There are at this point only a relatively small number of 20th-century American compositions that have entered the repertory on any kind of permanent basis. But two of them were on an all-American program presented by the Firebird Chamber Orchestra on Thursday night at St. Gregory’s Episcopal Church in Boca Raton. And the third piece on the program is attractive enough to … [Read more...]
Firebird’s evening of serenades shines, enchants
The days when your basic high-end party for the swells featured fresh music by a talented local composer are long gone, but the music itself lives, and in a good performance, can go some way toward reviving a lost era of graceful living. The Firebird Chamber Orchestra’s current program of serenades does just that, with refreshingly buoyant and engaging performances of early … [Read more...]
From Firebird, a peerless night of J.S. Bach
On the one hand, it's no mystery why the Brandenburg Concertos of J.S. Bach should be so rarely played in local concerts. Engaging as they are, canonical and popular as they unquestionably are, they are also very difficult. And in some ways, that only deepens the mystery: If you're an ambitious instrumental musician or conductor, why not spend some time learning or … [Read more...]