I was thrilled to perform as soloist with the Alabama Symphony and conductor Carlos Izcaray at the Alys Stephens Center earlier this month in Paul Desenne’s imaginative violin concerto “The Two Seasons of the Caribbean Tropics”. I was asked on three weeks notice to learn the piece and come perform it on a concert of Desenne works. The concerto is in six movements, three for the rainy season and three for the dry season, replete with sounds of crickets and frogs, rain on tin roofs and windshield wipers, mudslides, Vivaldi references and vivacious Latin rhythms. Paul, who is French and American and grew up in Venezuela, is composer-in-residence with the Alabama Symphony this season. The residency is sponsored by the great organization NewMusic USA – read about it here I had a joyful time playing this piece and working with superb musicians and colleagues. Review of the concert here

Desenne rehearsal