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There are evenings when time collapses and the boundaries between centuries dissolve like morning mist over the Venetian lagoon. Such was the enchantment wrought by the American Classical Orchestra on October 28, 2025, within the acoustically resplendent sanctuary of Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church. Indeed, this wasn't merely a concert—it was a sonic séance, summoning the spirits of Italian Baroque masters with the kind of authenticity that would have made the most critical of audiences nod approvingly over a morning coffee.

Under the scholarly yet playful direction of Thomas Crawford, the evening unfolded as a carefully curated journey through the golden age of the violin concerto. Moreover, Crawford's introductions to each work proved themselves to be miniature masterclasses in musical history, delivered with the wit of Victor Borge’s elegant spoofs and Peter Schickele's immortal P.D.Q. Bach parodies. His erudition sparkled with humor, illuminating the context of each composition while never losing sight of the music's essential humanity.

Maestro Thomas Crawford conducts the American Classical Orchestra in a concert entitled "Magnificently Mozart," in Lincoln Center's Alice Tully Hall in New York City. Courtesy aconyc.org The Doctrine of Affections Brought to Life

The program commenced with Giuseppe Brescianello's Violin Concerto in G Major, Bre 9, featuring Chloe Fedor as violino principale. Fedor's playing embodied the Baroque Doctrine of Affections with extraordinary precision—each movement maintaining its singular emotional character, whether jubilant or contemplative. Her tone, which The New York Times has praised as "lovely, plush, seductive," captured the courtly elegance of works originally performed in the aristocratic salons of Württemberg, where Brescianello served as Kapellmeister.

Subsequently, Tomaso Albinoni's Violin Concerto No. 12 in B-flat Major, Op. 10, showcased Edson Scheid's remarkable technical facility. The piece, likely commissioned for Venetian nobility, demonstrated the sophisticated interplay between soli (solo instruments), ripieno (full ensemble), and basso continuo—that essential foundation of harpsichord and bass described as the rhythmic and harmonic spine of Baroque music. Crawford's harpsichord work, discreet yet indispensable, provided the rhythmic pulse binding these disparate voices into a cohesive whole.

L-R: Edson Scheid, Violin. Photo by Mei Stone. Aisslinn Nosky, Violin. Photo courtesy aisslinn.com Tartini's Mystical Depths and Bach's Architectural Splendor

Transitioning to Giuseppe Tartini's Violin Concerto in E Minor, D. 56, Augusta Lodge revealed depths of expression that seemed to channel the composer's own legendary "Devil's Trill" mysticism. As concertmaster of Les Arts Florissants, Lodge brought a superb commanding presence. Consequently, her interpretation demonstrated how Tartini's works, originally performed at the Basilica di Sant'Antonio in Padua, were designed to move the soul through specific musical rhetorical devices.

Meanwhile, Johann Sebastian Bach's famed Concerto for Two Violins in D Minor, BWV 1043 featured the dynamic pairing of Nosky and Fedor. Their dialogue resembled two streams of consciousness flowing in parallel, sometimes diverging, sometimes merging in unexpected pools of harmony. The ripieno section, comprising Jessica Troy and Kyle Miller on violas, Loretta O'Sullivan on cello, and John Feeney on bass, provided a foundation as sturdy as the Gothic arches of Leipzig's Thomaskirche, where Bach himself once presided.

L-R: Loretta O'Sullivan, Cello. Photo by David Rodgers. Chloe Fedor, Violin. Courtesy chloefedorviolinist.com

We were also treated to an unannounced performance of a pensive segment from a Vivaldi work performed by solo cellist Loretta O’Sullivan with bass and continuo. Transcendent and elegiac.

Vivaldi's Playful Audition and Crawford's Comic Genius

One of the evening's many delightful surprises arrived with Antonio Vivaldi's Concerto for Four Violins in B Minor, RV 580, and a well-earned encore performance of "Autumn" from The Four Seasons. Here, Crawford's theatrical gifts blazed forth. Having introduced Vivaldi's dual roles as priest and maestro at Venice's Ospedale della Pietà—that remarkable institution where orphaned and abandoned girls received world-class musical training—Crawford invited the audience to imagine "Autumn" as an audition for young musicians seeking positions in Vivaldi's celebrated all-female orchestra.

ACO in a concert entitled Virtuosi Violini. Courtesy @americanclassicalorchestra on Instagram

As the musicians performed, Crawford interjected humorous asides from the harpsichord in the spirit of “glib glissandos,” “unvirtuous vibrato,” and “indignant crescendos” (my words)—the sorts of comments conductors typically mutter under their breath as they sneer at hapless musicians. This inspired bit of musical theater illuminated a historical truth: Vivaldi composed hundreds of works for his talented students, many of whom achieved international renown. The legendary Anna Maria dal Violin, for instance, inspired numerous concerti showcasing her virtuosic capabilities. Crawford's commentary, while comic, honored the profound pedagogical relationship between the "Red Priest" and his remarkable students.

The Perfect Acoustic Canvas

Throughout the evening, the Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church provided an ideal setting for period instrument performance. Designed in 1899 by James E. Ware & Son and acoustically renovated in the late 1990s, the sanctuary's marble surfaces and soaring vaulted ceiling created the kind of reverberation that early music demands. Furthermore, the church's magnificent Casavant pipe organ, installed in 1962 and designed by the renowned organist Robert Baker, represents the venue's commitment to musical excellence. Though silent this evening, its presence reminded us that this sacred space has long been a haven for historically informed performance.

L-R: Augusta McKay Lodge, Violin. Photo credits to Lauren Desberg and Kevin Condon. Jessica Troy, Viola. Courtesy aconyc.org

The ACO's use of period instruments—wooden flutes, gut strings, valveless brass, and leather-headed timpani (just strings and harpsichord tonight)—produces timbres familiar to audiences in 18th-century Venice, Vienna, and Leipzig. Authentic instruments don't merely recreate historical sounds; they reveal compositional choices that modern instruments often obscure. The natural blend of these instruments, their capacity for subtle dynamic shading, and their inherent clarity of line allowed the music's rhetorical gestures to speak with unprecedented eloquence.

A Testament to Musical Time Travel

This concert exemplified all that makes the American Classical Orchestra indispensable to New York's cultural landscape. Crawford and his superlative musicians don't merely perform Baroque music; they inhabit it, understand it, and—most importantly—communicate its emotional truth to contemporary audiences. Their adherence to period performance practice, combined with Crawford's infectious enthusiasm and pedagogical clarity, transforms each concert into both an entertainment and an education.

As the final notes of "Autumn" faded into the church's reverberant space, one couldn't help but reflect on Virginia Woolf's observation that "the beauty of the world has two edges, one of laughter, one of anguish, cutting the heart asunder." The ACO's artistry navigates both edges with consummate skill, reminding us why these centuries-old compositions continue to speak to the human condition with undiminished power.

The American Classical Orchestra's October concert at Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church delivered an extraordinary evening of Italian Baroque masterworks performed on period instruments with virtuosic scholarly precision, stunning artistry, and Thomas Crawford's signature wit. Don't miss their captivating 2025-26 season, which promises more historically informed performances that transport audiences across centuries.

L-R: Kyle Miller, Viola. Courtesy fournations.org. John Feeney, Bass. Courtesy aconyc.org

Virtuosi Violini and the American Classical Orchestra

For more insights into classical music performance and the power of period instruments, explore articles at Opening Night Online, where music criticism meets cultural commentary in sophisticated yet accessible prose.

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