Critiques

Barber’s Symphony No. 1, not performed by the CSO since 1969, is a remarkable work that ranks with other fine mid-century American symphonies. Lacombe was an animated leader who caught the sweep of the single-movement work, and imaginatively brought out details of its many moods. The strings projected a glorious sound in its its cinematic climaxes, and William Winstead’s bassoon provided humor in a scherzo section for winds.