“Add to the Cleveland Orchestra’s already long list of powers the ability to turn back time,” writes Zachary Lewis in Thursday’s (8/8) Plain Dealer (Cleveland). “Last night may have been the seventh of August, but on that ‘Star-Spangled Spectacular’ evening, the orchestra convinced a packed Mall B it was the Fourth of July … with music, fireworks, and a party on the lawn… Pushed to Aug. 7 by Cleveland’s hosting of the 2019 All-Star Game, the 30th ‘Star-Spangled Spectacular’ went forward Wednesday without a hitch…. Visitors were able to enjoy a long early evening, the full concert, and the second fireworks display of the summer…. Clevelanders [who arrived early] heard performances by the Jazz At the Music Settlement Ensemble and the Cleveland Police Pipes & Drums band…. Conductor Loras John Schissel, the beloved leader of the Blossom Festival Band, returned to the podium … to preside over a refreshing mix of light classical, patriotic, and popular works [including] John Williams’s … music from ‘E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial’ and his overture to ‘The Cowboys.’ … Schissel rightly wrapped the evening and preceded the fireworks show with a snappy performance of an American work, Sousa’s ‘The Stars and Stripes Forever.’ ”
Posted August 9, 2019
