Snow-bird alert - great Florida orchestra

A highlight of our stay in St Petersburg was a “Coffee Concert” by the Florida Orchestra. Formed in 1966 when the Tampa Philharmonic and the St Petersburg Symphony merged, the Florida Orchestra performs a variety of classic and lighter orchestral music around Tampa Bay. The orchestra’s Board is headed by our own Tom Farquhar, and Barbara is also active with the group. We attended at the beautiful Mahaffey Theatre, with superb acoustics. The 2000 seat theatre was filled almost to capacity. The “coffee concerts” are intended to broaden the audience for classical music, and perform portions, such as a single movement, of symphonies and suites. We attended the Tchaikovsky Celebration, an almost two-hour concert featuring works from his entire career. Each piece was introduced by the guest conductor, Jacomo Bairos, who has the charisma of Keith Lockhart and a bright future. The orchestra had a rich clear sound, and is clearly first-class. If you winter in the Tampa Bay area, put the Florida Orchestra on your must-do list