On March 29, the Geneseo Symphony Orchestra performed a concert featuring the winners of this year's concerto competition.
Performing under the expert direction of conductor James Walker, the featured soloists brought a dynamic, refreshing quality to the afternoon's show.
The first soloist to grace the Wadsworth Auditorium stage was flutist and senior music performance major Krystle Fryzel. With the full orchestra, she played Cécile Chaminade's Concerto for Flute in D Major. She impressively entertained the audience by playing her light, airy solos while appearing at ease.
The next piece the orchestra performed was Franz Lehar's "Mine Lippen, Sie kussen So Heiss" from "Giuditta," which featured soprano and senior musical theater major Norma Butikofer.
Butikofer was able to blend in with the backing instrumentals while maintaining bold, reverberating vocals.
The song itself is about a woman talking about the "fiery kisses" her lips are capable of giving. Through her physical and facial nuances, Butikofer surpassed the language barrier of the song to express this idea to even those audience members who were unfamiliar with the theme of the foreign work.
Freshman psychology and music performance major Sara Wigderson was the next soloist. She played the cello for the Allegro Maestoso of Edouard Lalo's Cello Concerto in D Minor. Wigderson conveyed the melancholy feel of the piece through her expert performance.
Sophomore psychology major and violin soloist Jihyeon Joe Ahn played with the orchestra during the performance of "Winter" from Antonio Vivaldi's popular piece "The Seasons."
Throughout three different movements, Ahn conveyed the feeling of winter that Vivaldi originally portrayed in his work. Junior biology and music major Lindsay Borglum performed the viola solo on Ralph Vaughan Williams' Suite for Viola.
The final and perhaps most dynamic performance of the show was Leo Delibes' Duet "Sous Le Dome Epais" from "Lakme."
Juniors Annie Gruenwald and Danielle Relyea took on the difficult piece with charm, as they portrayed a conversation between characters Lakme and Mallika who are in awe of the flowers and birds around them. Aside from their graceful vocals, they were able to convey the emotions Delibes put in the piece though their interaction and chemistry on stage.
The Geneseo Symphony Orchestra performs several times throughout the semester in Wadsworth Auditorium. Their next show features Geneseo's wind and jazz ensembles and will take place on April 17.