I went down to Inner Harbour yesterday for the 22nd annual Symphony Slash. This is a huge event that has 40,000 thousand people sitting or standing around the harbour, on the lawn of the Legislative Building and Empress Hotel, on boats in and around the harbour, and leaning out the windows of the Empress. "Admission" is by donation as the event is free.
Each year the concert has a theme and this year the selections were nature-themed to honour B.C. Parks' 100th anniversary. The selections included old favourites such as Roses From the South by Johann Strauss, Coming Up Roses by Jules Styne and By the Sleepy Lagoon by Eric Coates. But for me, the most beautiful and impressive piece was Winds of Kananaskis by seventeen-year-old Jared Richardson. He spoke from the barge where the orchastra played and told us that he composed the piece when he was 15 after a vacation to the Alberta Rockies. Also featured each year is an up and coming artist. This year it was 11 year-old soloist Alice Haekyo Lee on violin.
The evening always concludes with a performance of of Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture, accompanied by fireworks and cannons which is followed by pipers ending the evening with Amazing Grace.
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