A Night at the Symphony

With a little "encouragement" from Kathy, we attended the San Antonio Symphony performance on Saturday.  We were looking forward to seeing niece Jennifer Berg perform with the symphony.  This was our first concert since Jennifer had obtained a permanent position as the symphony's English hornist.  As usual the symphony was performing at the Majestic Theatre, the entrance to which is shown above.

The Majestic Theatre is a wonderfully ornate San Antonio landmark.  While climbing the first of three flights of stairs to our seats in the upper balcony, we had this view of the lobby.  Did I say "ornate"? 

Our view of the stage as the musicians were warming up.  The concert opened with Aaron Copland's "Four Dance Episodes" from Rodeo.  We especially enjoyed the brief section which featured the English horn.

The second work was Ravel's Piano Concerto in G Major featuring guest pianist Ewa Jupiec.  To our delight, the second movement included a beautiful, extended conversation between the piano and Jennifer's English horn.  I may have captured part of that magical interlude in the photo above.

During the intermission following the piano concerto, we worked our way down to the front of the theater.  We were able to visit briefly with Jennifer, shown in the photo above with us and and my sister Beth and her husband, Jim, proud aunts and uncles all.

A view of the top of the stage as we returned to the balcony for the evening's finale, Mozart's Symphony No. 41, the Jupiter.  On our way out, I snapped some photos of a few of the interesting decorative features of the theater, including the interior windows below.

After the performance, we returned to our car via the Riverwalk.  The lighting was very nice.  Pictured above with the Texas flag on top is the historic Milam Building, the first high-rise air-conditioned office building in the United States.  It was built in 1928.  To the right is the Weston Centre, where I officed for several years before I left downtown in 1992.

On the way to our parking spot, we strolled past the Weston Centre, which was hosting some type of reception.  Unfortunately, the car parked out front, complete with chauffeur, was not ours.

Note:  To view all 21 photos from this evening in downtown, click here for my Flickr page, then click "Slideshow."