The programme opened with Suppe’s Overture "Morning, Noon and Night" during which the orchestra warmed up nicely. This was followed by MacCunn’s "Land of the Mountain & the Flood" and here all sections began to show their quality.
The gem of the programme was the next work, French composer Jean Francaix’s "L’Horloge de Flore" (the floral clock) in which Geoffrey Bridge (a member of the orchestra) played the demanding solo oboe part. This lovely work has 7 contrasting movements, and requires virtuosic players from the woodwind section as well as the soloist, and the whole thing came off beautifully. There were moments when the timing of entries was crucial to the full realization of the music; these were skilfully handled by the musicians. This was a composition that not many amateur orchestras could even consider performing, but TSO took it in their stride, and gave the soloist excellent support.
After the Francaix, we had Eric Coates "London Suite" in which the trumpet section deserves special mention – this is music in a lighter vein which was much appreciated by the capacity audience.
After the interval we had a powerful reading of Wagner’s Overture to the Mastersingers, followed by Gordon Jacob’s pastiche on Rossini entitled "Barber of Seville goes to the Devil" which was very humorous and superbly executed. This was followed by Sullivan’s "Merchant of Venice" Suite, and conductor Ron Walker ensured that the final work - Johann Strauss’s "Blue Danube" Waltz - was given a suitably sparkling performance to end the evening.