Category: Instrumental Ensemble

Leslie Dunner, the third conductor seeking the music director position for the Greensboro Symphony Orchestra, led a concert that careened wildly between styles Saturday night. All four compositions were written in the 20th century by composers of different countries: the United States, Germany, Latvia, and Italy.

Maestro Dunner is currently conductor of the Interlochen Arts Academy as well as interim artistic director of the South Shore Opera Company (Chicago). He is also the first American prize-winner of the Toscanini International Conducting Competition. The soloist for the evening, mezzo-soprano Gina Perregrino, is primarily known for her opera performances with the opera companies of Atlanta, Minnesota, St. Louis, Santa Fe, and more.

The evening opened with “Three Dance Episodes” from On the Town (1944) by Leonard Bernstein (US, 1918-90). The work began as a Jerome Robbins ballet (Fancy Free), reworked to become the Broadway musical, and eventually became a motion picture in 1949. The “Three Dance Episodes” is derived from the musical.