Concert Society Returns With A Beautiful Gift

By Shannon Hicks

Maria Ferrante’s performance was flawless, the program’s selections were perfect, and the house was once again filled to nearly overflowing.

The 5th Annual Holiday Concert & Reception, featuring a performance by The Concert Society Chamber Orchestra at Trinity Church, continued a series that began five years ago with a similarly wonderful performance by the orchestra. On Friday, December 30, an audience filled the pews in the Episcopal church’s sanctuary, which was still decorated for the holidays, and enjoyed nearly two hours of music conducted by the Newtown resident Maestro Richard Serbagi. Even a few dozen folding chairs that had been placed in the church’s choir area/balcony were occupied.

From the opening notes of the Allegro within Vivaldi’s Concerto in C Major for Two Trumpets, Strings and Continuo, which featured Daryl Robbins and Valentine Wolfe as the two trumpet soloists, to the closing Rindo of Beethoven’s Piano Concerto #3 in C minor, Op 37, which featured another of the evening’s soloists — this time the pianist Andrew Armstrong — the concert inspired awe and joy.

 His tall frame twisting, sometimes seeming elastic in its weaving and flowing, Maestro Serbagi directed the musicians through a lovely performance. Also featuring selections of Alexandre Ransmen (Variations on a Theme of Girolamo Frescobaldi), J.S. Bach (Kantate BWV 51 Jauchzet Gott in Allen Landen) and Tchaikovsky (Waltz from the Serenade for Strings), the concert’s program had been thought about for months by Mr Serbagi. The music was at times playful, sad and sorrowful, while at other moments almost grand and romantic.

The orchestra offered a full, rich sound that was well suited for the beautiful sanctuary of Trinity Church.

In a preconcert interview with The Bee, Mr Serbagi had joked about asking soprano Maria Ferranta what she wanted to sing this year. Ms Ferrante has been a special guest soloist for all four previous concerts and while Mr Serbagi has considered inviting another soloist to perform with The Concert Society, he has always heard that attendees enjoy her performances so much that they want her to return again.

Mr Serbagi laughed when he talked about the fifth appearance by Ms Ferrante in Newtown.

“They want her, it’s as simple as that,” he said a few weeks ago. “I’ve said in the past that I should have something different, but they want her. So I contact her and ask her, ‘Alright Maria, what are you going to sing this time?’

“They want her back, and this year she’s going to do a wonderful, very famous Bach cantata.”

Ms Ferrante’s selection was indeed wonderful. Her voice, which filled the room, almost belied the petite nature of her body. She smiled as she approached the podium, seemed to be enjoying herself as she sang, and absolutely beamed at the conclusion of the cantata. She and the audience were both so pleased with the performance that she returned for an encore of the work’s third Aria. After performing the short segment at a quicker pace that had previously been utilized, Ms Ferrante bowed, smiled once more, and received a standing ovation.

Mr Serbagi, who mentioned in his preconcert interview that he thinks about each year’s program almost as soon as he and The Concert Society have finished performing, can and should enjoy the success of the 2005 concert… for a little while. Then he will no doubt tell himself that it’s time to start thinking about 2006.

Anyone who attended Friday evening’s concert already knows how good the performance was. Anyone who missed it should start planning to attend the 2006 concert.

The Concert Society’s annual concerts in Newtown have all been fundraisers. Previous performances have helped fill the coffers for C.H. Booth Library, Newtown Scholarship Association and Newtown Friends of Music. The recipient of this year’s was Kevin’s Community Center.

“This clinic is a wonderful venture,” Mr Serbagi said prior to the concert’s opening notes. “I applaud Dr [Z. Michael] Tahweh and his staff. I also applaud this orchestra.”

Dr Tahweh, who founded the Newtown-based medical clinic, also spoke briefly Friday night. He reminded the audience members that 100 percent of the ticket sales will benefit the community center, whose mission is to provide free health care for Newtown residents over the age of 16 who are uninsured or underinsured and who have limited financial resources.

More than ten percent of Newtown’s population — about 2,700 people — are uninsured and/or suffer chronic pain, Dr Tahweh reminded the audience. On Friday alone, said Dr Tahweh, the clinic diagnosed a case of breast cancers and a patient with HIV.