Review: Tidewater Classical Guitar Orchestra

Isaac Rowlingson, staff writer

On Sunday, Nov. 19 at 3 p.m., the Tidewater Classical Guitar Orchestra played at PVCC’s V. Earl Dickinson theatre. The auditorium was filled with a diverse audience. As the musicians came out, the audience applauded them.

The first part of the concert was the full guitar orchestra. The performers were separated into four groups ranging from high to low pitch. The director of the group, a guitarist on the end, explained how this setup allowed them to play compositions intended for violin orchestra as well. They adapted many styles and pieces of music to their setup throughout the show.

Following a 10-minute intermission, the second part of the show was scaled down to a quartet consisting of only the section leaders. This part was mainly impressionistic music, and they explained the various interpretations and intricacies of each of the three pieces performed.

While this was a serious show and they are highly skilled guitarists, they also had fun with each other and the audience. Their performance was mesmerizing, playful, and dynamic. In between songs, the musician on the far end from the director told jokes.

As they were about to start the third part of the show, many of the guitarists were tuning their instruments, and everyone was aware of how long it was taking. The man looked at the audience and asked, “Are the Redskins still winning?” which broke the ice. He then said, “They were in tune when we bought them.” As he began to roll with his routine, he landed on another joke, “How can you tell if a guitarist has broken up with his girlfriend? He’s homeless.”

As they were getting ready to close out their concert, the musician next to him got carried away as well and pointed to the inclined seating and said, “In tidewater everything is so flat, but around here even the seats are hilly!”