Reviewer Olivia Bevan

Forget February chill, the warmth of Vancouver this Olympic season is less about the mild temperatures and more about the welcoming nature of its people and the openness of its culture. No where was this more evident than with Bramwell Tovey’s charismatic and personable presence on the stage during Voodoo Valentine. Funnier than many stand-up comics, he related wonderfully to the audience and took time to explain the orchestral pieces, peppering his descriptions with small anecdotes and even the odd on-stage mishap, which only served to humanize classical music.

Opening tonight’s performance was Sergey Prokofiev’s passion-filled Romeo and Juliet Suite. Deep, resonating brass represented the house of Romeo’s enemies in this recognisable well-loved piece, while contrasting beautiful Juliet appeared as a delicate cornet. In the balcony scene the mood lightened and you could almost visualise love unfolding, brought to life with just the lightest touches of violin and viola.

The second piece, Winter Poems, by Canadian composer Glen Buhr consisted of three movements of which the first and third were absolutely captivating. Musical influences from across the world helped visualise delicate wind chimes blowing in the Prairie winds, providing a transfixing, emotional experience that enthralled the audience. In between these mesmerizing movements was a more dynamic piece full of mystery, switchbacks and uncertainty which, because of its lack of clear melody, required a little more concentration to follow.

Stillness fell over everyone when the piece ended as Bramwell Tovey led a one minute silence in memory of the Georgian athlete who lost his life.

Following the intermission was a beautiful performance of John Weinzweig’s neoclassical Divertimento No 1 for Flute and String Orchestra by Principal Flautist Christie Reside. A piece inspired in 1945 by a band member practising long, slow notes in the RAF barracks and written for a small orchestra, as was practical at the time. Christie displayed beautiful tone and control as her flute rose beautifully above the strings and weaved among them.

The final performance of the evening belonged to Daniel Bernard Roumain (or DBR as he’s known), a part-American, part-Haitian violin virtuoso who promised to offer a new perspective on music. “I hope you dig it,” he remarked. “See you on the other side.” His Voodoo Violin Concerto was a melting pot of blues, bass, jazz and classics, united through cultural influences and improvisation.

His upbeat performance and catchy rhythm had the audience clapping their hands and tapping their feet, clearly open to such an open-minded musical experience. During the performance, members of the VSO took turns in standing up to take part in a duet / dance-off with DBR, feeding off one another and working together in a vivacious, sparkling piece of creative improvisation. The audience loved it.

In contrast to this, the final piece of the evening was a duet between DBR and Bramwell Tovey who took to the piano to work a little sublime, heart-felt jazz magic on this romantic evening.

Despite not having the jazz-bar-essential olive-dressed martini, the evening was perfect. I can only begin to imagine how much the out-of-town visitors must have enjoyed Vancouver at its finest.