Antonio Vivaldi saw summer a bit differently than we do today. In our air-conditioned world, we can retreat inside to cool comfort when the temperature rises. For Vivaldi, summer was a time of heat, buzzing flies and wasps, and nasty sudden storms. He wrote poetry to set the scene for his violin concertos called "The Seasons." This line is part of "Summer:" "A severe storm is in the offing - and for his destiny."

True words. I waited out hail and down-pouring rain to dash to my car scant minutes before Sunday afternoon's concert at the Clay Center only to have wind rip my umbrella from my hand and to get a thorough soaking. A change of clothes later, the rain had subsided, but a vivid experience was had.

Violinist Julie Leven, the guest soloist, and a small string ensemble of the West Virginia Symphony achieved vivid results with Vivaldi's "Seasons." No one got soaked, but I suspect some sweat flying in all the rapid bowing in the string parts.

Leven played with a gutsy tone in the fast movements of "Summer" and "Winter." (Vivaldi's "Winter" is every bit as nasty as "Summer," with cold and snow replacing heat and flies.) Leven's sound was tight and wiry, if not particularly pretty, but pretty can be an effect. In the rustic-sounding slow movement of "Winter," she colored her tone sweetly and brought just the right amount of warmth to it.

She bustled through the cadenza in "Summer," playing the multi-note chords with fire.

"Spring" and "Autumn" offer the most chances to charm with beauty. Leven did not fail in the bird-like filigrees in the former and a fine little duo with the cellist Andrea Di Gregorio in the latter.

The orchestra's accompaniment often is flamboyant, but Grant Cooper's insightful conducting kept things well ordered and brought plenty of rhythmic energy.

Soprano Janet Brown joined the ensemble for two works by Handel. Her voice is light and clear, and she never seems to miss a pitch. The first work, "Gloria," gained from her lively ornamentation and the way her voice seems to absorb the instrumental colors around her. Cooper and the orchestra played liltingly in the accompaniments.

The cantata, "Armida Abandoned," was darker in tone, about a woman mourning and raging about the betrayal of her lover as she watches his ship sail out to sea. Brown's Italian diction was exemplary, and the orchestra's side-by-side Italian/English texts made following the story easy.

The jilted lover even calls sea monsters to attack the ship. Handel's music, 250 years before John Williams' "Jaws," has that sort of gusto.

A good-sized crowd turned out for the program, part of Charleston's FestivAll.

Antonio Vivaldi saw summer a bit differently than we do today. In our air-conditioned world, we can retreat inside to cool comfort when the temperature rises. For Vivaldi, summer was a time of heat, buzzing flies and wasps, and nasty sudden storms. He wrote poetry to set the scene for his violin concertos called "The Seasons." This line is part of "Summer:" "A severe storm is in the offing - and for his destiny."

True words. I waited out hail and down-pouring rain to dash to my car scant minutes before Sunday afternoon's concert at the Clay Center only to have wind rip my umbrella from my hand and to get a thorough soaking. A change of clothes later, the rain had subsided, but a vivid experience was had.

Violinist Julie Leven, the guest soloist, and a small string ensemble of the West Virginia Symphony achieved vivid results with Vivaldi's "Seasons." No one got soaked, but I suspect some sweat flying in all the rapid bowing in the string parts.

Leven played with a gutsy tone in the fast movements of "Summer" and "Winter." (Vivaldi's "Winter" is every bit as nasty as "Summer," with cold and snow replacing heat and flies.) Leven's sound was tight and wiry, if not particularly pretty, but pretty can be an effect. In the rustic-sounding slow movement of "Winter," she colored her tone sweetly and brought just the right amount of warmth to it.

She bustled through the cadenza in "Summer," playing the multi-note chords with fire.

"Spring" and "Autumn" offer the most chances to charm with beauty. Leven did not fail in the bird-like filigrees in the former and a fine little duo with the cellist Andrea Di Gregorio in the latter.

The orchestra's accompaniment often is flamboyant, but Grant Cooper's insightful conducting kept things well ordered and brought plenty of rhythmic energy.

Soprano Janet Brown joined the ensemble for two works by Handel. Her voice is light and clear, and she never seems to miss a pitch. The first work, "Gloria," gained from her lively ornamentation and the way her voice seems to absorb the instrumental colors around her. Cooper and the orchestra played liltingly in the accompaniments.

The cantata, "Armida Abandoned," was darker in tone, about a woman mourning and raging about the betrayal of her lover as she watches his ship sail out to sea. Brown's Italian diction was exemplary, and the orchestra's side-by-side Italian/English texts made following the story easy.

The jilted lover even calls sea monsters to attack the ship. Handel's music, 250 years before John Williams' "Jaws," has that sort of gusto.

A good-sized crowd turned out for the program, part of Charleston's FestivAll.