It was a great evening at the Lewis Auditorium at Flagler College in St. Augustine, Florida. The Russian National Orchestra was founded in 1990 and has been described as “a living symbol of the best in Russian art” (Miami Herald) and “as close to perfect as one could hope for” (Trinity Mirror). The orchestra maintains an active international schedule with appearances throughout the music capitals of Europe, Asia and the Americas.

Conductor Kirill Karabits started the concert with a great performance of Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Vocalise. The star of the evening was next as violinist Alexey Bruni delivered a brilliant performance of Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 35. The three part concerto is incredibly complex. A friend told me it is not performed often because the piece is too difficult to play for most concert violinists. I believe it.

After the intermission, Karabits conducted Alexander Glazunov’s four part Symphony No 8 in E-flat Major, Op. 83. The symphony brought out the full diversity and expertise of the orchestra’s outstanding string, brass, woodwind, and percussion sections. After a sustained standing ovation, the orchestra played an encore. The name of it was not announced, but I recognized it from the sound track of my favorite movie: The Hunt for Red October.