On Saturday, September 30 at the Broome County Forum Theatre, the Binghamton Philharmonic Orchestra opened its 2023-2024 season with “Beethoven’s Fifth,” a dynamic performance of some of the best-loved works of classical music.
Maestro Daniel Hege conducted the orchestra and cellist Annie Jacobs-Perkins gave a mesmerizing performance as the soloist in Edward Elgar’s Cello Concerto in E minor, causing the audience to leap to its feet and demand an encore. Jacobs-Perkins obliged with a virtuosic solo by the young American composer Andrew Norman, “Sabina,” a piece so haunting and delicate that the audience seemed to hold its breath.
The concert started out with the jaunty and uplifting Variations on a Shaker Melody by Aaron Copland, and finished with a rousing performance of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 in C minor, which brought the audience to its feet a second time. It was wonderful to see many enthusiastic children in the audience, thanks not only to the free youth tickets provided by the Philharmonic’s sponsors, but also to the “Ties & Tutus” program that invites Binghamton City School students to a sit-down dinner, pre-concert chat, and free tickets to a symphonic performance. One elementary student told this reviewer: “I’m so excited to hear Beethoven! Classical music makes me feel alive.” It was clear that this young girl was speaking for the audience as a whole.
The Binghamton Philharmonic’s season continues on October 15 with The Dolphins String Quartet in the Garufi Law P.C. Phelps Mansion Museum Series, and on October 28 at the Forum Theatre with Phantom of the Philharmonic. For more information, visit www.binghamtonphilharmonic.org.
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