The Monte-Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra celebrated the richness of 20th-century American music with a concert at Auditorium Rainier III on Sunday, October 25, bringing together celebrated works by Leonard Bernstein, Samuel Barber and Aaron Copland…
The programme opened with Bernstein’s lively overture to Candide, setting the tone for an evening that explored the energy, emotion and distinctive character of American orchestral composition.
Young American violinist Randall Goosby took centre stage for Barber’s Violin Concerto, Op. 14, demonstrating the talent that has established him as an internationally recognised soloist.
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The orchestra was conducted by Lio Kuokman, Musical Director of the Macao Orchestra, who spoke of his personal connection to the featured composers through their shared association with the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, where he also studied.
The second half of the programme featured four dance episodes from Copland’s Rodeo, composed in 1942, before concluding with Bernstein’s exhilarating Symphonic Dances from West Side Story.
Combining familiar melodies with technically demanding orchestral writing, the concert offered audiences a journey through some of the defining works of American classical music.
The concert also carried a charitable dimension, with the evening dedicated to supporting the fight against cancer.
Image: Monaco Info
