Hallett, Grant, Schaefer, Beethoven, Strauss, Jacobs, Marks & Donizetti: Twilight Serenade, Vol. 9

American audiences seem to have a special affection for the open-air concerts of the "music under the stars" variety. The stars are not yet apparent at the opening of the concerts which usually start during the last hour of daylight. Then stars gradually emerge from the half-light, half-dark twilight sky. Muted scenic colors begin to blend with the sound of the orchestra as the kaleidoscopic flow of the celestial scene vies with the changing hues of the music for greatest dramatic effect. And, as soft breezes carry the transient tones to their ears, audiences from the Hollywood Bowl to Tanglewood, from New York’s Lewisohn Stadium to the Red Rocks of Colorado relax and enjoy a 'Twilight Serenade'. Nathaniel Shilkret has assembled an impressive array of virtuosos into the Symphonic 'Pops.' Jimmy Abato’s saxophone highlights the title song, a dream-charged package of mood music. Pianists Sherman Frank and Aurora Mauro-Cottone are heard in two virtuoso excerpts of contrasting nature – the one from Richard Strauss’ 'Burleske', that bitterly humorous satire of the stereotyped Romantic piano concerto, the other from a concerto by the French composer Benjamin Godard – the kind of Romantic composition that provided the subject for Strauss’ satire. The flashing technique of violinist Tosha Samaroff sets the stage of the Broadway Opera Company’s production of The Magic Fiddle (which incorporates bits of music from Paganini’s Violin Concerto). This delightful operetta deals with the life of the now almost legendary wizard of the violin. The singers also show their virtuosity as Yvonne Ciannella, Jon Crain, Jimi Beni, Lee Cass, Beatrice Krebs and John Druary join in an English version of the popular sextet from Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor. From a Spanish birthday greeting to a Beethoven rondo, the light, yet warm Shilkret touch predominates.