Music director, Jessel Murray, conducting the National
Sinfonia Orchestra.

Sunday evening’s National Sinfonia Orchestra in Concert, (NSO) can be summed up in two words: world class. And the scores of classical music enthusiasts who filed into Queen’s Hall, St Ann’s, to take in the sweet sounds seemed to agree.

The concert, which started at 6pm, marked the first collaboration between the NSO and the National Steel Symphony Orchestra, (NSSO) and was the kick-start to the sixth season of music making. A second concert, dubbed A Southern Christmas, is expected to be held in San Fernando in December. Decked in matching black and white outfits and under the capable hands of music director Jessel Murray, the Orchestra proved that they could hold their own, delivering classics such as, Modest Mussorgsky’s Night on Bald Mountain, Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s Marche Slave and the world premier, Gary Gibson’s Caprice.

Flute, violin, trombone, clarinet, french horn and steelpan, among others, blended together to produce sweet sounds of music, much to the delight of the audience. Pianist Sean Sutherland, one of two solo acts of the evening, captivated the crowd with Piano Concerto In Minor, Op16 by Edwards Grief. Not to be outdone was soloist Mezza-soprano Michele Dowrich, who showed off her powerful vocals, singing La Favorita’s O Mio Fernando. The concert climaxed on a high note with a rendition of the late Lord Kitchener’s 1973 Road March hit Rainorama. Patrons, among them President George Maxwell Richards and his wife Dr Jean Ramjohn Richards, seemed to be more than satisfied with their choice of enjoyment for the evening and showed their appreciation with thunderous applause.

Jerome Julien: 'Excellent show'
“It was excellent,” declared Jerome Julien, Chairman of the Orchestra Society of T&T, in an interview after the concert. Julien said Sunday’s concert was one with a difference as it was the first year that the steel pan had been added to the Orchestra. “We were able to add a local instrument along with the classical instruments. I’m sure now we will always include the pan.”

While expressing satisfaction with the evening’s proceedings, Julien said there was one thing he would like to change. “You can see that the audience is a grown up audience. We want to change that. We’re hoping to get more young people interested in classical music.”

About NSO
Formed in 2004 by the Orchestral Society of T&T, (OSTT), the NSO presents the finest age-appropriate orchestral literature available to persons from as young as 13-years-old. Since its debut, the NSO has performed extensively in collaboration with the Festival Arts Chorale, UWI and other leading choral organisations and solo artistes within T&T.

About NSSO
The NSSO, which is conducted by Jessel Murray, was formed in 2007 by the Ministry of Community Development, Culture and Gender Affairs and is comprised of 35 steelpan players. The Orchestra exclusively utilises the Genesis Pans (G pans) and has performed at the fifth Summit of the Americas in April before the 34 Heads of State of Government at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, as well as at President’s House for King Juan Carlos of Spain in 2008.