The Blue Danube & Beyond

The Florida Orchestra pictures Vienna as refined with a cheeky streak, and Resident Conductor Chelsea Gallo builds The Blue Danube & Beyond on that idea. The Masterworks program opens with the Ferdinandus Waltz by the 19th-century composer Constanze Geiger. Principal cellist Yoni Draiblate then plays the five-movement Cello Concerto by Friedrich Gulda, the Austrian pianist who moved easily between classical music and jazz and brought both into this score. After intermission, Johann Strauss Jr.'s Blue Danube is followed by Richard Strauss's Rosenkavalier Suite. A pre-concert conversation takes place in the theater before the music starts.