“James Ross is already making a mark as the new music director of the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra,” writes Charles T. Downey in Monday’s (11/5) Washington Post. “His latest program, heard on Saturday night … had a first half devoted entirely to American composers and also put a spotlight on music by women [with] the world premiere of a new cello concerto by Washington composer Jessica Krash…. The piece is a vivid series of fantasy landscapes….. Bluesy turns and hints of Latin rhythms dot the texture, with especially wistful melodic writing in the slow movement. Soloist Tanya Anisimova’s cello … explored many delicate sounds…. Ross paired the new work with pieces by Leonard Bernstein…. In the Overture to West Side Story and especially the Three Dance Episodes from On the Town, the orchestra played with verve and a willingness to get dirty…. The concert concluded with a moody rendition of Mendelssohn’s Third Symphony…. Ross prefaced the piece by speaking about Mendelssohn’s older sister, Fanny, and how the world of classical music excluded women such as her for so long. He then invited ASO pianist Sophie Cook to perform Fanny Mendelssohn’s ‘Notturno in G Minor’ as a prelude to the symphony.”
Posted November 6, 2018
