From April 10-12, Florida Orchestra audiences will be present for the U.S. premiere of a concerto for three trombones.
A trombone concerto is a rare thing in the classical world, at least compared to works for violin and piano.
It will feature Joël Vaïsse, TFO principal trombonist; Ross Holcombe, associate principal trombonist; and guest trombonist Amanda Stewart.
Vaïsse was there to give the world premiere in Toulouse, France, last year.
That performance "was a bit more stressful than this time. Because all of us, the soloists and the orchestra, played "Tribones" for the first time ever, so it was a discovery, and you don't really know how it is going to sound. But after the first five minutes of playing, everyone was smiling because it sounded so go and beautiful and by the end, everyone was so enthusiastic about the piece," he said.
Resident conductor Chelsea Gallo will lead the orchestra in this weekend's concerts.
"I'm doing the U.S. premiere of a triple trombone concerto that had an unbelievable premiere in France, and it's going to bring the house down. But on that same program's Beethoven seven, because this is an orchestra that can do everything really, they're just amazing," Gallo said.
Holcombe believes Tampa Bay audiences will embrace the new work.
"Sometimes we hear 'premiere' and wonder if it's going to be unpleasant. But this piece is very accessible. It's tonal, rhythmic and cinematic. The melodies are so good that I think the audience will go to intermission humming some of what they heard in the concerto!" he said.
As Gallo mentioned, the program features "Beethoven's Symphony No. 7 and Ferde Grofe's "Mississippi Suite" for the works 100th anniversary.
The Florida Orchestra concerts are tonight at 8 at the Straz Center in Tampa, Saturday at 8 at the Mahaffey Theater and Sunday night at 7:30 at Ruth Eckerd Hall. You can get more details on The Florida Orchestra website.
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