Guest artist captivates Philharmonic audience

The Las Vegas Philharmonic, under the direction of David Itkin, and guest saxophonist Eugene Rousseau combined Saturday for a night of fun and fantasy.

The evening opened with Felix Mendelssohn's "The Hebrides Overture (Fingal's Cave)," written during and after the German composer's boat trip to Scotland. The orchestra captured the passion of the sea, simple and easily flowing around the ship on its way; then turbulent and challenging; then calming before a bright, upbeat conclusion.

Rousseau was featured on Henri Tomasi's "Concerto for Alto Saxophone." Rousseau captivated the audience from the beginning, in a composition with opening passages that could substitute as the theme for a '50s film noir. He and the orchestra brought just the right undercurrent of suspicion and trepidation mixed with soulful cynicism. As the piece progressed, the mood turned upbeat, jazzy, big and brassy.

After intermission, the orchestra returned with Rimsky-Korsakov's "Scheherazade, Op. 35."

Concertmaster DeAnn Letourneau set the tone with her featured, soulful violin, as the orchestra romped through a piece Itkin described as a children's favorite. The four movements are as accessible as they are understandable. The sultry, simmering but ultimately romantic emotion is there for everyone to hear, and the orchestra demonstrated the passion and intensity required to involve and envelop the audience.