'Romance with Brio' earns audience's bravos

Romance and love were in the air Sunday at First (Scots) Presbyterian Church on Sunday afternoon. The Early Music Series starred countertenor Jose Lemos in a program of melodies and dance pieces which have come down from the Sephardic Jewish culture of early Spain. "Romance with Brio" was its title.

Brio, an offshoot of Pro Musica, was founded by Steve Rosenberg, who also plays recorders, renaissance guitar and shepherd's pipe, Lemos, Wade Davis on cello, and percussionist Danny Mallon. What a team they make!

The songs were all short and sung in sets of two or three. The keys were all minor, sometimes mournful, sometimes happy, depending on whether or not love was reciprocated. Most of them would have had merely a hint of a melody line on paper, leaving the performers to put their own spin on things.

Lemos sings with fantastic breath control, particularly in his high register as he spins out a phrase. His sense of nuance with this simple music brings it alive, as it did in the opening number, "Noches, Noches."

"Debka,"an ancient dance piece, had Rosenberg playing two recorders at the same time, which impressed the audience, as did the added percussion.

"Las Estreyas" (the stars) had the hint of a Bolero rhythm in it and "Las Muchachas de Servir" gave Davis a chance to solo on the cello. Davis is a relative newcomer to the Piccolo scene but is surely someone we would expect to hear more from in the future.

"Tambourine" improvisation came alive under the nimble fingers of Danny Mallon. Who knew a simple tambourine could hold an audience's attention long enough to have a solo spot? Wow!

"Una Tarde de Verano" showed Lemos' voice accompanied only by Mallon's castenets. Very creative.

The program concluded with "A la Una", a high-energy piece including all the musicians, and brought the audience to its feet demanding an encore. The audience was reluctant to have this multi- talented group leave the stage.