Join us at Chandler Saturday May 2nd at 4:00 PM for Vermont Philharmonic's Sparkle of Spring concert. Now in its 67th season, the VPO is Vermont's oldest community orchestra, bringing together professional and amateur musicians from across Vermont. Headlining will be Beethoven's Violin Concerto in D, composed in 1806 and widely considered one of the greatest violin concertos ever written. Initially critics called the solo part unplayable, and the work was rarely performed until 1844, when 12-year-old Joseph Joachim played it in London with Felix Mendelssohn conducting…after which it entered the permanent repertoire. At Chandler on May 2nd the soloist will be Arturo Delmoni, whom classical fans in the area may recognize from his years of performing in the Central Vermont Chamber Music Festival. He made his Carnegie Hall debut at age 14 and has since performed with major orchestras throughout the US, and has given recitals across the US, Europe, Japan, and Hong Kong. Yo-Yo Ma has described Delmoni as "an enormously gifted musician and an impeccable violinist" whose "gorgeous sound is reminiscent of that of great violinists from a bygone era." Also on the May 2nd program will be Mozart's Overture to Der Schauspieldirektor ("The Impresario"), a witty and colorful curtain-raiser composed in 1786; and Smetana's The Moldau, from his patriotic "My Fatherland" cycle. This tone poem follows Bohemia's river from its two mountain springs through forests and fields, past hunters and a peasant wedding, and finally in Prague as a broad stream. In this 67th season of the orchestra, Lou Kosma – the Vermont Philharmonic's Music Director since 1999 – will be conducting. A graduate of Temple University, he trained at Tanglewood and was a member of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra for 36 years under James Levine. Tickets are $25 for adults and $20 for seniors, online on chandler-arts.org, by phone at 802-728-9878, or at the door. Students are free.