Pump Room on the Arno

The 45 members of the Orchestra della Toscana walked on stage at the Teatro Verdi, as orchestra members do, one by one and in pairs, from all directions.  Each had an instrument in hand if it were not already on stage. The men were dressed appropriately in tuxedos. The women wore full-length ruby red gowns.  After the sound check and instrument tuning, the evening’s Maestro, Mr. Steward Franklin Wilson, arrived and took the podium.

After a very brief pause, Maestro Wilson was followed on stage by six African American women, elegantly dressed in black with bright red scarfs adorned with a hint of sequines, and two African American men dressed in tuxedos.  They took their places behind standing microphones and thus began a wonderful two-hour gospel and spiritual “Concerto di Natale” by The Sue Conway Victory Singers. 

The Sue Conway Victory Singers hail from Chicago, and Sue Conway is apparently a fixture on the Chicago blues/jazz/gospel scene, and for good reason. She has a magnificent voice and the stature of the recently deceased Cesaria Evora.  Firenze was the last stop on their seven day, seven city Tuscan tour.  I suspect they received excellent reviews along the way because il teatro was full.

I Fiorentini can be a bit stodgy at times (OK, most of the time) so it was interesting to watch the clash of cultures as the concert started.  Ms. Conway started by saying “Hallelujah” and reached out, arms spread widely towards the audience, expecting a reply from the audience.  Well, I Fiorentini are not comfortable with audience engagement unless they have initiated it.  So it took a few more prompts and hallelujahs from Ms. Conway before the crowd responded.  About 20 bars into their first song, the Victory Singers were clapping vigorously and I Fiorentini were not quite sure if they should be clapping along or not.  By the end of the third song, I Fiorentini figured out that it was acceptable, and even expected, that they should clap along and enjoy themselves, so their collective guard went down and the Victory Singers responded accordingly.  The orchestra, for its part, was the most animated I’ve ever seen - clapping along when they weren’t playing, constantly bobbing their heads to the gospel beat and standing up on several occasions, reminiscent of a 40’s big band. They were clearly enjoying themselves.  The Victory Singers sang their hearts out in a wonderful performance that concluded with a gospel arrangement of the Handel’s Hallelujah Chorus and a rousing encore.  

By this point, I Fiorentini were thoroughly enjoying themselves – to the point of swaying back and forth in their seats (who can’t to rousing gospel music?) taking pictures and sharing the encore via their cellphones with loved ones at home.  For two hours on Christmas Eve, il Teatro Verdi was home to The Pump Room on the Arno and what a delightful place it was to be.