Sunday night in Slosberg was a tropical rainforest or, at least, that's what it sounded like. The first song of the performance, "Glimmer" composed by Jeff Roberts (GRAD), had its world premier in Slosberg Recital Hall. Using a few flutes, some thick branches, glass bottles, violins and a brass marimba here and there, "Glimmer" sounded like the score for a movie set in the jungle. Conductor Neal Hampton gave some explanation letting us know we were the first audience to hear "Glimmer." The music had a watery flow to it. Almost like a storm, it started as the calm before the storm, moved into the peak of the storm and finally to the slow and relaxing aftermath. Roberts spoke of his piece, saying, "I imagine moonlight projecting occasionally on the surface of a placid mountain lake." It certainly had a calm about it, which the conductor described as "an attentive calm, not a bored calm."

After they played "Glimmer" twice, the orchestra moved on to a different piece entitled "Schelomo (Rhapsodie hebraique)" composed by Ernest Bloch, with Joshua Silverstein '06 playing the extremely beautiful, full and complex cello solo. The Schelomo is the most widely known of Bloch's Jewish works and was originally conceived for voice and orchestra.

Bloch had created a number of sketches from the Book of Ecclesiastes which served as a basis for this piece. He changed the vocal solo to a cello solo and worked from there. The cello plays the "voice" of Solomon in his lamentation. Silverstein played beautifully, starting slowly and fully on his own, then moving into a minor tone, evoking a feeling of anguish and sorrow. The piece ended strongly with a quiet coda suggesting an accepted sadness. Silverstein captured that sorrow beautifully, and the room was silent for a moment when he finished before breaking into enthusiastic applause.

After a brief intermission, the orchestra convened again with an Aaron Copland piece entitled "Our Town." It had a smooth, flowing, pretty sound. This work was the first step in establishing Copland as a formidable composer. Copland pieces have a distinct sound, very light and jazz-like, and "Our Town" as well as the film the music was composed for, runs very much in the direction of his usual works.
Finally, we were treated to "Concerto No. 2 for Piano and Orchestra, Op. 102" by the Russian composer and pianist Dmitri Shostakovich. This piece featured Amy Cho of Wellesley College as the piano soloist. Cho was a treat. She played the entire movement from memory and it was not a simple melody she played. Cho played this intensely difficult piece flawlessly. The upbeat sound of the rest of the orchestra playing during her difficult part made the piece run very smoothly. Her skill was mesmerizing and the music itself was so intense that one could barely breathe. At the end, a thunderous applause shook the recital hall, well earned and well-deserved.

The Brandeis-Wellesley Orchestra was certainly a treat with some new music, some old music and two amazing solos. They work well together and it was a pleasure for everyone in the audience to experience the performances of Silverstein and Cho, not to mention the rest of this fantastic group of musicians.