“No one would claim that conductor Paul Anthony McRae has any revelatory ideas about Beethoven’s Eroica, but at the same time there is no denying the success of his Saturday night performance with the Boca Raton Symphony.
It was, in essence, a steady form Eroica, with emphasis on the confident stride of the massive first movement, the nobility and grandeur of the Marcia Funebre, and the galloping energy of the Scherzo. At the same time, McRae’s sense of when to allow a moment’s relaxation and the general attention to melodic shapes and contours insured that the result was never deadpan or metronomic.
His forces played confidently, the strings providing solid, focused tone from the basses up to the fiddles.
Edouard Lalo’s Overture to Le Roi d’Ys also came off well, both in the quiet opening clarinet solo, supported by murmuring strings, to the more agitated body of the work.”
“The Boca Raton series of the Florida Philharmonic opened Saturday evening with a confident Paul Anthony McRae on the podium.
For its part, the orchestra sounded rather fresh and vivid, even spontaneous, and McRae was at his best in Stravinsky’s Firebird Suite (1919). He took a lyrical approach to the score, paying special attention to the subtlest passages. Throughout the first four sections, the conductor stressed colorful, dynamic shading, and in the finale, he kept his tempo expansive, making the most of the noble theme.”
“Greensboro concertgoers seldom get to hear Music Director Paul Anthony McRae work in such a dramatic context. Throughout the performance, McRae exerted admirable control over the orchestra, as the ensemble alternately played an accompanying or leading role. He matched Ms. Vaughn’s nuances, and she could be heard throughout the program, testament to both the power of the singer’s voice as well as McRae’s sensitive direction.”
“For most of the evening, the Pittsburgh Symphony played responsively for their guest conductor, Paul Anthony McRae, who provided Mozart with light, vibrant sonorities. He made fine work of the overture to”The Abduction from the Seraglio,” which moved with brisk transparency and possessed an eloquent oboist in Ann Leek. The orchestra also did some lovely playing in the Mozart Symphony No. 31 (“Paris”), in which McRae phrased with much grace and energy.”.
“There was no way to miss the significance of last Friday’s debut performance by the Boca Raton Symphony Orchestra under the direction of its music director, Paul Anthony McRae.
Doormen in livery bowed formally to the nearly 2,300 season ticket–holders, several incongruous touches of elegance adorned the lobby of the Florida Atlantic University Center Auditorium (even the pillars were not left alone, but draped in puffs of satiny cloth), and lavish, color-filled program books were distributed.
There is danger in image-consciousness, of course, a danger the Boca orchestra has been flirting with since its inception as a chamber symphony last year – it’s often very hard to live up to one’s own publicity. But on the evidence of its first appearance as an expanded, full symphony-sized ensemble, all of Friday’s public relations flourishes can be justified. It is clear that South Florida does indeed have a valuable addition to the music scene, a force that will likely play a major role in shaping the artistic future here.
The Boca Raton Symphony produced an often rich sound (the violins were especially admirable) and maintained an impressive degree of technical accuracy throughout most of the demanding program.
McRae chose two major showpieces, the Roman Carnival Overture by Berlioz and the Enigma Variations by Elgar, to surround the evening’s concerto. Since that concerto was the one for violin and orchestra by Brahms, it would not have been surprising had the concert proven disappointing.
But McRae’s control of the podium seems to have grown considerably since last season (in a rare gesture, the orchestra members gave him a hearty ovation following the concert), and this maturity proved a major asset.
The Berlioz was given a well-paced, vivid account that did not ignore the score’s more lyrical moments and the brass section was in particularly strong form.
In the Elgar, McRae shaped each variation thoughtfully, focusing sensitive attention on the rich melodic lines (the Nimrod variation was phrased with particular warmth) and bringing out the colorful orchestration.
That a Boca Raton Chamber Symphony could suddenly spring up in one year and then nearly double its size the next to become the Boca Raton Symphony Orchestra is a tribute to Paul Anthony McRae and a determined board of directors, headed by C. Cameron Jordan.”