BUTLER TWP — The Butler County Symphony Orchestra opened the 2010-2011 season with a cascade of "Water" music Saturday evening at the Butler Intermediate High School auditorium. Old and new works flowed together to make a delightful program.

Ron Nelson's "Savannah River Holiday" sparkled through impressionistic themes. Opening with choppy rhythms in the percussion and brass, the work moved into a tranquil section well suited to the gentle flow of the string section and then picked up speed as it rushed toward and exultant conclusion.

"Four Sea Interludes" from Benjamin Britten's "Peter Grimes" added a splash of color as the evocative music was accompanied by images by photographer Phil Norton. The Four movements: "Dawn, Sunday Morning, Moonlight, and Storm," were depicted visually as well as musically.

"Dawn" opened with a persistent, mystical undertone in the strings and woodwinds that slowly swelled to a free floating melody that culminated with the surging sunrise.

Bird song in the flutes heralded the first light of "Sunday Morning." Gradually the music washed into a theme set by the brass which then transitioned to the string section. A more stately and sonorous melody evoked the sense of worship confirmed by slowly ringing chimes.

In "Moonlight" the trombone and trumpet sections established a descending motif that was countered by the violins playing a series of ascending notes. The effect was of the crashing of waves. Then the marimba and trumpet entered in a duet of two notes echoed and eventually joined by the flute and harp to create the shimmer of a starlit night.

Even without the program list the opening notes of "Storm" left little doubt as to what it depicted. The tympani thundered and the trombones produced an ominous element. The crashing waves were imitated by conflicting themes in the trumpet and trombone sections.

Gradually the storm diminished and passed as the orchestra returned to calmer themes interrupted by the violins in passing frantic squalls.

Bedrich Smetana's "The Moldau" was an obvious selection for the "Water" theme. Named for a river in the Czech Republic, it is at once familiar and refreshing from its first swirling trickle of notes played by the flutes and punctuated by pizzicato notes played by the string section.

Increasing tempo was introduced by the cellos and accented by triangle. Repeating ascending and descending lines portrayed the water's flow as it swelled into a more assertive theme.

Then the woodwinds took over the water image through a largo section that once again quickens to a faster pace announced by the brass and flutes. The strings expressed water over rapids before "The Moldau" slowed to a majestic conclusion.

The orchestra transformed into a smaller chamber orchestra to accompany the featured artist of the evening, Jamey Turner who enchanted young and old with his mastery of a most unusual instrument, the glass harp.

Think Sandra Bullock in "Miss Congeniality." A small table jammed with glasses, goblets and snifters each partially filled with water was in front of the orchestra.

Opening with "Sailing and Fishing Medley" arranged by Don Franciso, Turner's fingers danced over the glasses creating a perky rendition of "Sailing, Sailing," Sailor's Hornpipe," (of Popeye the sailor fame) and "Fisher's Hornpipe." Turner was accompanied by Patricia Zawadski on flute.

Next, members of the audience were invited to participate in the "Lentement" or slow movement of Handel's "Water Music." An assortment of glasses had been arrayed on two long tables in front of the stage. At the direction of Conductor Elisabeth Heath Charles, these would-be musicians played two alternating chords underneath the melody line played by Turner.

Before starting the work, there was a bit of humorous but necessary business to attend to as Turner tuned his instrument to the orchestra by using a gallon jug of distilled water and a common turkey baster. It was additional proof of the sharply honed pitch sensitivity of the artist.

"Lentement" allowed Turner to display amazing dexterity as he sounded multiple tones with precise rhythm and intonation. The occasional mistakes by the amateurs were not detrimental to Turner's tour-de-force playing and were met with amused enthusiasm by the rest of the audience

The concluding work was a world premier of "The Water Suite: A Suite for Glass Harp, Piano, and Orchestra." It was written by Turner's sister, Patricia Tanttila Holmberg who played the piano part.

The first movement, "Spring Creek" started with a bluesy tune played by the woodwinds. Turner's melody on the glass harp was at once haunting and fragile.

"Summer Rain," the second movement, was introduced by pizzicato notes played by the strings to create the gentle dropping of the rain. The glass harp's natural vibrato enhanced the effect. A charming mid-movement duet by brother and sister was accentuated by short bursts from the piccolo.

The final movement was titled "The Mighty Colorado." It opened with the low brass instruments creating a constant flowing undertone marked by bird songs in the woodwinds.

The sedate melody drifted along with a distinctly western sonority until a change of character introduced a more urgent and vital theme. The cellos and basses acted as percussion in a more sophisticated mood that retained the syncopation of the earlier theme. A gradual decrescendo echoed the descending line of the concluding notes.

And as an added treat, Turner topped off the evening with a fluid rendition of Ludwig Beethoven's "Ode to Joy" which was greeted with a standing ovation to end the concert.