Page 72 - 2022-Spring Summer Magazine_FINAL Single_Neat

A praised composer and director,
Mr. Schwarz was hired to head the
85-100 piece orchestra, now worthy of
a peerless venue, such as West Palm
Beach’s own Kravis Center for the
Performing Arts.

The first piece, Kikimora, took the
captivated audience on a journey
through an Anatol Liadov tone
poem—weaving the story of an evil
sprite who passed each night spinning
his dour intentions for the world in
flaxen thread. The arrangement’s
tempo served as an exciting
introduction as Bronfman appeared
and took his spot at the piano, before
initiating Rachmaninoff’s Piano
Concerto No. 3. Intermission arrived
as though waking from a dream.

Upon return, the audience was regaled
once more by Symphony No. 5—a
masterwork of embattled composer
Dmitri Shostakovich. Beginning in
ominous tones before culminating
in a mighty and brutish finale
inspired by Stalin’s rule, there was
no misinterpretation of the genius
behind the composition, nor its
modern execution.The result was a
performance none of them, nor any
Club Braman member in attendance,
would soon forget.

Though an impossible performance
to follow, the Symphony’s March
7th concert celebrating the works of
Ludwig van Beethoven and Gustav
Mahler offered a once-in-a-lifetime
experience. In the midst of the opening
weeks of the Ukrainian invasion, the
orchestra performed the embattled
country’s national anthem prior to
the night’s program. Not a single note
was missed, nor a seat empty upon its
conclusion as the extensive ovation
continued for some time.

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