of timpani sends the piano on a flourish of unforgettable melodies. This fragrant and impassioned work is among the most performed – and recorded – of any music in the repertoire. Rounding out the program is Samuel Coleridge-Taylor’s fresh and ene...

The concert pairs two of the most famous openings in music: Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 and Richard Strauss’ Also sprach Zarathustra (Theme from 2001: A Space Odyssey). In Beethoven’s Fifth, it’s up to you, the listener, to interpret those four iconic bursts of sound – da da da dum! Fate knocking at the door? Victory over tyranny? A deaf composer shaking his fist at his lot in life? In Zarathustra, you’ll get a true feel for Strauss...

Rachmaninoff’s Symphony No. 3 may be his most intriguing – and underrated – symphony. Four decades separate Rachmaninoff’s First and Third symphonies, both neglected compared to the celebrated Second. Written in America, his Third Symphony radiates lush romantic melodies, drenched in his trademark orchestral colors. The program starts off with Sibelius’ Violin Concerto, an unquestioned masterpiece revered by concert violinists for ...

Ravel’s Bolero begins quietly and ends demonically. The repetition – a maddening rat-a-tat-tat of the snare drum – may sound simple, but the gradual crescendo builds into a frenzy of intensity and brilliant color. Ravel himself underestimated the appeal of the piece, calling it “orchestration without music.” Instead of sliding into oblivion, Bolero enjoys unflagging popularity still today. Also on the program: De Falla’s Nights in ...

Mahler knew how to think big. For his Symphony No. 2, “Resurrection,” he stuffed the stage with 270 musicians, including 10 trumpets and 10 horns in the original score. It took Mahler five years to complete the symphony, which stretches more than 80 minutes and holds a special place among musicians and audiences. Today, millions of people have heard the Resurrection for the first time not in the concert hall, but in the movie Maest...

The power of friendship. Edward Elgar’s most popular work, Enigma Variations, was dedicated to 14 friends portrayed in the pieces – from his wife to an Oxford professor, a bulldog and even Elgar himself. Like the Elgar, each section of Ravel’s Le Tombeau de Couperin (The Grave of Couperin) is dedicated to someone the composer knew, but this time they are friends who died on the battlefield. The music is far from gloomy. The compose...

We’re taking a tour of France in the spring. Magnifique! Saint-Saens’ Organ Symphony – used so effectively in the 1995 movie Babe – is a lush masterpiece that builds and builds until … wait for it … the organ is let loose in the finale. Fauré’s Requiem creates a place of peace and serenity with rich, soulful melodies, featuring The Master Chorale of Tampa Bay. The vibrant energy of Lili Boulanger’s Of a Spring Morning begins the co...

Antonin Dvorak’s Ninth Symphony is as big a deal today as it was in 1893, when it premiered with huge fanfare at Carnegie Hall in New York. The Ninth was special. Major composer. Written in America. Inspired by African-American spirituals. No wonder it prompted one of the most elaborate music reviews in the history of newspapers, a 3,000-word essay. In Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante for violin and viola, the sublime middle movement ...

This is the symphony that changed all symphonies, Beethoven’s monumental Third. No one had heard anything like it before. The work was originally called “Bonaparte” after Napoleon, but a disgruntled Beethoven hastily changed the title to “Eroica,” meaning heroic. Shostakovich’s Piano Concerto No. 2 breaks free from oppression after the death of Stalin. The program starts with the evocative Chairman Dances: Foxtrot for Orchestra, co...

Cellist, conductor, Robin Hood of Fried Chicken

For TFO Associate Principal Cello Victor Minke Huls, his life in music started way before he was born. And it keeps getting better. From homework in the concert hall to conducting, salsa dancing, an Irish family band and his secret career as a counter tenor, the Florida native keeps adding to an amazing life. Dare we mention that unfortunate job in the school cafeteria? With. All. That...

 A heroic concert indeed. Beethoven’s famed Piano Concerto No. 5, “Emperor,” composed when he was deaf, is a stunning example of Beethoven’s stubborn nature. He overcame his liability to create a work of unprecedented depth and expression. The adagio is simply sublime. “The concerto encapsulates the heroic struggle of the individual,’’ says TFO Music Director Michael Francis, “and how one determined soul can influence the world aro...